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Line 1: {{work\|wppage=Firefly (TV series)}} [[File:fireflycast350_3365.jpg\|frame\|(from left) [[Boisterous Bruiser\|Jayne]], [[Wrench Wench\|Kaylee]], [[Badass Preacher\|Book]], [[The Medic\|Simon]], [[Hooker with a Heart of Gold\|Inara]], [[The Good Captain\|Mal]], [[The Lancer\|Zoe]], [[Ace Pilot\|Wash]], and [[Psychic Powers\|River]]. Inside her boots: [[Foot Focus\|River's feet.]] In background: [[Cool Starship\|Serenity]].]] Line 5: '''Mal:''' ''"We're still flying."'' '''Simon:''' ''"That's not much."'' '''Mal:''' ''"It's enough."'' }} ''[['''Firefly]]''''' is a [[Science Fiction]] [[Space Western]] that ran for four months on the [[FOX]] Network in 2002. It was ~~canceled~~cancelled after 14 episodes were produced; only 11 were aired, partly in thanks to a severe case of [[Executive Meddling]]. Its quick cancellation helped give rise to [[The Firefly Effect]]. A DVD boxed set was released in December 2003 and has sold briskly ever since. A feature-[[Film]] continuation, ''[[Serenity]]'', was released in October 2005 to critical acclaim. Unfortunately the [[film]]'s box-office performance was mediocre, barely covering its costs, which probably dooms the idea of further movies. In the future, humanity has spread across the stars, terraforming planets for colonisation and creating a new frontier reminiscent of the old Wild West. The dominant power in this time is the monolithic Alliance, whose iron grip on the universe has only tightened following a successful military victory against the rebellious Browncoats of the frontier planets. Line 13: Malcolm Reynolds is a former Browncoat who now captains a [[Cool Starship\|run-down tramp freighter]] called ''Serenity''. Working as an [[Anti-Hero\|amoral]] jack-of-all-trades, he tries to ilk out a life for himself and his crew away from the reach of the Alliance. However, things change when he inadvertently lets a deadly Alliance secret board his ship: a [[Mysterious Waif]] who was subject to horrific experimentation aiming to turn her into a [[Person of Mass Destruction\|living weapon]]. The show was created by [[Joss Whedon]] and [[Tim Minear]] ([[Mutant Enemy]] Productions), and [[Schizo-Tech\|combined]] science fictional concepts (interplanetary travel, spaceships, [[terraform]]ing) with a Western setting (poor agricultural colonies where people ride horses, cattle ranching, cowboy slang). The ''[[Firefly]]'' universe contains [[Absent Aliens\|no non-human sentient beings]], and in fact no non-Earth-based life at all. ''[[Firefly]]''{{'}}s life story is an interesting one: it went from (canceled) television show, to runaway cult hit DVD series, to [[Firefly (comic book)\|comic-book]] [[Sequel]], to major motion picture, to a [http://www.amazon.com/Firefly-Flying-Celebration-Whedons-Acclaimed/dp/1848565062/ref=sr_1_1/189-6509445-2330608?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277635468&sr=8-1 book] having show-related pics and a few new stories to ~~a currently{{when}}~~an unfinished, ~~but~~[[Massively ~~soon-to-be-launched~~Multiplayer [[Online Role Playing Game\|MMORPG]], ~~titled~~entitled ''[~~http~~[w:~~//fireflyuniverseonline.com/~~Firefly Online\|Firefly ~~Universe~~ Online]]''.<ref>Which appears to have vanished into ''[[~~Firefly~~Development Hell]] at some point after January 2016.</ref>. ''Firefly'' is noted for being one of the few ''canceled'' television series to be [[Spin-Off\|spun off]] into a major motion picture. The [[Universal]] [[Film]] was titled ''[[Serenity]]'' because [[FOX]] still owned the rights to the name ''[[Firefly]]''. There are also a few [[Interquel\|comics]], with plans for more. There's even a [[Firefly Role-Playing Game\|Tabletop Roleplaying]] game]]. There are also constant rumors about a second television series (Whedon and many of the principals have constantly said they would be willing to pick up the show, with Fillion going so far as to say he'd be willing to buy the rights from Fox), and the cult status the series has attained after its premature cancellation may have saved [[Dollhouse\|a later Whedon work]] [https://web.archive.org/web/20100419230919/http://scifiwire.com/2009/05/fox-execs-explain-why-the.php