Caffeinated Clint
When something’s badly wounded, it usually dies and…. stays dead. But in the case of "Firefly", a short-lived TV series that aired (out of sequence, mind you) for twelve short weeks in 2002, a knock on heaven’s door was met with no retort. The Sci-Fi Western was merely greeted by a ‘Closed – Come Back Later’ sign stuck on the pearly gates, and so, it promptly slid back down the white lights – and back to life for a second chance, or, lengthened existence. Bless those angelic fans.
Created by celebrated "Buffy" alumni Joss Whedon, Firefly was an episodical part sci-fi, part Western show that told of a small space freighter whose crew are willing to take whatever types of jobs come their way in order to preserve a way of life outside of the regimented Alliance.
Similar to what happened with the similar-themed "Star Trek" some thirty years before, Firefly garnered a huge following in such a short amount of time, and with sales of it’s DVD Box-Set going through the roof – it seemed only natural to give it a second chance – on a bigger canvas.
Less refined than George Lucas’s drastically more expensive sci-fi saga, and dirtier in both look and manner than GR’s Enterprise adventures, Whedon’s series, and now movie, is quite a unique experience. Everything you loved about the series is back on the big screen too – with $50 million worth of extras. Back is the excellent writing, the humour, the adventure, the distinct characters, the plight, the battles, the sexual tension, and the imaginatively designed starships – still as dirty as ever, and as wonky as a rusted bike. There are a couple of surprises in tow too.
Cocky space-smuggler Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) and his crew – engineer Kaylee (Jewel Staite), his second in command and most trusted ally, Zoe (Gina Torres), her husband, the pilot, Wash (Alan Tudyk), and the muscle, Jayne (Adam Baldwin) – are still harbouring fugitives, the telepathic River Tam (Summer Glau) and her doctor brother, Simon (Sean Maher) on-board their rust-bucket space ship.
The alliance’s hunt for the fugitives – especially River, who harbours some secrets and then some – is cranked up a notch when The Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is assigned to find them. He’ll do anything – quite a nasty character he is – to get to River, and it poses quite a challenge for the crew of Serenity. [Full Review]
