Click HERE to see this thread with all of the graphics, features, and links.

I hope there isn't already a thread on this spectacular movie, but oh well.

Who's seen it? and if you haven't seen it go see it. it has an 8.6 on IMDB, last time I checked. It's supposed to follow "firefly" but you can understand it great without seeing firefly.by the way, the begining of ROTS (the gallactic battle) was like a sissy fight compared to the federation and the reavers in "serenity".


Go see it now, you'll thank me later

So this really is a good movie? Well, I've had my doubts, only because the previews make it seem cheesey... but I might go see it now.

I thought the exact same thing, I walked into the theater not expecting much, and BAM! they threw action and excitement in my face like a half-baked apple pie.

Would you buy the film when it comes out for DVD?

Of corse.

Serenity was a pretty good movie I thought, elements of originality definitely do exist in this film.

ok movie but abit drawn out i thought. bit like starwars iii with the space fight scene and i also thought it abit boring on the dead plannet but over all 7/10

I'm not a big fan of Sci-Fi but I went to see it with my dad and I thought it was amazing! There were a few good laughs in it. I even started crying,but don't trust my judgement on that I cried during charlie and the chocolate factory too.

Originally posted by Celestialgirl
I'm not a big fan of Sci-Fi but I went to see it with my dad and I thought it was amazing! There were a few good laughs in it. I even started crying,but don't trust my judgement on that I cried during charlie and the chocolate factory too.

why?

Did you see it snakeEyes?

one of the best movies i've ever seen. a lot of great action and some funny jokes adds up to an awesome movie

Originally posted by Mandorallen
Did you see it snakeEyes?

Not yet. I plan on it though. Didn't get a chance to go to the movies last weekend... and before that, I made the mistake of seeing A History of Violence. I'll try to go this weekend.

allright, good luck, i hope nobody talks behind you during the movie, or have kareem-abdul-jabbar sit in front of you.

Damn! Now you jinxed it!

Wrote a review here

I LOVED Serenity. . .

So unbeleivably good. . . words fail me.

Great sig ^

I liked it a lot, and I'm really not a big fan of sci-fi movies. Great script, great action sequences, and best of all, characters which you actually care about. That guy who played Mal, never seen him in anything before, he was really excellent, I hope he goes onto big things.

Puts George Lucas to (even more) shame.

Am I the only one who thought this movie was garbage? The reavers were dawn of the dead knock-offs, the guy with the sword was the shallowest main character Ive ever seen, the captain of the serenity was again a knock-off this time of Han Solo, and the 'super karate girl' was just annoying.

Originally posted by fruits
one of the best movies i've ever seen.

Then you haven't seen a lot of movies.

Originally posted by Great Vengeance
Am I the only one who thought this movie was garbage? The reavers were dawn of the dead knock-offs, the guy with the sword was the shallowest main character Ive ever seen, the captain of the serenity was again a knock-off this time of Han Solo, and the 'super karate girl' was just annoying.

That's what we call an "Opinion"

Originally posted by Great Vengeance
Am I the only one who thought this movie was garbage? The reavers were dawn of the dead knock-offs, the guy with the sword was the shallowest main character Ive ever seen, the captain of the serenity was again a knock-off this time of Han Solo, and the 'super karate girl' was just annoying.

Missing the point a little, it wasn't supposed to be original on the whole sci-fi inventions front. It was about the story and the dialogue, not an attempt to outdo Star Wars (although funnily enough, it did). And the guy with the sword wasn't the main character, and I fail to see why he was ''shallow'', the movie spent a good deal of time on his character.

Zombies aren't movie specific characters btw, so Serenity has just as much right to use those types of creatures as any other.

Originally posted by Deathblow

Zombies aren't movie specific characters btw, so Serenity has just as much right to use those types of creatures as any other.


They weren't even zombies to begin with.

Yeah, but they were very obviously based on them. And that's not the point anyway.

Originally posted by Deathblow
Missing the point a little, it wasn't supposed to be original on the whole sci-fi inventions front. It was about the story and the dialogue, not an attempt to outdo Star Wars (although funnily enough, it did). And the guy with the sword wasn't the main character, and I fail to see why he was ''shallow'', the movie spent a good deal of time on his character.

