Brian Lynch's Spike

Brian Lynch's Spike - A Retrospect on the Series that Made Me Love Comics

by Patrick Shand

Listen up, boys and girls. Time for quick math lesson.

Five issue mini. Plus this Brian guy. Plus a vampire with a soul… no, not that one—

Equals this:

I guess it all started with SPIKE: ASYLUM.

When it was announced that Joss Whedon was going to continue Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a comic, I wanted to bone up on my funny books before the first issue hit the stands. I’d read some comics as a kid (I remember digging this oversized Stephen King Creepshow book), but it had been years since I’d picked one up. I took a trip down to the comic shop, picked up some of the very early IDW Angel books, and enjoyed them. It was until a few weeks later when I returned, wanting more of IDW’s Angel, that I saw they had a spin-off. Spike. I picked up Asylum #1 and everything changed.

I’d later discover Scott Tipton’s Angel: Auld Lang Syne and the three Spike one-shots (one by Peter David and two by Tipton) were up there with Brian’s work in quality and feels-like-the-showness, but Brian’s work on Asylum #1 was the first comic book that showed me what the medium can do when a phenomenal writer and a brilliant artist join forces on a story that they’re both dying to tell. And I guess that’s really saying a lot, because writing comic books is kind of what I want to do with my life.

Brian followed Spike: Asylum with Spike: Shadow Puppets (a sequel of sorts to Smile Time) and a prequel to his and Joss Whedon’s Angel: After the Fall called… well, Spike: After the Fall, that shows what Spike and Illyria did in Hell while Angel was healing from his unfortunate every-bone-in-his-body-breakage. Each of these Spike minis went above and beyond; not only did they feel authentic in both dialogue and characterization, they introduced new characters that readers actually cared about, developed both these newbies and the already existing characters so that they would be changed after the book, and centered around themes. Actual English major approved themes. Not “death is a theme” or “betrayal is the theme.” Single words aren’t themes; they’re motifs, and that will always bug the shit out of me. But Asylum, Shadow Puppets, and Spike: After the Fall had solid themes; statements about these characters, and he let those statements function as the backbone of his series without beating us over the head with a message.

Brian and Franco Urru (who is essentially the comic book version of Fonzie; that man is so suave) did great work on the Spike trilogy and Angel: After the Fall, so you can imagine my excitement when it was announced that they’d be doing an on-going Spike series together. I was at NYCC at the IDW Panel when it was revealed and Brian said he’d keep writing it until they made him stop. After the panel, I talked with Brian about some of the possible plots (we’ll cover that in an upcoming interview) and man did it all sound good.

But then, time passed. Other stuff came up, things were delayed, and then… it was announced that Dark Horse would be taking the Angel license from IDW. At first, it wasn’t clear if Brian would be able to continue Spike with IDW, because there were some quotes taken out of context that said Spike would remain on-going… but, as it unfortunately turned out, the Spike title would pass to Dark Horse as well.

So it goes.

It was at the next NYCC, a year and a half later, that I finally got my hands on Spike #1. It was everything that I wanted it to be; funny, epic, beautiful, smart, and (like all of Brian’s Spike stories) balls out insane. The issue sees Spike team up with Beck and Betta George to go to Las Vegas to stop whatever bad is brewing there; and that bad happens to be Wolfram & Hart. Erm, and a giant monster made up of Elvis impersonators.

The Spike on-going that became an eight issue Spike miniseries was about Spike leading a group of friends. In Buffy, Spike was fine at leading a group of lackies… because he didn’t give a shit if they lived or died. Then, he operated alone. Then, when he fell in love with Buffy and got a soul, he fought Buffy’s side with the Scooby Gang. Then he fought on Angel’s side. During After the Fall, he was the leader of a group of warriors, but he didn’t lead; he withdrew from the fight and set up a sanctuary, electing to protect his “flock” rather than lead them into battle. So Spike treads new ground, setting up our bleach-blond hero as leading a group of people that he cares about for the first time. He has to calculate decisions, he has to make tough calls, and he has to deal with everything Angel and Buffy have been dealing with for years. Spike grows, as he grew in all of Brian’s stories.

Spike is also about a serial killer named John who believes Spike has his soul. It’s about Drusilla, and how the (as Kr’ph so uneloquently put it) “hell moment” made her sane. It’s about how Spike gave her her sould back and unknowingly broke that sanity. It’s about hard choices. It’s about realizing when it’s time to walk away for your friends for their own safety. It also functions as a bit of narrative bridge to Season Eight, as the last issue has the infamous bug ship land in the middle of Las Vegas.

