Those Left Behind was the first in a string of Comic Books based on Joss Whedon's hit TV series Firefly and the subsequent film Serenity. The volume takes place in the time-span between where the cancelled TV series ended and the movie picks up.
A wonderful introduction by Nathan Fillion....which inspires hero worship for the Castle TV series' star.....is followed by strait-up action and gunslinging! A great way to start, delving right into our beloved motley crew of Serenity's day-to-day life on the fringe planets. Always looking to misbehave, (sometimes through no fault of their own) Mal, Zoe, & Jayne need rescuin', which comes in the form of Shepherd Book.
After escaping near-death with NO bounty to show for it, they take Badger up on an offer sending them to the remnants of what once was the biggest battle in the war between the Alliance & the Independents....The Battle of Sturges. Loot waitin' to be had, but at the cost of desecrating fallen soldiers, and bad memories from Mal & Zoe's past.
Meanwhile, the guys with the blue gloves are busy trying to track down River Tam....and they find a man who wants to find Serenity as well...he's lookin for revenge, cause Mal took his eye! Working together, the group tracks down Serenity at Sturges, and another gunfight ensues....this one in zero gravity though.
The volume ends with Inara's departure and Shepherd's announcement to Mal that he'll be leaving as well. Meanwhile, the Alliance; having exhausted all other options, appears to be sending another Operative to hunt down and capture River.
A great "extra" at the end is Joss Whedon's "A Brief History of the Universe, Circa 2516 A.D.", a great deal of which was used in the opening scene of the film Serenity.
You can make the argument that you won't really be able to follow the book unless you've seen the TV series and the movie....but I disagree. I hadn't seen the TV series, but fell in love with the movie....then fell in love with the TV series, so anything is possible. If nothing else, you could watch the film and be able to jump right into the book.....though I warn you that you will become a fan for life, and purchase the TV series....have your heart broken like so many millions before you, and crave anything with Serenity, Firefly, or Nathan Fillion!! I would grade both the Film & TV series as SHINY (which is Serenity speak for "Awesome"), and this volume; Those Left Behind, "Shiny" as well.
....And always remember, "Burn the Land & Boil the Sea, but You can't take the Sky from me!"
An Awesome huh? I am a big fan, but I have not found the time to track this down and read it yet. (maybe my coat is more tan then brown?) But I will have to now.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely!!! If you read it in the "voices" of the actors/-tress', you will absolutely love it.....it reads like an episode of Firefly!
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