Zombies aren't movie specific characters btw, so Serenity has just as much right to use those types of creatures as any other.

Its okay if the movies not revolutionary, but the whole movie was cut and paste work and sloppy at that.

Over all impression was impressive. However, some parts lacked a dramatic feeling you might associate to some of this movie. At least it doesn't overdo that, like the Star Wars prequels did.

7/10

I'm not sure I understand complaints about the Operative. He's an idealist whose worldview is shattered in the end. His motives and personality are explained fairly well, so what more is expected of him? Most movie antagonists aren't so well developed.
It's a mistake to define Mal as a copy of Han Solo. They're both rogues of a sort who are both essentially moral individuals, but beyond that? Mal is a far more conflicted character, his experiences are the opposite of Han's (while the latter goes from being a smuggler who's out for number one to believing in the rebellion, the former has lost faith after his rebellion failed and circumstances force him to look out for number one). Do they fit the same general description? Yes. There are only so many different types of characters and none of them are "original" anymore, so to make similarities or influences out to be knock-offs is unjustified.
As for the Reavers, keep in mind this was created as something of a space western. The Reavers were created as the incomprehensible and violent "other" that Indians were used as in Westerns: the boogeyman out on the edge of civilization, keeping settlers scared, not zombies. The revelation of their origins was more akin to the revelation of Nazi concentration camps than anything: the side effect of trying to make a brave new world.
If an actual criticism had been made of River I might attempt to respond to it. "She's annoying" does not apply.

Beautifully stated Zarathustra, I couldn't agree more. Joss Whedon's movies/tv shows are deeply rooted in his characters and plot lines, and he tackles complex philosophical issues (violence in heroism, autonomy vs. society) with much more care and subtlety than George Lucas ever did. His characters are flawed, human and compelling when compared to the automotons in the SW prequels. I'm a huge fan of the tv show as well, which is equally well done.

All I know is that the little girl who was more than she seemed was absolutely awesome! She kicked ass. And I mean that on a galactic level. I can't wait to see the Firefly dvds.

Perhaps since its been so long since we have had good sci-fi in cinema, you people have forgotten...

Just got the Firefly series.

I love it.

I just finished the Firefly series and I loved every bit of it. By the way, the Reavers were more like 'Space Orcs' than zombies, and I loved every bit of that as well. It's a shame this series has been cancelled. The stories and characters were awesome! I can't wait to see the movie again. I saw the movie before I saw the series, and now the movie will be even better since I know more about the background of the events and characters from watching the series.

Originally posted by Tired Hiker
I just finished the Firefly series and I loved every bit of it. By the way, the Reavers were more like 'Space Orcs' than zombies, and I loved every bit of that as well. It's a shame this series has been cancelled. The stories and characters were awesome! I can't wait to see the movie again. I saw the movie before I saw the series, and now the movie will be even better since I know more about the background of the events and characters from watching the series.

Same here

Originally posted by Mando
Same here

What was your favorite episode? The one that stands out for me was 'Jaynestown' and the very last one with that guy 'Early', where River snuck into his ship! Loved it!

Originally posted by Tired Hiker
What was your favorite episode? The one that stands out for me was 'Jaynestown' and the very last one with that guy 'Early', where River snuck into his ship! Loved it!

I'd say "Out of Gas".

That episode is done so well I loved it. It's better than most MOVIES out there.

Originally posted by Mando
I'd say "Out of Gas".

That episode is done so well I loved it. It's better than most MOVIES out there.

Oh yeah, that was great! The way they jumped around in time was done very well. I forgot about that one. Damn, they were all soooooooo good, it's hard to say. I also liked that one where Mal and what's his name, the pilot guy who is married, go on that mission and get tortured! That was some great character development.

i hate you people with the firefly series, but probably just because i don't have it. Serenity was awesome, but i don't have cacble so i can't watch firefly on TV, i think the best part was when they were comeing out of the reaper territory. the sad part is that i called it even before they went into it after leaving the planet.

