Season 8, Issue #1 (Spoilers) by Groosalugg

BUFFYVERSE

Season 8, Issue #1 (Spoilers)

POSTED BY: GROOSALUGG
UPDATED: Wednesday, April 4, 2007 11:32
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VIEWED: 4412
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Friday, March 16, 2007 5:33 PM

GROOSALUGG

Anyone else get theirs yet? Mine arrived today

. Some of my initial thoughts on it:

- Three years away from the show and the characters obviously hasn't dulled them at all in Joss's mind. Only Buffy, Xander, and Dawn (among the established characters) appear in this one, but their dialogue (and Buffy's narration) was so spot-on that Sarah's, Nick's, and Michelle's voices play in your head without even needing to try to 'summon them up' (having read a few of the novels, I can testify that hearing the actors' voices can sometimes be pretty hard to do, depending on the skill of the author).

- I'm not sure I buy the idea of Xander as head of command central, keeping tabs on, and directing, teams of slayers as they take on hot-spots around the world. Maybe--MAYBE--if he still had his army training it would be a little more plausible, but wasn't it fairly-well established that that had pretty much worn off by S4? This new role for him kinda smacks of "Well, how else were we going to get him into this series?"

But he's GOTTA be there. Even Giles could be considered expendable, but you just can't have BtVS without the core three: Buffy, Willow, and Xander.

- So, why didn't Amy clear out of Sunnydale when the rest of the town abandoned ship at the end of S7? (Speaking of which, I still haven't figured out why all the rest of those folks DID leave, but that's another issue.) And who's her 'boyfriend' in the other cell?

- On a similar note, wonder who's legs those were floating over the castle at the end of the opening scene?

- Not a huge fan of Jeanty&Stewart's artwork--too cartoony for my taste. Would've much preferred a style more like Jo Chen's covers, something more 'real'. Tho I guess it doesn't help that after not reading comics (other than the 3-part "Serenity" series) for over 15 years, I'm now suddenly reading TWO titles each month, and the other one just happens to be the new Dark Tower series from Marvel. You put ANY artwork up against what Lee&Isanove are doing there, it's like sending a kid with a kazoo out to follow up *insert your favorite ass-kicking-est rock band here*.

- Oh, and I know the first couple of pages have been available online for awhile now, so maybe this has been noticed before, but in the opening, castle-assault scene, Buffy has the Serenity logo on her t-shirt. Unfortunately, the way Stewart colored it makes it a little less obvious than it otherwise could have been...

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Friday, March 16, 2007 8:48 PM

BEJEWELED

I picked up the variant cover. It has Buffy in the Serenity tank. The symbol is much more clear than in the story panels.

I love Xander's role so far. What else can he do? He was never the best researcher and he has no special talents. I think coordinating is an excellent way of keeping him involved.

I want to know who or what subject two is.

===
More amazing than the time Michael Jackson came over to your house to use the bathroom.

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Saturday, March 17, 2007 1:25 PM

EMBERS

I thought it made perfect sense that Xander is working as a coordinator:
the construction company he worked for pretty much doesn't exist any more (although I hope people made it out alive)...
Xander has proved in construction that he can oversea other, coordinate their efforts, and get things done....
plus he has years of experience learning about demons even though he was never a great researcher (now he gets to just monitor the researchers)

I loved Buffy's casual conversation w/Xander as she ate her sandwich...it shows what a comfortable strong relationship they still have.

I'm very interested in the floating feet....

And I was THRILLED at Amy's appearance (clearly she was still trying to make trouble and got caught in the giant sink hole that was Sunnydale)
and I am very curious about 'subject 2' who she kept alive w/magic!

I'm loving everything about this, the artwork looks great to me (the animated Buffy cartoon for TV always really looked horrible to me, this is so much more charming IMO)

I'm going to love getting these comics and getting to watch the story unfold.

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Saturday, March 17, 2007 5:50 PM

GROOSALUGG

I've read it twice now, and flipped thru it a couple more times, and there's one line in there that I just can't figure out.

