| Title | : | Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Last Gleaming |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1595826106 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781595826107 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 168 |
| Publication | : | First published December 14, 2011 |
| Awards | : | Goodreads Choice Award Graphic Novels & Comics (2011) |
Series creator Joss Whedon writes the final story arc of Buffy Season 8, taking his greatest characters to places only he can! Teamed with series artist Georges Jeanty, Joss reunites the dysfunctional gang of Buffy, Angel, and Spike, in the thick of it together for the first time since Season 3, and gives the Scoobies their gravest challenge ever, defending reality itself from the onslaught of demons. It’s the biggest Buffy finale ever!
* Collecting issues #36-40 of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight series.
* This volume also includes the spy-thriller Riley one-shot by Buffy series writer Jane Espenson and artist Karl Moline.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Last Gleaming Reviews
-
Right from the first issue, this felt like everything that had come before was coming to a conclusion.
I liked the fact that it felt like things were going to be wrapped up and explained from the get-go.
The only thing that sort of confused me was the Angel time-line.
Since Dark Horse Comics did not publish Angel: After the Fall (which I read before Season Eight), I was left wondering when exactly was the last time we had seen Angel in-continuity before the flashback in issue #36.
OR did DHC decide to make ATF canon?? I guess it doesn’t really matter…
Anyway, I enjoyed the story within this collection. There were some questions left open from the overall season but not too many that made you feel cheated.
The last few issues changed the very fabric of the Buffyverse and I am very intrigued by the new status quo.
Plus I’m hoping Angel & Faith Season Nine will be good!
I will say, I wasn’t always a huge fan of the art.
Giles in particular was sometimes hard to distinguish. He was drawn a lot younger than he should’ve been. -
So, I don't like many of the choices that were made in this issue, but the writing was much better.
I did like the fact that Xander and Dawn got together. That was interesting and a good choice. So I expect Dawn to either die or a bad break up with happen.
So they basically took the entire series and what they have built and ripped it all to shreds and took it back to the beginning. Why? They completely got rid of magic. It's gone. All the witches have been riped up and are no longer connected to the Earth. That is a tragedy. They go back to the Hell mouth of old Sunnydale once again and back to the beginning.
Angel tries to end the world and Spike has Buffy's back of course. I enjoyed reading this, but I don't know if I can forgive Joss for taking Magic away from Willow. Willow was such an awesome character, I know she always was, but she is one of my favorite and I can't believe what they did. She even broke up with Kennedy.
I'm not excited to move forward from here, I have to say. I guess I am upset about this and I still appreciate how the story was told. -
It’s about time that Joss Whedon started listening to me.
In my review of
Vol. 7 - Twilight, I complained that Whedon and his stable of writers had gotten so excited about being free of the limitations of a television show that they had made the scale too epic and the big sci-fi concepts too wacky and lost the emotional core that always made the show so good. In the afterwards of this collection, Whedon admits that he got carried away and that this finale of the so-called Season 8 was the start of a more down-to-Earth Buffy that we’ll see in Season 9.
Validation!!
Hey, Joss, if you want me to look over anything you’re doing on The Avengers, just let me know. I’d be happy to help you out. For a reasonable fee.
This collection does a decent job of trying to settle all the wild ass craziness that the previous volumes had built up to with Buffy and her crew engaging in a massive battle with dimension hopping demons and the US Army to decide the fate of all magic on Earth. Or something. There’s still a whole bunch of metaphysical mumbo jumbo that’s confusing as hell, but by the end, it does appear that Whedon is trying to get back to the Buffy basics.
In fact, despite my previous bitching on this very subject, I think the Joss-man may have hit that reset button just a little too hard. While I was all for scaling back some of the bat shit craziness in the comics, it seems like there was a bit too much baby in that bathwater. It definitely felt like Buffy had taken several steps back towards the Sunnydale days by the end of this. Fingers crossed that the next phase manages to advance the overall story without going too far over the top but doesn’t try to revert back to an earlier incarnation of the show. -
So... everyone basically hates Buffy because she made the impossible decision in the last volume? Like what kind of CRAP is that?
Ugh, I can’t handle this. Here’s some art.
Some sister-lovin'
Oh, and a really intense Buffy-face.
-
Joss Whedon strikes again!
His work is the best. The dialogues alone are fantastic, but look at it as a whole and it's pure magic. Great finale for the season, classic Buffy. Loved loved loved Spike's pep talk. He knows his shit. Now, what're we gonna face next season? Hmmm... -
First of all, let me be clear - I love Willow, Angel, Xander, Buffy, Giles, Spike, and Faith . . . generally, depending upon my mood, in that order. I was a huge fan of both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel when they were on TV, passing up dates, missing appointments, and blowing off family gatherings to catch each new episode. I was a bit too old to have grown up on the Whedonverse, but it definitely shaped much of my teenage years.
I cried like a baby when both shows ended. Buffy, I thought, ended very well, wrapping up 7 years of television with an ending that was every bit as empowering as the show itself. Angel, I thought, ended even better (even if it was sadly before it's time), with a final few moments that still take my breath away.
So, you can imagine my insane delight when I first heard that not only would each show be getting another "official" season, but that Joss himself would be at the helm. It wasn't a new season of televised glory, and it wasn't the movie we all wanted, but it was something - and it was to be "canon" (rather than just somebody else playing in then Whedonverse).
Season 8 definitely had its moments but, sadly, they were in the first 3 volumes (Long Way Home, No Future For You, and Wolves at the Gate). From there, it's been an uneven ride that began going downhill with Twilight (Volume 7) and has mercifully ended with Last Gleaming (Volume 8).
