What is the secret of Anya? And what does it mean for Buffy? Your Major Spoilers review of Buffy The Vampire Slayer #21 from BOOM! Studios awaits!
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #21
Writer: Jordie Bellaire & Jeremy Lambert
Artist: Andres Genolet
Colorist: Raul Angulo
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire
Editor: Jeanine Schaefer
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: January 6, 2020
Previously in Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Anya has been a key figure in Buffy’s life ever since she arrived in Sunnydale, but there’s more to the demon’s mission and mysterious past than anyone knows! It starts with her secret connection to the Watcher’s Council and… the Slayer who came before Buffy? And the truth behind Anya connects Buffy(s) – yes, plural – in ways no one ever saw coming…
THE STORY OF ANYA
We open in Cleveland in the year 2019, as someone who looks familiar fights a demon, only to take a boot in the face. Cut back several hundred years and we see the point where D’Hoffryn recruited Anya as a demon, only to jump forward a century, to find her embedded in the Watcher’s Council. Anya is drummed out of the Council and her Slayer is sacrificed (for the unforgivable sin of being 22 years old?) only to cut back to Cleveland and a young Slayer named Morgan. Morgan is nearly TWENTY-FIVE years old, and has discovered that her Watcher is plotting to get her killed… and also discovered the truth about Anya’s nature. One magical wish later, Morgan dies and Anya helps her to get her dearest wish, which… is more than a little bit surprising.
AND THE SLAYER BEFORE BUFFY
So, the idea that Anya has been moving around and setting up her magic shop wherever there’s an active slayer is a fun one, and this issue answers a couple of questions that have been floating in the background since the debut of this volume. I enjoy the art in this issue quite a bit, especially in the facial expressions (Anya’s glee at realizing she’s being asked to become a demon and kill men is delightful) and the revelations here, while not quite matching what the solicitations, are fun. That said, I was a little bit confused by the transitions of this issue and the time frames of everything that takes place in these pages. Morgan’s story is an interesting one, though, and I enjoyed finding out about what happened to the last Slayer, something that never seemed to come up with TV Buffy.
BOTTOM LINE: IT’S GOOD, BUT I’M CONFUSED
All told, the high points of Buffy The Vampire Slayer #21 outweigh the parts that I don’t quite get yet, with strong art and lush coloring making a very pretty experience, earning 3.5 out of 5 stars overall. This reimagined BtVS has really come into its own, and if you’re a fan of the property, you owe it to yourself to give this one a chance… It’s really quite good.
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BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #21
There are some storytelling issues that made for confusion, but the art and the compelling characters in play overcame a lot of issues for me.
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Writing7
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Art7
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Coloring7
Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.