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Title: Firefly: The Complete
Series On DVD Box Set
Region: One
Genre: Sci-Fi Western Drama
Disc One Episodes: “Serenity
– Part 1 & 2”, “The Train Job”, “Bushwhacked”
Disc Two Episodes: “Shindig”,
“Safe”, “Our Mrs. Reynolds”, “Jaynestown”
Disc Three Episodes: “Out Of
Gas”, “Ariel”, “War Stories”, “Trash”
Disc Four Episodes: “The
Message”, “Heart Of Gold”, “Objects In Space”
Stars: Alan Tudyk, Summer Glau,
Ron Glass, Gina Torres, Nathan Fillion, Jewel Staite, Adam Baldwin, Morena
Baccarin, and Sean Maher
Writers: Joss Whedon, Tim Minear
Jane Espenson, Drew Z. Greenberg, Ben Edlund, Jose Molina, Cheryl Cain, and
Brett Matthews
Directors: Joss Whedon, Tim
Minear, Vern Gillum, Michael Grossman, Vondie Curtis Hall, Marita Grabiak, David
Solomon, Allan Kroeker, James Contner, and Thomas J. Wright
Created By: Joss Whedon
Executive Producers: Joss Whedon
and Tim Minear
Running Time: 675 minutes
Extras: Never-Before-Aired
Episodes, Select Episode Commentaries, Behind-The Scenes Featurettes, Deleted
Scenes, Joss Whedon Singing The “Firefly” Theme, and Gag Reel
Languages: English, French, and
Spanish Language Dolby Surround Sound
Subtitles: English Captions and
Closed Captions and Spanish Language Subtitles
Chapter Stops: 12 Per Episode/ 20
For “Serenity – Part 1 & 2”/176 Total
Sound: Dolby Surround Sound
Packaging: Four Slim Keep Cases
Within A Cardboard Slipcase
Year Of Television Broadcast:
2002/DVD Release: 2003
Home Video Distributor: Twentieth
Century Fox Home Entertainment
Reviewer: Mark A. Rivera
Perhaps one of the most eagerly
anticipated new genre series set to premiere in the fall of 2002 on non-cable
broadcast network television was Joss Whedon’s “Firefly.” Set
approximately five hundred or so years in the future, “Firefly” at least in
part refers to the type of vessel our protagonists fly around in. It is a “Firefly”
class mid bulk carrier without weapons named “Serenity.” The crew is
a mixed bag of frontier fugitives trying to make a living on the outskirts of
known space a few years after an interstellar civil war crushed a separatist
movement. Now the known galaxy is governed by a totalitarian regime referred to
simply as the “Alliance.” Captain Malcolm “Mal” Reynolds (Nathan Fillion)
leads his eclectic mercenary crew made up of specific types. We have the
prostitute with a sense of duty (Morena Baccarin), a preacher who ever so
slightly appears that he might have something to hide to accompany his wisdom
(Ron Glass), a young doctor who no one really trusts completely (Sean Maher),
and his mysterious sister (Summer Glau), who is wanted by the Alliance for
reasons regarding experiments performed in conjunction with the powerful
intergalactic corporation “Blue Sun.” The series also featured genre
veterans Adam Baldwin (Independence Day & The X – Files) and Gina Torres
(Cleopatra 2525 & The Matrix Reloaded/Revolutions.) The pilot sets up that
our Captain is a veteran of the civil war and has chosen a life on the fringe as
a way of maintaining freedom from the Alliance. Our crew takes on various
dangerous missions usually with no questions asked and the knowledge that if
they fail to follow through, they will be hunted and killed.
Joss Whedon has proved himself to be one of the most talented writers and producers working in television today with the already highly successful “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” and “Angel” TV series breaking new ground with an innovative mix of humor and dark fantasy. Whedon, who penned “Alien Resurrection,” turned his eyes back to the future and the stars and resurrected the spirit of the classic western TV series and combined it with what may or may not be a space opera. Now this is not a new idea by any means. A lot of sci-fi owes a great deal to the western genre because both are very archetypal. The original “Star Wars” is in many ways essentially a western and what is “Robocop” or “Mad Max” if not variations on “The Man With No Name” combined with a bit of the revenge motif like “Death Wish,” which in itself if you watch the Bronson original, is very much indebted to or inspired by the western genre.
