Buffy The Vampire Slayer

"Rory Is My Bitch!" He’s come a long way, baby. Buffy fans who know Danny Strong as Jonathan, the shy nerd from the evil Geek Trio, are seeing a whole new side of him on the WB’s Gilmore Girls. Tuesday marked his first episode as Rory’s new boss, Doyle, editor of the Yale newspsaper, who, get this, is not a dweeb.

"Isn’t that great?" Danny says with a laugh. "Isn’t that exciting? Not one ounce of geek. No Star Wars references. Actually, I don’t really care about playing geeks—it seems to come natural for me—but it’s fun to play a cool character."

Danny has shot two episodes, and he says there could be more, given that the newspaper storyline is likely to continue. At least, he hopes so, because he loves the show (was a fan before going on it) and loves his character.

"I love it because I get to lay down the line. I was Warren’s bitch for so long, and now Rory is my bitch."

For you non-Buffy buffs, he’s referring to the show’s "head geek," one-third of a trio that included Tom Lenk (Andrew), who, Danny confirms, will be back on Angel very soon. Danny says there are no current plans for Jonathan to guest, but "you never know. I did three more episodes after I died, and I got a raise to boot."

He also guested on the just canceled L.A. Dragnet, as an Internet porn mogul. "It’s very scummy, which is good for me," he says. "After all that sweetness from Buffy, it’s good to show my true colors a bit."

And he could use some lovin’. "I’ve actually never had a girlfriend on TV," Danny laments, "and I think Rory would be perfect. She’s a good four inches taller than me. And when’s the last time we saw that-L.A. Law?"