For me, Spike does a bunch of things. I could see the story growing as I read more than any story I’d read before. Like the eponymous character, Spike as a series was trying to find its footing. By issue #5, when Stephen Mooney took over as artist and Willow Rosenberg guest starred, Spike and Brian were knocking it out of the park. After that, every issue was better than the last until the epic conclusion.

For me, Spike makes certain hard-to-swallow elements of Season Eight a bit easier to take.

For me, Spike isn’t just a “this is how Spike gets the bug ship” story, which—and I don’t know why—was the reason why some people bought the series. For me, Spike was an ending. It ends with Spike leaving Beck and Jeremy and Betta George behind, because he realizes what being a leader means… and he doesn’t want the people he loves to deal with the fallout. He says, “No one is in control of anything. Innocents become dangerous. Heroes can turn on a dime. Sometimes, evil can do an about-face and want to help. People come into your life. People leave. Everything’s changing. Everything’s always changing. Bottom line, the only thing any one of us is in charge of… is ourselves.”

And so, Spike leaves on the bug ship in pursuit of the Senior Partners of Wolfram & Hart. Spike leaves Beck, Jeremy, George, Drusilla, Biv, Marv, Anna, and the rest of the Mosaic staff. He leaves IDW and he leaves us.

Spike was only on-going for eight issues. But Brian wrote three Spike minis before this that all seem integral to the narrative and character development of Spike and his stellar supporting cast… so, I guess, in a way, Spike sort of was this sprawling, on-going tale of a vampire with a soul trying to find his place in the world. Since Brian wrote twenty-one issues of Spike as a whole—and that’s not counting his twenty-two issues of Angel, his Last Angel in Hell special, and his upcoming short story in Yearbook—I can say that this was a good run. A beautiful, weird, hilarious, and goddamn I’m so sad it’s over run.

I wish Brian got to write the series how he intended it. I wish it didn’t have to get rushed due to some license crap. I wish Brian could write Spike forever, because no one gets Blondie Bear like that man. I wish a whole bunch of stuff, but you know what? This is what’s really special about Brian Lynch’s SPIKE series. Even all those wishes won’t come true, Brian managed to deliver a fantastic story… and that’s what I’ll remember when I think about, re-read, and talk about SPIKE for years to come.

Illyria's True Form: A Retrospect on the Character and the Series

Illyria's True Form: A Retrospect on the Character and the Series

by Patrick Shand

I’m gonna come right out and say it. Illyria changed—er, well, maybe evolved is a better word—more than any other character while Angel was on television. Granted, Cordelia and Wesley are usually the examples folks bring up of long-term character development in the show, but I’d argue that Illyria’s development was even more dramatic… which is especially impressive, seeing as she was only appeared in eight episodes.

The same holds true for the comics; the only difference is, while her character growth was exponential, so was the number of books that she appeared in. Other than the big brand name characters like Angel and Spike, Illyria appeared in more IDW comics than any other character.

Prior to the fall of LA, she went on a couple of adventures that occurred during the final season of Angel. Most notably, Joss Whedon allowed writer Peter David to cross her over into his Fallen Angel universe, where she embarked on a quest to tap back into her original power. It’s a crossover that I can’t believe we were lucky enough to get; the dark dark dark (and snarky) world of Bete Noir clashing with the… well, dark dark dark (and snarky) world of Angel? Incredible. As it’s set during the TV show, there isn’t much development for Illyria, but we do get some wonderful flashbacks that serve to explain Illyria’s connection to plants. This was further paid off when Illyria got her own series, but we’ll get to that later.

Illyria big comic book development began with Brian Lynch's Spike: After the Fall. When Los Angeles was sent to hell, things got all crazy. With the sun and the moon out at the same time, vampires felt equal parts euphoria and oh-no-I’m-about-to-burst-into-flames; werewolves were able to get in touch with their beastly side while they were in human form; and, most extraordinarily, Spike got his own prequel. Illyria co-starred with him, and while the plot focused on Spike’s war against a hellishly cruel pixie named Non, the threat of Hell’s impact on Illyria bubbled under the surface. The demonic environment was tapping into her old power, forcing her to timeslip, overflow with emotion, and revert to her delicate Fred persona at the worst of times. What changed Illyria the most, however, was that Spike became her protector. She valued that and sought to keep his interests only on her; going as far as to kiss him to assert her ownership, embracing the sexuality of Fred to get what she wanted. The series also showed Illyria trying and failing to understand the position of a leader. Spike wanted to stop Non and defend the humans he was protecting. Illyria, trying to live up to the same standard, ended up killing Spike’s human friend Jeremy, thinking that “his absence will only strengthen (their) flock.” Illyria’s emotional imbalance boiled over during Angel: After the Fall, also penned by Brian Lynch, when she pulled a Dark Willow and sought to end all of existence to stop the suffering. It took a potent psychic dose of Wesley and Spike’s memories of Fred to bring Illyria down and stop her rampage.

