"Firefly" (2002) TV series 2002-2003

Creator:

Joss Whedon

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

20 September 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Sci-Fi

Plot:

Five hundred years in the future, a renegade crew aboard a small, mobile, spacecraft tries to survive as they travel the unknown parts of the galaxy and evade warring factions as well as authority agents out to get them.

Plot Keywords:

Alliance | Pilot | Captain | Psychic | Future

Awards:

Won Primetime Emmy. Another 3 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

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)

Also Known As:

Firefly: The Series (USA) (long title)
Joss Whedon's Firefly (Australia)

Runtime:

42 min (15 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

UK:12 (12 episodes) | UK:PG (2 episodes) | Singapore:M18 | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Mutant Enemy

Trivia:

The sound made by Mel's hand gun is the same sound as the titular character's hand gun in the Spaghetti Western Django (1966), played by Franco Nero.

Goofs:

Continuity: The Chinese characters for "Blue Sun" change from episode to episode. On Jayne's T-shirt, "Blue Sun" is "qing ri", but in logo signs, it's "lan ri". "Qing" and "lan" refer to different colors (green and blue, respectively).

Quotes:

[opening narration for episodes: Train Job, Bushwacked, Our Mrs. Reynolds, Jaynestown]
Book: After the Earth was used up, we found a new solar system and hundreds of new Earths were terraformed and colonized. The central planets formed the Alliance and decided all the planets had to join under their rule. There was some disagreement on that point...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Re-Lighting the Firefly (2005) (V)

Soundtrack:

The Ballad of Serenity

Beautifully crafted and enjoyable series

This show blew me away. The beauty of the production, the detail in the sets, the well written characters, the intelligent stories and concepts, the fun, the drama, and the excitement all amazed me. I don't usually spend time watching TV, but I honestly hated having to wait until the next show! :)

The special effects are seamlessly integrated and beautifully detailed. The manner in which the show was presented - the hand-held cameras, the use of zooms, and the occasional off-focus effect - was very intriguing, giving it a look of a show that was real and gritty, something that really caught your attention but didn't distract you from what was being presented. It made you feel like you were really there, like it was believable.

While there was a Western attitude and flavor to some of the episodes, I always felt that it was more about the lack of authority, the fact that people were just dropped out on these planets without the kinds of support that you would expect. It's presented very well and makes sense to me, although I've heard others take a different approach to it.

If you have the opportunity to get the DVDs, I would highly suggest it. It is well worth the money!