Spontaneous Musings

To anyone who read this before I edited, my apologies - edited Sunday, 21,2010.

[Am somewhat behind on my reviews, I know. And technically speaking I already did a non-spoilery capsule review for this comic. But, it's been a long time that a comic book surprised me like this one did. Wasn't really expecting all that much, to be honest, considering that to date...the Angel comics have largely been a disappointment. So, I'm doing this review a bit differently. I'm using visual aids. The review is more of a meta and filled to the brim with spoilers. I also wrote way too late last night, so it was unproofed and quite rough when posted. Yeah, I know what's new? This morning...I overslept, so missed church and instead listened to a podcast on befriending regret, the podcast made me think of this post -because that is what is driving Illyria and indeed many of the characters in Angel and in any noir universe - they are filled with regrets of the things they've done and the things they should have done.]

Illyria is written by Scott Tipton and Mariah Huehner, who also serves as editor, with Elena Casagrande as the artist, and Walter Trono and Illaria Traversi on inks and colors. This is a rarity, we have a female character from a noir series written and drawn by women. So we are seeing her and to a degree the trope and series she is from through female eyes, not just male. While Kelley Armstrong did write for the Angel comics, the artists and editors were male. And in the Buffy comics - the editor, interior artist, executive producer were male - even on the arcs written by Espenson.

I note this because the comic book industry tends to be a boys club. Women rarely break in to it.
And when they do, it is hard to stay in it. No field is harder to break in to than action comics or superhero/noir comics. As a result, female characters are often drawn and written as male fantasy figures. This is also the reason that many women do not like comics, or degrade the art form - seeing it as something for adolescent males only. Being a gal who likes guy stuff..well not all guy stuff - the appeal of cars and American Football continue to bewilder me - has been an interesting experience.

One other thing to note about Illyria before I go begin my meta - the reason I've decided to use visual aids is unlike the other artists who do the Angel IDW and Buffy DH comics - Casagrande actually uses her art to show not tell us what lies inside her character. It's the first time I've seen anyone do this effectively in the IDW or Dark Horse comics, with the possible exception of Joan Chen in Always Darkest...

[*in the acknowledgments...the editors thank Joss Whedon and Fox World Publishing for their invaluable assistance (not "rights"), make of that what you will. It's in small print on the inside cover.]



In Illyria - the writer and artist explore what it is to have your memories, your image, your view of yourself determined by the people around you or your male companions. They also, to a degree explore what it is to have regrets and make choices based on those regrets, when you used to have none - you lived free of regret.

Illyria was once upon a time Winnifred Burkle. Or rather she inhabits as she puts it Winnifred (Fred) human shell, complete with its memories, emotions, and feelings. She inhabits this shell not by her own choosing, but because when she was released from her prison - it was the only shell available and in order to survive - she burned through it and took it over, making it ostensibly her own. In Angel After the Fall - Illyria is able to break loose, be herself again. As she states in this bit of exposition. (This comic is told completely in Illyria's pov.)

In the beginning...the real beginning...there was the immeasurable dark. And in that void, we simply were. Eternal. Forever. Before Time. There were no limits. Then. No boundaries. I was the shaper. I was Power. And the ecstasy of death. I was worshipped. Adored. My immensity could not be contained. The world trembled at my feet. I was everything. I was all. I was FREE. Yet now I am trapped in this real, in this static time. The worlds are closed to me. I miss them. Even the one made of shrimp. Sometimes. This shell was not of my choosing. It feels too much. Weak....

What is my place here. I am a walking corpse.

[During this exposition - Illyria shows us what she was...this gigantic HP Lovecraftian monster with tentacles, and a mouth, the mother devourer...with followers...and the tone is dark navy blue, grays...then it switches to her walking the beach...during sunset..the sky streaked with colors. Talking to a crab. And finally for this next bit..walking in Fred's living quarters, looking at photos of Fred, things owned by Fred - this is in dull black and white...gray, shadows like an old 1930s noir horror film.] Illyria describes an existence that was free of regret. She felt no pain.
She had fun.

Her demise should mean nothing to me. A pointless death amongst countless others. These memories, just leftover fragments of this husk. And yet they bind me to it. Trap me in it. Before I was a God-King. Above even the highest powers of the world. And for a moment, I was unleashed again. Then...this...infection again. Only this time worse. Humiliating. Brought down by grief and loss and..love. Love that I destroyed in my becoming.

What she's describing are the memories that Wes and Spike gave her of Fred, how they saw Fred, how they felt about Fred, what Fred was to them...their memories...crushed her, brought her back to her shell...away from the freedom. She stares at a photo of the five men...who loved Fred and states..."It is endless, this regret. This emptiness where only I should remain. Instead there is a hole. Wheres "She" used to be. " She's filled to the brim with regret - an emotion completely alien to Illyria. Before she did what she wanted. Now...she does things based on not adding to that endless overwhelming sea of regret, which makes her feel hollow inside.

