1. Nathan Fillion (or at least his voice) is back for the sequel to Halo 3. Shiny.

Nathan Fillion of Firefly, who played a random ODST in Halo 3, is signed up the play one of the squad members. "So if you like the voice cast in Halo 3, we've elevated some of them to a cinematic level".

2. There is a sequel to Halo 3? Not that I am surprised, mind you. Just annoyed that no one told me.

Do want.

Somehow, this mentality just became a little more poignant today:

Zoe: Don't think it's a good spot, sir. She still has the advantage on us.
Mal: Everyone always does. That's what makes us special.

Thanks to Ahab and Breda for the reminder.

Attire for tomorrow: Black boots (sadly, I do not have brown ones, and neither are my black ones calf-length... need to remedy that at some point), khaki pants, brownish-red shirt, brown coat. I am missing suspenders, but I guess those are not entirely essential... Of course, that said, stores these days just do not carry those. Next year, perhaps.

Well, whether you have thought about it or not, Christmas is fast approaching. Honestly, I have not thought about it much either, but that is because I am a procrastinator extraordinaire. That said...

Everything I Need to Know About Life I Learned from Firefly is newer and better than ever. This third edition bumped the overall page count to 126, and the individual life lessons to over 600 in six sections. Not too shabby, if I do say so myself. Of course, I have been working on this little book for over three years now. At any rate, reviews for this book can be found here, here, and here, and I certainly would not mind some more constructive criticism for a possible fourth edition. And, just like all of the previous versions, there is next-to-no mark-up on these books, mostly to try and avoid copyright problems, but also because I made these to spread the good word of Firefly, not make money. Some random excerpts from the book are, "Dead bodies do tell tales. Loudly. And sometimes with guns," "A female gettin' naked tends to be a better diversion than a male doing the same," "Nothin' ever goes according to the gorram plan. Plan accordingly," "As with other things, sword-fightin' is all about the wrist," "Black market beagles are better than black market cattle. Seriously," and "Some ships will be with you until the end of your life. That could be because they'll kill you." How can you go wrong with material like that?

And thanks to a reminder from Kevin at the GBRIII, The Philosophy of Jayne store is once again open. Should I get bored and have far too much spare time on my hands again in the future (not terribly likely, but who knows?), I will see what I can do about opening up other "Philosophy of..." stores again as well, but Jayne's was definitely my most popular. Cafepress' stock of items certainly has grown since the last time I looked, so you can find all manner of random things at the store now - black t-shirts, white t-shirts, kid t-shirts, dog t-shirts, yard signs (take that, you forests of political signs), banners, three different kinds of clocks, buttons, magnets, stickers, ornaments... and lots of things come in multiple colors now. Oh, and Jayne's philosophy, for those too lazy to click, is, "You can never have too many grenades. (Or pistols, or rifles, or rounds, or knives, or...)" Believe you me - this shirt has gotten me more than a few strange looks, comments, and all the rest...

A worthy cause? Check.

A famous man? Check.

A cunning piece of headgear? Check.

Complete and utter geekery? Uber-check.

Cannot say as though I can swing $1259.56 (at the time of this post) for a hat, especially when there are a variety of ways to make or buy your own replicas... But it being up for auction, as well as Adam's desire for almost all of the proceeds to go to the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation - yeah, that is just undeniably shiny.

All fourteen episodes of Firefly.

All online.

And all free.

Granted, they are slightly out of order, but what better way to introduce the uninitiated to the shininess that is the Firefly 'verse?

River Tam (otherwise referred to as Summer Glau) plays a mean Terminator. I guess she just does the whole, "I can kill you with my brain/hands/feet/whatever-is-handy" schtick pretty well - and who is going to argue with this watching your back? (*Waits for the inevitable joke.*)

That said, the gal they chose for Sarah Connor herself (Lena Headey) honestly sucks... but, then, Linda Hamilton is a hard act to follow.

