Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s best friend, Willow Rosenberg, is getting her own spinoff series. BOOM! Studios today announced Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Willow, a five-issue miniseries from award-winning writer Mariko Tamaki (Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me, Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass) and artist Natacha Bustos (Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur). The series is said to bring “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. “
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Tamaki is known for a string of acclaimed graphic novels, including This One Summer, with Jillian Tamaki, and Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me with Rosemary Valero-O’Connell. She’s also written 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 in a press release.
Natacha Bustos is based in Spain and is best known for her work on Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, which won her a Glyph Award for Best Female Character in 2016. She’s also known for her covers, including those she created for 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: Willow is the latest title in BOOM!’s line of titles based on the works of Joss Whedon. It’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel series are both inspired by the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer television series, but take place in their own continuity, putting the show’s beloved characters back into high school.
“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 #1 goes on sale in June.
