SPOILERS!
During last week’s Browncoat Cruise, Ron Glass said Joss had given the OK for him to reveal some tidbits about Book. As follows:
1. There will be a Dark Horse Comic released next year about Book called The Shepherd’s Tale
2. A part of Shepherd Book is artificial
3. He found God in a bowl of soup
4. Book is best known for his greatest failure
5. “Derrial” is not his real name. He took that name from a man he killed.
No other details on the comic available so far, but keep checking back.
Wow! Yes! Sooo happy! Any number of phrases could sum up my thoughts but I’ll go with: shiny.
“Wasn’t born a shepherd, Mal. “
Feelin’ a bit conflicted about this – excitement at knowing what was up with Book all this time, but a little sad because I seem to remember Joss saying something along the lines of “I’ll tell Book’s story when there is no possible chance of another show/film/etc”
Hey, ONE story about his past isn’t the WHOLE story, so I’m good with it. I bet it answers maybe 3 questions, tops, and leaves you asking dozens more. 🙂
Plus, I call this the “etc.” portion of show/film/etc.
I think when Joss said he’d tell Book’s story, I think he meant like at a Con or in an interview, if no other outlet was left. Comics are a long-standing tradition for sci-fi storytelling, and I, for one, am gorram excited!
Awesome. I can’t wait for this and the “Serenity: Better Days” comic.
I have happies.
why comics?! Why not a good old fashioned book! I would love to read a novel about Book’s travels.
Ryan, I think there are two possibilities:
1) Joss writes comics, rather than novels, so we’re more likely to see his actual work here.
2) Joss has more experience directing comic series, particularly given his current work on Buffy Season 8, so he’ll be more directly involved in a comic than he would be in a novel.
3) I suspect that Mutant Enemy has more complete creative control over comics, given that there are “official” (meaning cannonical) comics for the TV series, and I think the “cannon” status of most of the previous novels set in the Whedonverse is hotly debated. 🙂
Note: I meant three above. Apparently counting is not my strong suit today. 😉
I have been dying to know what Book’s story was and I look forward to the possibility of finding out!
One thing that is fairly probable is that book was an Operative…Remember that Jubal knew of him.
I”ve heavily considered the fact that he was an operative as well. He has a high status with the Alliance and seems to know alot anout their inner workings.
Why does everyone keep saying they think he’s an Operative? I would be sorely disappointed if he’s an ex-Operative. I don’t think the ‘Verse is that small.
I still have my theories, but they’re long.
I hope at the end of the series we find out that Book survived the BDM, because of his hidden past. That would be a real good twist
Im thinking he’s not an Operative, maybe some high ranked military guy or something or ex. assasin used by the allience. I think thats more likelybecouse Jubal actually knew about him, if he was an operative how would a bounty hunter know who he was? Operatives are supposed to effectivly “not exist”.
I don’t think Jubal necessarily “knew” or “knew of” Book. I think it was more of Jubal taking advantage of his long-term surveillance of the crew and psychological knowledge. He took out Mal and Book the same way–hard and fast–and then pulled a psyche-out on Kaylee. I think it is feasible that a man of Jubal’s type would be able to gauge the sort of resistance he’s got to deal with and recognize what others on the crew did too by then; Book definitely “wasn’t born a Shepherd.” He’d given plenty of evidence of it even by then.
Noah, if Dobson survived the pilot Book should survive the movie, says me.
But don’t forget that they actually buried Book, while Dobson they just sort of tossed out after shooting him.
Thank you
in looking at it, and thinking, I’m of the opinion that Book was something of Mal’s opposite during the Battle of Serenity Valley. and that before the war he lived kind of like Mal does now (not the flying on a ship avoiding civilization, but the rest). however in the battle the same moment that caused Mal to loose his faith is the same moment that caused Book to question his own faith in the Alliance. both men entered a time of wandering, eventually finding their own answers.
this could explain the reception he got on the alliance cruiser in “Safe” ( war hero) and how he knows how to handle weapons (i.e. the shot from the hip in “warstories”) and several other tidbits they gave us during the show.
‘corse this is all speculation…
in the first deleted scene on the DVD, Zoe interupts Simon listening to a historic description of the battle of serenity valley. Just before Simon stops the recording, it is talking about the alliance troops “led by general-” and he stops it just as the name is about to be read. I speculate that book was the general that beat Mal in serenity valley.
I hope they can make the comics into a syndicated cartoon for adults such as Family Guy. They can then make simultanseous live action films and also cartoons. It is Dec 7, 2008. When is this comic coming out?
Does anyone know if this comic is still being published? I keep checking on Amazon for it to be available and it never is, but they sounded pretty sure about making it, so I keep hoping that somehow it’s just been delayed.