"In every generation there is a Chosen One; she alone will stand against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness. She is The Slayer..."

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All Buffy GNs/TPB published by Dark Horse Comics

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Angel: Surrogates 2000 (SC TPB) 80 pages

Written by Christopher Golden. Pencils by Christian Zanier, with Marvin Mariano. Inks by Andy Owens, Jason Minor, Curtis P. Arnold.
Colours: Guy Major. Letters: Clem Robins, Amador Cisneros. Editors: Scott Allie, Adam Gallardo.

Reprinting: Angel #1-3 (with covers)

Additional notes: Afterward by Christopher Golden.

Rating: * * * (out of 5)

Number of readings: 1

Based on the TV series spun-off from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", Angel is the vampire-with-a-soul fighting the forces of supernatural evil as a kind of Los Angeles-based private eye. His first (solo) comics appearance was in the mini-series, Angel: The Howler (also collected in a TPB) and this TPB collects the storyline that was serialized in the first three issues of the regular, on-going Angel comic. Written just at the TV series' beginning, it features Angel, Cordelia, and original cast-member Doyle investigating a sinister fertility clinic which one mother claims led her to give birth to a stillborn, inhuman baby.

The comic does a decent enough job evoking the TV series, which is no small feet given the circumstances. Although writer Christopher Golden had a history with Buffy (having co-written a few Buffy novels), the Angel TV series was still in pre-production and hadn't even aired when he was writing this. But thanks to some toing and froing with the series' producers, he was able to produce something that doesn't seem awkward or unfaithful. Although, given that, it's curious how little background Golden provides. There's a two page recap of Angel's history for the uninitiated, but no explanation for Doyle, so that when he gets one of his headache messages, or sneezes and briefly seems to morph into something less-than human behind Cordelia's back, it might be awfully bewildering for a novice reader (Doyle was part-demon, which Angel knew, but Cordelia didn't). Likewise, a cameo by police detective Kate is given little context.

Surrogates is an enjoyable action-suspense story, with enough quirky badinage to recall the show's humour. Granted, it's one of those stories that probably benefits from being collected between a single cover, because it's not exactly a stunningly complex or twisty story. The sections read better as chapters than as something that was stretched out over three months -- although I'm guessing the collected edition is actually more pricey than if I had just picked them up as individual comics.

The story is reasonably well done. It benefits from the investigative nature of the story, with the heroes going around, talking to characters, that allows the piece a slightly more sophisticated ambience than if it was just a collection of action scenes (though there are plenty of those, too). However, squeeze a few more panels in per page, trim a couple of extraneous scenes that never go anywhere, and the story probably could've been fit into two issues. But unlike some multi-issue stories that come to mind, that doesn't mean Surrogates comes across as slow, or padded -- it doesn't. It's a bit sedate at times, but that can be good.

However, one of the things I enjoy about Buffy and Angel (the TV shows) is that they still manage to surprise me. I've grown rather jaded over the years, reaching a point where I can often figure out a story, or whodunit, long before the end of a movie or TV show. But Buffy and Angel are often still capable of throwing that curve, that surprise twist, that I didn't see coming. That doesn't happen here. The story unfolds fairly predictably. I suppose there's a climactic revelation, but it didn't seem like much of a surprise, nor did it change our perception of anything that had gone before (like a good twist might). It's a perfectly agreeable story...but unremarkable.

In his afterward, Golden writes that he'd like to think the story has more depth than your average media tie-in comic (which, I suppose, isn't too presumptuous: he's not saying more than most comics, merely media tie-in ones which, to be fair, often aren't exactly comics at their best). Certainly the fertility clinic idea is unusual. Whether because most comics writers see their audience as juvenile or, more likely, because they themselves are stuck in a kind of arrested adolescence, a story dealing with, and playing upon, grown up fears of parenthood and the like are not exactly common. I'm not sure if Golden really invests the story with "depth", but it's certainly an atypical milieu for a comic.

Christian Zanier and Marvin Mariano illustrate competently enough in a way that seems to reflect the House style Dark Horse has settled upon for many of its Buffy comics. There's a slight cartooniness at times (characters, particularly in long shot, being kind of hastily sketched without detail) and some awkward positioning. The choice of panel composition generally gets across what needs to be conveyed, without entirely enhancing a scene. In my review of Ring of Fire, I commented that artist Ryan Sook was the first artist on these comics whose art seemed to enhance a scene. Surrogates hasn't made me re-consider that comment. They can generally evoke the physical type of the actors, so you can usually tell, say, Angel from Doyle, without really capturing their likenesses (granted, that's true of many media tie-in comics). I guess what I'm tip toeing around is that I wasn't exactly fond of the art, and I couldn't help thinking how certain scenes might've benefitted from a different approach...but neither did I dislike it enough for it to ruin the story.

