SPOILER ALERT: IF YOU DON’T WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS AT THE END OF BUFFY SEASON 8 PLEASE STOP READING AFTER THIS SENTENCE. NO SERIOUSLY, STOP! YOU’RE GONNA RUIN IT! OK, BUT I WARNED YOU.
In 1997 Joss Whedon created a TV show based on his failed movie idea. Starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, Whedon went on to create a cult phenomenon that spawned comic books, spin-offs, and lots of merchandising goodies. The show ended with season 7 in 2003 and it took Whedon four years to bring us Season 8 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in comic book form. Ironic, since Season 8 took another four years to complete. I have several friends that love the TV series, but aren’t interested in reading the comics. Well this blog is for you. I’m going to try and summarize four years, forty issues, and one crazy season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
When we last left Buffy and the Scoobies the Hellmouth had just been closed with a courageous sacrifice by Spike, and Willow had used the magic scythe to give every potential slayer the power of the slayer without waiting in line. There are now hundreds of slayers, and Buffy is their leader. In groups of ten these slayers hunt down evil with Buffy and Xander residing at the home base in Scotland. Meanwhile Giles and Faith are off in England trying to sway any slayers who may go rogue and pose a threat. This also has the government worried, an army of super powered slayers. With the help of Amy the witch, Warren the fleshless, and Buffy’s old ex; Riley Finn, the government is looking to turn the world against the slayers. This leads to this season's masked villain, Twilight, taking the reins and leading his own army against Buffy and the slayers.
Along the way our Scoobies have their own personal drama. Xander is rocking the Nick Fury look with his eye patch and falls in love with a slayer named Renee. This relationship ends badly when Renee is killed by a vamp. But Xander finds a new love soon. Willow has become a very powerful witch with the help of a demon named Saga Vasuki, a relationship that her girlfriend Kennedy does not approve of. Willow can now fly, which makes her friends a little scared she may go back to black-haired Willow who tried to destroy the world in season 6. Speaking of change, little Dawn lost her virginity, but it was too a demon. She didn’t get pregnant, just is in an ever state of change like being a giant or a centaur at one point. Eventually she is turned back to normal though. Whedon sure does preach the dangers of sex if you can remember all of our characters sex-capades.
As for Joss’s muse and star, Buffy, she is going through some changes of her own. Buffy is leading this army with the rest of the world against her, and she gets confused. So confused that she has a little lesbian episode with another slayer who has a crush on her, but it doesn’t last. Buffy is too busy trying to figure out how to get back to her own time. She is sent to the future where she meets Fray the Vampire Slayer, and the only slayer. This suggest that at some point the army of slayers will be done, and there will be only one. But Buffy barely has time to think about this because it turns out Willow is in the future as well, as black-haired Willow trying to destroy the world. I hate to say I told ya so; but I told ya so. Buffy returns to the past knowing what the future may now have in store. She also begins to believe Xander may be the one for her, but Xander has already moved on after Renee’s death. He is dating Dawn. She’s over 18 now so it’s cool right?
Finally the big battle goes down between the government forces looking to rid the world of magic and Buffy and her slayers. The slayers take heavy casualties, Riley reveals he has been a double agent for Buffy this whole time, and big, bad, Twilight reveals himself to be Angel. Wait, what! The vampire with a soul, or one of them at least, and Buffy’s first love, posed as Twilight to try and limit the blood between the government and slayer battle and in doing so unleashes some knowledge on Buffy.
Buffy has absorbed the powers of the dead slayers giving her Superman-like abilities, as well as Angel thanks to the Twilight being. The two go on an uber-sex quest literally doing it all over the planet. If you haven’t read issue 34 do yourself a favor and check it out. With these new powers Buffy and Angel have the ability to help the Twilight power create a new paradise on Earth, but the old one, and everyone on it, would have to be destroyed first. Buffy refuses and so begins her final battle in Season 8.
Spike shows up (watch Angel season 5 if you want to know how he came back) and takes the Scoobies back to the Hellmouth to destroy, or at least contain, Twilight. While Buffy battles monsters as the new Supergirl, Angel confronts Twilight and tries to convince the being to spare this reality. Twilight refuses and takes control of Angel’s body and so begins another Buffy vs. Angel showdown for the fate of mankind. Buffy destroys Twilight’s power source and kills not only Twilight but all magic along with it. Angel wakes up from being possessed to find out he’s killed Giles. At least it wasn’t his girlfriend this time.
So life now goes on, somewhat. The line of slayers is destroyed and no new slayers will be born, which everyone hates Buffy for. Willow also isn’t liking Buffy too much right now for destroying all magic, and Giles left everything of his to Faith except a book for Buffy called VAMPYR. The whole world hates her, she is crashing with Xander and Dawn, but Buffy is still the slayer, and she has a job to do. Let’s get ready for season 9 everyone!
I know this a lot to process. Even I’m not sure on all the details. I started watching Buffy on Netflix from the beginning and after will go through and read Season 8 again, hopefully before Season 9 begins, but with me being the only person in the house who enjoys Buffy it’s hard to find time to watch. Season 8 was full of returning characters like Oz, Dracula, and Andrew. It was full of great writers such as Brad Meltzer, Jeph Loeb, and of course Joss himself. Jo Chen also provided forty awesome cover arts for the whole season.
This was one very messed up season, probably the most intense of Buffy’s life. Whedon promises Season 9 will be more simple. Also, Dark Horse comics, Buffy’s publishing company, has regained the rights to Angel comics as well. The two characters started showing on different channels back in 2001 and haven’t been under the same roof since. If I know Mr. Whedon he has something up his sleeve. Of course it’s probably another major character death that’ll make us all cry, but I’m still psyched. Or you could be like my wife who wants to run a stake through him because she is still mad he killed Wash. Let it go babe, just let it go.
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