USEFUL RESOURCES AGAIN 3

Some great insights into the characters and storylines in the 'Firefly Diaries' on http://www.steved.org/articles.html

KAYLEE - 'THE HEART OF THE SHOW'

Kaylee (the mechanic on Serenity) also features in the notes on the Bible Study on http://blog.digitalorthodoxy.com/?p=661

' Kaylee seems to peer into Inara’s world and romanticises it, thinking that she gets some rich clients who give her things and make her feel pretty, the rest of the world seems to think this is the case too as her profession has a high status in the planets. Looking in from outside Kaylee wishes that she could have pretty things, be a normal" girl, wear pretty dresses, dance with men to nice music. Kaylee wants to live in the world beyond her own fence, the grass is always greener over there. ... And when she’s faced with the reality she meets people that want to keep her on the other side of the fence, people who look pretty on the outside but are not too pretty on the inside. These people make her feel unwelcome, unpretty. While she also meets others who seem to find her enchanting for who she really is at the same party.'

Similar comments, about the ordinariness of Kaylee's character and the way in which it is seen in the people we come into contact with every day, are made in Burns, M, ‘Mars needs Women’ in Espenson, J (ed), Serenity Found: More Unauthorized essays on Joss Whedon's Firefly Universe, (Dallas, TX: Benbella Books, 2007) pp18-19:

' they had Kaylee's heart, that fragile fear that people were looking down on them, that they weren't good enough or smart enough. ... Kaylee can fix nearly everything, sees the good in everyone, can't handle a gun. ... Kaylee was the beating heart of the show as she tended the beating heart of Serenity. Where have you ever seen anyone like her on a spaceship before?'

MAL VS INARA

Episode 4 'Shindig' is about the differences between the lifestyles of Mal and Inara.

Inara is a companion - high class prostitute - which seems to be a legal and respectable occupation. Mal - who is a unquestionably a criminal (albeit one that the audience is urged to cheer for) - looks down on Inara's profession. The Bible Study on the Youth Ministry Blog relates this to the Biblical story of the one who said 'Friend let me remove the speck from your eye', whilst ignoring the log in his/her own eye.

Note to self - I would like to reflect further on the ease with which the audience (including me) can excuse the criminal aspects of Mal's life.

USEFUL RESOURCES AGAIN 2

I'm trying to keep a healthy balance in my studies of Firefly so I'm going to take note of the observations outlined on http://dauntlessmedia.net/firefly/firefly.html The stance taken on that site is summed up in the following words:

'Don’t misunderstand me. I happen to think that Firefly was very good for a series in its first season, operating under a great deal of pressure. Given the circumstances, Firefly was a bona fide success. But it is far from deserving of the near deity status granted to it by its most ardent fans. In the following critique, I will analyze the show’s successes as well as its missteps and failures …'

USEFUL RESOURCES AGAIN

Here's another source: Pollard, N & Couch, S, Get more like Jesus while watching TV, (Milton Keynes: Authentic Media, 2005)

In Appendix 1 (p.99) Caroline Puntis outlines the suggestions made by Damaris (http://www.damaris.org/) for reflecting upon a film:

1. 'Identify the underlying world view: What beliefs, values and attitudes are being communicated?'
2. 'Analyse the worldview: Do these ideas make sense? Do they fit with the real world? Do they work?'
3. 'Affirm truth: What rings true with Christian faith as seen in the Bible?'
4. 'Identify error: What seems to be inconsistent with Christian faith?'
5. 'Identify a response: How should we respond to this material or this worldview as individuals, as a church, as a community?’

I'm going to apply these guidelines when I rewatch 'Firefly' and 'Serenity' as I think that they will help to facilitate cross-cultural and counter-cultural reflection.

I'm a little cautious about the use of the word 'error' in the 4th point. I want to make a stand for what I believe to be morally right and wrong, but I'm also willing to be challenged about what I believe.

Does that sound like I'm sitting on the fence? What I'm trying to say is that: ‘We need to be open about the possibility that film will challenge us and sometimes cause us to rethink our understanding and expression of the faith we hold dear’ see Maher, I, Reel Issues: Engaging film and faith, (Swindon: Bible Society, 1998) p.6.

KEY WEBSITES

Just so that I don't forget - these are some key websites:

A site which explains the storyline and introduces the characters in 'Firefly'/'Serenity'
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/brunel/A2890866

A forum with stories written by fans about the characters in ‘Firefly’/‘Serenity’ (this is the inspiration for chapter 3 of the dissertation outline)
http://community.livejournal.com/beforeserenity/

A Damaris study guide on ‘Serenity’ http://www.damaris.org/content/content.php?type=1&id=314

A Damaris article on ‘Firefly’
http://www.damaris.org/content/content.php?type=5&id=527

Articles about spirituality & film and a review of ‘Serenity’ by Steve Taylor
http://www.emergentkiwi.org.nz/archives/spirituality_and_film_web_resources.php
http://www.emergentkiwi.org.nz/archives/where_is_the_gospel_in_film.php
http://www.emergentkiwi.org.nz/archives/writing/howdochurchesusefilm1.PDF
http://www.emergentkiwi.org.nz/archives/writing/serenity.PDF

Official Fans (known as Browncoats) Website
http://www.fireflyfans.net/

A blog entry about the spirituality of sci-fi (with a description of Shepherd Book - the preacher) http://www.opuszine.org/blog/entry/a_bit_of_a_ramble_on_sci_fi_spirituality_atheists_space_stations_and_firefl/

USEFUL RESOURCES

Last year I made notes about some useful resources that identified ways to reflect upon the spirituality of films. I'm going to copy those notes into this blog. Here's the first one:

One key source is: Higgins, G, How Movies Helped Save my Soul: Finding Spiritual Fingerprints in Culturally Significant Films, (Lake Mary, FL: Relevant Books, 2003)

Dozens of films have challenged or inspired Gareth Higgins and he groups them together under fourteen headings, such as ‘Brokenness’, ‘Anti-heroes’, ‘Justice’ & ‘fear’. He covers a wide range of films from ‘The Wizard of Oz’ to ‘The Omen’. Written in a 'chatty' style this book motivates the reader to watch or re-watch the films described, and gives insight into how to look for ‘spiritual fingerprints’ in other movies.

Higgins gives the following advice for those who want to explore the meanings of films further (pp.3-9):

• Read decent film magazines and some good books about film e.g. Derek Malcolm’s ‘A Century of Cinema’;
• ‘Don’t read reviews before you see films’;
• ‘Don’t expect “realism” as a mark of a film’s quality’;
• ‘Do not eat popcorn when watching films’;
• Watch movies with friends and then talk about them over a meal - ‘food and drink grease the wheels of conversation like nothing else’;
• ‘Give the film your full attention … Observe how the camera moves … look around the screen for things you may have previously missed’;
• ‘Consider what the difference between a good and a bad performance is’;
• ‘Reflect on the possible journey that led the film maker to produce what you have just seen’;
• ‘Don’t talk during the credits’ and do not discuss the film for at least ten minutes after the end of the credits – then your impression of the film won’t be ruined by negative comments from others who weren’t so moved.