Yeah all and all it was a good movie. The series was not as great as I hoped. I can kind of see why it didn't do as great on the television. Besides, I don't see how the show could of continued with the pilot of Serenity dying in the movie. I thought that was kind of a low blow. But hey, shows come and show go.

i think the movie was supposed to be after the series though, but i didn't really research it, because i didn't really care that much about it. but if it was supposed to be during the series, than the director is a total idiot.

Originally posted by Tired Hiker
Oh yeah, that was great! The way they jumped around in time was done very well. I forgot about that one. Damn, they were all soooooooo good, it's hard to say. I also liked that one where Mal and what's his name, the pilot guy who is married, go on that mission and get tortured! That was some great character development.

I think That episode was called "war stories". And he was tortured with Wash.

R.I.P. Wash

Originally posted by Revanall
i think the movie was supposed to be after the series though, but i didn't really research it, because i didn't really care that much about it. but if it was supposed to be during the series, than the director is a total idiot.

It was after. Because Anara didn't leave the ship until after the series ended. And neither did Shepp.

Originally posted by Shwartz
Yeah all and all it was a good movie. The series was not as great as I hoped. I can kind of see why it didn't do as great on the television. Besides, I don't see how the show could of continued with the pilot of Serenity dying in the movie. I thought that was kind of a low blow. But hey, shows come and show go.

Um . . . . . . the movie was basically the last episode, so the pilot, Wash, his death, did make sense in a cronilogical sense. Also, Reapers are actually called 'Reavers', and they were never shown until the movie came out.

I just finished watching the 'special features' of the Firefly series, and I have to admit, I got a tear in my eye since the realization overcame me that those special features would be the last related footage to Firefly that I may ever enjoy.

However, I came to realize this:

Serenity Firefly is like College. There was a point in time where I wished that my college days would never end. There came a point in time where I knew Firefly WOULD end. These were sad times. Like college, I enjoyed Firefly, yet I knew that it would be over soon and there was nothing I could do about it. Folks would go there own ways, different directions, etc. Like college, Serenity had to end.

But, I embraced it and I can now relive it on dvd.

I bought it on Dvd it was the last one on the shelf, it was like ten bucks cheaper than what it said on the tag. I was really happy I got it though and am now trying to get all my friends to watch it too!

I got Serenity for Christmas and watched a week or so ago. Overall, I enjoyed it and thought it was a decent movie. I'd probably give it an 8 out of 10. I liked the humor a lot. The action was pretty good as well, but it wasn't AS good as I had heard before.

I watched it again too..


All I have to say is was about 10 times more awesome in theaters.

My sister bought me the Firefly set, I practically died I was so happy! I enjoyed the movie but the show is fun!

man i loved serenity, summers glau gives a good performance, makes you really believe shes nuts.

this movie sucked i hate it so much i fell asleep wile watching it

Originally posted by Zarathustra
I'm not sure I understand complaints about the Operative. He's an idealist whose worldview is shattered in the end. His motives and personality are explained fairly well, so what more is expected of him? Most movie antagonists aren't so well developed.
It's a mistake to define Mal as a copy of Han Solo. They're both rogues of a sort who are both essentially moral individuals, but beyond that? Mal is a far more conflicted character, his experiences are the opposite of Han's (while the latter goes from being a smuggler who's out for number one to believing in the rebellion, the former has lost faith after his rebellion failed and circumstances force him to look out for number one). Do they fit the same general description? Yes. There are only so many different types of characters and none of them are "original" anymore, so to make similarities or influences out to be knock-offs is unjustified.
As for the Reavers, keep in mind this was created as something of a space western. The Reavers were created as the incomprehensible and violent "other" that Indians were used as in Westerns: the boogeyman out on the edge of civilization, keeping settlers scared, not zombies. The revelation of their origins was more akin to the revelation of Nazi concentration camps than anything: the side effect of trying to make a brave new world.
If an actual criticism had been made of River I might attempt to respond to it. "She's annoying" does not apply.

Beautifully said!

I thought Serenity was a great movie. Not perfect, nothing is, but the humor relieved the tension so the movie could rebuild it, and the intensity was amazing.

I miss WASH, his death was oddly beautiful, fit so perfectly, and showed that Joss Whedon has his own rules for what can happen.

