I'm so sad that this is the last Q&A session. We're JUST getting to the climax and we're probably going to have a lot more interesting questions and it has to be now that we no longer get answers, =(. Interesting Q and A, my following of Season 8 is pretty much hanging on the next 2 issues. If the events of 33 are just straight up true and the characters are not under some kind of mystical influence then I am probably out.....

KaileeA42 | March 07, 03:27 CET

Too bad, I've enjoyed reading his Q&As.

Sunfire | March 07, 03:42 CET

Not going to comment on "Twilight" because we still have to wait to see where it's going. But: they're making a one-off about Riley Finn? HAHAHAHA. Sales will obviously be through the roof on that one!

This isn't bashing, by the way, I totes like Riley as a character (most of the time), and am looking forward to it personally. And obviously Riley's role in season eight is a bit muddy so a little extra material on him might be nice. But it's not like Riley is as popular as Willow. Seems like a bizarre choice.

Oh, I bet Petrie is just begging to write it.

WilliamTheB | March 07, 03:55 CET

I'm actually really happy to hear that the one-off will be about Riley. He was a main character for a solid season and to bring him back as, basically, a cameo seems stupid. It's nice to see his presence will get a little more fleshed out, especially considering the original plan for this one-off was for one of the slayers out in the world (that we had never even seen/met).

trunkstheslayer | March 07, 04:13 CET

These Q&As were great while they lasted, but I can see Allie's point of wanting the book to speak for itself.

Maybe with the Riley one-shot we'll get to see some of Angel's back-story as well? But seeing as how Riley didn't know who Twilight was, I don't know how that could work.

[ edited by Kaan on 2010-03-07 04:23 ]

Kaan | March 07, 04:21 CET

Well, once again, I'm happy about it and looking forward to it myself. I'm just a bit surprised, since I never got the impression Riley was that popular.

WilliamTheB | March 07, 04:21 CET

I loved Riley!

WheelsOfJoy | March 07, 04:34 CET

"What are we supposed to conclude from this thing that you've only started to reveal to us?"

I adore Scott for daring to so sum up the premise of way too many of the Qs in these Q&As, and especially with how much my patience was tried by this installment in particular, I kind of cheered when I got to his decision to stop doing them.

The One True b!X | March 07, 05:10 CET

I respect his decision to end the Q&A's, but I can't help but be disappointed.

I think that we really would have benefited from having the opportunity to hear his thoughts on future issues. And just because this Q&A session didn't go terribly well is no reason to expect that the same would have been true of future installments.

Ah well, it was good while it lasted.

Risch22 | March 07, 05:23 CET

I think the result of so many people being caught on the drama of the story and unable to see past it is what caused the repetition. People were caught up in the drama. Which is the point, yes? People reacting emotionally to the story because it's that controversial and that powerful.

Give it a few days and many people are starting to settle down (myself included), but when all these questions were churning, it just goes to show how people are confused and torn about the story.

Which to me just shows how controversial and potentially great it will be. So I'm not going to sit here and judge fans for reacting emotionally to a story when that's what the storyteller wants.

The repetition of the question should in fact drive home the onus on the storytellers that this logic is a big deal.

That being said, I actually do appreciate Scott's stance on wanting to let the story speak for itself. The author is dead in literary analysis, after all. Let the story tell the story.

Emmie | March 07, 05:48 CET

Sounds like Joss' arc isn't starting til September...which means #40 won't hit til January. :-( :-(

Riker | March 07, 05:49 CET

I’d like to thank Scott and Slayalive for doing these, it was a treat every month to read these and I enjoyed participating when I could. I can understand Allie’s decision, especially when people scrutinise his words so carefully (and rather to an unfair standard, at times) and he’s answering questions from people with a clear agenda. Everybody has their favourite character, ship, storyline ect and it was evident in this Q/A more than any that people were all trying to tug him in different directions. It’s perfectly understandable as fans are passionate, but I can totally understand why he’s decided to distance himself from that and let the story just speak for itself.