The interesting bit about Fred - is Fred was smart, but not powerful. Her power was her mind and her kindness. She was often the damsel, although quick-brained enough to work her way out of most problems. A weird Mary-Sue, some believed - in her ability to do all things, be kind to all people...yet, she says to Angel that everyone should be able to be saved or redeemed. She is in some respects the opposite of Illyria. Both are critically speaking male fantasy figures in a male trope that the writer never bothered to subvert or truly critique. (Doesn't mean I enjoyed it any less).

Here she's a bit lost. So we are taken into her nightmares - which are the memories of Wes and Spike. Not Fred's memories. But Wes and Spike's memories of Fred. And how Illyria, confused perceives these memories, both men, and feels about them. And it is done largely through art - and I'm posting it here - because these three panels are why this comic blew me away. I haven't seen anyone do that in a comic in a very long time. This is what comics are about! This is why I fell in love with the art form.




In this piece...the picture is dark and overlapping, the memories laid on top of each other. Merging together. She sees Fred's grief and Wes's. Wes's head is to her, we don't see his face until Fred dies. And it is him her concern is focused upon. It is also very crisp and adult. Romantic. Wes' memories are of a woman he lost and loved. The memory is at the same time a regret - Wes was unable to save Fred, unable to protect her - and he feels broken at her loss. So it's blue-grey, the color of tear and mourning.

In stark contrast - is Spike's memory, which is here:







In both of these series of panels - crayon depicts all the surrounding people and buildings. Spike and Fred are talking on a street. It's shortly after Spike has become corporeal, yet before he chooses to stay in LA. Their conversation is basically Spike thanking Fred for believing in him when no one else, including himself - did not. For doing everything she could, at great risk to her own life and limb, to save him. It is something he won't forget. And he doesn't. In this memory as in the first - Illyria sees herself as inseparable from Fred - we see Illyria's blue eyes, and the skin pigmentation. Fred's eyes weren't blue.

{ETA} Notably - the artwork is done in crayon, childlike - the relationship itself is childlike, platonic. A friendship. There are no romantic overtones. And it is equally poetic...Spike's signaling out Fred and has blurred all the other images - much as a child might do in a drawing of his friend in a crowd. There's an ironic innocence to this memory. And the memory unlike Wes's isn't focusing on loss but on something else. Spike's thanking Fred. His memory is one that is not regret, but in fact the exact opposite. Yet it is also an acknowledgement that even though Fred herself could not save him, she did what she could - and he appreciates it. In that respect it may actually be more mature. The contrast between the two memories as depicted through the artwork is striking.

So while Illyria knows these aren't her memories, she "feels" as if they are. They haunt her, they become part of her regrets. She is haunted by Fred's ghost, as well as the ghost of her former self. Both reside inside her - two separate but conflicting identities. Not unlike Angelus and Liam. Or Spike and William. The demon and human, which is which.

Plagued by this dilemma of who she is...or what. She goes to the two men who may understand, who like her are equally filled with regret. Both containing a human and a demon inside them. What motivates her to do this - is the realization that she actually "Cares" about humans. When before, she did not. This surprises her. It occurs when she kills a bunch of demons to save a human child. When before she would have either killed the child or done nothing. Why does she care? Is she Fred now, or Illyria? Or both? To what degree do past memories influence who we are? To what degree does a soul? Where does conscience reside in a soul or in memories...it's a question that has been asked before, in Buffy (the TV series) where Spike went through a similar crisis of identity. Surprised he cared that he almost hurt, in a horrific manner, the woman he loved. He shouldn't care. Much as Illyria wonders...why she does. And more importantly what does it mean?

The conversations she has with Angel and Spike - are two sides of the metaphysical/philosophical coin.

Angel's attitude is basically - why are you bothering me with this, and just ignore it, it will take care of itself. She admittedly doesn't make it easy on him - discussing items he does not want to discuss.

Illyria: I am troubled.
Angel: Troubled? You? That's a first. [Not sure if this meant as sarcasm, but Illyria's reaction to it suggests it's not.]
Illyria: Yes, it is unfamilar and unwelcome. I seek to stop it.
Angel: Well, it would help if I knew exactly what you were troubled about.
Illyria: In my head these memories. Not just from Fred, but of her. I am not her. Yet I seek to be "good". But what is the purpose? What will I gain?
Angel: Well, generally that's not why you do good. You do it because it's the right thing to do. (Note he doesn't really have a reason so much as a platitude or something he's been taught. Also we often do good, as Angel well knows, to avoid regret. Angel regrets what he's done, and now does things to make amends. But to do good is more out of love than anything else. Out of love for those around us for others.)
Illyria: And yet, we take payment.
Angel: Well, yes. We also have to live. Some people in this house eat, you know. [LOL! I always thought that bit was amusing. We are champions - but for hire. Which is not the same as mercernaries, because they will do bad things for money, we only do good things.]
Illyria: Fred liked...Chinese food? (she remembers but does not understand). And Wesely and Gunn, they liked to see her eat. Something about a hollow leg...(again no understanding - a memory with no translation - and it makes her realize that this shell she took had a life inside it, a person, which she murdered.)
Angel: It's just an expression. We all..Fred was...It's complicated.
Illyria: Yes, it always is. With humans. (Reference to how things were simpler when she was a demon, not human.)

