The IT Moment

POSTED BY: chels580
UPDATED: Wednesday, June 7, 2006 21:56
VIEWED: 13609
PAGE 1 of 1

CHELS580

Friday, May 26, 2006 3:01 AM

I'm wondering if any of you remember the moment when you were watching Firefly and the epiphy-whats-it hit you and you said "This is a GOOD show!"

Might be harder for you old-timers--to whom newbies like me owe the world (or at least one half-decent terraformed moon) for your part in getting Serenity. Credit where its due, props all around! Right where was I...but if you remember, I'd like to hear it

In the time honored tradition of starting a thread with a question, I'll answer first.

For me, it was at the end of the two-parter "Serenity" when Mal and Jayne walked Up the Ramp to dump the lawman's body. Something about that moment was so dynamic, so anti-Star Trek, it stunned me. (Understand, I have loved Trek in the past--Save us, JJ Abrams. You are our only hope.) That's when my eyes were openned and it wasn't just entertaining, or just funny...it was a GOOD show. Wierd, huh?

My mouth is talking, I better see to it.

'Night All.

SHADOWFLY

Friday, May 26, 2006 3:05 AM

This may seem odd, but what did it for me was all the deleted scenes. It made me go back and rewatch all of Firefly.

KWICKO

Friday, May 26, 2006 3:23 AM

I think what did it for me was in "The Train Job", when Mal kicked one of Niska's men through one of Serenity's engines. I had to back up and watch it again, to make sure I'd just seen what I thought I'd seen. My reaction was along the lines of "Now there's something you don't see every day!" At that point, I realized this was more than just a space opera with horses. :)

Don't get me wrong; I liked the two-part "Serenity" pilot, but (and I may be a bit slow) it wasn't until about halfway through The Train Job that I realized that this was a Western. Now, I generally like good sci-fi, and I generally like a good Western, but I was leery of mixing the two genres, so my reaction to that realization was something like, "Awww, man, this is a freaking WESTERN, only in space." I wasn't at all sure that it was going to be to my liking, and I was ready to hate it. Mal dispelled my uncertainty quickly, with one good swift kick to Niska's henchman. I knew at that point that I was in for something that definitely wasn't going to be like anything I'd seen before!

Mike

"Human beings are perhaps never more frightening than when they are convinced beyond doubt that they are right."
- Laurens van der Post

SHADOWFLY

Friday, May 26, 2006 3:43 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
I think what did it for me was in "The Train Job", when Mal kicked one of Niska's men through one of Serenity's engines. I had to back up and watch it again.

That seen caught me off guard as well. I was mighty surprised.

MONOLYCUS

Friday, May 26, 2006 4:09 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
I think what did it for me was in "The Train Job", when Mal kicked one of Niska's men through one of Serenity's engines.

I was prepared not to hate Firefly so much as not to let myself get too attached to it. I don't watch me a whole lot of TV and shortly before Firefly premiered, I had caught another show that I thought was clever (and almost nobody else got)and it also only ran a few episodes and then mysteriously disappeared without a peep.

That show was called "Maximum Bob" and I might be the only soul left on this planet to remember it. There weren't no notice of its cancellation; like Firefly, I just showed up at the TV during the slot where it used to be and waited. One week'd go by and nothing. Two weeks later, they'd show an episode and then nothing. Felt like watching the heart monitor of a dying patient and knowing the sporadic beeps you see will eventually quit coming.

So I was bitter when "The Train Job" showed up. I was convinced that if I liked this show overly much, it would die. So I kept myself as detached from it as I could all through that episode... right up until Mal planted his foot into Crow and sent him into that engine.

And at that moment I knew. I knew this wasn't going to be the candy covered, black and white tripe I've come to hate bein' force fed. I knew that this was something different... something special. I knew that I would love this show and it would mysteriously disappear after a few weeks.
I decided (grudgingly... I'm near embarrassed by it now) that I would just enjoy this thing while it lasted.

I was wrong on one particular point, though. What happened to Firefly on Fox fell right into a pattern of what happens to rare and special things on television and I expected it. But what happened after Fox... well...

Here we are. Sometimes bad things happen and the worlds don't stop spinnin' after all.

SINGATE

Friday, May 26, 2006 4:34 AM

My moment occured not while watching an episode but instead seeing a commercial promoting Firefly on Sci-Fi. During the middle of last year they started running promos a couple of months before Serenity hit theaters tying Firefly to the upcoming movie. The commercial I saw had the line from Mal, "If anyone tries to kill you, you try to kill 'em right back." I immediately said to myself, "What the hell was that? What did he just say?" Watched the marathon, that aired I believe in June, and have been hooked ever since.