In the opening fight scene (which I now realize is a church, not a castle), Buffy kicks open the doors to the main room where those big ol' demons are hanging out, with the two dead bodies on the floor in front of them. She has a line of inner monologue: "Their first victims; gotta get 'em past it", (or something to that effect). Maybe I'm just having an

couple of days, but I just don't know what the heck she's referring to. Anyone?

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Saturday, March 17, 2007 6:42 PM

JADEHAND

I thought maybe the slayers with her were still green. First time they've seen victims, help them get over it, and help them focus on the fight...
Great Issue. Dropped me right back into that world. Perfect dialog.

"I will stare from the window
At the shapes in the rain." -Beyond You - Afraid of Sunlight -Marillion
visit WWW.Marillion.com for a better way of life.

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Sunday, March 18, 2007 1:39 PM

ANONYMOUS1

Quote:
Originally posted by Groosalugg:
So, why didn't Amy clear out of Sunnydale when the rest of the town abandoned ship at the end of S7? (Speaking of which, I still haven't figured out why all the rest of those folks DID leave, but that's another issue.) And who's her 'boyfriend' in the other cell?

- On a similar note, wonder who's legs those were floating over the castle at the end of the opening scene?

Maybe she was too busy keeping her "boyfriend" alive. This would make sense if the "boyfriend" was Caleb and she was trying to drain all that extra power out of him. Wouldn't make sense if the "boyfriend" was a lot longer dead person, like the guy Willow flayed to death. Unless the spell only worked in Sunnydale and she was trying to modify it so she and her "boyfriend" could leave.

"I'm gonna help you kill her." Do you suppose the her Amy meant was Willow instead of Buffy?

Floating guy. How about Dracula?

Also pretty funny that it was a fake Buffy "in Rome, partying very publicly -- and supposedly dating some guy called 'The Immortal'". And it was Andrew's idea.

In the TV show Angel, Angel and Spike were in Rome and saw a blond woman dancing and both were all hurt that Buffy was dating someone else. Andrew was right it was funny and even funnier now that we know it wasn't even Buffy!!!

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Sunday, March 18, 2007 4:56 PM

GROOSALUGG

Quote:
Originally posted by Jadehand:
I thought maybe the slayers with her were still green. First time they've seen victims, help them get over it, and help them focus on the fight...

That was one of my two guesses. The other being the 'they' she was talking about were the demons, and she wanted to literally 'get them past' the bodies as part of the ambush she was setting up (Harpoons, baby!!). Wish there'd been a little more context to figure it out by, but your version makes the most sense, so I'll go with that.

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Wednesday, March 21, 2007 8:36 AM

GROOSALUGG

This just occurred to me after thinking about the events of issue #1 for a few days: I wonder if we might finally get some resolution to one of the main unfinished plots of AtS S5 (spoilers below).

Select to view spoiler:

The ninja cyborgs, and Wesley's robot father, from "Lineage" (I'm sure this was something they purposefully left open-ended so they could come back to it later, but never got the chance). Seeing all the resources Buffy's Slayer Central has now, could they have been behind it? I'm sure Buffy herself wouldn't have been part of a plan to turn Angel into a helpless slave with no will of his own, but I don't have much trouble picturing Giles (and maybe Xander and/or Andrew) putting something like that together without letting her know about it.

Giles would probably be the most likely person (other than Wesley) to have enough info on Roger Wyndam-Pryce to make a believable-enough phony that could fool even his own son, and the idea of potentially-the-baddest-ass-vampire-'alive' now running Evil, Inc., is something you'd believe would cause Giles&co. some sleepless nights.

From the episode, we know that the cyborgs were hitting and neutralizing other evil hot spots around the world (demon cabal in Jakarta, etc.), so they're either good guys, or bad guys who don't like the competition. When Andrew shows up in LA four episodes later, he needs W&H's help tracking Dana, indicating that Buffy and the slayers don't have many, if any at all, resources of their own set up in LA yet. Getting control of Angel, and thru him, W&H, would've given them a real nice foothold in a real key location.

Anyway, just a thought

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Friday, March 23, 2007 2:29 PM

JWHEDONADDICT

So, I just thought of something that I'm wondering whether it'll be addressed...Lindsey went down into the pit that was Sunnydale in order to retrieve the amulet and bring Spike back to life. Did he run into Amy?

