Customer Reviews

Finding Serenity: Anti-heroes, Lost Shepherds And Space Hookers In Joss Whedon's Firefly (Smart Pop series)

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For a brief period of time at the end of 2002, Joss Whedon, the man responsible for "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer," had a science fiction series on FOX television called "Firefly." Only eleven episodes aired before the show was unceremoniously cancelled, but the show lived on for its fans when all eleven episodes, plus three unaired shows, were released as a box set. In this way, the show kept its original fans and gained many more. The boxed set sold so well that Universal Studios acquired the rights to make a film based on "Firefly."

Jane Espenson, the "Firefly" writer who announced news of the film in 2003, has now edited Finding Serenity, a collection of essays about the television show, its universe, and characters. These essays run the gamut from larks, such as Glenn Yeffeth's attack on the FOX executives who cancelled the show to Keith R.A. DeCandido's well reasoned explanation for why the pilot-as-aired did not manage to attract an audience, to Lyle Zynda's complex look at the existential philosophy found in the series.

Many of the essays tend to focus on the same topics, although from different points of view. One of those topics is the strength and abilities of the women of the cast and crew. However, even as Tanya Huff describes the abilities of the second-in-command, Zoe Warren, or Robert Taylor lauds the women as the stronger portion of the crew, Nancy Holder sees them as weak and stereotypical.

One of the strengths of "Firefly" is that in just over a dozen shows (including the un-aired episodes), Whedon was able to create enough hooks and mysteries that the twenty authors represented in Finding Serenity are able to tackle a wide variety of topics, from the aforementioned question of the strength of characters to the existence of the Reavers, a bogeyman who the crew of the spaceship Serenity meet up with. Nevertheless, there are numerous other questions which are only touched upon in the essays, such as the mysterious history of Shepherd Book (played by Ron Glass) or the agenda of the equally mysterious Blue Sun corporation.

Several articles compare "Firefly" to other television shows, most notably Star Trek and its sequels, but also Don DeBrandt's comparison to the cult show "The Tick." These articles rely, to some extent on familiarity with not only "Firefly" but also the other show. "Mirror/Mirror: A Parody" requires the reader to have some idea about the characters and situations of "Enterprise," as well as share Roxanne Longstreet Conrad's opinions of the two shows.

One of the high points of the anthology is the inclusion of an article by Jewel Staite, who portrayed the Serenity's mechanic Kaywinnet Lee Frye. Staite's essay looks at her five favorite moments from each of the episodes of "Firefly" and provides an adjunct actor's commentary to the various commentaries available on the DVD sets. It also serves to demonstrate that the actors, or at least one of them, is as big a fan of the show as the people who watched it.

While the essays in Finding Serenity can't provide a replacement for new episodes of the series or the upcoming film (scheduled for release in September, 2005), the book can help fans of the series scratch the itch to discuss the show and perhaps get a little more feeling for the various characters, secrets and subtexts, or at least the ideas of other fans of the show.

Firefly is, in my opinion, the greatest show to last less than a season. Usually when people think of shows that have been cancelled, especially shows that have been axed that quickly, they think of something with terrible writing, bad acting, and low production value. However, there have been short-lived shows that were killed way too quickly. Wonderfalls and Greg the Bunny each barely got one season while shows like Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Tru Calling and Titus didn't get much more (Family Guy would have fit into this category last year, but it has come back to the airwaves). All of the shows that I have just mentioned have either been edgy or quoirky, and that has led to their early, yet unwarranted demise. Each of those shows had a quality to them that many long-running shows could never dream of achieving (such as the Simple Life). But Firefly blew them all away.
This compilation of essays has some very interesting contributions. One essay investigates the question of just who killed the show (besides the network brass at FOX). Another looks at the role of Inarra (Morena Baccarin) on the show, and compares her to women of similar positions throughout history. Some of the episodes are just hilarious, such as the one with the supposed network notes from FOX exec Early Jubal (a take-off on one of the villains from the show), or the Firefly vs. Star Trek: Enterprise adventure. Some of them are strangely contradictory; one author writes that the women of the show are the smartest, ablest, and best characters, and that the men of the show would be nowhere without them (think about it; the most dangerous person on the ship is a 100-pound teenage girl). However, another writer claims that, because this enters into the western genre, the women are subdued and secondary to the male cast members. Also, at the end is a glossary of all the Chinese phrases used on the show, and some of them are pretty funny (although, probably unintentionally so). Finally, there is the essay from Jewel Staite, who plays Kaylee Frye on the show. Basically, it lists her top 5 favorite moments from each episode. I'm not sure if its my favorite (that honor may be reserved for the Firefly vs. Enterprise one), but I do see it somewhat differently than most of the others. Maybe it's because it came from an actual cast member, or maybe because I'm in love with Kaylee (but that's a different story all together).
This is certainly a fun little addition to the Firefly universe. While some of the essays won't be completely accurate come September (some stuff in the film contradicts some of the theories and ideas a few of the authors had), it will always be a good read.