_________________________________________________

We live on a placid island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of infinity, and it was not meant that we should voyage far.

SAMEERTIA

Friday, May 26, 2006 4:44 AM

I saw the movie first.
Wash had me at "Oh god oh god, we're all gonna die?"

For the series, it was in the pilot ep when Mal kicks off the lid of River's cryochamber, leans over and so elequently says, "Huh."

WASHME

Friday, May 26, 2006 5:09 AM

I'm a total newbie to firefly, but i've finished watching the series on DVD (did it all in what little spare time i had in a week) and haven't seen Serenity yet (to be rectified this weekend :P),
but my IT moment, was when Mal told the Doc that Kaylee was dead, and he rushed down all dramatic, and there she was waving at him..

The cut to the crew laughing about it in the cabin made me sure that this was something insanely great and special.

ZZETTA13

Friday, May 26, 2006 5:41 AM

Well for the wife and I we saw Serenity first as a rental. It was worth seeing several times so we bought the dvd. Rented the Firefly series from Net-Flicks and began enjoying the verse more and more with each eps.

The "IT" moment really came for me with two words from Saffron. "Night sweetie." that caught me completly off my guard. For a while there I thought the show was going to be about how Mal was going to get rid of this cute but totally unworldly girl, and there may be some laughs along the way. When it turned out she was playing the whole crew, I though gorram what a cleaver, crafty, evil girl. I love her.
Firefly became a baby of mine after that.

Z

VOLK564

Friday, May 26, 2006 6:16 AM

For me, it was def. Jaynestown. Before, I was just watching the DVD's cuz I was sick and had nothing better to do, and I liked the movie. But then comes along this episode, where you get your role of a fairly stereotypical, predictible character, the macho, big-guns-little-brain merc, completley reversed. You can see that this character who used to be so 2-dimensional had so much soul that it just totally threw me out of whack. The scene where he pushes over the statue of himself kinda got me going "Hey...that's something I wasn't expecting," but the "It don't make no sense" scene really did it for me. Adam does such a good job of portraying the idea that Jayne has all these different moral and ethical issues running through his head at the same time, and that's just all he says, because that's what Jayne does - just kinda bottles stuff up inside when it hurts. That made me just sit back and grin and go "This show is GOOD!"

-Volk

VOLK564

Friday, May 26, 2006 6:17 AM

For me, it was def. Jaynestown. Before, I was just watching the DVD's cuz I was sick and had nothing better to do, and I liked the movie. But then comes along this episode, where you get your role of a fairly stereotypical, predictible character, the macho, big-guns-little-brain merc, completley reversed. You can see that this character who used to be so 2-dimensional had so much soul that it just totally threw me out of whack. The scene where he pushes over the statue of himself kinda got me going "Hey...that's something I wasn't expecting," but the "It don't make no sense" scene really did it for me. Adam does such a good job of portraying the idea that Jayne has all these different moral and ethical issues running through his head at the same time, and that's just all he says, because that's what Jayne does - just kinda bottles stuff up inside when it hurts. That made me just sit back and grin and go "This show is GOOD!"

-Volk

JOHNBOY

Friday, May 26, 2006 7:30 AM

Two moments stunned me, one of them because it was so sudden, and the other because it was so dark.

First one: Dobson holding the gun to River, and Mal walks in *BAMMMM!*. I'm sitting there stunned - Holy Cow!

Second one: That scene between Mal and Jayne at the end of Ariel. When Jayne wakes up I think "Mal's gonna mess with his brain reaaal good here".

And then I realise that, no, Mal ain't messing with Jayne - he fully expects and intents that Jayne dies. He's even walking up the ladder - probably planning to get some grub before the rest of the crew find out what he done did.

That Jayne says the one thing that saves him - well, that has to happen, right? - is beside the point. The hero was planning on murdering one of his crew - as cool as you like, and without any remorse.

Don't see that in many shows, folks.

Cheers,
Johnboy

CHOO1701

Friday, May 26, 2006 8:17 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Johnboy:

First one: Dobson holding the gun to River, and Mal walks in *BAMMMM!*. I'm sitting there stunned - Holy Cow!

Same here

...it showed that anything could happen, and anything was possible...

and the infamous engine scence, oh, and when they discover what the Reavers did in Bushwacked..

