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 Serenity “Those Left Behind”
Story: Joss Whedon and Brett Matthews
Script: Brett Matthews
Art: Will Conrad
Dark Horse Comics

Review by Fuxxy Elf

Comic tie-ins for TV and Film often come in three categories. First is the direct adaptation, such as the recent Shaun of the Dead mini series. Second is a tie-in with a wider scope than the original concept, they may be set after the Film or TV series introducing new concepts or new characters. The best example of this type is obviously the massive output of Star Wars comics from over the years. The final category, which the Serenity series belongs to, is less common - the bridge between two shows or films.  The only example I can remember reading is the hilarious Chasing Dogma by Kevin Smith.

Being a bridge between the television show Firefly and the film Serenity, this comic book series has the immediate problem of introducing new readers to a known universe, and I’ll say right at the beginning that it doesn’t quite succeed. The three issues that make up Serenity are basically a continuous array of nods to the series, like character foibles, cameos from various villains and little bits of history. Unfortunately they are not there to inform new readers, they are there to make fans nod and laugh and say “oh yeah, I remember that!” The series is not totally impenetrable to non-fans but I would heartily recommend seeing Firefly or Serenity first before attempting the comic, as you will get so much more out of it.

The first thing you notice about the three issues is the art.  It is absolutely stunning and totally realistic, which I think a project like this requires. Firefly the TV series was very much about it’s style, which was gritty and visceral, making science fiction as real as possible.  Thus a comic based on this universe needs to retain that look, which Will Conrad succeeds in doing.  Everybody from the main cast to occasional characters are instantly recognisable and the characters specially created for the comic would not seem out of place on the show.  The action is not exaggerated like you can get away with in most comic books, the whole look seems to be geared into making you believe you are watching a new episode of the TV show rather than reading a comic.

The script also adds to this feeling - you can quite clearly hear the voices of the actors saying the words on the page.  The recognisable verbal ticks are all accounted for, like “gorram” meaning Goddamn, and “shiny” meaning cool or neat.  But there are also less obvious signs, such as sentence structure, which hints at the other worldliness whilst keeping it grounded in reality, and not making it sound archaic and dated. For example, Mal at one point saying:

“You want I should take the wheel for this, Shepherd?” 

This sort of language worked on the show and translates well on to the page as well.  In other words, any Firefly fan would feel right at home in these comics, it shows that Joss Whedon and Brett Matthews were both writers on the series and know the universe inside out.

If I have any reservations, it would be with plot.  Anybody who has seen the film will know not all the questions left from the series did get answered, unfortunately don’t expect them to be answered here either.  This is one of the few times where I would like to have seen a few more issues to flesh out the plot and give the villains a bit more of a reason to be villains.  In fact if you haven’t seen the series then I doubt the reason behind the villains plans would be too clear; and certainly the shock appearance of a previous villain will be totally lost on any new readers.  When I did finish Serenity I felt like saying “oh, is that it?”  The first issue works well as a kind of pre-titles teaser, common in any TV show, but then the second issue has to introduce the main plot, leaving only the third issue to tie it up, a fourth or fifth would have been nice to flesh it out a little bit more.  The bridging between the show and the film does work to some extent in that it explains Shepherd Book’s disappearance from the ship, but as there was no animosity shown between Mal and Book in the film it seems to me to be a little bit pointless, unless it will be followed up in further comics, novels or some other means, though that seems unlikely.

Overall, the feel of the comic is great and it is just like revisiting old friends.  For anybody looking to re-enter the Firefly universe they will find themselves served well by Serenity the comic book, if a little short changed by it’s length.  Whilst new readers will certainly appreciate the art and the humour, the subtleties of the script and the sense of nostalgia will mostly be lost on them.  Final mention should be given to the nine great covers; three alternate versions for each issue, and all of which have a member of the cast drawn by a different famous artist; including John Cassaday, Joe Queseda and Leinil Yu. All of these are stunning and are collected together in the trade as a very cool extra.

David Ellis © 2006