Weekly Comic Book Review.com

Joss Whedon (writer), Karl Moline (pencils), Andy Owens (inks), Michelle Madsen (colors), Richard Starkings & Comicraft’s Jimmy (letters)

Joss Whedon is someone that comes along once in a great while because he’s so talented and multi-faceted. The amount of creativity needed for one book, or show is incredible, let alone three or more. Like many, I’m always really upset when something he’s working on gets canceled (Firefly especially). That said, his continuation of the Buffy story has been spectacular for both fans of the series and newcomers.

Whedon is one of the few writers who is able to weave previously established mythos into a fresh story and have it not feel redundant. I’d be lying if I said this issue was jam-packed with information, but honestly, anything more and it would’ve felt bloated. The one negative to Whedon’s work here as opposed to Astonishing X-Men is that it’s a little harder to dive right into. The dialogue and story are very specific and if Buffy’s valley-girl lingo isn’t for you, parts of this book might wear thin.

Karl Moline has some great and stylized pencils in this book. He didn’t start out doing the pencils when the series started, but you’d be hard pressed to tell the difference. That said, as someone who was a fan of the show its sometimes hard to tell who people are at a glance. Xander was easy because of the eye-patch, but everyone else from the show looks different enough to throw you off. Either they couldn’t get all the likeness rights of the actors or Moline’s struggling - whatever it is, it’s a little tough at first. However, there are some really great panels in here - especially when Buffy starts to slug it out with Fray while they’re falling out of the hotel.

This is essential reading for any self-respecting fan of Buffy, Whedon, or a similar genre. It’s a really good jumping off point for new readers because it’s the start of the next wave of the season eight story (but you should read the first two trade paperbacks if you can). And while it definitely helps to have a working knowledge of Buffy or to have read the rest of season eight, Whedon does a great job of making it accessible. (Grade: B)

- Ben Berger