Friday, April 19, 2013

Recap of Last Night's Twitter Chat with the Buffyverse S9 Writers!

Last night we had the immense pleasure of co-hosting a twitter chat with Dark Horse/all the major players of the Buffyverse writing team and it was bananas! We got some hints, we got some scary, nail-biting tidbits and we got photo evidence that there was a top-secret Season 10 Summit in LA some time last month - verified by Angel & Faith writer Christos Gage!

If you missed it, see below for a full recap. Thanks to Dark Horse and all the Buffy Season 9 writers!

You can also read on Storify here: sfy.co/bHUo

 OK, Good evening everyone! Welcome to tonight's Live Twitter Chat with basically every current writer of the Whedonverse!

Hello! And Welcome to the with ,  

We're here Co-Hosting with the wonderful !

 So about a month ago this happened

 Time for the Twit-chat with ‏, , , and me!
And that is , who joined us! [in the pic]
  Even with his huge success in features, Joss was so eager to dive into talk about the books. Inspiring.

A lot of good stuff that day. I'm in awe of everyone's creativity.  
 I'm the one that looks like I live on beer and chicken wings. *burp*

 I guess we'll start: Question for What can you tell us about Xander's rage, which seems to be worsening?


  in #20 we saw how Xander's rage has been building up over a LONG time watching lots of people he cares about get hurt
  it's finally bubbling to the surface as rage, but he may redirect that in more active ways for the rest of the arc


Throw some love at - making S9 work so beautifully while still holding down his day job!



  why were Angel & Faith choosen to team up? any other team ups you would like to see in the buffyverse?
  Joss thought Angel & Faith should team up. Good enough for me! I want a Harmony/Lavinia/Sophronia book

 Question for In Willow #4 in the one page group shot toward the beginning, who is the brunette in the back row? 
  Was it Dawn? Or Kennedy?

  Was it planned that Dawn would be affected back when Buffy broke the seed? 
  that was an idea that we came up with at the S9 Buffy writer's summit
  I think the idea first came from
  It seemed like a rich way to explore human consequences of losing the seed
it was a great idea that really brought the consequences of the seed's destruction home for Buffy

  Was Xander talking about almost killing Angel in S9 Issue 1 when he said “Dawn never needs to know.”
  Yep, Xander didn't want Dawn to know that he snapped

  How much input do the TV show actors have into their character's comic plot?
  Little or none. A sweeping story tends to need to be guided from above with Joss-like vision to have coherency.

  Will Angel and Faith continue in S10 or are both those characters rejoining the main Buffy title?
  I don't think I can say. There will be a S10 Buffy book. Past that S10 info must be revealed by a drunk

  Would you make a Husbands/Buffy crossover happen?
  I'd love to. I don't think Cheeks likes to go out in the daylight much. Hmm.
  There was already a mini-Husbands/Buffy crossover with Andrew's t-shirt, right?

 Question for Our hearts mourn for Sebastian. Please say he will be resurrected as the big bad this season?
  Not sure that's in the cards. But I grew to luv the bugs while writing Spike. A nice surprise.
  But if I made people "feel" for Sebastian, then I'm grateful to have done my job.
  We grew to love the bugs too!! Who knew?
  I loved the bugs as well! They make me laugh.
Thanks! I owe you eleven dollars for saying that.

  Elaborate settings are easier to pull off with comics; what's *harder* with comics, from a writing perspective?
  Hardest think w/comics is not having live actors so you can't just say "he gives her a look" & know it'll play
  If I can jump in... long talky sitty scenes. Can be great on screen. Rough on the page.
  Is that why they're always on rooftops? Make it look interesting?
  Yes! & the Law & Order "hallway walk & talk" plays great on TV, not so good in the comics
  LOL you got me with the rooftops. Talky scene? Rooftop! Go take pictures !
  always better to put a scene in an interesting, visual location
  Do you have any favorite characters in the Buffyverse that you would have liked to write about?
  I'd love to write Lorne but the story has to be right. Can't do it just to do it.
Great point.

  Season 8 was very epic and 9 has been more intimate. Will season 10 continue in that vein?
  The goal is to tell stories about characters so I'd say intimate. But it is Buffy so everything's always epic

  Did preparing to write Angel and Faith involve any interaction with the actors?
  I followed on Twitter and I'm sure to her everlasting regret she followed me back. Go Sox!
  Interesting -- they sound so much like the actors that I thought it might've been in there.

  I really glad to have Xander's flashback to Giles's death. Was that also planned, or did you write it?
  that was always the plan. Look back at S9 #1 and you'll see Xander and Buffy refer to it

  Watching OUAT and Rumple is saying "Magic always comes with a price." That is so BTVS to me. Coincidence?
  Does this mean Doublemeat Palace will be showing up on OUAT??
  Ooh! Storybrooke could use a new place to eat!