"Remember, always be yourself. Unless you suck."-Joss Whedon

CHRISMOORHEAD

Friday, May 26, 2006 12:20 PM

22nd of November 2005, aprx. 17:00. I had seen the movie twice, and a couple parts of some episodes on TV. I was ready to start liking the whole show, just hadn't gotten the oppertunity yet. Sci-Fi started one of their FireFly marathons, and when I woke up to get ready for work, I caught the begining of an episode. Then it happened..

"Take my love, take my land, take me where I cannot stand..."

I had to stop getting dressed and walk out into my living room to listen to the rest. By the end of the theme, I was misty eyed. Horrible point in my life, and the lyrics were probably the begining of me being able to pull what little sanity I had back toghether. That was when I had my epiphy-thingy, when I move from liking the show to being a part of it.

I will henceforth slaughter a baby cow every year on that day, and hope that my strange and multi-eyed pegan gods bring FireFly back through acts of fire breathing and tenticle rape.

TAYEATRA

Friday, May 26, 2006 12:39 PM

When Mal shot Dobson.

No question. I was bored and bought the DVD's becuase I couldn't afford a huge box set and I knew it was Joss... can't really go wrong there. Enjoyed the first hour or so, thought it was good and smartly written but nothing incredible.

Then Mal shot Dobson.

It was so quick, so unexpected and so anti-anything I'd ever seen before. I was stunned. That was when I knew!

*****
Taya
*****
I'm going to S3!!!
(*Insert hysterical celebration dance here*)

DEEPGIRL187

Friday, May 26, 2006 12:46 PM

I don't think I needed much to get me hooked. After all, it did have one of my favorite actors in it (Alan Tudyk). But I suppose one of the thigs that really did it for me is at the beginning of Serenity (pilot) when Wash is playing with his dinos. Priceless.

**************************************************

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you."

TRISTAN

Friday, May 26, 2006 1:02 PM

My first interest, after my wife told me I needed to see the movie Serenity, was the "You want to be captain?" exchange in the promos. For Firefly itself, I have to agree with Sameertia; the "...huh" when Mal looks into River's box. (That's the reason it's in my tag)
After that, everything had me loving the show...and cursing Fox!

Holding until you get back, Captain.

CHRISTHECYNIC

Friday, May 26, 2006 1:08 PM

No, no I don't, but I do remember my it moment for the movie. The moment when all my fears dissolved away and I knew I was home.

It was when Serenity hit atmo and the music changed.

NIRWIN

Friday, May 26, 2006 1:19 PM

First time I saw firefly was the double length pilot episode, but I was rather intoxicated so came out of it not really remembering the episode.

Then when I eventually got the series I watched it, it was great and I enjoyed it, but the moment I realised it was a GOOD show wasn't until Ariel.

Really what did it for me, was Jayne turning Simon and River over, at first when he was on the intercom to the lawman, I thought it was all part of the clever plan, but when it turned out he was actually going to do it, I realised that this was no ordinary show and the characters were very strong.
But the Clincher was definately when the 'blue hands' turned up.... WOW!!!! They were freaking awesome, and so scary.

At that point, I knew I would always be a fan.

---
Nirwin

1TOSMILE

Friday, May 26, 2006 1:23 PM

Well this old timer missed the first few eps on fox and I caught Our Mrs Reynolds after it started. The scene with Mal and Book and the "Special Hell" speech in the hallway - caught me - I couldn't quit smiling thru the rest of the show....

I thought - how clever and witty, Mal, I presumed was such a strong, dark character, AND for him to be put in check by Book and the special hell - with all that Safron was throwing at him AND his crew ribbing him - showing him no mercy - was priceless!

I love the show and the verse!

BROWNCOAT1

Friday, May 26, 2006 1:55 PM

Definitely when Mal kicked Crow through Serenity's port engine in "Train Job", which is what Fox wound up showing as the pilot. That moment shocked me and made me laugh. I knew in that moment that Mal was not your typical hero. He was a bit dark, brooding, and had a mean streak when riled.

__________________________________________

"May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."

Richmond, VA & surrounding area Firefly Fans:

http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/richmondbrowncoats/

http://www.richmondbrowncoats.org

JERRYT

Friday, May 26, 2006 3:27 PM

Well I didn't see any of the episodes when they aired, but bought the DVD set because of a forum thread where everybody was raving about how good this show was.

My total WOW conversion was a three step process while watching the pilot ep Serenity.

