NationStates Jolt Archive

Was it a great Sci-Fi TV show or do you have no taste?

I have no taste, as I have never seen it.

I thought the characters were so much better developed than in most sci-fi shows. Most sci-fi characters are so cardboard, I just don't give a damn what happens to them. Though I do like Stargate.

Absolute favorite moment? I think it's a tossup between Jane in the airlock and when the captain kicks the goon into the jet intake.

I liked that show and its subtle political undertones. Plus Joss wrote it... He can't do any wrong.

Loved Firefly. Damn Fox to hell for cancelling it! I've heard that it might be made into a movie though? I really hope so.

I liked that show and its subtle political undertones. Plus Joss wrote it... He can't do any wrong.
That's what I said to the guy who nominated it on the "worst sci-fi show" thread. He then went on to put down Buffy and Angel. Fucking uncivilized barbarian.

I have no taste, as I have never seen it.

The same here, but if I remember correctly from the commercials, there was a pretty hot chick in that show, correct?

Synopsis - the Americans are the bounty hunting scum (with a heart of gold) and the Brits are the empire and have beaten them to a pulp.

I think the cross between outlaws and spaceships was too much for some people. I really miss that show :(

Synopsis - the Americans are the bounty hunting scum (with a heart of gold) and the Brits are the empire and have beaten them to a pulp.

Sounds unlikely, the Brits part that is, No comment on the US part. ;)

That's what I said to the guy who nominated it on the "worst sci-fi show" thread. He then went on to put down Buffy and Angel. Fucking uncivilized barbarian.

No shit. The writing on Buffy was great. Whedon is such a subversive. I guess some people are just oblivious.

Man that show was awesome. I never saw it while it was on the air, but a friend of mine got the dvd set and we watched all of them(not in one sitting, maybe 3 or 4). And the thing is, neither of us really even like tv. I cannot do justice to the awesomeness of that show.
My favorite moment: When river shoots those three guys in "war stories". Don't look don't look don't look.
The same here, but if I remember correctly from the commercials, there was a pretty hot chick in that show, correct?
Several. ;)

Great show, simply great. I think the combination of an unusual theme and deep, high-quality episodes proved too much for the grunting masses. They'd rather have a copy of a show they've seen before. Firefly should have never been allowed to be cancelled.

FireFly is a great song

Wheedon tried to do too much too soon, blending the Wild West aspect of the show uncharacteristically heavily into that of science fiction. The actors were, on the whole, good, and the characters' backstories were interesting and well-developed (with enough hidden away for future episodes). The scripts were generally adequate, but it would have taken a couple of seasons before things had been fully fleshed out to make it a classic series. But it was certainly better than most shows.

Synopsis - the Americans are the bounty hunting scum (with a heart of gold) and the Brits are the empire and have beaten them to a pulp.

I disagree.

This is a Civil War space western. It's like Josey Wales.

It's the Confederacy and the Union, and Mal and Zoey are defeated Confederates.

I loved the show and have the Series on DVD. I even used the Firefly ship as one of my cargo vessels.

Watching the last episode felt like watching a friend leave.

Joss may have his faults, I certainly hated him for killing off Tara the way he did it, but Firefly was awesome (despite the fact it was the reason that Dark Angel was axed). And yes, he is going to bring it to the big screen.

My favorite episode is "Objects in Space", the bounty hunter was just great and "wtfpwned" Boba Fett big time. ;)

Although all episodes had their moments, there really wasn't one I would call bad.

Damn execs.

Well, the movie'll be out soon, so that's a consolation.

As for the "Joss can do no wrong" line. I don't know. Need I say Alien Resurrection? All of his series have their ups and downs. For example, nothing compares to the first three (maybe four) seasons of Buffy, while Angel didn't really hit its stride until the last season (after a pretty crummy fourth).

Granted, his best blows the doors off of everything else out there, but he's not the Pope.

I disagree.

This is a Civil War space western. It's like Josey Wales.

It's the Confederacy and the Union, and Mal and Zoey are defeated Confederates.
That was my take on it too.

Joss may have his faults, I certainly hated him for killing off Tara the way he did it, but Firefly was awesome (despite the fact it was the reason that Dark Angel was axed). And yes, he is going to bring it to the big screen.

My favorite episode is "Objects in Space", the bounty hunter was just great and "wtfpwned" Boba Fett big time. ;)

Although all episodes had their moments, there really wasn't one I would call bad.

Damn execs.
Tara had to die in order to bring out the naughty goodness that is Evil Willow.

There was so much left to find out about the characters, it makes me mad that I'll never find out. When you get info on the characters on stuff like Star Trek, it always seems so contrived, but the characters on Firefly seemed to develop naturally.
I'm trying to think of the phrase my novels instructor used. Exspository? (sp?)

Joss may have his faults, I certainly hated him for killing off Tara the way he did it.

