Deke Rivers

Ive been reading these rave reviews on other sites about this DVD set. To be honest I dont even remeber this show being on TV. Apparently it was marketed wrong by Fox and was cancelled even though it had what looks like a decent size following

I mean is this typical garbage tv sci-fi or what? I like my sci-fi on the dark side (think Blade Runner)
Any opinions would be appreciated before I plunk down bucks on it

Patman

It wasn't garbage, but it's not as dark as Blade Runner, but it's dark enough.

I bought the set on Tuesday.

Deke Rivers

ok then would you go so far as to say its ANTI-generoddenberry/star trek?

that would clinch it for me

darqleo

It's great, but you have to watch the episodes in order, which is easy enough on DVD, but was difficult when it aired. What I love about it is that most of the characters aren't altogether good like say on original series/Next Gen. Star Trek (maybe more like Deep Space Nine). They are outlaws, most of them are only onboard for the money, some to be kept safe, and they each have their own agendas that might not always be better for the whole. Plus the special effects kick butt for a first season of a TV series. Fun fun!

Deke Rivers

ill have to check it out then. i can always sell the set if it disappoints.
Lets hope its better than Deep Sleep Nine was. I love sc-fi but hate all things Star Trek

Philip Reuben

It definitely has elements of that. There was a war to determine whether all the planets would bind together under the organisation of one governing body (the Alliance), or whether each planet would be independent. The Alliance won the war, and the Alliance are like the Federation many ways - they have very advanced technology, do lots of interplanetary stuff, etc. (although since there are no aliens in Firefly, it's not quite the same). However, in Firefly the Alliance are the bad guys - the main characters are people who were on the losing side of the war, who do less-than-legal work and try to avoid the suspicion of the Alliance, and who can't even afford to have weapons on their ship. The Alliance is depicted as a repressive force, which the Federation rarely was, even though they are similar in many ways.

Anyway, just like I said in the Firefly thread from a few days ago, I highly recommend this series.

Peep

Dark? Hardly. This was a pretty light-weight series with a little unrealized potential. If it had gotten its act together, it might have had a decent second season.

speedy1961

I agree. A slow starter to be sure but I am really glad that I picked this up.

The enjoyment level goes up even more once you listen to Whedon's comments about how the series was screwed by Fox.

Add in a $20 price point, and it's probably one of the best sets I bought all year.

Deke Rivers

20 bucks??!!! I havent been able to find for less than 35..

darqleo

http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=332166

Deke Rivers

sounds liek that was a prepaid pre-order deal

Josh Z

There is some attempt to do things unlike Trek (there are no bumpy-headed aliens, for example), but there are also some Trek-like elements.

Mostly it's a Western set in outer space. Make your decision based on how you feel about Westerns. Six-shooters, horses, covered wagons, the whole deal.

Houstondon

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=8581

I'm curious as to what you consider "dark". In Firefly, the main characters are smugglers, kill lots of people, and fly around looking for illegal work. That sounds pretty dark to me but then I grew up on Star Trek which was virtually "light" as heck compared to this show. Both have their place and followings and I think that someone looking for a darker science fiction show would probably appreciate Firefly a whole lot.

The crew fly around in the fringe of known space to avoid the authorities (The Alliance), don't own more advanced weaponry as much due to the complications such technology carries (lasers are outlawed for private ownership and possession could result in the ship being confiscated and/or jail time, and the maintenance issues that high-tech gear entails). The idea that those on the very fringes of space would revert to proven low tech gear for reliability was common in some of Heinleins works, yes?

Comparisons between the Federation and the Alliance are fair because both are fairly sanitized versions of the future. How often did the Enterprise encounter less fortunate races yet not help them due to the Prime Directive? Their ships are both clean and run under military law, and any time it suited their purpose, the Federation acted like bullies too (either by withholding aid or threatening other groups). If Firefly had focused on the winners of the Universal civil war, I'm sure it would've been very similar to Star Trek.

Lastly, the show was never given a chance; Fox aired the episodes out of order and even cancelled the show before airing some of the best epsiodes. Compared to Enterprise or most of the other science fiction on television in the last 5+ years, Firefly was a breath of fresh air.

darqleo

Don't forget that Baseball Playoffs sometimes kicked an episode or 2 off to a totally different timeslot when the game went into extra innings.

I got to watch the first 3 DVDs this weekend and I have to say it's like a totally different TV show from what I was able to see when it original aired. It's like watching the director's cut with it being put into order and with some episodes I missed. This series is pretty amazing and I hope something is done to continue it either in the movies, on TV or straight-to-DVD.