Those memories served as a catalyst for the development that followed. She co-starred with Gunn in the road trip/action comic Angel: Only Human. Both of them, in order to deal with their own inner demons, fight literal demons. With Fred’s memories fresh in her head, Illyria is trying to find a balance between her demonic self and her undeniably human side. Wesley helped her on the way toward understanding that, and Spike took care of her when she needed it… but she took the biggest leap forward when she went out on her own.

ILLYRIA: HAUNTED

Like Spike before her, Illyria’s story was just too big to be contained in the on-going Angel book. Long time Angel and Star Trek writer Scott Tipton teamed up with Mariah Huehner and Elena Casagrande (the former the writer/editor and the latter the artist of the on-going Angel book) to tell the best Illyria story ever told. While there are appearances from both Angel and Spike, Illyria is largely on her own in this four issue miniseries. After a conversation* and a bit of an adventure with Spike, Illyria discovers where she needs to go to get the answers to the questions that have been defining who she is since the Fall -- the Deeper Well.

(* That conversation, by the way, might be my favorite scene from all of the Angel comics. Illyria and Spike open up to each other in awkward, emotional, and brave ways that only those two characters can. Everything that was set up by Brian Lynch, Peter David, Scott Tipton, and Joss Whedon himself in these comics and the show is paid off and more by Tipton and Mariah in this scene. Speaking of her dreams, Illyria says:

ILLYRIA: There is one, it repeats. I can see them. Hear them. But from far away. Mundane things mattered so much to them And they shared a sense of… peace. Completion.

SPIKE: I know. You could feel it. I… I knew that feeling once. There’s nothing like it.

ILLYRIA: I… think it makes me jealous. Weak, just like every other human emotion.

SPIKE: You always get that wrong, blue. Love like that makes you stronger than anything. You can save the world with a love like that.

ILLYRIA: Oh?

SPIKE: Never mind. We’re talking about you.

ILLYRIA: In my dream, they are… what they could have been. What they should have been. Without me. Their future spreads out before me, unfolding. So short and simple and yet… it is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.)

When Illyria arrives at the Deeper Well, she finds exactly what she didn’t know what she was looking for. After throwing a God-king sized tantrum at what she perceived to be the fruitlessness of the trip, a glowing blue gem catches her eye… and when she touches it, it transforms her. And that, to me, thematically echoes what Wesley said to her as he died in her arms. “It was good that you came.” It really isn't the where or the what of the transformation that matters. It's the why. It's the because. She's ready to find answers, to explore herself, to explore humanity; and the answer is there, waiting for her to reach out and grab it and become who she is supposed to be. And what she becomes… well, that’s sort of left up to the reader. I know what I think. I like what I think. But the text does somewhat leave it open to interpretation. Illyria says, “Such burning… I taste the other… Oh, it’s sweet, it’s… everything, always, forever… You and… him? I… we become. I have ended. I have begun.”

And with that, Illyria finds the one thing that she’s been trying to imitate since Wesley showed her what was acceptable and what was not. She has reason to fight; she feels the connection between humanity and herself. Between the Earth and herself. This new connection with the Earth—which is a brilliant bit of character development, as it seems to stem (HAR HAR HAR) both from her affinity for plants in the television series as well as the revelation of what plants mean to her in Fallen Angel: Reborn—helps her out quite a bit in the obligatory Big Bad battle that she faces in the final issue of the mini. She defeats this full powered Old One not with brute strength, but by embracing her connection with plants; with life.

At the end, after a brief and well-earned moment of connection with Spike, Illyria discovers that time and space has opened for her again. It ends with her and her new pet (a squidly beast named Pancakes) on a beach, about to do what she knows she needs to do. She says, “I am her ending. But she, and I, and him, and them… we matter. We lose, we love. And in doing so, we become.”

