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Thoughts on the AtF #1 preview.
So, thoughts on the preview. With pictures.
It all started with a girl.
Now I can’t begin to describe how much I love that opening line. It’s been going round in my head for weeks now, and the reason is very simple: It has layers. (The opening line of ‘season 8’ is wonderful. But it doesn’t have layers.)
Anyway, for a moment I’m going to disregard the Fred-part of it, and focus on all the other stuff. That is - Girl in Alley. Because it was *always* about girls (in alleys), and we can trace Angel’s development through them...
1) Darla (Becoming I): “What's a lady of your station doing alone in an alley with the reputation that this one has?” But the lady wasn’t what she appeared to be - the lady was a monster, and Liam the victim. And he became Angelus, the baddest of vampires (killing girls in alleys).
2) Buffy (WttH): Again the little blonde is more than she appears. She’s The Hero - the one who slays the monsters. And thanks to her Angel will change who he is - because he wants to be like her. He wants to become someone.
3) Nameless girl (City Of...): Here we see Angel, The Hero. Helper of the helpless. And the girl is a victim of random evil and violence - of monsters like Angel used to be.
4) Nameless girl (Conviction): This would be appear to be a re-play of ‘City Of...’ - except of course Angel isn’t a simple hero anymore. He’s the CEO of W&H, and the vampire attacking the girl worked for one of his clients. He’s again implicated in the opposite side, slipping into grey.
5) Nameless Girl (After the Fall, #1): Yet another re-play of ‘City Of...’, except... this time it is literally his fault that this girl is being attacked. If not for his actions in NFA, she would be safe. Angel The Hero is also Angel the man who ushered in the Apocalypse.
And how wonderful is that?
Anyway, on with the story. Because Angel keeps talking, saying:
‘Then they killed her. That opened my eyes.’
Now, we know he is talking about Fred. And we also know that *technically* W&H didn’t kill her, the way he makes it sound. But... I’m OK with this for - for 2 reasons.
1) The Senior Partners did not cause Fred’s death, but it is certainly true that she wouldn’t have died if she hadn’t worked there.
2) These are Angel’s thoughts, his personal reflections. Which means that what we’re not hearing The Truth TM, but his own spin on it:
‘I should never have let her come here. Bad things always happen here.’
‘Underneath’
Although he - in one way - seems to be absolving himself of guilt (‘they killed her’), it is also perfectly obvious that he sees himself as ultimately responsible (‘That opened my eyes’) - she was killed because of his choice.
So he took a stand...
And now he - like always - tries to make up for his actions (although this time it is not his *evil* past he’s atoning for, but an act of bravery against ultimate evil. With far-reaching consequences...)
Anyway, it looks like he’s about to be ripped to shreds when...
See now this is why having a superior artist is so very, very important! I remember reading this for the first time, and noticing the smile - such a perfect tiny little Angel smile. A ‘I’ve got a trick up my sleeve’ smile. Utterly brilliant.
Cue the dragon!
*fangirls dragon liek whoa*
The looting conversation is a lovely shout-out to the ‘stealing’ Anya/Willow argument in Triangle btw. Although here there is a poignancy here - they *do* need to steal.
Anyway, then comes one of my favourite panels:
The straight lie is just so *perfectly* Angel! Makes me want to squee very loudly and hug him lots and lots. And ‘I always leave them in the dark’ is another one. Angel - never big with the sharing. Unlike Spike, Angel was never an oversharer in any way shape or form. So of course he lies. To quote the man himself:
Buffy: And don't lie to me. I'm tired of it.
Angel: Some lies are necessary.
Buffy: For what?
Angel: Sometimes the truth is worse. You live long enough, you find that out.
‘Lie To Me’
And then there’s this:
‘I don’t deserve this! I’m a good person! I’m a lawyer!’
Now just how many loaded words can you get into a sentence? First of all ‘deserve’ which is one of those words that has untold associations (mostly as concerns Spike, really, but it goes for the whole souled-vampire thing - what exactly *do* they deserve?), and then to couple it with ‘good person’ and ‘lawyer’... Just delightful.
‘Everyone wants to know what they could have possibly done wrong to be in this situation. [...] I don’t tell them that they’re here because I took a stand.’
Oh Angel. It’s all his fault... and yet, he’s actually trying to help in whichever way he can, and not just sitting around wallowing in guilt. (I think the dragon really helps!) And I love the fact that this so beautifully shows the shanshu fulfilled - the vampire with a soul will be a major player in the apocalypse. Only no one knows on which side he’ll end up. And it’s still hard to tell... (I love me some ambiguity. Oooh yes!)
‘There were losses on both sides.’
And the look on his face... *patches heart back together* Oh my poor, lonely Angel.
Then there is that gorgeous, gorgeous two-page spread:
‘And then Wolfram & Hart sent Los Angeles to hell.’
It speaks for itself, really. And I have to say that the idea of a ‘localised hell’ is very intriguing and I can’t wait to find out what it’s about. (Although one wonders if Buffy wasn’t surprised/upset when LA disappearead off the map. But then I’ve pretty much given up on comic!Buffy, so... *sighs*)
Anyway, those were my thoughts. Tried to keep them reasonably short...
Finally just a point re. canonicity. Much as I adore ‘Asylum’ and ‘Shadow Puppets’ they could never be canon to me. However, I wouldn’t mind them being canon in the ‘After the Fall’ ‘verse... f.ex. I’d love for Beck to show up (Spike to Angel: “My firestarter is prettier than yours!”)... does that make sense?
