Okay, so I'm a couple years behind the curve on this one, but still. My friend The Librarian and I have been getting together on Fridays more or less every week or so for what we've taken to calling "Anime Night." You may remember Pockypalooza from a few months ago? That was part of Anime Night.

Well, after we finished up World of Narue, The Librarian asked if I was interested in watching Firefly. I had remembered seeing part of an episode when it was running on TV, and I'll admit it didn't thrill me much, but the good publicity it has gotten since then made me want to give it another shot.

Boy oh boy, am I glad I did. Take one part Sci-Fi, mix with two parts Western, shake, pour. What you get is something pretty different from any SF thing I'd ever seen.

But, as in all good SF (if not all good storytelling), it's the characters that make it work. This ensemble cast is great together! The hardbitten Captain, that in a lesser series would have a 'heart of gold but doesn't really here. The XO that's devoted to both her Captain and her husband, the lighthearted Helmsman. The Engineer that's a 'natural mechanic' with a penchant for strawberries. The roughneck that seems pretty dumb until you realize he's one of the main comedic elements in the show (and not because he's dumb!). All of them making a living on the edge of legality... well, okay, on the wrong side of legality, but lets not quibble.

Then you have the passengers! A "Companion," sort of a mix of geisha, prostitute, and therapist, and the most respected person on the ship (though not by the Captain, exactly...). The Shepherd, a missionary sort who has what appears to be a VERY interesting past (just why DOES he know so much about criminal activites anyway?). The Doctor, a pampered rich kid who threw it all away to rescue his Sister, who was the subject of much in the way of medical 'experiments,' who might just be able to read minds...

The humor in this show is incredible. It's just right: you know it's coming, but it doesn't get in the way of the drama/action/whatever. The show is basically episodic, and in one case completely outlandish (using a spaceship to pull a heist from a speeding train?), but it FEELS right.

So far, I can't praise this show enough. Okay, we've still got half the series to go, but it looks to me like Fox TV really, REALLY blew this one.

Rent it, buy it, whatever. Just... watch it. You'll be glad you did.

Posted by: Wonderduck at 04:52 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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1 Then watch the movie, and then brood over the fact that their shall be no more

Posted by: buttons at June 16, 2006 08:51 PM (pvJKm)

2 While I haven't seen the movie, I do kinda know what happens. They could probably stick another movie or two in there somewhere... but Buttons is right.

Which actually is kind of good, in a way. You know that you're getting into a series that actually has an ending, something we don't get much on TV over here.

Posted by: Wonderduck at June 17, 2006 12:32 AM (wZLWV)

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