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Buffyverse Discussion (Spoilers)

The Twilight Mexican

Ex-SeeD-ingly good
AKA
TresDias
Well, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season Twelve: The Reckoning" #4 came out yesterday. This will be the last Buffy comic published by Dark Horse, and Joss Whedon (who co-authored these last four issues) has indicated it could very well be the final installment in the Buffy continuity we've known since 1997. There is an impending franchise reboot after all.

How was "The Reckoning" as an end for one of the most beloved series of my youth and adulthood? In some ways, awesome.

It really casts a satisfyingly wide net on characters from across the mythos, and made good on my longstanding hope of one day seeing the actual events of the climactic demon battle of the 21st century, the foreboding existence of which was brought to our attention in the first issue of the "Fray" limited series from 2001.

Otherwise, though, it's pretty much what you've come to expect from the Buffy comics. If you love them, you'll love this. If you find them kind of middling, that's how you'll feel about this too.

It does take a couple of extra steps to feel more like an ending than some of the previous comic season finales, but is largely indistinguishable from them in a sense of finality. That's probably purposely done here, though. If any mood has ever defined Buffy finales (on TV or on the comics page), it's "life goes on." That's absolutely the case here as well -- it just has one or two more bows on it this time.

The illustrations, if you concern yourself with such things by the way, are about par for the course for this series as well. That is to say, the cover art is gorgeous, then what's inside is quite messy, Georges Jeanty having returned to illustrate this finale after previously pencilling all of Buffy's Season Eight and Season Nine (not including the covers), as well as some of Season Eleven.

This negative review of his work is a subjective assessment, though, of course. Some comic readers really dig Jeanty's style (Joss Whedon even requested him specifically when Season Eight was going into production); I'm just not one of them, unfortunately.

Let me be clear: I certainly don't mean to imply that "Reckoning" is bad. It's not. Absolutely not.

It's a solid "fine" with some standout character moments in its writing, even if not its illustration. Overall, though, it's just fine, and I think most of us who are diehard fans expect more than that for the last "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" story.

If you're not a diehard BtVS fan, you can probably skip this. If you are, give it a go, even if you haven't read the previous comics.

It's actually pretty accessible to people who haven't picked up any of the comics, though I might recommend reading the eight-issue "Fray" limited series first, if you've not already. You'll know who everyone else is just from the TV series, and those personal developments in the characters' statuses you've not seen yet from over the past four comic seasons will probably amuse more than frustrate you when you learn about them.

If nothing else, I guarantee you'll have to at least feel five by five at the end. How many other Buffy finales have you gone into with that promise?
 

Lex

Administrator
Well, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season Twelve: The Reckoning" #4 came out yesterday. This will be the last Buffy comic published by Dark Horse, and Joss Whedon (who co-authored these last four issues) has indicated it could very well be the final installment in the Buffy continuity we've known since 1997. There is an impending franchise reboot after all.

How was "The Reckoning" as an end for one of the most beloved series of my youth and adulthood? In some ways, awesome.

It really casts a satisfyingly wide net on characters from across the mythos, and made good on my longstanding hope of one day seeing the actual events of the climactic demon battle of the 21st century, the foreboding existence of which was brought to our attention in the first issue of the "Fray" limited series from 2001.

Otherwise, though, it's pretty much what you've come to expect from the Buffy comics. If you love them, you'll love this. If you find them kind of middling, that's how you'll feel about this too.

It does take a couple of extra steps to feel more like an ending than some of the previous comic season finales, but is largely indistinguishable from them in a sense of finality. That's probably purposely done here, though. If any mood has ever defined Buffy finales (on TV or on the comics page), it's "life goes on." That's absolutely the case here as well -- it just has one or two more bows on it this time.

The illustrations, if you concern yourself with such things by the way, are about par for the course for this series as well. That is to say, the cover art is gorgeous, then what's inside is quite messy, Georges Jeanty having returned to illustrate this finale after previously pencilling all of Buffy's Season Eight and Season Nine (not including the covers), as well as some of Season Eleven.

This negative review of his work is a subjective assessment, though, of course. Some comic readers really dig Jeanty's style (Joss Whedon even requested him specifically when Season Eight was going into production); I'm just not one of them, unfortunately.

Let me be clear: I certainly don't mean to imply that "Reckoning" is bad. It's not. Absolutely not.

It's a solid "fine" with some standout character moments in its writing, even if not its illustration. Overall, though, it's just fine, and I think most of us who are diehard fans expect more than that for the last "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" story.

If you're not a diehard BtVS fan, you can probably skip this. If you are, give it a go, even if you haven't read the previous comics.

It's actually pretty accessible to people who haven't picked up any of the comics, though I might recommend reading the eight-issue "Fray" limited series first, if you've not already. You'll know who everyone else is just from the TV series, and those personal developments in the characters' statuses you've not seen yet from over the past four comic seasons will probably amuse more than frustrate you when you learn about them.

If nothing else, I guarantee you'll have to at least feel five by five at the end. How many other Buffy finales have you gone into with that promise?

I should say I've actually purchased the season 8 omnibi and am collecting the library editions of the remaining comics - I enjoyed my second run through season 8 more than the first time though I haven't finished it again yet and I remember finding the last arc particularly nuts.

That said I've heard nothing but good from everything AFTER S8 so I'm really looking forward to getting started on S9+. I just need to also read Angel + Faith and the prospect of purchasing all of these is burning a hole in my wallet ;-;

If anyone can find me the hardcover library editions of season nine (volumes 2 and 3) I'd really appreciate it.
 

Lex

Administrator
The omnibus editions only seem to exist for season 8 from what I've seen so far.

@The Twilight Mexican would you be able to simplify this for me?

Does it go Buffy Season 8, Buffy Season 9 + Angel and Faith Season 9, so on and so forth? I know about after the fall and how it's not Dark Horse and all that stuff but I don't want to skip a "season" of something haha.
 

The Twilight Mexican

Ex-SeeD-ingly good
AKA
TresDias
If you want to do this chronologically, it more or less goes

- 17-issue "Angel: After the Fall" series
- Four-issue "Spike: After the Fall" mini-series (set after issue #8 of Angel's series, but before #1)
- "Spike" eight-issue mini-series (precise timing uncertain, but definitely after the "After the Fall" series, and concludes before BtVS S8 #35)
- Buffy Season 8
- Buffy Season 9/"Angel & Faith"
- Buffy Season 10/"Angel & Faith," vol. 2
- Buffy Season 11/Angel Season 11/Giles four-issue mini-series
- Buffy four-issue Season 12
 
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Lex

Administrator
First look at the new Buffy comics:

https://sequentialplanet.com/boom-studios-unveils-first-look-at-buffy-the-vampire-slayer-1/

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Claymore

3x3 Eyes
They were at a panel together. Wizard World, Portland.

Have you check out the comic yet, Lex? It's on my list but didn't get a chance coz of the holiday. Going to give it a read over this weekend.
 

Lex

Administrator
Happened across another Charisma Carpenter video from some random convention and in response to a question about Cordelia's character development she said it was "great up until the point where they wrote me into a box and didn't know what to do", then makes various quips throughout about what happened to Cordelia. I love how candid she is about it all.
 
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