Warning: The following contains spoilers for Buffy the Vampire Slayer Volume Four: Frenemies by Jordie Bellaire, Ramon Bachs, Rosemary Valero-O'Connell and  Raul Angulo, on sale now.

Boom! Studios' Buffy the Vampire Slayer series has taken a different approach than their predecessor, Dark Horse Comics. Dark Horse adapted, and later continued the TV Show. Under series creator Joss Whedon and writer Jordie Bellaire, Boom!'s Buffy comic has been an Ultimate Marvel-style reboot.

By remixing elements of previous continuity, Whedon and Bellaire have done more than create a blueprint a TV reboot could follow -- they've created a compelling new story for long time fans and newbies alike. One character that exemplifies this is Buffy's first slayer successor, Kendra Young.

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In the show, Kendra (played by Bianca Lawson) was called to be the new slayer after Buffy's (temporary) death in the Season 1 finale, "Prophecy Girl." Kendra's time on the show was brief but memorable. Her single-minded duty to being a slayer, divorced from any semblance of a normal teenage life, made her a great contrast to Buffy.

buffy reboot characters

Unfortunately, the character's time as a slayer was brief. After being introduced in Season 2's "What's My Line?", Kendra was killed by Drusilla in the series 2 finale "Becoming." She operated as a slayer for a year in-universe. She ultimately served as a transitional slayer to another great contrast to Buffy, the long-lived Faith Lehane.

The Kendra of the Boom! comics keeps many of her TV forebearer's attributes. She's still Jamaican, has a similar hairstyle, and wields her trademark stake, Mr. Pointy. The differences between her portrayal in the comics integrate more fully into Buffy's supporting cast than she ever was as a guest star on the show.

Her first appearance happens during the Hellmouth crossover, where she enlisted the teenage Robin Wood as her Watcher. She becomes part of the Scooby Gang, helping Buffy defeat the Hellmother. Following that apocalyptic battle, the comic gives Kendra more spotlight than the show ever did.

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Issue #13 is a Kendra solo issue, which takes place entirely in Jamaica. We get to see her training, interacting with her strict Watcher Zabuto, and taking on a vampire that preyed on tourists. It puts her on an equal footing with Buffy as a slayer-in-training and shows more of  her inner life and struggles than the show ever had time for.

Kendra's relationship with Buffy can often be antagonistic. Their different approaches to being the Slayer remain a wedge between them. Kendra finds considers Buffy too emotional and undisciplined. That comes to a head when Kendra's date -- and Willow's ex-girlfriend -- Rose is injured in a demon attack after Buffy hesitates to attack it, thinking it's a possessed child.

In spite of that, the Boom! series' Kendra is more well adjusted than her TV counterpart. The fact that she can even strike up a relationship with Rose is more than the TV incarnation, who got tongue around her crush Xander, ever could. In spite of her issues with Buffy's methods, they can still work as a team, which they did against a newly evil Xander. They even had some playful banter during training.

The beauty of a Buffy reboot is that it can give characters like Kendra new life. As a guest star, she was never afforded much spotlight. The comics have been able to devote more time to her than the show ever did, making her a more well-rounded character who should continue to be an important part of the modern Buffy mythos.

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