from a similar fate], even if ''[[Dollhouse]]'' only lasted until December of 2009. '''The cast included:''' Line 28: * Morena Baccarin as [[The Chick\|Inara Serra]], a [[High-Class Call Girl\|companion]], or [[Hooker with a Heart of Gold\|high-class courtesan]]. Or, as [[The Captain\|Mal]] calls her, a "[[Band of Brothels\|whore]]." This page has a [[Firefly (TV series)/Recap\|recap page here]]. [http://www.hulu.com/firefly/ Hulu] has all 14 episodes of the series available for streaming. (NOTE: [[No Export for You\|Does not play outside of the US]]) It is also all up for instant stream on Netflix and Hulu Plus. Starting March 6th 2011, the show also began playing, in the correct order, on the Science Channel and in glorious HD. Line 35: There's talk, now that Netflix is beginning to introduce original content, of ''Firefly'' being revived as a Netflix-original. Not to be confused with the book of the same name, the movie of the same name, the band of the same name, the ''Batman'' villain of the same name, or any other [[Firefly]]. ---- {{tropenamer}} Line 43 ⟶ 46: * [[The Firefly Effect]] * [[Girl in a Box]] * [[I Call It "Vera"]] * [[I'll Be in My Bunk]] * [[In That Order]] Line 137 ⟶ 140: ** From the pilot, do ''not'' imply you believe that Mal [[Not So Different\|is anything like the Alliance]]. Simon got decked for it. {{quote\|'''Jayne:''' Saw that comin'.}} * [[Becoming the Mask]]: {{spoiler\|[[Joss Whedon]] [[Word of God\|let it slip in an interview]] that Derrial Book was not Shepherd's real name, but rather he had taken the identity of a man he had killed}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20071215181839/http://www.serenitystuff.com/2007/12/12/ron-glass-announces-a-shepherds-tale-comic/ They go into detail in the comic] * [[Best Her to Bed Her]]: {{spoiler\|Saffron}} briefly pretends to be one of these at the end of "Our Mrs Reynolds" -- it does not work. Tries again in "Trash", for about 30 seconds -- also doesn't work. * [[Beware the Nice Ones]] Line 329 ⟶ 332: * [[Evil Redhead]]: {{spoiler\|Saffron, again.}} * [[Exact Words]]: Point of interest, seems 'understand', according to Merriam Webster, means "To grasp the meaning/reasonableness of", whereas 'comprehend' means "to grasp the nature/significance of". Take this into consideration as you rewatch "Objects In Space," {{spoiler\|River's saying she gets why she should not have the gun from a logic standpoint, but does not get why it is important.}} * [[Executive Meddling]] / [[Screwed by the Network]]: [[FOX]] insisted that ''[[Firefly]]'' have a "space hooker" and required Joss Whedon to write a second pilot because they wanted more action and less drama. They also threatened to pan-and-scan crop, no matter how it was shot, necessitating re-shoots. Then they aired the episodes out of order and preempted a bunch of them for baseball. The series didn't even get to finish its first season. * [[Expanded Universe]]: [[The Movie]], the comics, online clips and games. * [[Extreme Melee Revenge]]: Episode 10, "War Stories." Mal is captured by the elderly and sadistic Niska, is brutally tortured via electric shock, has his ear cut off, and is then killed painfully only to be resuscitated for further torture. When Mal's crew stages a rescue, Mal overcomes the guard and gives Niska a huge beatdown. Line 351 ⟶ 354: '''Jayne''': "I'm in." }} * [[Fetal Position Rebirth]]: River. * [[Feudal Future]]: There are a few Feudal Lords (barons, dukes, etc.) on different planets in ''Firefly''. In one episode, Mal goes to a party full of aristocrats and winds up fighting one of them in an old-fashioned sword duel. * [[Filk Song]]: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUn-eN8mkDw Mal's Song], by Michelle Dockrey, incorporates the series theme song as the chorus. * [[Finagle's Law]]: In the Serenity RPG, the name of the complication is "Things Don't go Smooth." The description is basically this trope. As should be obvious, Mal canonically has the Major version of this complication listed on his character sheet. Line 496 ⟶ 499: Did River just peek around the corner and then ''kill three guys perfectly without looking?''