Title: Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season 9, Issue 1
Writer: Joss Whedon
Penciler: Georges Jeanty
Inks: Dexter Vines
Colors: Michelle Madsen
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Reviewed by Johnny Destructo

There are people who, for some reason or another, think that Joss Whedon is God’s gift to geekdom. That he’s funny and clever and not at all annoying. There are some of these people that love Buffy The Vampire Slayer and are sad-face-boo-hoo that her show is over. I am these people.

Apparently, there were enough people that were unhappy with the Season 8 comic that they decided to change some stuff up in time for Season 9. I am NOT these people. I agreed with the Buffy crew’s excitement about doing S8 as a comic, allowing them to really open up the storytelling to a limitless budget. Super-hero flying. Mid-air universe-creating sexin’s. Giant Dawn. This is a fantastical world filled with magic and creatures, why not go big? But, alas..the Whed-o-philes demanded change. I’m coining that phrase now, Joss, nevermind that it rhymes with pedo…anyway, you’re welcome. But hey, I got a solid run of comics that dealt with those big ideas, and now, it’s time for a return to what made Buffy great to begin with, and for me, a great deal of what makes Buffy so much fun is the humor. In case you don’t know, like the show, the first issue or two are written by Joss, then it’s handed over to his trusted stable of writers to pick up the reigns, with Joss stepping in every once in a while to have his fun. These are generally my favorite bits of Buffy, which, I imagine, would have been the title of a diary entry by Zander not too long ago. It’s the humor and the relationships that really propel this series, and it’s here in spades.

We left off last season with things turning out a bit….different. The Seed destroyed, Magic is gone from the world, and we are back to having only 1 Slayer. Oh, waitaminnut. Faith has a book with Angel. How is SHE still a Slayer? Oh, and Giles is dead. Post-Spoiler Spoiler alert. So yeah, Buffy is now living in San Fransisco and working as a waitress.

This issue opens in a way I’m sure is familiar to some of you: a black-out-I-forget-far-too-many-things-about-last-night-hangover. If you find yourself unfamiliar with this experience see also: the movie appropriately titled The Hangover. Through flash-backs, we get to see Buff’s new apartment, her new roomies Anaheed and ahem…Tumble, (Who is being played, in my head, by Mark Webber, as Stephen Stills, from Scott Pilgrim), and how things are going with the Scooby Gang now that things are slowing down. There is a LOT of humor in these pages, as well as some hints that things may not be entirely hunky-dory. Splattered between these bits are scenes involving dead ex-slayers, shady dealings involving debts that must be paid…in full, and a demon that wields yellow glow-y things that look not unlike something from Tron.

Also, a quick bit about the art. The Steve Morris cover (the one with the pillow and the floating and the Buffy, duh) is breath-taking. It’s absolutely beautiful, and if there was a poster of this panting, I’d buy it. There is a serene chaos happening that grabs my head-space in some kinda way. The art by Jeanty and Vines is really strong throughout most of the book, but I’ll be honest. There’s a scene where a character shows up that I’m clearly supposed to recognize….but I don’t. I *think* it’s Andrew, with long hair? But I just can’t tell from the rendering by the artists. Other than that through, the art is all pretty strong. To see how it should be done though, go to last week’s Angel and Faith #1, drawn by Rebekah Isaacs. She REALLY captures the essences of not only the characters, but the actor’s that portray them, without looking too technical. If I could, I have Rebekah pencil BOTH books.

I appreciate Joss’ word-work and love that he’s still devoting his time to this series, even while directing a huge movie like Avengers. I’m a man who loves a man who loves words. Well put-together and creative writing is rare these days. I wish MORE people appreciated the intricacies of the English language.

To quote myself before I even say it: This comic is more fun than….something that is really…fun.