Jane Espenson

2.5 rounded up.
Well…that wasn’t what I was expecting. Or necessarily wanting? This whole plot felt much sloppier than previous Season 8 plots, and like it wasn’t fully thought out. On the plus side, I liked seeing Oz again, and felt like his return felt natural. I’m glad to see his growth and how he’s chosen to deal with his own personal situation. Also, the Giles/Buffy moments and conversations in the first part were very nicely done!

But there was so much other stuff that felt off. It seems to me super unlikely that Buffy would turn so easily and quickly to having everyone give up their Slayer powers/magics, especially when that power is something she knows makes them who they are and also KEEPS THEM SAFE…as we see pages later when she’s like “Omg we need our powers!” It was kind of an interesting idea to explore, but this didn’t seem like the right time for it.
Also the artwork takes a noticeable downturn in this volume! It’s been good, even enjoyable at times, up until now. The close-up drawings are decent, but figures in the background look like literal aliens half the time. The rest of the time it’s a bit of a guessing game to figure out who is who; I kept thinking Kennedy was Faith, and Dawn looks like she went through another Thricewise transformation.
And what’s with the random side story about Monroe?! Talk about a page waster! NOTHING about that was important to the bigger picture and it was boring either way.

It was fine. “Retreat” wasn’t ~terrible~, but it was DEFINITELY not the strongest. Actually it’s the weakest in all of Season 8 so far. It’s just frustrating to read and all I can do is hope it gets better again!… (mere)

This volume had a pretty distinct shift in tone and story from the previous Season 8 volumes, and it was fun in its own (slightly gimmicky) way! The Satsu and Dawn issues were the strongest; they did a good job of continuing or wrapping up plot points from earlier all while developing the bigger picture (although Kennedy is mega-annoying here). Also three cheers for seeing more of the FaithxGiles team-up!! That issue felt like random filler but it was enjoyable to see them in action nevertheless. :)… (mere)

«La trama de "Game of Thrones" está basada en la serie de novelas "Canción de hielo y fuego" y relata las vivencias de un grupo de personajes de distintas casas nobiliarias en el continente ficticio Poniente para tener el control del Trono de Hierro y gobernar los siete reinos que conforman al territorio. La primera temporada comienza quince años después de la guerra civil conocida como la rebelión de Robert, con la cual Robert Baratheon expulsó del Trono de Hierro a los Targaryen y se proclamó gobernante de Poniente. Tras la repentina muerte de la Mano del Rey, Jon Arryn, Robert invita a su amigo Eddard Ned Stark —Lord de Invernalia— a asumir el oficio vacante. Este último acepta y, tan pronto llega a Desembarco del Rey —la capital de Poniente y sede del Trono de Hierro—, va descubriendo la verdad detrás de una serie de intrigas y conspiraciones que involucran a otras familias nobiliarias y que están relacionadas con la tragedia de Arryn. Sin embargo, cuando Robert muere repentinamente, los Lannister reclaman el poder y ejecutan a Stark para evitar la difusión de sus investigaciones. Estos acontecimientos desatan una guerra entre los reinos de Poniente que se extiende hasta el final de la serie, y a la cual eventualmente se suma Daenerys, la única superviviente de la casa Targaryen, que en el exilio reúne un vasto ejército y cría a tres dragones para reclamar el poder despojado a su familia tiempo atrás. Simultáneamente, más allá de los territorios de Poniente limitados por un muro de hielo que es vigilado por la Guardia de la Noche, otra amenaza se cierne sobre los siete reinos ante el arribo de criaturas sobrenaturales conocidas como "caminantes blancos" y guiadas por el denominado Rey de la Noche.» - Wikipedia.… (mere)