Firefly

Firefly is a space western TV series created by writer and director Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, following the lives of a rag tag crew of Serenity, a Firefly-class spaceship in the year 2517. After Earth had been used up, a civil war between a unified superpower of the United States and China and the Browncoats led to planets either being with the Alliance or out in the black. A threat to both sides is the Reavers, cannibalistic violent nomads who leave behind death and destruction. Serenity's crew take on jobs as mercenaries, typically involving cargo runs, like cattle or coffins, or smuggling. A former Browncoat sergeant, Malcolm “Mal” Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) leads his crew with a firm hand with the help of his former corporal Zoe Washburne (Gina Torres), a warrior of a woman with an unusual opposite-attract marriage to the humorous pilot, Hoban “Wash” Washburne (Alan Tudyk). Jayne Cobb (Adam Baldwin) is a hired gun who claims he's only loyal if the money's good. A kind-hearted naïve Kaylee Frye (Jewel Staite) acts as the engineer while companion Inara (Morena Baccarin) rents one of the shuttles and offers a degree of legitimacy to the ship. Shepherd Derrial Book (Ron Glass) lives with a calmness that covers up his in-depth knowledge of the corrupt workings of criminals and police. The tight-laced Dr. Simon Tam (Sean Maher) and his psychic sister, River (Summer Glau), introduce a slew of troubles, including the weight of the underbelly of the Alliance's dark side. Even with the jobs gone bad and assassins hunting them down, the crew does their best to create a family. A cult classic, Firefly spawned a follow-up movie, the highly acclaimed Serenity, as well as a fan-made unofficial sequel to Serenity, called Browncoats: Redemption. MORE