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queenkoko's review
3.0
If you like cry baby Xander then this is the comic for you. I don't care for him or the surprise vampire lurking who is ALSO cry baby when he's not in Los Angeles.
merny88's review
3.0
I'm gonna assume Joyce's lovely boyfriend is evil, because new characters are always evil.
Also, Xander getting turned... Sure. Okay. Bold move.
Also, Xander getting turned... Sure. Okay. Bold move.
kimberlea's review
4.0
The fourth issue of BOOM! Studios' reboot of the Buffy comics closes out the first arc of the story. Unlike the last two issues, a noticeable amount of time has passed since the end of the previous issue and the start of this one, and we get a lot of information about what the Scoobies have been up to in that time.
This issue has a few things to take care of: it has to close out the first arc of the story and it has to set up future events for both the Buffy comics and the Angel comics. It's a lot to do! Bellaire neatly balances all of these things, and I'm beginning to see the bigger story that she is trying to tell. Something that I actually really enjoyed — something that wasn't even addressed by the television show, which honestly puzzled me — is that Giles expects Willow and Xander to train alongside Buffy. Although they obviously aren't anywhere near as skilled at fighting as Buffy, they can take care of themselves.
I also enjoyed an issue that just focused on our core gang. I feel like the first three issues were trying to throw in familiar faces just for the sake of it, and as a result we got to spend less time with the Scooby Gang. Bellaire has taken obvious pains to write lead characters that are three-dimensional and well-developed. While Xander has always been filled with self-doubt and had a certain vulnerability to him, these comics have fleshed it out a little more than the television show ever did. His friendship with Willow isn't as close as it was in the show — Willow has other people in her life, whereas when we first met her in the show Xander was her person — and it just allows so much more to come out of him. He lets out all of these negative feelings on his blog (on which he has no followers) because he knows that he has a problem. The Xander Harris of the 90s masked his pain with jokes, this one is very much in touch with them. One thing I really enjoyed was the ending. That ending. I'll be curious to see where they go with it. Depending on what they chose to do, they could throw a bomb into the Buffyverse. They could change it entirely! Fans would riot though, especially since I've seen a lot of Whedon fans rip this series apart.
This is the first issue of the series where I've felt that this reboot could really work. It's where a lot of the pieces have come together, and the creative team have shown just how far they're willing to go with these characters.
This issue has a few things to take care of: it has to close out the first arc of the story and it has to set up future events for both the Buffy comics and the Angel comics. It's a lot to do! Bellaire neatly balances all of these things, and I'm beginning to see the bigger story that she is trying to tell. Something that I actually really enjoyed — something that wasn't even addressed by the television show, which honestly puzzled me — is that Giles expects Willow and Xander to train alongside Buffy. Although they obviously aren't anywhere near as skilled at fighting as Buffy, they can take care of themselves.
I also enjoyed an issue that just focused on our core gang. I feel like the first three issues were trying to throw in familiar faces just for the sake of it, and as a result we got to spend less time with the Scooby Gang. Bellaire has taken obvious pains to write lead characters that are three-dimensional and well-developed. While Xander has always been filled with self-doubt and had a certain vulnerability to him, these comics have fleshed it out a little more than the television show ever did. His friendship with Willow isn't as close as it was in the show — Willow has other people in her life, whereas when we first met her in the show Xander was her person — and it just allows so much more to come out of him. He lets out all of these negative feelings on his blog (on which he has no followers) because he knows that he has a problem. The Xander Harris of the 90s masked his pain with jokes, this one is very much in touch with them. One thing I really enjoyed was the ending. That ending. I'll be curious to see where they go with it. Depending on what they chose to do, they could throw a bomb into the Buffyverse. They could change it entirely! Fans would riot though, especially since I've seen a lot of Whedon fans rip this series apart.
This is the first issue of the series where I've felt that this reboot could really work. It's where a lot of the pieces have come together, and the creative team have shown just how far they're willing to go with these characters.
kayla_can_read's review
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0