This Day in Comics

[maggie2]

Apologies to those tired of comic wank; but I continue to be interested.

Disjoint thoughts about the first big comic day we've had in a while.

1.  While I've been altogether too militant about my lack of love for IDW, I'm only muted-happy about the apparent news that AtS is going back to Dark Horse.  I very much do want both stories under one house.  I don't think that guarantees a good outcome, but IDW just hasn't looked promising.  Remember that I'm the wierdo who didn't even like Lynch's stuff very much -- and he's Shakespeare compared to what came after.  Still it's obviously really devastating some fans, and that's painful to see.  So my feelings are ambivalent.  They're also on hold because who knows what's really going on here.

I've tended to defend DH in its dealings with IDW.  We'll see how this develops, but it really does look pretty crappy on DH's side based on the appearances.  The announcement seems to clearly have caught IDW off guard.  What does that mean, anyway?  Weird.  

2.  Riley!  I think this is a nicely written, tight issue.  What have we learned?

* Angel's plan really was to strip Buffy of all of her power.  That makes him responsible in my book for all the carnage in Retreat.  In addition to learning Angel's plan, we learn that he mustered the army and gave the orders. 

* He has a good reason, though!  Whistler has popped in to tell Angel that he's seen all the future time lines and if Angel doesn't do all this Twilight gig, if he lets Buffy in on what's going on, he and Buffy fight a losing battle side by side (so romantic) and the world is destroyed.  Poor Angel had no choice but to save the world by turning Buffy into a pawn.  (And Angel explicitly says that's what he's doing; it feels wrong to him, but that's the price of saving the world!!)  Whistler approves:  Torture the cheerleader, save the world.

* Can we breath a sigh of relief and say that Angel's character has been saved?  Not in my book.  And I don't think in this book, either.  Riley's story is there to contrast with Angel's and Riley chooses to serve Buffy rather than the world.  The bottom line is that Angel has faith in Whistler's prophecies, Riley has faith in Buffy.  We get more compare and contrast by seeing that Riley and Sam are totally equals.  No way would Riley do anything manipulative behind Sam's back.  Finally, Angel's pages (which parallel Riley's) are all dark, while Riley's are light.  I'm pretty sure that we're not going to get an outcome where turning Buffy into a tortured pawn was the only way to save the world.  If we do get that, I'm ready to go with my pitchfork.

*  Angel's story also doesn't match up with his distinct lack of concern in #35 that following Whistler's instructions lead to the end of the world not the salvation of the world.  So who knows.  (You knew that was going to be my last line, right?  Indeed, we are still waiting to see what the heck is going on).

* Ha!  A different last line.  There's also a nice section on Riley and Sam being together as a choice and not because of binding ties.  I tend to think that's a commentary on Bangel as well.

* There are some other nice details.  I just like the way this book is written.  Nice resonances.  Nice parallels. 

3.  The Angel series.  I can't help but like Mariah.  She may not do it perfectly, but she works so hard to connect with the fans and keep things on an even keel.  So I skimmed the Angel book in the store today to see if I'm ready to come back to the fold.  I'm not.  But it's not as outrageous as it could be.  Spike is foggy about what happened with Felicia, suggesting he's less than culpable.  The fact that Spike earned his soul gets an airing.  We get the nice observation that from Spike's POV, Angel got his soul as a *gift*.  It make sense to me that Spike might see it that way -- totally evil Angelus gets zapped with a soul and he's the champion of the world.  That said, Spike is definitely not aware that he's lost his soul and that bugs me.  Maybe they'll concoct an explanation -- but how can a guy lose the soul that he took so much trouble to get and which made such a big difference (to him, at least) and not notice?  Ergo, they got no pennies from me.  Instead, I made a date with myself to re-readelisi's delightful story about what happens when Spike loses his soul in season 5.   I didn't read the non-Spike related stuff so I can't comment on their story as a whole.  Bad things are afoot, no doubt.

