Buffy The Vampire Slayer Reveals What REALLY Happened to the Last Slayer
Buffy Summers was never the world’s only vampire slayer, and Boom Studios just revealed the shocking fate of the Slayer before her.
WARNIING: The following contains spoilers for Buffy the Vampire Slayer #21 by Jordie Bellaire, Jeremy Lambert, Andrews Genolet, Rauel Angulo & Ed Dukeshire, on sale now.
The Slayer Cycle has been a constant in all versions of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. One young woman is granted the power of the Slayer until she dies — at which point it passes on to the next one. But the new Slayerverse just revealed there are ways around that, and that a quietly vital Slayer used one such loophole.
As revealed in Buffy the Vampire Slayer #21, the Slayer who proceeded Buffy Summers, Morgan Palmer, is actually still alive. And she’s got some pretty monumental plans for the Watcher’s Council.
The Slayer before Buffy in the Boom! Studios reboot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is revealed to be Morgan. A dedicated and skilled young woman, Morgan actually lasted far longer than most Slayers. After realizing her powers at the age of twelve, Morgan was taken in by the Watchers and trained to become the first and last line of defense for humanity against supernatural threats. This resulted in her being stationed in Cleveland, which has long been hinted to be the site of another Hellmouth similar to Sunnydale. Morgan fought for twelve hard years, surviving threat after threat. She even became friends with Anya, who supplied her with advice and gear to use in her war against the dark forces present in the world.
Anya was also who Morgan went to in the final days before her apparent demise. The two spoke about how Morgan was approaching her twenty-fifth birthday, and that no Slayer before had been able to reach that age. There’s even a question of what happens to a Slayer who grows that old in this timeline. But Morgan discovered that there were no plans for her to actually find out. Instead, her Watcher Stephen secretly spoke with Dorothy, who currently runs the entire Watcher’s Council. It turns out that the Watchers want a new, more malleable Slayer to take Morgan’s place. To that end, Stephen and Dorothy have arranged for Morgan to attack a vampire’s nest — leaving out that it’s also home to a powerful demon who they expect will easily kill an unprepared Morgan.
Having snuck back to overhear their conversation, a furious Morgan turns to Anya for help. Initially, she just wants revenge on Stephen for betraying her like that. But as their conversation plays out, the two become far more intrigued by the possibility of faking Morgan’s death and gaining the ultimate warrior to unleash against the Watchers. Taking an enchanted ring from Anya, Morgan carries out Stephen’s plan and seemingly dies at the hands of the mysterious demon. But afterward, Anya is able to use the ring to resurrect her friend — allowing them to wait until after the events of “Hellmouth” to strike back — starting with the pair hunting down Stephen so Morgan can kill him. The two even agree to a new plan — bringing down the entire Watcher’s Council, thereby freeing the Slayers from their command.
It’s a major shift from the original Buffyverse, where the Slayer before Buffy (named India) was only ever afforded passing mentions and appeared in a handful of minor comic storylines. This rebirth of the Slayer helps prove that when Slayers are “technically” killed in this universe the next one is called — which explains how Buffy was called despite her resurrection and reinforces the discovery that Buffy and Kendra technically “died” by going into the Hellmouth, leading to the next slayer — Faith — being called.
This could set up a major conflict going forward, with the Slayers divided over how to move forward with the Watchers — and what Morgan and Anya’s bitter views on them could mean for the future of Buffy and her friends. With Morgan now revealed, it likely won’t be long before she makes her presence known to the world again, changing the future of Slayers going forward.
Original article at CBR.
This article has been reproduced for archive purposes.
