Firefly #4
Robert Struble
Recap
Half the crew of Serenity is held captive by a religious cult ready for a sacrifice but Mal, Zoe, and Kaylee have cut a deal with Boss Moon. Moon’s soldiers aren’t exactly keen on the idea but River and Simon Tam manage to convince them otherwise. Unfortunately they hit another snag when another gang interrupts their rescue, downing the ship, leaving Wash and the others to somehow figure out their escape on their own.
As the crew of Serenity is lined up to be killed, they begin arguing over who should be first. The smallest sinner would be first so who has sinned the least, who has sinned the most, who is the biggest heretic versus who is the smallest. And it seems to work…until Jayne butts in, not understanding the goal. But his interference works well as he attacks Shepherd Book.
Unfortunately, things aren’t going so well for Mal’s side. The local gang is gaining ground, slaughtering Boss Moon’s soldiers and pinning the rest down. But finally the gang’s former leader, Chang Benitez, shows up, killing the aggressors. Moon takes her shuttle to rescue the rest of the Serenity crew and then in the confusion, escapes with Mal as her prisoner.
Review
It’s a fun ride where it seems like everything that can go wrong does. Murphy’s Law in action and this seems to plague the Serenity crew throughout the show and comic, and Pak captures it perfectly here. The action is fun, the dialogue is witty, and the characterization is pretty spot on.
The art is pretty good but some of the line work makes characters look out of sorts, almost unrecognizable. It’s few and far between though, and I can’t really complain too much about what McDaid is giving us because the scenes are energetic and the facial expressions are priceless, especially some of the more confusing looks that the characters are known for getting.
And of course we get almost a moment of understanding between Mal and Moon, a recognizing that each has endured the horrors of war. Of course this moment is fleeting, but it’s there and it’s definitely some great character building.
Final Thoughts
It’s another fun issue that we’ve come to expect from this creative team. Pak and McDaid clearly understand these characters and are giving us great Mal moments. It’s a little light on some of the characters but we can’t expect a focus on everybody in an ensemble book. It’s definitely another strong entry in one of my favorite adaptations of a TV series.
Firefly #4: Murphy’s Law Strikes Back
- Writing - 8/108/10
- Storyline - 8/108/10
- Art - 7/107/10
- Color - 7/107/10
- Cover Art - 9/109/10