And I am very happy that we're using the one-shot to flesh out Riley. That was totally necessary and I'm so thankful for that decision. I agree that it probably wasn't the best marketing decision, as Riley is quite unpopular for whatever reason, but it just goes to show that these people place the story before the money and that's highly commendable. Nevertheless, I think it will sell well.

[ edited by vampmogs on 2010-03-07 06:27 ]

vampmogs | March 07, 06:27 CET

If the events of 33 are just straight up true and the characters are not under some kind of mystical influence then I am probably out.....
This is why I would want to be completely in...

Nice of Allie to give us this. I always enjoy his answers. Though, I would probably quit reading these anyways. I find I enjoy the books more when I can read and walk away with my own interpretations. I get so frustrated at the things people say online and the ugliness of the ship wars.

CrystalSC | March 07, 06:35 CET

I had to laugh at the one poster who asked about the Sonic the Hedgehog comics (in reference to the "three seconds in the future" thing). I've been reading those since I was a little kid and thought for sure I was the only one who would notice the similarity.

Matt7325 | March 07, 06:44 CET

Heh, the Sonic thing was me. I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought it. It hit me right before going to bed the night I got the issue.

trunkstheslayer | March 07, 06:53 CET

Hahahaha. Good old Knothole Village.

Matt7325 | March 07, 06:59 CET

Ugh. I loved the Q&As. It's a shame he's stopping now, with only 7 issues left. The whole collection could have been a great companion to the series as a whole.

jesse | March 07, 07:42 CET

I've also been a long time collector of Sonic - in fact, thanks to the magic of eBay, I have a complete, up to date collection. But I totally missed the hidden in the future reference. In fact, it took me awhile to figure out what you guys were on about, as I just couldn't remember anything like that - then I remembered Robotnik's Ultimate Annihilator trapping Knothole three hours in the future.

Actually, the hidden-in-the-future trick reminded me of an episode of Doctor Who from 2008. At the end of season 4 of the current series, the Earth and numerous other planets got stolen by Davros. When the Doctor managed to track down the location they'd been whisked away to, he temporarily couldn't find any trace of them, because they had been hidden one second in the future. That's what I reckon it may have been a reference to. :)

Scruffy | March 07, 12:41 CET

Awww, I loved these Q&As. It's a pity he's decided to stop them but I respect his decision: I get the feeling that the B/A, B/S questions wouldn't have stopped. Then again, shouldn't he have been prepared to deal with the repetition of those questions knowing how great an impact the Twilight reveal would have on the fandom? Of Ccourse, he can't be blamed for tiring of being asked the same questions, so thanks for these, Scott. I've really enjoyed them!

What's the 'Prince' thing that was mentioned, by the way? It's been a while since I've read the previous issues.

Shep | March 07, 13:37 CET

In 8.10, the Minder, Robin (the essay contest character) suggested that Buffy would have to "rescue the Prince", at some point, and the line has become the source of much speculation.

KingofCretins | March 07, 13:53 CET

Never contributed to the Q&A's myself, but thanks Scott, Emmie, and everyone involved in making these happen. It was cool while it lasted.

archon | March 07, 14:24 CET

So the role of Riley in season 8 is more significant than we thought? I quite enjoyed the Q/As too. Shame to see them go, I guess we'll have to make do with CBR's monthly feature.

Simon | March 07, 15:38 CET

I think Riley's role originally started off less significant, in that we were to be unsure of his loyalties, and then learn that he was an undercover agent later. His backstory was something that couldn't be explored, without giving up that plot point. But since his introduction, there have been plenty of questions about how Riley got roped into this, and I think it's swell that we're possibly going to be given some answers about that in this one-shot. Wonder who's writing/drawing it, though... More Moline would be nice... :)

wenxina | March 07, 18:25 CET

Oh, too bad. I liked these Q&A's a lot.

I don't have time to read it atm but...there's really going to be a Riley one-off?

menomegirl | March 07, 19:00 CET

I liked the Q&A's but completely agree with Scott's reasoning. He was very eloquent and witty and answered questions as truthly as he could without spoiling the rest of the arc, and manage to give a good view as to how the whole process works.

