Warning: Spoilers for Firefly: Malcolm Reynolds Year One #1!The Firefly Universe changes forever as it finally delves deep into the world and the mind of Malcolm “Mal” Reynolds. Fans fell in love almost instantly with the devil-may-care character of Mal from the moment he debuted on screen in the show’s pilot. With that said, the show has always been mysterious about its past, and because of its quick cancellation, never had time to delve deeper into its origins.
Firefly: Malcolm Reynolds: Year One #1 by Sam Humphries, Giovanni Fabiano, Gloria Martinelli and Jim Campbell finally takes the time to give audiences the prequel origin story readers have been waiting for. The TV show only provided little breadcrumbs – if even that – of where Mal came from and how he became the character he is when fans meet him.
This one-shot expands on the breadcrumbs and, by proxy, Expands on the knowledge of FireflyGive the franchisee a companion piece equivalent to that of Batman: Year One.
Breaking down Mal’s New Origin Story
What readers learn about Mal in this new Firefly funny
In the original show, not much is known about Mal beyond the fact that he was raised by a mother and “About 40 Hands” On a ranch in the middle of Planet Shadow. Year one Expands on this knowledge by adding to the fact that Mal was a member of a gang as a young man, called the Shadow Hunter Gang. Mal and his compatriots ambush a bus with weapons, or so they think. Another inspection reveals that the bus is indeed empty, and the whole thing is an ambush orchestrated by the Alliance.
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Unfortunately for Mal, his partners in crime decide that someone needs to stay behind to take the brunt of the crime, so they flee the scene on jetpacks that Mal doesn’t even know they have. Mal was arrested and charged with “Acts of Arms Pilferin. War Profiterrin.” Mal doesn’t even know about the Unification War, and he’s given two choices for his sentencing. His first option is to go to the Gulag on Trucks Seven. Sometimes the second option is picked up without even knowing what it is, probably because something sounds better than a labor camp.
Mal’s origin story certainly adds a new layer as to why Mal hates the Alliance as much as he always has. It’s more than just hating the enemy’s enemies, but because he’s forced to be a recruit and, as a result, he witnesses firsthand how the Alliance operates and treats his own.
Mal doesn’t know that option two is to join the Alliance as a major participant in the war. The new caveat to Mal’s origin story certainly adds a new layer as to why Mal hates the Alliance as much as he always has. It’s more than just hating the enemy’s enemies, it’s because he’s forced to be a recruit and, as a result, he witnesses firsthand how the Alliance operates and treats his own. He hates the alliance because he knows the alliance far too well.
How Mal Met the Browncoats
And how it changed his life
Mal often reports back to his mother through letters about how much he hates the Unification War and how much he hates the kind of work he is forced to do. The job includes seemingly never-ending marching drills and digging up dead bodies, which are used to prove a point to soldiers like Mal about where they will go if they betray the Alliance. He especially hates his commanding officer, Gardner, and from day one, the feeling is mutual. During one of the endless digging and marching rituals that Gardner orchestrates, Their unit was ambushed.
An explosion rocks everyone at ground level, and Gardner is stabbed in the back. Mal and one Montgomery “Monty” Clearwater take cover as the Browncoats set up a beachhead. It is at this point that Mal has the bright idea that if he and Monty reach their ship, the Browncoats will welcome them both with open arms. He’s sure that’s the case, because they hate the bond as much as the Browncoats do. Before they can reach the Browncoats, though, one of the Browncoats approaches them first with a gun. The browncoat introduces herself as Corporal Zoe Allen.
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Somehow, it’s not surprising to see that Zoe and Mal’s first interaction is with her waving a gun in his face. After all, this is the life of a bounty hunter and a browncoat. Just as the Browncoats’ trademark signature is to shoot first and ask questions later, Mal’s signature is to use his trademark charm. A week passes for Mal and Monty as they are prisoners of the Browncoats. That’s when they reunited with Zoe. Talking about his life on Seven Pines is enough for Mal to catch Zoe’s attention, and he even gets her to crack a smile.
This is also when Mal tries to convince Zoe that he and Monty actually left the Alliance and would rather be Browncoats. Eventually, it is the Alliance that ambushes the Browncoats in return. Monty is quick to escape to freedom, hoping to escape the war, but Mal decides to stay behind to save the Browncoats, eventually convincing Monty to do the same. This is enough to convince Zoe and company that Mal is a true believer and a true Browncoat. They both earn their browncoat status, with Mal getting his signature pistol and coat at the end.
As this origin changes Firefly Lor
Year one Paint Mal in a whole new light
Among many other things, This one-shot manages to completely recontextualize the importance of the Browncoats to Mal. It raises the stakes of his loyalty to the Browncoats as much as it shines a light on the reasons behind his hatred of the Alliance. The Browncoats are there for Mal when all hope seems lost, and when he is mentally beaten and battered by war in ways he could never imagine as a child ignorant of what war is all about. He needs the Browncoats as much as the Browncoats need Mal.
Similarly, it showcases how Mal first gets his signature pistol that he touts throughout the TV series. It’s a smaller reveal, but it’s still significant because it reveals the story of how Mal got a major accessory in his iconic costume. It’s no different than showing how a superhero gets their signature emblem or, sticking in the frame of a Year one Analogy, how Batman decides to use a bat as a symbol. Even a small anecdote builds on firefly s Learn in a way that informs readers about Mal Reynolds‘ character in ways the show can’t.
Firefly: Malcolm Reynolds: Year One #1 is now on sale from BOOM! studios.