Two weeks until we find out what happens the third time Spike comes dramatically crashing into Buffy's world.  I'm ridiculously excited about it.  If I were in possession of my faculties, I'd be beside myself with worry, but I'm 90% anticipation, and only 10% apprehension.  I puzzle myself.

Comments

[shipperx.livejournal.com]

He has a good reason, though! Whistler has popped in to tell Angel that he's seen all the future time lines and if Angel doesn't do all this Twilight gig, if he lets Buffy in on what's going on, he and Buffy fight a losing battle side by side (so romantic) and the world is destroyed. Poor Angel had no choice but to save the world by turning Buffy into a pawn. (And Angel explicitly says that's what he's doing; it feels wrong to him, but that's the price of saving the world!!) Whistler approves: Torture the cheerleader, save the world.

Not a particularly surprising explanation, but not one I like at all. Good grief. So now Angel and the TPTB/The Universe make choices for Buffy? Can't the little woman ever be given all the info and make all the decisions on her own?

[eilowyn.livejournal.com]

Still hoping this is a set up for a Crowning Moment of Awesome in which Buffy declares her autonomy and stands up for free will, tells Twangel off for being a dickhead and the PTB's bitch, and goes off to kick ass with Spike. No, issue #35 does not count as a Crowning Moment of Awesomeness, because any awesomeness was countered by the crappy Bangel fanservice schmoop of misty eyes and longing looks that were totally inappropriate after trying to fuck the world out of existence. Still want the little woman to tell the menfolk and anthropomorphic universe to fuck off. If that doesn't happen, if Angel continues to be whitewashed, then Joss has officially abandoned all semblance of feminism in his work.

[2maggie2.livejournal.com]

Yup. I want more smack down on Angel -- and I want it to come from Buffy.

[shipperx.livejournal.com]

The sad part for me (because I totally admit to being a Spike-first person) is that I cannot think of a way that I would even want him to react. There's no reaction he could have that's the right one. If he's angry with Angel, he's 'jealous'. If he's angry with Buffy, well, he never told her (himself) that he wasn't dead so he can't be angry with her. So both those reactions are out. If he's okay with what's gone on, well, sheesh. But he can hardly be self-righteous about any of it. And yet we've basically been left with the feeling that neither Buffy nor Angel gave him even a fleeting thought (nor have we ever seen any evidence whatsoever that Buffy mourned in any way).

So basically, there's no good reaction for Spike to have that doesn't paint him jealous, envious, self-righteous, unjustified, or pathetic. He just isn't left with a lot of options.

[2maggie2.livejournal.com]

Pet peeve: I know everyone knows that Spike never told her he wasn't dead. But I just don't get that. He delayed. When he goes to tell her, she's out with her boyfriend. And he's given the impression that she knows he's back, loves him, and maybe will catch up with him some day. I don't know what he's supposed to do. He thinks they're both up to date on where each other is, and Buffy's actions say she's neither miffed nor particularly interested. That's his POV. Turns out she wasn't there. Alas, I can't imagine any scene that writes well around all of that, especially since I'm the only one who sees it that way, so I'll probably have to live with the premise that Spike was derelect in his duty to Buffy.

I'm not sure I see Spike as being all that boxed in. Buffy and Angel have just destroyed the world by having sex, even though they both know perfectly well that them having sex tends to start apocalypses. Nobody in the room is happy about Buffy boinking the guy she should have staked. Buffy should be feeling guilty as hell. Spike, along with every other person on the planet, has got every right to be angry. Will anti-Spike fans portray it in an anti-Spike way? Of course. They always do. But that's because there's nothing Spike could possibly do that isn't going to come up short. That's not peculiar to Spike. Nobody is immune from being found with fault if there's someone out there who wants to find fault.

Sidebar: My favorite latest argument. Spike is not special because he fought for a soul. Why? Because Angel was the first to ask to be a demon with a soul (in IWRY). And Spike sought the soul for selfish evil reasons anyway. Never mind that a human who wants to become a demon is not exactly the same as a demon who wants to get a soul. People who can be happy with that logic cannot be reasoned with. Back to the topic at hand.