I am a die hard fan of Firefly and, as such, I grabbed this book as soon as I heard about it. The cancellation of the show left me wanting more. Essays dissecting the show? What the heck. Could be fun.

But, by and large, it isn't.

The book starts off promising enough. There is an essay that talks about the look and feel of the show from a filmmaking point of view, and that's pretty cool. Also interesting is the examination of the episode "Objects in Space" (my personal favorite) as an exercise in existentialism.

Unfortunately, the handful of insightful essays/articles do not offset the rest of the book. Most of the book reads like a fanzine (a fan-produced, fan-edited, usually low-quality collection of articles that are insightful and witty to only the most diehard fans). Chief among these were the silly "The Rise and Fall (and Rise) of Firefly," and the dreadfully un-funny and irrelevent "Firefly vs. The Tick." Many of the essays are guilty of simply overanalyzing the show to death. Yes, you can pick at the parts fo Firefly (the western part, the sci-fi part...) and find lots of flaws--but what none of the essays seem to point out is that it's the sum of the parts that makes this show such a wonderful thing.

Perhaps the worst of the bunch is "I Want Your Sex..." a seemingly endless man-hating rant by an irate Buffy fan that berates Joss Whedon for not taking the initiative to make the Firefly universe a matriarchal society where women wield all of the power and men are simply window dressing. The characters of Firefly--ALL of them--are strong characters, stronger than those on most shows on television today. To say that the women of this show were marginalized and weak is just plain silly. Everyone who's ever watched the show KNOWS Zoe could kick everyone's [back] on that ship and take command. The fact that she choses NOT to do so (as my wife points out) shows STRENGTH not weakness. The fact that she is devoted to and dotes on her husband is not a weakness (as the writer of the essay would have you believe) but a personal choice. The fact River is not interested in relationships with men on the ship (or off the ship) doesn't maker her character sexless--it doesn't make her ANYTHING. It just is. The girl has other priorities. She's a fugitive, after all...

I'll stop ranting now.

Anyway, if you're looking to supplement your Serenity movie experience, buy the Firefly DVDs, the novel, and the making-of book. (Skip the first step if you already own the DVDs.) As for this book--the few bright spots are hardly worth the price of admission.

Unlike "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel," Joss Whedon's television series "Firefly" only last fifteen episodes. Of those three were never shown and the two-part pilot aired as the eleventh and twelfth episodes. FOX had cancelled "Dark Angel" after two seasons to spend its limited special effects budget on "Firefly," and then decided halfway through the season to cancel the show. In retrospect it is clear that while "Firefly" had a small audience it was extremely loyal, which explains why Whedon was able to reunite his cast for the theatrical film "Serenity" and provide some sense of closure regarding the ship and its crew. Consequently, with only those fifteen episodes to consider it seems unlikely that "Firefly" will receive the same sort of critical attention that "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" has received, which is why "Finding Serenity: Anti-heroes, Lost Shepherds and Space Hookers in Joss Whedon's 'Firefly'" may be one of the few to do so and why it is ultimately geared more towards fans than academics. In other words, the twenty-one pieces in this volume edited by Jane Espenson constitutes a mixed bag of deep thoughts and biting humor.

