Buffy The Last Vampire Slayer #1 

Writer – Casey Gilly 

Artist – Oriol Roig 

A close friendship can reawaken old interests and strengthen bonds. My friend Elizabeth from Illinois and I share a lot of the same ones. She gets credit for getting me back into Buffy The Vampire Slayer. I have been diving into the old and expanded Buffyverse thanks to her. While I was visiting family and friends over Labor Day, I stopped at the local comic shop in Schuylkill Haven, PA (Alchemist’s Cove or the Cove, the nickname my Mom and I like to call it) and I grabbed Buffy the Last Vampire Slayer #1 for Elizabeth. 

In this series set in an alternate universe, Buffy and Spike are training Thessaly, the daughter of Willow and Tara, in the ways of being a Slayer. They are living in a beach town called Santa Carmen and Thessaly spends her days working at the Shorewalk and her evenings on patrol against the things that go bump in the night. Buffy and Spike take a vacation together and Thessaly is entrusted with a substitute Watcher – Anya! Thessaly is contacted by Wren, a member of the Watcher’s Council, about the uptick of demonic activity in Santa Carmen. Can Thessaly solve this mystery and protect her hometown all by herself without the guidance of Buffy and Spike? 

Comic lovers/readers have been shown glimpses of possible futures of their favorite characters in recent years (Old Man Logan, Old Lady Harley, The Last Ronin). When I bought this comic at the Cove, one of the staff said this would be the perfect template for a live action continuation of BTVS. After reading this issue, I can agree with that and would like to see it happen one day soon. Sarah Michelle Gellar and her co-stars are at the age where they could be mentors for a new generation of Slayers and their Scooby Gang. This issue, like a standard episode of BTVS, has the right balance of action, drama, and humor and the ending will leave you in shock thanks to a surprise you didn’t see coming. I do like the wink and nod to The Lost Boys in this issue and I’m excited to see if there are any other homages or Easter Eggs in future issues. 

Boom Studios! has done a great job taking us on a nostalgia trip with comic series like BTVS and Power Rangers and I’m waiting to see which cartoon or TV series they will bring back next in literary form. 

The Road to Halloween 2023 begins with Buffy, Spike, and Thessaly and I’m sure we will see some old familiar faces along the way in other comic book reviews I have in store for you boils and ghouls. HAHAHAHAHA!  

The first three issues of Buffy the Last Vampire Slayer are available now and you can get them from your LCS or your favorite online comic store.