It’s the who’s who of characters in this issue of the Buffy comic, because everyone gets a turn. And the romantic tensions between Buffy and Spike continue. It would be tiring if I weren’t so invested in the vampire with a soul. The non-angsty one, that is.
Note: This recap may contain spoilers!
Now that Spike’s no longer a possibility, Buffy starts speed-dating. It doesn’t go well at all. But I was so distracted by the artwork in this section that I couldn’t pay attention to the jokes. The proportions of Buffy in these frames were off by quite a bit to me. She was way too skinny, with her body and her head not seeming to match. It’s not present in the rest of the issue, though, so I am not sure why these first few images were so odd.
Meanwhile, Xander is trying so hard with Dawn. He took her out to a movie, he attempts to take her to dinner, all date-stuff that he’s trying to pass off as not. And Dawn’s not feeling it. She rejects his attempts at romance, says that they both need more time and that this wasn’t how they fell in love the first time. They need to not be pressured, to take it slow and easy. I feel so sad for Xander. He just wants to regain the love of his life.
And not even Willow or Giles can escape the romantic weirdness that seems to be going around. Aluwyn and Willow are hanging out, which is a bit weird, but they’re working through it. Aluwyn wants to move their relationship forward, as she thought Willow did, but the witch brings out the old “let’s take it slow” excuse and leaves for the night. Meanwhile, Giles goes to visit Olivia, who doesn’t believe that it’s him at first. Finally, she realizes it is him and they get to chatting. But when Giles puts the moves on her, she stops it right quick. He may have the mind of his old self, but his body is still that of a boy. No-go, dear Watcher.
At this point in my reading, I started getting tired because it was evident we were going to hit every character ever. Now it’s Andrew’s turn, who seems to take up a bulk of the storyline. He arrives at a coven party and is being introduced to their leader, Clive. But he’s only interested in the potion he’s heard they have, one that can create a new body. However, it doesn’t create a new body from nothing, but is supposed to transform you into your perfect self. Andrew takes a sip, as is tradition, but it doesn’t seem to work. But he does finally come out and say he’s gay. Too bad the moment is ruined by a monster crashing through the wall in search of the potion. And then Andrew does physically transform into some muscular, better version of himself, and takes on the creature, who proceeds to run away to regroup. He’s a superhero, he saved them all. This is sure to end badly for him and those around him.
And to round off the cast of characters, Spike’s over checking out a crime scene where beef has gone missing, along with the guard’s arms and legs. This would be the creature that crashed Andrew’s party. Spike thinks it’s a flesh golem, but he’ll check around to see if he’s right. Dowling, meanwhile, gives him a tip that another officer has the hots for him. Spike shuts that down fast. He’s married to the job, not ready for love just yet. Spike hits up his contacts and gets a lead on the Sculptor Demon Lord. And in the process he saves kittens from the demon poker game. What a guy.
Back at the girls’ apartment, they are consoling each other over their love lives gone wrong. And over at Xander’s place, he’s talking with Anya about his attempts to woo Dawn before Spike comes in with the cats. Everyone’s miserable. And when Spike and Buffy leave their apartments at the same time, of course they run into one another. She invites herself along to his police business, because she needs to get violent with something. And in the middle of the graveyard, killing monsters, she pulls him in and kisses him. So emotionally confusing! And such an exhausting issue. I hope next time we’re more focused in the storytelling.
Rating: 4 / 5 Stars
