Serenity (2005)

[DRGIGGLES]

I really liked this movie and just found out that it is a series made into a movie and the series has long been canceled.  Does anyone know if this movie was a prequal to the series?

[Mr_Vindictive]

Serenity = Awesome

Firefly - the series Serenity was based on = Near Godliness.

Serenity wasn't a prequel to Firefly, but was an ending to the story.  It takes place after the TV show and attempts to wrap up the fate of those on Serenity.  I seriously recommend checking out the TV show.  Don't rent Firefly, pick up the whole series on DVD.  It's well worth the 30 bucks or so.  One of the best SF shows of all time!

[Jack]

I just pulled out my Firefly DVD set the other night and started watching it again.  I'd forgotten how good it was 

[Him]

I found the movie and the series bland.

[Torgo]

I thought that the series was so-so but I enjoyed the movie.

[CheezeFlixz]

"Serenity-The Movie" was released to wrap up all the loose end when the series Firefly was WRONGFULLY canceled right before season 2, 2 never happened. The was show slated and designed for 7 seasons to run the complete story but they felt the rating was to low and it was canceled. But the real reason was do to Fox's poor marketing and shifting time slots, skipping entire weeks and preempting the broadcast at the last minute and airing the show out of order. Stuff would happen in a show that made no sense at all until you saw the eps that was suppose to air before it, some 3 or 4 months later. It was just annoying how Fox screwed up what could have been a great series.

Firefly is excellent, it's right up there with FarScape and Babylon 5 as far as original SciFi shows go.

Highly recommended, the DVD set is in order and has the 3 never aired eps.

[Dennis]

The series was something I never really got into, possibly for reasons mentioned by CheezeFlixz. The movie Serenity though is great, even the wife liked it, I plan on buying the DVD, now I'll also get Firefly on DVD as well.

[CheezeFlixz]

The series was something I never really got into, possibly for reasons mentioned by CheezeFlixz. The movie Serenity though is great, even the wife liked it, I plan on buying the DVD, now I'll also get Firefly on DVD as well.

Yeah if you have only seen it on TV it sucked. I didn't like it on TV and only get the set when I found it for $10 in a trade shop, the series seen in order and with the missing eps if the only way to see it.

Wheaton the creator of the series as said he'd still like to finish it even with the release of Serenity and has been shopping production company's by so far no luck, even though it ranks high in Amazon sales and independent polls.

[Yaddo 42]

I was excited when I heard about the series, was meh when it aired for the reasons Cheeze cited. The network seemed to be going out of their way to get people to NOT watch the show. Heard about how the show was treated on other forums, bought the DVD set on a ehim when I wanted something different to watch. In two episodes I was hooked and feeling even more cheated by Fox for screwing up what was the best TV I'd seen in years.

I had hope for the movie to be a minor hit either leading to more films or it and the disk sales spuring another network to bring the series back. I liked the film, not as muh as the series but was glad they tied things up. The film lacked some of the sublty and nuance of the series. I knew they had less time to work with and were trying to draw in people new to story, which just made it an uphill battle. I liked the film like I said, but I loved the series.

The show had some of the best dialogue I've ever heard, like Deadwood, the best Billy Wilder films, or Homicide:Life on the Streets. There were multiple meanings to things people said, and the actors be great at conveying the feeling behind what was being said on the surface. Why nathan Fillion isn't a bigger star is beyond me, I'd love to see him plya Harry harrison's Stainless Steel Rat character someday.

Also the series had a way of upending standard cliches of storytelling for TV and what a hero is. These were protagonists who did dishonorable and illegal things, they weren't perfect but they were still better than the people they opposed. ALso Their fortunes rose and fell - money, food, and resources varied. They took jobs they didn't want because they needed them. I liked the episode where Mal and Wash were being tortured and when Zoe and the others came to rescue them she said it was something the Captain needed to finish for himself by fighting his torturer. Mal; ragged, in pain, and in no shape for a fight; blurts out "No I don't!" so the others take him out instead.