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Friday, March 23, 2007 2:40 PM

JWHEDONADDICT

I think Xander's role is perfect. Considering his job used to be 'providing much-needed sarcasm', his new role in Buffy's team is pretty great. Plus, he's her Vaughn (only ALIAS fans will get this)!!!

I keep going over the Amy's 'boyfriend' thing. I just can't figure it out. Is it someone who died or was severely injured almost to the point of death? Previously, or in the destruction of the Hellmouth? Will we find out in Joss's arc, or someone else's?

Select to view spoiler:

The cyborg thing--I always assumed it was Lindsey who was responsible for that. I guess it would be more interesting if it was really someone in Buffy's camp. Although, I can't see anyone being that cruel to Wes just to access Angel's will.

Select to view spoiler:

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Friday, March 23, 2007 3:03 PM

CHARLIETHEBLOODY

I think it's great that xander's running the show, as someone else pointed out he's been a foreman for a while, the modern workplace is all about transferable skills, and we always knew he was smarter than he gave himself credit for

I have no theories on amy's boyfriend but it's quite exciting wondering and reading other people's ideas that I never would have thought of, actually

Select to view spoiler:

my thought was jonathan, because his death was linked to seal, but that was shut down, so it's unlikely

.

who knows? but it's just so great to have something to puzzle about again

--------------------------------------
"I'm an artist, with an e and a beret."

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Friday, March 23, 2007 3:26 PM

JWHEDONADDICT

Still thinking about the Lindsey issue...since this is supposed to take place at some point after "The Girl in Question", why was Amy unable to get out of the Sunnydale pit, but Linsey was...several months before? I would think that Amy would be stronger magically than Lindsey, since she's had several years over Lindsey with the magics. Lindsey had a couple of years, Amy had three years pre-rat (assuming she started immediately after her mother 'disappeared' and we only found out about it in Season 2) and two after.

Amy claimed to have a crush on Big Gay Larry. Maybe she resurrected him to keep her company? Okay, that's lame. Unless that's what it is. Then it's great because it's Joss.

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Friday, March 23, 2007 5:06 PM

GROOSALUGG

Quote:
Originally posted by jwhedonaddict:
So, I just thought of something that I'm wondering whether it'll be addressed...Lindsey went down into the pit that was Sunnydale in order to retrieve the amulet and bring Spike back to life. Did he run into Amy?

I always just figured Lindsey had some kind of homing spell on the amulet, where he could speak a certain word and it would show up on his coffeetable, something like that. I just couldn't imagine him going there and actually digging thru rubble in the crater--talk about a needle in a haystack!

Which isn't to say that he didn't--that's just always been my assumption, based on zero evidence for either option...

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Friday, March 23, 2007 6:07 PM

DEEPGIRL187

Not to mention the fact that Lindsey was a lot more likely to have someone else do his dirty work. Very rarely was he a "hands-on" type of guy.

*************************************************

"If you want to win a war, you must serve no master but your ambition."

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Saturday, March 24, 2007 9:24 AM

JWHEDONADDICT

I always kind of assumed he went down into the pit himself, then used magic to find the amulet.

Seriously doubt Amy's 'boyfriend' is Caleb. Woman-hating preacher, remember?

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Sunday, March 25, 2007 11:14 AM

CHARLIETHEBLOODY

re: larry, that was my first thought too

about lindsey, like groosalug, I never thought he actually went and got it, I don't think I did really think about how he got his hands on it but the coffee table thing's probably closest to what I would have thought...

caleb would be cool, and not just to see nathan in print again, sure he's a woman hater but amy doesn't seem to have the highest self esteem so I could see her latching on to him...

--------------------------------------
"I'm an artist, with an e and a beret."

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Monday, March 26, 2007 8:11 AM

JWHEDONADDICT

She might latch onto him, but would he tolerate it?

Then again, he likely be weakened (being, you know, split), so he might not have much power over her. That also could be why she'd think he'd need weapons to fight Buffy.

