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Animated 'Firefly' Reboot in Development from Nathan Fillion, 20th TV
- righthand 7mo agoThis page has an alert popup that directs me to a malware site: “There was a problem loading the page please click OK to learn more.”
- singingwolfboy 7mo agohttps://archive.ph/KTIGX https://archive.ph/KTIGX
- whartung 7mo agoLoved the show, I have no expectations for this. It's just too easy to not be "right" for all sorts of incompatible different definitions of "right". But, the animated series a good idea and smart. First, it lets Nathan and Morena participate considering they're pretty busy with their prime time series. Second, there's no reason to "jump ahead 20 years". They can pick right up from where they left off after they figure out how to dig Wash out of the ground. The animated characters don't have to age. They can do a prequel, they have a lot of flexibility which helps to not pigeon hole it. And, ideally, the animated series can be less expensive, making it perhaps more of a chance for success and continuing (I have no idea how much modern animated show development costs compared to sets and CGI etc.). I have not seen it, but I understand that The Clone Wars is a pretty successful series, so maybe that's an inspiration.
- nkrisc 7mo agoIf there’s any chance at success, animated is probably it. Alternatively they could remake the show with a different cast portraying some other crew with a whole new storyline. Of course that’s not a reboot but it could capture the same kind of magic the first did with the right writers and cast. It could even be set before, after, or contemporaneously with the original. It would be a big expensive gamble though.
- D13Fd 7mo agoYeah, I don't think it would ever work with a different cast.
- mburns 7mo ago>They can pick right up from where they left off after they figure out how to dig Wash out of the ground. The animated show is set between the original series and the movie, presumably because of Wash's character.
- throwatdem12311 7mo agoIt’s sad that Ron Glass is no longer with us and can’t reprise his role as Shepherd Book.
- ChrisMarshallNY 7mo agoI liked him in Barney Miller, so he and I go way back...
- emmelaich 7mo agoOh man, Barney Miller, Night Court, WKRP,... golden age of US TV dramedy.
- ChrisMarshallNY 7mo agoI recently tried watching the new Night Court reboot. Didn’t really interest me.
- cwillu 7mo ago> figure out how to dig Wash out of the ground My understanding is that it fits between the series and the movie, so there will be no need to rename the land known as His Grave.
- readthenotes1 7mo agoStar Trek animated is pretty good and so is Lower Decks. I usually don't like cartoons but I'm hopeful.
- mrexroad 7mo agoST:TAS had some surprisingly good scripts for something that was somewhat a 70’s kids cartoon. Very much enjoyed how animation allowed them to run wild where practical effects wouldn’t have been possible (for better or worse at times, lol). I adored Lower Decks. It was the right way to approach fan service for a franchise as I hate seeing fan service awkwardly ham fisted into every corner of nutrek. Some of the later seasons were a bit awkward, or rushed?, but overall I adored it. Terrific character development and overall really told that story of that period between being a bunch of green academy grads and being adaptable, competent professionals.
- ahazred8ta 7mo agoIf only ST:TAS hadn't given us the Holodeck... IMHO TNG would have been better without the holodeck episodes.
- marcosdumay 7mo ago> I have no idea how much modern animated show development costs Animation costs are all over the place. It can be dirty cheap, it can be more expensive than a highly-produced live action. You can notice the difference, but it's not what actually matters for the show's success.
- pndy 7mo agoI watched "Lower Decks" episode just to see how they portrayed Deep Space 9, how actors pick their old roles. While they did good job, visuals were giving me this feeling it's a distant memory that fades away. Weird thing to say but same thing happen when I pick that "Babylon 5: The Road Home" - it's like the show you were watching but it's not the same. And I risk saying that perhaps media that become iconic shouldn't be touched no matter what happened during production or screening. Because if you start fiddling around it even in a good faith that charm may be gone forever. "Firefly/Serenity" for me is from same shelf as DS9 or rebooted BSG - a closed story that doesn't need any continuation. These titles got rather bitter than sweet ending; there are questions and that's good. Not everything has to be wrapped up with a picturesque idyllic scenery, where everyone "lived happily ever after". But at the same time, I don't mind if they roll animated "Firefly". And I give them my thumbs up, will be happy if they manage to success but I don't have big expectations either.
- jagermo 7mo agoI have exactly the same feeling. Lower Decks is one of my favorite star trek shows, and I normally don't click with animated series. So, I hope for some of that magic with firefly, they've earned it by keeping that series relevant for 20+ years.
- warpspin 7mo agoMy wife used to fall for every Firefly season 2 hoax on social media in the past because she wished it to be true. It was very funny when I could come to her to announce there will be a season 2. Mixed feelings about it being animated. The older I become, the more I have trouble relating to painted characters, no real clue why, so I couldn't even enjoy things I should have enjoyed like Arcane. Also, of course, no Shepherd Book :-( Anyway, I hope I'll like it. Really loved season 1.
