People think that Swanson was a better Buffy?


oh.

active | February 07, 22:28 CET

With his comments about Willow,more and more I'm wondering if we could get some announcments next month at Wonder Con.

Buffyfantic | February 07, 23:20 CET

Willow is definitely getting her own mini---although not officially confirmed, I'd bet a lot of money on it.

I don't get the appeal of Andrew. He and Spike both seem to overshadow other characters I'd rather see focused on, like Xander, Dawn, and Willow.

Aurrie | February 07, 23:58 CET

But we've hardly seen Andrew yet this season. Two very brief glimpses so far if memory serves. Not sure how he's overshadowing anyone.

redders | February 08, 00:06 CET

Andrew. Really? He is marginal at best and ludicrous at worst. I loath that character, and I think he sucks the wind out of any scene he is in.

But beyond that, I am mindful of a book I wish to get called "Celebrity, Inc." The books is about the way in which celebrities are marketed today, and how PR is used to position them. I mention this because that is what I felt when I read this; it is all PR, it is all designed to provide marginal information for maximal interest in order to do nothing more than enhance sales. At bottom, all this is about selling comics. Now, I am not naive here. I know they have to sell comics, but they do so, in my estimation, but using tactics that are used by people like the Kardashians. We are invested, so we react and respond. And comics get sold.

Though the tactic of removing Willow really seems to fly in the face of that, if Willow is your point of emotional investment in the 'verse.

Dana5140 | February 08, 00:21 CET

I don't think Scott was marketing any celebrities there.

gossi | February 08, 00:42 CET

For obvious reasons, Spike wasn't in Season 8, so it's nice to see him in the spotlight, because I miss him in the Buffy comics.

And Andrew is hilarious and interesting and underused, so I'm excited for his importance.

Just my opinion though :D

FangedFourLover | February 08, 01:21 CET

I'm ecstatic for more Spike. It's about time.

lisatwingomez | February 08, 02:02 CET

Afraid to say that having main characters absent from the book doesn't build "dramatic tension". It's just frustrating as hell.

Kaan | February 08, 04:23 CET

Funny. I don't see where the comic is called "Willow." She'll be back. All will be just fine.


Or not.

IrrationaliTV | February 08, 04:39 CET

Willow is on a mission. Beware her when she is on a mission, since she becomes unusually focused and very single-minded. I may be wrong, but I think Willow and Buffy will end up in grave conflict before this is over.

quantumac | February 08, 05:03 CET

Yeah Willow had her game face on at the end of #5. Big trouble is coming from that I expect. When she goes it alone, she gets what she is after, come whatever hell there is to pay for it.

Sunfire | February 08, 05:29 CET

Now, I am not naive here. I know they have to sell comics, but they do so, in my estimation, but using tactics that are used by people like the Kardashians.

And this tactic, of throwing stuff guaranteed to provoke a response from people into a thread? Pretty trollish. I notice you do that off and on. Stop please. This is a pretty standard interview, nothing Kardashian about it.

Sunfire | February 08, 05:38 CET

I wish this Andrew would fall into a volcano.

cleveland | February 08, 06:01 CET

When people saw the cover with Buffy getting her arm ripped off, everybody went nuts and thought we were violating the mission, but that's only one part of what's going on.

Of course I went nuts. And I still can't believe it will be really happening :(

anca | February 08, 06:11 CET

I couldn't truthfully describe Andrew as a favourite character of mine, but I think some of his interactions with other characters - namely Buffy, Spike and Dawn - have often been enjoyable, and at times, quite illuminating. In a sense, his weaknesses highlight their strengths, and in a way, his vulnerabilities give him a clearer identity, and even a form of strength. I always got the sense that Andrew knew that other characters didn't particularly care for him as much as he'd like them to. That for me is a sad tale, and a tale worth exploring.

Also, for me, the Buffy/Spike dynamic provided some the most enduringly powerful scenes in the Buffyverse, so any further development of their complex relationship is potentially great.

And lastly, I think Willow's absence at a time Buffy could probably use her support the most is very telling, and not atypical. It's a bit like Giles' absence in Season Six, except right now, poor Buffy has neither Giles nor Willow to lean on. At least she has Spike, and it'll be interesting to see how she broaches the recent developments in her life with Xander and Dawn, who, whilst certainly seeming to have their own issues to deal with, will surely have something to say about Buffy's circumstances!

I like Scott Allie's interviews. I've always gotten the impression that he is deeply invested in the opportunity that he's been given to continue the stories of these iconic characters, and that he takes the responsibility of being true to their established natures very seriously.

EffulGentleman | February 08, 06:18 CET

I'm not entirely sure that I've ever seen any entertainment related interview or article, be it for a television show, movie or comic book, that wasn't in some way used to hype the very thing they were discussing in order to sell more stuff and make more money! That's just the crazy business they call show, right?

As a big fan of Spike I'm all for pushing all the other characters to the side and just changing the title of the book to 'Spike'! Okay, maybe not, but I will say that I'm enjoying this season a lot more now that he is front and centre! He was the core of what made the television show such a hit with me and I see him as an essential part of the mix to any Buffy story! Probably more so than even Willow these days and certainly more than Xander and Dawn! Don't get me wrong, I love all the characters dearly (even Andrew, to a point...) but if you told me that Buffy and Spike were heading off and leaving the rest of the gang behind for a four issue story arc, I wouldn't have any problem with that!

Five Horizons | February 08, 13:47 CET

@quantumac: You make a really interesting point about Willow. So far in this book there has been an awkward kind of tension between Buffy and Willow. To me it feels like they love each other, but that Willow is seething, really feeling contempt for Buffy's destruction of the seed. In my experience, that kind of resentment can kill, especially in an addict like Willow (yeah, I still think of Will as an addict in some stage of recovery).

I think it's an excellent move to let Willow do her own thing for a while. Poor Willow has always been a sidekick, however powerful she has become. She went to UC Sunnydale specifically to help with Buffy's mission. Her greatest spells were granting slayer-ness to Buffy's army and bringing Buffy back from the dead. And whenever she was not helping the slayer cause, she was abusing magic for selfish reasons. I feel like it's time for Will to find an identity and purpose outside of Buffy (whether or not it involves magic).

And yeah, I could definitely see this meaning she and Buffy having very different agendas... Conflict!!

5X5B | February 08, 22:54 CET

Who would have thought that the boldest comic out there is.... Archie.

http://www.comicsalliance.com/2012/02/01/archie-marries-valerie-baby-interracial-marriage/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmaing7%7Cdl7%7Csec3_lnk3%26pLid%3D134012

Dana5140 | February 09, 13:21 CET

quantumac, Sunfire, 5x5B: They'v e committed themselves to "maintaining" the Frayverse, which I grant *could* mean several things. And we know what happens to Willow there, so I do not expect a result I will like. (As I've said, I moved form obsessed fan to causal viewer gradually between "Seeing Red" and "You're Welcome," and nothing in S-8, Dollhouse, or the Sereni-verse has changed that. S-9 just might move me into "no longer interested in this guy," but I plan to wait and see.
Full disclosure; in my futurefics, I retired Buffy from active Slaying (via a partial disability) before she married and had children, so that might affect my perspective.

DaddyCatALSO | February 11, 19:32 CET