lizardgoats's review
5.0
I was wrong. So wrong about who the big bad was going to be. And I'm okay with that, because instead of the satisfaction of being right, I get the gasp-worthy "no way!" reaction that is a thousand times better.
I loved Season 8: can't get enough Buffy. And I'm excited for Season 9, when I get around to reading it, because it'll be back to basics. Buffy fighting baddies in alleys and failing at love, life, and sometime friendship. Stories about humanity are my favorite. Everyday exceptional humanity.
I loved Season 8: can't get enough Buffy. And I'm excited for Season 9, when I get around to reading it, because it'll be back to basics. Buffy fighting baddies in alleys and failing at love, life, and sometime friendship. Stories about humanity are my favorite. Everyday exceptional humanity.
mjfmjfmjf's review
3.0
Confused. And falls over of its own weight. And ends in a way that doesn't have me really wanting more. Which is kind of disappointing. There's just too much here and it doesn't make its best use of the characters.
misformorebooks's review
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
omg what a fun volume!! i did skip riley's story sorry idgaf about boring characters LOL but this was .... a lot
i dont accept it as canon tho <3
i dont accept it as canon tho <3
alexampersand's review
4.0
I debated (again) whether to give this 3 or 4 stars. Parts of it deserved 4. Parts deserved 3. Parts deserved 2.
The volume picks off exactly where Volume 3 left off (if we forget the silly Harmony storyline exists) - Buffy discovering she can fly. The discovery of her superpowers is interesting and adds an interesting element to the story and the premise of the series. Her discovery of where they are coming from also feeds in nicely to the moral questioning running through Season 8, giving a nice sense of continuity.
And then we get to the reveal of Twilight,and what happens afterwards. And I am so torn, because parts of the story work so well and parts of it are ridiculous, but they were all jumbled up together. I love the idea that Buffy and Angel have been chosen by the universe, and that it has been destined all along for them to do this. I love a good long game. However... I hate their magic sex. It seemed weird and unnecessary and a way for Joss&co to feature steamy scenes that wouldn't have been allowed in the show. But then, I loved the concept of this magical eden world. I loved Buffy and Angel in unison, and I even loved Buffy having to debate saving her friends (although it was no real debate, let's be honest.)
And so the final arc comes. And it felt a little bit messy. I don't fully understand the concept of the seed and magic and why the universe created a new universe. But I can more or less roll along with it.
The conclusion itself is incrrdibly satisfying, for me. Especially after reading Joss's afterword, explaining how they learnt from Season 8, and so Season 9 will go back to basics a bit. I'm quite excited to see where they go.
And on a 'why, book editors, why?' note, I wish they had placed Riley's one shot somewhere else. Before the Last Gleaming arc maybe? It was fairly dull as it was, but it felt like the final issue shod have been the finale, with a nice ending and potential lead in to Season 9. Tonally it was weird to have an uninteresting Riley flashback after that.
The volume picks off exactly where Volume 3 left off (if we forget the silly Harmony storyline exists) - Buffy discovering she can fly. The discovery of her superpowers is interesting and adds an interesting element to the story and the premise of the series. Her discovery of where they are coming from also feeds in nicely to the moral questioning running through Season 8, giving a nice sense of continuity.
And then we get to the reveal of Twilight,and what happens afterwards. And I am so torn, because parts of the story work so well and parts of it are ridiculous, but they were all jumbled up together. I love the idea that Buffy and Angel have been chosen by the universe, and that it has been destined all along for them to do this. I love a good long game. However... I hate their magic sex. It seemed weird and unnecessary and a way for Joss&co to feature steamy scenes that wouldn't have been allowed in the show. But then, I loved the concept of this magical eden world. I loved Buffy and Angel in unison, and I even loved Buffy having to debate saving her friends (although it was no real debate, let's be honest.)
And so the final arc comes. And it felt a little bit messy. I don't fully understand the concept of the seed and magic and why the universe created a new universe. But I can more or less roll along with it.
The conclusion itself is incrrdibly satisfying, for me. Especially after reading Joss's afterword, explaining how they learnt from Season 8, and so Season 9 will go back to basics a bit. I'm quite excited to see where they go.
And on a 'why, book editors, why?' note, I wish they had placed Riley's one shot somewhere else. Before the Last Gleaming arc maybe? It was fairly dull as it was, but it felt like the final issue shod have been the finale, with a nice ending and potential lead in to Season 9. Tonally it was weird to have an uninteresting Riley flashback after that.
mxlibrarian's review
5.0
First new book of 2018, and what a book it was. Unfortunately, there were some details of the Buffy comics, specifically Season 8, that I was already familiar with, having been unaware there were comics, and reading a bit too much on wikia articles. So while some punches didn't land as hard as they should have, I think overall it was a great season, especially given it was the first one of the comics. And I'm especially looking forward to seeing where things may go in Season 9! (Although I promise not to read ahead on wikia articles anymore, unless it's by accident)
lynneelue's review
3.0
A crazy end to a crazy season. (FYI sex scenes!) Super excited Angel and Spike are back and I am pretty interested to read more seasons. I didn't like Willow's storyline in season 8 and Giles was essentially benched for the season, which I don't get. I basically got to know Buffy and Xander better, but everyone else (except Andrew surprisingly, whom I really enjoyed following) was pretty peripheral. However, I loved how the artist absolutely nailed the likeliness of some of the actors (like Spike, ha) and never even close captured others (like Riley, ha).
bookdingo's review
3.0
I'm totally into this volume based on Spike.
Spike, Spike, Spike.
Spike, s'more.
Spike and his alien bug crew in their weird copper ball spaceship (okay, I guess I need to read Spike: After the Fall so I know what that's about).
The main reason I avoided Season 8 altogether was because I knew that and honestly I'm still not okay with it. It happens in this volume, so brace yourself for a wah-fest. With that in mind though, there's no going back for the main forever-and-always couple. At least, there definitely shouldn't be.
Spike, Spike, Spike.
Spike, s'more.
Spike and his alien bug crew in their weird copper ball spaceship (okay, I guess I need to read Spike: After the Fall so I know what that's about).
Spoiler
Oh yeah, Buffy and Angel have sex so much they create a universe. LIKE YA DO.The main reason I avoided Season 8 altogether was because I knew that
Spoiler
Giles diedskyturtles's review
3.0
3.5 stars. While it was better than volume 3, I was still a bit confused. Adding some of the ol' boys in the mix was refreshing though. If memory serves me right, I liked the Angel and Faith series better...