? Did Mal just stroll into the ship while pulling a ''perfect headshot'' -- on someone ''with a hostage?!'' * [[Improbable Piloting Skills]]: Did Wash just perfectly hit a skyplex docking seal with a powered down ~~firefly~~Firefly from 6000 miles away? Yes, I believe that's exactly what he just did. * [[Inconvenient Hippocratic Oath]]: Simon, in "Ariel" responding to a Code Blue that occurs right in front of him, despite his fugitive status, and therefore giving us a rare moment of seeing him as he truly is rather than the [[Fish Out of Water]] he often is when on ''Serenity''. It also reinforces the strong suggestion in the pilot that he was only bluffing when he claimed he would let Kaylee die if they didn't run from the Alliance (a bluff that was revealed at the time because as soon as Mal gave the order, Simon helped Kaylee - reacting faster to Mal's words than even Zoe did, which means he didn't bother waiting to see if Mal was bluffing or if any of the crew would actually carry out the order). * [[Indy Ploy]] Line 528 ⟶ 531: ** Alliance guards use sonic disruptors which are quite effective, but deal absolutely no colateral damage, which throws off Mal and Jayne several times when they try to use them to blast open doors. * [[Klingon Promotion]]: Technically the reason why Mal ended up commanding over 5000 men at the Battle of Serenity Valley, he originally had just lead a small unit, but then most of the superior officers were wiped out by the Alliance. * [[Kneecapping]]: Book does it during the ''[[Firefly]]'' episode "War Stories", leading to this exchange: {{quote\|'''Zoe:''' Preacher, don't the Bible have some pretty specific things to say about killin'? '''Book:''' Quite specific. It is, however, somewhat fuzzier on the subject of kneecaps. }} Line 565 ⟶ 568: * [[Madness Mantra]]: "Two by two, hands of blue..." * [[The Mafiya]]: Niska. * [[The Magnificent Seven Samurai]]: The ~~Firefly~~Serenity crew finish up one of these plans [[In Medias Res\|at the beginning]] of "Our Mrs. Reynolds," and does it as the focus of the episode in "Heart of Gold." * [[Make Room for the New Plot]]: In the first episode (the last one actually aired), the overriding conflict of "what do we do with the captured lawman" is abruptly solved {{spoiler\|via a bullet through the eyes}} when the Reavers, a substantially more dangerous issue, arise. * [[Mama Bear]]: Zoe for Kaylee. River for Simon. Kaylee for ''[[Cool Spaceship\|Serenity.]]'' Line 738 ⟶ 741: * [[Setting as a Character]]: Played with in the final episode when River {{spoiler\|tricks the bounty hunter Jubal Early into believing that Serenity, the ship which is constantly anthropomorphised throughout the series, is actually alive, and that she has become a part of it.}} ** Played straight inasmuch as Serenity is often referred to as the 10th star of the show. (The 11th being [[Foot Focus\|River's feet]].) * [[Sex as Rite-Ofof-Passage]]: Explored in "Jaynestown" and significant in "Our Mrs. Reynolds." * [[Sex by Proxy]]: Thanks to River's powers, she can feel it when people nearby are making out. * [[Shameful Strip]]: In "Trash", YoSaffBridge forces Mal to strip before she abandons him in the desert. Line 766 ⟶ 769: {{quote\|'''Jayne:''' ''Se-niou'' high-tech Alliance crap!}} * [[Shot to the Heart]]: Done twice in the episode, "Out Of Gas." Simon administers one to Zoe after she's injured in an explosion, and later Mal does it to himself to stay conscious after he is gut-shot. * [[Shout-Out]]: See [[Firefly (TV series)/Shout -Out\|here]]. * [[The Siege]]: "Heart of Gold" * [[A Simple Plan]]: Mal has these a lot. And they go wrong with [[Finagle's Law\|alarming regularity]] Line 929 ⟶ 932: {{reflist}} {{TV Guide's Top Cult Shows Ever}} {{TV Guide's Television Shows Canceled Way Too Soon}} {{The Troper Board on Multiversal Travel}} [[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]] [[Category:Notable Quotables]] [[Category:~~Turn~~Live-Action TV of the ~~Millennium/Live Action TV~~2000s]] [[Category:Science Fiction Series]] [[Category:American Series]] Line 937 ⟶ 944: [[Category:Hugo Award]] [[Category:TV Series]] [[Category:~~{{PAGENAME}}~~Works by Joss Whedon]] [[Category:~~Joss~~Firefly ~~Whedon~~(franchise)]]