Okay, if you haven't read Last Gleaming, then stop reading now because SPOILERS ABOUND!
Still here? You've been warned . . .
Let me sum up what was wrong with this final chapter:
1. Superhero powers, for both Buffy and Angel. Nope, sorry, just too much.
2. The failure to correct the mistake of revealing Angel as the Big Bad. Come on, really? It was an absolute cheat to have Twilight turn out to be Angel . . . with a twist that ridiculous, I'm sure another could have been manufactured to counter it.
3. Faith being wasted. This girl has potential! If you're not going to exploit it, then at least give her a great exit . . . don't just leave her on the sidelines.
4. The senseless death of Giles. Yeah, Xander and I both saw it coming, but it was still an unnecessary bit of drama. Giles is . . . well, Giles! If he had to die, then it should have meant something.
5. On that note, Xander being wasted. He had his shot at being a hero. He could have stopped Giles, taken his place, and turned a senseless death into a noble sacrifice. Instead, he stands by and watches.
6. Resurrecting The Master, only to neuter him by making him a pawn of some other force, and then giving him a quick death that accomplishes nothing.
7. Buffy saving the world by destroying the magic in it. This was huge. This was the classic no-win situation she faced so many times on TV . . . except she always found a way to create a third choice, one that usually involved her own sacrifice. Here, she picks the easy out, betraying Willow in the process, and does it without a moment of thought. Where's the angst? Where's the internal debate? Where's sense of sorrow and helplessness that have always accompanied those choices? This was lazy and it was wrong (even if it does erase a lot of mistakes and set us up for a return to normalcy in season 9).
8. Giles rewriting his will, leaving everything to Faith. Excuse me? WTF? Yeah, we know he's kind of taken Faith under his wing, but this reeks of just another betrayal. This whole season seemed to be about dividing him from his Slayer, and I don't like the implication that he's lost faith in Buffy.
As for what was right about it:
1. Spike was awesome. He looked like Spike, he talked like Spike, and he acted like Spike. He played a significant role and, despite all the hints, never did betray Buffy.
2. Um . . . really, that's about it.
At this point, I'm not really interested in a Season 9, but I suspect I'll give it a shot - if only because Joss himself owned up to some of the failings in Season 8, and admitted he has already changed his direction for Season 9 because of what we, the fans, have said.
All I can say is it better be good . . . at least Angel good, if not better. -
Well, it seems Joss listened to everybody's dislike of the massively over-the-top scale of the previous volume. The end result of season eight is to return Buffy to her origins, in a way that has some drastic and pretty nasty implications for... well, everybody, really. I think I like this, but I guess I'll wait and see where this is going in season nine before I can pass judgement on the setup.
-
My favorite by far in this season.
I just checked the general ratings and this one is pretty similar to the rest of volumes in season 8 so maybe this is personal. But I LOVED IT HARD. It’s sexy, funny, quick but not rushed, and powerful. This is the Buffy I love, the one I missed. This is IT. So, yes, I’m eager for the next one, can’t wait.
Oh, I almost forgot: Spike, I love you. I always have, I always will.
Special mention to Joss Whedon’s final note: YES, Mister, my thoughts exactly, and THANK YOU.
The short story at the end it’s about Riley and Sam and it takes place before season 8. Explains some things. Script by Jane Espenson. I enjoyed it.
Nice alternative covers:
Highly recommend!
*going to my shelf to put my hands on Season9, volume one* -
... why, Joss Whedon, why?
Okay, less flippantly: Like the ending of Dollhouse, it's a mess and a mess that reads like the writer dumped in a lot of his favorite tropes without bothering to get there in a sensible way. Some of these are my favorite tropes, too, and I resent that they're being done so badly I don't even like them here. -
***Buddyread with the Shallow Readers! Criteria: An Indie title that I cry over a million years too late***
Joss said it perfectly in the afterword: This season kind of got away from him at times. They made it larger than life because for once there were no budget restrictions. There was no worrying about how to make the monsters look like they could be formed in the real world. There was no worrying about racey dialogue not making it to the screen. A lot of turned out bad ass. But some of it was very meh. But that's okay. Because even though there were already seven previous seasons, this was still a brand new endeavor. So while every moment wasn't perfect, for writers and readers alike, it was still an awesome project all around. And can I state how excited I am to see Buffy back patrolling the streets? SO FUCKING EXCITED.
So I'll talk about just this volume for a second. I really feared that after the Earth shattering Angel/Buffy sex that there was going to be a cop out of an ending. I was wrong. The battles were as real as ever. The struggles were outrageous. And the loss... goddamn you, Joss.
SPOILERS AHEAD! TURN BACK NOW IF YOU HAVEN'T READ!
Things I really enjoyed:
-Spike clearly still has major love for Buffy, but not in an all consuming way anymore.
-Willow FINALLY called it quits with bitchy Kennedy. I loved hearing her say that her true love isn't around anymore, and that that's where her heart lies. RIP Tara <3
-Angel didn't stay good guy forever, and for someone who practically hates the guy, that's a-okay for me.
-The ending cinched a five star rating for me. Once again the writers do not hold back from death. Do I love that Rupert Giles no longer exists in the Buffyverse? NO! FUCK ALL OF YOU WRITERS FOR DOING THAT TO ME. My heart hasn't heart this badly since Wash was brutally killed. But while I hate it, I love that they have the balls to piss people off. There is nothing worse than a writer who keeps all her favorite characters alive just so they don't make enemies. Sometimes, sadly, it is necessary. And what would a Joss masterpiece be without severe heartache?
