Bonus Episode - HellmouthCon 2026 Recap!
June 27, 2026
AI Summary
5 min readIt was a weekend of warm chocolate chip cookies, Vietnamese coffee, and finally walking the hallways of Sunnydale High. Sean and Melanie, hosts of The Sunnydale Diaries, attended HellmouthCon 2026 in Torrance, California, held at the actual Torrance High School that served as the filming location for the first three seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. What follows is a recap of their experience, from the surreal drive past the Summers house to the last-minute cosplay that became a highlight of the trip.
The Road to Hellmouth and the Friday Night Mixer
The adventure began with a logistical puzzle. Sean flew into Chattanooga, and the two drove to Atlanta together, catching a train to the airport the next morning. The Atlanta airport, one of the busiest in the world, was manageable thanks to TSA PreCheck. Upon landing in California, the first stop was a spontaneous one: they drove past Torrance High School and the real-life Summers house, which is simply a house in a normal neighborhood. They took photos before the crowds arrived, a moment Melanie described as "surreal."
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What you'll learn
- 1 (01:31) **Episode intro and HellmouthCon overview** - Hosts introduce the bonus recap of their weekend at the Buffy convention held at Torrance High School
- 2 (03:25) **Travel logistics and mishaps** - Road trip coordination, early Atlanta departure, and smooth pre-check flight experience
- 3 (05:44) **Friday location scouting** - Quick campus walk to photograph real-world filming sites before crowds arrived
- 4 (07:25) **Friday night mixer attempt** - Line wait and decision to leave the sold-out, capacity-limited event
- 5 (10:21) **Serendipitous background actor meeting** - Conversation with Regina while waiting in the mixer line
- 6 (11:53) **Saturday arrival and campus exploration** - Sunnydale High banner hung, initial walkthrough of the school
- 7 (14:35) **Clock tower search and discovery** - Full campus loops hunting a nonexistent landmark
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Sean and Melanie are back from HellmouthCon, and they have a lot to report from their trip to Torrance High School (the real-life Sunnydale High!!)
In this special recap episode, they talk about the travel adventure to California, seeing iconic Buffy filming locations in person, exploring the school campus, meeting fellow Buffy fans and podcasters, and connecting with cast members including Amber Benson, Claire Kramer, Larry Bagby, and James C. Leary. They also break down their Jenny Calendar and Giles cosplay, the amazing fan-made props and costumes they spotted, the immersive Sunnydale surprises around campus, and the very real challenge of keeping Melanie spoiler-free at a Buffy convention.
Plus: Vietnamese coffee, In-N-Out Burger, accidental brunch-crashing, a missing clock tower, Buffy location hunting around Los Angeles, and the joy of being surrounded by people who love this show just as much as they do.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime Sunnydale field trip and we’re taking you with us.
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