The first essay, "The Reward, the Details, the Devils, the Due," in which artist Larry Dixon looks at how the "Firefly" universe was fleshed out in terms of set design, set dressing, and cinematography, gets the book off to a good start. Author Lawrence Watt-Evans critiques the Reavers from the perspective of an earth legend regarding cannibalism in "The Heirs of Sawney Beane." Leigh Adams Wright's "Asian Objects in Space" critiques the use of Asian culture with context in the series (i.e., what is the point of the curses in Chinese?). The title of "'Serenity' and Bobby McGee: Freedom and the Illusion of Freedom in Joss Whedon's 'Firefly'" gives away Mercedes Lackey's thesis in her look at the politics of the show. Philosophy professor Lyle Zynda explores the emotional truths of Whedon's show in "We're All Just Floating in Space," where Whedon gets treated on the same level as Camus, Nietzsche and Sartre.

In the humor department Glenn Yeffeth makes up a series of memos from Early "Nutcrusher" Jubal, Vice President of FOX Programming to explain, "The Rise and Fall (and Rise) of 'Firefly' (the behind-the-scenes story)." Ginjer Buchanan's "Who Killed 'Firefly'?" provides a more reasoned explanation for what happened. But Keith R.A. DeCandido makes a compelling case for why skipping the pilot was a big mistake in "'The Train Job' Didn't Do the Job: Poor Opening Contributed to 'Firefly''s Doom." Don Debrandt offers an analog between "'Firefly' vs. 'The Tick'," a comparison few people would make. Michelle Sagara West explores the Zoe-Wash marriage as "More Than a Marriage of Convenience." Other pieces look at single characters, with fantasy author Tanya Huff's "'Thanks for the reenactment, sir.' Zoe: Updating the Woman Warrior," and therapist Joy Davidson's "Whores and Goddesses: The Archetypal Domain of Inara Serra."

"The Captain May Wear the Tight Pants, but it's the Gals Who Make 'Serenity' Soar" by Robert B. Taylor explores gender roles on the series, while Nancy Holder talks about the hope that Whedon's fans brought to the show in "I Want Your Sex: Gender and Power in Joss Whedon's Dystopian Future World." Then there is retired attorney John C. Wright's "Just Shove Him in the Engine, or The Role of Chivalry in 'Firefly,'" which actually argues that Whedon does not have a feminist agenda and is merely being politically correct, included as proof that Espenson is a fair minded editor. "Mirror/Mirror: A Parody" is Roxanne Longstreet Conrad's comedic comparison of the worlds of "Firefly" and "Enterprise," which argues that only Phlox could take their "Serenity" counterpart. Then "Star Trek" writer David Gerrold's "Star Truck" speculates on what might have happened down the road in the "Firefly' universe. Gerrold is able to question the feasibility of the terraforming the universe assumptions of the series with the need to tell stories on a science fiction television series, which I found quite interesting.

At the end of the book the concern of the fans takes over, starting with "Kaylee Speaks: Jewel Staite on 'Firefly,'" in which the actress shares her five favorite moments from each episode of the series. For many readers it may well be that the best piece in the book appears last, which is where Kevin M. Sullivan provides the "Unofficial Glossary of 'Firefly' in Chinese." Being able to both pronounce and translate the phrase "Ta ma duh" (neutral tones apply) might be worth the cost of the book all by itself and it is why I decided to round up on the rating.. The curses are all arranged chronologically by episode, so keep this book handy as you watch the shows again on DVD so that you can finally find out what sort of obscenities Mal and his crew were getting away with on the show.

So there is a little bit of everything here, which I do not think is a bad thing since "Finding 'Serenity'" is likely to be one of the few books that will end up publishing either the fan humor or the academic speculations (although the number of reviews here would, to my mind, suggest it should not be and there are plenty more topics to explore, such as the religion of Shepherd Book and the decentralization of the Alliance). Espenson mixes and matches the pieces well, so you are never reading all of the heavy analytical pieces or the hit-and-miss humor ones all in a row. I think that if you pay special attention to the pieces Espenson picks to begin and end the collection, since these simply emphasize the fact that a lot of viewers loved this series and that one of the reasons is that Joss Whedon always provides depth to his creative endeavors. Basically anybody who watched "Firefly" will find food for thought here worth consuming, even if there are some courses you only pick at to get to the deserts at the end.

