I can't believe I'm saying this, but Vol. 7 is where Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season Eight begins to seriously suck.

It's fitting, then, that this volume is titled Twilight. This book is as awful as sparkly vampires.

Oh, be warned, there are a few *** spoilers *** down below.

Twilight is the ski-masked villain who has been dogging Buffy's heels for a while now, the eponymous "big bad" of this story arc, and it's here that his identity is finally revealed. Also, Buffy gets pretty much Superman's entire power set (with the possible exceptions of heat vision and freeze breath), and Buffy and Xander have a heart to heart about Xander's new love for Dawn and Buffy's new heartache for Xander.

Yeah, whatever. It's this Twilight thing that gets me. I mean, people have died in this story arc -- more than 200 slayers alone, not counting all the "normal" folk -- and Buffy sees Twilight's face and, like, within a few pages they're having super-powered sex all over the place. None of it makes any sense. And you don't even want it to make sense, because it's all just so very stupid. I mean, Buffy goes from homicidally angry to endlessly horny within the span of a few panels, and we're supposed to assume she just gets over all those dead bodies piled up behind her because, well, she's getting laid. Repeatedly and seriously laid. And the guy, this Twilight person -- and, honestly, we all know who it is by now, right? -- just figures a little good lovin' and they'll just sex themselves into a new reality and, after all, if the sex is good, Buffy will forget about her friends, even if it means they'll all be torn apart by demons. Right? Right?! Sheeesh.

Wait. Why am I being coy with Twilight's identity? I mean, hell, they put his face on the freakin' cover of the graphic novel, so there's no hope for surprise there, is there? OK, fine. It's Angel. Was that a spoiler for you? Did you not see the cover right up there in the corner?!

So let's get this straight. Angel put on a ski mask and led a vast army against Buffy and her allies, causing death and destruction every step of the way. Then, finally, he reveals himself to her, has sex with her (a lot) and figures she'll toddle off to this new Eden with him and leave Giles and Dawn, Willow and Xander, and everyone else on the planet to DIE.

I don't even know what Angel's doing here in the first place. Dark Horse lost him to IDW, remember? And frankly, IDW has been doing a heck of a job with him over there. So now he's back in Dark Horse country, and he's lame.

Feh. I've ranted enough. This is a dreadful book, an unkind twist to what's been a damn fine series. Shame on you, Brad Meltzer. At least Georges Jeanty, the artist, did his usual fine job (although, frankly, the Buffy sex looks kind of awkward)....