Freedom and Firefly

AFF's Brainwash ^ | Aug 7, 2005 | Sara T. Hinson

[samm1148]

A late reply since I'm watching a recording of tonight's episode. Speaking of freedom did you ever really listen to theme song. "Since I found Serenity,
You can't take the skies from me".

That says alot.

[68skylark]

It definitely a real good show -- I've got the DVD's and I've seen them numerous times. I think one of the "extras" in the box set is Joss Whedon singing the theme song himself.

[wingnutx]

It's like a series of Traveller sessions brought to the small screen.

So I'm not the only one who made that connection :)

[af_vet_rr]

I saw it tonight. Fear not, it was good.

One gets the very distinct impression that the Alliance = UN.

It was so blatant, that Whedon had to have done it deliberately.

[68skylark]

Yeah, I saw it yesterday myself. You mention a political subtext in the movie. I'd like to respond. I think it's very odd and very noteworthy that both those on the left and the right think the movie is speaking to them.

I don't know how Wheedon has pulled this off -- I would have thought such a feat was impossible. Either he's amazingly brilliant (a good possibility), or we might have to face the fact that deep down, those on the left and right have more in common than we realize -- and that's a scary thought!

[Rebelbase]

I have just recently watched about a week's worth of Firefly shows on the tube and like very much.

Reminds me of a cross between Star Trek/Gunsmoke/Little House on the praire. You have all the Western character types represented: The sherrif, the side kicks, the love interests, the preacher, the saloon girl, and the doctor.

[Ichneumon]

By the way, is the new Battlestar Galactica any good?

It's excellent. Here are a couple of posts I wrote about it on FR:

I've been really impressed with the new "Battlestar Galactica" series on the Sci-Fi network, believe it or not. The original series was campy and cheesy as could be, but the new one is gritty, realistic, and doesn't pull any punches. I'm especially impressed with the way it depicts the military (which is the centerpiece of the series) -- both the chain of command, and the individual grunts and officers, as well as the kinds of actions and decisions necessary in warfare. Nothing "touchy feely, happy ending" about it.

The military's relationship to the civilian authority -- and the civilian authority's own duties and responsibilities under a constitution and system of laws -- is also handled surprisingly well.

Along with being a good action/drama/sci-fi show, it's more of a civics lesson than just about anything else on TV.

The military itself is the undisputed star of the series. And recent episodes have dealt with suicide bombers, sleeper agents, the danger of physical relationships between officers and noncoms, genocide, and so on.

And:

And you should have watched the whole show about the "9-11 commission". It could have come straight out of a FreeRepublic brainstorming session.

In short, a Cylon "suicide bomber" got onto the ship and almost took out the entire top military command. By luck, the top brass escaped injury, but 30+ other people were killed.

A civilian government "review board" was appointed to find out what oversights, if any, allowed the enemy attack to succeed, especially on the military side. As the episode progressed, the investigation became more and more politicized, and turned into a witch-hunt. It was causing far more damage to the people and institutions it was investigating than could have been balanced by any actual constructive criticism. When it finally called Commander Adama (head of the military) for "testimony" and began attacking him and asking "have you stopped beating your wife yet" questions in an obvious attempt to scapegoat him for no good reason, *that's* when he gave his short, to-the-point speech about the investigation having lost sight of its purpose, and he flatly declared "this investigation is over". And then he walked out.

Technically, he didn't have the authority to disband the commission (it was a board appointed by the civilian government), but the point was clear -- if the military refuses to cooperate, the civilian government has no way to enforce any sanctions. ("How many divisions does the pope have?")

Meanwhile, the one real error which contributed to the attack which the commission helped unearth was subsequently handled *internal* to the military, quietly and without fanfare or sacrificial lambs for the wild dogs in the media or the public.

The entire episode was a clear reference to the out-of-control "9/11 commission", without being *too* overt about it. But the point was made, in spades.

It was an excellent episode. As are all of them in this series. I'm constantly awed by how well they manage to make solid, hard-hitting conservative points while producing a first-rate sci-fi action/drama.

[Ichneumon]

Don't even start me quoting from Buffy and Angel.

Xander: "I can not stress enough how much I don't have plans."

Or:

Willow: "When I'm with a boy I like I can't say anything cool, or witty - or at all. I can usually make a few vowel sounds, and then I have to go away."

Or

Anya [a thousand-year-old immortal demon who has recently become human -- she is confused and upset by the death of Buffy's mother; she starts to cry]: "I don't understand how this all happens. How we go through this. I mean, I knew her, and then she's, there's just a body, and I don't understand why she just can't get back in it and not be dead anymore. It's stupid. It's mortal and stupid. And, and Xander's crying and not talking, and, and I was having fruit punch, and I thought, well, Joyce will never have any more fruit punch ever, and she'll never have eggs, or yawn or brush her hair, not ever, and no one will explain to me why."

[68skylark]

Thanks for the background. I think I'll check out BG some time soon, while I'm waiting for the next "Firefly" movie. I saw a bit of BG on the tube the other night, and it looked pretty good.

[68skylark]

I like your Star Trek/Little House analogy. I haven't heard that description from anyone else, but it fits pretty well!

Yeah, the TV series is very strong. I've watched all the episodes on DVD a couple of times. The movie is good as well -- it does some things better than the TV shows, while I think the TV version was better in a few ways.

[68skylark]

Willow: "When I'm with a boy I like I can't say anything cool, or witty - or at all. I can usually make a few vowel sounds, and then I have to go away."

You left off the lines that come next -- some of the funniest lines on Buffy or any other TV show. Willow has said she doesn't date much, and after the line you quoted she says, "I think boys like a girl who talks more." Buffy says, "Wow -- you really haven't been dating."

[luckystarmom]

I like Battlestar Galatica better than Firefly. My husband doesn't like Firefly, and loves Battlestar Balatica.

We are both Sci/Fiction fans.

[Tribune7]

bump for later

[BibChr]

Or:

Xander: (sputtering, on coming in and finding Spike and Buffy giddy with love for each other) How... what... how...?

Giles: Three excellent questions.

Dan