I think you can see now why this is considered by many to be one of Joss Whedon's best creations. He really put a lot of thought into this world and the characters, and it shows. I ship Kaylee and Simon too. They're super adorkable. :)
This was basically the second pilot. It was written over a weekend after the first was rejected. That's why some of the exposition rehashed stuff that was in the actual pilot. It also did subtle character resets -- specifically Jayne and Mal not being quite as dark.
Yes, the network, in all their infinite wisdom, made Joss and co. go back and write this episode to be the new pilot because they believed the actual pilot was too long, that it would not hold an audience's interest, and that there wasn't enough action. So that's where we get the train job from. As I'm sure it has been pointed out to you/will continue to be pointed out because we all still mad over here about the show being cancelled, is that Fox did a terrible job handling this show, from the promotions (or lack thereof), to airing the episodes incorrectly, to having episodes not air certain weeks or at their correct times because of....i believe sports broadcasts? someone will correct me if I'm wrong about that....to not believing we, as the audience, would "get" this show. Despite all of this, the show is still amazing. And even though it's only 14 episodes, it's a great ride. Like I have said before, I'm so excited that you're reacting to this show. :)
I am so happy at how soon you put this reaction out. This show truly is one of the best shows I have ever seen. I love these characters so much and if I could go back in time I would do everything possible to get this show onto another network. Oh well, enjoy it while you can. It will be a fantastic ride.
@1:20 See? Small shit like this, SHOWING NOT TELLING, River reacting to a surgical light...we just saw her being probed by the Alliance. Reenforcement through consistency. Summer BECOMES her character, EACH of them becomes their character. And unlike BBTheory, which requires constant noise from numerous roommates to maintain viewership, Firefly allows their actors to BE, to ACT, to REACT, keeping the camera on them, instead of cutting to the next big action scene. We LEARN the characters, because we get to see their actions. They are not nameless props. They are our favorite crew.
Fun fact: back then, it kinda took over the sci-fi spot that James Cameron’s dark angel covered on Fox on fridays. Fox wasn’t sure about ordering a third season of dark angel. They saw the 2-hour firefly pilot and were shocked. Didn’t want to air it. Wanted to push firefly to midseason. They gave Joss the task to write a new pilot as a replacement. They liked the new one and put firefly on fridays in the fall. Initially they told James Cameron that dark angel would get a third season. He directed the season finale expecting another season. But a couple of days later, they changed their minds and cancelled dark angel. It seemed, like they wanted to renew dark angel because they disliked the firefly pilot and changed their minds. The connection was never clearly stated, but the stories of both production teams kinda fit. I loved dark angel and didn’t want to try firefly because of that.
Quite a few people I know hadn't watched Firefly due to the fact that they were already boycotting Fox over Dark Angel. Once they watched Firefly they were twice as angry with Fox execs. ❤🧡💛💚💙💜
Part of the reason this show was cancelled prematurely was because FOX didn't think the Pilot was good and aired this as its Pilot episode as well as others out of order along with baseball airing when this was supposed to had FOX saying they needed to pull the plug when really they seemed to create the situation where they pulled the plug all because they didn't understand the show to begin with.
Simon was my instant favourite on the show. I think he is underrated. Mal, River and most other characters get more love, I think. But, I guess most fans love all the characters. Simon/Kaylee is so shipworthy. But take your time. When I watched it 2003 around Christmas, I tried not to binge it and tried to enjoy it while it lasted, because I enjoyed it more and more with every episode. It took me around 4 episodes to love it. I guess because it was the second ever TV show I watched regularly in English and the first one I watched from start to finish undubbed. It is not an easy show to follow, if English wasn’t your native language. When I finished, I had to rewatch it and I was destroyed, that there wasn’t more. A couple months later, they announced the movie. And a year later, I watched the movie in the cinema and was allowed to interview Joss Whedon, Nathan Fillion and Summer Glau. It is not the best show ever, but it’ll be my favourite forever.
I;m subscribed and committed, but offering the following note. This episode seemed edited more for the story than for the reaction. I think me and your followers are more here to see you react than see a well ordered edit (which you so well). Great stuff otherwise, thank you and keep up the good work. Just remember, we've seen it, know it, and love it. Don't be afraid to make yourself the star of the show!
Glad you're enjoying this. Surprised you haven't yet remembered there is a male character called Jayne, so funny, shame there isn't a song or something you could remember his name.
I remembered having a hard time getting into this show originally because this was the first episode I saw when they aired it as the pilot. I was so lost and confused about the characters.. I later learned that this wasn’t meant to be the pilot and came to really love it when they finally aired the original pilot.. and sad with the news of its cancellation. Talk about poorly handled.. 😕