... is actually a very large, interstellar freight train with your name written on its cowcatcher.

I reported, with some enthusiasm, on the development of a Firefly-based MMO game back in 2006. Well, there has not been a whole lot of news about it since, and being the naive idiot I am, I believed no news was good news.

I was wrong.

So, The Multiverse Network is abandoning one Joss Whedon project for another one? And this is supposed to bode well for the second project? Righto.

Trust me, I have nothing against Buffy, and I could certainly get pumped up about a MMO set in its universe. However, that small level of enthusiasm would be a pale candle compared to the class O star my excitement for a Firefly MMO would generate. Oh well. Firefly and Browncoats alike have always gotten the short end of the stick... That's what makes us special.

Every so often, rumors of a “Serenity” sequel pop up, and no matter how many times Joss Whedon says, “No, it’s not happening,” the rumors persist. Are they based on any behind-the-scenes maneuvers? Or if they’re not based on any reality in this ‘verse, why do they persist?

“The rumors are there because people really wish it would happen,” Whedon said.

...

Like Summer, “I’d do it in a heartbeat,” Whedon said, “because I love those people so much.” But that doesn’t change the fact that the rumors are not being circulated “by anyone who owns a studio,” and “nobody’s knocking on our door.”

“There’s been no movement,” he said. “Those rumors are just rumors, and I don’t think they’re going to stop, no matter how many times I say, ‘No, it’s not happening.’ Because somebody will say, ‘He said yes. His eyes said yes. His nose said yes. There was a yes-iness about him.’ Because people want it.”

Granted, MTV is not the best place to get your news, but considering the topic, it is probably valid.

Either way, count me among the many people who "want it", and would be more than willing to drop a few million on top of Whedon's head (and club him with a few more million, if he did not get the point) if he would just make another Serenity. Prequel. Sequel. Subplot. Really, I do not care. I just want more. Gimme my gorramed fix! Ni ta ma de. Tianxia suoyoude ren. Dou gaisi.

*cough*

Sorry 'bout that... Linoge has been... detained... until such time as he stops swearing in Mandarin. We now return you to our regularly-scheduled program... whatever the hell that was.

Hat tip to Whedonesque.

Well, not a lot as changed... at least in relation to the percentages.

Your results:
You are Malcolm Reynolds (Captain)

Malcolm Reynolds (Captain) 90% Zoe Washburne (Second-in-command) 85% Wash (Ship Pilot) 85% Kaylee Frye (Ship Mechanic) 75% Jayne Cobb (Mercenary) 65% Dr. Simon Tam (Ship Medic) 50% Derrial Book (Shepherd) 50% River (Stowaway) 35% A Reaver (Cannibal) 30% Alliance 30% Inara Serra (Companion) 25%

Honest and a defender of the innocent. You sometimes make mistakes in judgment but you are generally good and would protect your crew from harm.

I only wish I had a gun as shiny as his...

You know you might have watched too much Firefly when you see visitor hits from Beaumont, Texas, and accidentally read it as Beaumonde.

Yeah.... my coat is kinda a brownish color, actually.

Ok, so I am a little behind on this, but that is nothing new for me. Can't Stop the Serenity is a project started by Joss Whedon (I think) to help support Equality Now, an organization dedicated to ending violence and discrimination against females around the world. And, if nothing else, it is an organized showing of Serenity on big screens across the country, and even the world - what more do you really need?

At any rate, check out the CStS webpage for the full listings of locations and times - Albuquerque has already had theirs, and Minneapolis is tonight. Unfortunately, it does not appear as though I will be able to make San Diego's showing... something tells me Better Half would be thoroughly unimpressed if I was not at the airport to pick her up, no matter how good the cause. Still, just because I cannot is no excuse for you - grab your browncoat, get out there, and support an oustanding movie and an outstanding organization, all at the same time.

