I just read it. It was pretty good. A little confusing, but there you go.

Giles_314 | September 17, 15:43 CET

Care to post spoilers?

The Alpha Gamer | September 17, 16:16 CET

SPOILERS: It's awesome!

And confusing, to Giles_314!

Brian Lynch | September 17, 16:21 CET

I liked it alot! Thanks for the Spillyria moment! I bought the Urru cover of course, both regular one and virgin cover, the latter of which I will hang on my wall (well protected, of course) because of its awesomeness.

Seriously good work. The entire page with the kiss is very much appreciated :)

Illyria | September 17, 16:37 CET

I have my copy.Lots that I liked in the issue.Probably the two coolest moments for me was the Non/Gunn meeting and the Connor arrival on the last page.I've wanting to see how Spike and Connor met up.Also interesting that Spike already knew Connor was Angel's son.I wonder if he can smell it.

Buffyfantic | September 17, 17:16 CET

This is my favorite After the Fall issue that Urru has done. Pretty pictures. Was wondering if we'd be getting more cameos and we most certainly do in this one. This was probably my favorite Spike: AtF so far also, mainly because I like the darker tone. The semi-zombification of the people Spike was meant to protect is a pretty horrible (but good in a creative way) torture for him. The final beat down should make for a good issue!

archon | September 17, 17:22 CET

It is VERY awesome, and of course everything gets more confusing before the final issue, which will make everything clear. I seriously loved Spike's fantasy with Angel working with the humorous name tag: Hello My Name Is The Reason We're Stuck Here (so funny at Big Bad Bath & Beyond). I have both covers and seriously love all of this (and kind of hope that Jerry Jeremy lives!).

embers | September 17, 17:28 CET

Best issue of Spike's story yet. I loved all of it.
I am really getting into the thought of a Spike and Fred pairing. I love how protective he is of her. It reminds me of Spike and Dru. May never happen anymore than what we just got but it would be cool.

Loved everything. Bravo.

cheryl | September 17, 18:46 CET

I did enjoy the issue. I loved the Gunn scene. The reveal that he kills Slayers just to let off steam was incredibly cool. It made me hate him and his evil-ness, like, four times more than previously, and seriously increased his badass level.

I am still a bit confused... why did Spike and Illyria kiss? I never got a serious romantic vibe off of Spike & Fred, more like a fun flirty vibe. And isn't Illyria a powerful Old One? Can she feel such a human emotion as love? Also, I really wish we could get a difinitive timeline from someone. Brian? I know it is not necessary for the enjoyment of the comics, but... my OCD! It's slowly killing me!!

Anyway, loved the issue, am really excited for the conclusion.

[ edited by Giles_314 on 2008-09-18 04:34 ]

Giles_314 | September 17, 19:33 CET

...must...resist...spoilers...

TFAW just shipped my order. I'm so pumped.

dstroyer | September 17, 20:07 CET

Great issue! My first impression was that I liked Issue 2 better because of the amazing 'laugh out loud' moments, but then I realized how amazingly dark this issue is - torture, twisted comfort, villains rendezvous and kill slayers in a twisted training ring, the build-up to a vicious execution attempt. Very dark and awesome.

Ok, something pretty crazy was pointed out to me about the slayers in this issue. Remember when Non kills them? Then remember when they're alive again so that Gunn can fight them? Remember these are the same slayers that later try to attack Betta George until Gunn kills them...again apparently? Some beaucoup de magic is going on. Also, how crazy that Gunn dropped all those weapons for the slayers to use on him. Has he magicked up the ultimate fighting/training ring complete with re-animated Slayers? It's exactly the kind of twisted, evil behavior I'd expect in the Angelverse. Reminds me of Lindsey's prison in Underneath where his heart keeps getting ripped out and he lives to experience the torture the next day.

I loved the Non/Gunn meeting and how Non had hoped she could parlay her capture of Spike and Illyria into a power play with Gunn. No dice, apparently. Non is an amazing badass villain - the "main stage" made up of skulls = chills. I think she's my favorite villain out of After the Fall or Season 8. I'm getting a little sad at the thought that she's going to die - is she, Brian? I know she should and I'll probably cheer on whoever does it, but dang what a great character. Sorry to see her imminent ass-kicking demise - she's one character I wouldn't mind being retconned in order for her to return. Well, actually I would mind the retcon, but I'd get over it and enjoy her return. See? Original characters can be awesome.