Powerful words, especially coming from Illyria. She has truly become a completely different character after the IDW comics, and looking at her entire arc is just phenomenal. What Brian did with her in After the Fall and the events of Illyria: Haunted particularly stand out. It was a great run, with an utterly outstanding ending.

The TPB of Scott Tipton, Mariah Huehner, and Elena Casagrande’s Illyria: Haunted comes out May 18th.

Spike: After the Fall Hardcover Review

What Is It?: A hardcover that collects the Spike: After the Fall miniseries.

The Story: A lot of beloved stories don't really hold up to a second reading. A lot of stories that didn't go over so well read a lot better after a second reading. Spike: After the Fall definitely changes with repeated reads, but doesn't fall into either of those categories. It was fantastic when I first read it, but the more I read the more the utter greatness of it starts to stand out.

Getting the flaws out of the way first, Art Lyon's coloring doesn't really vibe with Franco Urru's art. It's not really appropriate, I feel, for the tone of either Spike or Angel, but at least his coloring work on this book was an improvement over his work on the middle issues of Angel. The art is best in the third issue, in which Jason Jensen's beautiful coloring leaps off the page, but Urru's art is as good as ever, so it is still able to shine even with less than ideal color work. He is wonderful with character likeness and even better with movement. Take the page in #2, where Spike and Spider have a bit of a stand-off. Perfect pencils, perfect layout. What an example of how effective visual story-telling in comics can be.

As for the story, it's a prequel that truly stands on its own. It tells what happened to Spike and Illyria between First Night and the main arc of After the Fall, so we know where they start and where they end up... but getting there is all the shocking, tragic, bloody fun. Spike's dialogue is the strongest it's ever been, allowing us to get close--but not too close--to our vampire champion. Brian Lynch subtly, gracefully crafts the relationships between the three leads, Spike, Illyria, and Jeremy, setting us up for heartbreak that we knew had to come but could have never predicted how. Brian described the story as having an "indie" or "low budget" feel, and he's right in that the tone is a lot closer to the television series than the Angel title, but this just makes it a more interesting read instead of limiting it. It's a fast paced, highly emotional tale with great character development, cool connections to the Angel title, fantastic dialogue, and Brian's best original villain. Well, at least tied with Kr'ph.

Spike's story reads even better in the context of the entire Angel: After the Fall arc. Both of them play off each other so well, elevating both stories to a new level. I loved Spike: After the Fall when it was released in four parts, and I looked forward to the book every month... but it's nothing compared to how the story reads now. Knowing what is to come for Spike, knowing how Angel: After the Fall is resolved, reading the story is a nearly perfect experience. Things that didn't seem to matter much before--such as Gunn being interested that Illyria was with Non--are now vital in the light of the final few issues of Angel: After the Fall. Jeremy's entire arc, knowing what will become of Illyria... it all works so well with the book. Also, the story is so tight, so many little moments pop up and are payed off, that this is really the only form that can do the book justice. Even the little things--like the way Spike tells time in #1 vs. the way Connor does in #4--contribute to the tight feeling of Spike: After the Fall. I've seen a lot of people say it's the best installment in Brian's Spike trilogy of Asylum, Shadow Puppets, and this, and I always thought Asylum was slightly better. Now, I think they're at least equal.

Brian ended his commentary by saying this: "Spike's grown a lot throughout the TV shows, hasn't he? Just thinking about all the changed Whedon and company put him through on the TV shows, it's pretty mind-boggling. He's a wonderfully rich and complicated character, and hopefully Franco and I did him justice."

I'll end my review by saying this: Spike is among the most well-developed characters in the Buffyverse, going from pitiful poet to feared killer to a monster trying to go against his nature to a true champion. Brian and Franco took that character to the next level. In their Spike trilogy, they forever changed the character, reminding us how deep and complex he can be, something that might have been glossed over in the business of Angel: Season Five (which isn't an issue, I don't think). They've added at least a season's worth of development to the character, taking him in brand new and excitingly dark directions, and I can't wait to see what they bring to him with the on-going Spike series. No one writes our favorite blond vampire better.

The Presentation: Tony Harris's cover from Angel: After the Fall #2 was used, which I found odd at first. But it's really a beautiful book, and once you lay it next to the hardcovers Angel volumes, you understand. The painted look of the cover really vibes well with the other books. Other than the golden tint (which does make it hard to read the embossed title and credits), there isn't much different than the look of the other hardcovers. The images chosen for the chapter headings were very nice.