1. When Kaylee got shot and Simon was going to let her die if Mal didn't do what he wanted. I thought; why you evil SOB!! Then we see River come out of her box so scared and confused. Simon holds her and says "she's my sister". But the whole scene where he describes the situation with River was so wonderfully done with the mix of music, his narrative, and the scenes with him and River. You realize that this guy has given up everything to save his baby sister!...a WOW moment.

2. Gunfight with Patience. Mal shoots horse!! Holy sh!t!! Did that just happen? PETA is gonna go crazy.

3. When Mal just walks in and blows away Dobson. That was the final WOW moment when I knew this was going to be a great ride.

JerryT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I'll be in my bunk"

NUCLEARDAY

Friday, May 26, 2006 3:41 PM

Hmm... is it wierd that I have three "it" moments? :P Didn't take me much to get hooked, but then with the more I saw, it kept bumping me up to higher levels of obsession.

First was when Firefly was still on the air. First ep I caught was Bushwhacked, and I knew right off that this was something different. It was the only ep I caught during the original run, but I never forgot those interrogation scenes with the crew. Especially Jayne's part :)

Second was watching the BDM the first time. I just love how Joss can alternate between melodrama and comedy to adeptly. I was in tears by the end, and I knew I'd just seen something special.

Third was going out the next day and buying the boxed set. Burning through the first disk in one sitting. It's been mentioned up-thread, but I can't help that it stays relevant. The scene in Serenity where Mal tricks Simon about Kaylee being dead. Obviously I knew she wasn't, but it was still quite dramatic with Simon running in slow motion. Building the tension, and then changing gears with Kaylee waving at Simon and then cutting to Mal and co. having a good laugh. Classic.

________________________________________________
You can take my Browncoat when you pry it from my cold, dead fingers. (Or if Kaylee asks me nicely...)

FOLLOWMAL

Friday, May 26, 2006 3:41 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by christhecynic:
No, no I don't, but I do remember my it moment for the movie. The moment when all my fears dissolved away and I knew I was home.

It was when Serenity hit atmo and the music changed.

First seconds into a viewing on SciFi, fell in love with Mal. But when I went to the movie, sitting there in that seat when this scene came up, with the music filling the theater all around me.... I was home.

Chris, I burst into tears when I read this... brought back that feeling so strongly in me. I was there again. Thank you.

"You hold. Hold 'til I get back." Mal

ITAMOON

Friday, May 26, 2006 6:47 PM

I'd say it was space. Not just any space, but the space between the Serenity Valley closeup of Mal's stunned and silent face and the one of him cloaked behind in a space helmet visor in the act of stealing.
That gets you right there... what's happened to this cross-kissing homily-spouting fountain of positive energy to turn him into a taciturn and tense 'baddie'?
Evidently I just loves me a protagonist who doesn't wear a white hat easily. It's a great character and good writing that pull folks along with someone who committs bad (mal!) acts, who's a thief, a liar, a bully, and a killer - Mal's latent abilities in these areas are graphically brought out in the movie.

Complexity. Depth. You're shown just as clearly how much Mal deplores these parts of himself.
"Right We win."

ItaMoon

____________________
Inara: What did I say to you about barging into my shuttle?
Mal: That it was manly and impulsive?
Inara: Yes, precisely. Only the exact phrase I used was "don't".

GIXXER

Friday, May 26, 2006 7:22 PM

"Now I can't get down."

Dead funny,not sappy, and not going for the telegraphed laugh beloved of the modern cinema.

Fockers. Real classy gag...

MIKEC

Friday, May 26, 2006 7:59 PM

the wash dinosaur scene. when does this ever happen on a tv show, especially a sci fi show.

genius, utter genius.

CLIOMUSE

Friday, May 26, 2006 8:39 PM

Saw them out of order (grumble, Fox, grumble). Crow through the engine is what made me realize this was going to be good, Out of Gas is what made me a believer.

XENOPROBE

Friday, May 26, 2006 9:29 PM

The 'crazy Ivan' move in Serenity the pilot... All things after that were just one extreme bonus after another...

Whatta a ruttin' great show they cancelled.

Ching-wah TSAO duh liou mahng. Shiny.

ADAPA

Saturday, May 27, 2006 2:27 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by ItaMoon:
I'd say it was space. Not just any space, but the space between the Serenity Valley closeup of Mal's stunned and silent face and the one of him cloaked behind in a space helmet visor in the act of stealing.
That gets you right there... what's happened to this cross-kissing homily-spouting fountain of positive energy to turn him into a taciturn and tense 'baddie'?

Well said, that too was my IT moment. I knew this was no ordinary show when I felt the weight of breathless devastation hit my chest as Mel watched the ships leave.
What a great actor Fillion is.

