In their previous arc, I thought Lobdell and Nicieza were close but not quite there in terms of capturing what makes Buffy fun in comic-book form. With the first part of "Viva Las Buffy," they seem to have gotten it, exploring stories that haven't been told but are certainly interesting and capturing the tone and style of the characters and dialogue pretty well. While Joss Whedon and company have explored most of the big stories that have shaped Buffy's life, the gap between the movie and the TV show, however small, does have some room for exploration, and these creators have hit upon a story that expands on the questions remaining from the movie without feeling like they're padding out time that wasn't there.
Because the Buffy television show needed to have a clear jumping-on point (or maybe just because Whedon wasn't entirely happy with the movie's interpretation), the character of Pike wasn't in the television series. Honestly, I didn't really miss him, but Lobdell and Nicieza are giving the character a purpose that I didn't see in him before; he's the first "Scooby" in many ways, combining the roles of Xander and Angel. The inferiority he feels to her physically, while still being plenty competent on his own, is an interesting character element, and the uncertain romance between the two of them is somewhat different from the relationships Buffy has had since the show started.
Even more interesting than what happened with Buffy and Pike, however, is what happened while she was between Watchers. Buffy had the physical skills, but none of the knowledge, early on, and seeing her try to decide what her "jurisdiction" is made for a good scene. In addition, I like seeing a little more of the early days of Rupert Giles, as he makes the transition from Constantine-inspired magic badass to tweed-wearing father figure. The addition of Dawn retroactively into this setting also provides some interesting questions and story material; for instance, when did Dawn discover the truth about her sister?
Cliff Richards and Will Conrad serve up what I would call decent artwork for this issue. Their storytelling is pretty strong, with some great work on Pike's motorcycle-bound slaying and some nice unspoken cues between Buffy and Pike. Their likenesses, however, are good enough to get a sense of who the characters are but not really strong enough to connect them in my head with the characters I know. If not for the strong dialogue, I'm not sure that Giles, Buffy and Dawn would have come to life the way they did in the story. And with the beautiful painted covers by Paul Lee, I know a closer resemblance is possible.
These days, I'm not as interested in Buffy tie-in merchandise as I was early on when none of it was really available, but a renewed interest in the show has translated into a renewed interest in the comics as well, if they're well written. This new creative team is telling stories that don't seem meaningless or superfluous, but instead build on the rich tapestry of the universe that Joss Whedon and company have created, and this stands out as the strongest "non-canon" Buffy that I've read.