Sparticus | March 07, 19:11 CET

I'm super psyched about the Riley one shot... in addition to hopefully finding out when/how he got recruited (Time of Your Life, pt 1?) and what happened to (the late??) Mrs. Finn, I'm happy he's going to get a little more attention this season. I think I am possibly the only person in the fandom who has been wanting Buffy to end up with Riley (Ruffy? Biley?) since he left in Into the Woods.

buggerthis | March 07, 19:18 CET

You're not the only one. :)

menomegirl | March 07, 19:28 CET

@menomegirl: Yeah, the one-shot originally planned to be a "Tales of the Slayer" one has been changed to one that will focus on Riley instead. And instead of coming out in July (as previously planned), it's now coming out in August. Which leaves July as a gap month for S8. :(
I'm kinda glad that they've decided to not expend any more energy on trying to make the whole "Vamps are in" storyline more "believable". At this point, either people are willing to take it in stride, and use what's been given so far to construct a fairly coherent rationale, or will just shoot it down as another attempt at justifying the absurd. I'm in the first camp, and I would rather see ancillary volumes set in the S8 continuity exploring other avenues instead. A Riley story is actually a good move, IMO. Yes, Riley isn't as popular as Willow, but his story seems to have an even bigger hole in it then just about anyone in S8 right now.
Also, since Riley's journey will probably be more linear anyway (what can I say, good ol' Sergeant Stalwart's always been the linear kinda guy), it may go down better with some fans, who were kinda disappointed that the Willow one-shot wasn't more chronological, but was rather a trippy exploration of Willow's psyche.

ETA: Actually, both June and July will be gap months for S8. June will see the release of the Wash one-shot by Patton Oswalt, if I remember correctly.

[ edited by wenxina on 2010-03-07 19:36 ]

wenxina | March 07, 19:35 CET

Sergeant Stalwart? LOL! I think that's the first time I've ever heard Riley called that.

I did skim the Q&A and there were a lot of good questions asked but I could see why Scott Allie got frustrated. That's a shame because I was enjoying these sessions.

Thanks to SlayAlive, Emmie & Mr. Allie for doing this for so long.

menomegirl | March 07, 19:42 CET

Figured "Sergeant Stalwart" was good for a chuckle, so thanks for indulging me. :)
But yeah, a huge thank you to Scott, and a big pat on the back to Emmie for single-handedly managing these Q&As.

wenxina | March 07, 19:57 CET

I understand Allie's frustration as well, but it strikes me as the frustration of a person who is new to the fandom--anybody who is an actual fan of the series (both BtVS and AtS, and I get the impression Allie never watched AtS) would've been able to predict this flood of shipper questions after issue 33. And to be fair, they weren't even all shipper questions, some were legitimate concerns about Angel's character. Angel is always going to be connected to Buffy Summers, that's just how it is: you ask about his behavior in season 8 and you are almost de facto asking about how it impacts Buffy, and their feelings for each other.

I think probably Allie would've been better served from the beginning with a different format for the Q and A's. Have people submit a list of questions and he picks his favorite twenty to answer. I also am not certain that he was the best person to handle these Q and A's--I get the sense that he doesn't quite have the Buffy background and he often doesn't seem to understand the urgency or even relevancy of certain fan concerns about the mythology or the consistency of characterization between the comic and the show. (Then again if Allie didn't do the Q and A's, who would?)

[ edited by Hellmouthguy on 2010-03-07 20:08 ]

Hellmouthguy | March 07, 20:07 CET

And to be fair, they weren't even all shipper questions, some were legitimate concerns about Angel's character.

Legitimate or not, repeatedly asking the editor of the series to explain what's going to happen next isn't legitimate. I spend most of these Q&As wondering why all these people reading the comic don't seem to understand the concept of storytelling.

The One True b!X | March 07, 23:16 CET

Also, not to continue being contrarian, Scott isn't obligated to understand each and every permutation (hyperbole to underscore the point) of what this or that faction of fandom might potentially wig out and/or be concerned about. No storyteller -- and the editor necessarily is part of the storytelling, not the marketing, process -- should ever be seen as being so obligated.