I've got the DVD and this is a movie I'll toss in from time to time. There is so much there that you can get something more out of it when seeing it again, and to me that is one of the signs of a good movie.

Oh, and I think we saw someone who was... I guess you'd say evolving into a reaver in the firefly series, and that episode had a nice little speech by Mal in which he foreshadowed something they do in the movie -- just an example of why I respect the writing for this show/movie so much!

That Great Vengance guy wouldn't know a decent Sci-Fi movie if it jumped up and bit him in the ass. It's amazing what you can do with a well-written script, and someone who knows what he's doing in the director's chair ain't it folks? This film ( And the series ) was SORELY underrated. Firefly is cancelled and we're left with the new Battlestar Galactica. Pfft.

I'm ordering firefly, though I've never actually seen any of the episodes.

Firefly is great.

Yeah. Firefly was awsome. It was seriously underrated. I was pissed when Fox cancelled it. Missed a good thing.

Still havent seen Serenity...everytime I go to the shops, its sitting there begging me to buy it...but I have to turn away and regret not having enough money on me...

Too bad they couldnt keep making Firefly as a DVD release series at least...

hey im so happy that someone made a forum about serenity on here cause the only other site ive found is lostinserenity which sucks a little bit thanks to a friend of mine (i love it buts annoying sorry if anyone goes on it) but anyway this movie rocks! so does firefly i feel that its easy to understand without seeing firefly but also you can really see the diffrence. but to who ever said that River was annoying i hope you die , she made the movie

HPrOX, Be careful peopole ARE entitled to their opinions.

i know i was just upset saying that it was a bad movie... yeah...sorry

And the number one reason why Firefly is better than Star Wars:
Mal ALWAYS gets to shoot first.

my firend sent me a poll from a channel that wants to put firefly back on the air ill get it from him and ill post it if you really want to get it back on the air... but also if you have comcast firelfly episodes are on there like three episodes. YAY!!

I loved this series and was incredibly disspointed when they cancelled it. I didnt get a chance to see the movie in theatres and I dont have a lot of time to watch DVD's I like at home becuase I have 2 kids and work and such. I do however have a little down time at work sometimes so I bough it for my psp.....I'm about half way through and this movie is just awesome. Can't wait to finish it if I get time lol. I'm thinking i'm gonna have to take the psp version to game trade place and actually buy the regular dvd for my collection.

ok i FINALLY got the website my friend has been out and not only so heres the survey if they get enough people to give good reviews theb they might put Firefly back on!!!
http://www.fireflyseasontwo.com/BrowncoatProfile.asp

I loved this movie!
I laughed; I cried. (Seriously)
I had been waiting for it to come out, because I had seen an episode or two of the series when it was currently running.
Since the movie was so good, I went back and watched the season when the SciFi Channel reaired it.

When did the Sci-Fi channel reair it? Why didnt i know this?

Umm about the time the movie opened in theaters, Scifi reaired it before Stargate SG-1, Atlantis,BSG, etc.
Umm I dunno why you didn't know. Sorry you missed it.

oh well but please do me a favor and go to the survey i really want a second season

Hmm...

Finally saw the movie and am very much underwhelmed. I liked the series, though not as much as some others, and it had Whedon's trademark witty and fast paced conversations, but it just didn't work out for me. River turning into sci-fi Buffy didn't do it for me, the second death was a total waste of a dramatic opportunity, and I found the whole plot and the main bad guy rather shallow- and in a setting which is not meant to be shallow, unlike Star Wars which gloriifies in it to good purpose.

i did not like this film at all i was bored sh*tless.

Thats your opinion i REALLY liked the movie. I must agree along with most people that the series is much better, Serenity didnt have as much as a western feel to it which i really enjoy...and if you havent taken the survey plese do...

Originally posted by Ushgarak
the main bad guy rather shallow-

Really? I loved the unkown agent. Thought he was badass.

Well, he's just the latest in a long line of Whedon foes who can fight. In fact, the blue-handed men from the series were much more interesting River-hunting bad guys. The Operative was just another martial artist, spouting crap, being tricked by the good guys, and being beaten up in the end, whereupon he then turns out to be a total wimp.

He was also far too similar to the Bounty Hunter Early, in both mannerism and objectives. His first fight with Mal was almost repetition of Early's.

