Buffy comics: Season 8 #1-5

Re-read July 5th, 2025

The first four comics of Buffy season 8, "Long Way Home" Part I-IV, were published between March & June 2007, appearing once a month. This makes the progress slower than the series, but still worth it. Maybe.

The first comics opens with the central theme of season 8, “The thing about changing the world… once you do it, the world’s all different.” And it is. There are 1,800 Slayers. Buffy is working with 500, who are split into squads all over the world. Andrew is with one in Rome, Xander is with Buffy in Scotland, and Giles is with another group. There are three Buffys at the moment, as there is one decoy in Rome (which explains why Spike and Angel never really saw her when they went there) and one underground. The real Buffy is in Scotland. With the Watcher’s council gone, those with some knowledge are trying to fill the gap. Additionally, Willow is out on her own, and Dawn has turned into a giant, although she’s supposed to be studying at Berkley.

The main difference to the series at first glance is that the Scoobies are not all together anymore. Changing the world changed their group dynamic.

Additionally, the military (the Initiative?) seems to be in play again. They are doing something at the Hellmouth and stumble across Amy, who evidently survived the collapse of Sunnydale. At the end of the 4^th issue, it will turn out both she and Warren were saved. Amy saved Warren with her magic right after he was skinned by Willow, and they have been working together ever since.

A weird symbol keeps appearing. It’s found at a demon site by Slayers. It’s on one of the military guys. Something is up. And the gang gets more suspicious when Amy turns up in Scotland, cursing Buffy to live in her dreams until awakened by a kiss from someone who truly loves her. Amy also causes undead to attack the castle in Scotland that has become Slayer HQ. In the chaos, Willow returns to help fight Amy.

In Buffy’s dreams, Ethan Rayne also appears. He hints at what might be going on, and hints that he is being held captive somewhere. It’s not yet fully clear what he means, but it’s interesting to revisit dreams, which are so important to Slayers. Finally, Willow is able to best Amy and the undead, Buffy indeed awakens (her true love kisses her, we just don’t find out who it is) and everything seems dandy until Amy kidnaps Willow. Warren has a bone to pick with her, and Amy knows this will lure the Slayer to the military installation.

But all is well in the end. Buffy is can best military might. She frees Willow, although Amy and Warren are able to flee. Buffy is not in time to save Ethan, either. But she learns the symbol is linked to Twilight. It’s unclear who or what Twilight ia, but Willow’s spell has made the world unbalanced. Twilight is coming for her since her actions can be viewed as a declaration of war against humanity.

The final chapter raises questions of what a Slayer really is. Are they human? More than human? Part demon? It also raises questions about good and evil. Do they need to be in balance? Could the forces of good win and make the world a better place?

A final note on the comics. Unrestrained by budget and availability, the settings can be grander, farther away and indefinite. The number of characters used can be endless as well. It’s fun to see characters from previous episodes appear again. And Warren being alive lays more groundwork for the return of dead characters in the re-boot.

After the four-part kick-off, a one-shot story appears. “The Chain” was published in August 2007. This follows the story of Buffy’s decoy living underground. It is more philosophical than anything else. It looks at the price of the fight against evil (the Slayer dies in the end), and what it means to be part of a chain of women stretching across time and, in the current time, space. How do young women cope with being called to be Slayers, learn to use their new power and then go out and face death in the hopes of doing good? It’s a comic that has stuck with me over time, because it asks the big questions without answering them, letting the reader think about what they mean and perhaps how Buffy would answer them.