Ultimately, I quite liked Angel: Surrogates: it was an enjoyable read that should please TV fans. I'm happy to have it on my shelf, even as it maybe wasn't special enough to make me want to run out right away and pick up the latest issue of the comicbook series.

Cover price: $14.95 CDN./$9.95 USA 

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Dust Waltz  1998 (SC GN) 80 pages

Written by Dan Brereton. Pencils by Hector Gomez. Inks by Sandu Florea.
Colours: Guy Major. Letters: Ken Bruzenak. Editor: Scott Allie.

Extras: introduction by Dan Brereton; photo of Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Rating: * * * (out of 5)

Number of readings: 2

Two very ancient vampires blow into Sunnydale with their respective clans to stage a kind of tournament between demon champions...a tournament that somehow involves the dreaded Hellmouth portal. Buffy, naturally, wants to stop them.

Based on the cult-hit TV series about a teen-age girl who has a destiny as a vampire slayer, this was the first ever Buffy story in comic form. Apparently Dark Horse Comics had initially intended to serialize this in a three issue mini-series, but decided to release it, instead, as an original graphic novel.

The first chapter kicks things off well. Brereton shows a good ear for the witty dialogue of the TV show and it's easy to "hear" the voices of the actors in your head, saying the lines. The plot unfolds intriguingly, posing enough questions that you're anticipating further developments and wondering where it's all headed... again, like the TV show. It even generates a touch of ominous dread. The art by Gomez was a little stiff, but reasonably evoked the actors. The colours were moodily effective, too (though Cordelia and Willow's hair weren't right).

Flipping through the first few pages prior to actually reading it, I had kind of convinced myself I wouldn't like the Dust Waltz thanks to the art and a sub-plot involving Giles' visiting niece (which seemed just a little too much like the sort of hackneyed TV plot Buffy, the series, would've avoided like the, ah, plague), but the first chapter won me over pleasantly.

Waitaminit, you say, why's he harping on the first chapter so much?

Well, the thing is, the ensuing two chapters are a bit of a disappointment. The plot developments peter out and we get more into just the action stuff, lots of running about, but nothing that engages the mind--or the heart, for that matter. Even at its best, the Dust Waltz is Buffy-lite, wholly missing the deeper, more profound aspects of the TV series.

In the later parts, Brereton still delivers some clever "Buffyisms" (like the "Deathwish Spice" quip), but they're fewer, with the characters less evocative of their TV originals than in the first chapter. Likewise, Gomez's art also gets rougher, and the figures don't really resemble the actors--sometimes it was difficult to distinguish one character from another.

Nitpicking, there are strange bits of dialogue occasionally that I couldn't make head nor tale of, the climax is a tad anti-climactic (and doesn't even make much sense), and the whole sub-plot with Giles' niece seems utterly pointless, as if Brereton had had something in mind when he conceived of her...but forgot what by the time it came to write the thing.

In the end, The Dust Waltz is breezily enjoyable. But it doesn't live up to the standards of the first chapter...and would definitely be considered a lesser episode. It's also probably best suited to fans--I'm not sure how well it'll read for those unfamiliar with Buffy and the gang.

It's also one of those modern comics which seems to average out to about 3 panels per page. You don't notice at first, the first chapter delivering a reasonable read, but when you can breeze through the final chapter before your milk and cookies have a chance to get warm, figuratively speaking, there's definitely a sense that you've been short-changed.

Original cover price:  $13.95 CDN./$9.95 USA.

Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Origin 1999 (SC TPB) 80 pgs. Dark Horse Comics

Written by Christopher Golden, Dan Brereton. Pencils by Joe Bennett. Inks by Rick Ketcham with Randy Emberlin, J. Jadsen.
Colours: Jeromy Cox, Guy Major. Letters: Ken Bruzenak. Editor: Scott Allie, Ben Abernathy.

