Hanna, Blackbeard’s daughter, is doing her best to live up to the legacy of her old man. She’s captain of her own ship, leading a band of female pirates across the high seas in search of booty (the kind in treasure chests). Hanna and her crew are also on the run from a fellow pirate, Purloin- Hanna used her… feminine wiles… and scammed the old coot out of his share of a deal they made. But her first obstacle is the wicked storm she’s sailed her ship into, and the growing unease of a crew that is terrified and perhaps ready to revolt. But the daughter of the greatest pirate ever isn’t going to back down… to nature or anyone else.

It would have been easy for Arvin to make LEGACY a piss take on pirate comics; a ship manned by only women is right behind “women in prison” flicks for skin and lesbian hijinx potential. However, the writer plays it straight, developing Hanna as a ruthless character with a streak of cruelty that’s almost demanded of her because of her position of power. Indeed, there isn’t really much in the way of real action in the story, mostly set-up for the longer tale, but you don’t lose interest because you’re drawn into discovering what kind of person this pirate really is.

The one place the book could have used a pick-me-up is on the art side, as Giacondino is a bit inconsistent in his storytelling and there’s a lack of flow to some of the panel work. Still, this has the potential to be a solid book for Bluewater and I’ll be paying attention.

Marc Mason