Season 9's Big Bad?

[Hale Caesar]

According to interviews we know season 9 will be a more personal season. So assuming Joss goes with the tradition of having a Big Bad, what kind of bad guy do you want to see?

The biggest obstacle in this is that Buffy has beaten so many of them, it's hard to create something original. I honestly gave the idea some thought...and I have no idea what Buffy could be fighting this season lol

 

[white avenger]

I think that the Big Bad, if it could be called that, for Season 9 will be each character's personal, private "demon," which finally, after 8 years, they are all going to have to face and either defeat or learn to live with. Almost certainly, Season 9 will show Buffy, Spike, Willow, Angel, and all the others learning how to do the old "change what I can, accept what I can't, and finally achieve a state of wisdom strong enough to tell the difference between the two" thing. At least, that's the impression that I've gotten from the various interviews that I've read.

 

[Hero]

I'm pretty sure we haven't seen the last if Simone. My guess is Simone and her girls will be the big bad of season 9. Slayer vs Slayers.

 

[moopop]

I think the Big Bad will be the construct set up in 40. The question is who will be the personification of it. Caleb and religion, they used for the First Evil. Twilight was used as the misogynist backlash against feminism. So they'll have to come up with a figurehead for persecution to defeat. Unless Joss wants to leave his statement on feminism as it being an impossibility.

 

[Taake]

I'm pretty sure we haven't seen the last if Simone. My guess is Simone and her girls will be the big bad of season 9. Slayer vs Slayers.

This seems kind of likely to me. If not as the 'big bad' then at least as one of the bads.

 

[BuffyElevated]

I'm pretty sure we haven't seen the last if Simone. My guess is Simone and her girls will be the big bad of season 9. Slayer vs Slayers.

I agree... Especially now that magic is gone, I think these girls will be PISSES that their Slayer strength is gone and want to take it out on Buffy.

 

[moopop]

I agree... Especially now that magic is gone, I think these girls will be PISSES that their Slayer strength is gone and want to take it out on Buffy.

But their strength isn't gone, is it? The antiSlayers are angry of the Twilight business.

 

[VisionGirl]

I'm pretty sure we haven't seen the last if Simone. My guess is Simone and her girls will be the big bad of season 9. Slayer vs Slayers.

I agree with this, I think #40 set that up. But I wouldn't leave out the government either, they must be pissed as well. And I don't think we've seen the last of the baby universe (unfortunately!). I do think we're going to see an attempt by Willow to get back in touch with magic.

 

[Hale Caesar]

I don't think Simone and the other slayers are going to be the Big Bad's since the same thing basically happened in season 3 with Faith. Slayer vs. Slayer has already been done. I can see Simone and the others being antagonists, but not the Big Bad, I expect someone more powerful to be in the background

 

[Joan the Vampire Slayer]

I think that the Big Bad, if it could be called that, for Season 9 will be each character's personal, private "demon," which finally, after 8 years, they are all going to have to face and either defeat or learn to live with. Almost certainly, Season 9 will show Buffy, Spike, Willow, Angel, and all the others learning how to do the old "change what I can, accept what I can't, and finally achieve a state of wisdom strong enough to tell the difference between the two" thing. At least, that's the impression that I've gotten from the various interviews that I've read.

Yeah, but this what we got in S6 when Joss said the Big Bad was "life."

For this season, I'd like to see something totally different.

 

[moopop]

I don't think Simone and the other slayers are going to be the Big Bad's since the same thing basically happened in season 3 with Faith. Slayer vs. Slayer has already been done. I can see Simone and the others being antagonists, but not the Big Bad, I expect someone more powerful to be in the background

That is my thinking as well. I don't think Joss would balk at returning to the slayer v slayer arc, but Simone is just too obviously set up for her to be the Big Bad.

 

[white avenger]

I don't think Simone and the other slayers are going to be the Big Bad's since the same thing basically happened in season 3 with Faith. Slayer vs. Slayer has already been done. I can see Simone and the others being antagonists, but not the Big Bad, I expect someone more powerful to be in the background

Most likely, Simone and her crew are going to fall into the category of "ongoing problem/situation" rather than an actual full blown Big Bad. Likewise, Angel, though no longer evil, will be another "ongoing" issue, as will Dru, with her new status, and Willow, and maybe that little fairy that we saw at the end of Issue #40. I wouldn't even be surprised if Fray shows up in downtown present day San Francisco, or Spike takes Buffy and a few others forward in time in his ship, which can apparently go anywhere, any how, and any WHEN that it's directed to go. (That's assuming, of course, that Dark Horse doesn't "de-power it from the way that IDW first described it.) And let's not forget Faith's status as fugitive from justice. That's gonna have to be addressed at some point.

