Picture this: you’re a Buffy fan pouring yourself a nice bowl of cereal one ordinary morning and suddenly- BAM – you’re a slayer. Perhaps you’ve had this exact fantasy; daydreaming one afternoon instead of doing your laundry. You’re not alone. Meet Indira, a 16-year-old super fan within the Buffyverse who spends hours in the Reddit threads talking about the entire Sunnydale gang and how they saved the world. In Audible’s latest Original, Slayers: A Buffyverse Story, Indira finds herself with Slayer abilities over breakfast and by lunch has become entangled with Spike, Clem, and an alternate reality Cordelia – the one true Slayer from her timeline.
Written and directed by Buffy’s own Amber Benson and Christopher Golden, Slayers feels both familiar and fresh. Many of our favorite characters are back, voiced with palpable enthusiasm by the original actors. But there is a bit of an X factor at play that raises the production above any accusations of cheap fan service – Benson. Speaking with her at NYCC Amber filled the small press room with her broad, genuine smile, and a giddiness so remarkable, it was a wonder she could even sit still for the interview. There’s no doubt that Benson’s passion for the story, the characters, and the actors playing them is what has brought Slayers to the next level. Buffy and Slayer’s scribe Christopher Golden noted speaking at NYCC that when he found out Audible had these rights, “the only way to make this work [was] if Amber [was] involved.”
All 9 episodes – just over 8 hours total – are available on Audible now. We’ve taken a decade into the future after Buffy’s world-saving conclusion where Spike is doing what he does best, navigating two diametrically opposed worlds. He’s not the only one. Given the introduction of the multiverse, we’re given a glimpse at different shades of many beloved characters. While the Buffyverse has always included and highlighted strong female characters, Benson’s tale really ups the agency, Drusilla benefiting perhaps most notably. Juliet Landau herself remarked when we spoke at NYCC, that Drusilla, this story’s delicious and deliriously contradictory big bad, isn’t “subservient to anyone and drives a lot of the action.”
If you’ve been watching (and rewatching), and reading the comics, and the books all these years you may think you know exactly what to expect from this Original and maybe to some extent you’d be right. This is, after all, done with the fans in mind – a group of people the entire team I spoke to at NYCC hold dearly and in high esteem. Golden hoped that this story would be “in a way sort of healing for the fans as much as it is for everyone involved.” James Charles Leary who plays Clem added, “Fandom is the reason why we’re here. The only reason.” And yet, there are twists, turns, and surprises waiting for the fans when they listen. What more could you hope for in a Buffyverse story? Maybe a second installment? The cast and creators all seemed ready and willing to keep going so now it’s in the hands – or perhaps the ears – of the fans, what happens next.
Slayers: A Buffyverse Story is available to download and stream in full (9 episodes) exclusively on Audible now.
In celebration of Slayers: A Buffyverse Story’s release Audible constructed an incredible and immersive activation at NYCC allowing fans to step into this new beginning. Fans were treated to potion-esque mocktails, tarot readings, Slayer training, tarot readings, and more. Check out our photos from the event below and thank you Audible for inviting us into the Buffyverse!
