Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 issues 22 and 23(spoilers)
I'll start with #22. I found this issue highly entertaining(albeit it was very eccentric) and a good break from all the depressing stuff that's been happening of late. I would have never imagined masochinistic little stuffed animals that force their way down you throat and try to eat your f*cking ovaries but for some reason I couldn't stop laughing. One of the most innocent and harmless things you can think of turns out to be one of the most vile things you can think of(very similar to the way issue 21 made me feel). Equal parts amusing and disturbing. This season(and this arc in particular) seems to be all about how things appear verses how they really are. There is a lot of that when dealing with the media.
This issue really felt like I could have easily watched it on tv. It had me from beginning until end. I finally feel like I have a grasp on Satsu's character. There are two reasons that I think she is completely awesome and that Joss should not kill her. One is that she carries dynamite in a cute little hippopotamus backpack(which is also a fantastic metaphor for her personality). Two is that she hijacked a submarine and didn't tell Buffy because she wasn't done playing with it....nope she can't die, she's too awesome.
I have a feeling that this issue is setting up companionship between Satsu and Kennedy for a reason. I don't know the exact reason, but I don't necessarily think they are ever going to be a couple(though I wouldn't rule in out completely either). In the next arc Oz is coming back. I don't see him getting back with Willow but I know Kennedy is gonna be a brat about him(just look at how defensive she was when she called Buffy a les-faux). Now that Satsu and Kennedy are friends and Kennedy has helped Satsu get over Buffy. It would stand to reason that when Kennedy gets upset about Oz she's might go vent to Satsu which would give insight into what's going on from the perpective of the side characters(I think it's interesting to get a look at the core scooby bubble from the outside), it might tell us more about Kennedy as a character and would keep Satsu in the plot. Think about the wonderful mess of plot possibilities going on with all of this. You got possiblities for Willow/snake lady, WIllow/Kennedy, Willow/Oz, Kennedy/Satsu(plus the Satsu/Buffy drama might come back into play and also Xander/Dawn(I'm a fan of this pairing)) and who knows what else. In other words I foresee plenty of drama! drama! drama! with unperdicable results...I love it!
As for Buffy's reaction to Harmony...*sigh*. Why the hell would she wanna lay low! Ridiculous plan!!!! I agree with her sediment that they've got to be more than human and I agree that killing Harmony is a bad plan because it really would make her a martyr. However, they have to get their side of the story into the media. Aren't there any slayers that have PR experience? If they lay low and don't respond in any way the public only hears Harmony's side and on top of that you have Simone(I'm getting into #23 a little here) who's behavior is backing up everything that Harmony is saying about slayers. If Buffy and company don't acquire a voice in the media then Simone will end up speaking for the slayers...no thank you. However, Simone was absolutely right when she told Buffy that she was outdated. Buffy has always been tried and true(which is why we love her) but she's not technologically savy nor has she been a normal member of society for a long time. She's never been seen as anything else but a hero and doesn't understand how to react to someone doubting her character(remember the end of season 7 when she got kicked outta the house). Whoever Twilight is, he really does have absolute knowledge of her weak-spots.
Speaking of Twilight...with all this online hype/contempt for the twilght books all I could think of when twilight was mentioned in #22 was that they're going to pull of the mask and it's totally gonna be Edward Cullen or maybe even Stephanie Meyer. When Satsu said "Figures a bunch of stuffed @$$holes would be working for that tool," I could not stop laughing. I also loved(in #23) that Andrew is a member of team Spike...wahhahaha! hhmmmm...I just had a thought. What if Twilight is Bella and she pulls off the mask and says "Muwhahahaha I am the ultimate weak mary Sue character using the media/popular culture to destroy all strong female characters in fiction! First I'll get Buffy...then I'm going after Wonder Woman, Dana Scully, Temperance Brennan, ect."....tehe. Sidenote: Actually I don't completely hate the Twilight franchise. I don't like Edward and Bella. Alice and Jasper are awesome characters. If she would have wrote the story from their perspective it would have been tons better(and if she was a better writer in general). The movie amuses me. The first book made me wanna reach into it and strangle Bella because she reminds me a little of my naive teenage self(only I wasn't that pathedic, thank you very much). Plus Edward has the same physical build and coat as my ex....ok...that's enough of that.
On to #23. I liked this issue. It was well done and I liked that they gave more depth into Andrew as a character and that he's a part of the family now. I'm proud/ashamed to say that I understood almost all of Andrews various pop culture rants in the beginning of this issue. I think Drew Greenberg did well writing Andrew. However, Drew Goddard writes Andrew better than anyone else(in my opinion...even better than Joss..yes I said it...don't hurt me). So for me I thought Greenberg did well but just having seen Goddard write him it paled a little in comparison.
The fact that Buffy was willing to forgive and accept Andrew into the family shows us that despite the fact that she has been acting a little tougher lately, she is still good old Buffy. She is willing to give people and benefit of the doubt. With some of her recent questionable behavior it was nice to see her soft side.
The fight between Buffy and Simone had a western showdown feeling for me(Simone is an outlaw, she even took over a village like outlaws do). You got the young cowboy verses the old cowboy. The old cowboy is fighting for honor, to perserve the way of things(trying to win the town back for the people) and to protect the hostage(even if the hostage is considered morally flawed). The hostage is normally a prostitute in westerns but since Andrew used to be considered morally flawed and he is working through that, he fits as a subsitute. After all, Simone wants Andrew because she wants to abuse him and torture him to vent her frustrations. Buffy is fighting to protect his honor. Then you have the young cowboy(outlaw) fighting for glory and power, using speed and and new technology rather then experience, brains and loyal allys. And I love how Buffy takes the gun and uses it to release the spider. They rode off into the sunset to fight another day but not without making things a pain in the ass for Simone. I like it. It's nice to see the old Buffy back. Someone I can identify with and respect. But again painting Buffy as the old cowboy also enforces the fact that she's out of touch with the modern people. According to them the day of the cowboy is long past. Vampires are the new popular culture phenomenom...damn...good luck Buffy and co.
