Giles: Girl Blue

Dark Horse; $17.99

During Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8, Rupert Giles, her watcher-mentor-father figure, was killed battling Twilight. He was then resurrected through magical means, which didn’t go perfectly as planned and he ended up returning as a preteen. It’s been a few years and now Giles, who still as the mind of his 50-something self is a full-fledged teenager – for the second time around.

In the Giles: Girl Blue limited series, Buffy and the team have sent Giles back to high school to investigate rumors of vampire killings. But, being that the government is still tracking down magic users and mystical beings, Giles has to avoid using his magical powers for fear of being sent to the internment camps. Not only is he looking for vampires and possibly demons lurking in high school hallways, Giles also has to deal with bullies, awkward exchanges with fellow students, and getting to class on time.

While the story sounds like the premise in a body switching comedy, it’s focused much more on the weird than the amusing. The story by Joss Whedon and Erika Alexander is very strange and a bit disorienting, but that makes sense given the school’s apparent magical affliction. The dialogue between Giles and Roux is abbreviated and a bit unclear, which takes some getting used to, but also keeps the story self-contained.

Collectively it reads like some of the weirder episodes of Buffy and Angel, so fans who enjoy those episodes will love this series.

–Amanda Sheriff