Firefly DVD Set Released

Richard M. Nixon writes "As previously reported the DVD set for Joss Whedon's ill fated Western/Space Opera is now available. The DVD has all 11 episodes that aired, 3 episodes that didn't air, commentary on 7 episodes, and lots of bonus features including Joss singing the Firefly theme. It would make a nice Christmas gift for any Whedon fan who has not already run out and bought it. If DVD Sales are good enough, could we see a second season?"

Comments

Little late?

[DetrimentalFiend]

Wow, this news sure is late for Slashdot. It came out a few weeks ago, I think.

Anyway, it'll be interesting to see if firefly sells enough to come back. I heard that fox started thinking about bringing Family Guy back after its DVD sales did so well, so maybe there is a real chance for Firefly.

Re:Little late?

[koganuts]

Even Tim Minear, who worked on Firefly, couldn't find the DVDs: "Okay, so I just got back from the virgin megastore here in Hollywood. I was pissed because I felt that the Firefly DVDs should have been proudly and obviously displayed in the new releases. As I was I checking out I mentioned this -- and the guys there told me that the reason I couldn't find them was because they'd sold out almost right away. Saweeet-ah."

Maybe a movie?

[ChicoLance]

I'm still working my way through the commentary tracks, but this set is nicely put together.

Everybody has gone their separate ways, so we won't see a second season, but at one point in the commentary they said they didn't want to spill all of the beans in case there is a Firefly movie.

But I want to know all of the beans! There were so many good story lines to take advantage of, but were never explained!

Too Bad

[adipocere]

While latter-era Buffy and Angel both suffered with Whedon being stretched too thin, the man has a real gift for dialogue, comedy, and story arcs. He's not without flaw, but I'd rather see his worst work than 99% of the shows on the air these days. Any sensible studio executive ("invisible pink unicorn") would say, "Star Trek sucks now ... how about making it work for the fans for once?" I have my as-yet-unwatched Firefly DVDs waiting for the holiday break. I bought them sight-unseen, if that tells you anything about what I think his talent is.

Much Better The Second Time Around

[Dr. Wu]

I have to admit, I wasn't really drawn into the story that much when it was on the air (and I guess I would qualify as a major Whedon fan).

However, I think a major part of the reason for this could have been the poorly chosen episodes that Fox decided to air. I think if the first two episodes in the series had been aired first, rather than last, it would have made a lot more sense to the fans.

The extras are good, the stories are good, and at least in my opinion, it's a lot better than the 'Battlestar Galactica' mini-series. Plus, it has the added advantage of being both inexpensive (especially compared to the Star Trek series), and complete (no other seasons to buy at a later date).

So I recommend it to any Sci-Fi fan, it's a great addition to any collection, especially if you are a Buffy or Angel fan, if only because the commentary by Mutant Enemy veterans (Like Joss), has a lot of tiny insights into those shows as well.

Dr. Wu
Yes, There's Gas In The Car

Have mine

[ericdano]

I have mine. I really liked this show. I think it was doomed because it was on Fox (Fridays at 9pm? WTF), and that instead of showing the intended Pilot, it showed probably one of the lamer episodes as the Pilot.

I think if Fox had decided to show the 2 hour Pilot, it might have lasted longer.

I think the quality of the Episodes got better as the show progressed. I really liked "Out Of Gas" and "Trash" (which was never aired).

Anyhow, maybe UPN or SciFi would pick it up. It was a different show and I enjoyed it.

Easter Egg

[hero]

There is an easter egg of Adam Baldwin (Jayne) singing the whole "Hero of Canton" song from Jaynestown on the dvds.

Throw in disc four that has the special features menu on it, and I think it's on the second special features menu. You just have to highlight the bottom left option and hit left again, and it will highlight a little thing on the side. Sorry I can't be more precise I don't have the info handy, it's not too hard to find with a minor bit of fiddling.

-hero.

Firefly was a late bloomer

[curtlewis]

I rented the disks from Netflix because I'm a big Buffy and Angel fan after having got into both series years after they debuted. I never even heard of Firefly until after it was cancelled.

So I rented it just to see what all the hub bub was about. As I watched the first two parter, I was thinking, no wonder this got cancelled, it's kinda boring. But I forced myself to finish watching the rest of the disk.

I'm glad I did. I found that I started to care what happened to each character as I watched more episodes. While I was indifferent at first, by the time I wrapped up Disk 4, I was almost solemnly putting the disk back in its sleeve to mail back to Netflix.

It's a good show and worth giving it the time to win you over. Too bad Fox didn't do that. I don't think it'll come back as a series again, certainly not on Fox, but they are working on a movie (probably TV movie).

So what's the deal about good SciFi shows getting cancelled? Farscape was a fantastic show, certainly worthy of more seasons. I think Firefly had some longevity to it, too. Just think, if they hadn't given Buffy more than 13 episodes... There'd be no Witchblade, no Dark Angel, no Bird of Prey, no ActionSciFi Show with buttkicking chicks!

Asd they say, it takes money to make money. Be willing to give these shows a chance!

Re:Been there, done that

[deinol]

Now they're wondering why we don't watch TV...

The sad fact is, while there are some shows I really like, I prefer to watch TV when it hits DVD. I would rather spend $40 a month on DVDs than cable. Star Trek, Farscape, Babylon 5, Buffy, Angel, and 24 are some of the many shows I have mostly watched from DVD (ST:TNG I saw mostly as it aired, but DS9 I'm only now catching up on through DVD.)

I only saw the pilot to firefly, but I liked it. I'm looking foward to seeing it now on DVD.

I wonder how many sci-fi shows have poor ratings because geeks like me can't be bothered to actually watch TV with commercials. Will it ever be possible for a series to survive in a straight to DVD format?

Re:Firefly

[vandemar]

The combination of hi and lo tech just looked silly - it was like ... spaceships landing in the wild west and being met with men on horses. It was an inconsistent and totally implausible view of the future.

Perhaps you should go see Star Wars again. In a galaxy of high tech laser blasters, the Tusken Raiders used still used bullets. Just because technology has advanced a great deal doesn't mean that everyone has access to it.

As for horses, they would be very handy in a place without an abundant supply of oil or uranium for fuel, like those colonies on the outer planets, for example. Animals find their own fuel, repair and reproduce on their own, are able to return to home base autonomously, and have built-in safety mechanisms that prevent them from say, running off a cliff. Plus, they can come in handy in some other tight spots--again from Star Wars, anyone remember those Tontons?

"The idea that they may have invented cool lasers but not everybody can afford them is sort of the premise on which we work. Lasers take you to a science-fiction place that I feel has been covered too much." - Joss Whedon