Whoaaaaa... I wonder, will it remain that way or is it more like a one arc type of deal? I think it'd feel pretty cheap if they just took it all back, but wow! What a change that'd be. Very interesting...

nicetomeatyou | July 27, 09:48 CET

Damn. No Oz until issue 26, it seems. Almost a yeeear away.

Still, that does seem like a pretty big deal, that twist. I'm soitenly intrigued.

Jobo | July 27, 09:48 CET

I think it's for good, from what Joss said a while ago. Everything would change in issue 21, and I think it's also overdue. If people (silently) knew in Sunnydale, it would be the same for the world.

Perseo | July 27, 10:42 CET

When I read about the "outing" of vamps, I instantly was reminded of what transpired when that happened in Gargoyles.

I wonder who will be held responsible for the worldly knowledge... hmmm. Will it be the good guys, the bad guys (doubt it -unless by mistake) or those lost in between.

Mirage | July 27, 11:03 CET

Sounds rather like what they did in Doctor Who - they started off with "Hellmouth denial syndrome" (or aliens in this case), but ended up with Dalek invasions and Torchwood being the worst-kept secret in Cardiff. (Although it's still a condition that Donna suffers from.)

daylight | July 27, 11:57 CET

I thought the article made it sound as though Buffy was having some kind of global press conference to announce it; to be honest with slayers running around everywhere, people must know something is up...

Vortigun | July 27, 13:38 CET

Guess we know what the vampires coming into vogue means now and the schedule is cleared up.The world finding out about vampires is the basis of the five part standalone and I assume each issue will be about different peoples views on that.Man,this is something that I think needs to be reflected in Angel post ATF if they make it back from hell.After this is Jane's Oz arc.

Buffyfantic | July 27, 14:07 CET

This is hardly a shock, as the 'historical' events in Fray start to be incorporated, it was probably to be expected.

But I'm not too sure how I feel about this. Look, I know there's not REALLY an army of slayers, but like the Scooby's, being privy to the secret world of vampires and demons, and in fact being a Buffy fan, made me feel like I knew something that other people didn't.

So I'm worried that making vampires a known and feared entity will take away some of my ability to relate to the humanity of the series. (And hence put paid to my super-special secret society.)

I also wonder what the implications of the vampire 'outing' will have upon the Angelverse- hell dimension or no.

And yes, I agree that I'm probably being completely unreasonable and I concede that I will probably eat it all up with a spork, anyway.

missb | July 27, 15:19 CET

I believe this is better for the story. If the world is conscious of the threat, the stories themselves can gain even more magnitude, and truly become global!

Valentyn | July 27, 15:26 CET

I'm also curious about the implications of this for the Angel side of things.Again,assuming they get back from hell,I can't see how this couldn't have some nods in Angel and for the Angel characters.It's too big not to.This doesn't lend itself to coming up with a magical reason not to reflect it in the other side of the verse like L.A. being in hell did with the Buffy side of the verse.After The Fall was very self contained.

If L.A. and the Angel characters make it back to our dimension,then that self containment is gone and the Angelverse is once again interacting with the rest of the world.

Buffyfantic | July 27, 15:28 CET

Vampires are gay? wait....

aus-mitch | July 27, 15:32 CET

Well, just that ONE time...

missb | July 27, 15:41 CET

I think that shift makes sense, honestly. That gradually happened with Sunnydale over the course of the show -- when Buffy graduated it was made pretty obvious that everybody at her school knew something was up, and by the end of season 5/beginning season 6 with vamps running around on motorcycles and setting the town on fire --> total evacuation in season 7, it wasn't exactly a secret thing anymore. Now that the slayers aren't confined to Sunnydale, it makes sense the knowledge wouldn't be either.

Honestly, though, I'm most excited to know an Espenson-scripted Oz story is coming up!

likeadeuce | July 27, 15:47 CET

So, everybody suddenly knows about vampires, who, for the most part, look like humans... Anybody think that maybe the world won't be so cool with Buffy and the (really really big) gang killing so many of them? It would be interesting to hear an ACLU case against Buffy...

streetartist | July 27, 17:48 CET

That sounds really terrific. I like the fact that the "outing" story is actually the arc that all of the different TV writers are doing.

I also didn't think Jane Espenesen was writing a full arc anywhere, so that's exciting :). The return of OZ sounds really great to me.

I've been really impressed with Season 8 so far, it genuinely gives me the same feeling I had when I watched a new episode when I read it. It's different to fit the medium, but I hear all the voices in my head and I love these characters. BKV's Faith storyline is still my favorite arc, but there has yet to be an issue that I've felt dissapointed or uneven about. The weakest arc to me is still the first, and I was happy with those when they were released.

rabid | July 27, 18:01 CET

I'm less sanguine over this. It smacks heavily of running into X-Men territory, at least in metaphoric terms. And, y'know, you cannot bring back Oz without it having some implications for Willow, and that does worry me.

RAGBRAI is ovah, and I have done it- and not only did it, but when I got into LeClaire, IA yesterday it was so crowded I just rode my bike the 16 miles more home, making what should have been only 52 miles into a 64-mile day. 500 miles on bike in a week. And I look mahvelous!

