Written by Becky CloonanArt by Vasilis Lolos
Lately I've found myself beginning to get bored with Dark Horse's Buffy Season 8 series. The first few arcs were fantastic, but lately I just haven't been very enthused by what I was reading. The material has been feeling a little stale, and this fantastic book proves that the main title has lost touch.
In this one-shot, some teenager named Jay, who lives in some nothing town in New Hampshire, is completely bored with his life, interested only in a local girl, and in providing himself to the local vampires when they need to feed. Things get a little out of hand (as they sometimes can when dealing with vampires), and Jay finds himself in completely different circumstances. It's a simple, short story, but very well-told.
This new idea, that vampires have become accepted into pop culture, and are in fact even revered, comes from the popularity of the reality show featuring Harmony. That's perhaps the only disconnect in this story - this kid doesn't seem like the type to watch a show like that.
Cloonan does a good job of crafting these characters quickly, and Lolos's artwork is fantastic for this type of story. He really has a feel for the expressions of disaffected youth (so much so that he should go finish Pirates of Coney Island!).
I hope that Dark Horse and Whedon realize that they should perhaps open up the reins of this series again, and instead of keeping their focus exclusively on Buffy and crew, they should explore the ramifications of their main plot in other locales, and with a more indie sensibility, like this book has.
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