  Any chance we'll see Vin and Sophie's old detective team days someday?
  I would love to do a Disco Doll Detective Agency story.

 Who is everyone's favorite character to write/draw?
  I adore writing Harmony & Clem also Giles' great-aunts
  I love the funny ones - Harmony, Spike, Andrew, Oz's dry humor. But right now I'm loving Billy and Devon most.
  Personally, Devon surprised me as being fun: I enjoyed finding his humor and his pathos (and his love of nerds).
  I love writing Spike and Andrew in scenes together. Annoyed Spike is fun
  I love the great aunts!
Thanks! The great-aunts love you! :)

  Can you give a one word tease for the next issue?
  Is that issue 21? One word tease: Resurrection. Too bad you didn't give me 2 words, I could've said if it works.

  Fun use of the Vopol blade in A&F. Alice in Wonderland references more than once. Easter Eggs or a theme?
  I figured a regular old blade couldn't kill Eyghon so easily so, Vorpal.

 For those who do it, how difficult is it to shift from TV writing to comics writing?
  For me not much. Some TV writers get too talky in comics. Breaking up action into panels takes practice. 
  You have to do a lot more work on the page for comics. You don't have director, actor, etc making decisions
  I found my 1st exhausting. Writing, directing, cinematography-ing, acting...but you get used to it & it eases up.
  Usually writers decide what panel dialogue goes in so artist draws proper body language. It can change
  I think can attest I have, on occasion, flirted with talkiness.
  Comics writing is soooo much harder. More like directing.

  on a scale of 1-10 how was ur Brit accent when writing the great aunts? :)
  LOL ask a Brit. I apologize to all Brits & the Queen for mangling British accents.

  for a long time comic-reader, it's obvious that you understand the rhythm of a comic book. A&F it's the best.
  Thanks. I've been reading comics obsessively since the Carter administration so I'm glad it stuck! :)

  Did either BtVS or AtS ever have an archmage as a character before?I’m not sure what Vail was.
  I'm honestly not sure what specifically an Archmage is, I just liked the way it sounded.
  One of the writers in the room had never heard of a mage! Can you believe it?
  Did you school them? Please. It's essential genre knowledge.
  Y'all gotta have a D&D session (intervention?) in that room ASAP.

  Was it intentional that Lavinia resemble Faith, or am I just crazy? It's gotten me confused in a few scenes...
  The Aunts were loosely modeled on Anthony S. Head's daughters who were to play them in the Ripper TV show
  In other words, coincidence and I'm getting confused for no reason. Not the first time that's happened. 

  Would you want to write Buffy in season 10 or a different book next season?
  not sure who's going to end up writing what… I'm just excited to be anywhere in the Buffyverse!

 Will this season end at all cliffhanger-y?
  Stories will be resolved...and new ones will be incited. So yes, don't you think ?
  There will be a definite conclusion to the season arc, but there will be some cliffhanger-y consequences!
  Yep, and I just had a big e-mail exchange about some of the fallout from the season
  Yeah we teamed up on and got on our side too LOL...I'm what? FIRED?
  Yeah, I never heard. Did we win that or am I fired too?

  Which issue was your favorite to work on?
  I've loved most of them, but the one introducing Billy is closest to my heart.
  I'm very, very proud of Billy and Devon and getting to bring them in to play.

 I know it doesn't fit the context of the story, but would you please bring back Mecha-Dawn and Dracula?
  I'm pretty sure Mecha-Dawn is gonna be busy in Pacific Rim. No? Maybe just in my fan-fic then.

 , biggest similarity & difference between the TV writer's room and the comic writer's room? (2 part question!)
  In TV there is a room working on every episode. Comics: the room meets only sporadically to work on big arcs.
  I wonder if other comic series do writers rooms like the Buffyverse books

 Will there be a time in season 9 where all the Scooby Gang that remains gets all together to fight the big bad?
  the final arc of Buffy is called "The Core"… maybe referring to the Scoobies? Hmmm…
  The cover of the next issue made my heart leap with JOY to see the Scoobies together. Thank you for that.

  and more on those darn g-aunts, how did u come up with their names? Nvr heard of them. Name book right lol
  Joss came up with their names! Lavinia and Sophronia. Not sure where he got them but I love 'em.
  guhhh leave it to joss to come up with the most gorgeous names to use :)

  What's your all-time favorite storyline?
  Loved the robot arc -- Warren made April, then brought back to make Buffy-bot... Fun!
  Huge fan of Angelus. Loved Buffy's mom grappling with Buff as slayer. The 3 nerds.

