Armed forces and police forces, at least generally in the U.S. these days, seek volunteers.

Adult volunteers.

(I still don't think Kendra was typical, except of slayers from her culture and similar cultures. There was too much of a keep it secret--keep it safe attitude about Buffy's identity.)

Armed forces and police forces, at least generally in the U.S. these days, seek volunteers. This goes back some years, but my brother went into the Army when he graduated high school. He and the local recruiter would visit regularly all summer (he had some problems getting in, IIRC, because he was underweight). Recruiter started to express an interest in me as well until I (politely) made it clear that I planned to continue college

That's in the US. Now. Many western countries still have the draft and even yours did until not that long ago, historically speaking.

Seen Band of Brothers? Soldiers in wartime don't get a lot of R&R.

Seen Band of Brothers? Soldiers in wartime don't get a lot of R&R.

Sure, but they're not coerced/guilted into it with no hope of getting out before they die. There is some hope they'll get out alive--not so with the slayer. They're a band of brothers, not one girl in all the world. They're fighting in a cause that is acknowledged to their families, friends and the outside world. They aren't alone.

Right. The difference between a watcher and a slayer is that a watcher may choose his calling, and a slayer may not.

Everything after that is about how the watcher treats the slayer, and whether they regard each other with respect. Which, thankfully for Buffy, in practice is a thing that varies widely among watchers. But it's still a system wide open for abuse and stupidity.

Or was, when Wesley and Giles weren't the only watchers on this earth (to my knowledge).

Right. The difference between a watcher and a slayer is that a watcher may choose his calling, and a slayer may not.

It is an inherited thing with the watchers, isn't it?

Giles tells Buffy his story in Season 1 in a "I didn't have a choice either, I know what you're going through" kinda way....so not sure if they really did have a choice.

He didn't have a choice in the sense that, I don't know, the Prince of Wales doesn't have a choice. I very much doubt the CoW would have kidnapped Giles if he'd decided to become a grocer after all. (Though if you want to do a particularly dark CoW, you could probably make an argument for it.)

Of course, young Watcher-get would've been inculcated with a Sense of Duty.

For that matter, I've always thought Buffy had a choice too, albeit a lousy one. She might well have been in danger from the CoW had she walked away, but she always could have.

My total, non-canonical guess is that the watchers have a bit more choice, because in the instance of any given watcher (until season 7's slaughters, anyhow), any given watcher wasn't the one person in all the world. There wasn't the same sort of guilt. Also, Watchers might disown their children who didn't join in the fight, but I would imagine if there was a reluctant slayer, they would kill her to spawn a new one.

Sure, but they're not coerced/guilted into it with no hope of getting out before they die. There is some hope they'll get out alive--not so with the slayer. They're a band of brothers, not one girl in all the world. They're fighting in a cause that is acknowledged to their families, friends and the outside world. They aren't alone.

The hope that they will get out alive is just hope and faint at best. Many many of those guys didn't come back. We all die alone. Most of them were drafted, put through intense training by assholes they hated, then led to their deaths. In her fight, the Slayer faces her odds in smaller numbers and isn't likely to be killed in any other way than face-to-face, on her own terms. She always has a Watcher, and while these people always seem to be stuffy British people, lots of stuffy British people are wonderful, without being blessed with Californication in their lives to make them acceptable to the viewing public. The Slayer's war has to be secret, so that ordinary people can live the ordinary lives she is fighting for. She's like a spy in that way. Live and die anonymously, but for a vital cause, nonetheless.

The hope that they will get out alive is just hope and faint at best. Many many of those guys didn't come back. We all die alone. Most of them were drafted, put through intense training by assholes they hated, then led to their deaths.

But being a slayer is like being the Pope. Being a soldier at least has the glimmer of hope, and an end-date, if you're fortunate enough to make it. This is apples and oranges, John. You're the slayer until you die. There are plenty of retired soldiers. There was never any such thing as a retired slayer, because of the nature of the beast. You stop fighting the forces of darkness, and they gain in numbers and kill you anyhow. That was the only way to get a new slayer.