-I love the tie-in with Fray. The explanation of the world having no more new Slayers was awesome. But I'll forever be sad about Willow losing her Magick. I seriously wonder if that will stick or if there will be a way around it.
-And lastly, the Slayers who view Buffy as their numero uno bad guy. Since she was the one who broke the Slayer lineage, girls are PISSED. Just another enemy in the life of the Buffster.
Things I don't care for? Pretty much just two things. One: I need more Riley Finn. ASAP. And two: I still don't dig the Dawn/Xander romance. I know she had the hots for him for her entire adolescence, but come the fuck on. It just doesn't sit well with me.
So what do I think of Season Eight overall? 4.37 stars. That is AWESOME for a series with me. I mean, probably the best ever. I am so excited for Season Nine. -
The conclusion of "Buffy Season Eight" is a bit of a mess, plotwise, but it does more or less wrap up all the threads spun during the issues leading up to the finale. Buffy and friends return to Sunnydale to face a bunch of old friends and foes and deal with the threat to the entire universe. Buffy has to make a hard decision, and there are Consequences. Also, some major character deaths.
I think the chaotic nature of this denouement was inevitable because of all the balls Joss Whedon and his writers tossed into the air. So you've got demon invasions, ultra-cosmic MacGuffins, umpteen iterations of "He's on our side! No, he's not!" and a resolution that seemed familiar in a lot of ways.
Despite all the high-concept ideas and SFX, it actually seemed like they're getting back to the Buffy basics, and Joss Whedon's letter at the end addressing the fact that he knows there were some missteps along the way in Season Eight confirms that. There will be a Season Nine, and it seems that they will focus a little bit more on Buffy running around staking vampires and a little bit less about Buffy turning into Supergirl and throwing submarines around and leading superpowered armies against extra-dimensional invaders.
If they'd just reverted back to Square One I'd have been pretty annoyed, but one thing the Buffy series has always had going for it is a sense of continuity and the knowledge that problems and issues don't just disappear between seasons (usually). So I expect the repercussions of Season Eight will follow the gang into the next season, even if the scope and theme shrinks back to something more like what the old TV series was.
Overall, I would say that Buffy Season Eight was fun and enjoyable with a few bad "episodes," not always entirely successful, and if compared to the TV seasons, neither the best nor the worst of the lot.
For old Buffy fans, it's not quite like having the show back on the air, but it's close enough. -
I think I'd be happier if they hadn't decided to do a season 9, and had forced themselves to come up with a tight and contained story for season 8. Because as it stands, what was a pretty great first half-season spiraled out into a sloppy mess by the end. As even Whedon himself mentions in the end letter in the trade, the desire to do something epic led to a loss of some of the character work that made the show so great (possibly my favorite show of all time) in the first place. And maybe it's just me, but it felt like even the art was a little sloppier/more rushed this time. There were times here where I had a hard time placing characters, which hadn't been the case before. I think the final issue leaves some interesting places for the new season to go, but I hope some of the character focus comes back.
Now it's angry spoiler time, so if you haven't finished the season and are planning to, don't read on. Damn you for killing Giles, Joss. And a double damn you for doing it in such a meaningless way. I know that most people don't get close to a heroic death in real life, but you'd proved your point on that with the way you offed Wash in Serenity. This is Rupert Giles we're talking about here, my favorite character in your universe, and he's given nothing. I get that it's a call back to Jenny Calendar's death, but Jenny was pretty minor in the grand scheme. This was Rupert Giles, watcher extraordinaire. Maybe a re-read will make things make more sense, but as of now, it's one of the major disappointments in a disappointing finale. -
Joss Whedon, I love you. I hate you. I love you, again. No, wait, maybe I don't. Yeah, that's how my reading of this final installment of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season 8 went. With higher highs and lower lows that ever seen on the show itself, Last Gleaming will charm you, shock you, completely break your heart and leave you completely desperate for more Buffy and friends.
Now, I didn't love the last couple of episodes in the Twilight storyline, but I think Last Gleaming salvaged the season in spectacular fashion. Utterly, utterly shocking. Just mind blowing. And devastating. I cried. For a while. And then again when telling my non-reader husband how Joss hurt me. You are a bad, bad man. Never have I been as thoroughly effected by a fictional happening as I was with the monumental occurrence in Last Gleaming.
Apart from the final episodes of Season 8, Last Gleaming includes a one shot explaining how Riley became involved in fight as well as a letter from Joss to the fans. The letter explains some of the directions Season 8 chose to go as well as promising a Season 9 to come. Joss is awesome. He brings the pain, but makes it hurt so good. He managed to take this much yearned for season and make it something truly epic. The ending certainly isn't happily ever after, but it'll get longtime fans right at their cores. An absolutely perfect ending to the season that instills a great need to continue on to the next. -
Too many fancy schmancy sci fi creatures and not enough real people and emotions. Angel as Twilight I still don't buy at all; they didn't establish any real kind of motivations and I think Angel/Buffy is pretty dead at this point. And Giles's death was TERRIBLE. After barely including him the whole season, they kill him off in a totally unheroic way even though Giles deserved WAY better?
Still it seems like the comics are headed in a different direction, from the last issue where Buffy seems to be back to "normal" with great Spuffy banter and Whedon's note which basically says what was wrong with season 8, all of which I agree with (though I would add things, haha). I will keep reading, cause some of the comics have been really good and I love Buffy, of course.