Originally posted by Ushgarak
He was also far too similar to the Bounty Hunter Early, in both mannerism and objectives.

Point, acknowledged.

Finally bought it today, but I wont get the pleasure of watching until tomorrow night disgust

Cant wait to watch the "Aussie only" special features you guys havent seen droolio

This has got to be one of the best movies EVER! I mean, wow, the main female character was soooo awesome. I am so looking out for other things Summer Glau has done.

I have actually only just seen this movie, so, yeah, hence the late reply to this thread. It was awesome, and I intend to watch it again and again.

Cheers,
Mana

As you can see, River certainly was the standout character for me.

http://us.movies1.yimg.com/movies.yahoo.com/images/hv/photo/movie_pix/universal_pictures/serenity/summer_glau/serenity4.jpghttp://chud.com/nextraimages/glau.jpg

http://www.mtv.com/movies/photos/s/serenity_050218/d030.jpg

http://us.movies1.yimg.com/movies.yahoo.com/images/hv/photo/movie_pix/universal_pictures/serenity/summer_glau/serenity2.jpg

http://us.movies1.yimg.com/movies.yahoo.com/images/hv/photo/movie_pix/universal_pictures/serenity/_group_photos/adam_baldwin2.jpg http://us.movies1.yimg.com/movies.yahoo.com/images/hv/photo/movie_pix/universal_pictures/serenity/_group_photos/nathan_fillion8.jpg

**

isnt the old black guy in this movie (i think his name was shepard) supposed to be in the series.If so does he not really die in the movie.

I havent seen one episode of firefly so help me out if im a retard.

It was annoying, but the movie is after the series, so I guess they could really kill off whoever they wanted in it. I mean, Wash was in the series too, and they killed him off.

Piccies.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b140/BadBoyBabes/Hosted%20Pics/Serenity/Serenity3.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b140/BadBoyBabes/Hosted%20Pics/Serenity/Mal1.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b140/BadBoyBabes/Hosted%20Pics/Serenity/Mal_Jayne.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b140/BadBoyBabes/Hosted%20Pics/Serenity/SerenityShip1.jpg

Serenity was excellent, easily one of the best Sci-Fi adventure movies since the original Star Wars.

It also gets better the more you watch it. I really enjoyed the villain, and for what Whedon was given to work with, he pulled off an excellent finale. He had so many loose ends to tie up, so many story arcs to branch together, and even though questions remain unanswerred, they had some neat little touches (ie Shepherds conversation with Mal about his past, and why he doesn't need to know). He could have explained things to death George Lucas style, remove all mystery of certian things, but I love the idea of certain things being left open.

The deaths of two huge characters served only to prove that if those characters can die, then so can the others. I thought the battle in the tunnel really hit home that any of those characters could die. Kaylee and especially the Doc I was really rooting for because it was obvious these characters could be classed as expendable.

It was obviously inspired by The Empire Strikes Back, in that the main hero Luke, was expendable when Yoda stated "No, there is another" meaning that Luke was not their last hope and that the audience was prepared for Luke to die and then put him into a situation where he was certainly doomed, which made his survival even more surprising. Serenity seemed to take that idea and make it even more dramatic.

I do however, think the whole series in general died way too early. There was so much potential in each of the characters and the relationships between them. Stupid Fox bla bla etc.

Whoa hoo, another Serenity fan who has basically the same ideas as me about the movie. All your points ring true, especially the last one. They should never have axed it.

Anyways, I was shocked to see Wash die, I wasn't expecting that at all, but it was sooo well done, and yeah, I have seen it so many times now and it never ever gets boring. It's one of those movies that is watchable over and over and over!

Next to the X-Men movies, and the second Alien movie, this is definately one of my favs. I hope and pray he makes another movie... even though that is probably not likely, but one can hope.

Cheers,
Mana

I just saw Serenity and was exited over finally seeing a new good sci-fi movie. Then I discovered it was based on a TV series called Firefly. After downloading all Firefly episodes I discovered it got cancelled after 15 episodes, this made me loose all respect for Fox. The first good Sci-fi show in ages and they go ahead and cancels it, I found a petition that people sign up on to try and get Firefly back on the air, please sign it if u too want this great show back: http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/fireflyrevival

Originally posted by Mana4X2
Whoa hoo, another Serenity fan who has basically the same ideas as me about the movie. All your points ring true, especially the last one. They should never have axed it.

