I suffered a great bereavement when Buffy came to an end- what the heck was I going to do on a Thursday night now? I had followed the series from half interestedly watching it over my younger brother's shoulder in the first series till the bitter, totally obsessed end.

There were a lot of Buffy tie ins, and I'm ashamed to admit that my fascination with comics began with Buffy (well, apart from Calvin and Hobbes as a kid. I no longer own the copy I spat chocolate all over when laughing out loud at Calvin's snowpeople car crash. Anyhoo...) so when I discovered that Season 8 would be released in comic form, my tiny little graphic novel-loving heart skipped a beat.

This book takes off from where the series ended with all the Slayers being imbibed with their potential powers. Buffy is leading them from a base in Scotland, with 2 decoy slayers based downstairs in the dark and in Rome (leading to a great tie in with the Angel series for you geeky fans out there, where Angel bemoans seeing Buffy partying with The Immortal). All the remaining Scooby Gang are in force, with an interesting side story involving the loss of Dawn's virginity.

The Big Bad in this story is Twighlight, a shady enemy whose influence continues over the next few comics released. Firstly, they have to contend with the US military though, who don't like the idea of the Scoobs taking matters into their own hands. Other baddies include Amy the witch (remember her?) and super robo-babe building nerd, now flayed alive, Warren.

So how about Buffy in comic form? Those of us who've followed the Dark Horse side stories are used to the high quality of writing and the great inking and colouring shown in force here. The panel where Buffy admits to missing her mother is a powerful example of how precise, moody and real comic art can be today, and it's a high benchmark for those of us who like to graphic novel doodle. You know it's a great comic when you feel your ink finger twitching after being inspired by brilliant artwork.

The arc lends itself well to comic book form, there are none of the constraints of budget or graphics. You want a 50 foot high Dawn or army of kilted Zombies? You got it.

All in all, it's a great way to continue the Buffy legend and a brilliant introduction into the seductive graphic novel world for the uninitiated. Beware, because the writing and inking within might just lead you into a whole world of comic book craziness you might never escape from!