HISTORY

Saturday, May 27, 2006 3:07 AM

I bought the DVD collection not knowing anything about the series during the no-man years between series cancellation and the growing hype over the movie. In fact, the box remained unopened for months until I had completed watching the entire Babylon 5 DVD collections (which I also had avoided for years on television solely because my worklife assured I'd miss many episodes and be frustrated in having missed them). I greatly enjoyed watching the entire 5 year run at my convenience in my home theatre over the course of a few weeks.
Afterwards, a month went by and I went through withdrawals and wanted another series to watch. I caught a bried DVD review in Sound & Vision praising "Firefly", remembered I had bought it a few months back, popped Disc one into the DVD player and sat back.
I did not expect too much.
The opening of the Serenity pilot with the battle scene in Serenity Valley was nothing original, nor the shift into being salvagers.

(1) But the way the crew meshed, diverted the Alliance cruiser with the "CryBaby", and the beautiful Firefly engine spiriting them away in color while segwaying into the title theme, well...Joss had found some of my switches.

(2) Then Kaylee sitting by the cargo hatch twirling her sun umbrella and enticing Book to be a passenger...and later with the strawberries.

(3) Then the Western shoot-out on Whitehall, shooting Patience's horse, and Mall unruffled and unperturned stating, "I do the job, and I get paid."

And finally, as many have already stated:
(4) when the crew is in crisis and Agent Dobsen has a gun to River's head, Mal walks purposefully in wanting to get off this backwater moon, and without missing a step, blows Dobsen away. Simply maks it look like simple housecleaning.

I was hooked. And in The Train Job, (5) when Niska's bad boy gets kicked into the engine and Mal begins the same speech with the next Niska thug...well, that was it. I've been a hard core fan ever since, buying DVD sets for family, friends, and even acquaintances, just to share the elation I get from "Firefly" and find the few who also become die-hard Browncoats.

There have been few entertainments that have touched me so well. I can only think of my first reading of The Lord of the Rings, decades ago. Both of which led me to spend more money than I should just to keep the feeling of elation going.

Ah, well.
Thanks for asking.

Respectully,
History

ADAPA

Saturday, May 27, 2006 2:08 PM

ahh yes, B5....another series I'm glad I suported by spending the $$ on. I've got to watch Jeremiah too, thanks for the reminder.

It seems as tho the comonality of all our IT monents is the unexpected &/or the language. I never expected the ships to leave, the guy to get kicked in to the engine, the crybaby etc. Perhaps that says something about my imagination or but more likely it highlights Joss's outstanding creativity.

CHELS580

Saturday, May 27, 2006 2:53 PM

Quote:

It seems as tho the comonality of all our IT monents is the unexpected &/or the language. I never expected the ships to leave, the guy to get kicked in to the engine, the crybaby etc. Perhaps that says something about my imagination or but more likely it highlights Joss's outstanding creativity.

Exactly! I mean, who shoots the horse? Nobody shoots the horse (in today's disney-fied world of entertainment). Of course at that moment I was still getting over my bewilderment at the apparent bulletproof qualities of tight pants and a brown coat 'cause they had no cover in that fight. But who shoots the horse?!
Ha! Love it!
Well not horse murder as a general rule...

chels580
"You don't fix faith, it fixes you"

CHRISISALL

Saturday, May 27, 2006 3:26 PM

I am so slow and generally run with shields up...

When Mal shot Dobson, I twitched. Cool, makes sense, good shot. That was my hint.

But it really wasn't until the teaser in Out Of Gas that I realized what impact this show would have on me...

Late Chrisisall

CHRISTHECYNIC

Saturday, May 27, 2006 7:51 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by chels580:
... I was still getting over my bewilderment at the apparent bulletproof qualities of tight pants and a brown coat 'cause they had no cover in that fight.

Well I always thought that it was an example of really decent surprise, they'd killed half of the bad guys before a single shot was taken at them, even with that advantage both Zoe and Mal were shot.

NCBROWNCOAT

Saturday, May 27, 2006 8:30 PM

Saw the BDM first and said "this is good. Is there any more?" Ordered the DVD set that evening from Amazon.

Then I saw the pilot-Just chock full of "Whoa" moments.

The battle scene, the stealing scene, the revealing of River and Kaylee getting shot and then the deal with Patience. At first I thought Jayne was going to shoot Mal and then Zoe gets shot-thought she was wounded horribly and how did she survive until the BDM?

