Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 Motion Comic Blu-ray Movie Review

"She's just a tiny, whiny, long-dead Slayer in a damn impractical frock..."

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown August 1, 2011

Let me make one thing clear: this is not a review of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8," creator Joss Whedon's forty-issue, Eisner Award-winning Dark Horse comicbook series. If it were, my score would be much higher. Packed with the same wry wit and stake-slinging action that made Buffy's seven season television show such a fan-driven success, Whedon's cleverly constructed continuation of the series ripped the roof off the story's scale and scope (with towering monstrosities, limitless mystical realms and an 1800-strong Slayer army to start), delivered a string of substantial character developments and mythos expansions, and unleashed a bevy of beasties, old and new, each one hellbent on the Scoobies' destruction. (Rejoice, Buffy junkies! A 25-issue "Season 9" run is already being prepped for launch.) But I digress. This isn't a review of Whedon's comicbook series; this is a review of Fox's Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 Motion Comic, and the two couldn't be more different.

Onward and upward...

For the sake of brevity, I'll skip a lengthy synopsis of the nineteen issues included in this collection. Suffice it to say, Fox's first (well, presumably first) Season 8 motion comic release features four story arcs: "The Long Way Home," "No Future for You," "Wolves at the Gate" and "Time of Your Life." Unfortunately, a variety of bothersome issues all but cripple the production. First and foremost, the original series cast isn't involved in any capacity. Some of the character voices are spot on (particularly Xander), others sound nothing like their television incarnations (Buffy, Willow and too many others). It doesn't help that the motion comic's "cameras" never stop moving. The panels shake, shift and slide; closeups tremble and flee; our heroes bobble, wobble and hobble across the screen; action scenes are pure chaos, quiet conversations seem to take place in a falling elevator, and it's all too difficult to sit back and enjoy Georges Jeanty's art. While the penciler's work is wonderfully suited to the more intimate pages of a comicbook, it simply doesn't hold up to the kind of unflattering zooms and pans a motion comic employs. Splash pages and wider panels translate beautifully, but busier pages and smaller panels don't fare so well. Don't blame Jeanty though; the cameras press in on so tightly that his pencils simply don't stand a chance. His lineart is frequently reduced to pixelated rubble, every slight imperfection is blown up to enormous proportions, and the motion comic's faux-animated additions tend to undermine his accomplishments as a visual storyteller.

And don't get me started on the motion comic's misleading maybe-they-won't-notice title. Since the words "Part 1" are nowhere to be found, many a casual (and not-so-casual) Buffy enthusiast will throw down their hard-earned cash under the mistaken impression that they're getting Whedon's full season run. Not so. The Blu-ray edition of Season 8 only includes the first nineteen issues of the comic, and even then, it's far from a complete collection. First off, lines, quips and entire panels have been left on the cutting room floor, often for little or no apparent reason. Reading any issue while watching its motion comic counterpart reveals just how much of Whedon and co-writers Brian K. Vaughan and Drew Goddard's pithy dialogue and snarky references have been trimmed, truncated or axed altogether. It's never anything crucial, but most of the changes strike me as terribly unnecessary. Worse (at least for those already familiar with the comicbook series), guest writer Jeph Loeb's twentieth issue -- "After These Messages... We'll Be Right Back!" -- is missing. Not only did it wrap up the eighth season's fourth story arc (rather nicely I might add), it functioned as a perfect mid-season cap. Its absence is yet another disappointment; one that suggests Fox's inevitable Season 8: Part 2 release will open on a strange narrative and thematic note instead of writer Jane Espenson's "Harmonic Divergence," the beginning of the series' fifth arc, "Predators and Prey."

