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Product Description
Product Description
One of Serenity's greatest mysteries is finally revealed in The Shepherd's Tale, filling in the life of one of the show's most beloved characters - Shepherd Book! Who was Book before meeting Mal and the rest of the Serenity crew, how did he become one of their most trusted allies, and how did he find God in a bowl of soup? Answers to these and more questions about Book's past are uncovered in this original hardcover graphic novel by rising stars Zack Whedon (Dr. Horrible, Terminator, Fringe) and Chris Samnee (Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps, Daredevil) . A pivotal chapter in the ongoing Serenity saga, The Shepherd's Tale is also a rollicking, action-packed epic in its own right.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
"I wasn't born a Shepherd, Mal."
"You have to tell me about that sometime."
"No, I don't."
A graphic novel about Shepherd Book was never going to be as good as a Book-centric episode of Firefly. But wait - it is. (And hell,
he deserves it for his meager role in Serenity.)
"A Shepherd's Tale" is a heavily biographical series of flashbacks through the life of Shepherd Derrial Book. It illustrates where Shepherd
Book was as a child, a teen and a grown man, and does so in a spectacularly unexpected narrative style. There are more than a few twists in
the Shepherd's Tale, and for all those Browncoats eager to discover just how he knows so much about the Alliance, this is a necessity.
If, like me, you are not an avid comic-book reader, there are a few things you should remember. This is not simply a book. The visuals are
as relevant as the text, if not more so. Incredible love and care have been put into the illustrations. Treat this graphic novel like another
episode of Firefly, not like a novel. Read it slowly. Ron Glass played Book with cool wisdom and Zen-like composure, and these qualities
are prominent throughout the story - the narrative style fits Book's character perfectly.
Of course it's not as snappy as an episode of Firefly. There's no music, and the dialogue is less playful. But Malcom Reynolds is a
young man. Book is not. Just appreciate what there is here.
And if you are a graphic novel fan, well, why haven't you bought a copy already?
The book itself is a treasure. Hardcover, high-quality printing, great cover art, and an author's note at the back. Very well presented,
and well worth the money.
"You have to tell me about that sometime."
"No, I don't."
A graphic novel about Shepherd Book was never going to be as good as a Book-centric episode of Firefly. But wait - it is. (And hell,
he deserves it for his meager role in Serenity.)
"A Shepherd's Tale" is a heavily biographical series of flashbacks through the life of Shepherd Derrial Book. It illustrates where Shepherd
Book was as a child, a teen and a grown man, and does so in a spectacularly unexpected narrative style. There are more than a few twists in
the Shepherd's Tale, and for all those Browncoats eager to discover just how he knows so much about the Alliance, this is a necessity.
If, like me, you are not an avid comic-book reader, there are a few things you should remember. This is not simply a book. The visuals are
as relevant as the text, if not more so. Incredible love and care have been put into the illustrations. Treat this graphic novel like another
episode of Firefly, not like a novel. Read it slowly. Ron Glass played Book with cool wisdom and Zen-like composure, and these qualities
are prominent throughout the story - the narrative style fits Book's character perfectly.
Of course it's not as snappy as an episode of Firefly. There's no music, and the dialogue is less playful. But Malcom Reynolds is a
young man. Book is not. Just appreciate what there is here.
And if you are a graphic novel fan, well, why haven't you bought a copy already?
The book itself is a treasure. Hardcover, high-quality printing, great cover art, and an author's note at the back. Very well presented,
and well worth the money.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The background of Shepard Book remained mysterious and unknown through the short half-season of Firefly and its follow-up film, Serenity, with just vague hints to show that he once had a life very different from that of a wise old preacher. I always assumed that this was because Joss Whedon felt that allusion and hints had created something so interesting and elusive that revealing Book's true past would inevitably end up disappointing the audience. Accordingly, when I saw this, I was delighted. "Surely," thought I, "the long silence regarding Book's past has only been broken because the writers thought up something even better than whatever we could imagine. They wouldn't ruin his aura of mystery for no good reason. Instant purchase!" I was totally mistaken. Far from giving wider contexts to the small elements of Book's backstory that were shown in the series, the comic contradicts them. It is told in reverse chronological order (a bit like Memento, except, you know, bad) and simply gives snapshots of various parts of his life rather than a coherent narrative. ***Minor spoiler alert*** (until the end of this paragraph): only a few of the glimpses show him in employment with the Alliance, and they make total nonsense of an incident in the show where he was helped by the Alliance, as, frankly, if the events in the comic are regarded as canon, I don't see why the Alliance would ever help him with *anything*.