- GMoromisato 7mo agoI just call it "The Season" because there was no Season II.
- wolvoleo 7mo agoThere wasn't even a whole season 1 :(
- whartung 7mo agoThey can probably get a Shepherd Book voice actor much easier than a Ron Glass doppelgänger for a live show.
- emmelaich 7mo agoWith AI they good probably replicate it perfectly. For good and bad.
- Dusseldorf 7mo agoJust bad imo. No reason to do that when there are many talented voice actors out there who will do just fine.
- TiredOfLife 7mo ago> will be This is just an announcement that they want to make it. Nobody has signed up to make even the pilot. It's not even a kickstarter.
- GMoromisato 7mo agoWhile I'm definitely going to give this a chance, I'm not going to get my hopes up. Firefly was a perfect storm--it was the combination of Wheadon, Tim Minear, and the entire cast. Personally, I think the writing is what made Firefly work, and without Wheadon or Minear, I don't know if it will rise to the same level. Moreover, I felt Serenity was a good conclusion to the original mythology (River, Alliance, etc.). If they introduce a new mythology arc, it might not quite have the same resonance. And if they just do a bunch of monster-of-the-week episodes, it won't be enough. But I don't want to criticize what I haven't seen. They know way better than I do, and even if the only result of this is that the original actors have a lot of fun, then I'm all for it. They deserve to take a shot.
- throwatdem12311 7mo agoThe benefit of it being animated is that if it sucks we can just ignore it, if it’s good we can embrace it. If they went the full live-action route there’s a higher chance it tarnishes the legacy of the original. I didn’t like Star Trek: Lower Decks but it didn’t make me feel like Trek has been ruined like Strange New Worlds and Starfleet Academy did.
- ocdtrekkie 7mo agoIf you didn't like Lower Decks you probably really never liked Star Trek. Strange New Worlds and Starfleet Academy also happen to be better than... a significant portion of the classics (DS9 will never be surpassed and that's okay). Lower Decks in traditional Trek fashion had a rough season 1 but was stronger later. SNW an Academy had probably the best two season 1 performances of any Star Trek shows ever produced. There's one gripe about Academy that you can grant: The theme song sucks. Other than that, perfect. There's some legitimately challenging writing decisions in Discovery and Picard, but if the three shows you mentioned ruin Trek for you, you never got it in the first place.
- BoxOfSnoo 7mo agoI love Lower Decks but it’s not like TOS at all. It’s more like a love letter to TOS. Strange New Worlds is VERY much like TOS.
- headcanon 7mo agoI agree with most of the other comments so far, the "magic" of the show is going to be hard to replicate. My bull case for this is that Nathan Fillion and crew have had 20 years of exposure to this fact and likely know what they're getting into and how to do it right. The only question is if they'll be able to execute. I'm excited!
- twoodfin 7mo agoSay what you will about Joss Whedon, but his use of a colorful character palette & quirky, punchy style of dialog have gone from niche to mainstream in the 30+ years since Buffy. Mostly thanks to Whedon’s and his imitators’ escalating success with that formula: The Avengers, for example, took Marvel from a series of above-average superhero hits to total cultural dominance. There’s plenty of writing talent out there that grew up wanting to emulate Buffy and Firefly, so if hearts and budgets are in the right place, recapturing that part of the show should be eminently feasible.
- Ntrails 7mo agoSome of the skill (imo) was creating characters who naturally set up opportunities for those dialog trees. That at least is already done for firefly
- in_cahoots 7mo agoThe Buffy revival was just canned this weekend, so I wouldn't get too optimistic here.
- Aeolun 7mo agoI feel like Buffy doesn’t work so well in the modern era, unlike animated firefly? Not entirely sure why though. Maybe part of the charm of Buffy is the setting?
- Dusseldorf 7mo agoI'm a little nervous about this affecting it negatively. Back when Buffy and Firefly were on the air, they felt so unique due to the dialogue style. But now that'll just seem like every single generic superhero movie. Hopefully it can buck that feeling somehow.
- acidburnNSA 7mo agoThe announcement on instagram is here in case anyone wants to see it directly. Pretty well done. Nathan did a bunch of teasers with the other stars earlier. Kinda funny and goofy. https://www.instagram.com/p/DV6Js56jT3F/ https://www.instagram.com/p/DV6Js56jT3F/
- aaron695 7mo ago[dead]
- sltkr 7mo agoInteresting timing, considering that the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot was canceled by Hulu yesterday.
- slfnflctd 7mo agoIt is a little weird that these two events were so close to each other. My tinfoil hat tells me Someone Important didn't want two shows from the same creator resurrected simultaneously and potentially competing with each other, but I put the hat back in the cupboard because even if it were true, that person's opinion would be stupid. Coincidences happen, and people can be fans of more than one thing. Personally, I have high hopes for this Firefly venture. And for those who were hoping for a live action continuation, that's still not off the table! This may be how we get there.
