I first became interested in FIREFLY, the series, and SERENITY, through the early trailers shown back in May. AFter seeing the trailer I rented the series, loved it, and since purchasing the DVD have seen it many times. I really looked forward to the movie. Unfortunately, the movie didn't live up to the trailer and was mediocre at best. None of the elements that made the series so enjoyable are present. Gone are deep character development and the lively interaction among the crew members. Book and Inara are really just cameos,while Kaylee, Wash, and even Simon have little to do. The heart of FIREFLY was the relationship between Simon and River, but it's little explored here. Humor and hints of romance are, for the most part, absent. The plot is action-heavy and really is just the crew trying to escape from Reavers. The entire rationale behind the Alliance's desperate need to eliminate River Tam is uninteresting and the explanation for the existence of the Reavers is truly lame. It was much more interesting to have the Reavers be humans who'd gone wild on the outer rim. I kept waiting for the "two-by-two, hands-of-blue" creeps to show up but they never did. Finally, the operative's bizarre about-face at the end makes no sense. Seeing this poor feature film makes me love the FIREFLY series even more. I was hooked at the end of the first half, when Mal opens up the crate carrying River. There will be no trilogy here.