With so many lesser issues that could be going going on in Season 9, I seriously doubt that there will even be time to work an actual Big Bad into the story Line.

 

[VisionGirl]

I wouldn't even be surprised if Fray shows up in downtown present day San Francisco

Yes please, pretty please! An 8-issue mini-series, another appearance in a single issue plus her appearance in season 8 is simply NOT enough Fray for me! The problem is that any action with the future affects Buffy's situation in the present. Thus Joss gets into the same predicament he got himself into with Chosen.

 

[white avenger]

The problem is that any action with the future affects Buffy's situation in the present. Thus Joss gets into the same predicament he got himself into with Chosen.

Not necessarily. All that Joss has to do is to say that some major event, like the final battle in Season 7, or Angel's confrontation with the Senior Partners' army in "Not Fade Away," caused reality to split into two separate realities, one of which led to Fray's existence, and the other that resulted in fat puppies, free ice cream, and everybody living happily ever after. Since Fray's reality is, by the time of Season 9, already created, plotted out, and everything set in virtual stone (which is why Buffy's actions in the future didn't change or destroy Fray's universe.)

Likewise, anything that Fray might do in Season 9 won't change the future simply because she and Season 9 Buffy exist in two separate universes and neither Buffy nor Fray can affect the other's history. On the other hand, if Fray could somehow travel back to a time BEFORE the the divergence in realities, then she could change or completely eliminate her own world and drastically change Season 9 Buffy reality.

(It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, I know. Heck I don't even understand what I just said. But that doesn't mean that it couldn't work as an explanation just as easily as how Superman's uniform doesn't get torn, burned, or even dirty)

 

[moopop]

If Joss was going to do the alt-reality bit, why did he even bother writing S8 which was his attempt to put the verses together?

I wouldn't be surprised if there was some dimension or time jumping, though. The Scythe has to be repaired somehow or another.

 

[VisionGirl]

If Joss was going to do the alt-reality bit, why did he even bother writing S8 which was his attempt to put the verses together?

I wouldn't be surprised if there was some dimension or time jumping, though. The Scythe has to be repaired somehow or another.

Well, I think WA was just teasing me. 😉 But I do agree with your last statement. I'm reading Anne McCaffrey's Pern series right now, so time-jumping is on my brain LOL!

But hmm, with no magic, I wonder if time-jumping is out of the question in season 9. The bottom line is that they're going to be writing the rules for the no-magic world as they go along- Scott Allie has already stated that! Which is fine, I don't care about that, but it kind of drives us crazy with all the speculating we're doing. 🙂

 

[white avenger]

I wouldn't be surprised if there was some dimension or time jumping, though. The Scythe has to be repaired somehow or another.

Since Spike's ship has those capabilities, it's a pretty fair bet that a little hopping of some kind will definitely be done, or at least seriously debated. Just imagine Xander being given the opportunity to go back and save Anya. Willow saving Tara. Angel saving Cordy, Fred, or Wes. Or Giles. Any one of those could drastically change everything that came afterward, but would the "good" change outweigh the possibility of bad consequences?

Almost certainly, that will come up at some point.

 

[moopop]

Since Spike's ship has those capabilities, it's a pretty fair bet that a little hopping of some kind will definitely be done, or at least seriously debated. Just imagine Xander being given the opportunity to go back and save Anya. Willow saving Tara. Angel saving Cordy, Fred, or Wes. Or Giles. Any one of those could drastically change everything that came afterward, but would the "good" change outweigh the possibility of bad consequences?

Almost certainly, that will come up at some point.

There are paradox issues with going back and changing things we saw happen, though. I think a dimension-hop is more likely than a time jump.

I thought I read somewhere Spike wouldn't have his ship very long?

Also somewhat random, did we ever learn who told Eluwyn (sp?) about the mystical thing in NYC in the future arc? All I remember is that it was someone she trusted.

 

[VisionGirl]

Also somewhat random, did we ever learn who told Eluwyn (sp?) about the mystical thing in NYC in the future arc? All I remember is that it was someone she trusted.

Gosh, I don't remember at all. I'm currently doing a re-read (& I invite you all to join us!), but this week we've just started on issues 1-4 so it'll be awhile before we get to TOYL.

 

[moopop]

Gosh, I don't remember at all. I'm currently doing a re-read (& I invite you all to join us!), but this week we've just started on issues 1-4 so it'll be awhile before we get to TOYL.

I wasn't the biggest fan of S8 so I doubt I'll do a reread, but thanks. 😛 S9 is on a very short leash for me.

I don't think we were ever told. Reason I asked was I always had the impression it was some form of Willow. FDW, perhaps. Her presence in Always Darkest and her demeanor in it (looks gleeful and kind of satisfied) struck me that she was involved with Twilight stuff in some way.