Also, the art was just never that good the whole season...I thought it was just me at first, but after reading other reviews I know other people also could never tell any of the brunettes apart (Is that Faith? Kennedy? Dawn? Who can tell?) -
I'm reading these in their original comic form and BAH!! One more month to go and we'll be done with the whole of Season 8. I bought these, of course, because my favorite vamp is back. Team SPIKE, thank you very much. Thus far, it's been fast-paced and full of betrayal after betrayal. Plus, a heartbreaking development. Highly recommend.
ETA: After reading the last installment, I must say, "PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFT!!" I get where they're going and Season 9's set up seems intriguing, but I am annoyed. It seems so anticlimatic. This is what I get for loving a series just because Spike showed up again. -
This is a review of the entirety of Season 8.
The comics start off great. The characters seem to be themselves and the story is interesting enough. Buffy’s lesbian scene? I didn’t think it was out of character. After all, she jumped right into bed with Parker and she out right used Spike, so not that surprising that she would use this girl in such a way. Shocking? Not at all. Lots of straight people have gay experiences at her age. It didn’t really enhance or hurt the plot line. It just sort of was. Dawn as a giant? Kind of cheesy, but Buffy has always had a bit of a cheese factor so whatever. I can roll with it. Xander developing feelings for a slayer that promptly dies? Okay, it shows that no one is safe and life sucks right now. Not a problem. Xander hooking up with Dawn? Okay, so they have more of a brother-sister/friend kind of love than a chemistry driven bond. Yet I can totally see them falling for each other. It’s what people do when they’re lonely, and lots of great relationships start that way. Faith killing the children vamps? Fucking awesome. Buffy kills future Willow? My favorite issue. Warren still alive? I can deal with it, but I’m not loving it. (Someone pointed out in one of the printed letters that The First was Warren and since The First could only be dead people, this was a continuity error. The authors admitted the mistake, and yes, it could have been rectified by saying that Warren was undead or something, so whatever.)
I was really digging these comics all the way up to “Retreat” (#26). So the Slayers and pals decide to give up their magic in an attempt to hide from Twilight. (Twilight is using magic to find the hiding slayers, and he kills some guy just for making a mistake about the location of the slayers like the evil bastard that he is. And he delivers that kick ass line “This battle doesn’t end with Buffy laying down her sword. It ends with her turning her sword against herself.”) Oz and his wife teach the Slayers and Wiccans to let the earth take their magic away, for their magic flows into the earth. Of course Twilight finds them and a battle ensues, a traditional battle with guns. Buffy hates guns, so I guess this is just to show her desperation? Maybe she just didn’t think this one through? Buffy makes Oz’s wife tell her how to get the magicks back. We learn that the earth, in this context, is just another word for “wrath goddesses,” who apparently supply the slayers’, werewolves’, and witches’ magicks. And with enough of Buffy’s anger, the goddesses are summoned. But the goddesses are out of control, killing indiscriminately, and the goddesses don’t recognize the one’s who prayed to them. The slayers and witches are not getting their power back. Until one of the goddesses looks into Buffy’s soul and sees who she is, throws her to the ground, it snows on her, she wakes up and poof, she is super Buffy who can now fly. Okay. Willow gets hit by a green cloud and poof, she gets her magic back. She describes the magic cloud as “Fallout from some cataclysmic mystical event” yet to happen. Okay. All the other Wiccans get their magic back to now, but not the other slayers. Willow goes to fight the goddesses because if she gets them back underground, then everyone will get their slayer powers back. Because the goddesses were simply underground, not the very Earth herself, apparently? Okay. So Willow can’t hurt the goddesses, but she can make a big hole. Buffy flies along and knocks the goddesses into the hole, and apparently they can’t climb back out for some reason. I’m going with Buffy’s anger summoned them so only she has the willpower to put them back, but that is never said. Once the goddesses are in the hole and covered up with dirt, the other slayers get their powers back.
Okay, so Buffy defeated some goddesses. Let’s explore that. It was implied in the TV show that Slayer power is demon power, but Buffy is special and has transcended from demon power to goddess power. For example, only she could wield the god’s hammer that she used to defeat the goddess Glory. It takes a god to use a god’s weapon. It takes a goddess to defeat a goddess, right? Plus she came back from the dead, not quite human anymore, right out of heaven. She is a goddess at this point. She is special. Okay. No problem with that.
But it is clear here that Wiccan power is coming from somewhere other than where the slayer power is coming from, right? Wiccan power is coming from the green cloud of cataclysm; slayer power is coming from the wrathful goddess known as earth. While simultaneously slayer power comes from a touch of demon? Okay. Confused a bit.
Moving on, we find out that Buffy’s new extra super superpowers are coming from the fact that she is absorbing the power of every slayer who dies. How or why? Not sure. I’m guessing it’s from that goddess who looked at her and then tossed her in the snow.
Twilight has kidnapped Giles, Faith, and Andrew, -- Buffy’s favorite people, Twilight says. And he has ditched Amy, Warren, and the army dude. Buffy agrees to help them kick Twilight’s ass. They help Buffy find Twilight. And things get stupid.