The series does a good job of
letting the viewers know just who our protagonists are and they are easy to
relate to because they are types drawn from the likes of classics like “Stage
Coach” and yet the human drama feels very new onto itself. A creative choice
Whedon followed was to set this new series in what is essentially a human’s
only universe like the Asimov “Robot” and “Foundation” novels or Frank
Herbert’s “Dune Chronicles.” The CGI special effects are above average for
a network TV show and most of the production design and costuming is outstanding
in mixing the familiarity of the past with the exotic possibilities of the
future. The “Serenity” herself looks a bit like the “Drazi
Sunhawk” as seen on “Babylon 5” and the Alliance infantry soldiers
look like they are wearing the same outfits used in “Starship Troopers,”
which have cropped up already in other television shows and feature films like
“Impostor.” Overall I enjoyed “Firefly” very much and think the series
still shows a lot of potential if Whedon gets to make his feature film that
would possibly wrap up the unfinished character storylines and reveal more of
what he intended to dramatize from the beginning.
All fourteen produced episodes of
“Firefly” are presented in an anamorphic widescreen (1.78:1) aspect ratio
that preserves the manner in which the show was broadcast on Fox’s high
definition broadcast network counterpart. The picture quality is very good with
solid warm colors and a soft look at times adds to the overall outback feeling
of the series. English, French, and Spanish Language Dolby Surround Soundtracks
are provided along with English Captions and Closed Captions for the hearing
impaired as well as Spanish Language Subtitles. The English Soundtrack is very
clear and perfectly serviceable for the series, but one cannot help but wish
that a 5.1 Surround Soundtrack remix were created for all 14 episodes on the
four DVDs. I would call this a conceit and not a critique of the DVD set, but
since the characters in this future world speak English and Chinese back and
forth and often intermix the two languages with little effort, Fox should have
included a Chinese or Mandarin Language Soundtrack and sacrificed the French
track or something just to sort of cross the boundary of the series onto the
product since it is easy to see if the shows was seen on some future media from
Whedon’s “Firefly” universe, odds are there would be both English and
Chinese Soundtrack options instead of English, French, and Spanish.
These episodes are presented
across the four discs as Mr. Whedon had originally intended them to be seen so
the two part original pilot that aired on Fox in December is finally returned to
where it should have been in viewing order followed by “The Train Job,”
which is what Fox opened the series up with back in September of 2002. Three of
the episodes entitled “Trash,” “The Message,” “and “Heart Of Gold”
are being presented commercially to the general public for the first time since
Fox cancelled the series before airing them. The audio commentaries are often
humorous and very interesting as Whedon and other cast and crewmembers discuss
their reasoning behind certain elements of the series that includes even a bit
of the science behind “Firefly.” Joss Whedon participates in episode length
commentaries for “Serenity – Part 1 & 2” with actor Nathan Fillion,
“The Train Job” with co-executive producer Tim Minear, and for the final
episode in the set “Objects In Space. Writer Jane Espenson, actress Morena
Baccarin, and costume designer Shawna Trpcic provide an episode commentary for
“Shindig” while co-executive producer Tim Minear and director David Solomon
provide commentary for “Out Of Gas.” Finally actor Alan Tudyk participates
in episode length audio commentaries with actor Nathan Fillion for “War
Stories” and with actress Jewel Staite for “The Message.”
The remaining extra features are
all on the fourth disc and they include a retrospective documentary with new
cast and crewmember interviews about the series entitled “Here’s How It Was:
The Making Of Firefly” (28:37), a look at the design of the ship itself in
“Serenity: The Tenth Character” (9:44), and quick tour of the “Firefly”
set with Joss Whedon (1:21).
Four deleted scenes from the
episodes “Serenity – Part 1 & 2” (1:35) and (3:39), as well as “Our
Mrs. Reynolds” (3:39) and “Objects In Space” (2:10) are presented in a
letterboxed (1.78:1) aspect ratio with English Stereo Sound. The deleted scene
from “Objects In Space” actually did air during the original series
broadcast, but was removed for the DVD release since these episodes are
presented as Joss Whedon wanted them to be seen and he felt this scene was no
longer necessary. A gag reel
(2:39), Joss Whedon singing the “Firefly” theme song (1:14), and actor Alan
Tudyk’s audition tape (1:04) wraps up the extra features included within this
DVD box set.
The menus are easy to navigate
with animated transitions, but the manner in which they appear is somewhat loud
if not annoying. All four discs are housed in individual slim keep cases within
a glossy cardboard slipcase. “Firefly: The Complete Series On DVD Box Set"
is available at retailers on and offline now from Twentieth Century Fox Home
Entertainment.
© Copyright 2003 By Mark A.
Rivera
All Rights Reserved.
Read The DVD Review Of "Serenity: Widescreen"
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