Dana5140 | July 27, 19:24 CET

Awesome. I think it's the perfect way to keep the story fresh and to make it even more epic.

RaisedByMongrels | July 27, 21:15 CET

I'm not altogether keen, for many of the reasons missb listed. I like secret modern fantasy more than open modern fantasy.

Craig Oxbrow | July 27, 22:01 CET

I wasn't sure if Jane would be getting her own arch either. I'm looking forward to her and Oz's return to the series. I'm so fine with the outing of the vamps!

PS: I can't wait for Steven DeKnight and my dream-husband, Drew Greenberg to write for the series.

Espensode8 | July 27, 22:47 CET

No one has commented on this yet? I'm thinking someone should get Ben Edlund to do a "Tick vs. Captain Hammer" fight, both physical and mental.

The Captain Hammer eight-page webcomic featuring art by Eric Canete, which tells more about the character featured in Joss Whedon's online film Dr. Horrible.

OneTeV | July 28, 01:38 CET

I presume he means the one that's been on the Myspace page for a few weeks.

daylight | July 28, 02:02 CET

The most worrying thing, more 5 book arcs! I could barely cope 4 months without resolution, how will I do 5?

Sparticus | July 28, 02:03 CET

Interesting about vamps "coming out" as it were. It's a bit like the Anita Blake series - though I can't imagine anyone will be standing up for "vamps rights"

missmuffet | July 28, 15:19 CET

Following that arc, Espenson comes back for five-issue arc featuring Oz.

This makes my Monday morning happy.

Sunfire | July 28, 16:10 CET

I'm looking forward to the Oz arc too but I wonder if he is one of the few Buffyverse characters that won't transfer as well to the comic as others have. I'd have to say that 90% of Oz was Seth Green's delivery of the lines and so there may be a fair amount of what made Oz such a great character lost without the actor doing his part.

That said, Brian Lynch has made an artform of making Spike come alive on the comic book page and I really doubted that was possible without the James Marsters touch. I guess Jane has just as much chance of pulling this off. Time will tell.

Bored Now | July 28, 16:24 CET

The part of Oz will now be acted by Georges Jeanty, unless the artist is someone else for that arc. He's pretty good at subtle facial expressions. I think he'll do Oz justice.

Sunfire | July 28, 16:32 CET

So does this mean that the final 21 issues look something like this:

#20: Jeph Loeb
#21: Jane Espenson
#22-26: 5 issues by 5 different writers
#27-30: Jane Espenson
#31-35: Brad Meltzer
#36-40: Joss

Riker | July 28, 18:06 CET

It's:

#20:Jeph Loeb
#21-25: Jane Espenson, Jim Krueger, Steve DeKnight, Drew Greenberg and Doug Petrie
#26-30: Jane Espenson
#31-35: Brad Meltzer
#36-40: Joss

Perseo | July 28, 18:22 CET

I'm torn about this, too (and kind of wish I'd avoided the spoiler, as is my usual wont). On the one hand, Joss & Co. have only rarely taken the story in directions I didn't end up at least being okay with (though the Initiative strains this). On the other hand, I'm in the boat with missb. Somehow the vampire mythology seems to need the Masquerade. Take that away and, well, it will be very interesting to see how they square the circle.

Vague That Up | July 28, 18:46 CET

Oz was never a personal favorite but I'm interested. And hopefully he's not been pining away for Willow.

As for revealing the reality of vampires (And everything else????) well, it has two edges. It is another change tot he basic mythology. However, unlike the expansion of the SLayer power to all eligible, which moved the mythos away from Silver-Age Superhero conventions and back towards the Gothic and occult traditions, this moves it, well, I guess, back again, or amybe in soem third direction.

I do see the growth of a pro-vampire lobby (I've said before the best proof they don't exist is they're not in affirmative action, which I stole from the strip "Goosemeyer") and it might be more effective than the gang of morons in "Lie to Me."

I also see a growth of pro-SLayer, anti-Twilight groups,(along the lines of "MONSTER" in MArvel's mutant tiles) two actually, one which takes a hard-core anti-demon stance and one which makes allowances forn the Lornes and CLems of the world.

But I wonder about Joss's handling the political aspects; he doesn't seem to be "that kind of writer." If Alan Drury is a Buffan maybe he could make suggestions.

This settles one thing for me. I ws gettign worried, sicne the time I'll have to definitvely split of my ficverse from the Canonverse was drawing closer. (By spring '05 I have Willow doing grad work in the Midwest) so this will force me to get it over with. Since in my "Season 30" people are still in denial, mostly.

Which leaves me with a moral dilemma. Once I break with the series compeltlely, am in required, in good conscience, to stop buying the comic? Or can I keep getting them, for daft if nothing else?

DaddyCatALSO | July 28, 22:12 CET

I think this will be very interesting. One thing that's interesting is that around the same time as this arc begins, there will be the HBO series True Blood, based on Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire books, in which vampires go public. So two big stories about that at the same time.

In any case, I can't wait to see where this will go (as is the case with everything Joss does).

UnpluggedCrazy | July 31, 13:18 CET