 Five hundred years in the future there's a whole new frontier, and the crew of the Firefly-class spaceship Serenity is eager to stake a claim on the action. They'll take any job, legal or illegal, to keep fuel in the tanks and food on the table. But things get a bit more complicated after they take on a passenger wanted by the new totalitarian Alliance regime. Now they find themselves on the run, desperate to steer clear of Alliance ships and the flesh-eating Reavers who live on the fringes of space. Storyline: Captain Malcom 'Mal' Reynolds is a former galactic war veteran who is the captain of the transport ship "Serenity", Mal his crew of hired transporters, Mal's ensign Zoe Alleyne Washburne, Zoe's husband, pilot Hoban 'Wash' Washburne, muscular former combat soldier Jayne Cobb, young engineer Kaylee Frye, former Alliance medical officer Simon Tam, his teenage sister River (Both on-the-run from the Interplanetary government "The Alliance"), the beautiful "companion" Inara Serra and religious man Shepard Book do legal or illegal jobs (smuggling, protecting, guns-for-hire, robberies) as the Serenity crew travels across the outskirts of Outer Space for food, money, anything to make a living on, as The Serenity crew tries to stay under the radar of The Alliance and pulls dangerous jobs in the Alliance controlled star systems. Written by Daniel Williamson Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Ben Williams on December 19, 2008 -- For fans of science fiction, today's television landscape is graced by a number of groundbreaking series. "Lost," "Battlestar Galactica" and "Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles" all consistently deliver sci-fi greatness, critical acclaim and a high level of popularity on a weekly basis. However, back in 2002, when "Firefly" premiered on the Fox Network, science fiction had been suffering a protracted dry spell on network television. As is all to frequently the case, "Firefly" laid the groundwork for sci-fi's reentry into the popular consciousness, but struggled to find an audience of its own. Despite only airing 11 episodes, "Firefly" attracted a legion of devoted fans, many of whom didn't discover the show until it appeared on DVD some time later. It's a testament to the show's exceptional characters, story and writing that, six years later, it is still considered a fan favorite that has the ability to inspire intense debate, fandom and passion. "Firefly" is the "Star Trek" of this current generation of science fiction. It's a series that begs to be reinvestigated and, hopefully, continued. "Firefly" takes place within an interstellar civilization that has left the confines of Earth and the solar system, and has colonized a galaxy, well.... far, far, away. This society has taken on a form similar to that of the American old west. Centralized planets make up the more technically advanced and culturally enlightened portion of the society, where those on the outer rim of the galaxy are more pioneering in spirit. The series begins a few years after a civil war has rocked the galaxy and pit the core systems against the outlaw inhabitants of these outer rim colonies. "Firefly" is unique in that our heroes, Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion), Zoe Washburne (Gina Torres), "Wash" Washburne (Alan Tudyk), Inara Serra (Monaca Baccarin), Jayne Cobb (Adam Baldwin) and Kaylee Frye (Jewel Staite) are all pioneers who experienced the defeat of their cause and have taken to lives of crime in an act of defiance against the Interstellar Alliance that now governs their lives. These pioneering rogues live together on a ship called Serenity and make a living in the smuggling of goods and people across interstellar space, while attempting to avoid the prying influence of the Alliance. Early in the series, the crew is joined by Dr. Simon Tam (Sean Maher) and his odd sister River (Summer Glau). The series evolves by detailing events from River's troubled past as the victim of experimentation by the Alliance, while simultaneously weaving an arc that focuses on the crew's activities around the galaxy. As one of uber-writer Joss Whedon's creations, "Firefly" is an extraordinarily well-written and detailed show. While there are occasional standalone episodes, the show is serialized and develops character arcs over the course of the entire series. As such, "Firefly" isn't the kind of show where a viewer can skip around among the episodes. The show's dialogue is written in an almost poetic way and often makes use of sayings and phrases that are unique to this universe. Character development is the keystone to the show, so while there are plenty of action scenes, the show's emphasis is in building the personalities and traits of each of the well-drawn members of the crew. "Firefly" may at times seem to be a very serious and dramatic show, but the series is also infused with a fantastic humorous undercurrent that helps to lighten the subject matter. My favorite aspect of the show lies in how it requires the viewer to accept the many shades of grey that each character possesses. To be sure, our heroes are criminals. It's a giant leap of faith made by the writing staff to ask the audience to accept the character flaws present in each crew member in a overall attempt at drawing a complex portrait of a society where the good guys aren't necessarily the ruling power. Mal Reynolds is a good example of this. I still don't know if I like him as a person, but one has to respect his honorable nature despite his occasional preference for financial gain over moral obligation. It's a complex narrative that demands the viewer's attention and was probably more than general audiences were up to challenging themselves with. "Firefly" is an outstanding television show that was cancelled well before its time. I recommend that viewers who purchase this set also seek out the fabulous film Serenity as it serves as a nice conclusion to the events of the show that were left hanging after its cancellation. "Firefly" is highly recommended. "Firefly" on Blu-ray includes the following episodes: 