I think Spike's boots are a good sign. It's a call back to his first entrance. That flags him as a big deal. Less ritual and more fun. In this latest issue we see Angel with candles and flames and ritual-looking like stuff. Spike's coming in with a cool ship, and apparently better information than anyone else has to date. Hopefully he'll be more all about business than anything else.

But the main reason I don't share your worry is this. Spike cannot be unimportant to Buffy. She has to have given him more than a fleeting thought. Why? Because this story is about Buffy. Spike doesn't get the big dramatic entrance at this moment so we can follow *his* story about where he stands with Buffy. If she really doesn't care, he can't matter to her now and there's no drama to his arrival from her side. If she shrugs and clearly doesn't care, the non-Spike fans will shrug and not care. The only drama would be for us Spike POV people. But this story isn't being written for us. Ergo, his entrance now means that he matters to Buffy. Something dramatic will happen for Buffy because of Spike's presence. Joss has said repeatedly that Spike is incredibly important to Buffy. We just got unequivocal text that says Willow sees him as one of Buffy's true loves. Joss has said that the boys will arrive at a moment of maximal pain.

Sorry for the ramble. I'm Spike first also -- the difference being I'm not a veteran of the fandom wars, and from my POV looking at the series as a whole, Joss's comments, and the sheer fact that Spike (and not Angel and not anybody else) gets the last grand entrance I just don't see that it'll be total shite for us. I'm not expecting a big Spuffy outcome, though I do expect respect on that front. But Spike is a big deal to Buffy and to the story. I'd bet cash on that.

P.S.: I don't think Emmie is wrong about the Chen covers for #36 and #37 being connected.

[rebcake.livejournal.com]

Pet peeve: I know everyone knows that Spike never told her he wasn't dead. But I just don't get that. He delayed. When he goes to tell her, she's out with her boyfriend. And he's given the impression that she knows he's back, loves him, and maybe will catch up with him some day. I don't know what he's supposed to do. He thinks they're both up to date on where each other is, and Buffy's actions say she's neither miffed nor particularly interested. That's his POV. Turns out she wasn't there. Alas, I can't imagine any scene that writes well around all of that, especially since I'm the only one who sees it that way, so I'll probably have to live with the premise that Spike was derelect in his duty to Buffy.

I agree that Spike was stymied at this point, and didn't know what else to do, but I think he's too canny to take Andrew at his word. However, apocalypse season puts personal lives on the back burner. So, not derelict. Just rotten timing.

What isn't often noted is that pre-soul Spike wouldn't have delayed or been put off by, well, anything getting between him and his lady love. Post-soul Spike has other considerations...including a lot of pesky self-doubt about whether he deserves said lady love.

However, I do see lots of ways for Spike to react to the S8 situation that would be pretty satisfying to me. Lots of mocking, in particular. That would be quite nice. ;-} If he wants to take the high road and keep it all business while Buffy squirms, that would be okay, too. But not as good as mocking.

[2maggie2.livejournal.com]

Agreed. If this explanation isn't bitch-slapped in Last Gleaming, I really will be unhappy. But I think the structure of this issue (the contrasts with Riley) saya we're supposed to think Angel's making the wrong choice here. We'll see.

[shipperx.livejournal.com]

I would be more optimistic if upon learning that Twilight was Angel, Buffy hadn't immediately thrown herself into his arms for 'twu wuv'. I'm not even concerning myself with the shippiness of it as my vampire vs. another vampire thing, but in terms of Buffy basically discovering the lay of the land and yet she's incapable of sustaining wtf outrage for more than three seconds. Unless glowhypnol is the case, she basically overlooked the deaths of hundreds and her months of being manipulated because OMG, it's Angel!

[2maggie2.livejournal.com]

I'm pessimistic on this point as well. Like Eilowyn said, Buffy's snapping to herself in #35 was undercut by her complete failure to upbraid Angel for being a dick. And like you, for me this is about Buffy and not the ship. It's possible Joss's story is going to be about Buffy's blind spot with Angel and the damage it causes -- but one would hope at some point that the story would call attention to the problem with Buffy's acquiescence on all of this.