Buffy the Vampire Slayer character Willow Rosenberg is stepping into the spotlight with her very own comic book miniseries from BOOM! Studios.
Titled Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Willow, the five-issue comic book follows Willow as she leaves Sunnydale for a world-spanning road trip in search of her true self. After becoming aware of a mysterious threat that her best friend Buffy never prepared her to face, Willow must rely only on her instincts and her magic to save herself or the rest of the world will pay the price.
The series will be penned by Mariko Tamaki with art by Natacha Bustos. “As a nerdy queer I cannot think of a better job than writing a Willow adventure,” said Tamaki in a press release, adding that she’s “thrilled to be a part of the Buffy world.” Tamaki is known for her critically acclaimed graphic novels like This One Summer, with Jillian Tamaki, and Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me with Rosemary Valero-O’Connell.
“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,” said Spain-based Bustos, who is best known for her work on Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur that won her a Glyph Award for Best Female Character in 2016.
As for why BOOM! Studios decided to give Willow her own series, executive editor Jeanine Schaefer said: “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.”
“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,” added Schaefer. “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.”
Featuring covers from Jen Bartel and Mirka Andolfo, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Willow will debut in June.