Then the horse shooting scene-very different. Then Mal just point blank shoots Dobson like he's just a little irritant that he wants to away quickly-it all got to me

One day.
One plan.
One army of Browncoats.

On June 23rd, we aim to misbehave.

VELOXI

Saturday, May 27, 2006 9:44 PM

For me, it was the very beginning of the pilot, Serenity, when Mal says:

"We can't die, Bendis, and you know why? Because we are so...very...pretty. We are just too pretty for God to let us die. Look at that chizzled jaw, 'eh?"

I fell hard for this show right then and there.

MUSCULARBUTTOCKS

Saturday, May 27, 2006 10:49 PM

I too came at the verse sideways by seeing the BDM first, but I still got just as hooked, twice over.

In the BDM the "oh god oh god we're all gonna die" scene reeled me right back in after I had some worrying initial moments about the film being a "dream within a dream within a dream" fest, with River going from; little River in class, to experiment River in the operating theatre, to holo River viewed by the operative.

So my rescued intrigue flowed irrevocably onto spine tingling fandom by the time of Rivers "No Simon you always take care of me. My turn!". Gives me chills every time.
I hear Summer Bawled like a baby filming that. I would too, but I got me man-parts so that'd be downright unsettling!

Immediately moving onto the BDS, I'm hoping that the series will not be a let down. Boy did it deliver!. Again the hook came in stages.
1) relief that this isn't going to let me down, 2) joy and 3)obsession.

1) relief - Mal lying to Simon about Kaylee and the crew busting up about it confirmed that disappointment was unlikely, but it's the pilot after all so I gotta contain myself!
2) Joy - Niska's henchman through the engine, followed by the side slitting double take and self preservation response of Niskas second henchman.
3) Obsession - "Jayne! The Man They Call Jayne!"
OMG! Again tingles coursing though me during the bar scene when the whole room spontaneously bursts into song about the unlikeliest of characters.

Transforming obsession to eternal love, Mal's 'long walk' & 'love at first sight' in Out of Gas and all of River in Objects in Space permanently burned my feelings for this show into my brain.

So there, that's about seven IT's (the knights who say Ni would be in terrible shape by now!).
sorry to be greedy, just can't keep it in.

Keep Flying and have good sex (preferably not at the same time)

"You know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I go get 'n beat you with 'til you learn who's in ruttin' command here."

ONTHEDRIFT

Saturday, May 27, 2006 11:54 PM

Ok, here's my "testimonial" if you will.

I missed Firefly when it originally aired. I didn't have TV at the time, but I read about it. I was a Whedon fan and when I read he was starting a new series described as a "Space Western" I wrinkled up my nose. I couldn't imagine how that would work. I never had the opportunity to tune in and not too long after I read it had been cancelled. And then I read about Serenity being made, my curiousity about Firefly was piqued. I heard that SciFi was showing eps in the leadup to the movie, so my sister and I gathered around the TV in eager anticipation for the pilot. Despite my original doubts I had faith in Joss and if a movie was being made, there had to be something there that resonated with people.

I watched the Battle of Serenity and felt a rush of emotions looking at Mal's face as his world falls apart. (Teary eyed even now just typing about it!) And then the "it moment" - the opening sequence, the theme song, the horses. That was all it took for me. I felt an ache in my chest and was wide eyed with anticipation.
I had fallen in love. There were many moments to come that cemented my first feelings: Jayne looking in while Simon operates on Kaylee, Simon comforting River when she comes out of the box, "Kaylee's dead", Mal shooting Patience's horse and then Dobson. I can honestly say I never would have guessed I could get so wrapped up in a Television show. Firefly just has an amazing way about it of telling stories in a way that explores humanity.

So now here's my "Kaylee moment" ("Wash, tell me I'm pretty") --
Someone, tell me I'm not silly for being in love with a TV show.
I figure there should be someone who understands out here in the black.

DARKJESTER

Sunday, May 28, 2006 12:24 AM

Believe it or not, my "IT" moment wasn't in the show or the movie.

I started watching and taping every show from the git-go, back in '02 on Fox. But for various reasons, I missed taping "Ariel", and when I realised that I'd missed it I was half a breath away from an honest-to-God panic attack! Everything went dim and all the oxygen went out of the room. That was when I knew how much I loved the show.

And I never did see "Ariel" until the DVDs came out. I was in the boonies, only dial-up internet, and I had never heard of the word "bittorrent".

