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Blue Sun’s power-hungry goal is revealed in this penultimate issue, and it is certainly on brand. They have captured Zoë, Kaylee, and Simon with plans to torture them for information using high tech methods that cause quite a sting. But all is not lost. Elsewhere, Emma Washburne, her friend and mechanic Lu Bao, and the mysterious Rasalia, have found an old friend that could help find their captured family and stop Blue Sun.

Set nearly 20 years after the regular Firefly series, Brand New ‘Verse changes the story’s dynamic by introducing Zoë and Wash’s strong-willed 18-year-old daughter and a new generation still fighting against Blue Sun’s control. Writer Josh Lee Gordon has established the voices of the main characters while adding realistic new layers to their experiences.

“Passing the torch” stories are often shadows of the originals, but this one is developed well and could set up a whole new ongoing series in the Firefly ‘Verse.

-Amanda Sheriff