1 "Serenity" 2 "The Train Job" 3 "Bushwhacked" 4 "Shindig" 5 "Safe" 6 "Our Mrs. Reynolds" 7 "Jaynestown" 8 "Out of Gas" 9 "Ariel" 10 "War Stories" 11 "Trash" 12 "The Message" 13 "Heart of Gold" 14 "Objects in Space" "Firefly" is a rare show that has inspired legions of fans around the world, a major motion picture, Serenity, while helping to usher quality science fiction back to television screens. The series presents extraordinary characters, inspired writing and a detailed and lived-in universe that could have inspired viewers for years. As the show arrives on Blu-ray, fans have been presented with an excellent video transfer that does justice to the original photographic style of the show, while offering an appreciable upgrade over the previous DVD version. Audio is a bit on the uninspiring side, but does its very best considering the limited source material. Supplements will, no doubt, please Joss Whedon fans to no end, but casual viewers might not find much of interest. Regardless of any of the above, "Firefly" is as good as television gets. It deserves to find a new audience on Blu-ray. Viewing "Firefly" is an incomplete experience without also checking out the show's theatrical continuation, Serenity. As both are now available on Blu-ray, these two releases offer up some seriously amazing science fiction at a level of quality not before available to fans. Highly Recommended! On the Blu-ray discs Firefly has a picture that's a little softer than most Blu-ray discs (especially in the effects shots), but it is an improvement over the DVDs (even in an upconverting DVD player or Blu-ray player), and the punchy sound (DTS HD 5.1 compared to the DVDs' 2.0 surround) is a definite upgrade. In addition to the original bonus features, there are a couple new ones: a 25-minute conversation among Whedon, Nathan Fillion, Ron Glass, and Alan Tudyk in which they discuss the series and a number of specific episodes (Fillion recalls thinking he was getting fired after the first episode), and a new commentary track by the four fellows on "Our Mrs. Reynolds." And since it's easy to get sucked into watching multiple episodes, it's nice to have a Play All feature on the BDs. --David Horiuchi Cast Notes: Nathan Fillion (Captain Malcolm 'Mal' Reynolds [14 episodes, 2002-2003]), Gina Torres (Zoë Washburne [14 episodes, 2002-2003]), Alan Tudyk (Hoban 'Wash' Washburne [14 episodes, 2002-2003]), Morena Baccarin (Inara Serra [14 episodes, 2002-2003]), Adam Baldwin (Jayne Cobb [14 episodes, 2002-2003]), Jewel Staite (Kaylee Frye [14 episodes, 2002-2003]), Sean Maher (Dr. Simon Tam [14 episodes, 2002-2003]), Summer Glau (River Tam [14 episodes, 2002-2003]), Ron Glass (Shepherd Book [14 episodes, 2002-2003]). User Comment: zakal from Salt Lake City, 10 October 2003 • FOX must have the greatest talent scouts in the world, but the worst executives. "Firefly" is the best example. It was simultaneously the best new show, the best western series in decades, and the best sci-fi show on TV (and coming from a die-hard Trekkie, placing them above "Enterprise" is saying something). They didn't have a single bad episode, and some were spectacular. The premise, the characters, the plots and the dialogue were all top-notch. And FOX cancelled it without even really giving it a chance. Maybe the show couldn't stand in the end. Maybe I'm alone in this, and there aren't enough fans to justify what the show cost. But making that call after half a season, with half of the episodes pre-empted for baseball playoffs was a phenomenally stupid thing to do. That show should have been here to stay, and it got axed without a chance to prove itself. I only pray the movie works out. At least we'll have something. Summary: What was FOX thinking?! User Comment: littlemissknowitall from Toronto, Canada, 30 May 2004 • As with BtVS, the world is divided into people who get Firefly and people who don't. In this series Joss Whedon created one of the most realistic post-war visions of the future ever committed to tape, that at the same time spoke about yesterday and today. Maybe a little too much today for its own good. The series is anti-corporate, anti-government and, while it takes the stand that some things are worth fighting for, it is largely anti-war. No wonder FOX did everything in its power to kill it off, including airing episodes out of order, skipping weeks after airing only three eps and, inevitably canceling the show without even airing episodes 12, 13 and 14 (out of 15). This was particularly damaging, as Firefly had a greater sense of ongoing plot than any other Whedon series in its first year. Viewers were left wondering, on more than one occasion, when a character would reference something we hadn't seen yet. The backstage dramatics aside, Firefly is intelligent and, like Buffy, mythic - except this time Whedon is dealing with the myth of America: the Frontier, the Civil War, the rise of the Corporation, etc . . . Firefly is a demanding show. It asks its audience to appreciate the shades of grey in its characters' moral scale. The villains are not comfortingly dressed as an alien race. In 500 years mankind will still be its own worst enemy. Technology will be in the hands of a privileged few, and others will in "The Black" - Whedon's frontier third world - where it is possible to exist without the interference (or benefit) of civilization and government. Things will be dirty, and used. Firefly creates a universe that almost totally opposes that of (that bastion of television sci-fi) Star Trek: its Federation-like central power (the Alliance) is interpreted as being oppressive and dystopic. We are on the side of those who resisted (like the Maqui) and lost. The acting is strong, the writing as excellent, funny and moving as on any Whedon show, and the effects and sets create a consistent, believable world. It is a shame the series didn't have a more hospitable environment in which to grow and become all it could have been. Summary: Could have been great. IMDb Rating (02/11/17): 9.1/10 from 196,590 users
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