MAL "You only gotta scare him."
JAYNE "Pain is scary..."

http://www.fireflytalk.com - Big Damn Podcast, by fans, for fans, starring fans

FORDAITH

Sunday, May 28, 2006 1:00 AM

I saw the movie before I saw the show. The entry sequence was something else. I was rolling. BUT what really made me go THAT WAS AWESOME, was when Jayne clotheslined that guy in the trading post and planeted on his head.

Then I had to get the DVDs and watch them.

"Didn't she shoot you once?"

CHRISTHECYNIC

Sunday, May 28, 2006 1:27 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by onthedrift:
Someone, tell me I'm not silly for being in love with a TV show.

Nothin silly about it.

Might be insane, but I hardly think that matters. If it is insane than I am too, but such is life.

The thing is that you can't explain it to someone unless they already know (that's my Captian Jack Sparrow moment, "An island you can't find unless you know where it is.") I mean you just can't describe love to someone who has never felt it, love for a TV show even less so because people just look at you with one of those, "You can't love a TV show," looks and assume your screwed up.

ONTHEDRIFT

Sunday, May 28, 2006 1:42 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by christhecynic:
Quote:
posted by onthedrift:
Someone, tell me I'm not silly for being in love with a TV show.

Nothin silly about it.

Might be insane, but I hardly think that matters. If it is insane than I am too, but such is life.

Insane... yes you're more than likely right but I hear that's what happens when you get out to the edge of space, (or the end of the series).
And you're right, you just can't explain it or describe it to someone unless they've been there themselves.

MER

Sunday, May 28, 2006 1:53 AM

For me, it was the end of Train Job (TV airing) where Mal kicks the thug into the ship's engine w/o any warning.

GANZ

Monday, May 29, 2006 4:27 AM

"Nice shot."
"I was aiming for his head."
The abundance of against the grain moments like this made it clear that this show was something special.

REAVERINA1985RIVIERA

Monday, May 29, 2006 5:28 AM

Gather 'round, children, an' I'll tell the tale of how Firefly roped me around the neck and dragged me from my "normal" life. (What? Again? Is this guy ever gonna shut up about how he found Firefly?)

'Round 'bout two weeks before The Train Job aired, you know F*x showed that one instead of the Pilot episode (Yeah, we know that already!), I was flippin' the channels and I see a strange lookin' spaceship spookin' a heard of horses. I said to my self "What in the sam hill was that?". I wanted to see the what ever it was again, so I sat through the most horrid, disgusting, mentally insulting show ever created by Mankind: Malcolm in the Middle in order to see it again. When the ad for a show called Firefly came on I was awestruck by the style of the camera work, a beauty with long, dark, curly hair and and rather intreaged by "A Girl In A Box".

Two weeks go by and I'm looking through the TV guide for somethin' interestin' to see, as Friday did'nt have the greatest programmin', and there I see Firefly on F*x, 8:00pm, I said to myself "Why not, there's nothing better on."

Come 9:00pm, "There's NOTHING better on!" After that I was hooked harder than a smoker, crack whore, and a heroin addict rolled into one. After the series was cancled, I was arrested for chuckin' rocks at the local F*x station (No you weren't!) you're right, it was ball bearings (You were'nt arrested!) well I had to pay for the windows.

---------------------------------------------
How many Jaynes does it take to change a light bulb?

Two. One to try to put it in and another to find a bigger hammer.

XEROGRAVITYADVANCED

Monday, May 29, 2006 5:31 AM

That's a loser story. Hang yourself.

Where I come from they call me the lonely angry one. I've been dropped kicked a lot.

Ranting here is the only way I can feel powerful.

CHRISTHECYNIC

Monday, May 29, 2006 3:52 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by XeroGravityAdvanced:
Ranting here is the only way I can feel powerful.

We've noticed.

XEYRA

Monday, May 29, 2006 4:58 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by christhecynic:
Quote:
Originally posted by XeroGravityAdvanced:
Ranting here is the only way I can feel powerful.

We've noticed.

Sad little king of a sad little hill...

*******************************
Wash: This landing is gonna get pretty interesting.
Mal: Define "interesting".
Wash: [deadpan] Oh God, oh God, we're all going to die?