Anyways, I was shocked to see Wash die, I wasn't expecting that at all, but it was sooo well done, and yeah, I have seen it so many times now and it never ever gets boring. It's one of those movies that is watchable over and over and over!

Next to the X-Men movies, and the second Alien movie, this is definately one of my favs. I hope and pray he makes another movie... even though that is probably not likely, but one can hope.

Cheers,
Mana I agree with every single thing you said.

You know, if it had been getting half decent ratings, it wouldn't have been cancelled.

I really don't understand people who say Wash's death was well done. it was a shit death, a total waste of drama, and not for one second did it make me think the characters were any more vulnerable than before. At least Book had some resonance.

There does seem to be an edge of fanaticsim in Firefly fandom that worries me. It was good, but it really wasn't THAT good, and if it had been, more people would have watched the series and more people would have gone to see the movie. Don't go thinking that this is some sort of lost gem. People had a chance to like or not like it, and they chose not to like it, and that's because it is something that can only ever have cult appeal. People LIKE to think that shows like this get ignored because people are stupid. That is wrong- compare the new Battlestar Galactica. That is highbrow and intelligent but by NOT being as niche as Firefly, it has lived and it is a better series for it. You must disengage yourself from the thinking that because crap shows have been known to be popular, it therefore follows that popularity has nothing to do with quality. In this case, Firefly was ignored because it wasn't good enough. It was good at what it did, but that wasn't enough to be a good series. Whedon himself is far less peeved than the fans are, because (as he says) Fox didn't look at Firefly and say it was crap, instead they looked at it and said the material would make a better film than series. I agree; I just don't think the film effort went as well as others say. I still think it was a good film, but it is getting a near messianic write-up in here which is bewildering.

Firefly had good characters and good dialogue (as Whedon always gives), but it had too many characters for what it was trying to do, and it really REALLY had a core appeal for nerds and not much else. That's not a wide enough net. Also a little odd from Whedon, who normally mixed nerdiness with shameless popularity, vis a vis Buffy. Just having Summer Glau in there isn't enough; Buffy was conceptually populist.

If anything, I kept getting the feeling that Whedon was trying to be a little TOO 'in' with the sci-fi fans- hence my comments above, about the Operative being a very Whedon bad guy. I can see the inner workings turning around inside there- and in a mood where it matters, in contrast, as I pointed out, to Star Wars, where it does not. And such a crappy, crappy denouement for the Operative, as well.

Originally posted by Ushgarak
I really don't understand people who say Wash's death was well done. it was a shit death, a total waste of drama, and not for one second did it make me think the characters were any more vulnerable than before. At least Book had some resonance.

I get what you are trying to say, but I have only seen the first ep of the series, therefore have nothing to compare the movie too, so, in my opinion the movie was awesome, and based on that, I wish the show hadn't been cancelled, so new fans like me could still be enjoying it...

Serenity is my type of thing, hence why my reviews are so for the movie, not against it.

Cheers,
Mana

Well, that's fair enough; I just feel the villifcation of Fox is harsh. They've given it more than a fair chance.

Did they ever give Firefly a worldwide chance? Or just in America? It seems to me that most of the firefly fans only discovered Firefly after Serenity come to their country (like me).

No series that gets cancelled halfway through its initial run is going to get any significant overseas sales. Foreign networks are normally only interested in something successful.

The UK normally picks up everything, though. Especially with the Whedon name on.

Do anyone know what shows Firefly competed with? I cant see why it had so few fans from the episodes (and the movie) I have seen so far.

As far as I know, nothing specific; it was in a good slot (in the US and Canada). Fans say that low ratings were in part due to bad episode order, blaming Fox.

But episode order gets dicked around with in the States all the time- Babylon 5 was annihilated there, for logical progression, and that was a show where such progression is essential. B5 made five series, so for me that excuse for Firefly doesn't wash. It simply did not pull in enough people. It didn't have a wide enough appeal, I don't think there is anything to be added to that.