The visual elements are okay (not amazing, but not incompetent), which made me contemplate giving this two stars for all of, say, two seconds. I didn't because the story drags everything else down.
To conclude: I wish I could unread this comic. I would have felt cheated even if I hadn't paid for it, but, because I did, I feel doubly cheated. I write this review so that you can avoid my mistake. While most of the reviews here are positive (which is part of what led me to buy it), the product's page on Amazon.com has many more reviews, a large proportion of them negative. I wish that I had seen them first. See here for the one-star reviews (some of which contain spoilers, but, frankly, I think the comic comes pre-spoiled due to its awful quality) [...]
The visual elements are okay (not amazing, but not incompetent), which made me contemplate giving this two stars for all of, say, two seconds. I didn't because the story drags everything else down.
To conclude: I wish I could unread this comic. I would have felt cheated even if I hadn't paid for it, but, because I did, I feel doubly cheated. I write this review so that you can avoid my mistake. While most of the reviews here are positive (which is part of what led me to buy it), the product's page on Amazon.com has many more reviews, a large proportion of them negative. I wish that I had seen them first. See here for the one-star reviews (some of which contain spoilers, but, frankly, I think the comic comes pre-spoiled due to its awful quality) [...]
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I did read the various reviews before I bought this graphic novella, and decided to take the risk. I now regret that. The story basically is a series of flash backs, each taking you a few years further back, each either linked or related, but none satisfying, and while Shepherds back ground is explained, it's feels like it's just a pander to those who could only believe that he was ever good, so even where he's been bad there have been reasons.
This is the sort of story you wish had not been done, and instead Shepherd's back ground left a mystery. Early parts are just refreshes of existing knowledge and later (earlier in his life) vignettes are quickly over. Also at least one of these makes an incident in the television show impossible to happen.
If you are going to buy this, look for a second hand copy, you'll be less upset by the cost.
This is the sort of story you wish had not been done, and instead Shepherd's back ground left a mystery. Early parts are just refreshes of existing knowledge and later (earlier in his life) vignettes are quickly over. Also at least one of these makes an incident in the television show impossible to happen.
If you are going to buy this, look for a second hand copy, you'll be less upset by the cost.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
At last!
I had bought everything to do with Firefly I came across. Eager, mostly, to find out about Book. Standing out as such an interesting character in an ensemble of interesting... Read more
Published 17 days ago by Jolyon M. Bain
Good story , poor illustrations
As a fan of Firefly + Serentiy I'm always keen to read more stuff about that 'verse .
The Shepherds tale fills in the back story of Shepherd Books life + is a gripping and... Read more
The Shepherds tale fills in the back story of Shepherd Books life + is a gripping and... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Lies Inc.
Good Story
A must for all FireFly Fans a great story and unexpected twists and well drawn. Shame it was never turned in to an episode.
Published 5 months ago by BrenTeck
love it
I am a huge Firefly fan and love this as a tie in with the series!
If you want to know why Shephard ie the way he is - read this comic
If you want to know why Shephard ie the way he is - read this comic
Published 6 months ago by blossom1044
at last - we find out about the shepherds past
I won't spoil the surprise, but for any brown coats out there, this is what you have been looking for. All those little questions about Shepherd Book's past are answered.
Published 6 months ago by jmnGeek
Good but doesn't satisfy
I tried to sum up my thoughts in the title for this review. The comic is told piece by piece from the present day to the earliest years of Book. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Christian
An important piece of the story
I loved it, the only issue is that it's too short! The Shepherd's Tale gives a great insight into one of Serenity's most complex and interesting passengers. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Sarah Purssell
Firefly fans will enjoy
I'm a bit of a secret sci-fi fan - I don't enjoy all of it, and I prefer fantasy, but I love Serenity and Firefly. Read more
Published 16 months ago by vixstix4
Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale
I had been long anticipating the release of shepherd books tale to help fill in some of the blanks about shepherd's mysterious past and how he left Serenity and the background of... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Omage
disappointing
Well, as a fan of Firefly and Serenity it appears the comic book form is the only way we are going to get our fix. So a rare opportunity for me to buy and read a comic book. Read more
Published 18 months ago by N. Brett
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