Twilight is Angel. Angel has super powers like flying now, too. Now I haven’t read the Angel comics yet, so maybe this does make sense to those who have. I’m going to read them and hope for the best, but having not read them; I just have to say Huh? For one thing, Buffy starts off rightfully pissed. But Angel insists that it was all happening anyway, and he isn’t personally responsible for killing anyone. Let me remind you that he kills some guy just for making a mistake about the location of the slayers like the evil bastard that he is in #26. So that is a lie. Angel is a big fat liar? So this is a trick, right? He tells Buffy that her absorbing the dead slayers power is not the big picture. Angel insists that he is good Angel, and Buffy says that she can feel it as the truth, and then she is glowing for some reason, and so they kiss. The explanation for their wonton abandonment of rationality is that “passion and love” are “potent magicks” – given by Willow, and Buffy is like a puppet being manipulated by something more ancient, powerful, and destructive than anything before – given by Giles. Okay.
So Buffy and Angel fuck. I thought that if they fucked, the curse would make Angelus? Was that resolved in the Angel comics? If so, just a sentence to explain this would’ve been nice. Assuming it was resolved, still …
… things just get weird. Faith and the slayers get their power back. Giles attempts to further explain. He tells everyone about a scary prophecy that caused a bunch of watchers to go all Jonestown years ago. He talks about how demon blood created the first vampires and then the slayer was created to keep the vampires in check. He talks about the balance of all this and that if the universe is smart enough to keep vampires and slayers in balance then it is also smart enough to have a big plan for Buffy and Angel. Their super powers are evolution. “The next step up the metaphysical ladder.” “It’s how Earth gives birth to a new reality.” (Earth = wrath goddesses = slayer power)
Turns out the “Big Bang” that starts a universe is really when a super powered vampire with a soul bangs a super powered slayer with a hint of goddess about her. Really? It just seems out of character for both Buffy and Angel. Angel and Buffy are sustainer gods that kill evil to protect and maintain the universe, essentially Vishnu – the preserver.
But now they are creator gods, too? Now they are Brahma? Okay. How did this change in character happen? So it apparently happened because Buffy and Willow used the power of the scythe to not share, but rather, to create the power that was given to all of the potential slayers. (So why isn’t Willow in the same shoes as Buffy?) So Buffy (and Willow) thus became Creator gods. They created a new breed in evolution. Also, Giles says that her reward is the power to survive “Twilight.” And the green cloud of Wiccan power is fallout from the Angel-Buffy Big Bang.
And we all know that the Trimurti has one more aspect. Shiva. Their creation set the newest apocalypse in motion. So the Buffy-Angel combo god that they become while fucking was created to restore balance by destroying the old earth (earth = wrath goddesses = slayer power) and creating a new world. (new earth = new wrath goddesses = new slayer power). All to balance things out. And a rift opens and evil demons pour in. (Why do no good demons ever pour in? Like Doyle or Lorne)
Giles says in regards to Buffy and Angel that they have evolved and because of their evolution, humans don’t matter anymore. But wait; there is a way to possibly kill this, their new god form. A totem. He’s been looking for it. Apparently that was what he was doing with Faith while they were travelling around Europe. But he says it’s too late now. Twilight is here.
Okay, so what the fuck is Twilight? Twilight is here on earth. Angel is channeling or possessed by Twilight? Buffy’s reward for becoming a creator goddess is that she gets to survive Twilight. And apparently Twilight is the Garden of Eden in the new universe? As Willow says, “So Twilight is a place?” Xander wants to know why Angel is now a killer. Giles explains that Twilight has power over its subjects, so yes, Angel is Twilight’s subject.
Okay. So Buffy and Angel have been sucked into the new universe, Twilight.
Giles explains to Willow that the demons now attacking earth are not due to forces of balance.
He says that since Buffy-Angel vacated Earth (earth = wrath goddesses = slayer power), the Earth has become expendable. (Since Buffy-Angel vacated slayer power, the slayer power has become expendable.) Wait, what? The earth only exists because Buffy-Angel wills it to exist? If Buffy-Angel is not in the earth, willing it to be, then it is not. Buffy-Angel thinks, therefore it is? Apparently. Buffy wants assurance that this new world they are in is not in her mind, and he assures her that it is indeed in both of their minds. Also, Buffy and Angel are the keys that made this world. Buffy smells a trap.
While those left on earth fight demons for their lives, Buffy-Angel try to make some metaphysical sense out of this world Twilight that they are in. They shape this reality with their minds. Angel promises Buffy extreme happiness here. Buffy just wants her friends, and when she thinks it, she can see them and see that they are in danger. So Angel vows to help. But again this is bullshit from Angel, because a few pages later he’s trying to convince Buffy that, just like when she died, no one really needed her. Angel tries and tries to convince Buffy to leave behind the lower plane and be with him, but she will not abandon her friends and family. She decides to abandon her true purpose of helping the universe evolve, as Angel puts it. She rips a hole in the fabric of this reality and climbs back into the old world with a fuck evolution battle cry. And Angel joins her, by her side – presumably. And they fight some demons and then Spike shows up with his cockroach army. Okay. Haven’t read the Spike comics yet, so don’t know what that is all about, so I’m accepting it at face value and moving on.
So we now get some Angel & Spike back story. Twilight appears to Angle as a talking dog. Twilight is apparently “a power without name, from a realm far above yours.” Angel is chosen by Twilight.
Angel’s cover story is that since Buffy went all super slayer, she has lots of enemies and rather than have a bunch of enemies working against her, he would become their leader and thus have them under his control. This is somehow supposed to bring out Buffy’s power. The bullshit just keeps piling up, doesn’t it Angel? Methinks you were played by a dog.
