Firefly

The best TV series nobody saw last year was Firefly, which lasted 10 weeks on Fox before it was yanked by the same executives who later brought you Joe Millionaire. Created by Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Firefly was a rousing antidote to the old collectivist Star Trek universe. The series is set 500 years from now, shortly after a galaxy-wide civil war ends in victory for the totalitarian Alliance. Mal Reynolds, who fought as an Independent against unification of the planets, now captains a Firefly-class spaceship dubbed Serenity, and his motley crew includes a preacher, a prostitute, a soldier-of-fortune, a renegade doctor, and a young girl who was victim to mysterious government experiments. Their mission: to dodge Alliance authorities while earning a living smuggling illegal cargo and occasionally sheltering rebel fugitives. After watching just two episodes, I was captivated by Firefly’s freedom philosophy, its clever writing, and its characters. And I was humming its catchy theme song: "Take my love, take my land, take me where I cannot stand. But I don’t care...I’m still free. You can’t take the skies from me..."

Any TV series cancelled midseason usually disappears without notice. Firefly seems an exception. Several websites dedicated to the show have sprung up. Whedon is contemplating a movie based on the show. But best of all right now, Twentieth Century Fox Home Video is releasing the complete series of 13 episodes on DVD before Christmas. You heard me right. I said 13 episodes. The program ran only 10 weeks, but the four-disc set includes three unaired programs. This package also features commentary on more than half the shows, deleted scenes, a gag reel, three documentaries, auditions, and other extras.