Buffy The Vampire Slayer

What now for the Slayerettes out there? For it came to pass that the object of their desire, a late-night cult TV show about a butt-kicking blonde destined to fight supernatural evil, ended. As all good things do.

The final episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on Tuesday night broke ratings records for Channel Seven, which has screened all seven series of the hit US show since 1997.

Thirty-two per cent of TV viewers on the night tuned in. It was only the second time this year that Buffy won its timeslot, out-rating The West Wing on Channel Nine, The Fat on the ABC and Rove Live and Sports Tonight on Channel Ten. An average of 241,985 people in Melbourne watched, a gain of 90,000 on the week before.

Predictably enough, Buffy, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar, saved the world. "That’s it," said a spokeswoman for Channel Seven. "Gone."

Over its seven series, Buffy attracted a broad demographic. It was a show that children, their teenage siblings and their parents could watch. As with Star Trek, you were either obsessed or totally nonplussed. The critics were universally gushing.

Last year, Melbourne fan Siobhan De Bincentiis, 26, organised a Buffy convention. Co-star Emma Caulfield was the guest of honour. This week, Ms De Bincentiis was left wondering how no Buffy on TV would affect her life. In seven years, she hasn’t missed an episode. "I’m in the middle of a grieving process," she said. "It was an obsession."