Firefly: Second Opinion

Ok, so it's not exactly a second opinion, seeing as it's pretty much the same opinion I had before but now I've just watched more. If you didn't read my original post, I can pretty much sum it up by saying that Firefly is the greatest sci-fi show ever made...In fact, why don't we go all the way? It's also the best adventure show ever made and beats the crap out of most dramas and comedies too. It's awesome, genre-spanning stuff.

I'm halfway through the series now - after spending the past two days locked to my TV - and have just finished watching Jaynestown. This episode really struck me for two reasons: firstly, it's an exceptional episode and secondly, Joss didn't write it.

I'm a huge fan of Whedon's shows and I've always liked that he uses the same core writing staff. There is something that does niggle at me though. Almost all the best Angel, Buffy and Dollhouse episodes are written and/or directed by Whedon himself. Seriously, he's just always amazing. His episodes are the smartest, funniest and most moving.

It seems like a weird criticism to say that Whedon is just TOO good, but he really does outshine his writing staff by a significant amount. I've always felt that others should get a shot. I was pretty stoked when I found out this episode was written by Ben Edlund, mastermind of the brilliant Angel episode, Smile Time. To keep it brief, Jaynestown is also incredible. So kudos, Mr Edlund!

Jayne, a character that mainly serves as the comic relief, has a real meaty story here to help flesh out and develop his character. I love how Whedon's shows don't ever forget the little guy - or in Jayne's case, the very BIG little guy! The episode is funny, moving and deep. Edlund manages to work in an incredibly interesting sub-plot for River and Book covering humanity's need for faith and spirituality whilst simultaneously using Jayne's main plot to challenge our nature of relying on those greater than us (i.e. God) to make our future better. This isn't just an episode. This is an essay, presenting both arguments and supporting them. IN-CRED-IBLE stuff.

In the other episodes I watched there has been much done to build on the solid foundation of the premiere. Best of all is Mal and Inara's relationship which, as I alluded to before, could very well be Joss's best on-screen romance, providing ample (and well-exploited) opportunity for both comedy and drama. I can't imagine myself ever getting tired of their fiery passion and constant conflict.

Credit is due to the writing staff who consistently manage to make Inara's role link in seamlessly with the work of Mal's crew, without ever appearing contrived or peculiar. Even though she works alone they manage to incorporate her into every episode. Whether she's on an 'ambassadorial' mission or with the rest of the crew, it always feels like she belongs on Serenity. Nothing breaks that reality and reminds you that you're watching a TV show. It all just feels right.

I love how the documentary-style shaky cam is used for all the shots on the ship to help maintain this realism. For all you Battlestar fans, this was done over 2 years before BSG was made. In fact, by comparison, Battlestar just seems so over-the-top. Every event is so GODSDAMN life-threatening that the camera has to move around at 100mph just to keep up with all the GODSDAMN FRAKKING important stuff. It's hard to watch that series without getting carsick.

However, Firefly has a gentle, natural shake and they use just the right amount of lens flare. They juxtapose the function and fluidity of running a crew of space pirates with the stillness and eerie beauty of space. It looks stunning and sets a great tone for the show - perfect for the whole Space-Cowboy theme.

Brilliant writing. Brilliant direction. Based on what I've seen so far, I'd be tempted to say that this show is perfect.

Firefly

Ok, so I'm a bit of a Joss Whedon fanboy and any opinion I have has to be taken with a pinch of salt. In my experience it's hard for a die hard fan to express any opinion (about the thing they're a die hard fan of) that can be even remotely comprehended by anyone who isn't themselves a die hard fan. I generally try to avoid the kind of overt bias typical of fanboy writing because it's pointless for most people to read. Nevertheless I can't ignore that after rewatching the first episode of Firefly there is a part of my brain that's just screaming "OMFGWTF!THISISTHEGREATESTSCI-FIPROGRAMEVER!!!". I just needed to get that out of the way.