Well, after a semi-brief hiatus, I am very happy to announce that Everything I Need to Know About Life I Learned from Firefly is once again on the market.

Apart from changing store locations, there were a few other improvements to this particular edition... namely, the cover! Well, and some stuff between the two covers too. The first edition was a grand total of 60 pages in length, and sold a whopping number of copies... ok, about five, and three of those were to me. The second edition (the last one) was a massive 80 pages in length, and sold about 50 copies (with another three to me... hey, they make semi-decent gifts).

This most-recent third edition took a little more time and effort... or just me vegging out in front of Firefly set on infinite repeat... weighing in at 126 pages. Maybe it can tack on another zero to its total sales and come close to selling 500 copies... not likely, but, hey, I can dream, right?

Anywise, if you all happen to enjoy Firefly or Serenity, odds are, you will enjoy this book. In fact, if you do not believe me, some other people had much the same thing to say, as found here, here, and here. And, no, I did not pay those people off... at least not much.

Speaking of money, though, unfortunately this book went from $9.40 to $11.00... CafePress charges based off length, and since you get a little more quantity (though I make no guarantee on quality), you get to pay a little more for it. Congratulations!

Oh, and in a random fit of complete and utter egotism, if you all want a signed copy of this little gem, just drop me a line at "linoge (funny-little-'at'-symbol) wallsofthecity.net", and we can work something out.

I try and keep from being repetitive and redundant on my weblog, but sometimes, something is worthy of note more than once. A little while back, David, of Random Nuclear Strikes fame, sent me an email about my book, Everything I Need to Know About Life I Learned from Firefly. I thought it was nice enough that he provided some feedback concerning my book, and I certainly appreciated it - no one else has, and one thing authors, artists, and all other creative types are always after is more feedback. Helps with the creative process and all that nonsense.

Well, it turns out that he liked the book enough that he went and wrote a whole weblog post about it. Already that post has generated two more sales of my book, so I figured I could at least return the favor, in however slight a way, by directing a bit more traffic to his webpage. And, that said, it certainly is an interesting webpage... definitely take the time to go over and take a look - you never really know what you might come across.

That said, I am going to have to echo his sentiments: Go buy the Big Gorramed Series, and then follow up with the Big Gorramed Movie. Then, if you feel so inclined, buy my bookCould not hurt, right?

... Please, please, please, please, please...

Ok, yeah, I am a little behind the curve on this apparently, but the possibility of an honest-to-God Serenity 2 (even though both Wash and Book kicked the bucket, which I still very much dislike) is just too gorramed shiny to not write about. Not going to say much, granted, simply because there is not a lot of information, but just the knowledge should bring some hope to some people. I certainly know that it mad my day a little brighter. Of course, I am not too keen on the whole straight-to-DVD concept... and, personally, I was hoping more for a prequel than a sequel... but, honestly, I will take whatever I can get.

Oh, and speaking of shiny... If anyone, for some reason, wanted a random, useless gift for me... well... (And, yes, honestly, I think I would prefer this variant over the "display" one coming out in the future - I am a klutz, and this one would actually survive me taking it out and handling it every once in a while. And it might work with a potential, eventual Serenity-inspired costume...) Now, I just need to figure out how to start working for these QMx folks... I can cook! Well... not-burn, at least...

I admit I have been somewhat remiss about this, and I apologize. For those who have been living under a rock for the past few weeks, a Collector's Edition of Serenity is due to be released on the 21st of this month - just a scant few days away. Now, I know what you all are saying, because I said it too: "But I purchased the DVD of Serenity as soon as it came out... why would I go and buy another copy of it?" Well, thankfully, there are some slightly more industrious people out there than me. Behold, Serenity Stuff's 25 Reasons Why You Should Buy the Serenity Collector's Edition:

1. More stuff you don’t need an all-regions DVD player to see. With this 2-disc set you’ll finally get the features that Europe and Australia got already (You don’t get the long Q&A Joss did in Australia, but you can catch that on Youtube). First up: The Extended Scenes (6 min. 45 sec.). Longer versions of some of the scenes in the movie, including more Mal and Inara.

