Willow: "Carpe diem. You told me that once."

Buffy: "Fish of the day?

Willow: "Not carp. Carpe. It means seize the day."

Buffy: "Oh. Right. (a long pause) I think we're going to... seize it, Will. Sooner or later. Once you get to a certain point - seizing is sort of inevitable."

The contradictory concept of Time powerfully underpins the structure, the themes, the characterization and even the aesthetics of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Particularly for the young, it is centrally perceived as tyrannical fate, something that rushes on relentlessly bringing in its wake, risk, demands and obligations which can’t wait and to which the only sane response seems to be ‘seize the moment’ or ‘carpe diem!’. Simultaneously, though, as most of the characters understand it, Time is also about the everydayness of growing up and living. It is experienced as painfully mundane (‘fish of the day’) – a succession of seemingly endless moments of waiting, repetitive practice or training for the more exciting ‘real’ moments of life. And yet above all, in the series, Time is arbitrary, something that can also be slowed down, speeded up, manipulated and in some cases, reversed. This paper explores the (metaphysical and magical) role of Time in the series – considering the narrative and thematic imperatives in its linear and non linear manifestations, through story, character and aesthetics. It also focuses on those memorable episodes – "The Body," "Normal Again" and "Once More with Feeling" where the reflections of the arbitrary nature of Time are particularly and reflexively brought to the fore.