WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Buffy the Vampire Slayer #25 by Jeremy Lambert, Valentina Pinti, Raul Angulo and Ed Dukeshire, on sale now.
Following the major events of Buffy the Vampire Slayer #24, the heroes of the modern Buffyverse have officially ventured into the multiverse -- and even take a major step forward towards interacting with the universe from the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer. But while they don't stay long in Buffy the Vampire Slayer #25, they do end up codifying a minor running gag from the original series.
The latest Buffyverse multiversal voyage ended up referencing the "World Without Shrimp" element from the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer -- and tying that element from the former canon into a sweet-natured connection to the modern universe.
In the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the possibility of other dimensions was teased, but not usually explored. While explaining the concept of multiversal travel and the differences that existed between other realities in the Season 4 episode "Superstar," Anya described how "you could have, like, a world with no shrimp. Or with, you know, nothing but shrimp," This description ended up being something of a running gag in the series whenever the topic of other realities was broached -- Anya mentioned in Season 5 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer that the newly reborn old god Illyria briefly visited the shrimp world during Season 5 of Angel. The Scoobies also encountered both the World Without Shrimp and the World With Only Shrimp in the Dark Horse comic continuation of the original Buffyverse.
It became something of a shorthand for multiversal travel and the differences that can exist -- which makes its surprising presence in Buffy the Vampire Slayer #25 all the more rewarding. The modern incarnation of Buffy Summers, her allies, and her enemies has become increasingly tied to their own version of the multiverse. Other timelines have been teased through the series, and in Buffy the Vampire Slayer #24, after the death of the vampiric Xander Harris of their world, Willow ventured through a dimensional rift into another reality. Her friends followed after her, finding themselves in the timeline from the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer shortly after the events of the Season 3 episode "Band Candy."
Quickly learning the rules of multiversal travel (and the dangers of the aberration hunting beings known as Lurkers) from their version of Anya, the modern Scoobies quickly reassembled and returned to their home reality. However, before they left, Anya made sure to purchase Shrimp Tacos from a local food truck. Sharing the tacos with the Scoobies, it turns out that in the modern version of Sunnydale, Shrimp actually doesn't exist as a foodstuff. The group is pleasantly surprised by the taste, ending the issue with a sweet moment between Buffy and Willow as they have some of the tacos and move past the loss of their Xander.
It's an obscure reference to the original series, but a supremely sweet one -- allowing Anya to earn some brownie points with the rest of the main cast while giving a simple pleasure for Buffy and Willow to use to help repair their strained friendship. As the Slayerverse Multiverse continues to grow in future adventures, the World Without Shrimp description may remain as an easy description of how the different universes operate and how they can differ. It ties the modern series with the classic show in a clever way -- and could even eventually find a way to tie the modern series to other universes from around the multiverse.