The best decision in my career as comics editor on Buffy the Vampire Slayer was to lie. Horror comics have always been my real interest, and IÂ’d been wanting to work with artist Ryan Sook. I was gearing up to do the first Spike and Dru comic, and since it wouldnÂ’t feature Buffy, we didnÂ’t need someone who could draw Sarah Michelle Gellar. Like many stars, Sarah Michelle gets approval over anyone who draws her, but back then, James Marsters (Spike) and Juliet Landau (Dru) didnÂ’t. James has since negotiated that into his contract, in part because of Ryan Sook. But thatÂ’s a different story. The only one who had to approve Ryan was Buffy creator, Joss Whedon. I sent RyanÂ’s work to him, describing it as a cool European style. I knew that Joss and the gang at his production company, Mutant Enemy, had sophisticated tastes, and so I really played up the European thing. I was blowing smoke, though. ThereÂ’s nothing particularly European about RyanÂ’s work. I figured they didnÂ’t know a thing about comics, and my harmless deception would allow us to do something a little unusual. They agreed. I thought IÂ’d pulled one over on them. To my surprise, Joss raved about that first Spike and Dru. It was the best comic weÂ’d done. All of the Buffy comics should look like this. I really thought IÂ’d pulled one over on them.
Months later, I had a phone call with Joss’s right-hand man, George Snyder. He said I should hire Ryan for the Angel monthly, but I knew Ryan couldn’t maintain the schedule. George said, "What we’re shooting for is something like Mike Mignola’s Hellboy, if you’re familiar with that." Then, in the most blessed moment of synchronicity in my ironic existence, in walked Mike Mignola. "I’m sorry, George, could I put you on hold for just a second? Mike Mignola just walked in — did you know I edit Hellboy?"
So George knew something new about me, but more importantly, I knew something about him and Joss. They really know comics. See, I hadnÂ’t pulled anything over on anyone. I thought IÂ’d been really clever and gotten my way, but Joss had been hoping IÂ’d use artists like Ryan all along. 
Now we use him as much as weÂ’re able, including OctoberÂ’s final Spike and Dru one-shot. WeÂ’ve also brought in Angel guest artist Eric Powell, who gets his own Giles special in October. IÂ’ve called on some more well known names on covers, like John Totleben and Mike Mignola, who provide the October covers for Buffy and Angel respectively. If October sounds loaded, itÂ’s because weÂ’re kicking off a three-month Buffy event called Autumnal, in which we take the titles in a darker, more classic-horror direction. Joss wants the Buffy titles to be cool comic books, not dull collections of traced photos. So weÂ’re giving it our best shot. Check it out.
— Scott Stuart Allie