Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8” Confirmed Writers

#1-5 Joss Whedon
#6-9 Brian K. Vaughan
#10-11 Joss Whedon
#12-15 Drew Goddard
#16-19 Joss Whedon
#20 Jeph Loeb
#21-30 A combination of Jane Espenson, Doug Petrie, Drew Greenberg, Jim Krueger and one other TBD
#31-35 Brad Meltzer (four or all five issues TBD)
#36-40 Joss Whedon

The #16-19 arc is the one with the exciting spoiler upthread.

Info from this rather spoilery article

Interview with Joss - I didn't find it spoilery.

Am I the only one who was not thrilled to see Drew Goddard tackling another Xander and Dracula story after his awful slapstick entry in Tales of the Vampires ?

I saw it coming but I still threw up in my mouth a little when he said master. But then I remembered Oh my eye, my burning beautiful eye and I was happy again.

Maybe he's just sad that he didn't get to write Buffy vs. Dracula and is compensating.

It's hit scans_daily. People are, predictably, freaking out in various and sundry ways.

ETA: Scans from issue 12 behind the link, so, SPOILERS.

I am amazed.

"the cherry of misery on my sundae of dispair"?

Do these people have no lives to speak of? I had to stop reading.

On a serious note: I don't know if it's Joss' stand-by position to go to the lesbianism, or a deliberate attempt to push buttons he's already found to be touchy. I read Joss' explanation in The Times and, personally, I can see where he's going with it and why the story would go this way.

It also begs the question: whether he's going to kill Satsu off. He could do it because the whole "love Buffy, could die" thing. Of course, if he does, it's going to keep the Dead Lesbian Cliche_tm alive and kicking for the Kittens. Not that I think he would do something like that just for spite or to prove that he's in charge of the characters or the stories. He's certainly no stranger to stirring controversy but I don't think he does it just for its own sake.

Oh, and I had to go back and double check but is that Mr. Gordo in the scan, next to Buffy's panties on the floor?

Cashmere - Yeah, that's Gordo. I don't think Joss and friends will kill off Satsu - I think Satsu will kill Xand'. The classic signs are there, methinks, from a story point of view.

Cash - that was indeed. It gave me a huge giggle to think that she's still got him and he was witness to this before any of the scoobies. If pigs could fly talk.

I've got an LJ post brewing in my mind about this issue. There's tons of negative reaction to it among many of my favorite fanfic authors. I think there's just too many people reading with agendas in mind and when Joss just doesn't go there, they get all pissy. Listen folks, it's been eight years. Just because you think Joss took a hard left after season five doesn't mean that what he's doing with his characters and story today are wrong or that his Buffy is behaving out of character. Get a grip. Buffy is where he wants her to be and where he has taken her over the past eight years.