"I aim to misbehave." - Mal
What was Firefly about?
Firefly was a sci-fi western set 500 years in the future, in a universe in which the United States and China merged to create the Alliance, and Earth was no more. Now, sci-fi and western don't exactly seem like they would go together, but it strangely made sense. People branched out onto many newly terra-formed planets and had to start over with nothing, much like those who moved out to the western US in the 1800's. Instead of taking the future route of aliens and super technology, Firefly instead followed a more humanistic road. It focused on a rag-tag group of people trying to make their way through the universe with nothing but a ship named "Serenity". Their lives weren't perfect, they didn't have much money, and they had to do illegal things just to get by, but they became a family and would do anything to protect what they had.
What was the best part about the show?
The best part about the show was the characters and the writing. Because the show runners knew that the life of Firefly was limited, they worked their hardest to make sure that every story they put together was the best they could possibly create. And because the writing was so great, the actors were able to give their all to each and every script and make something special happen in every scene. You could tell how much everyone enjoyed and loved the show, and it's a shame that a show of such caliber was cancelled. It is rare in a show that I like pretty much every character, but the cast of Firefly were all incredible together and everyone fit their parts perfectly. I also loved the fact that the main "love story" of the show, the one between Mal and Inara, was not the focus of the show and never became anything more than mutual attraction. I did not really believe in their relationship (it might just be because Inara was my least favorite character), so it was like a breath of fresh air that they weren't shoved down our throats as the romance. They didn't even get together by the end of the movie, and I commend the writers for not going down the cliché path.
What was the worst part about the show?
That it got cancelled? Or perhaps that they killed Wash in the movie, which I believe was unnecessary, cruel, and really really sad.
Where did the show go wrong?
It didn't have a chance to go wrong, as it was cancelled quite prematurely. I could see the show going in some directions I wouldn't have liked had it continued on, but as it stands, Firefly can join all of those other awesome short-lived shows that ended before they had a chance to go wrong.
What is our favorite/most memorable scene?
The entire episode of Jaynestown was hilarious and had so many great scenes (such as the song, the statue, and all of the scenes involving River and Book). The scene at the end of Ariel where Mal was punishing Jayne for his betrayal was really good as well, though not funny at all. And another not funny scene that was quite memorable was Wash's "I'm a leaf on the wind" in the movie (sniff).
Who are our favorite characters and why?
My favorite characters are Mal, Jayne, Simon, Wash, and River. I realize that that is over half of the cast, but I guess that just speaks well for the writing and acting on the show that I can't really choose a favorite. Mal was such a complex character, and I loved how he was so protective of his crew. Jayne was just so funny and Adam Baldwin completely sold the character. Simon was a total fish out of water on the crew which was very funny to watch, and his protectiveness of River was so sweet. Wash was such a good and funny character too, and his relationship with Zoe was really interesting. River was just absolutely crazy which was so intriguing to watch, yet underneath she was just a scared girl trying her hardest to be normal again. All of the characters on the show worked so well together and had great chemistry, so you really believed them to be the close-knit oddball "family" they were supposed to be.