The general perception of the Council is that they are a group of (primarily) men who find, guide and train the Slayer in each generation. They are there to help her, to prepare her for the inevitable fight against evil. It's what they do, right? Nope.
Go back and watch episode 7x15, "Get It Done" - a bunch of shamans, or Shadowmen, saw a threat to the world (in the form of "vampires, demons and the forces of darkness") so kidnapped a young woman and infused her with the essence of a true demon in order to create the First Slayer. Ok, fine and dandy, we're still along the Watchers-Guide-Slayers philosophy. But what happens when they realize the weapon they just created has the power to destroy them and the Good in the world, should she choose? The only reason the Slayer's purpose is to fight the forces of evil is because the Council has always told her it was.
Here's how I view the Council. You know the old saying, 'Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer'? Somewhere down the line, the Council realized that the Shadowmen had created a potential Weapon of Mass Destruction, and so they decided to keep her in check and under their metaphorical thumb to prevent her from turning Dark Side. And what better way than to convince her that they are in her side, training her for her sole purpose in life; to defeat evil? When in reality, she's a girl with superpowers who actually has EVIL inside of her, not good (remember the whole Essence of a Demon thing?) and she could choose to be on either side, á là Faith LeHane.
So back to the original question: Is the Council good or evil? I could take the easy way out and say that it is comprised of humans, so it is neither good nor evil because, for the most part, humans are not either good or evil. But it's not really the "easy way out" because the Council is not completely one or the other; they claim to be a force of Good, individual Watchers view themselves as forces of Good, and for the most part, they do Good things in the world. But the bureaucracy involved in working with the Council inhibits as much as it allows, if not more so. So, my decision is that they are
[In case you were wondering about the title, it's a new series I want to start! I will pick any entity from a myriad of fandoms, discuss it, and then decide whether they are good or evil! The most fun are the more ambiguous ones, like the Council, but I'll do pretty obvious ones too, like Emperor Palpatine. And I'd love to hear your input! Who/What do you want me to discuss? Send me comments or tweets!]