What are you talking about? Even knowing it was coming, that was still one of the most surprising WTF? moments in my tv-viewing career. But like good WTF?

There was so much left to find out about the characters, it makes me mad that I'll never find out.

Of course you're going to find out.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0379786/

Post-freakin-production, fangirl.

What are you talking about? Even knowing it was coming, that was still one of the most surprising WTF? moments in my tv-viewing career. But like good WTF?
True. The worst was when Anya was killed in the last episode. I wanted to be left with the possibility that she would get back together with Xander.

Holy crap. I sound like a middle-aged woman discussing soap operas.

Whedon is a great one for not pulling punches. Anyone is capable of going at any time. That's why I'm partial to the Jane in the airlock sequence. You really don't know what's coming. Truly gripping.

Yes, but the fact that he totally indulged (right word?) the Dead/Evil Minority Cliche is disappointing to say the least. He could've killed her in a way that would not lead to the assumption that gay sex results in death... especially after receiving so many GLAAD awards for the show.

But that's just a detail, and he is forgiven. 7th season rocked, and Angel had a really good ending, also. Add Firefly to that, and I'm a happy fangirl. ;)

Wheedon tried to do too much too soon, blending the Wild West aspect of the show uncharacteristically heavily into that of science fiction.

well, the idea is that nearly any sci-fi you can think of is largely a 'western in spaaaace!' - especially ones that get made into tv shows/movies. so why not just go all the way?

the real problem was trying to put it on any channel that wasn't the sci-fi channel.

well, the idea is that nearly any sci-fi you can think of is largely a 'western in spaaaace!' - especially ones that get made into tv shows/movies.

the real problem was trying to put it on any channel that wasn't the sci-fi channel.

There's a real difference here though. Most bad space operas (not sci-fi in general) could be rewritten as westerns simply by replacing "laser" with "six-gun" and "rocket" with "stagecoach" (and vice versa). Most good sci-fi takes a single big assumption and plays it out according to the rules of the world we know. So like with Blade Runner, you get the big assumption that underpopulation has led to replicants for labor, while the rest of the plot develops out of the complications arising from this one assumption. With Soylent Green, you get too many people. With Firefly, the one big assumption is that colonization will expand faster than resources really allow. Bang, you've got the western land boom all over again. Accordingly, many features of the original land boom resurface. But everything comes out of this one jump.

It's more social sci-fi than space opera, and it deserves a lot more credit than Fox execs gave it.

It's more social sci-fi than space opera, and it deserves a lot more credit than Fox execs gave it.
It deserved a better time slot. What was it, 9 pm on Fri. or Sat.? Who can follow a series in that slot? People have places to go, drinks to down, and one night stands to chase.

It's more social sci-fi than space opera, and it deserves a lot more credit than Fox execs gave it.

Well see, our problem all along was that we were relying on FOX. Who prefer shows like 'Fast and Furious', over something that's actually enjoyable with real plot, good characterization, and horror of horrors, social commentary.

well, the idea is that nearly any sci-fi you can think of is largely a 'western in spaaaace!' - especially ones that get made into tv shows/movies. so why not just go all the way?

the real problem was trying to put it on any channel that wasn't the sci-fi channel.
Ah, but where Wheedon usually tweaks such commonplace notions, he went for the western aspect too directly in Firefly. Admittedly, it didn't help that the show started with the second episode rather than the pilot -- which would have gotten the show off to a running start -- but science fiction has had a hard time of it lately, whether well-written or not. Fox can be blamed for its scheduling and attitude towards the show (one might convincingly argue political differences between Wheedon and the network), and the show deserved more credit and better support than it received, but it wasn't necessarily his best work.

I saw the 1st episode of Firefly, and in the first few minutes, came to the conclusion it sucked. I have not watched since. Was it cancelled or something?

Didn't want to see it. heard it was good and had a cult following but got cancelled when it was on Fox.

Did another channel pick it up?

Didn't want to see it. heard it was good and had a cult following but got cancelled when it was on Fox.

Did another channel pick it up?
No. And it won't go into syndication because there weren't enough episodes made.

I loved the show and bought the DVD set the instant I saw it. The pilot was particularly good. I have a number of friends who never saw the show and sat down to watch one of the episodes on DVD and ended up watching the entire series and wanting more....

Damn, why didn't SciFi channel pick up this series instead of Stargate Atlantis????

Oh well, maybe if the movie "Serenity" does well...

Synopsis - the Americans are the bounty hunting scum (with a heart of gold) and the Brits are the empire and have beaten them to a pulp.

I wonder if perhaps you are thinking if a different show?

There certainly ARE historic parallels... but I think the American 'Civil War' parallel is the most noticable... only with a sympathetic twist.... effectively following the fortunes of the Confederacy after their defeat at the hands of the big dollars of the Union...

