O.K. I gotta do it... What hooked me, by The Wink by SchoolboysWink

FIREFLY EPISODE DISCUSSIONS

O.K. I gotta do it... What hooked me, by The Wink

POSTED BY: SCHOOLBOYSWINK
UPDATED: Thursday, July 26, 2007 15:10
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Thursday, July 26, 2007 1:11 PM

What hooked me on Firefly was not one moment, but a cascade of instances that wormed their way into me. Strap in. It's a long way to Shadow.

Moment 1) Caught just a couple minutes of the first ep on sci-fi channel before I had to go do something. Saw spaceship and people getting into it. Saw that cute girl who was in the show Flash Forward on Saturday mornings when I was a young 'un getting up. She turns around... Holy crap, is that a lawn chair!? I could tell from the costumes and the staging that the show wasn't spoofy or thoughtless, so... Clearly some more investigation was required.

Moment 2) After watching several Angel episodes with my sister's now-husband who was a huge Buffy/Angel fan, I realized that Joss Whedon is a master at his craft, especially dialogue. Seeing that Serenity (BDM) was coming out 'from the maker of Buffy the Vampire Slayer' I decided it would be worth seeing for the dialogue alone, and a great way, I thought, to decide if I wanted to buy Firefly on DVD which had come out a bit before. Saw Serenity (BDM) and instantly wished I bought the DVDs first, since it spoiled a lot of surprises in Firefly, not to mention the simple joy of getting to know the characters as they were originally presented. (Though knowing Wash's fate ahead of time did help take the edge off the pain...a little bit.)

Moment 3) Sat down to watch Firefly after getting it as a Christmas gift. In the fight with Prudence, what appears to be a standoff has ensued because she is hiding behind her horse.
Mal shoots the horse.
It was so refreshing to see a sci-fi show where the main character doesn't avoid doing the smartest thing to survive just because "a hero wouldn't do that." I love horses, but that one was getting between him and breathing, so it had to go. Dohn-ma?

Moment 4) Another standoff moments later as the Fed has River as a human shield. An irritated, rushed, returning Mal shoots him in the head mid-sentence and walks on in like nothing had happened. So sudden, so unexpected, so much impact, so true to Mal's character, as the reactions of the other characters to it were each true to theirs. Masterful.

Moment 5) Episode: Shindig. Kaylee is getting slammed. Hard. She's wishing she'd listened to Mal and stuck to her "place" in the engine room. She doesn't say a word, but it's all over her face. Until...
"What a vision you are in your fine dress. It must have taken a dozen slaves a dozen days to get you into that getup. 'Course your daddy tells me it takes the space of a schoolboy's wink to get you out of it again...
I cannot abide useless people."

This is the ultimate slam, since not only is he calling her...well...easy, to put it mildly, but he is saying that her father and by association all of upper crust society knows about it, so her shame is doubled.

This was probably the last true hook. Not only was it masterful dialogue, but it was totally unexpected. From the moment Kaylee walks into that ball, you just KNOW she is going to make a fool of herself. It is one of those TV plot obligations that is like a train wreck; you know it is coming, and it pains you to watch, but yet you can't look away. The result, though, was not what I expected. I figured she'd dash out in tears, and either it would ruin the deal or that Mal's resultant sympathy toward her would show the mettle of his character and somehow cement the deal. Instead, she is rescued by a member of the societal class that is shunning her, and in the process becomes the belle of the ball, if the number of men you attract can be any measure. So on both sides we are shown that nothing in the 'Verse is black and white. Brilliance!

Everything after that was just confirming what I already knew and increasing my passion by that much more. When I got to Objects in Space and ran out of world, I can tell you that I felt genuinely empty. I'm withering from the withdrawal like a heroine addict who can't get a fix. The pain is worth it, though.

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Thursday, July 26, 2007 1:51 PM

FOLLOWMAL

Ok, can I just say... I'm so glad you've joined us!

You made me grin, relive those moments that I love so very much, gulp back a tear when you said you were withering but it was worth it and you made me want to hug you.

Which isn't exactly polite, but I still wanna do it.

Thank you for the above.
Made my day.

http://www.martinfirrell.com/supersecretthingy.html

( Banner courtesy of Beth'll )

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Thursday, July 26, 2007 2:10 PM

PENGUIN

King of the Mythical Land that is Iowa

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Thursday, July 26, 2007 3:10 PM

SCHOOLBOYSWINK

Quote:
Originally posted by FollowMal:
Ok, can I just say... I'm so glad you've joined us!

Thank you for the above.
Made my day.

Thanks. It feels good to be accpeted. I'm trying feverishly to get all my friends and family hooked on the show (whether they gorram like it or not!), but so far I'm more in a planning phase, so I'm all alone in my little scrap of the 'Verse. Love the community. You folk are so nice I'm apt to get all misty.

Now, enough of that. I'm off to spread joy to the rest of the station! (O.K., so I quote the wrong show, but I'm still dimly aware that there was life before Firefly, I think.)

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