June 04 2009
(SPOILER)
Cover art and plot details for Buffy #28.
This'll be out in September.
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And look, Giles is in it too! Woot!
ShanshuBugaboo | June 04, 22:33 CET
Simon | June 04, 22:36 CET
Uhm this issue seems to be the one that will point out the reason why Willow lived for so long until she meet Fray.
She and Buffy arguing over magic can be the reason explaining Willow's actions in the future.
I wish someday there will be an issue explain it.
rua1412 | June 04, 22:52 CET
Emmie | June 04, 23:04 CET
The story sounds very interesting and as if we’re going to get to the root of the Buffy/Willow tension. It immediately made me think back to ‘Anywhere But Here’ when the demon tells Buffy that the end of magic is her life goal, and we get that panel of Willow looking on concerned/upset/weary of this.
Also so happy to see Giles! :D
vampmogs | June 04, 23:09 CET
Just about the first thing you are taught about mediation posture is:
If sitting on the floor, use cushion(s) so that the knees are below the hips and in contact with the floor (otherwise the back will be collapsed)
The technical term for the cushion in Zen Buddhism is zafu, a word that has spread to the West. Some people put a mat (zabuton) under it, but in my experience it is usually too much of a hassle to move the cat each time.
This is why Buffy (and to a lesser extent, Willow) have arched backs (great realism again by Chen, by the way). My inner 13-year-old certainly approves of what sitting flat on the floor does to their, uh, front sides. But given that people have been meditating for more than 2,500 years and Buddhism is now the third largest religion in the U.S., you'd think they'd take the time to get this right.
Yes, I meditate myself (vipassana). More importantly, I still want that job as Buffy fact checker.
scotws | June 04, 23:35 CET
vampmogs | June 05, 00:15 CET
Giles'chainsawchick | June 05, 00:19 CET
patxshand | June 05, 00:22 CET
And it seems that I took the wrong meaning from this arc's title.
mgmn | June 05, 00:27 CET
However, it is an obvious mistake in a common spiritual practice of a major world religion that was founded centuries before Maria met Joseph. So you're asking me, is it important if we have Christians praying with their hands in their pockets, a Jew wearing a kippah to bed, a Shiite praying away from Mecca, or a Sikh without a beard. It is wrong, and some people think an artist or a writer should take the time to get their facts straight, especially when it takes ten seconds with Google.
It's not on a level with showing Germans as 19th century peasants with no electricity or cars, no. But it is a mistake.
scotws | June 05, 00:41 CET
It also seems to me that it is unlikely Willow and Buffy are sitting solely for the purpose of Buddhist meditation, even if they are in Tibet, because neither of them is actually Buddhist. It's much more likely they're doing something magic or supernatural. And they just didn't have a cushion handy.
I don't see it as a mistake. To me it's more in keeping with what the characters would likely do. This is a girl who's staked her fair share of vampires with chairs that happened to be handy. I'm sure she could pop into a cushion-less meditation, no problem. If I saw Buffy getting all particular about sitting with a cushion just like my mom, ten-year yoga student and constant corrector of every single little thing I ever do with my body, standing or sitting, it would be annoying.
ailiel | June 05, 03:04 CET
Rowan Hawthorn | June 05, 04:20 CET
As for the plot -- very interesting. Buffy is buying into this purging or suppression of magic from their existence, which, whether she realizes it or not, means she's as close to defeat as she's ever been. Either she doesn't realize she's doing exactly what he wants her to do, or she *does* realize it and is no longer convinced he's wrong.
KingofCretins | June 05, 04:25 CET
Krusher | June 05, 04:26 CET
Yes Dark Horse, please, please do a cover book.
(Also I add in the chorus of whoo-hoos for Giles!).
I'm wondering if Giles is overseeing another version of the Hokey Pokey Spell--perhaps to try and ease communication, see what is to come, or something else, which is why I didn't think they were meditating at all. I thought they were waiting for something to take effect and then spell!
Maybe I've been overthinking this.
ETA: Plotline appears spooky and unsettling and I do not like the feeling that Twilight and Buffy now appear to have the same goal. My guess is Twilight has a gloved hand in this plan and nobody knows. Also, I think there is going to be some ugly tension between the Slayers and the newly depowered Wiccas. Eek.
