Title notwithstanding, The Death of Buffy is not about the death of Buffy. When the book begins, she's already dead. Rather, it should be called "Life without Buffy," as it strives to fill the gap between her death at the end of one season and her resurrection at the start of the next.

It goes without saying that everyone is very sad.

It goes without saying that the Sunnydale Scoobies are working extra hard to keep up with the vampire/demon threat without a slayer to lead them.

It goes without saying that Dawn is annoying, Anya says quirky things, Xander and Spike argue, and Giles dispenses calm English wisdom.

Unfortunately, the story is less than inspired. One senses the story was written less to tell a vital chapter in the ongoing adventures of the Buffy mythos and more because someone thought there should be a story filling in the gaps from the summer rerun season. Just what was everyone doing while Buffy was rotting away in her casket? Someone wondered, and this book was born.

But it's mostly pretty dull. Dialogue is flat. And it hammers home the point that, without Buffy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer isn't very interesting.

by Tom Knapp
Rambles.NET
7 April 2007