Once thought to be legends only, they walk among us still, keeping to the shadows and avoiding the light of day. They were once ordinary people, someone you might see on the street, but something ... changed. Yes, they are fans of both "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," the movie, and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," the long-running television series. Rarer even than those who claim to like both versions of M*A*S*H, these dual-natured Buffyites have longed wrestled with the inconsistencies that exist between the two. Writers Christopher Golden and Daniel Brereton, with the aid of artist Joe Bennett, decided to solve that problem in the comics.

The popular Dark Horse series of Buffy books proved the perfect place to build a bridge between Los Angeles and Sunnydale. Working with creator Joss Whedon's original movie screenplay, Golden and Brereton wrote a version of the movie that takes the inconsistencies into account: there are now many Watchers, instead of just one; vampires put their evil faces on when attacking and go *poof* into dust when they are staked; and Buffy looks more like Sarah Michelle Gellar than Kristy Swanson. Oh, and she finally gets to burn down her high school gym.

Fans of the movie will recognize many of the memorable lines -- "Does Elvis talk to you? Tell you to do things? Do you see spots?" -- but may be disappointed at just how much of the story was cut out. At a mere 80 pages, "The Origin" doesn't have room for basketball games, "retro" jackets and little kittens to snack on. Maybe it should have been a little longer. Otherwise, it does a good job of carrying the tone of the movie; Buffy is not yet so serious or angst-ridden as she will become in the series, retaining her So-Cal attitude and humor.

There are downsides, certainly: the Watcher Merrick, unfortunately, loses the wonderful eccentricity that Donald Sutherland brought to the role; Luke Perry's reformed stoner Pike never gets fully developed; and vampire minion Amilyn lacks the brilliant comedic flair of Paul Reubens. But I guess those are sacrifices we must make so that Buffy has room for a complete retrofit.

by Tom Knapp, Rambles.NET editor

While the idea for this comic is brilliant it lacks clarity. The story was rushed and glossed over. I feel that if I wasn't already familiar with the story of the film that I could not have followed it. I was much releived when I found that while based on Joss Whedon's original screen play this comic was not actually done by him. Whedon has shown a remarkable talent in the feild of comics so far. (see Fray and Astonishing X-Men) So I suggest buying this comic only if you are as die-hard a Buffy fan as I am, in order to compleate your collection.

Ever since I read about this graphic novel I wanted to own it. While I thought the movie was decent, it paled incredibly to the wonderful Buffy show and I was anxious to see what writer Joss Whedon originally intended the show to be like. Unfortunately, when I actually got down to reading the graphic novel I was dissappointed.

Whedon is an excellent writer - there are times when his clever dialogue shines through, as well as his wit (I love how Buffy eventually destroys her foes). Unfortunately, the same can not be said of the adaptors. The story, as well as the art, feels incredibly cramped and rushed. I would have loved to have gotten to know characters such as Merrick and Pike, but the book seemed to be more concerned with advancing the plot rather than deepening the characters. It feels like an adaption, and not a true story on its own.

I do like the book to an extent, and am glad it exists. Still, reading this cramped graphic novel I wondered if just reading Whedon's original script would have been better.

P.S. Why were the vampires green?