(no subject)

[shadowkat]

For people who care about the Angel/Spike/Buffy comics...there is a rather interesting post from IDW that clarifies a few things, but still won't answer my main question - most likely because IDW really doesn't know.

Here's the link: http://idwpublishing.com/news/article/1360/

Well, we have Joss Whedon to blame or thank depending on your pov for IDW losing the Angel the Series license to Dark Horse. Mixed feelings about this.

Still no clarification on my question : what is comics canon and what isn't? Don't people want to know what the plot is? That's sort of crucial, don't you think? I mean, it does change things if Williams and Willingham's Angel comics are canonical to the Buffy comics - because that would mean Spike's ironically and indirectly responsible for Angel becoming Twilight. (I can see Whedon doing that.) I just want to know what story arc to throw out and what to pay attention to. At least with fanfic - people will tell you these things. They'll say - its AU or it follows directly from episode 22, Season 5. Or that it includes everything up to and including Buffy comic 35. But with the comics? They don't tell you this. You have to guess! (And here, I define canon as basically meaning what plot threads, character tropes, etc that the writer is following, what is the past history. Is Spike's last name still Pratt? Did he become mates with a fish? Did he lose his soul then get it back again? Did he fall for Illyria? Did Connor fight alongside Spike in Hell?) If I'm to continue wasting money, time and space collecting and reading these things - I want to know what is included in the story is to date.
I don't want to have to guess or debate it endlessly with people. That's getting old.

If you can get a straight answer on that question from Scott Allie or Whedon - kudos! It's the only question I haven't seen answered.

Comments

[stormwreath.livejournal.com]

As far as I understand it: no, Dark Horse are not going to come out and say directly "IDW stories are not canon". That would antagonise IDW for no reason and kill their sales of the remaining 'Angel' comics.

On the other hand, I can't imagine them telling their own readers that thy'll need to read the rival company's comics first in order to understand the stories they'll be telling themselves going forward. More crucially, I'm not at all sure if Joss has read the IDW comics after 'After the Fall', so whether he'll consider himself bound to them is an open question.

So in short; I think the lack of clarity on the canon question is quite deliberate and calculated.

[shadowkat67.livejournal.com]

You are most likely right. But since when has DH cared about antagonizing IDW or IDW's sales? We're not exactly talking about professional adult behavior here. At least none that I've seen to date.

So why not just come out and say - any comic that was overseen by or co-plotted in some way by Whedon is canon to the Buffy comics - these would include IDW's Angel After the Fall, Spike After the Fall, Lynch's up-coming Spike series, and the last arc of the Angel comics - Wolf Ram and Hart. And leave it at that? You don't hurt IDW - because you've just promoted their last two arcs. And you don't hurt yourself. They can also come out with a caveat - "oh, you don't have to read these to follow the Buffy story, but it would be more enjoyable if you did." -Sort of similar to what they said about the two tv shows, when they popped up on separate networks - you don't have to watch Angel to enjoy Buffy, but it might be more enjoyable if you did.
Of course that would be an intelligent, professional and adult response - that would aid your readership. Why would Allie ever sink so low? ;-)