"Sonnenblume" is the sixth story in the Tales of the Slayers comic anthology. Written by Rebecca Rand Kirshner and illustrated by Mira Friedmann, it was originally published on February 20, 2002, by Dark Horse Comics.
Summary[]
It's September 10, 1938. At age 14, German Slayer Anni "Sonnenblume" is a member of the Hitlerjugend and is present during one of Adolf Hitler's speeches at Nuremberg. Afterwards, her brother reminds her that their mother had asked her to pick up bread. Anni goes to a Jewish bakery run by the Green-family, and Mrs. Green returns her mother's rolling-pin to Anni. On the way home, Anni spots a vampire and kills him with the broken rolling-pin. Doing so, she drops the bread and flour she had bought, for which her mother then gets angry. When her mother found out Anni had shopped at a Jewish baker, she told her not to do so anymore.
Some time after, Anni trains under the guidance of her watcher, who confirms her suspicion that there is more evil in the world than just vampires. At the Hitlerjugend, meanwhile, she is indoctrinated with the idea that Jewish people are evil.
One day, when out for a walk with her friends, she passes the Green bakery. Mrs. Green greets Anni amicably and her friends teases her for knowing a Jew, upon which Anni lashes out against Mrs. Green.
Some days later, when out patrolling, Anni witnesses some of the atrocities being committed by Nazi German soldiers upon the Jewish civilian population during Kristallnacht. When asked by an army officer to betray the Greens, she makes her decision and instead attacks him. She's determined to fight against Nazis and not being like everyone else, and she seeks for the Green family to help them.
Continuity[]
- Set in 1938, the story takes place after Broken Bottle of Djinn, in which previous Slayer Rachel O'Connor is recruited by government operatives (1937); and before "Why We Fight," in which Angel is conscripted into working for Demon Research Initiative to recover a German prototype submarine (1943).
Appearances[]
Individuals[]
- Anni
- Mr. Green
- Mrs. Green
- Sarah Green
- Adolf Hitler
- Karl
- Hannah Steingott (Only mentioned)
- Anni's father
- Anni's mother
- Anni's Watcher
Organizations and titles[]
Species[]
Locations[]
- Nuremberg, Germany
Objects[]
Death count[]
- One unidentified vampire, staked by Anni.
Behind the scenes[]
Production[]
- The story's title (and Anni's nickname) is the German word for "sunflower."
- This is the first Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic story both written and illustrated by women. This combination would only repeat again 14 years later, in the series Buffy: The High School Years.
- The final night in the story takes place during the Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, named after the shards of broken glass that littered the streets after the windows of Jewish-owned stores, buildings, and synagogues were smashed.
Collections[]
Quotes[]
| Anni: "It's my duty to fight evil. And I finally recognize the real evil here." |