Firefly first-time/rewatch (NO SPOILERS, please)

[Skywalker]

"Safe" is probably my least favorite episode. It had a couple of good spots (like the hints to Book's past and the Big Damn Heroes saving the day), but for the most part I thought it was slow and just kind of blah.

[jespah]

jinglebellrok wrote:

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I knew it reminded me of something
well, she turned me into a newt

I got better.

[Enterprise is Great]

I hated Safe. Worst Firefly episode.

[teacake]

Safe: Okay I remembered this as being all about the big witch deal but this part doesn't start until 32 minutes into the episode! I also remember there being a bunch of preachy crap about ignorance in Safe but this turned out to be only ONE sentence that Simon delivers to the crowd.

I blame 20,000 hours of Star Trek on having such an allergy to the superstition vs rationality theme that a smidgen of it took over this episode in my mind.

So the great parts in this episode..

We learn a whole lot more about the Tam family history. When watching Simon and River's father have conniptions over a mark on his profile because he had to get Simon out of Alliance lockup I felt very satisfied that his reputation is now royally screwed with his two children on Alliance's most wanted list. Karma baby

I noticed this wall decoration which I'm thinking wasn't in previous episodes? It is in the living room zone. It appears to be paper flowers and photos and ribbons.. I'm thinking it looks like Kaylee made it. We can see she has painted flowers and vines on bits of the ship and painted her sleeping quarters.



I loved this scene in the store, really shows the difference in background between Inara, Simon and Kaylee.



I love all the bric a brac and useful bits and tools and buttons.

And finally I cracked up at this scene. Simon is back and Jayne frantically dumps all the stuff he stole off him onto Simon's bed though it was all packed neatly when he first acquired it.



And more Shephard Book mystery!

I no longer dislike this episode. The witch bit was eye rolling, though it wasn't like it didn't make sense. And more importantly it wasn't what the episode was about. It just wasn't a very distinct story, more a series of vignettes (the cows) and more character development which is a good thing.

[6079SmithW]

One of the things I've always liked about Firefly is the fact that it featured an interracial couple and never made a big deal out of it. It was never even an issue. Never mentioned. I find this remarkable as usually in American television programs an interracial couple is a huge deal and a central focus of a show.

[FarStrider]

I think that the problem most people have with Safe (other than the whole witch-thing -- which I will admit was a little ridiculous ) is that it is an exposition episode. . . when you think about it, we now know more about Simon and his motivations than any other character on the boat, especially after this episode. . . while this was a slightly clunky episode, some of the questions raised in it become important later. . . and it makes me wish that we had gotten more episodes to answer the lingering questions. . . like, were the Tam parents actually that dense, or were they aware of what was going on with River and wanting to protect Simon from a similar fate (for instance). . .


~FS

[teacake]

Or maybe they were promised enough status if they gave River to "them" they were able to pull the wool over their own eyes.

As to the interracial couple I had never thought about it that way until you said that 6079!

[lurok]

I never gave the interracial aspect a second thought. And agree the scene in shop with women was highlight. Rapidly went downhilll after that.

[Carcazoid]

It's not the strongest episode, but it's not the weakest either. Some good dialog and a couple of chuckles.

"Dear diary ... "

[Forbin]

The whole hillbilly/she's a witch theme bothers the hell outta me. The rest is okay. I did love watching Summer dance.

[lurok]

EP 6 - OUR MRS REYNOLDS

So pre-credits I was hmmming "hmm, she looks like a young Christina Hendricks". Ta da. Never knew she was part of Whedon's Pre-Raphaelite harem. I guess I was expecting this to be more of a 'Vegas wedding' akward-com but it predictably turned into ENT's Raijin/Bound. Still, a return to form after Safe. Much zingier and nice to see Zoe and Wash get some more onscreen bonding time.

[jespah]

Oh yes, the floral bonnet line - awesome.

[Vendikarr]

latkah wrote:

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Oh yes, the floral bonnet line - awesome.

And the "Special Hell" conversation.

[intrinsical]

Its still the early days. By the end of season 1 you'll know why Christina Hendricks has the most interesting character on Firefly. Watch out for her again, that's all the spoilers I'm going to leak.

[lurok]

Ah, I was wondering if she'd return as her fate seemed...unresolved. Plus when she started doing her kung fu stuff and someone mentioned she'd had Companion training, I just went: uh-huh, Bene Gesserit.