  When Buffy and Angel finally interact again.Would you want to write that scene?
  Hm. I would love to try, but I actually never wrote that much Angel. Others are more qualified.

  Do any of the writers ever read fanfiction from their own shows?
  Honestly, I don't. I love that people are so passionate, but I find it overwhelming. 
  Don't get me wrong: I love that people are so creative! But my brain overloads easily

  Are you aware that if a cross-over with Buffy and Angel does not occur this season, it will be the first time in the series?
  Think we didn't want to do it because it would've been a really big deal & derailed the ongoing stories.
 The ongoing season of Angel has rocked the house and you have done an amazing job, would LOVE to see you write Buffy and B/A
  Thanks! I would love to see draw them

  Willow's addiction to magic to be brought up again? I can't tell if she has recovered completely
  Willow's definitely in a more confident place re: magic with a better understanding of what it means to her

  looking back at the writing process for Spike, how would you describe the feelings you felt while writing it?
  Cool. I felt more cool writing Spike than I do when I'm myself. I let the cool person I wantd to be come out.



 Can you tell us anything about the fate of Giles?
  No but if you read A&F #21 and 22 you will find out!

 Question for Now that the soul business is taken care of, will there be any residual Giles left behind in Angel's nipple?
  Thanks, you spoiled my haunted nipple storyline.
  There's always the other nipple.

  so could it be that "the biggest betrayal" which was mentioned all the way back in S8 is Xander?
  No the biggest betrayal in S8 was Buffy betraying herself. I believe Joss said so.

 Which character would you say you look up to?
  I look up to Spike because he just keeps trying, y'know?

  how long does it usually take to write one issue?
  I'm always writing between my day job so hard to say. Maybe about a week of solid work time
  Handed in scripts once a month with happy breaks thanks to and

 What is your proudest season 9 moment so far?
  Proudest Season 9 moment for me is 25 issues turned in on time. It was a rough year in many ways.
  In my VERY limited experience: Buffy telling Billy he belongs. I think there's LOTS in S9 that's pride-worthy. 
  I'm proud of the Buffy/Spike scene at the end of #6, and I'm super excited about the final arc

 Is there anything that Joss has told you you can absolutely NOT do?
  I can no longer come within 50 feet of Joss due to the restraining order. Summit rooms need to be big.

  Which is tougher.Writing Angel & Faith or Marvel characters?
  A&F were tougher to write at first because I was so petrified. Now they're as much old friends as Spidey.

  Any chance of a new motion comic? loved it last time! Btw you guys are genius.No one can put in to words how brilliant you are.
  I wanna know, too!!

 Is Dawn fading from everyone's memories or just physically and from pictures?
  don't want to give away too much -- keep reading
  This answer will be clear on the page. Hint: it's the more dramatic choice.

 Which character do you think has grown the most in season 9?
  I think Faith has grown the most overall. In season 9, maybe Willow, but Faith has a shot.

 How many seasons ahead have been plotted out?
  We talk about one season at a time. But Joss's brain... oh, who knows how far ahead it is!

  if you could describe Spike's and Angel's bromance in one word, what would it be? :P
Spike & Angel's relationship in one word? Can't be done.

  what can we expect from the final arc. Maybe just a small spoiler
  big action in the Deeper Well!

 Tweet was 2 long. Wanted to ask the writers and artists if they were to pick a character from the Buffyverse, who would you be?
  I would want to be Lorne because in real life I can't sing.
   I'd THINK I'm Angel. Or Riley. But I'm probably ACTUALLY one of those nameless Bronze patrons who runs from the bar.
  I'd be Anya.
  Well... duh.
  I mean, I'd be Anya... if didn't mind.

  Do you think the Buffy seasons in comics should have a end point?
  I think that if an end point presents itself we should pay attention to it.

  Xander’s rage seems pretty PTSD. Is that a correct interpretation of what is happening with him?
  You're on the right track. Think about how much he's seen and had to process/not have time to process

  On final arcs, will Angel & Faith & Buffy this season have unified endings? Can you hint?  
  The two endings happen at the same time but do not tie together...except in very subtle ways.
  we both waited to write our epilogues until we had talked to find small ways for them to connect
  Agreed but also wanted them to stand alone in case people read one book & not the other BUT WHY
  Wait, you can buy the comics SEPARATELY?!
  no fears, I buy them all. But was kind of hoping for some Gilesness to cross the pond to Cali.

 Any chance of dead characters coming back for a visit? Namely Anya and Wesley?
  Not this season.

  when u have writer's block, what nonsensical sentence do u write just to be ridiculous?  
  I don't get writer's block, honestly...writer's block is for rich people, I got bills to pay!
  deadlines are the best cure for writer's block
  Seconded.



