A Stake to the Heart

"A Stake to the Heart"

Cover of Buffy the Vampire Slayer: A Stake to the Heart  (2004), trade paperback collected edition.
Publisher Dark Horse Comics
Publication date August – October 2003
Genre

Action/adventure, horror
Based on Buffy the Vampire Slayer


Vampires in comics
Title(s) Buffy the Vampire Slayer #60-#63
Creative team
Writer(s) Fabian Nicieza
Penciller(s) Cliff Richards, Brian Horton
Inker(s) Will Conrad
Colorist(s) Michelle Madsen
With respect to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise
The material covered in this article is a continuity issue in the canon of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

"A Stake to the Heart" is a trade paperback collecting comic book stories based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer television series.

Contents

Story description

General synopsis

Although new to being a slayer, Buffy Summers has already faced vampires and a series of dark forces, but must now try to cope with the collapse of her parents' marriage. Vampires fear for their safety as Buffy takes out her anger on the streets of L.A. The mysterious vampire with a soul, known as Angel, watches over her.

Hoping to ease her pain with magic, Angel unintentionally releases malignancy demons upon the Summers family. Each of the four demons draws from a particular bad feeling.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer #60

Comic title: "A Stake To The Heart, act 1"

Buffy is struggling to cope with the lack of guidance from a Watcher about her role as slayer, and faces the likely upcoming divorce between her parents. Feeling sorry for Buffy, Angel performs a spell that he hopes will make the pressures of life easier on her.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer #61

Comic title: "A Stake To The Heart, act 2"

Buffy Summers's life isn't going as she might have hoped, as her parents' marriage comes to an end. A string of emotion demons are released upon her, that feed on her negative emotions. Buffy faces the malignancy demons of deceit and guilt.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer #62

Comic title: "A Stake To The Heart, act 3"

The malignancy demons continue to feed from the Summers women, expanding the negative emotions within them. Buffy unknowingly faces the abandonment demon.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer #63

Comic title: "A Stake To The Heart, act 4"

Buffy arrives in Sunnydale along with the malignancy demons. The trepidation demon hopes to make Buffy give up on life, and maybe even the whole of Sunnydale might just follow suit. Other members of Sunnydale begin to feel the effects of the demon.

Cast

References to the television series