A quick look at Wiki shows that it got a not at all bad international distribution, btw.

Originally posted by Ushgarak
it is getting a near messianic write-up in here which is bewildering.


Maybe because people here actually liked it?

Seriously, I couldn't care less who liked and who didn't. I liked it. I loved it in fact. It shouldn't have been cancelled.

It isn't the reserve for nerds as you say it is, it's because it got cancelled before anyone had heard of the damn thing. It was barely even heard of over here in the UK. It's unfair to criticise it when everything was against this show from day one.

If it was made by say, the BBC, it would be in a second run of shows right now, possibly enjoying a boom of sorts, even if it bombed. There are companies that actually see the quality and potential of shows, unlike Fox.

The first series of Red Dwarf, for instance, was a failure in terms of ratings - look how that turned out after a couple of seasons; a phenomenon, one of the few British comedies to get an American version (which sucked and bombed, but thats not the point, it was big) That's because the BBC stuck with it and ploughed on through the hard times and it's one of Britains finest TV exports. That same show started out just like Firefly. Red Dwarf is proof that a badly rated first season can turn into something huge and lucrative, despite the fact the quality was there from the first episode. It's all about how far you push it out there, and for long enough.

That same first series reached number one in the dvd sales charts when it was re-released. Red Dwarf started out poorly (the quality was always there, people just needed something to latch onto). Same goes for Firefly, except it never had the backing of a network that saw the long term worth of the show.

Also, Battlestar Galactica had a cult following already and is pretty famous. Firefly had nothing to go on. It was completely new. You can't compare them really. One had an established history, the other didn't. It was obvious which one was going to attract ratings, regardless of quality.

Perhaps you guys should do petitions and send them to Fox like Family Guy fans did, and hope to hell that FireFly has incredible DVD sales, also like Family Guy so that maybe Fox will consider bringing it back.

But really, in the end, this will probably be another show that will grow in appeal only after it's gone off the air like so many others before it. There's a lot of great shows that were pull off of TV to make room for shit that also later got pulled. One of my favorite show's, The Critic, suffered from this unfortunate fate too.

Originally posted by Red Superfly
Maybe because people here actually liked it?

Thanks for that, genius. I think my post makes it clear that the reason I think that is bewildering is because I don't think the show was good enough to deserve it.

Sorry, but Firefly really DID have nerd appeal only, and it was cancelled because people weren;t watching it. How it perfromed in the UK is irrelevant- shows live or die on their home audiences. Dr. Who is getting bugger all ratings in the US but is a stellar success in the UK. It is a UK show, so it is those figures that count. If Firefly had been a big UK success, no difference Still cancelled. It tanked in the states. It was not popular enough.

Red Dwarf had a second series pre-commissioned and it was ready within six months and this was in a very different environment to Firefly's- quite aside from being a BBC show, which works on a totally different premise. Also, I well remember RD's debut, and the ratings weren't THAT bad, just nowhere near as high as later. Firefly's were bad.

BG's success owes pretty much nothing to the earlier series, and would have died a death had it relied on it. Plenty of remakes drop dead just like that. BG has survived because it is high quality, intelligent, and not so narrow on audience appeal.

Firefly, on the other hand, had the Whedon name behind it- and at a time when Buffy and Angel were still running. It got all the publicity and advertising any show would need- and DURING these popular shows. It also had a recognisable Hollywood name in it. It had all the advantages a sci-fi show could have wanted. Heck, if it had just gotten a good proportion of Whedon's own Buffy audience it would have survived. Even they weren't interested enough.

It didn't make the cut. Deny all you like that this was because it was cult appeal only- but tough titty, that's why. People stayed away. It was not for them.

I will also point out once more that one person who would disagree strongly with your view that Fox did not see its potential is Whedon himself, who insists that they certainly did and that fans did not give them enoigh credit. Fox give Firefly more than enough chances, plus a shot at the big screen, FFS. Chances other shows would kill for. It died again. Faced between moaning fan's assessment of Fox and the assesement by the man who was there, in the know, I know whose opinion I go with. They are the ones who have lost money trying to back it, you know.

