Post by wenxina on Dec 20, 2009 22:14:32 GMT -5
This "season" has the feel of nothing we've ever seen. Something that just doesn't have the feel of Buffy.
Erm... I think that was kinda put on the table in the opening sentence of the first issue. Something about "once you change the world, everything's different" (I'm paraphrasing here).
We hardly see the core three in one scene and have we even seen B, W, X, and G in one panel?
Yes, we have. In #27. People change, their relationships change. Buffy won't always be in Sunnydale, with Giles, Xander and Willow living with her. It's not so much growing apart, as it is just growing.
Throughout the series there was a feel of togetherness. In my opinion it was brought by the characters and the writing. Now I don't feel like there's anything really connected. The Scoobies are all apart, Arcs take almost half a year to finish, and let's face it, the overall writing hasn't been consistent at all.
The feel of "togetherness" transcended tactile distance. Giles was gone most of S6 and the beginning of S7, and yet, his presence was never really needed to establish that the characters still cared for him. As it is right now, the reunion in #26 was much akin to his and Buffy's reunion at the end of S6. There is no need for sappy dialogue, their actions speak louder than any words could. As for the arcs taking a long time to finish, that's the nature of the beast. I'm sorry, if you haven't adjusted to that yet by now, but that's not going to change. The writing of the last arc was uneven, and the writing of "Predators and Prey" ranged from dismal to great. So yes, the quality's been uneven, but the same can be said for just about anything, including the previous seven seasons.
Again, I'm not saying that I want 17 year old Buffy back. Or 20 year old Buffy, for that matter. The comic series has alienated myself and other readers because it has strayed so far from the original series.
On the flipside, I don't think it's so much the comics alienating fans so much as fans not being able to smoothly transition at all. The show's not the same thing. That much I think we've all established. But the heart and soul of the series live on, albeit in different format. Not accepting the format, and the nature of the format is probably one of the biggest hurdles to overcome. But once you're determined to not like something, every little flaw just adds to this disproportionately growing list. Buffy is still here. Her world has become a little bigger, but she's still here. Everything that the current season has thrown in has precedence in the previous seasons. We just may not have seen them, due to budgetary issues. But to impose the restrictions of one format over the other is again a reflection of one's acceptance of the series transitioning from TV to comics.
And (this is not directed at you) at times, rather hypocritical, since many have been highly critical of the larger scope of S8, but perfectly okay with the presentation of Hell-A in the ANGEL franchise. Dragons fighting T-Rexes, tentacled buildings and sewers, Illyria going full-on primordial mode... all things that would never have made it onto the TV show. The biggest critters we ever saw on either show were flying dragons (PSOne video game quality), and the Mayor Wilkins as the giant snake demon.