Until I saw Firefly, the ONLY show I would make deliberate time to watch was Buffy - due to the extraordinary production values, the spectacular scripting (even in "teen-drama" episodes.... the scripting was just incredible)... and a wealth of fine young actors.

Imagine how inconsolable I was with the end of the Buffy series.... even Angel was but a pale reflection.

And then - along came the one show that was EVEN BETTER than buffy... and it got canned 9 episodes into a 12 episode series....

The Internet Movie Database shows a "Serenity" movie to be made before the end of the year... for which I have fingers crossed. :)

Imagine how inconsolable I was with the end of the Buffy series.... even Angel was but a pale reflection.

And now Angel has been cancelled, too, thanks to the EVIL WB. Life sucks. :(

And now Angel has been cancelled, too, thanks to the EVIL WB. Life sucks. :(

It's like TV is allergic to good programming. :(

Ah, well - like everyone else seems to be... I'm pinning my hopes on the "Serenity" movie... and the alleged contractual obligations to make it a Trilogy.

It's like TV is allergic to good programming. :(

Yes, but mostly FOX. :headbang:

Ah, well - like everyone else seems to be... I'm pinning my hopes on the "Serenity" movie... and the alleged contractual obligations to make it a Trilogy.

Yes, so make sure you're at the theater on September 30. For what it's worth, everyone who's seen it so far (just the rough cuts, of course) has loved it.

Battlestar Gallactica is still a better Sci-fi series. We have watched the shows twice so far and have yet to find any plot or physics holes. Plus the acting is decent and the plot is interesting.

Yes, but mostly FOX. :headbang:

Yes, so make sure you're at the theater on September 30. For what it's worth, everyone who's seen it so far (just the rough cuts, of course) has loved it.

My suspicion is that FOX isn't allegric to good programming.... they are something far more sinister...

It seems that they actively dislike good programming to such an extent that they will go out of their way to KILL a good show... bouncing it around between timeslots, between networks, under-promoting... seperating interdependant programming... etc.

I will definitely be seeing "Serenity" the minute it hits the big screen... I am a dedicated convert to Firefly, and simply cannot wait to see what other ideas Joss has in mind for the concept.

Firefly movie comin' out soon :)

My suspicion is that FOX isn't allegric to good programming.... they are something far more sinister...

Yes, they are Blue Sun. :D

Well see, our problem all along was that we were relying on FOX. Who prefer shows like 'Fast and Furious', over something that's actually enjoyable with real plot, good characterization, and horror of horrors, social commentary.
I think you and a couple others here have it ...
Case in point the Futurama debacle. *flame away, it still stands*
BTW, the dvd came out for Firefly and John Doe ran just as long, yet i haven't seen anything on that show since its cancellation. Other than the lead feller taking a few steps down on the acting integrity scale for a pay scale ....

It was good... really good... it was among my afternoon tv schedule (which included John Doe and Keen Eddie, great shows...)

That's what I said to the guy who nominated it on the "worst sci-fi show" thread. He then went on to put down Buffy and Angel. Fucking uncivilized barbarian.
I still say that Firefly, Buffy and Angel are as pointless as a Sailor Moon episode (with ChibiMoon!) and not nearly as fun.

Was it a great Sci-Fi TV show or do you have no taste?

saw a couple of episodes and hated it!

Babylon 5 was 10x better.

I liked Bab 5, SG 1 and Firefly, but I've not been impressed with Battlestar. And I like SG 1 much better than Atlantis. But SG 1 kind of grew on me. I loved Firefly from the start.

Babylon 5 was 10x better.
Babylon 5 is a benchmark no other series can ever hope to reach. Except for the 5th season, that sucked. Firefly comes as close as anything though.

I still say that Firefly, Buffy and Angel are as pointless as a Sailor Moon episode (with ChibiMoon!) and not nearly as fun.
Yeah, I really respect the opinion of a guy who watches cartoons that don't include violent, wisecracking woodpeckers or violent sailors who eat spinach.

Babylon 5 is a benchmark no other series can ever hope to reach. Except for the 5th season, that sucked. Firefly comes as close as anything though.

Yea the 5th season stunk till the Alliance/Centauri War and Centauri Prime got slammed. That was fun :D

I liked Bab 5, SG 1 and Firefly, but I've not been impressed with Battlestar. And I like SG 1 much better than Atlantis. But SG 1 kind of grew on me. I loved Firefly from the start.

Pretty much my opinions summed up there! Haven't watched the whole of Firefly yet, watching it on the DVDs, slowly, with mates.. we're about 3/4 of the way through and I'm loving it :)

I do like Atlantis though, but 2 of the main characters really annoy me (they try too hard to be Hammond and O'Neill), and SG1 is still better :)

Also of course I loved Buffy and Angel, though Angel season 4 was terrible! I liked it so much though that I didn't even hate Tara and Dawn like most people I know seem to!