As for the Spike/Illyria kiss, I read that as her asserting her dominance over Spike - that his attention wasn't allowed to stray to another (in this case, Spider) and so she grabbed him and kissed him to remind him of his "priority". Didn't read anything romantic about it. Though if Illyria ever did have sex, I doubt there'd be anything romantic about that either. I think the only language Illyria speaks fluently is dominance and I'm not surprised that she would use sex to assert her power.

I liked that we got the explanation for how Betta George can read vampire minds - he's a Splenden beast. Sadecki demons can't get it done, but Splendens can read a vampire's mind. Nice little addition to the rules of the 'verse.

Great art by Urru - loved it. Especially the panel of Connor's entrance. All in all, an excellent issue. Can't wait for the finale to this piece. Sorry to see the end of Spike: After the Fall so near.

Emmie | September 17, 20:26 CET

In my opinion, Illyria's kiss is at least partially due to the influence of Fred, particularly in that it's making her feel more human rather than god-like. I kinda got the impression that Illyria of the olden days didn't go around doing a whole lotta kissing, but who am I to say?

archon | September 17, 20:50 CET

Grrr Argh
I won't be able to get this until tomorrow at the earliest. I tried to resist the spoilers, but couldn't, the purple post was just too much. Thanks for telling me it's awesome, Lynch, you just ruined it for me :D.

Eric_Curtis | September 17, 20:54 CET

While I've always been pro-Urru (I'm so glad he's finishing out AtF - bout damn time!), his art is especially illustrated in this issue with the new colorist. It's amazing the difference it makes!

God, I love Brian and Urru together! So very badly.

CowboyCliche | September 17, 21:11 CET

One of the best lines yet. I hereby formally nominate it to become part of the rotating quotes on the front page here at Whedonesque.

Spider/Maria really intrigues me. I hope we get to learn more about her. If not in the After the Fall series, maybe in a new series featuring Beck, Spider and Tok? Not sure how Spider would get along with the other two, but I loved Beck and Tok's interaction in Spike:Shadow Puppets.

I also like the explanation of why Betta George can read vampires' minds and the Sadecki demon could not. This ties in nicely with the mind-reading rules established in Earshot when Buffy was infected with the mind-reading aspect of a demon but still couldn't read Angel's mind.

I agree with Emmie. I read Illyria's kiss as a power/dominance move.

Poor Gunn. So twisted. Still believing himself the hero, but tormenting and killing Slayers.

Great book in a wonderfully enjoyable series. Brian keeps raising the bar with each book. I'm torn here. I can't wait to see how this ends in the next issue, but I don't want it to end. Thank you, Brian and Franco, for the sheer pleasure reading your books have brought to me.

MacGuffin | September 17, 22:56 CET

Again, the main pleasure of this book is Brian's near-unparalleled command of Spike's voice. I think there may have been some tiny baby missteps with other Angel characters' voices at times, but not once with Spike. His characterization has been utterly perfect; the only thing that's missing is James Marsters reading the lines out loud.

And there's a new colorist, is there? Possibly why I liked the art better than usual. I like the combination of this colorist and Urru, because it really brings out something in Urru's work, which I am usually not enamored of.

An exciting and fun read, just like the first two issues. I like how this comes without the heft or weight of either Buffy or Angel. It's a nice breather. (And considerably more than that, but you know what I mean.)

UnpluggedCrazy | September 17, 23:12 CET

I bought the "After the Fall" Volume 1 hardcover yesterday and am gonna sit down to read it now. I wanted an opening credits sequence in addition to that beautiful cover to start me off before I opened it. There're tons of made up Season 6/"After the Fall" credit sequences up on YouTube, but do you guys consider any certain one(s) the best or definitive ?

