Our rating:
2 out of 5
Rated: TVMA
reviewed by Charity Bishop
Being both a sci-fi fan and someone who enjoys the
projects of Joss Whedon, it was inevitable I should
rent Firefly. Despite being popular among
my friends and considered one of the most creative
westerns to come along in awhile, I found that in
many cases its abhorrent content overwhelmed the
nuances of the story and characters.
Set many years into the future when our world has
become toxic and forced our removal to other
galaxies, the small crew of the spaceship Serenity
are forced to loot abandoned vessels and trade their
findings on the black market due to stringent laws
and various adversaries. The captain of the
"firefly" vessel is Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion), a
former military man who has shared the field of
battle with his second in command, Zoë (Gina
Torres). Her husband Wash (Alan Tudyk) is their
savvy tech expert, the adorable and largely naive
Kaylee (Jewel Staite) handles the nuances of the
engine room, and the gruff Jayne (Adam Baldwin)
brings the muscle. Assisting in the glamour and
credibility of their freight is the beautiful Inara
(Morena Baccarin), a prostitute.
Due to financial difficulties, Serenity has chosen
to take on passengers in spite of the cargo burning
a hole in their hold. Because it is imprinted with a
federal stamp, they cannot unload it and must find
other means of dumping it before they are found out.
Among their passengers is a missionary monk known as
Shepherd (Ron Glass) and young doctor named Simon
(Sean Maher). When they are derailed by the local
authorities and wind up in a firefight, Mal
discovers that the good doctor is transporting his
own illegal cargo -- in the form of his younger
sister, River (Summer Glau). Emotionally unstable
and extremely dangerous, River was exploited by the
government in order to use her extraordinary gifts
for their own dark purposes. Tortured and abused by
the establishment, Simon risked everything to break
her out of the institution and now they are on the
run. This unusual gang of misfits team up to stay
under the radar and make a profit, while attempting
to coax the truth out of River as to her mysterious
past.
Like most of the producer's projects, Firefly
is an unusual and ingenious concept flawed by some
severe content issues. Overall it is a very funny,
quirky, and cute series with memorable characters
and a great plot. It is basically a typical western
set in space, so you can expect to see cattle
rustlers, town hall girls, and space ships all in
the span of a single episode. People ride around on
horseback and hover crafts, and the costumes range
from modern styles to chaps and old button down
shirts. It's surprising that the series was canceled
barely out of the gate, because it's a solid
thirteen episodes, but the fan following was so
massive that it contributed to a full-length feature
film released in theaters in an attempt to "wrap up"
some of the loose plot lines. I must admit that I
did like the characters, all of whom are deeply
flawed but personable. One of the best ones is
Kaylee, who is so adorable you just want to hug her.
I especially liked her romantic tension with Simon.
Not knowing what River might do in any given
situation is also a bonus, because it prevents the
air from growing stagnant.
Having said that, I would not recommend Firefly
because of the pervasive content which somehow
seems to permeate all the episodes despite having a
handful of cleaner ones. Maybe it is the presence of
Inara, a prostitute (since in this futuristic world,
it has become legal), that makes it seem this way,
or maybe it is the abundance of innuendo, fairly
graphic sexual content, and nudity. Half or more of
the episodes feature all of the above. There are
side and back shots of a topless woman bathing,
another naked woman attempting to seduce Mal, and of
River when she first falls out of her crate. Later
in the series, Mal is shown completely naked from
behind in five or six different shots while stranded
naked on a planet. (The camera is careful to just
barely avoid frontal nudity with various objects.)
Our introduction to Inara is with a client on top of
her, moving and heavily breathing. She entertains
various other men and once, a woman (they share
long, passionate kiss in a romantic candlelit
setting) throughout the season. Mal has a graphic
sex scene with a prostitute but resists the advances
of a buxom girl who professes to be his wife. (She
also comes on to Wash.)
Firefly,
The Complete Series (2002)