Back to now. The demon fighting continues. Buffy and pals escape on Spikes cockroach ship. Angel insists that Spike has an agenda, which never seems to manifest. Then he runs off to fight evil. Spike warns Buffy that the higher reality that she created is pissed at her for abandoning it. Then he tells her about “The Seed of Wonder” which is the heart of all Earth magic. (earth = wrath goddesses = slayer power) and of course, the seed is in the hellmouth under former Sunnydale. And it is guarded by the Master. Groan. Really? You’re bringing that asshole back? Why?
Over it. The seed is essentially a cosmic egg. It’s always been there. Even before The First. The world came from the seed, which created the world from a previous dimension and brought the demons in from that world, too, apparently. It is “the key.” The writers don’t spell this out for you, but this seed serves the exact same function as the Buffy-Angel Big Bang. They are also keys who create universes from other dimensions. Hmmmm? So was the Earth created when two super heroes fucked in the pre-Earth universe? Did the fucking make the seed? Is the fucking the seed?
But then Spike says that key is the wrong word, he meant cork. The cork (cork = seed = the heart of all Earth magic = earth = wrath goddesses = slayer power) stays in place and everything stays static and balanced, but pull it out and the world goes bye-bye. Apparently the new universe (called Twilight) demons want to uncork the cork while the earth demons are trying to prevent this. Willow gets sucked into snake woman vision land, and snake woman tells her that there is another option. Breaking the seed will permanently close off Twilight world, but their will be no more magic heart of earth. Remnants of magic will remain, slayers and vampires already in play, but no new ones, and witches will be powerless. Snake woman warns Willow because the earth needs this magic. Willow vows to protect the seed.
Buffy and Spike go confront the Master. Angel is fighting the good fight until Twilight, as a green glowing griffin, shows up, calls him Father, and mind fucks him. Twilight says that the seed is its soul. By logic, the seed must also be Earth’s soul, but this is not said. Twilight tells Angel that Angel is Twilight and Angel gets possessed by Twilight (again? or maybe it wasn’t possession at first?) Back to the Master. The seed enslaved the Master 800 years ago to protect it? Why does it suddenly need protecting 800 years ago? It’s older than The First. And it brought the Master back from death to keep on protecting it. It was hiding behind the hellmouth and secretly manipulating the Master? The Master is “really challenged by the major plot points” and at this point, so am I, and apparently Dawn is, too.
Twilight demons attack. So Willow suggests that they team up with the Master since everyone wants to protect the seed. The Master attacks Buffy and we learn that the close proximity to the seed makes Buffy weak. Remember, it is the totem that Giles was looking for that can kill the Buffy-Angel godform. So Buffy goes up top to help fight around the edge of the hellmouth.
Warren, Amy and army dude escape. The army wants to destroy the seed, too. Willow does a spell and channels the seed energy/Earth energy to battle the demons. Then a Twilight possessed Angel shows up and hits Buffy. Spike gets knocked out of the battle so its Buffy verses Angel. Giles gets the scythe from Faith to take to Buffy. Angel and Buffy fight their way back to the seed. Angel tries to uncork seed, but the Master tries to stop him. Angel kills Master. Buffy kicks Angel. I guess their power hasn’t faded yet. Then Giles shows up with the scythe. He says that though Buffy & Angels power fades at the seed, the seed actually fuels the scythe. He thinks Angel’s power has faded already, and he doesn’t think Buffy is mentally strong enough to kill Angel. Not sure why he thinks this, since she has done it before. Maybe because they did the nasty earlier. Giles makes a pathetic attempt to kill Angel and Angel snaps Giles’s neck. Buffy bitch slaps Angel, grabs the scythe, and kills the seed.
The demons all go bye-bye back through their hell portals. Willow looses all of her power. The green glowy griffin form of Twilight casually strolls away.
Buffy thinks that she has won. Spike thinks that she has won. But only Willow knows that she has lost.
Buffy killed the seed. (seed = the heart of all Earth magic = earth = wrath goddesses = slayer power)
As Twilight once said, “This battle doesn’t end with Buffy laying down her sword. It ends with her turning her sword against herself.” Which she has just done. Bravo. Brilliant. Love that aspect.
And the scythe is broken, just to reiterate this.
What I don’t understand is, why did Twilight give Willow and the other witches back their power? Was it an accident or did Twilight have a motive for protecting the seed? Maybe so it could be pulled out like was stated but which seems to me to be misdirection? I thought Twilight wanted Buffy to destroy the seed, like I just pointed out. Seriously. I’m just not quite getting it. Twilight strolled off casually. Maybe because destroying the seed will ultimately destroy the Earth and give Twilight room to grow? I don’t have the answers and that annoys me.
And then there is the wrap up issue. A world with no witches and no new slayers. No new vampires? Not sure about that one. No clear explanation. Willow is crushed. If there is no more magic, then Willow can’t go evil in the future and Buffy won’t have to killer her, right? I personally think that Willow will go evil bringing magic back into the world in upcoming issues, but that is just my theory. Giles leaves everything to Faith except the Vampyr book. I don’t know how I feel about this. Yes, he did go across Europe with Faith looking for a totem that he hoped he could use to kill the Buffy-Angel godform with, so maybe he took the time out of his running-for-his-life schedule to rewrite his will. I don’t know. Seems like a cheap shot at Buffy. And Angel is crazy now and Faith is taking care of him. That makes sense. She owes him one. The rogue punk slayer kills the army dude. I don’t understand why. And now she is after Buffy, which I do understand.
And that is pretty much it.