I have to agree with the reviewer who commented that this collection was a mish-mash. It falls uncomfortably between the scholarly and the fan-oriented. But I found much worthwhile and enjoyable writing alongside less-useful commentary. If we set aside papers where the theory overwhelms the material such as in "Whores and Goddesses" and ones that are rather pointless such as "Firefly vs. The Tick" and not hugely funny satires such as "Mirror/Mirror" and "The Rise and Fall (and Rise) of Firefly" we have a slim volume including reference materials on the Mandarin used in the series, well-argued commentary on the mixing of genres ("Just Shove Him in the Engine, or The Role of Chivalry in Firefly") and some very insightful commentary on the characters ("More Than a Marriage of Convenience"), on the culture ("Asian Objects in Space") and the setting ("Star Truck").

So, an indispensable, though not entirely satisfactory, collection.

Firefly has clearly inspired not only regular, tv-watchin' sci fi fans, but also some pen-totin' SF writers, including Mercedes Lackey, Michelle West, Tanya Huff, and Lawrence Watt-Evans, among others. Editor Jane Espenson, a scriptwriter for Firefly, has done a brilliant job of choosing and introducing these essays, which discuss many of the fascinating aspects of the Firefly 'verse. Why are we so compelled by a hybrid of science fiction and westerns? Why do the Firefly characters feel so real? Just who are the Reavers, anyway? These are terrific essays by some very fine writers who bring their own experience and ideas to the discussion of why Firefly rates among the best science fiction television. If you enjoyed the series, short-lived though it was, this is a must for your bookshelf. If you're a Browncoat and you haven't read it yet, get your hands on a copy before Serenity hits the movie theaters September 30.

I just completed the book and I was thoroughly impressed. The commentary on this wonderful, short-lived television series was insightful (from both critical and complimenting views) and interesting. It is interesting to see the varied individuals that Miss Espenson gathered to make comment on a series that should have gone on and on for at least 6 or 7 seasons. The book is rife with enthusiasm and anticipation for the new movie to be released on September 30, 2005! I also loved Jewel Staite's (Kaylee in the Firefly series) insightful commentary on her favorite episodes and behind-the-scenes stories.

Overall, I bestowed a 5 star rating because of the fact that you can read this book in chunks (each chapter is 7-10 pages or so), and that each chunk has a life of its own and gives insight into the mainstream authors and industry professionals that wrote them.

Highly recommended.

This is an incredibly entertaining and easy-to-read book. As an English major in college, I read more than my fair share of densely worded prose that amounted to two sentences worth of information. This book is exactly the opposite. Every essay is bursting with information, insight, and humor. Some of the best essays examine why the show didn't make it. One offers a truly biting and funny imagined letters of instruction from a FOX exec. Another looks at why "Train Job" wasn't the best introduction, raising some valid points about character development that were lost without seeing "Serenity Parts 1 & 2." Aliens, robots, and other Sci-fi staples and their non-appearance in the series are seen as the root cause of the show's inability to find an audience. Other essays look at the probable cultural basis for the Reavers, the code of chivalry, the sociological basis for Inara and her profession, and a comparison of the women on Firefly against other female role models.

Some of the essays are a little dense and some are a little silly. All in all, the collection promises to enlighten on some subjects and cause more than a few chuckles. The one about the Firefly crew ending up in the Enterprise 'verse was incredibly amusing.

Perhaps the best thing to recommend this collection is that Jewel Staite's top 5 moments are the final essay. Without being overly gushing, she shows that she loved the same parts as fans and makes it ridiculously hard to not tear up at the end of "The Message."

A good buy for fans of the show, this book mixes the academic with the less so and shows how much Firefly has meant to many people as well as showing the depth that was found in only 14 episodes.

This book really digs right into it - Where did Reavers come from? Why is everybody speaking Chinese and yet we rarely see any Asians? Should Mal be shoving people into the engines? Did Fox really kill the show or was the mixture of sci-fi and The Old West doomed from the start? Yes, yes, but the old Star Trek wasn't REALLY a mixture of sci-fi and western.
From the Tick, to gender issues, to could the crew of Serenity kick the butts of the crew of the first Enterprise this book is tons of fun. The movie, of course, answers some of the questions for us, but the book is still great anyway.

I try to avoid 'supplementary materials'. Most of the time they're a rip-off, trying to capitalize on the public's enthusisam for this or that and wringing the last buck out of them. With a fool born much more frequently than every minute it tends to be effective enough.

