“Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 v. 5: Predators and Prey” by Joss Whedon et al.
For Buffy and Joss fans, especially those disappointed in the likely-to-be canceled Dollhouse, the Buffy “Season 8” comic series from Dark Horse is pretty good. The stories, for better and sometimes worse, are true to the series, while the art looks not only like real people but like the original actors. Best of all is the Whedon-esque banter–witty, fast and of the moment.
I originally read the individual issues, until Dark Horse started mixing ads into the the story rather than putting them at the end. I made the switch to reading the graphic-novel collections, as I have with other series like Fables. Predators and Prey collects five stories that can stand alone, but which also interconnect. Harmony, Buffy, insidious but cute kitty-cat toys, Andrew, Faith, Giles and Dawn all feature prominently. There’s finally resolution in Dawn’s shape-shifting curse.
This collection continues to portray a world with armies of slayers, and shifts things as well. As many superhero comics have done, the villains turn the tables and get the public to fear the heroes, the slayers. It sets things up nicely for the ongoing series. The comic is nowhere near as entertaining as the show was at its zenith, but it’s frequently good, which is good enough for me.