  Second the ask on S9 soundtrack suggestions.
  Soundtrack suggestions? ELO, Brothers Johnson, Manilow
  the Drive soundtrack played during lots of my S9 writing sessions
buffyfest  Oh Drive soundtrack is goooood
  great writing music!
  I MUST know what scene you'd match Manilow to (and titles) PLEASE. I need this like air. 
  Thanks, you made me remember Air Supply. Angel loves Air Supply.
  Who's listening to Manilow? Tell me it's drunk Spike.

 I wish I could think of good questions to ask.
  YOU'RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME.

  What storylines would you like to have expanded further in S8 and/or S9?
  I think we'd like to see more Billy, but as a future thing, not as a "we should have" thing.

 You guys are the very very best. Thank you so much for participating! You are as gods.
  We are as gods? We are as gods? Yay!
  Totally. All you need now is a trio of toga-clad nerds, a pasture, and a harp. Voila! Seriously, thanks.:) 

 Highlight of the Season 10 summit may just have been 's impression of SNL's Stefon. t
  Which is pretty much my impression of 's impression of Stefon.
  The Highlight for me was being in awe of all the talent and Buffy-caring pros.
  I liked the goat cheese. Also the people.
  THERE WAS GOAT CHEESE? Worst summit ever, I didn't get any.
  Well, yeah. 'Cause I ate it all.
  There was a lot of cheese and grapes. I loved that.
  No 4 real the summit was magic. Better than the S9 one which was magic too.
  I wouldn't know. I was the new guy and had to sit in the closet.
  Come out of the closet, Victor. Rainbow. Pride.
  It was more of a "shut up, rookie" closet. Why did you all kick me so much?

 Is Cordelia Chase still going to have any cameo, vision, glimpse in Angel & Faith?
  GOOD QUESTION. We miss Cordelia Chase!!
  I love the Cordelia/Angel relationship, honestly...I think it evolved in a lovely way.
  yes, it did, but BUFFY & ANGEL FOREVER. I'm sorry, Joss Whedon and writers

 What would Anya say if she saw Xander and Dawn now?
  Maybe "Huh. How 'bout that." -- a little time and distance would return her to pragmatic self, perhaps?

  The Deeper Well where the gang is heading is in the U.K..Spike is currently in the U.K. Anything to that?
  Good catch. Can't make promises to Spike's location, but I think it's a safe bet to assume he'll be back

 In season 8, when Buffy reads up on her future there is one thing she calls "too ridiculous". Have we seen it happen yet?
  I think that's still up for grabs. S10 maybe?

  what's your favorite part about the buffy universe?
  Good question. The mission statement: every one of us can be a hero in the story. Even the most unexpected of us.
  Yes yes yes. You said it perfectly, Drew.
  that is a very good answer.

  how do you keep the character's voices in your head? Do you rewatch some episodes or are they ingrained in you
  Watch 12 seasons of Buffy & Angel in a few months and it kinda gets in by osmosis.
  Definitely rewatch repisodes. Sometimes have them on in the background while writing

 Was wondering, with all this big talented team how do you decide on a single storyline?
  Joss was there.
  With Joss, the best idea always wins in the room, no matter who it comes from

  What country would you love to see the gang in not yet explored?
  Australia!



  I LOVED the return of Connor. Does Connor have a clue how much risk his Dad took with Gile's soul?
  No I don't think Connor quite knows the risks Angel is taking.
  I'll just say that you made Connor actually likable and congratulate you.

  This being Joss.Can we expect someone dying in the finales to the season?
  There will be a death. Or two. In the A&F Finale.
  Now I'm scared, and possibly prepared to be furious.
 stay away from faith 😑
  Possibly the same in Buffy. There have to be consequences to character's actions

 OK, we're wrapping this amazing Buffyverse chat up! Getcher last questions in!
 And that's a wrap to the official time for Our guests will finish answering questions at their leisure.
 A huge Thank You to for Co-Hosting with us!  
 Even bigger thank you to for joining us
 Thank You All for asking great questions and being the BEST FANS EVER

 Thank you, , for hosting a great ! Bye, you lovelies!
 Thanks everyone who participated in the !
 Thanks for hosting, ! And thank you, ! What fun!
 Thanks and for the great chat!
 Thank you and thank you.
 As a long-time Buffy fan, I'm proud of my small contribution. Stay frosty, mofos.
 We Out!
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1 comment:

  1. drlloyd11April 19, 2013 at 5:10 PM

    Bland sycophantic questions
    Bland self-congratulatory answers..

    ReplyDelete