Amber Benson (1) (1977–)

They brought back Anya (and Anyanka)!!

To say I was excited is an understatement - it was a fun ride and Indira, the new Slayer, was a lot of fun. It was a little jarring with the more modern stuff thrown in (like Reddit) since, as much as Buffy was set in contemporary times, it was before Social Media, before the internet was really beyond dial-up on a household to household basis, so to hear Cordy, Spike and Clem in the same conversation as a teenager discussing how they fangirl'ed through show more subreddits...a little disconcerting. Took a bit to get used to.

The multiverse isn't a new thing to Buffyverse, what with the Wishverse being canon and the recent comics (from Boom) exploring the Slayerverse as it were, but something about hearing "our" actors from the show taking on different, but familiar patterns really hit me well.

When Spike is explaining to Slayer!Cordelia that "his" Cordy was brave and beautiful and strong, but in a way that Slayer!Cordelia wasn't (not that she wasn't brave or beautiful or strong as well...just not the same way) rang a cord. Yet at their core they're the same. They take no crap, they give no pretty lies and they don't back down when the going gets tough.

I'm hopeful for more. I'm hopeful that they can explore more stories. 20 years have come and gone since Buffy left the TV screens (and next year it'll be 20 since Angel did) and despite the behind the scenes issues and problems, so much of this cast still remains steadfast in what they accomplished and the legacy's reach. show less

One of my all time favorite movies is “Clueless”. When I first saw it in fifth grade (my mom brought it home for us to watch together), I was immediately drawn to Cher Horowitz, our well meaning but flawed protagonist. I wanted to be her, wanted to live her life and be as clever and kind as she was. As an adult I still aspire to live up to her standards, so when I saw that a new graphic novel about Cher and her friends was coming out, I really could have only one reaction: happy show more screaming.

The story picks up shortly after the movie ends. Cher, Dionne, and Tai are starting their senior year of high school, and Ms. Geist challenges them and the other students in her class to determine what their post high school goals are by the end of the year, and to figure out what they want to be in the world. After this, we follow not just Cher, but also her best friends on a journey of self discovery that was both incredibly charming and completely empowering. In spite of my excitement over this book, I was also nervous because I hold this movie so close to my heart (and “Emma” as well, the Jane Austen book that it takes inspiration from). I was worried that it was going to perhaps rehash the movie in some way, or throw in drama for drama’s sake. But I am very happy to report that Amber Benson and Sarah Kuhn absolutely did justice to the film and it’s characters.

I first want to talk about the characters and the arcs themselves. I worship Cher Horowitz, but it’s important to remember that even though she gets her life together at the end of the movie, she’s still a teenager who is going to have moments of stumble along with moments of triumph. I was very worried about her relationship with Josh, the Mr. Knightley analog who is played by Paul Rudd in the movie. Cher and Josh are perfect together, but happy bliss usually means no conflict. And hey, I am aware that stories need conflict (even if that’s an easy grab for conflict). But I am happy to report that while I do wish that Josh had been around a bit more (but that’s all I will say), Benson and Kuhn took their relationship on a trajectory that felt realistic for the characters, but didn’t completely decimate the lovely romance that lives at the heart of it. And it was done in a way that we got to focus on Cher learning how to define herself without basing it all on Josh and his needs. But the thing that caught me the most off guard in the best way possible was that we got similar treatments for both Dionne and Tai, Cher’s partners in crime but sidekick status only in the film. Dionne starts to suss out what it is she wants to be outside of a good friend and girlfriend, and gets interested in civics within the high school by running for class president. And Tai has a tough decision to make when she is accepted to art school, but a family tragedy makes her second guess what her priorities should be. This enabled them to move from “The Best Friend” (Dionne) and “The Ditzy One” (Tai) and become well rounded, three dimensional characters just like Cher. The justice given to these ladies was so, so satisfying.

A number of tributes to the movie are sprinkled throughout the comic, which varied from being absolutely adorable to kind of ham fisted and distracting. The not so good were the kind of glaring references that didn’t feel like they really belonged (yes yes, Cher does wear Alaia in the movie during the robbery scene, but referencing Alaia in the way this graphic novel did was kind of awkward), or were misused completely. But smaller Easter eggs were far more entertaining (Dionne’s campaign signs saying that Murray is ‘toe-up’, for instance), and I liked seeing them. I was also a bit sad that so many classic characters from the movie were missing. Mel, Christian, Lucy, Mr. Hall, and Elton were no where to be seen, and given that I love ALL of the side characters in the movie I was sad when none of those arguably important faces could even muster a cameo.

I really liked the artwork for this book too. Not only did Siobhan Keenan really capture the styles and imagery from the movie, be it through outfits, faces, or background, she brought a fun and bubblegum pinache to the illustrations. With some potential manga influences as well just for funzies.

Bottom line is that if you like “Clueless” the movie, this graphic novel will never meet your standards of perfection. But it comes pretty close, and does a great job of carrying on the stories of these excellent teenage girls. I would say that it definitely improves upon the characters of Dionne and Tai, which is so excellent to see. Definitely check it out. If you miss it, I assure you, you’ll be totally buggin’. show less

The zombie apocalypse came and humans retaliated with AI robots. Consuela, the daughter of a robot scientist, is hidden on an island with a Warbot to protect her. The Warbot, which she mispronounces and calls Rabbit, sets out to protect her from everything up to and including herself. And so she proceeds to live a Rapunzel life, locked away in a lighthouse tower with no word from the outside. Until one day, she sees other humans.

I didn't really like this much. The lack of emotion from show more Rabbit might have made him a realistic robot but it made it kind of a boring story. I'm also not sure I really understood what happened at the end. Was she raped? I thought she was, but then she said to shoot him [Rabbit] so...? Overall it was alright, about what you expect from a short story. 2 stars. show less

Calliope “Calli” Reaper-Jones is trying to live a normal life in New York City, that includes a boring cubby job and hunting for the next sale at Barney’s, all of which Calli is perfectly content with. But Calli also happens to be daughter of the president at Death, Inc., who is also known as the Grim Reaper, and she’s next in line for the job.

Cerebus, the three headed hellhound that guards the gates to Hell, has called in the debt that Calli owes him. Now, in order for Calli to keep show more Runt, her hellhound friend, and pay her debt off, Calli has to find an architect from the times of Ancient Egypt and return him to Cerebus. The catch, she only has 24 hours to find the lost architect or not only will she lose Runt, she’ll end up with a fate far worse.

Calli bumbles and stumbles her way around the world and the underworld in her search for the architect but that’s part of Calli’s charm. And this time around Calli is more willing to embrace her supernatural side and is even looking forward to honing a few magical skills that could end up being a perk in the long run. I definitely liked the growth I saw in Calli’s personality and attitude, while keeping her sarcastic humor intact.

Cat’s Claws was a fun, snappy read to the tune of a chick-lit writing style, set in a colorful supernatural world. It’s a charming mesh of several myths with an unconventional modern day twist that hosts a cast of quirky, likable and diverse characters. This series is starting to show a lot of potential. show less