I haven’t watched a single movie since July (when the last Monday Movie Roundup appeared). It’s not that I don’t like movies – it was my first profession, after all – but I just don’t find myself wanting to invest the time.
Or perhaps it’s that once perfection was achieved with Lord of the Rings, there has been really no need for any more movies to be made.
But seeing as how Hollywood hasn’t yet packed it in, something was bound to strike my fancy…
Serenity (Joss Whedon, 2005)
Though not watching movies, we have been catching up on old TV shows that we missed, and the best of these was the unfortunately short-lived (damn you, FOX, are you good for anything!?!) Firefly. The series follows the adventures of the crew of Serenity, a firefly-class starship, who earn their keep running smuggling and petty crime jobs out on the border planets where the all-powerful Alliance doesn’t have much authority.
Visually, the show is a wonderful hodge-podge of science fiction technology blended with the imagery of the old west with its gamblers, gunfighters, outlaws and saloons. Such is life on the border worlds. I loved it immediately when I realized that it played with the best ideas of Lucas’ Star Wars universe (imperfect technology, space pirates, charismatic scoundrels) without doing all the do-goody rebel alliance business. Of course, Captain Mal Reynolds used to be a rebel fighter, but his side lost the civil war and he lit out for the territories in his old freighter.
We watched the eleven episodes that aired and immediately rented the film Serenity, which picks up two months later and attempts to tie up most of the loose ends from the series’ early cancellation. I won’t say much about the film except that I enjoyed it, and wish mightily that there will be a sequel someday.
The Firefly universe is one of the richest and most fascinating that I’ve seen in a long time. It’s full of potential, and I’d love to see it explored more thoroughly.
Damn you, FOX. Damn you to the border moons.
James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.
I LOVE Firefly. Like crazy in love with it. In fact, I saw the word “Serenity” in your post and jumped in to make a comment before actually reading the rest of it.
Aren’t good stories satisfying?
Watching that cross-genre world unfold is like tasting the best fusion food and you wonder, how come Thai people and Mexican people didn’t get together sooner? I love the way the characters continually got paired off in interesting and unusual ways: the preacher & River, for example.
Mmmmmm. Thanks for getting me excited about it all over again. Which is your favorite episode?
Favorite episode? Wow, that’s tough. Probably “Objects in Space.” Although, I really liked “Ariel” and “Jaynestown” as well. What about you?
And yes, there’s nothing like a good story especially when set in a ‘verse that’s so incredibly compelling.
Although perhaps not quite as compelling as Thai/Mexican food would be. I’d love to have me a pud ke mao taco someday.