Query: Buffy the Vampire Slayer is exclusively a Japanese television series.

Relevant passages:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer <=SEP=> Buffy the Vampire Slayer is an American television series created by Joss Whedon under his production tag , Mutant Enemy Productions with later co-executive producers being Jane Espenson , David Fury , David Greenwalt , Doug Petrie , Marti Noxon , and David Solomon . The series premiered on March 10 , 1997 , on The WB and concluded on May 20 , 2003 , on UPN . The series narrative follows Buffy Summers ( played by Sarah Michelle Gellar ) , the latest in a line of young women known as `` Vampire Slayers '' , or simply `` Slayers '' . In the story , Slayers are `` called '' ( chosen by fate ) to battle against vampires , demons , and other forces of darkness . Like previous Slayers , Buffy is aided by a Watcher , who guides , teaches , and trains her . Unlike her predecessors , Buffy surrounds herself with a circle of loyal friends who become known as the `` Scooby Gang '' .   The series received critical and popular acclaim , frequently being listed as one of the greatest TV shows of all time , and usually reached between four and six million viewers on original airings . Although such ratings are lower than successful shows on the `` big four '' networks ( ABC , CBS , NBC , and Fox ) , they were a success for the relatively new and smaller WB Television Network .   Buffy 's success has led to hundreds of tie-in products , including novels , comics , and video games . The series has received attention in fandom ( including fan films ) , parody , and academia , and has influenced the direction of other television series .

The WB <=SEP=> The WB Television Network ( commonly shortened to The WB and short for Warner Bros. ) was an American television network that was first launched on broadcast television on January 11 , 1995 as a joint venture between the Warner Bros. . Entertainment division of Time Warner and the Tribune Broadcasting subsidiary of the Tribune Company , with the former acting as controlling partner . The network principally aired programs targeting teenagers and young adults between the ages of 13 and 34 , with the exception of its weekday daytime and Saturday morning program block , Kids ' WB , which was geared toward children ages 7 to 12 .   On January 24 , 2006 , CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. . Entertainment announced plans to shut down the network and launch The CW later that same year . The WB Television Network shut down on September 17 , 2006 , with select programs from both it and competitor UPN ( which had shut down two days earlier ) moving to The CW when it launched the following day , September 18 .   Time Warner re-used The WB brand for an online network that launched on April 28 , 2008 , about 18 months after The WB Television Network ceased broadcasting operations . Until it was discontinued in December 2013 , the website allowed users to watch shows aired on the former television network , as well as original programming and shows formerly hosted on the now-defunct In2TV service ( which itself was created prior to Time Warner 's spinoff of AOL ) . The website could only be accessed within the United States .

UPN <=SEP=> The United Paramount Network ( UPN ) is a defunct American broadcast television network that launched on January 16 , 1995 . The network was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries/United Television ; then Viacom ( through its Paramount Television unit , which produced most of the network 's series ) turned the network into a joint venture in 1996 after acquiring a 50 % stake in the network , and then purchased Chris-Craft 's remaining stake in 2000 . In December 2005 , UPN was spun off to CBS Corporation when CBS and Viacom split up into two separate companies .   CBS Corporation and Time Warner jointly announced in January 2006 that the companies would shutdown UPN and competitor The WB to launch a new joint venture network later that year . UPN ceased broadcasting on September 15 , 2006 , and The WB ended two days later . Select programs from both networks moved to the new network , The CW , when it launched on September 18 , 2006 .