- someperson 7mo agoA cartoon is cool but a continuation using original actors where possible and recast versions WITH ai video generation is something that can also happen in the future too. In theory it can be close to the real actors continuing it in early 2000s
- throwatdem12311 7mo ago> recast versions WITH ai video generation Eww, absolutely not.
- kbelder 7mo agoHonestly, I think in the next year or two, you'll be able to feed an LLM the animated show and have it convert it to pseudo-liveaction. For better or worse.
- someperson 7mo agoYou don't need to watch the live-action version that's ideally difficult to distinguish between a real-actor version. But I'm sure it will eventually be available for those that want it.
- throwatdem12311 7mo agoThere is no such thing as a “live action” with AI generated video, it is impossible by definition. It’s just CGI. Nothing can replace actual actors.
- someperson 7mo ago[dead]
- idiotsecant 7mo agoI am honestly baffled by how much people love firefly. I don't get it. It's a slightly campy western-style scifi. It's not bad but it's not 'still talking about it for the next few decades' material IMO. Theres a zillion littl scifi channel series with essentially the same quality as far as I can figure.
- iammjm 7mo agolike which ones, let's get concrete here
- BLKNSLVR 7mo agoIt's because it was killed before it's time, and there was a known plan for the overall story arc (which was at least semi-satisfied by Serenity). It had developed a fan base that were hungry for more, and then it was cancelled, leaving a great thirst. Had it lasted three seasons (or even only two), and still been 'cancelled before it's time' it would have faded from memory more quickly because the itch would have been scratched more satisfyingly. It was good for it's time, and since it was cancelled it's locked within that time. How it translates against modern television is yet to be seen. However, the popularity of The Mandalorian means there is still a market for the Sci-fi Western. (I liked parts of The Mandalorian, but it went downhill pretty fast in terms of ... everything. I like the sci-fi western thing - it's not serious, but it can touch serious-ness. The Expanse was serious, and touched some Western/Frontier sci-fi)
- Apocryphon 7mo agoBefore SyFy self-imploded a decade ago it had multiple “ragtag rogues adventure across a sci-fi setting with frontier elements” - Dark Matter, Killjoys, Defiance. Feels like the subgenre Firefly occupied is well-settled by now.
- Aeolun 7mo agoNot for me. It scratches a very specific itch that hasn’t been replicated since. Which is probably a good indication it won’t work for this show either.
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- iammjm 7mo ago♫♪♪ Burn the land, boil the sea, you can't take the sky from me ♫♪♪
- Levitating 7mo agoThe hero of canton the man we call Jayne
- nerdjon 7mo agoI am... cautiously optimistic without Whedon being involved. But also very curious how this will work since it doesn't seem like it's a reboot, unless I missed something. Tara Butters from Dollhouse being involved makes me a feel a bit better, since I love Dollhouse (actually rewatching it right now). Now I can only hope this actually succeeds and maybe Dollhouse can get similar treatment. I am sure some will be upset that it's animated, but if that is what it takes (and it turns out good) I'm fine with it.
- Izkata 7mo agoOkay so a little bit of out of universe trivia on Dollhouse: It was planned for 5 seasons. With the risk of cancellation, the second season and the two Epitaph episodes were a severely compressed telling of 4 seasons of plans. And, personally I think it worked well. Something similar happened to Babylon 5, Manifest, Jericho (IIRC), Firefly (Serenity was the original ending that would have played out over multiple seasons), and the Escaflowne anime: the main plots towards the end got compressed to create a faster pace at the climax while ensuring the story could be finished (though I wasn't a fan of how Manifest ended). My concern about original writers being involved in reboots is if they want to fill out the story they couldn't tell the first time around and end up with a more standard pacing that's less exciting, and end up getting cancelled before finishing. Then we end up with things like Tru Calling and Dark Matter, which had planned plots they couldn't finish.
- Arcuru 7mo agoOh wow, I really enjoyed Dollhouse but I didn't know that! I was always confused why Season 2's plot went by so quickly. Thanks.
- BoxOfSnoo 7mo agoI think it worked well with the Epitaph episodes being as short as they were. I don’t think I’d have enjoyed that much darkness for many seasons. They were great though, to show sobering consequences of what they were toying with.
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- killbot5000 7mo agoShiny.
- Archit3ch 7mo agoMay have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one. ~ Captain Malcolm 'Mal' Reynolds
- irenetusuq 7mo ago[dead]
- dyauspitr 7mo ago[flagged]
- garbawarb 7mo agoIt's too bad Whedon won't be a part of it. I wonder if there's a way to sufficiently un-cancel someone like him. Like sit him down and say, we're going to give you another chance but you need to be on your best behavior or you're out for good.
- layer8 7mo agoI’m not sure how well it would work out either way. One isn’t the same person twenty plus years later, and also in absolute terms he’s in his sixties now.
- throwawayk7h 7mo agoI hope xkcd does a comic about it