Firefly - How Could Fox Screw it Up So Badly?

I've dropped back to the 1 disk plan on Netflix, so I have a movie deficit now on the weekends. To overcome this, I've dipped into my personal stash of movies...

watching "Live Free or Die Hard" last weekend, and last night I watched "Serenity".

For those of you that don't know, "Serenity" was the follow on to the Fox TV Series "Firefly", which ran for 14 episodes in 2002. The series starred Nathan Fillion as Captain Malcolm Reynolds. "Firefly" was set 500 years or so in the future. By this time, mankind has colonized much of space, and is ruled by the Alliance. Reynolds and his crew operate a small cargo ship, taking all varieties of jobs, both legal and illegal, to survive. Along the way, they do all kinds of good to help all kinds of people. This unique story produces sort of a Sci Fi, Western style.

The series "Firefly" was so loved by those that actually watched it, that Universal picked up the rights and produced the movie "Serenity" in 2005, starring all of the original cast. "Serenity" is written and executed such that it can stand on its own, and I think it does. However, having seen the series and then the movie, I had developed a much stronger tie to the characters, making "Serenity" an even better as a movie.

Fox really missed the boat with "Firefly". They could have had a hit. I've never seen a series that is so universally loved by everyone who has actually watched it. But Fox gave up on it after only 11 episodes. How did they fail? They put the show on the wrong night, then moved it, then played some episodes out of order. In general, they completely screwed up promotion and execution. Kinda makes you wonder how many other great shows we miss out on because the network screw them up.

I suggest everybody give the movie "Serenity" a shot. If you can, borrow "Firefly" from someone who owns it, watch it first, then "Serenity". I can't guarantee you'll love it, but I'm pretty sure you'll love it.