J6NGO1977

Monday, May 29, 2006 5:44 PM

My first experience was of 'THe Train Job'. I was in work in my dinner break and the TV was on with a sci-fi show on it. I was confused coz I thought I knew all Sci-FI shows (even Lexx. LOL). I asked my friend 'WHat is this?' he answered 'Firefly' and then explained how it was axed. From then I was sold. I get called Serenity in work and I love when people ask me, coz I'm wearing a T Shirt, what is firefly? I love explaining to them :)

FALLENANGEL

Monday, May 29, 2006 6:26 PM

The IT moment for me was when Mal kicked open the box that River was in and you see River for the first time, just laying in the fetal position, buck naked. I remember thinking "Oooook. Naked girl in a cooler." Complete silence in the ep and then the "Huh." from Mal and I just bust out laughing. An answer not quite I was expecting.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
People don't like to be meddled with. We tell them what to do, what to think, don't run, don't walk. We're in their homes and in their heads and we haven't the right. We're meddlesome.

SAVEWASH

Monday, May 29, 2006 6:44 PM

There were so many great moments, I knew this was a great show from the first episode (The Train Job) I saw. Joss just kept surprising me, which doesn't happen often in a TV show, and the characters were strong week after week.

I think my real "it" moment was probably 'Out of Gas,' though. I was so wrapped up in that episode that I didn't even realize I was watching three stories at once because they all fit so well together. I'll never forget the ending, though, when we hear the salesman talking up the ship and expect to see Serenity, but instead we see an ugly hunk of metal. Then Mal turns around and the look on his face is something I'll never forget as long as I live. He was looking at Serenity, which sort of looked like another pile of junk at the moment, but just looking at Mal's face, I could see the possibilities as well as he could. That scene made me realize what an actor Nathan Fillion is (he completely sold me on the love) and what a great show it was to end on a moment like that: not sappy, just truly moving.

After that, I looked at the show like Mal looked at the ship: not many people would see the possibilities there, but those who saw them were in for a terrific ride.

"We need to keep our heads so we can ... keep our heads."

SERENITYSLITTLEANGEL

Monday, May 29, 2006 9:37 PM

I must admit - I'm a sucker for TV shows, and if I'm gonna get obsessed - I do it quickly. I was watching the pilot at a friend's house, and that was all it took.

More specifically, it was the look on Mal's face when he realises that the Browncoats aren't coming for him. That expression of complete desolation just made me fall in love. For me - that was it. I had to buy the boxset and I did so the very next day. Anything that can make me cry in an expression, can't be bad TV.

------------------------------------
20 conversions and counting!!!

FXSTB02

Tuesday, May 30, 2006 4:18 AM

To be honest, I don't recollect exactly when I became hooked. I watched the original show on Fox. I think it took me a few episodes to become seriously hooked. Firefly was/is sooo very different from other sci/fi shows and I was a huge fan of Star Trek. It took a bit to wrap my mind around a completely different version of sci/fi; no aliens, the good guys are really kind of bad guys (stealing, smuggling, whoring, etc.), guns with bullets, horses, etc. And the music. I think the music is what really grabbed me, so very different from anything else out there. The visual effects were outstanding and again so different than anything else out there.

It has a name, I call it Vera.

RIVERGODDESS

Tuesday, May 30, 2006 4:30 AM

I can actually tell you the date and probably the time of day I became hooked on the show. October 27, 2005, 10:45-ish, I dragged my dad on a thursday night, a school night, to see some space-western called Serenity I had only seen in an online preview. I became hooked, full-blown fanatic that week, but the moment it hit me was when right after the words Serenity came onto the screen, and we see her begin to land. The music alone gave me the chills, and when they panned to all the characters, I knew this was for me. I'm still in shock I was able to find something I love so much, and it's been what, 7 months? *runs off to profess her love of Firefly to anyone with ears*

*~*~
Summer's response to Nathan getting his very own action figure:
"I tried to pull his head off."

MRSU

Wednesday, June 7, 2006 6:37 PM

For me it was the pilot. The whole ride which started when Mal realizes that Dobson is targeting Doctor and not him, Kaylee gets shot, Simon seems an a*hole, then River comes out of the box and we have complete trunaround on his character, and his monologue about River - this whole sequence was WOW and hooked me up.

But actually I got a smaller WOW before that: when it turned out that the misterious box which Book presented to Kaylee contained strawberry! And how she was eating it... That certainly perked me up for more.

IMALEAF

Wednesday, June 7, 2006 7:59 PM

It was when the solider standing next to Mal was shot in the pilot. Hehehe....just thinking about makes me laugh.

~~River: Bible's broken. Contradictions, false logics. Doesn't make sense.~~

MERC2K

Wednesday, June 7, 2006 9:56 PM

I had seen the film first, but when I watched the series on DVD, I really enjoyed the end of the savage scene in the pilot. The combination of the ship "burning" out, the music and the lack of sound in space (finally!) came together as a "wow" moment for me.