Buffy the Vampire Slayer #30
Posted: Saturday, November 7, 2009
By: Ray Tate
Jane Espenson & Joss Whedon
Georges Jeanty, Andy Owens (i), Michelle Madsen (c)
Dark Horse Comics
This is going to be a frustrating issue for the fans that actually care about the identity of Twilight, the current Big Bad in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Buffy rescues the very last suspect that would raise eyebrows and that person was her spy in Twilight's camp.
Giles, Andrew, Oz, and Xander are all present and accounted for. That leaves Faith's former lover Robin, hardly a player, or a resurrected Ethan Rayne as the most likely suspects. I've excluded Angel and Spike from the list. Neither has a motive. As I stated in the forum, I can foresee a scene where Twilight pulls off his mask, and Buffy and the Slayerettes all in unison ask, "Who?"
For those not obsessed over Twilight's identity we have this dialogue: "First, we should go out and collect our injured and bring them back here. You know what? Let's collect their injured too. The soldiers. Protect everything that bleeds. Okay?" That snatch of speech gives me chills. If you never read a Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic book or saw an episode on television, that line tells you exactly what Buffy is about, why she leads and why she engenders such loyalty. Buffy is the Chosen protector of humanity.
The situation is dire. Buffy's plan of calling the war goddesses that fed on Slayer power opt for wholesale slaughter rather than choosing sides. I also like how they wage this battle in a peaceful meadow and in broad daylight. Michelle Madsen highlights pastoral and sky colors, and that distinguishes the story from the usual muddy, smoky war tale.
Jeanty's artwork could be a trifle tighter in places, but for the most part, I think he nails it. Buffy always looks like Sarah Michelle Gellar. Xander always resembles Nicholas Brendan. Some of the faces of the Slayer army could use a little distinction, and for a moment, Giles’ proportions go way off scale, but Jeanty and Andy Owens match Espenson and Whedon with exciting visuals and a startling depiction of a metaphysical ending. Notice how Buffy comes back into being at first an outline of a drawing. That's a clever little flourish and makes you question whether the ending is really occurring or in Buffy's mind. Either suits me fine.
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