Angel states that he does miss Wes and many others...and Illyria asks why does he care. It doesn't seem worth it. To which Angel responds..."Because that is what life is. It's love and joy followed by pain and loss. Without those things it wouldn't have any meaning. It would be empty." And Illyria states..."Like a shell, like me." She wonders if she is the shell, not the human form she inhabits. A shell, a reflection. Angel grief-stricken, doesn't know how to help her and is frustrated. He asks what she wants - she states - "Fix this. I am not Fred. But as I am now, I also ...lacking, wanting something more than this." And Angel replies:

"Look I'm sorry you're having your first existential crisis. And I'd like to help.....but you're going to have to figure this out on your own. Meditate. Kill a few things. I don't know. It'll probably pass."

[Angel's response is the response of the man who waits for life to happen. Destiny to hit him on the head. You can't change things. You can't get answers. Just let it go. Kill things. Meditate. I don't have the answers, no one does, no one can fix it. You just have to deal. The typical noir response. There is no meaning, there are no answers...you deal with the life you are given and make the best you can with it. Angel isn't stupid - and it's not like he hasn't looked for answers - for 100 years that was what he did, but he hasn't found them. He now just tries to do his best.]

Illyria finds Spike - who is embroiled in a demon bar fight, which I'll discuss later. She stops the fight, pretty much by killing everyone but Spike. And they have the following conversation, which is in direct contrast to the one above:


Illyria: I am having nightmares. I find them disconcerting.
Spike: Wait, wait. Hold up. Nightmares? I didn't even know you slept.
[Illyria explains why she has to sleep - the form requires it. And tells him that it used to be snatches of unawareness, now it is visions of him and Fred, and others. His and Wes's memories of Fred Flood her subconscious now, haunt her. They make it difficult for her to continue as she is. She doesn't know what she wants - except to stop feeling like this - hollow, pained with regrets she has never felt before. (With Angel she asks him to fix it, to change it, but when he says he can't, she changes her approach with Spike and asks for answers instead.))

And here we go with the distinction between the two metaphysical/philosophical outlooks:

Illyria: I spoke to Angel about this, in the hopes of gaining clarity from one who has experience similar conflicts.
Spike: Let me guess, good ol' Captain Forehead said you had to give it time, to let things work out for themselves. [In direct contrast to Angel who responds to Illyria's mention of going to talk to Spike because he was a poet and poets do understand these things - "yeah, go find Spike, I'm sure he'll give you all kinds of advice, like "Kick things" - he's a regular fountain of wisdom".]
Illyria: Something like that, yes.
Spike: Typical. He wants you to sit around and wait for destiny to touch you on the bloody shoulder like he did. Screw that! You can't pretend this will all work out in your favor. We don't all have the universe telling us what to do.(Which as we all know isn't always a good idea. But it does highlight the difference between Angel and Spike. IT also raises a question - do we want to be free? To be able to choose what we do only to be haunted by the choice. And the fear of making more bad choices?) Now me, I wanted something, I took it. I wanted a soul, I reached out and damn well earned it. You want answers Blue, do something about it. Go get them!" (He's stating - make decisions, own them, befriend your regret - go out there and change your life. Don't sit and brood and linger in misery. Note Spike lives for the wild ride, he has FUN. While Angel sits in his office brooding over all his choices, worrying over what to do and if it is the right one. Both screw up, of course, neither is perfect. But Spike lives, while Angel languishes)
Illyria: That is what I am trying to do. Why else would I be sitting here among this offal, talking to you!
Spike: Not from me, Luv. Let's face it, you're about as alien as alien gets, and you look like a dead girl a lot of us loved. If ever there was an outsider, it's you. You don't belong. [The girl as outsider - the new girl who looks like the one they loved, always compared, bombarded with their memories, remodeled into the old one, yet never her. At the same time...the girl who killed the old one, took her place and is resented for it. For any woman who has ever dated a guy who has been dumped, recently widowed, or not over his old girlfriend - you can identify.)
Illyria: Yet what's done is done. I cannot go back.
Spike: Well... That's not entirely true. I mean, no you clearly can't go back millions of years. You can't move through time anymore. It's so tricky, innit?
Illyria: Spike...
Spike: Right, sorry. But the thing is...There is a place you could go.
Illyria: My army is dust. None of my kind remain. This world is cold and worn thin and human. Where is there a place for me, as I am now, that will give me the answers I need?
Spike: The deeper well.

