Yay for Melanka Fray! Josh Whedon has developed the Buffy universe further by teaming up with some fabulous artists and presenting "Fray", a slayer story in graphic novel format. This is a very tight, character driven story, which takes place 200 years from the now of the TV show. Melanka Fray lives in the scruffy, downtrodden, dark urban underbelly of a future city. The rich folks have flying cars, the poor folks have an underworld that really is an underworld, and human beings have mutated into so many forms that one can't tell the demonic from the demented. Melanka is a teenager who has seen more than her share of rough stuff, but still has heart and a strong desire for a wholesome life, (although currently getting by as a contract thief.) She becomes a slayer of vampires, and a more mature person, by the end of the book. The artists are so good, you can compare the girl at the beginning to the one at the end, and see the subtle changes. There are also some tiny, clever quotes from Gaiman's "Sandman", if you remember that graoundbreaking graphic novel. You absolutely do not have to have seen any of the Buffy shows to appreciate "Fray", all the needed backstory is complete and well revealed.