Spike is a comic book series published by IDW Publishing. Written by Brian Lynch, it focuses on the character of Spike, a main character in television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off, Angel. Uniquely, although this is a spin-off from IDW's larger Angel: After the Fall franchise, it also serves as a prequel to Dark Horse Comics' own Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight comic book series. As such, it is "canon" to the overall "Buffyverse" in which stories take place. Although originally intended as an ongoing series, the Angel rights transfer from IDW to Dark Horse caused the series end after eight issues.Lynch had previously written for Spike in the comic books Spike: Asylum when Buffy and Angel creator Joss Whedon approached him to write the canonical continuation to Angel, After the Fall, in 2007. For Spike, Lynch is reunited with frequent collaborator, penciller Franco Urru. Because of the circumstances behind Dark Horse's use of the Angel character, Whedon offered Lynch use of a main character in the Buffy franchise, and Lynch adapted the storyline to bridge IDW's After the Fall with Dark Horse's Season Eight. Source: Wikipedia (en)