Firefly: The Fall Guys #3 Review

 

Writer: Sam Humphries

Artist: Jordi Pérez

Colorist: Francesco Segala & Gloria Martinelli

Letterer: Jim Campbell

Cover Artists: Francesco Francavilla; Justine Florentino; Adam Gorham

Publisher: Boom! Studios

Price: $4.99

Release Date: November 8, 2023

 

Alliance Troops hold Beloved to ransom. Captain Kaylee and her crew trade blows in a barroom brawl. Prime Minister Hamner wants Zoë Washburne’s dead. Can life get any crazier for the Serenity crew? Let's leap into Firefly: The Fall Guys #3 and find out!

 

 

Story

Amber Archambeau and her gang contracted to hit the Prime Minister. Knowing the Alliance wouldn’t rest until they hunted down Hamner’s assassin, they framed their rivals to take the blame. Using her Companion contacts, Inara secured a respite in the Diamond Cutters Brothel. But believing the Browncoats had done the deed, the patrons’ cheers drew the soldiers’ ire. So now Zoë—a former boxing champion, Bernard—who once started a fight over half a Sarsaparilla—and the others bob and weave with the Alliance soldiers.

 

With their hidey-hole blown, it's time to hit the road. A dose of humor helps them stomach the way Alliance troops beat up citizens. With an energy dome encasing the town, they can run and hide, but they can’t flee. Along the way, their path intersects with the Archambeau gang, and Zoë wonders if their rivals don’t have the right idea. General Hamner was a butcher. As Prime Minister, she's bringing the hurt to every Alliance world!

 

Sam Humphries spices character dialogue with zany zingers in Firefly: The Fall Guys #3. The Serenity folks crash through fights, shootouts, and a high-flying getaway. While Zoë takes the spotlight, Mal mentions why he relinquished the Captaincy, and Kaylee fights to maintain order. New crewmate Bernard proves the breakout character, riding on adrenaline and enjoying every moment of the issue’s wild ride.

 

Art

Starship Troopers march through Gunsmoke streets in Firefly: The Fall Guys #3. Soldiers slap wanted posters on electronic billboards. A stagecoach hovers over the dirt road. Its inverted wooden wheels conceal thrusters. Some characters look similar and fail to convey age. More establishing shots might help readers follow the action. Still, Jordi Pérez’s dramatic poses and shifting camera angles energize panels, and every member of the crew bar one gets a mustache.

 

Francesco Segala and Gloria Martinelli use a limited palette in Firefly: The Fall Guys #3. Color combinations change by the scene. At times, a lack of contrast prevents clarity. At others, images electrify.

 

Jim Campbell’s black, uppercase letters in white dialogue balloons are easy to read. He uses bigger ones to introduce the cast and lowercase gray words for lowered voices. Sound effects help readers hear crashes, bangs, and blasts. Occasionally, they hover smackdab in the action zone, shouting, "Here I am! Look at me!" Rascally varmints!

 

Thanks to the rootin'-tootin' folks at Boom! Studios for providing a copy of Firefly: The Fall Guys #3 for review.

 

Final Thoughts

Trapped in a maze, the Serenity crew fights to stay alive, and Zoë conceives a dramatic solution to life, the Alliance, and everything in Firefly: The Fall Guys #3.

 

Rating: 7.8/10

 

To view more covers see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.