Special Features: Not much in this volume, which is understandable, considering both Brian and Franco were finishing up work on Angel: After the Fall at this time. There are, however, extensive Franco Urru sketches, including a whole bunch of different perspectives of the Spike/Illyria kiss, as well as quick sketches of particularly important scenes. There's a nice "previously on" section set over an image of Spike sizing up Angel's dragon, as well as some commentary on the first issue. I do miss the in-depth commentary offered in Brian's first two Spike volumes, but when it comes down to it, I would definitely rather Brian and Franco have the time to make the actual comics the best they could be, so I'm good with the limited commentary. There is also a comprehensive cover gallery, featuring all of the Urru and Sharp Brothers covers.

Rating: 10/10 Classic.

Coming soon, coming soon

Hey all,

This week has been crazy, and all sorts of good things are happening, but it's sort of put a delay on the reviews. Well, review, because Angel: Smile Time #2 was delayed on the East Coast. That review will come out Thursday, and the Angel #18: Aftermath review will come out Wednesday. Yup, on time!

Somewhere between then and now, I'll post my Spike: After the Fall HC review. Truth be told I could review it now, as I've seen the extras and have the book (beautiful volume), but I want to re-read the story before I make with the reviewage. Give a better assessment of the book that way.

If this is all lies and the reviews are delayed, don't blame me. I just started writing a one-act play last night, have no coherent outline, and have to have it in by... well, yesterday, but since I was just informed about the one-act festival, the person in charge might be interested in taking my piece on Monday. Or, if I can get it done, by Sunday. AND all my friends are putting on the last day of the POTENTIAL ENERGY festival (I'm done, though), so I'll be there tonight. Ah. It'll get done.

If I keep saying that, it'll be true.

-Pat

PS: That isn't a new cover for Aftermath. I wish it were. It's by Ben Templesmith, and it was for Angel: The Curse a few years back. Great, innit?

All Bloody Hail

What Is It?: Spike- After the Fall #4 (written by Brian Lynch.)

Timing: Directly after Spike- After the Fall #3.

REVIEW: It's hard to believe that the majority of this issue is one fight. It's so emotional, so bloody, so action packed, and so filled with well-written dialogue that it seems like many, many events are happening instead of one long fight. Including Connor was a nice touch, and I especially like his interactions with Non and Spike. Another thing I appreciated was how the focus wasn't taken off Spike or Illyria. Even when fighting the biggest bads, the story was 100% about them. Even the way Non was dealt with in the end was more about Spike's character development than actually defeating Non.

Like any Brian/Franco issue, it's loaded with fun little extras, like Spike taking on a vampire Hugh Hefner, who I think was turned way before LA went south for the fall... and how Spike got his robe. Fantastic. But nothing that happens here is really little, per say. For a book that is essentially a prequel to the main Angel: After the Fall arc, there are such huge, huge things happening here. Illyria has one moment that is frighteningly true to her character, and the way it's handled sheds light on where both Spike and her heads are at. It's definitely an emotional issue, on par with the latest two installments of Angel.

So concludes Spike: After the Fall, one of the most consistently, thoroughly good comics we've got this year. I'm praying we'll see more from the terribly talented trio (Brian/Franco/Spike) in the future.

Art: Brian Lynch has called Franco Urru the best artist in comics... and I'm starting to agree. He manages to nail all the emotional moments, but also captures the motion of the battle scenes so perfectly that you can almost see the characters fighting with each other across the panels. He's a champ at pretty much every aspect, especially his full page revelations which... in this case, are actually heartbreaking. I still think the man's one weakness is the detail of the characters when they're a distance away, but even that has improved dramatically since his work on Angel. I just wish he was paired with a talented colorist to bring out the best in his work. Art Lyon is back on this book, which was especially painful after Jason Jensen did such a fantastic, fantastic job last issue. I Art has improved at incorporating more colors into his coloring, and the book benefits from it. But honestly, how can you not make Kr'ph blue? Kr'ph needs to be blue. I will end with saying this--in this book, Art Lyon did surprise me with the improvements that he did make.

Covers: Franco Urru provides the better cover of the set again (of course). It's a very detailed cover, featuring many characters in the heat of many battles. And there is muuuucho blood. I'm not sure that it's Franco's best Spike likeness, because the face is sort of long, but otherwise it's a great cover. The Sharp Bros also deliver their best cover, with Spike in a circus setting presenting Illyria, the sideshow woman/monster. It's by far my favorite cover by them, and among the most interesting of the series. I love the text on the cover as well.

