| Review:
"Thanks for getting the name right, Batman, but I’m not
Firefly anymore. With your last breath, call me Phosphorus!"
In appearance number four, Firefly finally grows into a well-developed character. He wasn’t a poor character before, but you didn’t really know Garfield Lynns that well. You didn’t even know his real name. A second-tier villain on the show, you find out that
Firefly is second-tier villain in Gotham too, with most not even knowing what he calls himself. In a world dominated by Jokers and
Penguins, Firefly has been nothing but a hired (flaming) gun and finally sees an opportunity to make a name for himself with his new business and personal partnership with Blaze. This was a fun ride from start to finish with the devolution and evolution of a villain, some great action, a little Alfred wit ("…perhaps I could let out the shoulders?"), Robin-Batgirl bickering within tolerable levels, a new Bat-costume variant and even a decent love story. Jason Marsden shows his range in an excellent performance as Firefly/Phosphorus. You really feel him descend from his happiness with where his life is headed at the beginning, to his madness and quest for power in the middle, to his despair over where he has ended up at the conclusion. Once he is able to cool down, he finds himself among Batman’s
"pathetic Arkham wack jobs" and burned (sorry) by the woman he seemed to actually care about. He finally got the attention he wanted, but he’s not Firefly anymore, he’s not Garfield Lynns either. Only Phosphorus remains. |