There are parts of this story that I love, and parts that just leave me confused or annoyed. The shots at Stephanie Myers were sometimes funny. I personally shutter to think that 200 years from now sparkly vampires will be an accepted part of the vampire lore, but Stephanie Myers is what she is, and I’m not a Twilight hater. I really wish they had just pretended she didn’t exist rather than letting her infiltrate the Buffyverse in such a way. Furthermore, I think they went out of their way to bring back characters better left buried (Warren, The Master), and they left some characters buried (Tara, if only as Willows guide instead of snake woman) that could’ve been dug up. Overall, I can’t decide if I like the story line or not. I think some of my questions may be resolved in future issues, so whilst I’m left with a slightly unpleasant taste in my mouth, I’m hoping for some mouthwash in the near future.
If Season 9 brings it or even if something in Angel sets this up, I may up the ratings of these last few issues from a 3 to a 4 or 5, but until I get some answers, I just can’t do it. -
I am still so seriously confused regarding the whole "Twilight" aspect of this season...but I am really glad that the end was leading to more traditional Buffy story lines....
Although, I will forever be salty about Giles...='( -
You're probably not going to want to read this review if you haven't read the graphic novel. There's going to be all kinds of spoilers and storyline mentioned. You've been warned...
Okay, now to get into the story. There were lots of things I liked (even loved), and there were other things that just didn't set well with me. First, the things I loved -
Spike! The way Spike is portrayed in Last Gleaming has me more convinced than ever that he's twice the character Angel is. Think about it - Spike has a soul & no curse. And he's STILL badass. And heck, even when he didn't have a soul he was much more concerned with the world & better at making epic decisions than Angel. Really love that through Last Gleaming Spike states his intentions, keeps to his intentions, and then goes on to fight the next battle. He's definitely matured and come into his own.
Faith! One of my favorite lines she says in Last Gleaming "Where's the man-bitch formerly known as Angel?" Pretty sure she just summed up my estimation of Angel with those words. Faith has also matured immensely in this volume of Buffy S8. Granted, this is Buffy S8, not Faith so not surprised she didn't get more time in the pages. I still suspect that something went down between Faith & Giles that they decided not to talk about when they rejoined the other slayers. But Faith just brought the guidance the younger slayers needed when Buffy was distracted by Angel (as always) and really just for me, became THE slayer in this volume.
Willow dumped Kennedy which is the only thing that ever made sense to me in their entire relationship. I had no problem with Kennedy, but all they seemed to have was sex...and that is not enough to base a relationship on.
Xander and Dawn got a place together & for once Xander may not lose a girlfriend. I mean, I guess they could kill Dawn off, but they've gone to alot of trouble to keep her around.
Stuff I didn't like -
Giles getting himself killed. By Angel. Really? Why not have Buffy just kill him herself. I understand the character enough to know he did it so Buffy could defeat Angel, but I sure as hell don't like it. I am looking forward to the Faith and Angel comics, but much more because of Faith than Angel.
The end of magic. I don't think that really needs an explanation.
Buffy being Buffy and fantasizing about shagging Spike right after she had nudey shenanigans with Angel thereby creating a new universe. Make up your mind already Blondie, because these boys are not going to share.
Looking forward to the next Season...perhaps the blonde one will finally see Spike for what he is instead of looking to the past.... -
(lite spoiler alert)
OK, so the classic television series of Buffy had some very comic book aspects: ever increasing in power bad-guys, a focus on the 'wowness' of magical happenings, and crazy funny dialogue.
So in some respects I should not have been surprised in the direction the actual comic of Buffy has taken. It certainly is not the first comic to stumble under its ever-bloating superpowers. In the end though, I found watching Buffy and Angel fly around the sky like Goku and Vegeta or, Neo and Agent Smith, just left me feeling unimpressed.
Usually returning to past themes and characters is a bit of a literary must, however I found the return of 'The Master' and the repeat of Angel vs Buffy to a bit of a cheese attempt at skilful writing rather than awesome.
Not to mention there is nothing worse than the author apology letter - never a good thing for any piece of work.
I guess ultimately I'm a fan lost. I really like the TV series however I look about the comics more as an 'alternate timeline' rather than a genuine continuation, as I felt no connection between the two. -
4 Season-Final-Stars
Apocalypse is here!
'Cause Buffy and Angel created a new world-thingy everything went loose.
Can they save the world as they know it?
And how could Spike help them with it?
Is it the End of all magic?
Joss Whedon did a great job to connect the world he created for
Frayto our Buffy-verse. As always I love the drawings and the story! And I'm sure as hell intrigued to read Season 9 as well! Because he can't let this be the End! -
Gençlerimiz bilmez belki ama işte benim gençliğimin vampirizmi. Dizisine bayılmıştım. Her bölümü ayrı keyif, ayrı meraktı. 7 sezonluk harika bir seyirdi. Neyse Buffy bitti, düştüm boşluğa tabi. Bu arada 8. sezonun çizgi romanla devam edeceğini öğrendim. Çizimler çok güzel, kurgu başlarda pek hoşlanmasam da sonra aldı başını gitti filan. Diziyi izlediniz ve sevdinizse çizgi romanlardan yana kuşkunuz olmasın! Aynı zamanda diziyi izlememiş ya da izleyip 7 sezonu da izleyip bitirmemişseniz bu çizgi romanlara yaklaşmayın. Çünkü hiçbir şey anlamazsınız.
-
What a mess. Turns out the whole point of Season 8 was to reconcile the end of TV Buffy with Joss' future-Slayer comic Fray - a problem which, to the best of my awareness, was bothering nobody except Whedon himself. Yes, he decides that the changes to the format which comics' unlimited budget allowed were maybe not good ideas anyway, but I'm still not convinced that a back-to-basics Season 9 will be any more necessary.
