Serenity (comics)

Several comic book miniseries have been released under the Serenity title, set in the fictional universe created for Joss Whedon's Firefly television series and Serenity film.

Written by Joss Whedon and Brett Matthews, and illustrated by Will Conrad, the first miniseries, Those Left Behind, was created as a bridge between the events of the series and film. Those Left Behind was popular: the first issue was the highest-selling comic published by Dark Horse Comics until the release of Buffy Season 8 in 2007, while the trade paperback is still one of the highest ranking items by sale quantity from that company. In early 2008, a second miniseries was released. Titled Better Days, it was set before Those Left Behind, with the storyline based around a heist that went in the characters' favour. A third miniseries, The Shepherd's Tale is planned for the end of 2008, and will focus on the story of Shepherd Book's past.

In addition to the miniseries, a single-shot comic written by Jim Krueger and titled The Other Half was released in the August 2008 issue of Dark Horse Presents.

Reaction to the comics has been mixed: while widely accepted by fans of the cancelled television series and movie, several reviews have commented that the comics are inaccessible to those without this prerequesite knowledge. So far, both miniseries have been three-issue runs, and have retailed for US$2.99.

History

Whedon invited Brett Matthews to co-write a story to bridge the series and the film.¹ Matthews had previously worked as Whedon's assistant on several Buffy, Angel, and Firefly episodes, and had written the script for Firefly episode "Heart of Gold".² According to Matthews, Those Left Behind was originally an anime project, but difficulties led to the story being released in comic form.¹

The second limited series was announced by Dirk Wood of Dark Horse Comics during WonderCon 2006.³ Whedon, Matthews, and Conrad were again involved.⁴

Miniseries

All of the mini-series are intended to exist within the same fictional continuity as the television series and movie.¹

Those Left Behind

The story is set between the Firefly series and the film, and was intended to bridge the two and lead into the movie.¹ It is used to set up the beginning of the film by depicting Inara's departure and Book's intention to leave the ship, introduces several characters important to Serenity’s storyline, including The Operative and Mingo and Fanty, and resolves the Hands of Blue plotline.

The comic also re-introduces Lawrence Dobson, an Alliance agent who was (apparently) killed by Mal in the Firefly pilot episode. Whedon had always planned to bring back Dobson, but did not have the opportunity before the series was cancelled.⁵

Plot summary

The first issue begins with Shepherd Book giving a sermon on a border-planet town, which Mal, Zoe, and Jayne use as cover for a bank heist. The heist is interruped by a rival crew, working for Mingo and Fanty, who in the ensuing firefight escape with the money, while a grenade explosion draws the townsfolk. Book steals a vehicle to collect the others, while Wash and Kaylee use Serenity to knock over a water tower to stun the pursuing townsfolk. Back aboard the ship, Inara reminds Mal that she is leaving Serenity. Meanwhile, on Whitefall, the Hands of Blue appear and kill the bodyguard of the man they want to see.

Issue #2 continues with the Hands of Blue, and reveals that the man they seek is Lawrence Dobson, who fires a warning shot at the Hands. The Hands reveal that they and Dobson are seeking the same thing: Serenity. Dobson clarifies that he only wants Mal, and that he has a plan to do it, but could use the Hands' assistance. On Persephone, Serenity’s crew encounter Badger, and after taking out his bodyguards, bring him aboard to discuss the failed heist. Badger talks of a major space battle during the war, which he claims was over a shipload of cash. The crew dump Badger and discuss the job, during which Inara demands that she be taken to her destination first, and after Mal refuses, he and Book have an argument which results in the shepherd punching Mal. Serenity arrives at the debris field from the battle, and while Mal, Zoe, and Jayne investigate one of the ships, the Hands of Blue find Serenity.

Issue #3 begins by depicting Mal, Zoe, and Jayne as they search the ship for the money, while the small craft used by the Hands of Blue sneaks up and docks with Serenity’s underside. River Tam, sensing the presence of the Hands, tries to drug herself with several doses of anesthetic, before revealing to Simon and Inara that something is wrong with Serenity’s 'belly'. Mal and company reach the coordinates supplied by Badger, and encounter the waiting Dobson and his group. Mal kills Dobson in the ensuing firefight, then shoots him again to ensure he is dead. At the same time, Kaylee and Simon investigate the underside cargo hatch, and find the Hands of Blue trying to break in. Simon, Kaylee, and Book hold off the Hands, while Wash flies through the debris field to try and scrape the Hands' ship off. Mal, Zoe, and Jayne are collected at speed, before Wash destroys the pursuing ship by going to 'full burn'. Inara is delivered to her destination, although Mal is unable to say goodbye. Later, when in space, Book announces to Mal that he intends to leave Serenity. The comic ends with The Operative retrieving the remains of the Hands, and accepting the assignment to locate River.

Covers

Each issue was released with three different covers, so that over the course of the series each main character would be depicted. Each cover was illustrated by a different artist, with the characters depicted against a white background for consistency.⁶

Two collections have been released, both with new cover art. The first, published in January 2006, featured Mal and Inara on the cover, with Serenity taking off in the background. The second, a hardcover collection released in October 2007 featured Mal, Zoe, and Jayne on the cover. The original nine covers appear in both releases as chapter dividers.

Better Days

The second three-issue miniseries, Serenity: Better Days, began in March 2008. Whedon, Matthews, Conrad, and Heisler returned, but colourist Laura Martin was replaced by Michelle Madsen. Unlike the previous series, Adam Hughes illustrated the three covers, each of which depicts three of the nine cast members, and together form a triptych.