[Dr. Whom]

Nathan Fillion was awesome in it, and the whole thing was incredibly well written. The one where they steal this antique laser gun must be one of the best heist stories ever.

However, I found this whole SciFi-Western setting too contrived. It is hard to do make a consistent whole of such opposite worlds. Certainly in the beginning, you never quite know what you're going to get: it might be space western, or pseudo 19 Century space opera with ballgowns and duels, or just straight SciFi with high tech, spaceships and special powers. This makes it difficult to get into for a casual viewer. I know it took me some episodes to get hooked, and that was here in Belgium where it was aired on a logical schedule (all eps in the right order, and on a predictable time)

[Mr_Vindictive]

All this talk about Serenity made me go out and buy the Collector's Edition last night despite the fact that I have the original DVD release. 

As far as the DVD goes, it does have a ton of special features.  I haven't pulled out my original copy yet to compare features but I do believe that most of these are new, although some do look familiar.  Even if most of them are the same, it doesn't matter to me considering just how awesome the boxart is.  I'm a sucker for a good looking DVD and this one certainly delivers.

Just got done watching the film again, and I'm surprised at how fresh the material still feels.  I'm also surprised at how much some of the demises affected me emotionally, despite having seen the film numerous times before.

I plan of going through the features and then dusting off my Firefly boxset and running through those again.

I highly recommend this new DVD edition!

[trekgeezer]

I bought the Firefly series way back around the first of the year, but I just started watching it again  a couple of weeks ago. I preordered the CE DVD of Serenity which arrived  and was watched last week. 

The great characters and smart dialog made this one of the best  scifi series in quite a while .  The casting was pure gold as each member seemed ideal for their character.  I had no problem at all  getting into the whole "western in space" concept. 

This was the first time that DVD sales of a prematurely canceled series prompted the making of a movie.  It should be noted that it was another studio (Universal) that financed the movie.

I couldn't figure out why Fox was so hot to get Joss Whedon signed to a development deal just to turn and  torpedo the resulting series.  As I've said before, with the way studios work it's wonder anything decent ever gets made. .

[CheezeFlixz]

Now I'm going to have to get the CE copy of Serenity.

Says it's got ...

Serenity, the action-packed event that delivers thrilling non-stop adventure, incredible battles in dangerous worlds and spectacular visual effects, is now available in a Special 2-Disc Collector's Edition containing all-new bonus content and never-seen-before footage! With over 30 minutes of all-new special features and special collectible packaging, the Serenity – Collector's Edition is a must own for all true Sci-Fi and Joss Whedon fans! All-new 2-disc edition will include 6 completely new bonus elements including cast & filmmaker commentary. Will also include all bonus features from previous release.

All New Bonus Features:
-Extended Scenes (6:45)
-Take A Walk on Serenity (4:00) Cast and Crew take us on a special tour of the Serenity space ship
-A Filmmaker's Journey (19:49) Take A Journey with Joss Whedon from script to the big screen
-The Green Clan (3:03) An expose on Cinematographer Jack Green and his team
-Sci-Fi Inside: Serenity (21:41) Hosted by Adam Baldwin, an in-depth look at the film that was resurrected from a canceled television show, as well as its supportive culture.
-Session 416 (7:52) These internet pieces document a portion of River's participation in a psychological study and her interactions with her therapist.
-Feature Commentary with Director Joss Whedon and Cast Members Nathan Fillion, Adam Baldwin, Summer Glau, and Ron Glass

Now my question is, is this in addition to what's on the original DVD release? Does it have both the old and new stuff on the CE release?

[Mr_Vindictive]

Cheeze,

Yep, all of those are added to what already came on the original disc.  It's actually not a bad deal considering just how many extras are on the discs.  I picked it up for 17.00 at Best Buy and came included with a Firefly comic book!

[horseshoe crab]

I love the series and the film dearly and have watched both many times over.

On a related note, I get all the chicks.