2022 proves Buffy the Vampire Slayer is back

It's been a pivotal year for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, with the comic book series' Slayerverse helping to push and reshape the series. Here's how.

2022 is a big step forward for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, not only in terms of progression, but also in terms of reshaping the franchise. The original TV series started in 1997 and ended in 2004. The series officially ended after a year on television, however, its spin-off "Angel" also aired its final season. Rather than having the back-to-back series finales of the two shows mark the official end of the Buffyverse, the story continues in comic book form through Dark Horse Comics. The comic book sequel ran from 2007 until 2018, when season 12 finally gave all the characters a proper, happy ending and Buffy embarked on a surprising new career path.

Second year, Boom! The studio rebooted where Dark Horse left off, putting the popular series in the modern day. However, 2021 marks a major turning point for the series, starting with issue 24 with Jeremy Lambert and Ramon Bahus. When Faith bets the vampire Xander, an enraged Dark Willow tears the universe in two, desperately searching for what's left of her former best friend. This sucks the gang into another universe Just so happens to be in the season 3 episode "Band Candy" in the main canon of the original show. This moment officially marks the beginning of the Slayerverse.

In just a few issues, the multiverse became a staple for the rest of the series, thanks in large part to the introduction of the big villain, Silas the Multiverse. Buffy recruiting an alternate version of herself from a different universe will prove enough to stop Silas once and for all. The series will end in 2022, but that won't end BOOM! The studio's interest in expanding the Buffy lore. Prosperity! Will make the most of their new Slayerverse, as future titles will focus on alternate versions of Scooby Gang. Buffy the Last Vampire Slayer follows a much older Buffy as she watches over Willow's daughter in a post-apocalyptic setting while The Vampire Slayer is currently Examines a world where Willow is the killer herself. Even Angel has his own rebooted series of the same name, where he's a TV star and his friend Fred is a Slayer, playing an Angelus that spans multiple universes.

BOOM! Studios' Buffy Comics Revitalized The Slayerverse.

All three Buffy titles garnered great critical acclaim and success in 2022. Prosperity! Studio firmly established Slayerverse In Buffy Legends, it has done a lot to reinvent it and grow it. The franchise feels like it's progressing, as these reboots no longer feel like simple remakes of older material, but rather a part of the canon without sacrificing previous major continuity. Assuming the Slayerverse plays out there, it feels especially fitting that Disney is trying to reboot the Buffy franchise in TV form.

When it comes to reinvention, what was once is new again. The Slayerverse effectively took old material and modernized it to appeal to new audiences, especially as the multiverse quickly became a pop culture hit. With each new critically acclaimed comic book series after the Slayerverse, BOOM! The studio showed how Buffy the Vampire Slayer can be malleable enough to adapt to today's updates, yet have timeless themes and archetypes that are still recognizable and likable in new situations.