Even so, enough of "Season 8" survives the plunge to make the motion comic experience worthwhile. The voice cast may not be ideal, but the dozen or so actors assembled are far more entertaining than the one-man show that was Watchmen: The Complete Motion Comic; the story may be overwhelmed by stocky, flashpan animation but, for the most part, The Further Misadventures of Buffy Summers proves to be as fierce and funny on screen as it was in print; Jeanty's art may not look so snazzy when shoved under Fox's microscope, but it still warrants high praise; and Whedon's grip on the motion comic may be weak, but his razor-tongued characters, biting dialogue and irresistible tales are intact. As it stands, a single question remains: does the motion comic enhance the eighth season's first nineteen issues? In my estimation, no. And on the few occasions that it does, it isn't by much. Not only would I rather dig through a pile of "Season 8" trade paperbacks, I'd rather conjure up Sarah Michelle Gellar and Alyson Hannigan's voices in my head than settle for sound-alikes, take in Jeanty's artwork as it was meant to be seen, and read every word Whedon and his writers set to the page (not just those that made the final cut of a supplemental production). If the prospect of cracking open a comicbook is somehow beneath you, consider Fox's Season 8 motion comic. If you're the fanboy I suspect though, chances are you'll enjoy the actual comicbook much, much more.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 Motion Comic Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Between source blemishes and encode issues, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 isn't the stunning AVC MPEG-4 spectacle many are hoping for. A quick comparison to the standard DVD release of the motion comic reveals a number of significant improvements, the least of which is a fairly pristine image free of unsightly macroblocking and heavy banding. Both crop up from time to time, but neither one delivers any fatal blows. That dishonor falls to atrocious aliasing, ungodly pixelation and even some noticeable ringing. Nary a scene goes by that isn't spoiled by jagged edges and rippling pixels, wide shots and splash pages seem to be some of the only shots that skirt by unscathed, and nearly every animated element is left at the mercy of the motion comic's hyperkinetic jostles, jerks and zooms. Moreover, a variety of other anomalies -- a spot of noise here, some faint artifacting there -- appear as well. All is not lost though. Dave Stewart and Michelle Madsen's colors, sunlit or steeped in shadow, are a sight to behold, Andy Owens's inks are pitch-perfect, and the smallest detail in Jeanty's art is crisp, refined and well-resolved (at least when it isn't in motion). All in all, I suspect the vast majority of Season 8's problems trace back to the original source but, inherent or no, the presentation simply fails to impress.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 Motion Comic Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Fox's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track took me by genuine surprise. Far from the flat, two-dimensional bore I was expecting, Season 8's lossless beast enters the fray with style. LFE output is potent and earthy, lending legitimate weight to nearly every paper-thin monstrosity, crumbling building, hair-raising roar, stake plunge and battle scene the motion comic has to offer. The rear speakers are fairly aggressive as well, even if the nature of the production means a wholly convincing soundfield isn't in the cards. Shattered glass scatters, blood spatters, explosions expand, crowds murmur and hell-flames rage. All the while, directionality proves to be more than adequate (considering the task at hand), pans are rightfully sharp and swift, and separation is altogether satisfying. More importantly, dialogue is clean, clear and smartly centered, nestling in amongst the soundscape, even during the most chaotic sequences. Yes, the actors' voices tend to float above the madness, and yes, sound effects are a bit stagey, acoustics aren't exactly consistent and ambience is a tad thin. But come on... this is a motion comic, not a feature film. Let's keep things in perspective. As far as I'm concerned, Fox's DTS-HD MA track is the unequivocal highpoint of the release.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 Motion Comic Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Not much, that's what. The Blu-ray release of Buffy: Season 8 shows its true colors yet again as Whedon and company are nowhere to be found. Fox's slim-bones supplemental package does cobble together some innocuous fan service, but not none of it makes up for such squandered potential. A pint-sized reprint of the comic series' first issue is tucked in the case though, so there's that.

• Under Buffy's Spell (HD, 5 minutes): Some notable and not-so-notable Buffy fans and contributors wax poetic about the series, the comic and the franchise's staying power.
• Buffy: Season 8 Motion Comic Test Pilot (HD/SD, 6 minutes): "This rough pilot was created for internal testing purposes as a proof-of-concept and may contain story and picture inconsistencies." Hrm.
• The Buffy Trivia Experience (HD): Answer pop-up trivia questions as each issue unfolds. Rack up enough points and unlock a surprise bonus feature!
• Season 8 Comic Book Cover Gallery (HD, 3 minutes): A slew of standard and alternate Jo Chen comic book covers for the first nineteen issues of Season 8.
• Covering Jo Chen (HD/SD, 2 minutes): This exclusive interview with cover artist Jo Chen is only available via BD-Live, albeit as an HD download or an SD streaming video.
• Create Your Own Buffy Comic with Tooncast Studio: Toss disc two into your computer to access this decent, if not inconsequential do-it-yourself animation tool.
• Search Feature: Use bookmarks and timeline markers to hop from issue to issue.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 Motion Comic Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I can sum up my overall impression of the Buffy: Season 8 motion comic with a single statement: buy the comics instead. This may be the same nineteen issues fanboys fell in love with in 2007 and 2008, but they're far better suited to the panel and page than the disc and screen. On a positive note, Fox's DTS-HD Master Audio surround track earns its lossless stripes and, by and large, delivers. On a not-so-positive string of notes, neither the motion comic nor its technical video presentation look that great, Fox's supplemental package is a total disappointment and, worst of all, this is only the first half of the eighth season. That's right: the remaining twenty-one issues of "Season 8" are still awaiting home video release. My advice? Again, buy the comics instead. Only rent this one if curiosity, devotion or illiteracy compels you.