THE MOVIE-                        4 stars out of 5

THE SERIES                        4 stars out of 5

 

Firefly was a sci-fi based or should I say a western set in space that ran on the Fox network in 2002 and finishing up in 2003. The series was created by Joss Whedon the man behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Despite critical acclaim and an ardent but small fan base, Firefly was cancelled before its initial run of 14 episodes aired. However, like the original Star Trek TV series, Firefly began to get more and more popular after it was cancelled, this time as a result of the internet rather than syndication. Serenity is the movie based on the series that was released to theaters in 2005. GIven that these two releases are of the same subject matter, I am reviewing them together.

 

I must admit that I did not see the Firefly TV series on TV and this Blu-Ray release is my first exposure to the show. The show is set in 2517 in another solar system that was colonized by humans from Earth. The series takes place after a civil war between the inner and outer planets and centers on the crew of a firefly class ship named the Serenity that is staffed by a very diverse crew and headed by a soldier who fought on the losing side of the civil war. The Serenity is a scavenger ship that picks the cargo off disabled or abandoned ships and engages in smuggling cargo for money and that operates in the wild wild west of the outer planets and out of the ever watchful eye of the Alliance, the victors in the civil war. One of the members of the crew, River Tam, is a mysterious women and sister of the ship’s new doctor who seems to have incredible strength and psychic abilities that are more fully explored in the Serenity film. The references to old westerns in the series as well as the film are very obvious. The series and film can best be described as a western in space. Some of the weapons being used even look like old sixshooters. The Reavers which inhabit the space between the outer plants and savage and pillar any ship that they can and once they kill and dismember their victims, they paint their ships and for want of a better term, decorate the ship with their victims. The show also has a very moralistic tone and a good deal of humor as well. It is a really enjoyable show and one that really deserved a longer run than it received. The film takes place two months after the last TV episode and continues in the same vain as the series and is much more a continuation of the series unlike the first Star Trek motion picture which totally ignored what made the TV series so popular. In short, I really enjoyed both of these releases and can recommend both without reservation. Recommended.

 

THE VIDEO-            4 1/3 stars out of 5

 

While the TV series was shot in a 1:78:1 aspect ratio, it was shown on the Fox Network with a 4 x 3 aspect ratio. This release restores the originally intended 1:78:1 widescreen aspect ratio that Joss Whedon intended. The film is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2:35:1. While the aspect ratios are different, the series and the film share many attributes in common. In brightly lit scenes, both the series and in particular the film, look fantastic. The brightly lit scenes in the film looks as good as just about any film I have seen on Blu-Ray with a stunning image with great clarity, detail, depth and excellent color reproduction. However, large segments of the film are shot in dark or dimly lit interiors and suffer from both black crush and noise, with the film looking better than the TV series in regards to the black crush and noise issues although suffering from both, just to a lesser degree. The larger the screen you view these releases, the more obvious and obtrusive these issues will be for you, hence the low score.

 

THE AUDIO-                Serenity- 4 5/8 stars out of 5

                                     Firefly-    4 1/4 stars out of 5

 

While these releases are from separate studios (Fox and Universal), both come with DTS HD Master Audio encodes. The film Serenity sounds much better with a much more immersive sound field than Firefly which sounds much more like a TV series than a film. Serenity has a very dynamic sound mix with excellent bass. During battle sequences, your room feels like it is shaking and pitching from side to side with the image on screen and is very effective. I would have given Serenity a score of 5 had the dialogue track had better fidelity, sounding thinner and shriller than the best sounding tracks. Other than this shortcoming, this is an excellent sound mix and will thrill fans of the film and home theater in general. Firefly however, is nowhere near Serenity in terms of  its sound mix. The overall sound lacks the sense of immersion that makes Serenity so special, sounding front heavy in comparison. The dialogue track also shares the same shortcomings of the film described above. While the sound is good for TV show, it falls a good deal short of the sound mix that we expect from a film and the sound mix delivered on Serenity.

 

EXTRAS

 

Firefly comes equipped with several extras including a new cast roundtable, three never aired episodes (only 11 of the 14 episodes shot were ever aired on TV), an audio commentary on selected episodes, 3 behind the scenes featurettes and 4 deleted scenes.

 

Serenity comes equipped with My Scenes and U Control with picture in picture, visual commentary, digital tour of Serenity and Mr. Universe’s Compendium, an Alliance database, 9 extended and deleted scenes, outtakes, a Future History of the Earth 500 years hence and several featurettes about the rise of the film from the ashes of the TV series and an easter egg.

 

IN CONCLUSION

 

Joss Whedon has created an excellent TV series and film that really deserved a  much greater audience. If you are a fan of Sci-fi or well written fiction, give these releases a look. Recommended.