Again, the mini-series is set between the series and the film. However, Better Days is set before the events of Those Left Behind, in order to have all the characters aboard the ship, and to better capture the "heart and status quo -- in as much as there even is one -- of the [television] series".¹ The comic sees the crew of Serenity pulling off a successful job, which results in unexpected wealth and the related complications.⁴¹

Plot summary

Issue #1 opens with an unnamed man presenting a new automated security drone, and setting it up for a demonstration. It cuts to Mal, Zoe, and Jayne robbing an art gallery, with Simon advising on the value of the works. While trying to escape in a delivery van, the four attract the attention of the security drone, which chases them down a highway and destroys the van, with the thieves using their hovercraft 'Mule' to escape. The chase is interspersed with the drone operator's commentary on the drone's capabilities, until Mal leads it into a trap. Kaylee disables the drone, which is the Serenity crew's actual target. Meanwhile, Inara is with a client: Ephraim, an Alliance special operations agent tasked with hunting down Independent terrorists known as 'Dust Devils'. Mal delivers the drone to his client, and in exchange for the vital component, the man tells them of a stash of money hidden in a temple by a gang whose members killed each other before they could collect it. The crew retrieve the cash without incident, excluding a monk who recognises Jayne as the Hero of Canton. Following their escape, Mal checks the money and realises it is significantly more than they expected.

The second issue shows the fantasies of several of the characters as to what they would do with unlimited wealth, while they take a vacation on a luxury world. Inara, after arranging to meet a client, asks Mal about the Dust Devils, while Ephraim briefs his team to take down Mal. The drone operator tortures Mal's client to find Serenity’s location. Mal and his crew foil a robbery at the resort, after which Mal and Zoe note the landing of an Alliance special ops ship, with Mal theorising that the ship belongs to Ephraim, and that he is after the Dust Devils. On going to investigate Inara's shuttle, Mal sees Simon leave, before he is knocked unconscious.

The Other Half

The August 2008 issue of MySpace Dark Horse Presents included a single-shot, eight-page comic titled Serenity: The Other Half.⁷ While Conrad remained responsible for the artwork and Heisler stayed on as letterer, the author and colourist were replaced by Jim Krueger and Julius Ohta respectively. Joss Whedon is credited as the executive producer.

The story revolves around the Serenity crew aboard a hover-stagecoach, protecting it from Reavers as they try to deliver their seriously wounded passenger to their destination, in order to claim the second half of his fare. While helping Simon to keep the passenger alive, River detects that their passenger is an Alliance agent who tracks smugglers and leads Alliance soldiers to kill them. Aware that River may be the escaped psychic the Alliance is hunting, the agent tries and fails to shoot River when Simon is knocked unconscious. She disposes of the gun, and while the rest of the crew assume that stray munitions from the Reavers killed the agent, Mal takes River aside, tells her that he "had a bad feelin'" about the passenger, and welcomes her to the crew.

A Shepherd's Tale

During the 2007 Browncoat Cruise, a Firefly convention held aboard a cruise ship, Ron Glass announced (with Whedon's permission) several pieces of Shepherd Derrial Book's backstory, as well as that Book was to be the focus of the third miniseries: A Shepherd's Tale.⁸ The comic was later confirmed by Scott Allie, senior editor at Dark Horse Comics, who stated in the letters section of Serenity: Better Days #1 that a comic based on Book's past was slated for a late 2008 release.⁹

According to Allie, A Shepherd's Tale is set primarily before Firefly, and as it is focused on a single character, it is an opportunity for the Serenity comics franchise to "go in a real different direction."¹⁰ Joss Whedon will remain as one of the writers, but Allie implies that the other contributors will be changing.¹⁰ The success of ther miniseries may lead to other comics focusing on the rest of the Firefly cast, but as of June 2008, no other Serenity-based projects are in development at Dark Horse.¹⁰

Reaction

According to Dark Horse Comics, the trade paperback of Those Left Behind had sold 85,000 copies as of October 2007.¹¹⁴ Sales data from Baker & Taylor lists the trade paperback of Those Left Behind as the most popular graphic novel not published by Marvel or DC Comics between June and December 2006,¹² while Diamond Comic Distributors listed Those Left Behind as the 49th highest selling graphic novel in 2007 by units sold, although the retail ranking was only 187th.¹³ It was the third-highest selling Dark Horse graphic novel in 2007, behind a hardcover edition of 300 (5th on the Diamond list) and the Buffy Season 8: The Long Way Home trade paperback (30th).¹³ Scott Allie claims that Those Left Behind was significantly more popular than expected, and that Issue #1 of Those Left Behind was the highest selling comic published by Dark Horse until the first issue of Buffy Season 8.¹¹ Issues #1 and #2 had to be reprinted during the original release run to meet demand,^{citation needed} and the success of Those Left Behind prompted Whedon to go ahead with Buffy Season 8.^{citation needed}

Most reviews for both Serenity miniseries state that while enjoyable and rewarding to fans of the televison series and movie, the comic is unsuited for uninitiated readers.¹⁴¹⁵ One review pans the lack of background and plot in Those Left Behind, while praising the artwork and commenting that the comic has an "aura of character study" that fans will enjoy.¹⁶Another recommended that those unfamiliar with the background and the characters would be better off acquiring the series and movie before reading the comic.¹⁵

Despite requests from fans, Joss Whedon has stated that Serenity is unlikely to be released as a regular publication series.¹⁷ He believes that the pacing and storyarc structure he created for Firefly would work poorly as a regular series, and unlike the monthly-issued Buffy Season 8 comic series, does not have the wealth of background material generated by seven seasons of television.¹⁷ However, Dark Horse senior editor Scott Allie wants to produce new miniseries on a more regular basis, reducing the three-year wait between Those Left Behind and Better Days.¹⁷

Contents

History

Miniseries

Those Left Behind

Plot summary

Covers

Better Days

Plot summary

The Other Half

A Shepherd's Tale

Reaction

See also

Notes and references

External links