Previously, Jayne found that being a dad is not easy, especially when he never really had any sort of role model to base his attempts on. Meanwhile, the crew grappled with yet another emergency after the monastery was attacked again.

This issue picks up where we left of, with the crew investigating the attack on the monastery. With the Tax Collector and his gang being the sole suspects, some of the crew head out to suss things out. Of course, it seems that there’s a lot more than meets the eye, and the crew find themselves in yet another sticky situation.

David M. Booher ratchets up the suspense and intrigue in this issue. We continue to get little glimpses into Jayne’s soul, and it’s honestly mind-blowing to me that anyone has actually gotten me to really care about Jayne the way that Booher et al. have. #StoriesMatter and this is a shining example of how the right story in the hands of the right person can be nothing short of transformative. Jayne’s not the only one who gets some introspective moments in this issue, with Kaylee, Simon, and River having brief moments to shine.

The artwork by Vincenzo Federici is quality material as always. Federici’s character work is quite lovely, and the panels of the conversation between River and Simon are rendered with a very relaxed sensibility. Matt Herm’s colorwork is a joy to look at, with the highlight for me being Jayne’s flashbacks. Jim Campbell continues to be such an integral part to this book; his lettering makes reading so intuitive that it’s usually on my second pass through that I catch the little nuances and details that he puts in that really inform the reader on tone and volume.

The sum-up: All-New Firefly continues to take us into new narrative spaces with its “back-to-basics” approach.  

Creative Team: David M. Booher (writer), Vincenzo Federici (art), Matt Herms (colorist), Jim Campbell (letterer)
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
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