-
And thus the return of Patrolling Buffy.
Finally! -
Ugh...hoping season 9 is better.
-
While I wouldn’t have personally written the second half of Season 8 the way it was, I think given that it took these turns that this was a solid wrap up to everything that has happened! There was plenty of action, maybe a little too much exposition, some REAL sadness, and a broadening of the Buffyverse that could potentially be a lot of fun to see explored in the future (coughBugSpaceshipcough).
The plot had grown a little too big and out of control, so the writers had quite a bit to reign in, and it was a good effort! I feel satisfied with this ending. I don’t ~adore~ it, mainly because several choices and action seem vaguely out of character, and because the universe got WAY bigger without a lot of buildup, but it was a good time and I’m glad I read it nevertheless! -
I mean, other than THAT death I think this was a fine way to sort of wrap up Season 8 and set us on a trajectory for a (hopefully!) better Season 9. I think going from TV (and its more limited budget and scale) to the world of graphic novels hurt as it got a little too ambitious and big... and that is just not really what the heart of Buffy is all about. It's the small town vibes, the girl next door, the longing for a normal life... not... a world full of Slayers and demons and magicks aplenty. Sure, this season had its moments of greatness but it was definitely pretty lackluster in comparison to the whole Buffy franchise.
BUT I am ready for Season 9! -
Generally, this volume improved in the coherency of its plot and the representation of its characters . . . at the absolute end.
Joss wrote in the afterword that he went too big and too wild with the season, which I think everyone knew by volume 4. I'm glad that he recognized this, at least, but I'll believe his promise of change when I see it. What little improvement I noticed at the end of the final volume was tainted by the batshit crazy nonsense of the preceding ones, to the point that His character was, by this point, so utterly divorced from the story as to be rendered almost useless.
I actually don't mind the direction they took the story in for season 9, but again, this is so, so contingent on whether the writers return to the emotional core of the series, as they seem to be promising us they will.
Might I also say that my little Spuffy-shipping heart is absolutely destroyed by Buffy and Spike's interactions here? The Buffy x Angel showdown, which was clearly meant to be the bittersweet tragedy of the volume, paled in comparison to the few authentic, weighted, entirely intimate scenes we got with Buffy and Spike. Spike was characterized really well; his interactions with Buffy were flippant but tender, and unremittingly supportive. I'm 100% honest when I say that Spike's return was the only thing that saved this season, and one of the few things that promises a better season 9.
I'm still interested in continuing, if only because one of my original OTPs are finally back in action together, but Joss is on thin fucking ice, lemme tell you. -
When I started reading these season 8 Buffy comics, I really liked the return to the characters and getting to see what happened after the tv show, and the art in the first three books was really representative of the actors. But as it progressed the storylines got progressively weirder and dumber, and in this last volume it was just too annoyingly dumb for me to enjoy. Twilight is Angel, and he and Buffy shag a new universe into existence, but then abandon it, but then their "child" from that universe is pissed and has been leading Angel all along to create it in the first place?! You can't exist if you don't exist yet! That makes no sense. And then there's an earth cosmology wedged in, about this "seed", that was the source of demons, and life? what? I mean I'm not even sure that fits with the explanation for how/why there are demons/vampires in the world that was given in the show, but I can't remember what all they said. But the show's magic/supernatural is much less offensive, I guess, you can just fit it into whatever cosmology/theology you adhere to, but now they're trying to explain the entire universe(s) via this magic and demons and everything-revolves-around-buffy-ness, and of course the freaking "seed" is in freaking Sunnydale because everything is. The entire universe revolves around this town that no slayer lived in until Buffy happened to move there, and then it just happened to have so many big bads and a hellmouth and oh, look at that, the seed of all life/magic?! and Giles is all "oh I should have known, dear me" and I'm like, "don't feel bad Giles how could you possibly know, they didn't write it that way originally, this is just as bad as the final five Cylons reveal on Battlestar Galactica" but then it also DOES completely undermine his character and make him look useless the way he kept saying "i should have known, i suspected" about stuff like the buffy-angel "new universe" and the "seed"...I mean you have to go big I guess since the change to hundreds of slayers at the end of the show is such a monumental paradigm shift, but things got way out of hand.
The story just got really annoying. And I was reading them from the library, and I thought "I'll just wait for season 9 to come to the library too before I read them," but now I'm thinking I don't really need to read season 9, ever. At least I'm in no way eager to, unless the storytelling is going to be much less bizarre. -
Just finished Buffy Season 8 and, well, hmm.
The season started out strong, but then got more and more complicated. Too many new characters, too many incoherent stories, too much mystical strangeness, and not enough of why I care for the core characters and the show. I loved, loved, loved the ending of Buffy on television. I loved the idea of sharing the power and Buffy basically giving one big f-u to the patriarchy. While I think it's interesting to consider the ramifications (both good and bad) for empowering so many possible slayers, I didn't care for how such a possibly fascinating story was handled. Sometimes more is just more, and that's what Season 8 was to me. Sure, in comic book form the writers didn't have the limitations of a TV show, and could make literally anything possible. But this freedom made them unfocused and forgetful of why any of us were fans of Buffy in the first place. In good news, Whedon and co. seem to understand the frustrations of Season 8, as stated in the afterword, so with hesitation and excitement I move on to Season 9 to see if the show I enjoyed lives on.