That bit of dialogue tells us the differing views and approaches of Spike and Angel. Mr. Free Will vs. Mr. Fate. Spike seeks his own answers. Changes himself. Spike sought to be a better man on his own, Angel sought guidance from the heavens. One isn't necessarily better than the other. Just different. They both judge each other harshly. Angel's view is to wait and see, to not make waves if you can help it, to trust in a higher being, an authority...to show the way. Angel is a man of his time - a traditionalist. He follows rules, without quite realizing it. This is what I "should" do. Spike is the post-modernist, the contemporary man. I will seek my own answers. A man of his time. He came from Victorian England - with it's rules and boundaries, but upon becoming a vampire - he breaks completely free of that and makes his own. Angel gets his name from his sister. Spike names himself and takes the name he thinks will have the best effect. Angel sees art as the carving of others, as he is carved by those higher them himself, he is a puppeteer and puppet. While Spike is the writer, the poet, living off the seat of his pants...making it up as he goes, uncertain if there is anyone else out there. He doesn't rely on the universe or anyone but himself.

One is all about pre-destination - I'll wait for someone to explain it to me, the other all about free will...I'll seek my own answers. You see it in how they deal with Illyria. When Illyria finds Angel - he's complaining about research, wishing someone would make it simplier, and relies on the floating electronic Watcher to tell him where the baddie is. Spike is seeking out his own fun, and his answers.

The bar fight scene - where Illyria finds Spike - is another character moment, that is both a joke and a commentary. Illyria makes a comment about Spike as a poet - and we see the image of the nice, calm, guy who hates violence. Then enter the bar - where a poetry slam is in session. Spike heckles the pig demon grunting his way through a horrifically bad poem that he can't understand. And starts a fight. If you watched the series - Spike's behavior is the counter-opposite to William's. And the fight is what William would not have done. Spike is politically incorrect for the sole purpose of engaging in a raucous bar fight - which Illyria annoyed and impatient promptly ends and does so in such a way that Spike is a bit humbled. She basically puts him in his place. That's the joke - how she ruins his fun and makes it clear she can more or less best him.

While there's a lot to love here, I do have a few quibbles. Mariah and Scott Tipton can't write snark. Spike comes across more whiny than snarky. Snark is admittedly hard to do. Not everyone gets it. This I know - my own mother doesn't get it. I'll spend twenty minutes on the phone with Dad, snarking away, then Mom gets on the phone and I have to switch or edit myself, easier said than done. Mom calls it being snide or sarcastic. It's basically dry wit. But it goes over her head. So my bro and I have learned to turn it off with Mom and on with Dad. I'm better at turning it off and on than my brother is. Partly because his wife has a similar sense of humor or wit. And he doesn't talk to mom as much as I do. Although Mom should be used to it - considering we picked it up from Dad. If you want to see how snark is done - read Brian Lynch. The man basically does snark's twenty-four seven. I haven't read anything of his that isn't snarky and self-deprecating - including the Zombie comic - which I didn't like. OR for that matter - Joss Whedon - the characters : Xander, Anya, Buffy, Spike, Cordelia, and Angelus all are snarky.

The problem with writing Spike - is if you don't get snark - it's very hard to write this character well. He comes across as whiny.

But in regards to Illyria this isn't really a huge issue. Spike's unlikely to show up again. OR even Angel for that matter. Angel's dialogue is easier to write - since he basically isn't snarky unless he's Angelus. No, future issues are going to be focused solely on Illyria. So if you didn't like how Spike was done - I wouldn't worry too much about it.

The other quibble I have is some of the dialogue is a bit stilted. It could flow better. They spent far too much time writing Spike in dialect. Don't ever use dialect in writing characters in comics.
It looks silly. And you make mistakes. Inni't - is not a word and it drives me nuts when I see it in fanfic. You are trying to recreate the actor's accent. It doesn't work.

Elena Casagrande on the other hand - does a stellar job with Spike for the most part. Yeah, his face seems to be a bit fuller than it was on the series, but it still looks like Spike for the most part. She's not as good as Urru, but she comes close. And I give her a pass because she does an amazing job with Illyria, who she draws far better. (I'm admittedly picky about how people draw Spike - because I've drawn him - and no, I don't still have the pics - so you can't see them and make fun of how badly I did it.)

Overall rating? A. It's worth buying for $3.99 (yep more expensive than the Buffy comics, but not as many of them - so there is that. Granted I gave you most of the story above...but you really should read it yourself, assuming you haven't already.)