Characters We Know: Spike, Connor, Illyria, Fred, Non, Spider, Jeremy

Rating: 9/10

Spike-like Smoochies

What Is It?: Spike- After the Fall #3 (written by Brian Lynch.)

Timing: One month after Spike- After the Fall #2.

REVIEW: The issue starts with a wonderful fantasy sequence that Spike is trying to lose himself in, to distract him from the torture. Angel is in the dream, and he's working at the Buffyverse equivalent of Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Fred is there too, playing a very interesting role. The dialogue on this page is brilliant, and is probably my favorite scene of the series so far. "No, thank you, good sod" was hilarious.

This issue, more than the previous two, really strengthens the ties this book has to "Angel: After the Fall." Two characters from the series appear, the first being Gunn and the second being the major reveal on the last page, so I'll keep that hush hush. Gunn has a really cool scene with the big bad of this book, Non, and is classic badass vampire Gunn. I loved the dialogue between these two characters, and seeing the Big Bads of both "After the Fall" series interact was really a joy. Non can't really hope to be as interesting as Gunn, but she continues to shock with her snippy dialogue and her outrageous actions, even going as far as to disgust Gunn. Very interesting character.

The issue climaxes with our heroes, as they always do, take a stand. The big scene that everyone has been wondering about happens here... and that is the kiss. The cover with Spike and Illyria kissing came out months ago, and its been a mystery, because Spike promised Wesley that he didn't think of Illyria in that way in ANGEL #10, and also, who woulda thought? Well, this scene finally puts the kiss into context, but I'm not sure that the event has had any light shed on it. Perhaps it will be elaborated on in the next issue (the conclusion), but at this point, I don't get Illyria's reasoning. Her sentiment, I fully get, but if there isn't more to it, I'm not sure that it was really in-character for her to suddenly do that.

Other than that somewhat confusing moment, this issue is really solid. The end is great and really leaves me yearning for the next one. I hope we don't have to wait another month and a half before getting the conclusion, because I can't wait to see what happens in the prequel that is too good to be a prequel!

Art: Franco Urru does a wonderful job as usual. From character expressions, to emotional moments, to the panel-to-panel movement, to action, to heroic reveals, he is simply the best interior artist we've had on a Buffyverse project. After two comics of Art Lyon greying and browning up Franco's art, we've finally got a good colorist in the mix. Jason Jensen from the early ANGEL: After the Fall issues is back, and he does a completely wonderful job on colors, really adding new life to Franco's already awesome pencils.

Covers: The covers are the best we've gotten from each artist so far. The Sharp Bros give us their best Spike likeness here, and the placement of the shadow looming over him is really dynamic and well done. The crown jewel, however, is the cover with Spike and Illyria kissing. It's so intricate, and so well done, that is bursts with color, life, and volatile energy. This, I want a poster of.

Characters We Know: Spike, Fred, Angel (fantasy sequence), Illyria, Spider, Non, Jeremy, Gunn, (SPOILER:) Connor

Rating: 9/10

Spike vs. The Dragon

IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR MY BUFFY #17 REVIEW, IT IS DIRECTLY BELOW THIS POST. OR, YOU KNOW, HERE.

What Is It?: Spike- After the Fall #2 (written by Brian Lynch.)

Timing: Directly after Spike- After the Fall #1.

REVIEW: Brian Lynch is pretty amped on this story. Whenever he talks about it, he mentions how much he loves it and how well it's coming together. His enthusiasm for this title had me looking forward to it real hard, and I wasn't let down at all by the first issue. We get a new character, Jeremy, set up to be Spike's buddy, and a great cliff hanger. The band of demon/women that later on become Spike's groupies imprisoned the civilians Spike was looking over and Spike was left facing off against Angel's dragon...

...and that's a dynamic that I loved seeing. The introduction to this issue gives us a hilarious idea of what Spike's opinion on Angel and the dragon is, and it also throws back to a scene from "Not Fade Away," which is awesome. I love the entire scene between the Dragon and Spike, which ends with the Dragon trying to enlist Spike's help in Angel's achy breaky back situation. But we don't really see Angel... I mean we do, but... it's hard to describe. The mystical stuff at work here in that scene, as well as the villain's powers, are really well-thought out and make for some crazy visuals.

