Angel & Faith

1. Bamph: Hey Scott

There is something I’ve been thinking about for the last week or so. Angel’s plan to bring back Giles sounds like a really bad idea. We know she can’t handle being around Angel right now but in a perfect world, Buffy would find out about this and put a stop to it. I think if anybody could convince Angel not to go through with this,it would be Buffy especially if she talked to Angel about being ripped out of heaven against her will and not wanting the same for Giles. However hurt or angry she is with Angel at present, I have no doubt,that if she got wind of this,she would be on the first flight to London the minute she found out to talk some sense to Angel. And again,I think the only one Angel would listen to right now in his current mental state is Buffy. Of course that would complete gut the story being told so I can understand why Buffy and the gang can’t find out at this point.

My question though is,how much consideration is Angel giving to things like Giles being ripped out of heaven and not wanting to be brought back and Buffy and the Scoobies feelings on this matter? Based off of things that happened on the show like Dawn trying to bring Joyce back and Buffy being ripped out of heaven and not wanting to be brought back at the time, I just can’t see them agreeing with Angel’s plan either. Is Angel even considering these factors?

Scott: First off, sorry for the late response. We had another event at the comic shop my girlfriend works at tonight, for a book I consult on, so I wanted to show up. Patric Reynolds, the artist on Patton Oswalt’s Serenity story was there, along with some other local pals/talent. Angel knows that what you’re saying about Buffy is true, so he’s trying to make sure she doesn’t know. Like a lot of people (fictional characters) in this situation, Angel seems to think that he’ll find a way to make it work. He’s heard the story of the monkey’s paw, but all that tells him is don’t try it with a monkey’s paw. Instead he’s taking a very unique approach to it, as you’ll learn in greater detail in the months to come.

2. Morphia: Hi Scott

Thanks for doing this Q&A.

I’ve read the issue and have to say I’m having a hard time feeling the Angel love. It really feels as if he’s gone through the whole Twilight thing and learned nothing at all. That said, I understand why - for now - Faith feels obliged to help him. I just think he’d benefit from tougher love than she currently seems able to give.

Will the series address the evolving relationship between Angel and Faith (I don’t mean romantically) as much as it addresses their individual arcs? I mean, is the intention to ultimately integrate those three things, and will things look very different between them when it’s over?

The art was great in this issue, by the way. Given the way I’m feeling about Angel at the moment, I especially enjoyed the panel of the red demon lady whacking him over the head with a bar stool. Any chance we can see more of her?

Scott: I don’t think that demon’s going to show up again, but maybe. Rebekah rocks the demon designs. For a lot of us, the whole story is really about the relationship between these two. That’s where a lot of the drama is gonna come from, and yes, it will evolve through the course of what’s happening here.

3. Maggie: Hi Scott,

I really enjoyed this issue — I think you are off to a smashing start with both A&F and season 9. My question is about the title of this arc, "Live Through This". Who came up with the title? And are the resonances with the Hole album of the same name intentional?

Scott: Hey Maggie. The title came from Chris, and I don’t know if he’s a big Hole fan. He is a Masshole, though, even if he’s recently migrated to LA.

4. Menomegirl: Hi Scott! Thank you for doing these Q & A’s.

I agree with Maggie-this is a wonderful issue.

In this issue, there’s a flash-back to a scene where Faith and Giles talk about resurrecting the professor she killed back in season 3 of Buffy. I was wondering exactly when this conversation happened?

Scott: The conversation happens shortly after Brian Vaughan’s arc from Season 8, before they’d started traveling together.

5. FangerFourLover: Thanks for the Q & A Scott! This was another incredible issue!

My question revolves around Pearl and Nash. Who specifically created these two characters, and how were they thought up? Thanks!

Scott: That was a process that started in the Writer Summit at Joss’s house. Everyone there had something to say about it, guided by Joss, and we came up with a clear mission for Chris, in terms of what he needed to come up with for us. I believe it was Joss’s idea that it be a former minion of Twilight, and at one point I believe it was just one character. But it’s always hard to remember where the details came from. Most of it came from Chris, ultimately, with bouncing it around via email with Sierra, Freddye, Joss, and me. Once he had it nailed down characterwise, the names took longer. Chris had some religious names in there, biblical names, and it made the whole book sound like a church picnic. (Writers Summit, by the way: no Church picnic.) In the end I think he came up with the names, but there were some names that were rejected by Joss before we settled on Pearl and Nash. I think Chris wound up with very Whedony names. For the designs, Rebekah pretty much nailed it out of the gate, but we wanted to make sure they were really alien looking, in a subtle way—just something a little off about them. The reason one of the upcoming covers is just Pearl and Nash—the reason that we did a cover without Angel or Faith so early in the run—is that we thought the surreal quality in Steve’s work would help make Pearl and Nash that little extra bit weird looking. I don’t know if it changed how Rebekah draws them, but it informed the overall perspective on them.

Click on the link for more : http://slayalive.com/showthread.php/2157-Q-amp-A-with-Scott-Allie-for-ANGEL-amp-FAITH-2