This is what I like the most so far (another one I watched included Knox, but that seemed like fan-wishing fan-wankery, not trying to get it right, so...yeah...something somewhat official-looking).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-I5NmhoHlHk

Do we know which actors/characters actually would have been in Season 6 had it happened, either as regulars or recurring ? Aside from Wesley not being meant to die in Season 5...Has Joss ever talked about who would and wouldn't be in Season 6 ? I know from being a little spoiled that Gwen, Connor, and Nina are in Brian Lynch's take on it. I'm just curious if Joss himself has said anything about their involvement.

Oh, and nice to see a return to the proper font from the series spelling out "Angel". I wasn't fond of what Dark Horse came up with for their 4-issue Volume 2 Angel mini-series.

[ edited by Kris on 2008-09-18 08:22 ]

Kris | September 17, 23:20 CET

I guess this would be as good a place as any to say congratulations to IDW.

Simon | September 17, 23:23 CET

Congratulations IDW!

Emmie | September 18, 11:02 CET

No offense IDW, that's great for the company and all employees, but I'm sad to see Image slip from the fourth spot, being a fan of a lot of their books (they've come a long way from just being one of the main purveyors of the T&A and wannabe-grit of the `90s mainstream comics scene).

I know they have a lot of creator-owned material too, but it seems like most of IDW's current success can be attributed to TV and film property adaptations. They can be well-made at times (a lot of the Transformers stuff isn't, to be honest--I've read a few), but somehow it just seems kind of a cop-out way to claw your way to the top. I respect a publisher more for getting there by way of original creations tht become mainstays of that specific publisher. Dark Horse is sort of in the middle...to regular comic readers, they seem just as well-known for Hellboy as they are for being the license factory of such titles like Buffy, Star Wars, Aliens, and Predator.

I guess IDW had 30 Days of Night long before any of their adaptations got started up, so they're kind of on the same footing as Dark Horse.

Kris | September 18, 14:07 CET

On the other hand, Dark Horse kinda showed just how big a licensed property can be if done with care, so they've also earned their spot in that regard. Conan and Buffy are continually high quality releases. IDW just saw how good it could be and joined in (not that there's anything wrong with that, I love the new Angel and Spike).

archon | September 18, 15:22 CET

Yay for IDW!

Brian Lynch | September 18, 22:54 CET

This was a genuinely fun issue, I was kinda holding back praise from this miniseries because it wasn't super enthralling...but now my whole perspective's turned around on this thing; I'm inspired to re-read the first two issues.

Congrats to IDW too!

The Londinium Sun | September 19, 04:30 CET

Same reaction I ahd to the first two issues (and also to Gunn and the demon lord's harem in the mains eries) is that there's no comign abck form all this without a simple it-was-all-an-illusion or a time reset, neither of which are palatable in the Jossverse, at least to me. If you want that, buy MArvel or DC. Altho the Spike/whatever-the-character's-actual-name-is-now-but-she-looks-like-Amy-Acker has its sweet redeeming qualities.

DaddyCatALSO | September 20, 08:44 CET

Nothing confusing here… other than wishing this was linked in the main page for easy access ;)

I LOVED THIS! I don’t recall being so entrapped in a comic like I did in this issue. I love everything about it – the lines just flow perfectly and the art is wonderful. Mmmm, darkness and angst with just enough funny. I can hear and see the events unfolding and I enjoyed every second of it. So many things, so little time, and it didn’t seem the least bit rushed. Although, a tiny bit sceptic on why Illyria would state her claim on Spike though mouth – maybe to clean the spider stink? Well. She has a lot to uhem- do to get that done. lol

I love the final reveal (Jerry’s alive. Yay. For how long?) and Connor coming to the rescue! Yay. I might get to see my ever awaited Spike/Connor familial boding. However, I really need to go back and recall how is it that everyone knows about Connor being Angel’s son – that never really hit well with me.

I cannot wait for the next issue to come out. I hope it’ll also blow my mind like this has. Thanks for an amazing issue, Brian and Franco! :D

Mirage | September 21, 04:28 CET

Yeah, finally got this (pay day today!) and I like it. Good strong art, and fun story.

fangless | September 23, 06:54 CET