I still find completely ludicrous the idea that (my outside interpretation) he seems to have felt backed into a corner to apologize for the hysterical Spray fanfic remark last time around. Honestly, at this point, if Scott hopes to preserve his sanity as a storyteller, I think he should just stop doing this sort of thing. It reminds me of the sort of crazy-making nonsense that drove me out of covering local politics.

The One True b!X | March 07, 23:22 CET

So we get a two-month Buffy break (June/July, even though Joss has a Serenity one-shot out in June), returning with a Riley one-shot in August. I guess that means Joss' final arc doesn't begin til September? Sadness...I want Season Eight to end in 2010 but I guess it's going to be pushed back til January 2011...UNLESS it double ships one month as a special treat to the fans! *hint hint*

Riker | March 07, 23:29 CET

Scottie Allie on Buffy:
"That girl ain't never been right..."

That's a double negative, right?

;)

didifallasleep | March 07, 23:50 CET

Of course he should apologize for making a flippant remark about a ship featuring two characters who have never met and exist in different eras. Duh.

And Season 9 better respect my Willow/Topher ship or there will be hell to pay.

The Dark Shape | March 08, 00:06 CET

I think on the Spike/Fray thing Allie is being a savvy editor. Whether he likes it or not and I'm sure he doesn't, internet furor over perceived slights can potentially affect sales momentum on this comic. The comic sells, what, about 50K copies a month now? The internet fanbase could comprise a significantly larger percentage of those numbers than they did with the TV show. Why bother letting something like this become a snowball rolling downhill like the whole Twilight-gate thing did, he probably figures. Though I wouldn't have apologized for it per se if I was him (because I wasn't sure his comments seemed disdainful so much as he was just trying to be funny and missing the mark), I probably would've written some short remarks explaining my position on ships--namely, that he has no intention of getting bogged down in those questions because they aren't central to his storytelling concerns, they're a byproduct of the story, not the story itself--and left it at that. You can't quite say talk of ships has absolutely no place in a Buffy comic discussion because, as always, romance and sexual hook-ups are key issues between all the characters (and it often seems as if that's all any of the Scoobies have on their minds), but certainly you can say that Joss and all the rest of the writers are not writing with ships as their main concern. Anyway I think it goes to show that humorous remarks online are dicey affairs because so much is lost in translation.

Hellmouthguy | March 08, 00:32 CET

And Season 9 better respect my Willow/Topher ship or there will be hell to pay.
LOL!

CrystalSC | March 08, 06:42 CET

It's a pity that Scott's canned the Q&A but I completely understand why - honestly while there was a few good questions in them, the majority of them felt like they were just asking the same stuff over and over, and it was stuff that didn't need to be asked. People demanding to know how to feel when they've only been given half the story so far; people obsessing over Bangel ("is Joss mocking our ship" indeed); and for some batcrap crazy reason, too many questions about the Twilight books (come on Buffy fans, you're better than that). Ironically enough #33 said everything that needed to be said in relation to Buffy and Twilight (the series): "we did it first, and we did it better."

Matt7325 | March 08, 07:26 CET

I look forward to a Riley-centric issue.

I started watching Buffy during the fourth season. Back then what we were told about the slayer's origins, fascinated me. On the one hand I Liked the "primeval" feeling, Buffy having that mud on her face. On the other hand the first slayer's heritage seems to be solitude and endless violence. Inevitable, in the end? later, in season 7 I was shocked, that obviously the first slayer got her forces by being raped by the shamans. Did I get this right. Since this is very disturbing and not at all "female earthly power" I since then I crave more information, more truth about the slayers' cosmic background. What about those strange guardians (that last one with their in my eyes outright clumsy appearance in the season 7 finale - but still they have to play a role in the mythology.)

My greatest hope for the outcome of season 8 (or 9) is to learn significant facts about the slayer mythology.

cleveland | March 08, 09:45 CET

As so many people took that question and it's answer the wrong way, i doubt you are correct in guessing Scott's "feelings" on the matter. That poster(Kratos) who this answer/apology was geared to already said that it was all meant in good fun and meant nothing bad by it, stating that an apology was not needed.

Vergil | March 08, 09:51 CET