2. You love buying new Serenity things, admit it. It makes you tingly.

3. Owning this frees you up to give away your old one and spread the word. Give it to your friends — assuming you have any that have resisted this long.

4. Longer “behind the scenes” feature. This is the Aussie cut, with more scenes (including some from the first cast table read).

5. Somewhere there is a network executive(s) who is still baffled at the refusal of this property to die, despite his, her, or their best efforts. Buy the DVD with a song in your heart.

6. “A Filmmakers Journey” (19 min. 49 sec.). How Joss took “Serenity” from a cancelled show to a new movie.

7. Better cover art. Way, way better cover art. It’s not 11th Hour quality, but few things in this world are and this is much classier. Not a llama in sight.

8. “Take a Walk on Serenity” (4 min.). Joss, Nathan, Alan, and Adam take us on a special tour of the Serenity ship. Worth it to see Jayne flying the ship.

9. DVD Feng Shui. You’ve already got “Serenity” DVDs on your shelf with brown and blue edges, you need a black one to balance ‘em out.

10. The Session 416 videos (7 min. 52 sec). River’s scary-cool progression through the Academy. I loved seeing ‘em online but I can’t wait to see ‘em on a bigger screen.

11. Can you be sure this isn’t a different cut? Maybe Wash lives. Maybe Book and Inara finally realize they’re meant for each other (and where are the Book-Inara shippers? Let’s step up, people…). You know, you’d better get one, just to make sure.

12. New packaging. A Digipak case, one of the ones you see in special edition DVDs and TV DVD sets, with a gatefold, foldout design and often a slipcase. I’m thinking that means more photos, more text, all good.

13. Because how cool would it be to see Best Buy pulling out pallets of the thing to meet demand.

14. “The Green Clan” (3 min. 3 sec). A featurette on cinematographer Jack M. Green and his family/crew.

15. You can donate your old copy to your local library. Or a distant library. Or just give it to a thrift store so someone else can stumble across it.

16. Finally you can see the Fruity Oaty feature without remembering which up-down-sideways buttons to hit to get to the easter egg.

17. “SciFi Inside: Serenity” (21 min. 41 sec). The pre-movie SciFi Channel special hosted by Adam Baldwin. Cast interviews, lots of scenes from the movie.

18. Support the troops. There are soldiers overseas that dsperately need something fun in their lives, and here you are with an extra movie lying around…

19. It is the responsibility of every patriotic American to boost our economy. Probably it’s the same for Canadians, even if their dollar is doing better than ours these days. In fact, Americans had better buy two DVDs.

20. Brand. New. Cast. Commentary. Joss, Nathan Fillion, Adam Baldwin, Summer Glau, and Ron Glass talking about our favorite movie. Face it, this is a good enough reason all by itself.

21. Opportunities for random kindness. Hand your old copy to the first person you see on the street. Leave it on a bus, or in a restaurant booth.

22. Amazon rankings. At the moment, two weeks before it hits the streets, this re-release of a break-even movie based on a cancelled TV show is at #61 in DVD sales and moving up. After a summer of big-budget and largely disappointing movies, I want to see this at #1.

23. There’s a new front page at the official Serenity movie site, with new video clips. You don’t want them to have wasted all that work, do you? Go check it out.

24. Because you need a reason for a new shindig. DVD release party! Get the gang together and go move “Serenity” in front of “Wild Hogs” on the shelves at Wal-Mart.

25. And the big reason: “Serenity 2.” It is by no means definite, and is in fact one hell of a long shot, but there’s that possibility that massive sales of this DVD could lead to more Serenity in some form. From Joss’ interview at Comic Con with RopeofSilicon:

So give me hope for a Serenity II

JW: Hope for it probably rests with this DVD.

