Boy, was I wrong. The creator was none other than Joss Whedon, the genius behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, two shows that I really dug. And this was his baby, the project he had always wanted to do, so he put his heart and soul into it. So much, that when his show was cancelled, he told his cast and crew not to worry, he'd find another home.
And a few years later, he did. But not as a TV show. As a full length movie. It's one of the only times in history that a cancelled television show has been brought back as a feature length film.
The show was called Firefly, and if you were a fan of the only 13 episodes in existence, and the film Serenity, then call yourself a Browncoat. I Netflix'd the series to watch while I was stuck at home during Hurricane Ike, and I couldn't stop watching them. So much so, that when I got done, I went to Best Buy and bought the whole thing on DVD (a steal at $34!!!).
It's because of the DVD sales of the series that the movie was greenlit, and that might be the saving grace of the Firefly 'Verse. Fans have really kept this franchise alive, and I for one am glad about it.
The tv show is a really great, really well written show, and it makes you really feel something for the characters. Listening to the commentary during the series, you can see that the crew and cast really liked each other, and thought that they were making something important, which is evident in the product they created. Unfortunately, Firefly was broadcast on the Fox Network, which doesn't allow a show to find its audience, and due to scheduling conflicts, it never found any ratings.
But I think the popularity of sci-fi now was helped along by this little series that could. Shows like Battlestar Galactica might not have gotten made if shows like Firefly hadn't paved the way.
If you're intersted in seeing a great cast, great stories, and a well made tv series and movie about space cowboys, then check out Firefly. Who knows? If you buy enough DVDs, maybe another movie will get made!
