Written by Andrew Chambliss
Illustrated by Georges Jeanty
As Xander, Dawn, and Willow retreat into their own complicated lives, Buffy finds herself drawn more closely to her new friend Severin, a mysterious crime fighter in his own right, and a snappy dresser to boot. Together they take on a new kind of vampire threat while Buffy’s not-in-the-know roomies start snooping through her unslept-in bedroom. Now what could they possibly find?
Welcome to another installment of our very own series devoted to the continuing canonical exploits of Buffy the Vampire Slayer! The series has been moving at a breakneck speed since issue one, explaining the fallout from the previous season and introducing the new big-ish bad, along with a host of other dangers for our heroine. Here we hope to give you a rundown of what the book is doing and how it’s telling the story. Is it unfolding like it should or are we expecting Adam to pop up any time soon?
You can only find out by hitting that jump!
I’m so glad Buffy Season Nine happened. After the hot, bloated, meandering mess that was Season Eight, it’s a great thing to dive into a comic and instantly feel like I’m watching the TV show in comic book format. Everything so far has been so…organically Buffy…that I get lost in the pages and just marvel at the universe as a whole. There’s a whole other level of being drawn into the series due to the setting of the book (I can’t be the only one who appreciates it when pop culture gets local), which being a real world sense to the book. Don’t get me wrong, I love Sunnydale, but there’s something to be said for a real town setting like Angel’s setting in Los Angeles to ground it in a reality that it would normally not be present in a fictional town like Sunnydale (although, true story: when I was a kid, I thought Sunnydale was actually a town near San Jose named Sunnyvale). Case in point: the police.
While the military was a near constant presence in the 4th season of Buffy and had a smattering of episodes in the final three seasons of the show, there was never really a focus on how the police might handle demonic suspects, or even the appreciation (or possible lack thereof) they would have for a gang of supernatural characters slaying vampires, demons, and evil mayors. Putting them in San Francisco gives Buffy that new “realistic” dynamic while giving it a feel distinct from Angel, along with maintaining that unmistakable California aura, moving up north to the second most well-known city in the Golden State. The police chase for Buffy is an organic and provides that urgency that was lacking in the TV show (not to disparage the TV show, because it was not needed then). And let’s face it, in superhero comics (much like this one) the police are a mainstay, and most series’ don’t make sense without them.
This Severin character, whom was revealed to be the big-gish bad last issue, proved his mettle as a serviceable threat to our lead as well. Using his sneaky magic stealing abilities, he pushed her to the limit. His ability to syphon the demonic energies out of any supernatural creature, effectively severing (heh, get it? “Severin”) their connection to any sort of magical remnants that might be left. He is ultimately revealed to be little more than a minion of someone even more sinister than he could ever have been. This is where you’re rewarded for keeping up with Season Eight. It won’t be someone you necessarily expect otherwise, as I completely forgot about this character (I had to do a quick Wikipedia search to find them), but it made total sense.
One of the most beautiful moments in the series came from an exchange between our new Demonic Ally and everyone’s favorite platinum blond rock star vampire Spike. At one point, Koh asks Spike about his relationship with The Slayer, which Spike puts down as “nothing sudsy.” However, when he describes what Buffy deserves, he describes someone who is clearly not him. The pain in his words is palpable, and you can almost HEAR Spike’s heart breaking just thinking about the fact he’ll never be what he feels the love of his afterlife needs. It’s a brilliant character moment that speaks to the ability of the storytelling abilities of both Chambliss AND Jeanty.
Continued belowNaturally, the book is absolutely outstanding from a visual standpoint. At this point, however, it’s becoming a chore to talk about just HOW much I love Georges Jeanty’s art throughout the two seasons. Everything he renders in the book is gorgeous. The characters continue to carry on the spirit of the original series’ actors and sublimely put their distinct personalities into play. Perhaps this example is best provided by Xander, whose entire spirit seems to have transferred nearly perfectly onto the 4 color page. His sense of action continues to stand out, as he pencils a fight scene to take up nearly a whole issue, but it never loses its steam or gets boring. It’s just a joy to see. His chemistry with Chambliss seems to be just as strong as his chemistry with the man Joss Whedon himself, and possibly even more. Their chemistry really makes the book special.
There was one thing I really had a problem with in the issue, and while it might be a nitpick; it ultimately was something large enough to affect my thoughts on the entire issue. While it’s fine that it started with a “3 Months Earlier” flashback on the first page, the transition to the present day without any warning other than the fact they were fighting was…disorienting at first. It was far too abrupt and it would not have hurt the narrative to drop a “present day” box on the far right of the next page just to give a better flow between the past and present. While it was a small ball that was dropped, in my opinion, it was a little important as well.
However, despite that VERY small but noticeable hiccup, the book is still running on all cylinders creatively. I hope Chambliss stays the script-writer on the series, as he knows exactly what to do to keep it quality. The same goes for Jeanty, who is one of the most reliable artists in the industry.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – Buy
