The Buffy Comic Project: "Double Cross"

Buffy the Vampire Slayer # 20

Dark Horse (Volume 1, 1998-2003)

Creators: Doug Petrie (writer), Jason Minor (penciller), Curtis Arnold (inker)

Setting: Just after Season Three

T.V. Character Appearances: Buffy, Angel

Major Original Characters: Unnamed death demon

Summary: Minutes after the end of Season Three's Graduation Day, Part II, in which a giant snake monster was blown up alongside Sunnydale High, Angel sets off for Los Angeles. Along the way, he picks up a hitchhiker who suddenly morphs into a powerful demon. Near the same time, Buffy walks to the pier to gather her thoughts and is attacked by a similar demon who morphs from the form of a fisherman. Both demons seem to be winning by strangling their foes, but just as Buffy and Angel are about to give up, they share a lucid dream where they're together and realize they have to keep fighting. In the dream, they're together but dying, while being apart gives them a chance to live. In the "real world", Buffy and Angel each break the necklace their demonic attackers are wearing which leads to the demons' defeat.

Review: Quite a change-up from the first nineteen issues of the series. First, this one features only Buffy and Angel. Second, it slots into continuity nicely. Third, it has a much more serious, even angsty, tone. Bringing in Doug Petrie, a writer on the show, was a smart idea. The series is narrated by the death demons, with very little dialogue by Buffy and Angel, and this lends an interesting angle on the story. Overall: a much-needed change in direction, and I'm looking forward to what's next (which, from the next issue box, is the "Blood of Carthage" story-arc set while the Scoobies are at college).

Notes

* This issue sees the introduction of a new, more "grown-up" style for the interior front cover and credits, as well as a slightly different format for the letters page.

* I'm guessing that the bulk of letters about the "Bad Blood" storyline were negative, as the letters page only runs letters about other Buffy comics.

* The letters page also has a "Surfing with Buffy" section, listing five websites devoted to all things Slayer. As an experiment, I tried visiting each site, and each one is no longer in existence. A good example of the impermanence of material on the Internet, I guess.

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