Advance Review: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 9 Episode 3

Written by: Gary M. Kenny, CC2K Comics Editor

Dark Horse has been producing BVS comics for a few years now and this writer believes they are even better than the T.V. show. Season 8 was an epic ride that no T.V. production could handle. From Yakuza vampires, giants, and super powered slayers BVS season 8 had it all. They ended the season by destroying the seed which basically declared all magic null and void. Season 9 started a little slow, but wow oh wow did Season 9 issue 3 end in a twist.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 9 issue #3

Writer: Andrew Chambliss

Artist: Georges Jeanty

This issue comes out next week and It’s a must pull. Andrew Chambliss’s plot is starting to take form and this seasons first big baddy has been introduced. What’s great is that this villain is unlike anything that Buffy has faced before. An ancient demon whose older then the vampires but who wouldn’t be on Earth if it wasn’t for Buffy.

Season 9 started with the Scooby gang starting over. Magic is gone and it’s all Buffy’s fault; so Buffy’s best friend Willow (the witch) is naturally pissed. Buffy has decided to start over (again). She is living with strangers in San Francisco, took up waitressing, and yes, still slaying vampires on the side. Dawn (Buffy’s sister) is dating and living with Xander (Buffy’s other best friend). This tight nit team has become a tad distant. All in all life has changed for our favorite slayer. She is no longer leading an army, nor is she a god. Buffy has digressed into a solo slayer. A slayer who really needs to find herself. Unfortunately for Buffy, the police are also on her trail. Why you ask? Doesn’t the title “vampire slayer” mean killer? Vampires are popping up dead everywhere; who else is to blame?

This issue starts on a side note, within the demon underground, something or someone is after Buffy.  Spike (Buffy’s British vampire partner) has heard the rumbling and is on the trail. Buffy has met a new type of slayer. Severin has a gift, every time he touches a vampire, they become human again. However, his touch also kills them. All these dead post vampire humans have baffled the police and the only one to blame is Buffy. She’s in a pickle because Severin just wants to help and Buffy is all for having a vampire killing partner. She just needs to figure out how to hide from the cops.

Even though this is a Buffy comic and the TV show has set the mold doesn’t mean you can’t mess this up. The characters need to carry that familiar voice and act in their traditional way. That doesn’t mean there isn’t any room for growth. But you can’t change their thought process; years have been given to the Scooby gang and this is a mold no fan will let you break. Enter Andrew Chambliss, this man does it right. You can mess this book up, Chambliss does not, in fact his poise and delivery are spot on. Even the way he introduces the villain compliments past seasons. His love for the series is clear in every paragraph. Chambliss is a true fan writing a fantasic BVS tale. His character interaction is perfect and his flow is filled with comic relief, mystery, and suspense. His written style is a delight and being a TV show veteran (the guy knows Vampires, he writes for the show: The Vampire Diaries and was a writer for Josh Whedon’s Doll House) he knows what works on a story board and what doesn’t. This book is flawlessly put together. You can’t ask for a better writer.

Georges Jeanty has been a regular in the BVS comic series and his pencils have become the standard. He compliments the fun side of the series with his cartoonish expressions. When the action kicks in, his flow and art direction is not less then perfect. He knows when to zoom in and with this being a vampire book, knows how to use distance and shadow. With a little imagination this book almost feels animated. Dark Horse hit it out of the park with hiring Jeanty for BVS.

Again this book comes out next week. Pick it up. I didn’t ruin anything and this book ends with a really suspenseful twist. At first I thought Season 9 had little bite compared to Season 8. Happily, i know i’m wrong. Can’t wait to see how this series progresses. 

4.5 out of 5.0