Firefly/Serenity

*SPOILER ALERT*

Firefly/Serenity is a scifi western created by the genius Joss Whedon (also the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel).  The show takes place after the battle of Serenity between the Alliance and the Independents. Most of the time in movies/shows the underdog wins the fight, but instead the controlling central government wins.
The show follows the firefly class ship "Serenity" and its crew as they travel throughout the universe finding jobs, most of them illegal. Two runaways, Simon and River Tam (brother and sister), hide away on Serenity under the protection of Captain Malcolm Reynolds, an ex-sergeant who fought for the independents. His crew consists of his first in comand, Zoe Washburne, his pilot, Hoban Washburne (Wash), the weapons expert/extra gun hand, Jayne Cobb, the mechanic, Kaylee Frye, the Shepherd Derrial Book, the companion, Inara Serra, the Doctor, Simon Tam, and the seer, River Tam. The Alliance is hunting after River and Simon because River, who can read minds, saw a secret embedded in the mind of one of the high ranking Alliance members. But because she is insane, she doesn't even know she knows it.

Since Joss Whedon is a huge feminist, I thought it only appropriate to mention his use of strong female characters in his shows. Zoe is a warrior woman. She can fight and take care of herself. Inara is strong in a completely different way. She is strong in her sexuality, it is more of a religious experience then anything else. She chooses who she gives her body to, whether they be man or woman. River shows her strength in her intelligence. Even though she is insane, she is a genius, who was stripped of her self control by the Alliance. Kaylee is an adorable bubbly character who is handy with machines. Her job is one that is stereotypically seen as a man's job. Joss Whedon spoke at the "Equality Now Tribute Address" and talked about how people always ask him why he writes such strong female characters. He replied to it multiple times but the answers that touched me the most were these two

"Why are you even asking me this?! This is like interview number 50 in a row. How is it possible that this is even a question? Honestly, seriously, why are you -- why did you write that down? Why do you -- Why aren’t you asking a hundred other guys why they don’t write strong women characters? I believe that what I am doing should not be remarked upon, let alone honored and there are other people doing it. But, seriously, this question is ridiculous and you just gotta stop."

and

"Because equality is not a concept. It’s not something we should be striving for. It’s a necessity. Equality is like gravity, we need it to stand on this earth as men and women, and the misogyny that is in every culture is not a true part of the human condition. It is life out of balance and that imbalance is sucking something out of the soul of every man and women who’s confronted with it. We need equality, kinda now."  

 I think my favorite thing about this show is the message behind it. The secret that River carries is that the Alliance made a planet then tried to control the aggression of the people who lived on it with drugs (pacs) This evidently caused everyone on the planet to either become so passive that they just laid down and let themselves die or had the opposite effect and became overly aggressive to the point of cutting up their own faces and raping and killing people without remorse. Those who had the opposite reaction became what is now known as Reavers. The crew of Serenity has to fight to get the message out to the people, that you can't make people "better" They cease to be human anymore.

My favorite Character is Hoban Washburne (Wash) played by Alan Tudyk. He is the adorable Pilot who is married to Zoe. They are by far the cutest Whedon couple ever! My favorite scene with Wash is in the first episode when he is introduced. He is playing with dinosaur figurines and making little voices for each of the figurines he is holding. I am so pissed that Joss Whedon killed him off so suddenly in the movie. Joss Whedon always does that. You love a character in the show and by the end they are dead, maimed or sent somewhere far away.


Even with Joss Whedon's cruelty to characters, he is a genius and Firefly/Serenity is just another amazing piece of artwork from his collection. If you loved this show definitely watch everything else he has made, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Dollhouse.

Hannah, out.