It's good to see that, if this is another one of those 'supplemetaries' it surely fools me, because here's some serious 'value'. From the first essay by Larry Dixon, to the Chinese glossary at the end, this is a treasure trove of information, vignettes and often very thought-provoking material, especially for a writer and film-maker. I truly treasure a book that gives me more than just one nudge in directions I wouldn't have considered exploring without it. This is one such and worth much more than the paltry few dollars I spent on it.

Having said all that, a few comments on the essays, their quality and pertinence, and why one should bother with them (or not). None of the notes (as should be evident from my rating) should be considered as a criticism of the volume itself. But, like the Fireflyverse, it's an imperfect world. If these essays demonstrate anything it's that Joss Whedon is a good story-teller. Not knowing him at all, really, except through his 'works', I wouldn't dare to presume guessing at his motives for this, that or the other; the whys and wherefores of his stories. Having been on the receiving end of a lot of severely off-the-mark analysis of my writings, even by people who know me well enough, has taught me that those who read one's fiction are amazingly incapable of actually understanding the story-teller and where he's coming from.

The comments:

A lot of folks contributing to this volume-as well as, it appears, its editor-suffer from a severe bout of taking-yourself-too-seriously. The worst offenders in that area are those with, sometimes cringingly naive, socio-political agendas; especially those of a feminist (or anti-feminist) disposition. Joss cops everything from accusations of too-much-girl-power to not-enough-girl-empowerment. Cliches abound and very little thought but agenda-promotion goes into some of these essays.

There's also an essay by an older guy who holds forth on 'chivalry' in science fiction (not) and westerns (heaps), but who obviously has never read Heinlein or Vance, or just ignores them at his convenience to advance his argument. He also really doesn't understand-like some others didn't either-that Firefly wasn't a "Western in Space". If it had been that it would have been nothing much worthwhile talking about. It was so much more-but this is a review of a book, not a treatise on the archetypes of genres.

There's another essay which trashes the 'Train Job' episode. The words were arranged in grammatically and stylistically acceptable phrases, but the content made no sense to me. Hmmff...

The essay 'We're All Just Floating in Space' is probably the most philosophically profound of the lot; providing, as it does, an excellent and lucid summary of existentialist philosophy for those who couldn't be bothered to wade through the writings of Sartre and his ilk (And why should one bother? It all CAN be summarized as it's been done here; so why not do it and go on from there?) and the philosophical foundations of Joss Whedon's worlds. (At least I presume there's a connection here. Again I caution against over-interpreting the works of a good story-teller; be he Joss Whedon or Shakespeare.)

There is a significant amount of agonizing regarding the show's demise; going together with blame-attribution, as is to be expected. Personally I think it's all a little true, but mostly it's crap. Things just went wrong. They sometimes do. Circumstances conspire against you. Tough. Don't fret or obsess; just get over it.

Jewel Staite's vignettes and her take on aspects of the show are lovely, entirely personal and outstandingly unpretentious; and I'm glad it came at the end. It also reminds us that maybe we need to get off the 'deep-and-meaningful' juggernaut and remember that it's just a STORY, and meant for FUN and ENTERTAINMENT and other CAPITALIZED LETTERS THINGS. People are meant to sit back and enjoy themselves, take a break from their everyday humdrum existences, meet some interesting fictional characters, find romance and danger, and so on.

And as to the feminist/anti-feminist obsession with the why and wherefore of the women in the Fireflyverse and aboard Serenity, may I suggest that Joss maybe wrote them (as he did his other female characters in Buffy and Angel) because he just LIKES kiss-ass, good-looking young women, and they're really good fun to write about?

And has it occurred to all those who felt the need for ponderous analysis, that maybe their attempts of pigeon-holing Joss into their narrow niches and world-views demonstrates only just how much their are prisoners of a whole set of traditions, which Firefly breezily, and with total disregard for polite convention, showed up for the silly canards they are?

Yep, I didn't agree with much of what was written in that book-but it was a lot of fun anyway; and it made me think about a lot of stuff I wouldn't have otherwise.


Till Noever, owlglass.com, Author: KEAEN, SELDAIENNA, CONTINUITY SLIP