OK, DU...tell me WHY I should watch 'Firefly.'

[Common Sense Party]

I had never heard of it until recently. I'm mildly intrigued because Captain Hammer is in it, or something.

Why do you like it? Why would I like it? Please make your case.

Go.

[Rowdyboy]

1. I was also late to discover Firefly...I enjoyed it very much...

It reminds me a little of a childhood favorite of mine- "The Wild, Wild West". Outlaws on the run from an evil planetary establishment after losing an intergalactic civil war, the characters are attractive, distinctive, funny and sexy. The plots, while interesting aren't too complicated and special effects are decent (imho).

Certainly not epic sci-fi but a good way to spend a rainy afternoon. Check out a couple of episodes and I'll bet you watch them all. I really wish there were more.

[blogslut]

2. Because it's fun

And clever. And Adam Baldwin!

[sarge43]

3. Let's put it this way

One episode begins with Captain Hammer aka Captain Reynolds naked as a jaybird alone sitting on a rock in the middle of a barren landscape. He sighs and says, "Yeah. That went well." Then, flashback 72 hours.

Any show with the balls and smarts to start like that is worth watching.

Yeah, western, but I'd say more fronter flavor to it. It's greatest appeal are the characters. They all have a story and secrets. The cast was well chosen and they mesh. Plus, no, thank God, techobabble.

Then, there's the Revers.

[Zavulon]

4. It's a fun ride. Easy to criticize, but very amusing.

It's actually the best combination of humor and sci-fi I've ever seen.

[Orsino]

5. So you can see the last episode.

Has one of the most intriguing villains ever (besting even the Operative from the movie), and it's spooky as hell. In fact, I had to stop in the middle of typing this post, and watch it again, so my wife could see it.

There's other great stuff along the way.

[Common Sense Party]

7. Why would I only want to see the last episode?

[petronius]

6. The characters have depth, and you will probably not like everything about

any of them. Interpersonal relationships are believable, and the dialogue is fantastic (basically, everything Jayne says is a riot). The stories do touch on a few SF cliches from time to time, but there is usually something pretty original included. Make sure to watch them in the right order; I believe they were mixed up when first aired.

I didn't watch when it first came out because I wrongly assumed the western thing would be silly, but it really works...

[Posteritatis]

8. I wasn't a great fan of the show, but I was a great fan of that dialogue

If the show's nothing else it's routinely witty as hell. (Good dialogue will repair an otherwise-completely-broken show for me; your tastes may differ, of course.) I generally found the characters interesting, and wished they'd had more time to develop them.

If it hadn't gotten axed right out the gate I probably would have wound up more of a fan as things developed.

[crim son]

9. Nathan Fillion.

And if that's not enough, Nathan Fillion au naturel. *sigh*

[Angry Dragon]

10. Isn't he the star of Castle??

[crim son]

13. Yes he is!

Needless to say, I am a devoted Castle fan.

[NewJeffCT]

24. And, Christina Hendricks has a couple of memorable appearances

back before she became the sexiest woman alive

[crim son]

29. I don't know who she is

but I'll google her!

[sarge43]

30. YoSaffBridge

aka Yolanda, Saffron, Bridget, Mrs Malcolm Reynolds

episodes Our Mrs Reynolds and Trash.

[NewJeffCT]

31. She's a curvaceous redhead

with very large natural boobs.

[NewJeffCT]

32. Pics here

[crim son]

33. Ah, I recognize her!

She looks better in these pics than she does when she appears in Firefly and I think I know why. :P

[baldguy]

35. Ah, Mrs Reynolds!

[TreasonousBastard]

11. Is there a bet involved here? I liked Firefly. I'm proudly part of the Firefly cult, but...

why would I want to convince someone whose tastes I am totally ignorant of that the series, and the final movie, was great? How would I even do that?

Rent it and find out for yourself.

[Common Sense Party]

12. You would explain why YOU like it.

No need to rent it; it's available on Netflix for immediate viewing. I just couldn't make up my mind if I should try it or not.

So far, the responses here have intrigued me. I'll give it a whirl.

[proteus_lives]

14. It's a good space opera.

Interesting plot, characters, background story and funny dialogue.

[Dr Morbius]

15. Here are several reasons:

1. Babes. The show had four female cast members: Morena Baccarin, Gina Torres, Summer Glau and my favorite, Jewel Staite. Not only are these four women lovely, they're all lovely in different ways.

2. Characters. No cardboard cutout characters on this show; every character on the show has a backstory, contains flaws, and very importantly, is as inconsistent and imperfect as the folks we know in real life. This was not one of the many lesser programs which was committed to "character development." Instead, the characters were fully developed in the first place, and the focus instead was placed on character exposition.

3. Writing. Apart from brilliantly conceived characters, Firefly was wickedly funny at times and consistently interesting. From plot-lines to the inevitable struggling romance that every TV show seems to have (Firefly had two: Kaylee/Simon and Mal/Inara), Firefly was an extremely well-written program.

4. This is a rare bird, a program that assumes the intelligence of the viewer. That's most uncommon for American television. Further, it's an intelligent sci/fi series, and that's REALLY rare.

FYI, Castle, the latest Nathan Fillian vehicle, is comparatively stupid in comparison to Firefly.

[Betty88]

16. Think you covered it

and it was just great fun

[NewJeffCT]

17. Never realized until I saw the show

that a line used on DU a lot "I'll be in my bunk" came from Firefly...

[sarge43]

21. It's was Baldwin's expression of bemused lust that made that line. n/t

[TreasonousBastard]

22. I've wondered if that was Baldwin ad-libbing again...

Wheedon was talking about the casting on one of the DVDs and said Baldwin not only had great comic timing, but came up with a lot of his own lines.

Another one I'll never forget was one of Inara's friends needed help and Jayne goes into a long tirade about how they keep risking their lives for these noble causes that never pay anything... yadda yadda...

"They're whores."

"I'm in."

[sarge43]

25. He did have some of the best lines.

Another tribute to Wheedon's writing. Jayne was his comedy relief, but he never let the audience forget Jayne was one dangerous piece of work -- excellent mix.

Another nice touch: When the gang shows up at the whorehouse, Jayne is dressed in his best.

[NewJeffCT]

23. I remember that

I'd seen the line a ton of times on DU and knew what it was about... however, when I finally watched the show and saw the line, I practically fell out of my chair laughing!

[NewJeffCT]

18. Excellent writing, great characters

I watched all the episodes on Hulu last year - not sure if they're there or not. Make sure you watch them in the intended order, though, and not the broadcast order.

[Dr Morbius]

19. Hulu has five episodes available at any given time, and...

...they rotate a new episode in every Monday. There's a four-disk DVD set containing the entire series, including the several episodes which were never broadcast. It's worth owning, IMO. A fabulously entertaining program which stands up to repeat viewing.

[sarge43]

20. Right now Netflix has it on instant play. Also Serenity. n/t

[Brickbat]

26. It's a funny, smart series with hot people in it.

That's good enough for me.

[NV Whino]

27. Space cowboys

Good cast, fun stories, women in non-traditional roles. What's not to love.

[realisticphish]

28. Because it's awesome

brilliant, funny, well written, sci-fi western. What's not to love?

I will hate Fox forever for canceling it, as well as Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles

[RandomThoughts]

34. Well Josh has some good shows.

Although I disagree with many of his views, he gets some really good stuff into his shows also.

I have only seen a couple episodes of the show, but someday I plan to watch that series.