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Serenity Our rating: Your rating:   MPAA rating: PG-13 (for sequences of intense violence and action, and some sexual references) Genre: Science Fiction Theater release: September 30, 2005 by Universal Directed by: Joss Whedon Runtime: 1 hour 59 minutes Cast: Nathan Fillion (Malcolm Reynolds), Summer Glau (River), Sean Maher (Simon), Gina Torres (Zoe), Adam Baldwin (Jayne), Alan Tudyk (Wash), Chiwetel Ejiofor (The Operative) Related: Talk About It/Family Corner

For months before the opening of sci-fi thriller Serenity, I've joined about 10 co-workers at least once a week at lunch to follow the trials and exploits, humor and pain of the film's characters. We've picked up a whole new lingo from them, saying things like "shiny" instead of "cool." We've gotten wrapped up in their romances and mysteries. And we've even had boisterous sing-alongs during their theme song.

The cast of the Serenity spaceship

Sure, it's odd to follow characters of a movie that wasn't even in the theaters yet. But it's probably even more unusual to follow characters of a show cancelled three years ago after less than half a season on the air. Firefly, an hour-long sci-fi Western about an outlaw starship begging and stealing its way through the fringes of space, only lasted 11 episodes before getting cancelled by Fox. Really, the show never had a chance. Badly marketed, inexplicably aired out of order, somewhat inaccessible to many TV viewers ("Wait, it's a western … in space?"), and put in the timeslot-of-death that is Friday primetime, Firefly was an easy kill. Heck, I've been a big fan of the show's mastermind Joss Whedon (creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel) for years, and I didn't even watch all 11 episodes.

But then, an odd thing happened on Firefly's way to TV obscurity: The DVD set of all 14 produced episodes came out. Not even that big of a fan, I gave it a second chance: I watched the series from beginning to end (in the right order) more than once and was hooked. I apparently wasn't alone. Sales for the DVDs went through the roof. Word spread on the Internet. Soon, some rabid fans were even having Firefly lunches at work (and leading the subsequent sing-alongs).

The transport-for-hire ship lands on an alien planet

So why the interest? Firefly was a cleverly funny and powerfully dramatic serial fueled by sharp dialogue, lovingly oddball characters, captivating stories, and slowly-unraveling mysteries. Set 500 years in the future, Firefly told the story of Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion), a Han Solo-esque rogue of a captain who leads a ragtag ensemble cast on his spaceship Serenity in whatever work they get—legal or not. He pilots his ship in a 'verse (Firefly talk for "universe") controlled by the Alliance, a totalitarian Big Brother government that Mal fought against in a massive war years before. His independents lost and now, he sticks to backwater planets trying to stay one step ahead of the Alliance. That became harder after he took in a mysterious doctor who had rescued his mentally deranged sister from some sort of Alliance facility and the feds wanted her back. Why? We don't know. Was she psychic or psycho? What did the Alliance do to her? Many mysteries were never answered and various character arcs were never completed. Like many shows unceremoniously cancelled by networks, Firefly never got its season finale. It just ended without any resolution.

Now, Firefly finally has the triumphant finale fans longed for: the excitingly tense, often surprising and even more frequently comical Serenity. Fans will rejoice. There are moments of laughing out loud, of tearing up, of spine-tingles, and of outright shock. Whedon built a reputation for himself on Buffy and Angel of crafting poignant, dramatic, jaw-dropping season finales that usually shared three qualities:

• Lots and lots of story to wrap up the show to a point where it could end cleanly if cancelled (Whedon never trusted networks).
  
  
• A dark tone as characters hit rock bottom and have to climb out.
  
  
• Often shocking twists and story developments that leave fans with their mouths wide-open.
  
  

Capt. Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) and Jayne (Adam Baldwin) are ready for some action

The fast-paced and ambitious Serenity has all three.

The film, with only minor tone shifts from the show, is a perfect continuation of Firefly. The film doesn't have much of a Western feel and is more straight sci-fi—feeling more like Star Trek than the show did. And Serenity is often darker and scarier than many episodes (at times feeling like an Alien film) thanks mainly to the presence of Reavers, barbarian men who've become savages on the edges of space. But all in all, the plot is very similar to any given episode. After Dr. Simon (Sean Maher) and his sister, River (Summer Glau), help Mal and the crew in a bank robbery attempt, River acts oddly and Mal discovers the Alliance has sent a deadly unnamed operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) to collect River. The chase leads the Serenity crew into their most desperate hour yet—and to the answers about why River is so important to the Alliance.

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