This issue really felt like I could have easily watched it on tv. It had me from beginning until end. I finally feel like I have a grasp on Satsu's character. There are two reasons that I think she is completely awesome and that Joss should not kill her. One is that she carries dynamite in a cute little hippopotamus backpack(which is also a fantastic metaphor for her personality). Two is that she hijacked a submarine and didn't tell Buffy because she wasn't done playing with it....nope she can't die, she's too awesome.
I have a feeling that this issue is setting up companionship between Satsu and Kennedy for a reason. I don't know the exact reason, but I don't necessarily think they are ever going to be a couple(though I wouldn't rule in out completely either). In the next arc Oz is coming back. I don't see him getting back with Willow but I know Kennedy is gonna be a brat about him(just look at how defensive she was when she called Buffy a les-faux). Now that Satsu and Kennedy are friends and Kennedy has helped Satsu get over Buffy. It would stand to reason that when Kennedy gets upset about Oz she's might go vent to Satsu which would give insight into what's going on from the perpective of the side characters(I think it's interesting to get a look at the core scooby bubble from the outside), it might tell us more about Kennedy as a character and would keep Satsu in the plot. Think about the wonderful mess of plot possibilities going on with all of this. You got possiblities for Willow/snake lady, WIllow/Kennedy, Willow/Oz, Kennedy/Satsu(plus the Satsu/Buffy drama might come back into play and also Xander/Dawn(I'm a fan of this pairing)) and who knows what else. In other words I foresee plenty of drama! drama! drama! with unperdicable results...I love it!
As for Buffy's reaction to Harmony...*sigh*. Why the hell would she wanna lay low! Ridiculous plan!!!! I agree with her sediment that they've got to be more than human and I agree that killing Harmony is a bad plan because it really would make her a martyr. However, they have to get their side of the story into the media. Aren't there any slayers that have PR experience? If they lay low and don't respond in any way the public only hears Harmony's side and on top of that you have Simone(I'm getting into #23 a little here) who's behavior is backing up everything that Harmony is saying about slayers. If Buffy and company don't acquire a voice in the media then Simone will end up speaking for the slayers...no thank you. However, Simone was absolutely right when she told Buffy that she was outdated. Buffy has always been tried and true(which is why we love her) but she's not technologically savy nor has she been a normal member of society for a long time. She's never been seen as anything else but a hero and doesn't understand how to react to someone doubting her character(remember the end of season 7 when she got kicked outta the house). Whoever Twilight is, he really does have absolute knowledge of her weak-spots.
Speaking of Twilight...with all this online hype/contempt for the twilght books all I could think of when twilight was mentioned in #22 was that they're going to pull of the mask and it's totally gonna be Edward Cullen or maybe even Stephanie Meyer. When Satsu said "Figures a bunch of stuffed @$$holes would be working for that tool," I could not stop laughing. I also loved(in #23) that Andrew is a member of team Spike...wahhahaha! hhmmmm...I just had a thought. What if Twilight is Bella and she pulls off the mask and says "Muwhahahaha I am the ultimate weak mary Sue character using the media/popular culture to destroy all strong female characters in fiction! First I'll get Buffy...then I'm going after Wonder Woman, Dana Scully, Temperance Brennan, ect."....tehe. Sidenote: Actually I don't completely hate the Twilight franchise. I don't like Edward and Bella. Alice and Jasper are awesome characters. If she would have wrote the story from their perspective it would have been tons better(and if she was a better writer in general). The movie amuses me. The first book made me wanna reach into it and strangle Bella because she reminds me a little of my naive teenage self(only I wasn't that pathedic, thank you very much). Plus Edward has the same physical build and coat as my ex....ok...that's enough of that.
On to #23. I liked this issue. It was well done and I liked that they gave more depth into Andrew as a character and that he's a part of the family now. I'm proud/ashamed to say that I understood almost all of Andrews various pop culture rants in the beginning of this issue. I think Drew Greenberg did well writing Andrew. However, Drew Goddard writes Andrew better than anyone else(in my opinion...even better than Joss..yes I said it...don't hurt me). So for me I thought Greenberg did well but just having seen Goddard write him it paled a little in comparison.
The fact that Buffy was willing to forgive and accept Andrew into the family shows us that despite the fact that she has been acting a little tougher lately, she is still good old Buffy. She is willing to give people and benefit of the doubt. With some of her recent questionable behavior it was nice to see her soft side.
The fight between Buffy and Simone had a western showdown feeling for me(Simone is an outlaw, she even took over a village like outlaws do). You got the young cowboy verses the old cowboy. The old cowboy is fighting for honor, to perserve the way of things(trying to win the town back for the people) and to protect the hostage(even if the hostage is considered morally flawed). The hostage is normally a prostitute in westerns but since Andrew used to be considered morally flawed and he is working through that, he fits as a subsitute. After all, Simone wants Andrew because she wants to abuse him and torture him to vent her frustrations. Buffy is fighting to protect his honor. Then you have the young cowboy(outlaw) fighting for glory and power, using speed and and new technology rather then experience, brains and loyal allys. And I love how Buffy takes the gun and uses it to release the spider. They rode off into the sunset to fight another day but not without making things a pain in the ass for Simone. I like it. It's nice to see the old Buffy back. Someone I can identify with and respect. But again painting Buffy as the old cowboy also enforces the fact that she's out of touch with the modern people. According to them the day of the cowboy is long past. Vampires are the new popular culture phenomenom...damn...good luck Buffy and co.