[ edited by JessicaMelusine on 2009-06-05 13:45 ]
JessicaMelusine | June 05, 04:39 CET
treenie | June 05, 05:01 CET
My entirely unclear point being that this is the Buffyverse, not reality. Nothing that we see happen there has to be based accurately on how things happen in our reality. If that was the case then either it would be a far less interesting story about a girl who goes out at night hunting for imaginary demons and monsters and then goes home or alternatively vampires would actually be real.
Or, basically, don't worry about the details of a fantasy based story and try to enjoy it for what it is.
Highlander | June 05, 05:05 CET
sueworld2003 | June 05, 05:06 CET
scotws didn't said that Buffy and Will are budists but: As much as I love the image on the cover, this is not meditation, it is sitting on the floor cross-legged with your back arched for about five minutes before your feet fall asleep and your spine starts killing you. What, I believe, is coming from someone who stay in a meditation position often.
About the plot: So, The First's plan for Willow will be in the road.
Brasilian Chaos Man | June 05, 05:16 CET
KingofCretins | June 05, 05:19 CET
Don't get me wrong, I'm still a big Jeanty fan. Fantastic artist. His cover work though? Often not up to standard, in my opinion.
And, The First? Did I miss something?
Highlander | June 05, 05:23 CET
Craig Oxbrow | June 05, 07:00 CET
Sunfire | June 05, 07:08 CET
Brasilian Chaos Man | June 05, 07:21 CET
That Buffy is happy to be forced underground like this is not at all surprising, perfectly in character. And now she can do it without the cognitive dissonance, since it seems legit that it's her "job" now to stay low profile.
[ edited by KingofCretins on 2009-06-05 16:33 ]
KingofCretins | June 05, 07:32 CET
toast | June 05, 07:48 CET
wiesengrund | June 05, 08:04 CET
As to the cessation of magic, I'm surprisingly, considerign what I've said before about it, actually glad it's come back up so very "not-quite-late-really" in the season. I'm hoping it'll be developed as a major arc issue, then partly resolved by "Episode 22" so that the future we saw is no longer the future of the world we're following.
DaddyCatALSO | June 05, 11:06 CET
curlymynci | June 05, 11:34 CET
http://comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=21477
CaptainB | June 05, 11:43 CET
Shep | June 05, 13:19 CET
GhostsWatcher | June 05, 17:18 CET
[ edited by Rowan Hawthorn on 2009-06-06 03:10 ]
Rowan Hawthorn | June 05, 18:10 CET
Maybe it's cause Buff finally exceeded my life experience (minus punchable demons) but I've been a bit aprehensive and fuzzy on Joss's big picture concept with the metaphors under the plot in season 8--BUT I'm definitely getting it now with where things are going. He's still stealthfully and subtly ripping open the jugular of collective consciousness. And things in general have been apprehensive and fuzzy in the world all with the dolls waking up and the demons finally parading about in the media these days, so it definitely makes sense.
And this is the lesson I learned a while ago that even when his 'product' seems to waver and loose touch or pfoot, he knows what he's doing but takes his time climbing the mountain to get at all the good stuff. And you should always trust Joss (at least creatively, i don't know him so i'm not sure about how he'd be with dog sitting or in a canoe).
Yay with the not forgetting all the character still exist and play into each other's emotional/psychological history (Giles' part & addressing Oz). Fingers crossed for a Faith thread-in that isn't totally contrived and hollow (I'm pointing at you Issue #24, what happened? out of all of the imperative things that could have popped out from Faith's regrets manifesting into reality, what the hell was that? WHAT? Maybe a rushed space filler much or are we just afraid of competing with Brian Vaughan?)
So I'm hoping she's stuck in the arc here somewhere to leave a better taste in our mouths of her own character arc..like, that its still there. Have out with the Buff maybe in a non-action setting this time? (I just can't believe after season 7 & however many years since they haven't vocalized a word of that crap yet.) They don't even have to converse, I'd be satisfied with paths crossing and a bitchy and slightly emotional gaze from the background of a panel somewhere.
Showers | June 06, 00:11 CET
|KingofCretins: "I'll be interested to see where Xander and Dawn figure in this. A guy on BuffyForums pointed out, quite cleverly, that Xander and Dawn are probably the only two Scoobies or members of Buffy's organization that are free to maneuver right now"|
-Yeah I kinda got that brewing up with all the 'you're gonna have to ride me' pokes. This conjures vague images for me of Dawn & Xander leaving the proverbial 'castle' together at some point with scowls on their face, and probably mating.
Showers | June 06, 00:12 CET
Yes I have. As frequently as possible. :)
curlymynci | June 06, 05:51 CET