Comics
Review: ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 9’ #19
Dark Horse Comics’ Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 9 #19 sees Buffy, Illyria, and Koh dealing with the consequences of a brutal showdown with the Siphon, who continues to gain power by ripping mystical energy from all he touches. On top of him being on the loose, Buffy is met with distressing news concerning Dawn, and an agitated Xander who is fed up with all the negative outcomes ultimately derived from Buffy’s heroic actions. It’s an issue that’s ripe with plot development, dramatic confrontations, and confirms some speculative theories the fandom already presumes.
WRITTEN BY: Andrew Chambliss
ART BY: Georges Jeanty
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASE: March 13th
“Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 9” #19 is the last installment in Andrew Chambliss’ arc titled “Welcome to the Team”, and it sets the narrative in rapid motion. Illyria suffers a massive blow as a result of her confrontation with Severin. The mastermind behind the zompire epidemic is revealed, but in a very anti-climactic way due to accurate fandom speculation; and naturally, they’re cooking up a deliciously evil plan to disrupt Buffy’s life. Meanwhile, the latter faces some troubling news concerning the main reason behind Dawn’s deteriorating health; and as expected, the ramifications of the destruction of the Seed have directly affected The Key and the magic used to create her.
If Buffy wasn’t feeling guilty enough, this is just another horrible consequence of her actions, and Xander lets her know it. This issue features amazing writing and emotional imagery from both Chambliss and Jeanty, particularly regarding the panels showcasing Xander and Buffy’s blowout. It’s raw and dramatic, and really captures the voices of our two main characters. It’s a fantastic scene but it might rub readers in a negative way. While Xander has some valid points when it comes to placing blame on Buffy’s shoulders, she made a choice that needed to be made in order to save the world.
Joss Whedon is known to victimize Buffy by throwing terrible things at the character in order to garner sympathy, but it’s somewhat unnecessary at this point in the game, and borderline exhausting. Especially when it comes to reading Xander’s hypocrisy concerning the situation with Dawn. Once upon a time, he was perfectly content with the possibility of having to kill Buffy’s sister in order to save the world, but now that he’s sleeping with her he feels it necessary to condemn Buffy’s involvement and attempt to save her on his own.
This is so reminiscent of TV-verse Xander, blaming Buffy for things that are so completely out of her control, that it’s only a testament to Chambliss’ amazing characterization and writing. This is a man who really understands Joss Whedon’s world and characters. George Jeanty’s art takes a step up this time around, along with Michelle Madsen’s colours. Her talents shine through the opening panels featuring Buffy, Illyria, and Koh, post Severin showdown.
Anticipation for next month’s issue is rising due to all the dramatic build-up this installment has to offer. Definitely looking forward to it.
3.5/5 Skulls
Reviewed by – ShadowJayd
Comics
‘You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive’ – IDW Dark’s Next Horror Comic Will Make You Question Reality
Five friends. Four houses. One perfect life. Bloody Disgusting is excited to exclusively announce You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive, a brand new horror comic from IDW Dark.
From Eisner-Nominated writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, and rising horror artist Heather Vaughan, You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is described as a “paranoia-laced, socially-conscious, horror mystery that will leave you questioning reality, and reveal that this crafted world is more of a nightmare than the idealistic dream they were expecting.”
Phoebe Joplin has never questioned the world her parents built: a secluded community where she and her friends were raised to be smarter, stronger, and better than anyone else. No distractions. No dangers. No secrets. Until the night of their graduation.
When one of them dies under impossible circumstances, Phee starts to pull at the edges of her perfect life—and what she finds is something far more terrifying than she ever imagined.
Because this place isn’t a sanctuary. It’s a cage. And no one who discovers the truth ever leaves it alive.
Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing (Batman – One Bad Day: Clayface, Star Trek: The Last Starship) co-write the upcoming IDW Dark horror comic, featuring art by Heather Vaughan.
Jackson Lanzing said in a statement to Bloody Disgusting, “You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is in many ways a spiritual successor to our last creator-owned horror, The Principles of Necromancy – a dive into the promise and consequence of playing god with the blood of innocents. But the Hivemind book this reminds me of most is Clayface: One Bad Day. This is a deeply human story with intensely raw emotions – five best friends and their five mysterious parents, tearing one another apart for the promise of some impossible glory that’s waiting just beyond their darkest actions. We’re thrilled to be bringing this story to life with our long-time partner in crime, editor Heather Antos, at IDW Dark – and we’re particularly excited to give our Clayface fans a new, brutal and emotional horror made just for them.”
Adds Collin Kelly, “We’re deconstructing a feeling that seems universal these days; our elders have a death grip on their power, without any intention of giving it up to the generations that come next. YNLTPA is about growing up with the limitless potential of the future… and realizing how much it’s a lie we’ve been fed to keep us under the yoke of the past. Bringing this brutal experience to life is our artist and co-creator, Heather Vaughan, who brings an incredible amount of humanity to our cast. But it’s in our youthful leads that Heather’s art really shines – you are going to fall in love with these young people, even as they go through the worst experience of their lives. What we’ve all crafted together is going to be tragic, painful, but above all else, sincere – with a future so uncertain, there’s only one thing we can trust: you’ll never leave this place alive.”
“Some horror stories are about monsters in the dark. YNLTPA is about realizing the monsters raised you,” previews Senior Group Editor Heather Antos. “Working with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly on this series has been a dream in the darkest possible way. They’ve built a story that’s layered, brutal, and deeply emotional, and every issue gives artist Heather Vaughan opportunities to push the art into places that feel both haunting and deeply personal. Some horror comics will keep you up at night…this is one that will stick with you for years to come.”
The first issue of You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive goes on sale October 14, 2026! Make sure to pre-order at your local comic shop by September to guarantee a copy.
Exclusively check out the various covers for Issue #1 down below.
IDW Publishing’s horror imprint IDW DARK features comics like A Quiet Place: Storm Warning, Smile: For the Camera, The Exorcism at 1600 Penn, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Twilight Zone, Event Horizon: Dark Descent & Event Horizon: Inferno, and more.
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