Joss Whedon – Serenity: Those Left Behind

133. Those Left Behind by Joss Whedon, Brett Matthews, Will Conrad, Laura Martin, Michael Heisler, and Adam Hughes (2007)
Serenity Graphic Novels, Vol. 1

Length: 96 pages
Genre: Graphic Novel, Sci-Fi

Started: 30 October 2009
Finished: 30 October 2009

Where did it come from? The library.
Why do I have it? I’m a huge Firefly fan, and after recently rewatching the series I thought I’d give the comics a try.

Serenity flies
again, off your TVs and
into the movie.

Summary: Set after the last episode of Firefly and before Serenity the movie, Those Left Behind goes a long way to filling in that gap in the storyline of everybody’s favorite space cowboys. After (yet another) job goes south, Mal and his crew once again find themselves low on cash and high on tension. They’re at desperate ends – desperate enough to accept another job from Badger – during which they run up against an enemy from their past while barely staying one step ahead of the Feds.

This volume also includes a foreword by Nathan Fillion and a memo from Joss Whedon to the Serenity production team describing the Firefly universe.

Review: Those Left Behind is meant to be interstitial, to fill in fans as to how things got to be the way they are at the beginning of the movie – in particular, the circumstances surrounding Shepherd Book and Inara’s departures. However, even if its main purpose is gap-filling, there still could have been a little more story to the story; the plot here is about that of an average Firefly episode, and while it probably would have been fine on film, it felt a little bit thin on paper.

The script and the dialogue were well-done; Firefly’s got the most distinct patois of any of Whedon’s shows, and the characters’ distinct voices make the transition to paper well. However, I wasn’t crazy about the artwork. There’s a distinct range of how much characters look like themselves, from Book and Zoe, who are instantly recognizable in almost all of their panels, to Jane, who looks like a comic-ified version of himself (i.e. the head:bicep ratio is steadily decreasing), to Simon, who is identifiable only by his vests. All-in-all, though, it was an enjoyable read, even if it wasn’t quite everything I’d hoped for. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: For Firefly fans only; there’s no backstory or explanation given for the newbies. For dedicated fans, though, it’s a nice chance to spend some more time with Cap’n Tightpants and crew, whatever the reason.

This Review on LibraryThing | This Book on LibraryThing | This Book on Amazon

Other Reviews: Book Dweeb, Experiments in Reading, J. Kaye’s Book Blog, Libri Touches, Multi-Genre Fan, Once Upon a Bookshelf
Have you reviewed this book? Leave a comment with the link and I’ll add it in.

First Line: “And so I say to you on this fine day, citizens of Constance, that your lives are not defined by that with which you enter this world, but rather with what you leave behind on it.”

Cover Thoughts: Why does no one have anything below the waist except their holsters?