BOOM! Studios, in collaboration with 20th Century Fox, is proud to announce BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: WILLOW, a special five-issue comic book miniseries, from award-winning writer Mariko Tamaki (Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me, Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass) and acclaimed artist Natacha Bustos (Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur), that brings Willow face to face with the truth of her past…and plants the seeds for a future no one could’ve predicted.
After everything—and everyone—she lost to the Hellmouth, Willow is leaving Sunnydale on a world-spanning road trip in search of her true self. She stumbles on a community of people like her: lost witches looking for answers…but there’s a darkness at the heart of it, one that reminds Willow of something she’s felt before, something that she fears inside herself.
Now, truly alone for the first time in her life, Willow must rely only on her instincts—and her magic—to save herself from a threat Buffy never prepared her to face…or the rest of the world will pay the price.
Mariko Tamaki is the award winning co-creator of the graphic novels This One Summer, with Jillian Tamaki, and Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me with Rosemary Valero-O’Connell. She also writes about heroes, villains and mutants for Marvel, DC Comics, and BOOM! Studios and curates the Abrams LGBTQ imprint Surely Books.
“As a nerdy queer I cannot think of a better job than writing a WILLOW adventure. Thrilled to be a part of the Buffy world.” said Tamaki.
Natacha Bustos is a comic book artist based out of Spain. She obtained her first published work at Vertigo with the story Going Nowhere, written by Brandon Montclare, in 2015. Bustos made her Marvel debut with Spider-Woman #10, before becoming the regular artist on Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, for which she won a Glyph Award for Best Female Character in 2016. In 2017, Bustos drew a story written by Ann Nocenti for Mine! Comic Anthology. She’s also known for her cover work,, including Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur and World of Wakanda, and BOOM! Studios’ Lumberjanes/Gotham Academy, Go Go Power Rangers, Thrilling Adventure Hour, Jonesy, and Slam.
“One of the greatest things about making comics is being able to give life to the characters you love the most, and WILLOW from Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of them. I’m excited to be working on this comic with such an amazing team.” said Bustos.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer premiered on March 10th, 1997. The Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated series, which ran for seven seasons from 1997-2003. Chosen to battle vampires, demons and other forces of darkness, Buffy is aided by a Watcher who guides and teaches her as she surrounds herself with a circle of friends called the Scooby Gang.
“Since we first started building our corner of the Buffyverse, we’ve been excited to give Willow her own miniseries—partly because she’s an absolute favorite of ours, but also because she is one of the most iconic queer characters in pop culture,” said Jeanine Schaefer, Executive Editor, BOOM! Studios. “Mariko and Natacha are the perfect team to dive into the dreams and struggles of the 21st-century witch who’s survived more than she ever thought she could, from breaking up with her girlfriend to battling literal demons from Hell. But as strong as Willow has been so far, what she finds over the course of this series will be the true test of who she is, both for herself and for the future of the entire Buffyverse. And I mean that quite literally.”
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: WILLOW, featuring main cover art by fan favorite artist Jen Bartel and variant art by Mirka Andolfo, is the newest release from BOOM! Studios’ eponymous imprint, home to critically acclaimed original series, including Once & Future by Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora; Faithless by Brian Azzarello and Maria Llovet; Abbott by Saladin Ahmed and Sami Kivelä; Bury the Lede by Gaby Dunn and Claire Roe; Klaus by Grant Morrison and Dan Mora; Something is Killing the Children by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera; The Red Mother by Jeremy Haun and Danny Luckert; and the upcoming Alienated by Simon Spurrier and Chris Wildgoose and King of Nowhere by W. Maxwell Prince and Danny Luckert. The imprint also publishes popular licensed properties including Joss Whedon’s Firefly from Greg Pak and Dan McDaid; Buffy the Vampire Slayer from Jordie Bellaire and David López; Angel from Bryan Edward Hill and Gleb Melnikov, and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers from Ryan Parrott and Daniele Di Nicuolo.
Print copies of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: WILLOW#1 will be available for sale in June 2020 exclusively at local comic book shops (use comicshoplocator.com to find the nearest one) or at the BOOM! Studios webstore. Digital copies can be purchased from content providers, including comiXology, iBooks, Google Play, and Madefire.
