 | | 01-07-2021, 06:47 AM |
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#111
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Addicted Fan
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 4,319
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https://www.cbr.com/buffy-the-vampir...-anya-watcher/
Buffy The Vampire Slayer Reveals a MAJOR Change to a Classic Character
A classic character from the original Buffyverse just went through a major reinvention in the BOOM! Studios Buffy the Vampire Slayer series.
BY BRANDON ZACHARY
11 HOURS AGO
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Buffy the Vampire Slayer #21 by Jordie Bellaire, Jeremy Lambert, Andres Genolet, Raul Angulo & Ed Dukeshire, on sale now
In BOOM! Studios' comics, the characters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer have been reinvented for the modern era, with some serious shifts happening to characters like Xander. But one of the most potentially impactful tweaks has been revealed to have happened to Anya.
As revealed in Buffy the Vampire Slayer #21, the new Buffyverse version of Anya is secretly far more tied to the legacy of the Slayers and the Watchers than she was ever confirmed to have been before -- even having been a Watcher herself in the past.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer #21 explores the origins of Anya. As in the original canon, Anyanka was born centuries before the modern era. Initially, a happily married woman, the discovery that her husband was having an affair led her to embrace chaotic magic to take revenge. This caught the attention of D'hoffyrn, a minor demon who was impressed with her abilities. He explains that Anya is untrained and powerful and that could result in her burning out before realizing her true potential. He offers to make her the magically empowered Patron Saint of Women Scorned, the same title she was granted in the original Buffyverse. And as in the original Buffyverse, she took the position with gusto.
However, the original version of Anya was far less connected to the Slayer lineage than the modern incarnation of the character. It's revealed that after being alive for centuries, Anya somehow ended up in the employ of the Watcher's Council. The secret organization tasked with training and guiding the Slayers, Anya even became the first -- and only -- woman to be put into the field with a Slayer. And by most metrics, she did a wonderful job, helping ensure her Slayer Isabelle reached adulthood despite her responsibility to risk her life on a regular basis. However, that also meant Anya resisted the orders of the Watchers on multiple occasions.
Eventually, the Watchers grew tired of her insubordination and forcibly removed her from her position as a Watcher. They even used her expulsion as an excuse to bar women from going into the field again, arguing her emotional response to Isabelle's potential death hindered their plans. Less than a month later, Isabelle was killed in the line of duty. All of this explains Anya's knowledge of the Watcher Council and the Slayers in general, while also confirming that her demonic elements were behind her long life. But it also turns out that Buffy and her allies aren't the first modern Slayers Anya encountered. In fact, in her position as the head of the Magic Box, she actually worked frequently with Morgan, the Slayer who directly preceded Buffy.
Working out of a base in Cleveland -- which has long been hinted to be home to another Hellmouth -- Anya became an ally to Morgan. Morgan even lasted longer than any other Slayer, living to the age of 25. But discovering a conspiracy by her own Watcher to ensure her death and continue the cycle of violence that has dominated the Watchers and Slayers relationship, Morgan turns to Anya for help. It's here that Anya reveals her demonic influence is still present, reveling in the chance to help Morgan more or less stage her demise. With an enchanted ring, Anya is able to research Morgan after her death has activated the next Slayer. The two then attack Morgan's old Watcher, killing him and completing her vengeance, while setting up a plan to bring about the end of the Watchers once and for all.
It all adds up to a surprisingly more invested Anya, and a genuine wild-card in the future of this version of the Buffyverse. It explains Anya's own reluctance to work with the Council, and her demonic attributes still being present reveal why someone like Drusilla would seek her out. Still, her plans to bring the end of the Council she failed to redeem centuries earlier make her an inherently intriguing threat going forward, one with a legitimate problem with the Watchers who swear they control and protect the world. Her next moves could even set up a major change in the status quo, opening up this world to be full of Slayers without Watchers. While there are still lots of questions about Anya to be answered, this proves there's far more to her than it initially seemed.
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