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REVIEW: Firefly: River Run
Book Title: Firefly: River Run
Book Description: In the pilot episode of the tv series “Firefly” Simon Tam talks about his sister, River. He goes on to explain that she is extremely intelligent and gifted. River was attending one of the most elite schools in the universe. When she wrote letters to home she encoded them with a message saying “They are hurting us. Get me out”. This is the story of how Simon Tam freed his sister.
When Simon cracked the code in River’s letters their parents didn’t believe him when he pointed it out to them. He was forced to do detective work on his own to learn everything he needed to know. When you are trying to steal what the Alliance is viewing as a prized asset reliable information isn’t easy to come by, or cheap.
For each clue, he gets Simon finds himself adding items to a list of questionable things he’s done in the name of saving River. Most recently he’s raided a pharmacy of some supplies and snuck into a restricted area to meet and exchange them for information with a man named Cowboy.
The deal goes sideways and Simon finds himself being arrested for trespassing. Fortunately for him when your father is one of the richest people on the planet a few thousand credits can make things go away very quickly.
The drive home from jail is rather tense. The elder Tam makes it clear that Simon has to let go of his obsession with River and to trust the school. Furthermore, if Simon any more run-ins with the law because of this crusade about River he will be cut off.
Simon is left with a choice. Would he rather be one of the most acclaimed doctors in the universe, with all the riches and glamour that come with it? Or would he rather be financially cut off, but have River?
Worst of all, this decision rides on whether or not Simon can trust Cowboy after their last encounter.
Book Author: David M. Booher
Book Format: Paperback
Publisher - Orgnization: BOOM! Studios
Publisher Logo:
Illustrator: Andres Genolet
- Story(3.4)
- Interior Art(3.1)
- Cover Art(2.75)
- Dialogue(3.6)
- Mechanics(3.8)
- Editing(3.4)
Summary
Because it was taken from us far too soon, “Firefly” is a franchise that fans can’t seem to get enough content from. Retelling Simon’s story of how he rescued River doesn’t give us anything new. It does paint a much better picture of everything that it took to get River out.
I liked everything about Cowboy and the Underground. It makes one sympathetic to the situation Simon was in. Being cheated on a deal by someone AND arrested in the aftermath leaves one hesitant to make another arrangement with that person.
The artwork on the cover is different from most of the artwork we would traditionally see. Having Simon overlapped by River, who in turn is overlapped by a solar system, is unique. It is also distracting because it makes it difficult to focus on one character.
The interior artwork is good; but as good as one would hope for from a franchise as established as Firefly. It didn’t have the level of detail I would have liked to see on Simon.
As a geek on a budget, I would say that this is a good book for Firefly fans that want to get more details on the established canon. If you’re looking for shiny new content from the ‘Verse, this one may not be for you.
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