DVD | Firefly

Rating: M - Contains Violence, Offensive Language & Sex Scenes.
Duration: Aprox 45 mins per episode.
Genre : Television Sci-fi.
Actors: Alan Tudyk, Sean Maher, Adam Baldwin, Nathan Fillion, Ron Glass, Summer Glau, Gina Torres, Jewel Staite, Morena Baccarin.
Release Date: Available now.

I’ve never been a fan of Joss Whedon’s material – Buffy and Angel never did appeal to me, but then if I’m being honest, I don’t think I would have gotten into Firefly either. As with Lost, the first couple of episodes really didn’t grab me, but then I got into it. I fell in love with the characters and the whole (slightly cheesy) futuristic-space-western feel of the series. It seemed in the end like it was sheer brilliance. The multifarious (yes, I used a thesaurus for that word) crew helps keep the whole series interesting. I mean where else would you get a crew that consists of a group of smugglers, a ‘companion’ a ‘shepherd’, and a doctor and his genius sister on the run form the law?

The series had a lot going for it – a storyline that could go for a number of seasons (if Fox hadn’t canned it before the first season was over), an underdog storyline that runs through the series, and the aforementioned crew, who don’t always get on with each other, but manage to learn from each other through adversity and fortune.

Stylistically and visually Firefly was a treat – the rust bucket named Serenity, was loved by its crew, despite being an obsolete spacecraft – they knew the potential she still held. The sets were lovingly detailed, and the whole feel was a surreal mix of old and new, rusty decay and shiny anaesthetic.

Pace wise, as I implied before, the first couple of episodes were ho-hum, but as you got into the series, it became addictive, and the action started to heat up, climaxing in a final episode that had you desperate for more.

Candy for the brain as it was, Firefly gave a little more than just a sugary high, it was a place that we could all relate to, in part, and feel accepted and safe. It had some great nuggets of wisdom, and explored more than one modern misconception.

Food for thought
The crew of Serenity were a mix that included a prostitute and a Preacher. Both struggled with the existence of each other, but in the end realised that they were both feeling ill at ease, only because of there pre-conceptions of what they though the other person thought of them. Jesus tended to mix with people that made everyone else feel uneasy. Is there anyone you try to avoid because they aren’t the type of person who you feel like you should associate with? Why is that? And who made up these social rules anyway?