Review by Frank Plowright

This second Legacy Edition combines the final two Serenity collections originally published by Dark Horse, a short story accompanied by two longer outings that extend the continuity beyond the Serenity movie. Be warned then, that some Firefly cast members don’t feature other than in flashbacks.

Of the two longer stories Zack Whedon’s first is definitely better, published in slimmer paperback as Leaves on the Wind. It picks up shortly after Malcolm Reynolds has revealed to the galaxy how the Alliance are responsible for the death of a planet and the creation of the Reavers, and a continuing theme is how this has stirred some resistance against the Alliance.

Whedon’s plot is cast-focussed and clever for starting off seeming to be one type of story, yet becoming something else entirely. It supplies new supporting characters and crowd-pleasing returns for old favourites, yet ensuring they have a viable part to play, not just being there for window dressing. The focus eventually begins to address what River Song went through, how that affected others, and to what extent the programme still exists.

Both main stories are drawn by Georges Jeanty, whose page layouts ensure clarity and dynamism, although some readers may be disappointed that his cast portraits are approximations rather than exact likenesses. That fits, though, with the form of cartoon realism he employs, and with such great effort put in elsewhere his work really should be appreciated. The effort is apparent on the sample page, which is only in passing, yet Jeanty has gone to the trouble of designing very distinctive craft.

While Chris Roberson’s follow-up picks up on Whedon’s plots and treats them satisfactorily, he doesn’t achieve the right balance between planning and action. There are too many scenes discussing what should happen, which supply suspense, but not enough cathartic action. ‘No Power in the Verse’ isn’t a poor story, and certainly better than some in Book One, but doesn’t live up to Whedon’s triumph. There may also be concerns at the rapidity with which Reynolds decides to be a hero, which is very much out of character since he acquired Serenity.

Roberson is far better on the compact short ending the collection. It’s a fairy tale recasting of the crew for River’s appreciation of them, engagingly drawn by Stephen Byrne, here using out and out cartooning for additional charm.