This issue is very simple and doesn't have any real climatic scenes--it is really very set-uppy, which is a good thing for an Issue #2 to be--but it forwards the story nicely and gives us some awesome character moments. None of the pages, none of the panels, feel wasted, as we're also treated to a little joke or reference to pop-culture or Angel history. Those little moments, those appreciative chuckles, are what elevates this beyond "just a good Spike story." Lynch handles each panel with a great knowledge of how comics, as a medium, work. Take the Spike and Spider show-down for example. A back and forth like that could only work in comics, and the movement of it is just brilliant and so hilarious.

The villain, a sort of mer/witch/necromancer/hottie/something woman, is a good one. Her dialogue is great and she's really a threat, unlike her demon/woman groupies. She, and this series, has a lot of intrigue that I can't wait to see paid off. It works great as a companion to "Angel: After the Fall" but is solid enough that it stands completely on its own.

Art: Franco does a great job. Pretty much the same I said last time, paste here. Art Lyon marginally improves, but still sticks way too much to washed out colors. The Hell-A sky was stunning and terrifying in the early A:AtF issues, but now it's just red. Looks sort of like a perpetual sunset. I do love the detail Lyon puts into the things he wants to pop out at us--the dragon in the beautiful splash page looks real--but I wish that everything wasn't so red, brown, and washed out. I'm sort of left yearning for the earlier colorists, who truly brought out the beauty of Franco Urru's intricate panels.

Covers: The Franco Urru cover is simply a win. A blatant win. Totally relevant to the issue, and sort of conveys how differently Spike is responding to the situation when compared to Angel. Such a great idea and executed nicely by Franco. The Sharp brothers also provide a cover, which isn't bad, but is more blah than good. I don't so much get the cover, but it's not horrible. Their next one, the one for #3, is when they really shine.

Characters We Know: Angel (sorta), The Dragon, Spike, Angel (sorta... in a different and more real way but still sorta), Spider, Fred, Illyria, Jeremy,

Rating: 9/10

Spike, Brian Lynch, and Franco Urru Reunite

What Is It?: Spike- After the Fall #1 (written by Brian Lynch.)

Timing: After Spike's "First Night" story in Angel: After the Fall #6. Before Angel: After the Fall #1. To make it less complicated, you can pretty much say it's between "Not Fade Away" and "Angel: After the Fall."

REVIEW: All in all, it's the best Buffyverse comic we've seen from IDW since they released Angel #5 in March. The overall consistency of a comic written by Brian Lynch and pencilled by Franco Urru is really, really strong, and I'm more than pleased to have those two back together. I miss that team so hard over on the Angel book, so this comic feels sort of like a soothing cream over the open wound.

What we've got here is a prequel that feels nothing like a prequel at all. What you might have noticed, if you've been following Brian Lynch's work, is that this man never just churns out comics for the sake of putting something out there. He fills each page with action, character reveals, and hilarious one-liners that you can just tell he has a blast writing. Spike is as in-character as ever here, showing how he's really taken charge as the defender of his group of humans. Even though we all know where Spike's character is going by the end of this book due to his early appearances in "Angel: After the Fall," Brian still manages to surprise us with how he handles Illyria/Fred as well as the humans he's looking over. Jeremy (or, as Spike calls him, Jerry) is an awesome addition to the cast that Spike really seems to have a nice rapport with. I love that Jeremy challenges him, which leads to some hilarious and even slap-stick moments. Though what I'm a bit worried about is (SPOILER:) the lack of Jeremy in "Angel: After the Fall." Looks like he might end up being not-so-alive not-so-long from now.

As Brian moves the story forward, both he and Franco really put their all into each panel and pull off a lot of sly little winks and references throughout the book. From Angel, to Spike, to Everybody's Dead, to Monkey Man, I've read more Brian Lynch this year than I've read Whedon, so it was extremely awesome to see that the place Spike has taken up residence in is none other than Happytime Studios, which is the very same place where his original character Monkey Man sold his soul and momentarily "misplaced" his nuts in a previous Lynch scripted miniseries. Also, fans of "Spike: Shadow Puppets" might see an old friend in the shape of a duck. And, call me crazy, but I think Spike gave a child to/threatened Bernard and Rose from Lost early in the issue.

The stuff with Fred/Illyria is great, to the point where I don't know which character I want to stick around. Both of the characters have defining moments, that read a little something like this-

Illyria: "Ours."