Well I’ll buy one.

JW: Actually I will too, people ask me why I would buy my own DVD and I tell them do you have any idea how awesome it is to buy your own movie?

So then you’re saying we’ve got a chance?

JW: Well it’s probably not being discussed in boardrooms right now, but the fact of the matter is if it makes enough money sooner or later they say “hey, this is money!”

I confess, I am somewhat dubious about the chances of a second Serenity movie, what with Wash and Book being somewhat indisposed, and the River storyline having been appropriately closed, at least for the most part. But even the hope is something Still, the rest of those points... well, I can relate with just about all of them. Furthermore, I am somewhat surprised that this Collector's Edition did not come out on BlueRay or HD, and I am left wondering if either of those are in the future. But, then, you will just have another copy of Serenity to give away... how is that a bad thing?

Now, I, like a lot of people, am somewhat loathe to buy a DVD I have not yet seen... especially considering how damnably expensive DVDs are when they are first released. Well, thankfully, IGN got their grubby mitts on a copy a few days ago (the bastards), and released a review. Let the cherry-picking commence:

...

The budget may be dramatically smaller, but there are more refined story curves and hard-earned emotional ties to characters than in the last three Star Wars movies combined, and it's topped off with some beautifully orchestrated action scenes. Serenity is very good science fiction with real heart, which is something that can be neither bought nor meticulously rendered; you either have it or you don't, and any viewer, old or new, can appreciate that.

...

Serenity could be called the ultimate modern western. Although it takes place more than 500 years in the future during a space-traveling era when men have found and terraformed entire planets, its heroes still carry futuristic pistols and live by codes of honor that would make any cowboy proud. It's not an easy configuration to swallow because these are two genres that don't seem to have anything in common - and, in fact, directly contrast one another; perhaps needless to say, spaceships and horses simply don't mix. And yet, the same complaint could be leveled against Star Wars, whose Jedi heroes were inspired by Japanese samurai movies (most notably Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress). It's a testament to Whedon's skill that he has overcome any preconceived notions about what does and doesn't belong and created with Serenity a breathtakingly original universe that defies sci-fi cliches.

...

Serenity arrives as a mixed blessing. Not because it falls short of greatness, but because it doesn't: although it is a fantastic sci-fi work and a fabulous follow-up to the Firefly television show, it bombed at the box office and isn't likely to see a sequel. And that's a real shame, because we'd love nothing more than to take another ride on Whedon's unconventional ship.

...

This special edition of Serenity gives audiences two discs full of bonus materials - many of which were available on the film's previous DVD release and handful of extras new to the Firefly party - but there's enough in place to satisfy fans and give newcomers a good helping of insight into the movie and television series. The gorgeous packaging is designed to open like a book and features a transport cover-flap through which the over-lapping images on the layers below bring all of the cover's exquisite detail to the surface. Bonus material includes:

- Deleted and extended scenes
- Outtakes
- A Filmmaker's Journey
- Future history: The Story of Earth That Was
- What's in a Firefly
- Re-lighting the Firefly
- Joss Whedon Introduction
- Session 416
- Sci-Fi Inside: Serenity
- Take A Walk on Serenity
- The Green Clan
- We'll Have Fruity Oaty Good Time
- Feature Commentary by Joss Whedon

...

Easily the most valuable feature the DVD has to offer, however, is full-length commentary from Whedon. Oftentimes directors coast through these commentaries as though they recorded them at gunpoint during a quick lunch break, but Whedon optimistically talks about Serenity and offers repeated insight into its making. Watching the movie again with his commentary reveals quite a bit more about the picture and provides for another round of completely entertaining cinema.

Lastly, the second commentary - new to this Special Edition - sees Whedon reunited with Nathan Fillion, Adam Baldwin, Summer Glau and Ron Glass. This is certainly the more hilarious-yet-unfocused of the two and consists largely of an honest and inspired rapport between the director and his cast. Charming and amusing this is as entertaining a commentary as Whedon's is informative.