It all started with a girl.
Now I can’t begin to describe how much I love that opening line. It’s been going round in my head for weeks now, and the reason is very simple: It has layers. (The opening line of ‘season 8’ is wonderful. But it doesn’t have layers.)
Anyway, for a moment I’m going to disregard the Fred-part of it, and focus on all the other stuff. That is - Girl in Alley. Because it was *always* about girls (in alleys), and we can trace Angel’s development through them...
1) Darla (Becoming I): “What's a lady of your station doing alone in an alley with the reputation that this one has?” But the lady wasn’t what she appeared to be - the lady was a monster, and Liam the victim. And he became Angelus, the baddest of vampires (killing girls in alleys).
2) Buffy (WttH): Again the little blonde is more than she appears. She’s The Hero - the one who slays the monsters. And thanks to her Angel will change who he is - because he wants to be like her. He wants to become someone.
3) Nameless girl (City Of...): Here we see Angel, The Hero. Helper of the helpless. And the girl is a victim of random evil and violence - of monsters like Angel used to be.
4) Nameless girl (Conviction): This would be appear to be a re-play of ‘City Of...’ - except of course Angel isn’t a simple hero anymore. He’s the CEO of W&H, and the vampire attacking the girl worked for one of his clients. He’s again implicated in the opposite side, slipping into grey.
5) Nameless Girl (After the Fall, #1): Yet another re-play of ‘City Of...’, except... this time it is literally his fault that this girl is being attacked. If not for his actions in NFA, she would be safe. Angel The Hero is also Angel the man who ushered in the Apocalypse.
And how wonderful is that?
Anyway, on with the story. Because Angel keeps talking, saying:
‘Then they killed her. That opened my eyes.’
Now, we know he is talking about Fred. And we also know that *technically* W&H didn’t kill her, the way he makes it sound. But... I’m OK with this for - for 2 reasons.
1) The Senior Partners did not cause Fred’s death, but it is certainly true that she wouldn’t have died if she hadn’t worked there.
2) These are Angel’s thoughts, his personal reflections. Which means that what we’re not hearing The Truth TM, but his own spin on it:
‘I should never have let her come here. Bad things always happen here.’
‘Underneath’
Although he - in one way - seems to be absolving himself of guilt (‘they killed her’), it is also perfectly obvious that he sees himself as ultimately responsible (‘That opened my eyes’) - she was killed because of his choice.
So he took a stand...
And now he - like always - tries to make up for his actions (although this time it is not his *evil* past he’s atoning for, but an act of bravery against ultimate evil. With far-reaching consequences...)
Anyway, it looks like he’s about to be ripped to shreds when...
See now this is why having a superior artist is so very, very important! I remember reading this for the first time, and noticing the smile - such a perfect tiny little Angel smile. A ‘I’ve got a trick up my sleeve’ smile. Utterly brilliant.
Cue the dragon!
*fangirls dragon liek whoa*
The looting conversation is a lovely shout-out to the ‘stealing’ Anya/Willow argument in Triangle btw. Although here there is a poignancy here - they *do* need to steal.
Anyway, then comes one of my favourite panels:
The straight lie is just so *perfectly* Angel! Makes me want to squee very loudly and hug him lots and lots. And ‘I always leave them in the dark’ is another one. Angel - never big with the sharing. Unlike Spike, Angel was never an oversharer in any way shape or form. So of course he lies. To quote the man himself:
Buffy: And don't lie to me. I'm tired of it.
Angel: Some lies are necessary.
Buffy: For what?
Angel: Sometimes the truth is worse. You live long enough, you find that out.
‘Lie To Me’
And then there’s this:
‘I don’t deserve this! I’m a good person! I’m a lawyer!’
Now just how many loaded words can you get into a sentence? First of all ‘deserve’ which is one of those words that has untold associations (mostly as concerns Spike, really, but it goes for the whole souled-vampire thing - what exactly *do* they deserve?), and then to couple it with ‘good person’ and ‘lawyer’... Just delightful.
‘Everyone wants to know what they could have possibly done wrong to be in this situation. [...] I don’t tell them that they’re here because I took a stand.’
Oh Angel. It’s all his fault... and yet, he’s actually trying to help in whichever way he can, and not just sitting around wallowing in guilt. (I think the dragon really helps!) And I love the fact that this so beautifully shows the shanshu fulfilled - the vampire with a soul will be a major player in the apocalypse. Only no one knows on which side he’ll end up. And it’s still hard to tell... (I love me some ambiguity. Oooh yes!)
‘There were losses on both sides.’
And the look on his face... *patches heart back together* Oh my poor, lonely Angel.
Then there is that gorgeous, gorgeous two-page spread:
‘And then Wolfram & Hart sent Los Angeles to hell.’
It speaks for itself, really. And I have to say that the idea of a ‘localised hell’ is very intriguing and I can’t wait to find out what it’s about. (Although one wonders if Buffy wasn’t surprised/upset when LA disappearead off the map. But then I’ve pretty much given up on comic!Buffy, so... *sighs*)
Anyway, those were my thoughts. Tried to keep them reasonably short...
Finally just a point re. canonicity. Much as I adore ‘Asylum’ and ‘Shadow Puppets’ they could never be canon to me. However, I wouldn’t mind them being canon in the ‘After the Fall’ ‘verse... f.ex. I’d love for Beck to show up (Spike to Angel: “My firestarter is prettier than yours!”)... does that make sense?