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Monday, March 26, 2007 10:15 AM

GROOSALUGG

I don't think it's Larry, or Adam (seen him mentioned as a possibility elsewhere), for the simple reason that they were dead and decomposing for 2-3 years while Amy was still a rat. I suppose she could bring them back, ala "Bargaining, pt. 1", but remember how involved that spell was, dependent on astral alignments and very rare props. Plus, I don't think Amy is nearly as powerful as Willow, unless she's beefed up recently.

For the record, my guess is that it's Rack. Either Evil Willow didn't 'completely' kill him, or she did, but Amy got to him in time, very soon afterward, to bring him back to life.

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Monday, March 26, 2007 11:49 AM

NAFLM

I'm thinking the boyfriend isn't even human, based on one line from the scientist-type guy the general is speaking to. Don't have my issue handy (already lent it out) but after the "boyfriend" comment is made the conversation is something like "Boyfriend? How..." "Best not to picture it.", which I took to mean sex. Which a zombie-type person it's certainly ick, but I could picture it. So I'm guessing demon or the like, probably something we haven't even seen yet.

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Monday, March 26, 2007 7:27 PM

GROOSALUGG

Quote:
Originally posted by naflm:
I'm thinking the boyfriend isn't even human, based on one line from the scientist-type guy the general is speaking to. Don't have my issue handy (already lent it out) but after the "boyfriend" comment is made the conversation is something like "Boyfriend? How..." "Best not to picture it.", which I took to mean sex. Which a zombie-type person it's certainly ick, but I could picture it. So I'm guessing demon or the like, probably something we haven't even seen yet.

I think that's a decent bet--that it's a demon rather than a human/zombie. But I think I'd be disappointed if it weren't someone we're already familiar with, so I'm gonna say 65/35 that it'll be someone we know, as opposed to a whole new character.

The fact that Amy wanted a weapons lab for whoever (or whatever) is an interesting clue. You could certainly picture Adam wanting one of those, which I think is why someone else guessed it could be him. It doesn't seem like something Caleb or Larry would have much use for, tho. Rack might, if we're talking about magic-based weaponry.

Speaking of which, the government seems to have gotten up to speed on the mystical/magickal side of the demon realm since the days of the Initiative, huh? Quite a turnaround from their strictly-scientific viewpoint of, what, just 4 or 5 years earlier?

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Tuesday, March 27, 2007 8:00 AM

JWHEDONADDICT

Does it necessarily have to be someone Amy personally knows? I was thinking maybe skinless-Warren ('cuz, eew!).

I still can't seem to grasp how she wasn't able to get herself out of the pit, at least with magic.

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Friday, March 30, 2007 5:34 AM

ZEEK

No guesses on the mysterious boyfriend.

The floating feet I sorta thought was just supposed to be army guys sitting on the edge of the helicopter we see in the next frame.

The thing I was more shocked by was giant dawn. What the heck is up with that? And what's a thricewive? Was that what she was dating? Is that a common thing we're supposed to know about or is that just a made up buffyverse thing?

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Wednesday, April 4, 2007 11:10 AM

LITTLEALBATROSS29

EWW ,skinless Warren boyfriend..Good idea..

SOOoooo many questions..

Who was that floatng in the air ?? And where is Willow ?? And Giles .. Where is Giles ???

I know I would love Anya to come back from the dead..I really identified with her charachter..
Is it bad that I identify with a vengance demon ???

Now I wants me issue 2 before everyione else has issue 3 !

Can we snoopy dance again when i get it ???

I adore snoopy dancing !!!

Bryce
********

tommorow is our permanent address
and there they'll scarcely find us(if they do,
we'll move away still further:into now

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Wednesday, April 4, 2007 11:32 AM

JWHEDONADDICT

Of course we can!

The floating legs, the only thing I can come up with is someone like Rack. Not sure if that even makes sense, though.

I love Anya, too. No, it's not bad identifying with her...I hope cuz I do, too! In another post I said I ended up accepting her death. It's still true, but I'm definitely open to someone resurrecting her.

Giles will return in #2, Willow in #3. Joss is spacing them out a bit to drive us nuts...er, I mean, keep us wanting more!

"In Joss We Trust."

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