...

This is a great, wildly entertaining film - accessible to old and new fans alike, to sci-fi fans and western fans and movie fans, in general - represented on a beautifully packaged Special Edition DVD, sporting a top-notch transfer, some strong audio work and a boatload of worthwhile extras. So, the real question is this: What are you waiting for?

...

Overall Score: 9/10 (With an IGN.com Editor's Choice Award, to boot.)

Enough information yet? Well, just to be sure, Serenity Stuff also graced us with a blow-by-blow of what changed in the Collector's Edition and what did not, for which I am quite thankful:

The Movie. 1 hour, 59 minutes. Dual layer, Anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1), Dolby 5.1. Also, awesomeness. On all versions

Subtitles. CE: English SDH, French, and Spanish, same as the first US release. The UK had a few more: English, French, Italian, German and Spanish. Italy and Australia got Croatian subtites, Italy also had (duh) Italian. Asian releases had Chinese, Japanese, etc.

Joss’ introduction. The original 4-minute clip shown before the movie screenings. On all versions.

Joss Whedon commentary. Joss telling us about his baby. On all versions.

Cast commentary. With Nathan Fillion, Adam Baldwin, Summer Glau, and Ron Glass. I get goose pimply just thinking about it. This is brand new, CE only.

Deleted scenes. 14 min., 37 sec. of deleted and extended scenes, with optional commentary by Joss Whedon. Everyone got these before. They include:
- “Extended Lilac Entrance” - More River on the mule.
- “Extended Kaylee And Jayne” – Kaylee talking to Jayne as he cleans up Reaver bits.
- “Inara And Sheydra” – Inara and Sheydra scene from the Companion Training House.
- “Operative Tracks Mal” - The Operative researches mal and discovers a weakness.
- “Extended River And Simon/Haven Opening” – River sees death for everyone. Longer Haven sequence, longer Mal and Book scene.
- “Escape From The Companion Training House” – Mal and Inara’s escape from ther Training House, and the uses of a fake grenade.
- “Mal And Inara Shuttle Chase” – Longer scene.
- “Mal And Inara Quiet Moment” – Mal and Inara talking in Inara’s shuttle.
- “Extended Mal And Operative Coda” – Longer final scene with the Operative.

Extended scenes. An Australian exclusive, now on the CE. You get:
- Extended Fanty & Mingo (2.15 min.) More conversation in the Maidenhead Bar.
- Extended Mal & Irena Wave (2.16 min.) Chattier Wave conversation between Mal and Inara.
- Extended Mal & Operative In Companion Training House (0.49 min.) A few extra lines between Mal and the Operative.
- Extended Mal & Irena Shuttle Improv (0.50 min.) A punchy Mal dissing the Operative during the shuttle chase scene.

Outtakes. 6 min., 2 sec. of comedy gold. On all versions.

“Future History: The Story of Earth-That-Was.” Joss talking about the origins of the show, with some movie clips. 4 min., 32 sec. On all versions.

“What’s in a Firefly” Joss, executive producers Christopher Buchanan and Alisa Tager, CG supervisor Emil Smith, producer Barry Mendel, and visual effects supervisors Loni Peristere and Bud Myrick talk about the movie’s visual effects, particularly the mule chase scene and the final battle death spiral. 6 min., 33 sec. On all versions.

“Re-Lighting the Firefly” Joss and the crew on the fanbase and bringing the show to the big screen. 9 min., 41 sec. On all versions.

“We’ll Have a Fruity Oaty Good Time.” A hidden featurette explaining how the commercial came to be and the commercial itself, in its entirety. 1 min. 35 sec. To find the easter egg in the original DVDs, go to the main menu, select (but don’t click on) “play movie,” then press the left button. A design on the right will highlight. Press play. Don’t know yet if this will be an easter egg or regular feature on the CE. On all versions.

