Buffy: Tea Time #1 Review
Writer: Mirka Andolfo
Artist: Siya Oum
Inks: Giuseppe Cafaro, Francesca Follini & Dario Formisani
Colours: Eleonora Bruni
Letters: Ed Dukeshire
Buffy: Tea Time is a fantastic oversized one shot where the main scoobs, Buffy, Willow and Xander, bored while researching in the Library, take turns telling often hilarious stories of what would happen if Giles were ever turned into a Vampire. It’s brilliant, fans will devour this, and anyone with a passing interest in Buffy could pick this up, no up to date knowledge of the comics required. Now that the concept of the Multiverse has been broached the possibilities are endless. Quite which reality this takes place in is never clear, it’s apparent that this isn’t the main comic universe, and there are a couple of inconsistencies that suggest it isn’t the main TV universe either. As long as you are familiar with the quartet of characters it’s an entertaining story, one which really plays with the unreliable narrator telling the story.
Mirka Andolfo has got an incredible grasp of the characters and that is readily apparent in the way that she narrates the story from each characters points of view. Listening to Xander making himself into the action hero of the story, or Willow changing her story on the fly as her friends object to her version of events, or switching to the library where Giles is getting annoyed at the three friends discussing made up stories rather than studying, Andolfo understands these characters and captures the essence of these characters on the page.
The story is funny throughout, but especially under Xanders direction. Willow’s story takes a much darker turn, but the real heart of the story is Buffy’s version. It really explores the relationship between Slayer and Watcher, and it takes some unexpected turns and is surprisingly touching, especially after the tonally different stories before hand.
Siya Oum does an excellent job with the art, getting the opportunity to tell more and more fantastical stories as the tale progresses. Oum recreates a number of iconic Buffy locations, ranging from the Library to the Bronze, as well as one of countless Graveyards which line the small town. One of the highlights is seeing the different versions of Giles, as each story has a slightly different take on the character. Each take fits in fantastically with the tone of the story being told, and shows an artist who’s in tune with the story and can alter the art to fit different styles of story. Eleonora Bruni’s colours are also great as ever, and again subtle changes between the different stories really help to play a big part in setting the scene for the different stories.
This is the perfect one shot. An excellent entry point for readers who haven’t been reading the main comic series, it has all the hallmarks of the TV series, at points hilarious, then dark, then moving. It would be great to see Mirka Andolfo doing more work in the Buffyverse, with her grasp of the characters it would be a sure fire hit. This will appeal to all Buffy fans.
Artist: Siya Oum
Inks: Giuseppe Cafaro, Francesca Follini & Dario Formisani
Colours: Eleonora Bruni
Letters: Ed Dukeshire
Buffy: Tea Time is a fantastic oversized one shot where the main scoobs, Buffy, Willow and Xander, bored while researching in the Library, take turns telling often hilarious stories of what would happen if Giles were ever turned into a Vampire. It’s brilliant, fans will devour this, and anyone with a passing interest in Buffy could pick this up, no up to date knowledge of the comics required. Now that the concept of the Multiverse has been broached the possibilities are endless. Quite which reality this takes place in is never clear, it’s apparent that this isn’t the main comic universe, and there are a couple of inconsistencies that suggest it isn’t the main TV universe either. As long as you are familiar with the quartet of characters it’s an entertaining story, one which really plays with the unreliable narrator telling the story.
Mirka Andolfo has got an incredible grasp of the characters and that is readily apparent in the way that she narrates the story from each characters points of view. Listening to Xander making himself into the action hero of the story, or Willow changing her story on the fly as her friends object to her version of events, or switching to the library where Giles is getting annoyed at the three friends discussing made up stories rather than studying, Andolfo understands these characters and captures the essence of these characters on the page.
The story is funny throughout, but especially under Xanders direction. Willow’s story takes a much darker turn, but the real heart of the story is Buffy’s version. It really explores the relationship between Slayer and Watcher, and it takes some unexpected turns and is surprisingly touching, especially after the tonally different stories before hand.
Siya Oum does an excellent job with the art, getting the opportunity to tell more and more fantastical stories as the tale progresses. Oum recreates a number of iconic Buffy locations, ranging from the Library to the Bronze, as well as one of countless Graveyards which line the small town. One of the highlights is seeing the different versions of Giles, as each story has a slightly different take on the character. Each take fits in fantastically with the tone of the story being told, and shows an artist who’s in tune with the story and can alter the art to fit different styles of story. Eleonora Bruni’s colours are also great as ever, and again subtle changes between the different stories really help to play a big part in setting the scene for the different stories.
This is the perfect one shot. An excellent entry point for readers who haven’t been reading the main comic series, it has all the hallmarks of the TV series, at points hilarious, then dark, then moving. It would be great to see Mirka Andolfo doing more work in the Buffyverse, with her grasp of the characters it would be a sure fire hit. This will appeal to all Buffy fans.
A Look Inside