Oh and I would say this series does get "dark". Not in that Blade Runner/Dark City/Alien "noir" kind of way, but people get hurt, killed, people backstab each other, torture, scary moments with the Reavers and the Blue Hand guys, etc. And some pretty violent/gorey scenes as well. A far cry from Star Trek or even Joss Whedon's Buffy/Angel universe.

Deke Rivers

dark as in downbeat, pessemeitc. I gies something that isnt as lightweight as most sci fi on tv. I guess along the lines of a show like MIllenium

das Monkey

Dude, just buy the damn thing. It was a very good show with a very good DVD treatment. Recommending something to someone who completely dismisses Trek in all its forms is an exercise in futility anyway. You'll either like it or you won't.

das

sfsdfd

Uh, moving to TV Talk Forum.

- David Stein

Jay G.

The show is great. The writing is tight, the characters are entertaining and interesting, and the acting is spot-on. Also, the directing is very good, the episodes seen without commercials really feel like mini-movies, much more so than some shows on DVD I've seen.

FOX just messed this show up royally when they aired it. First they mismarketed it as a straight-up comedy. Then they front-loaded the more comedic episodes, and failed to promote them. not to mention the pre-emptions and the Friday Night Slot-O-Death.

Still, I caught every episode while it was aired, since it was the best new show on that year. Watching the show in it's proper aspect ratio and proper order just makes it even better.

One way it's "anti-ST" is that this show wasn't about huge, world changing conflicts. It was about theives and people who didn't like the Alliance, but they weren't trying to bring the Alliance down. The show is primarily about people, people who live on the fringe, trying to scrape together a living as best they can. The show was more interested in showing the interactions between those people than having them deal with whatever wacky sci-fi idea the writers throw at them this week.

Mourn

I quite liked the show and there wre some episodes towards the end of its run that were quite dark, as far as tv goes.

The only reason i haven't got it as there was no resolution to the series (unless i missed an episode or two) due to its early demise and that would bother me.

milo bloom

I mentioned this in another thread, but I would rather have an open ended resolution, than say one like Voyager's final episodes. Gah.

Plus, there's talk of a movie, so buy it!

bboisvert

I got yer resolution right here:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/Movi....firefly.reut/

Peep

"American Gothic" was dark. "Firefly" was just a glorified western. Any random episode of Alias or Buffy was "darker" than Firefly.

Deke Rivers

whats the problem? Am I stepping on your Trekkie toes or what? So since I dont like any form of Star Trek its futile to answer my questions? Where is the logic in that?
Im just trying to get some info before I plunk down 35 bucks.Everyone else has been nice and has given me some good info..except you..go crap in another thread numbnuts.

Deke Rivers

Thanks to all (except the guy with the rubber Spock ears on) for all the helpful info.

das Monkey

Actually, since the 5 Trek shows are so different in their approach, it's impossible to decipher the tastes of a person who hates all of them so universally as you've indicated. If you said you liked DS9, we'd know you liked those darker, epic stories; if you said you liked Enterprise, we'd know you liked light space adventure with good special effects but little merit; if you said you liked TOS, we'd know you appreciate a classic approach to the genre and aren't afraid of cheese. Since you dismiss all of it, however, and go to extra lengths to make your distaste for it known, in addition to labelling television Sci-Fi as "garbage," who knows what you'll like? And as such, it's a complete exercise in futility.

We could tell you that we love the show all day, but how does that help you? Hence, "you'll either like it or you won't." Nothing we say that hasn't already been said earlier in the thread or linked through Don's detailed review or linked from the discussion on that review is going to help you at this point. The guy posts a wonderfully detailed review and then goes the extra mile to type up further information in another post, and you're still unsure. On the 11th you say you'll buy it and sell it if you don't like it, but by the 15th you're still unsure. That's fine, but what more can anyone say? You're going to have to buy or rent it and see for yourself ... like I said. "Dude, just buy the damn thing."

But, if you'd prefer to act like a 12 year old and make silly remarks about Trekkie toes, Spock ears, numbnuts, and other assorted bodyparts -- taking two posts for emphasis when one would have sufficed -- that's fine too. My advice still stands. Trying to advise you further at this point is an exercise in futility. Only you will know whether you like it or not. So buy the damn thing like you said you would, and check back after you've watched it to let us know what you thought of it ... but, please, bring a spellchecker with you when you do.

das