Admittedly I loved it the first time around, but having gone through a phase of rewatching many of Whedon's shows, I've come to find greater respect for the artistry behind much of his work. If there's one important common element in all of these shows, it's that if you look hard enough, you see the hidden depth of thought beneath the surface. They're very deceptive actually because even the 'surface' is deeper than most shows. It's easy to be fooled into thinking that all the writers' time was spent writing the incredibly witty dialogue, charming characters and on creating interesting set pieces, but they go far beyond that. Firefly is no exception and after (re)watching only one episode I've discovered a greater love for it than ever before.

Well let's start off with the simple stuff. Firefly is witty, exciting and entertaining. The series' film-length premiere was jam-packed full of brilliant one-liners, expansive environments and frequent nail-biting tension. It's easy to think this is just a classic adventure sci-fi akin to something like Star Wars (I would actually go so far as saying it actually does this better). In 83 minutes the pacing never once lets up. We're introduced to a cast of over 10 major characters and 4 completely distinct sets of antagonists (Badger, Patience, The Alliance and the Reavers). In one episode! One episode!! Not once during this time did I feel that any plot-point was contrived or truncated. It all just works.

Now, chances are, that I've already lost you and you've written me off as just another sci-fi geek whose sole idea of excitement is the release of a new issue of his favourite comic book. Well, sadly you'd probably be right there, but I'm going to have to continue anyway. If anything just so that my brain doesn't explode from having to contain all this information.

All this stuff is great. In case you haven't got it already, it's really great. Imagine my glee when, upon rewatching, I realised there was actually more to this than I initially thought. Several core themes hit me much harder this time. Greatest of all is the 'religious' triangle that connects Mal, Book and Inara - Christianity, Far Eastern spirituality and Mal's loss of Christian faith, all clash here. Particularly in Book's initial meeting with Inara and then later as Book breaks down in front of her, both scenes involving Mal's aggressive attacks on the two strong religious figures.

Mal and Inara's relationship is a constant source of really interesting interpersonal dynamics. Their fierce arguments and clear yearning for each other provide endless opportunity not only to serve as the series' core romantic interest (I say 'core' because there are no fewer than 3 interesting romances on board Serenity) but also as important device for exploring these characters. I really didn't believe Whedon could improve on the Buffy-Angel exchange, but I think he's onto a winner here.

There are seeds sown all over the place for seemingly endless exploration. Zoe and Wash's love triangle with Mal, the mysterious and malevolant Alliance, Reavers, Wild West style pioneer culture, Zoe and Mal's involvement in the War, Jayne's potential for betrayal, Simon and Kaylee's romance, River's experience in 'the programme', Book's mysterious past. Seriously, I'm not even covering everything. Once again, I stress that this is ONE episode! Alright, so it's the length of two episodes back-to-back, but still, I can't think of a better series opener. I just can't wait to watch the next one.

Paint Pad for Nokia 5800

Whilst working in an office over the summer, I discovered the beauty of MS Paint as a way to pass away those long, dull hours doing administrative work. It's a lot more suspect than Solitaire and can be really embarrassing if your boss discovers you drawing pictures of pandas. Nonetheless, it's a brilliant way to just waste some time.

I discovered yesterday that there's a Paint application available for my Nokia 5800. I've been playing around with it, pretty much non-stop since then. It's quite difficult to do good, full-size images because the screen is only 3.2" but using a stylus is a million times better than a mouse.

I've been reading Astonishing X-Men recently and so they were the first things I thought to draw. Here are some quick sketches what I done.

Here's Wolverine.

This is a really shitty Colossus. I spent about 15 minutes just trying to draw his head and it still looks terrible. His positioning is really boring too, but I was drawing him from memory so I didn't want to do anything too difficult.

I did this initial sketch of Cyclops, but I wasn't too sure about the colouring. I've always liked the more traditional costume rather than the way he looked in the animated series.

Colouring is a bit fictional here. I don't think he has yellow goggles, but I thought it looked pretty cool. I added the right hand too, just to make it a really traditional Cyclops pose.


This is probably my favourite. I copied this from google images. I just love John Cassady's Beast. You can view the source image here.


And finally....a panda. Never let your boss catch you doing this.