Joss Whedon Says Fox Pulled the Buffy Comics From Dark Horse

Prior to Comic-Con, Boom! Studios made the surprise announcement that it was picking up the license for Joss Whedon’s beloved Firefly comics after a long run at Dark Horse Comics. Apparently, it’s not the only Whedon creation leaving Dark Horse, as the departure of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was confirmed in a new interview posted at Comic Book Resources.

“We want to do something more with Dark Horse right now – especially because Fox is taking the Buffy license and the Firefly license back. And Dark Horse has shepherded these licenses for decades now,” said Whedon. While Whedon didn’t confirm that the Buffy comics would follow Firefly to Boom! Studios, it seems to be the most likely outcome. Fox owns a percentage of Boom! Studios, and it could eventually place Aliens and Predator comics at Boom! despite Dark Horse’s long tenure with both franchises.

Dark Horse began publishing the Buffy comics in 1998, and the series has continued with few interruptions for the last two decades. In 2004, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 comic marked the official continuation of the show’s stories with Whedon and other creators at the helm. The four-issue miniseries, Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Twelve: The Reckoning, will wrap up this era of Buffy’s history when the final issue hits on Wednesday, September 19.

“Similar to the show, we’re not going to close it all off in the sense of ‘Everybody’s dead!,'” said Whedon. “We wanted to give the Dark Horse era some closure. What they’ve done over the years with Scott Allie and Sierra Hahn, and everyone there has put their souls into this. The artists like Georges [Jeanty] and everyone were such a perfect match. It’s been a great combination, so it couldn’t just end.”

How do you feel about the impeding end of Dark Horse’s Buffy comics? Let us know in the comment section below!