It's not going to make the grade. Live with it. Nerd appeal only. Sorry.

(BF- Firefly already had its good DVD sales. It's the film that has to sell well now, and I would be surprised if more films are made off the back of DVD sales. Still, we shall see).

*Taps fingers* I am staying out of this debate... just posting some pictures....

http://www.kfcplainfield.com/tv/firefly1.jpg
http://www.kfcplainfield.com/tv/firefly6.jpg

http://afan.dk/firefly/ffpic/wpblitz_firefly003.jpg

http://www.blitzgal.com/blitz_firefly_ourmrsreynolds.jpg

Cheers,
Mana

Originally posted by Ushgarak
Sorry, but Firefly really DID have nerd appeal only, and it was cancelled because people weren;t watching it.


I didnt even know about Firefly until last year when an ad came on showing reruns when I was at my aunty's house (she has cable tv, I dont), otherwise I would never have heard about it. If it was played on standard tv as well as cable over here, it would most likely have picked up a lot more interest. When Serenity came out, I didnt know what it was, so I didnt go and see it. I sure as hell would have been lining up if I'd seen Firefly before hand.

Basically, by the time it came out over here, it was already cancelled in the US, so it was a dud release. Im sure Im not the only one who watched it waaaay after it was already cancelled and thought it was an awesome show. If they released it again, say with a new series, the fanbase would already have grown massively from the previous series. Its not because its shit, or whatever, its because it has little coverage and hype (over here at least). Add to that a bunch of half-unknown actors, and the different style of directing compared to Buffy etc, and true, theres not a lot of appeal to watch a new show. But shows like Buffy/24/Stargate get good timeslots on good stations, Firefly would most likely get pushed into some ridiculous time like midnight or something.

If it wasnt for me seeing the ad, or Imag showing me Serenity coming out in cinemas, I would be completely oblivious to this fantastic series. Even a lot of people in this thread have been oblivious to Firefly after watching Serenity. If future series came out as a DVD only, theres enough of an established fanbase to make it worth the time and money.

The fanbase now is far greater than when the show first came out, so its still growing in popularity. It wont fade out as a come and go phase, even if the series has completely stopped. Its not fair to say its only a nerd-appeal only, because as far as I can recall, I've never heard of it being played on tv at a decent timeslot to compete with higher rated shows, and given that its been offline for a few years, people now will rather watch a show like Buffy they have knowledge of, rather than take a chance with something different/new like Firefly.

Again, saying you hadn't heard of it when you are not from the US is a pointless argument- domestic popularity is all that counts. And Firefly got heavy promotion off the Whedon ticket and was in a fair slot.

They already gave it another chance in film form. It failed. I don't even think Whedon is interested in a series any more. More films, but not a series.

If the film had gotten good takings, then fine. That would justify an argument sayiung it had broader appeal. But it did not, and your argument dies there.

You can't blame the networks for its low ratings, or some conspiracy. They backed it- twice. They WANTED it to succeed. It had low ratings not because no-one had heard of it, but because not enough people wanted to see it.

And your comment about people not giving something new a chance is hogwash. Buffy, Babylon 5, X-Files. All started in the same situation as Firefly was. They made it, big time. Babylon 5, in particular, is an example of how, despite being dicked around with with schedules, being a new sort of sci-fi show done in a different way, and lacking the major budget of shows like Star Trek, you can pull off several series that actually advanced the sci-fi medium on television. Babylon 5 WAS popular enough to succeed, because it broadened the appeal without compromising its values (and the first series was the worst series, too). Firefly- which had a stronger cast line-up than B5, and was in a prime friday evening slot- tried that and failed. Firefly was beaten in a fair fight- people will have to accept that.

Again... cult, nerd appeal only. I don't see why you are afraid of that. Some of the best stuff ever written is nerd appeal only. It so happens I think this is only good, not excellent. But regardless of anything else, that's why it's not going anywhere, and if you wanted a show that was going places, it would need a broader appeal. 'End of'.

I finally got around to watching Serenity today, and Im ashamed I've put it off for this long. The movie was unbelievable. Far surpassed my expectations. If that was entirely the end of the series, it was a deserving send off.

You can't stop the Serenity.