Reprinting: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Origin #1-3 (mini-series) - with covers

Rating: * * * * (out of 5)

Number of readings: 1

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the 1992 movie, was a cute but uneven, tongue-in- cheek romp about a high schooler who learns she has a destiny to become a Vampire Slayer. Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the TV series, most fans would argue is a much more ambitious, much more accomplished series that mixes witty one-liners with genuine pathos and intelligent plots, chronicling the further adventures of Buffy. Despite the fact that the TV series follows from the movie, beginning after the events in the movie, there were discrepancies in the mythos of the two. As well, Buffy creator, Joss Whedon, had long claimed the movie's campy tone strayed from his original vision.

It's unsurprising, therefore, that Dark Horse Comics has released a comic book adaptation that follows the plot of the first movie, but in a way that seems more appropriate to the series. Even to the point that this Buffy resembles series actress, Sarah Michelle Gellar, rather than the movie version, played by Kristy Swanson, and her original Watcher, Merrick, doesn't look like Donald Sutherland, the actor in the movie, but more like the actor who, briefly, essayed the role in a flashback in an episode of the TV series--Richard Riehle, I believe (now how's that for doing my homework, eh?).

The result is reasonably entertaining, though those expecting wild changes from the movie--as the hype for this implied--will be disappointed. It's been quite a while since I've seen the film, but as far as I can remember the comic follows it fairly closely, in scenes and dialogue. The main alterations involve lines relating to the mythos (in the movie, Buffy and Merrick were reincarnations of all previous Slayers/Watchers, not so the series, or this adaptation) and maybe a de-emphasis on the camp factor. Although, that's a subtler distinction when looking at words and still pictures on a page. It's all in how you choose to read it.

The story follows Buffy Summers, resident popular girl and air head, who finds herself dragged, unwillingly, into the battle with darkness as an ancient vampire, Lothos, moves into her town, creating a colony of vamps. Buffy begins to emerge as a better, more responsible person because of her nocturnal obligations. All this was in the film and the character evolution gives the comic a solid foundation for a story. Admittedly, the film, despite its short comings, may've conveyed Buffy's growth a bit more effectively.

This adaptation does a fairly good job of telling the story without seeming too disjointed or choppy, the way some comic book adaptations of movies can, when the writers and artists are trying to shoe horn a longer story into limited pages. At the same time, there are still spots where it can seem a bit rushed or as if things might be missing. Near the end, Buffy's snobbish friends turn on her, remarking how odd she's been acting...but there was only one scene that her friends witnessed where her behaviour was out of the ordinary. In another scene, a beatnik character named Pike comments how strange things have become...but likewise, he hasn't seen much strangeness. Well, other than his friend showing up as a vampire. But that scene remains, as in the movie, extremely awkward since it's unclear how much Pike is supposed to understand.

The dialogue, much of it lifted from the film, is generally good.

The main problem is Joe Bennett's art. Bennett employs a slightly cartoony style that I'm not especially fond of, and brings his own visual interpretation to things. Namely, he likes to draw vampires as completely inhuman looking. In other words, for a comic that's intended to be more in keeping with the series, it diverges in its own way from the TV program. As well, Bennett's storytelling technique isn't the best, not always portraying scenes with clarity. Mood wise, the story opens with a panel showing a quiet, deserted street, that then is supposed to explode into violence. It's a very cinematic concept. But Bennett has the figures from the "action" panels spilling into the "still" panel, anticipating the violence and rather negating the intended effect. Sure, it's nitpicking, but he's supposed to be a pro, a master of his craft, and there are spots where one feels he's drawing what he wants to, rather than what the scene needs. There were other spots where I had to re-read a sequence just to figure out what was going on, with Bennett indulging in close ups at the expense of establishing the elements of a scene.

With that being said, there are other spots where Bennett does a perfectly respectable job, my quibbles with his style notwithstanding. Particularly some conversation scenes are well laid out.

As well, writers Dan Brereton and Christopher Golden don't employ any text captions, relying only on dialogue balloons. But text captions, aside from adding extra nuance (imbuing comics with smells and textures and esoteric asides that can't be readily conveyed just with images) can serve as segues between two panels that might, otherwise, seem disconnected. In other words, Bennett is trying to relate a 90 minute movie in 66 pages, and the blame can't be laid entirely at his feet if there are choppy bits.

Despite my above grumbling, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Origin is a better-than-average movie-to-comics adaptation. Fans of both movie and series should enjoy it, though no one should expect too radical a departure from the film.

Original cover price: $14.95 CDN./$9.95 USA

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