(pst, it's all about context, because that is a *perfect* moment)

and

FRED: "Spike, what are you doing? He was feeling oogly--"

"Oogly." So Freddy. She's speaking Freddish. It's been so long since I've heard some great Fred dialogue, because she's pretty much been Illyria for the majority of "Angel: After the Fall" and other than that, she's pretty much been dead since 2005. So it's really, really awesome to hear this character speak again. And even better because she mentions her time spent in Pylea, which--in seeing her interact with the regular Angel case--we so easily forget about. But now that she's in Hell, I thought it was great to bring that comparison up. Very, very nice.

Now I see why Brian is so enthusiastic about this series. Great character stuff, great plot so far, spot-on dialogue, and amazing art (which I'll get to down below). As dark as it is, it's a lot lighter in tone than the Angel book. Great, great read.

Art: Franco Urru. I've written a lot of great stuff about dude, but seeing his art in this issue was so bittersweet it made my heart ache in the worst way. I love seeing his pencils, think it's great that he's on this book, and just... the "Angel" comic misses him so bad. Anyone who was hating on this guy has to a) be higher than Angel was when he fought the T-Rex, b) be sexist, c) be racist, d) be a Nazi, and e) like the Doom movie. The guy's stylized art works so well for the series, nailing both the action and the facial expressions of the characters. There is never a moment when I had to squint at a panel to see what was going on. In fact, in subsequent reads, more details pop out at you. I can't say I don't wish Urru was still doing pencil-work on the "Angel" book, simply for consistency and the fact that I'd enjoy it a lot more than I have been if Urru was still the artist, but this is still such a treat. As far as the colorist, I'm so not a fan of Art Lyon, but I think Urru is too strong an artist for his pencil work to be brought down by Art's washed out coloring. So yeah, this team--Brian and Franco--should pretty much write and pencil everything, because dayum.

Covers: Franco provides two covers, one with Spike standing atop a building in vampire-lemon face, the other a repeat of that image with Spike in human face. Both covers are awesome, and the use of colors (dark, royal reds and purples in the VLface cover and white/orange in the Hface cover) makes both similar covers look drastically different. Joe and Rob Sharp provide an incentive cover with a "grindhouse" effect. It's an awesome image, though the fact that Spike's face is traced from an extremely famous promo image but the rest of his body wasn't looks a bit awkward. The Sharp bros actually commented on that, saying that they were worried about not nailing the likeness, which is beyond understandable. What you'll notice in the subsequent issues is that the Sharp bros no longer use promo images and still manage to give great likenesses which pretty much shows that they're just overall really strong artists. I wouldn't mind seeing some interior pencils from these guys in an Angel or Spike book one day.

Characters We Know: Spike, Illyria, Fred, Dicky Duck, the Dragon, Spike AtF ninjagroupiescrazies.

Rating: 9/10

New Whedon Material

Hey all,

This'll be quick. Act One of a Joss Whedon web-musical is now up online. All you have to know is that Joss (in collaboration with his brothers and others) wrote and directed it, and that is stars Neil Patrick Harris, Felicia Day, and Nathan Fillion. Literally couldn't be more awesome if it was called "Buffy the Vampire Slayer 2008 The Movie" or "Serenity II." Fo' realz.

Link is here.

Be patient, there have been some server problems. You may download it on iTunes for real cheap if you want it now, which you should want it now to avoid being weird and/or a n00b. Just keep trying to access it, and it'll eventually come to you. Check in every few hours, because it's short and when you do see it, it will--no question--make your day.

I'll be posting a comprehensive REVIEW of Act One tomorrow, after I post my review of "Spike: After the Fall #1" which, oh yeah, comes out tomorrow as well. But want a snippet of what a review for Doc. Hor. would read like?

It's f**king awesome and better than you can imagine.

Pretty much that. Oh, and also,

Freeze ray song FTW.

So yeah, check that out. Act One. Up now. If you like Joss, any of those actors, or pretty much any kinda musicals at all... this is for you.

REST OF THE WEEK:
Tomorrow: Spike #1 and Angel: After the Fall hardcover Volume One
Thursday: Doctor Horrible Act Two
Saturday: Doctor Horrible Act Three

Dassit!

A NEW CANONICAL SPIN-OFF

Remember how you felt when you first heard that IDW was going to launch a canonical Angel series? How about when you learned it'd be written by Brian Lynch and plotted by both Lynch and Whedon? Great, right? How about when you found out Franco Urru would take on pencil duties?

Well... prepare to feel that way again.

I love spin-offs.