Whedonesque Is Taking Questions For Chris Ryall.

[Tranquillity]

From Whedonesque:

Want to ask Chris Ryall, the IDW publisher, a question? Given the current state of affairs, Chris has very kindly consented to answer questions from the fans so things can be settled. If you've no idea what's been going on, then best stay away cause of spoilers. Anyhow the best 20 questions will be submitted to him tomorrow. Those who get picked will get a copy of the special "New Year's Eve" cover of Angel #28. So without further ado...

Here's the rules/guidelines:

1) One question per person
2) Post your question in the commments section
3) If you're not registered as a Whedonesque poster, you can email your question to whedonesque@gmail.com
4) IDW will ship the special cover worldwide

Whedonesque : Comments on 22861 : (SPOILER) Want to ask Chris Ryall, the IDW publisher, a question?

 

[Buffyverse Fan]

Thanks for the info!

Personally, I've considered After the Fall (#1-17 & 23) canon, and the rest dubious. With Aftermath being so poorly implemented that I'd say it's been the only part of the current IDW series that's blatantly non-canon.

Do you think there's a chance that Chris Ryall and Bill Willingham will say that they were under the impression that this title was supposed to be entirely canon to the Buffyverse? I'm asking you guys since, someone's already asked Chris @ that Q&A.

 

[Kean]

Thanks for the info!

Personally, I've considered After the Fall (#1-17 & 23) canon, and the rest dubious. With Aftermath being so poorly implemented that I'd say it's been the only part of the current IDW series that's blatantly non-canon.

Do you think there's a chance that Chris Ryall and Bill Willingham will say that they were under the impression that this title was supposed to be entirely canon to the Buffyverse? I'm asking you guys since, someone's already asked Chris @ that Q&A.

I don't know much of anything about comics apart from what I've learned from S8 and ATF but I get the impression that normally when new writers take up an existing title what they contribute is considered canon? Is that true? Like Joss on X-Men?

I think the problem with ATF is that it is the continuation of a TV show and the fanbase will only consider it canon if the Joss or Greenwalt are involved. That runs completely against what these other writers are doing, who in a normal comic gig would be doing work that was of equal merit and importance.

At least that is what I have gotten from this whole thing.

 

[Joan the Vampire Slayer]

Man, we need to come up with some good questions.

 

[white avenger]

I don't know much of anything about comics apart from what I've learned from S8 and ATF but I get the impression that normally when new writers take up an existing title what they contribute is considered canon? Is that true? Like Joss on X-Men?

I've been oustide the comic world for almost 40 years with the exception of the "Death of Superman" series, until Buffy and Angel got their present titles, so I might be somewhat outdated about this, but back in the Marvel Golden Age, when a new writer took over a series, he was still answerable to others, primarily at that time, Stan Lee, as to what he could or couldn't do. Everything was canon, regardless of who was writing it, but the reason that it WAS canon was that the general story line was reviewed and approved by a central coordinating authority, the same way that everything on the Buffy and Angel TV shows was canon, even those episodes that Joss didn't personally write, because they conformed to the guidelines that he and his senior staff had set up.

Since Joss has had no direct input into the Angel series since the After The Fall arc, then everything after that point might be canon to the comic series, but not to the Buffyverse. Just consider Aftermath and everything after that as taking place in something similar to the Wishverse. The characters are the same, but the circumstances and conditions that they operate in are different. That means that Joss is free to completely rewrite the entire Angel story beginning from the moment that everyone was returned from hell to the present with absolutely no regard whatsoever for the current IDW Angel story line if he so chooses.

(At least that's how I understand things to be at the moment. I've been wrong before. I once went for a whole month actually believing that Buffy loved Angel more than she did Spike)

 

[Buffyverse Fan]

I don't know much of anything about comics apart from what I've learned from S8 and ATF but I get the impression that normally when new writers take up an existing title what they contribute is considered canon? Is that true? Like Joss on X-Men?

I think the problem with ATF is that it is the continuation of a TV show and the fanbase will only consider it canon if the Joss or Greenwalt are involved. That runs completely against what these other writers are doing, who in a normal comic gig would be doing work that was of equal merit and importance.

At least that is what I have gotten from this whole thing.

It's very confusing. Personally, I can never accept Aftermath as canon, at best I could view it like the Buffy Movie, and say the broad-brush strokes are canon, but as a whole it's pseudo-canon.

I mean, Armstrong claims that Angel is no longer on a mission of redemption! That's crazy, and completely against Whedon's view of Angel.

I didn't read comics before these, so I don't know the rules, but one would assume that what you say is how it's done. It's darn confusing that Issue #18 is NOT canon, Issue #8 is canon, Issue #29 is NOT canon, but #23 is canon...