Darla

Other than the Master, and , of course, Angel, Darla is the most important figure in the vampire mythology from series one. A member of the Brethren of Aurelius, she is the first vampire seen in the series, when she kills a teenage boy in the first episode. In the same episode, she also becomes the first vampire to fight the Slayer (Thomas was the first vampire to attack Buffy, but she dusted him without having to engage in combat).

Darla is an interesting character because, while the Master habitually tortures or kills those who disobey him, Darla is able to be almost flippant, and, in fact, to disobey him without any obvious repercussions. Tasting Jesse's blood before handing him to the Master in "The Harvest" (1.2) is a good example of her disobedience. And yet, when Luke is killed in that very same episode, Darla takes his place as the Master's primary understudy.

The next time Darla appears is in "Angel" (1.7). The Master has sent a trio of warriors to dispense with Buffy, but "the Three" fail, and Darla gleefully kills them in punishment. In the same episode, a great deal is revealed during Darla's visit to Angel in his apartment. It is made clear that the two were involved for quite some time. In fact, the implication is that they were linked romantically, at least off and on, for the entire time that passed between Angelus becoming a vampire and the Gypsy cures that restored his soul. Darla brags that it was she who brought that very girl to Angel in the first place, and there is some suggestion that this took place in or near Budapest, at about the time of an earthquake there. It is also revealed that Darla sired Angel - she made him into a vampire. 

Darla formulates a plan, hoping to bring Angel back to the fold. If she can force him to kill Buffy, he will surely become evil again. To that end, she attacks Joyce, Buffy's mother, before trying to frame Angel for the crime. In the long run, it fails to work, and at the climax of the episode, it is Angel who stakes Darla.

Darla is played by Julie Benz.