Firefly

It's a real shame Firefly got cancelled as early as it did, as it really had all of the potential to be a massive hit. Strong characters, a creative premise, and great dialogue (which was expected given that it was made by the people behind Buffy) was all there from the start, resulting in what could have been an amazing first season if properly finished.

Firefly's first season didn't really last long enough to have much of a main storyline. Firefly is about a crew on a transport ship called Serenity, headed by Malcolm Reynolds. In the first episode, they pick up a pair of siblings, Simon and River, the latter of which was subject to human experimentation that left her pretty much fractured. The mystery of what happened to River and her struggle to fit in with Mal's crew is the main driving plot of this season, and it even manages to be pretty much completely resolved by the end despite it getting cut short. Firefly is essentially a space-western, taking place in a sci fi universe inspired by the Wild West, and it's really cool. There's a lot of neat world-building including an original language, a neat blend of cultures, and tons of little details in pretty much every scene. There's a reason why Firefly's universe is so well-liked today, and it's because of how much thought was put into its world-building.

Since most of Firefly's episodes are mostly standalone (and even aired out of order at first), the real star of the show for this truncated season are the characters, all of whom are incredibly likable and fun to watch. Mal is an incredibly charismatic lead, as played by Nathan Fillon. Zoe and Wash are entertaining and snarky, with the latter of which heading one of the funniest and smartest-written scenes in the show (something to do with dinosaurs). Jayne is a fascinating mercenary whose serious personality leads to some funny moments. Kaylee is absolutely adorable and adds some positivity to the show. And then there's River Tam, one of my favorite characters in any TV show. Summer Glau's acting throughout Firefly is amazing, and River's character development along with the mysteries about her condition are immensely compelling. It helps that she is an absolute badass in some of the later episodes. Even with its short length, Firefly already managed to introduce an utterly amazing cast of characters.

There were a few episodes that managed to stand out among the pack:

Out Of Gas: For a flashback episode, this was probably the best episode of the show. It was a lot of fun to see how Mal and his crew first formed, and the juxtaposition of the more light-hearted flashbacks with Mal struggling to save his ship led to a really poignant outing for the show.

Ariel: This was Firefly's attempt at a heist episode, and it was a really fun one at that. There was a lot of tense moments and fun action, along with some interesting reveals about River's condition. I also liked that Jayne was so willing to betray Mal and the crew for even more money, it paints him as a dangerous and unpredictable character that could have been explored so much more if the show lasted longer.

Objects In Space: For a final episode of a incomplete season, Objects In Space works surprisingly well. It's very introspective, with a lot of pinings on existentialism, especially from the amazing villain Jubal Early. Despite this, it's a tense episode about a bounty hunter sneaking onto the ship, and does a solid job of giving River a lot of development. 

Overall, I enjoyed the first (and only) season of Firefly. I like the space western concept, and the world-building and cast is great. However, the season reeks of wasted potential that just left me sad that Fox ended up handling it as poorly as it did.

4/5 Stars

Favorite Episode: Out Of Gas