“A Filmmaker’s Journey.” How Joss went about making the movie. Includes scenes from the first cast table read. 19 min, 49 sec. Previously available on the R2 (Europe, Northern Asia) and Australian versions.

“Take a Walk on Serenity.” Previously exclusive to the Australian version. Joss, Nathan, Alan, and Adam take us on a special tour of the Serenity ship. Worth it to see Jayne flying the ship.

“The Green Clan.” Previously exclusive to the Australian version. A featurette on cinematographer Jack M. Green and his family/crew. 3 min. 3 sec.

“SciFi Inside: Serenity” The pre-movie SciFi Channel special hosted by Adam Baldwin. Cast interviews, lots of scenes from the movie. 21 min. 41 sec. Never on DVD before.

“Session 416.” The viral videos Joss did with River and released anonymously online before the movie. They will be shown in the out-of-order sequence they were originally released in. Never on DVD before.

The only other features that have made it to DVD that you won’t get here are the Joss Q&A from the Australian DVD (available here) and a few small promo features on various magazine insert and bonus discs.

I just want to know why the Australians get all the love...

So I guess the real question is whether or not I will be buying one... And the honest answer is, unfortunately, "Not quite yet." As I said, I cannot believe how expensive DVDs are when they are first released, and that price invariably drops over time... Yeah, I am cheap. However, considering that the DVD is currently ranked first in Westerns, second in Science Fiction and Fantasy, sixth in Action and Adventure, and sixteenth in DVDs overall at Amazon, and it still has not actually been released... something tells me that it will not have a hard time doing well.

So get out there and do your civic/Browncoat duty, and buy it! Hell, buy two, and make up for my cheapness! After all, how many times in a fan's life can they actually, potentially influence the outcome of their favorite show or movie?

David, from over at Random Nuclear Strikes, secured a copy of my book, Everything I Need to Know About Life I Learned from Fireflya while back, and sent me an email with a few of his thoughts on it. I asked if I could post them here, he responded in the affirmative, and here they are:

Just finished leafing through it (got it a couple weeks back but didn't have time to give it a proper perusal.)

I suppose I was expecting direct quotes from the show. I THINK I spotted some in there, but wasn't sure.

If indeed you made up all of the lines in the book yourself, WOW -- you captured the flavor of the show's dialogue perfectly!

In the end, it felt a little like an homage to Heinlein's Notebooks of Lazarus Long, which I mean as a compliment. Not quite up to the Master's level, but definitely very entertaining and insightful to boot. And the price is great too!

I ordered two of 'em anticipating that I'd be spreading my copies around. Well, one copy's going to my brother and another to a buddy of mine who just borrowed my Firefly DVD set and can't stop raving about it.

So I guess I'll be buying some more....

All in all, a very impressive effort. Nicely Done!

Best Regards,

David

There are, indeed, a few lines straight from the show/movie contained within its covers, but they were the unavoidable ones, such as, "If you cannot do something smart, do something right," or, "You're on my crew; why are we still having this conversation?" Beyond that, the lines within the book are completely my own creation, inspired by the episodes and movies, and occasionally assisted by a few little nudges here and there from friends.

That said, I cannot think of a finer compliment to the book or myself than putting us both in the same paragraph as the Notebook of Lazarus Long, much less Heinlein himself. Thank you once again, David, and feel free to purchase as many more copies as you so desire.

As always, my book, my collection of "Philosophy of..." items, and a few other random things, are all scurrying around in my CafePress store: The Philosophy of Firefly. Go take a look if you get bored... you never know what you might find.

(And, once again, just to be clear and satisfy any questions concerning copyright - at least I think so - I make effectively no profit off the sale of Everything I Need to Know About Life I Learned from Firefly. I think the total is something like $0.04 per sale - I like round numbers. Instead of being an income source, this book exists solely to spread the good word of Firefly and Serenity, nothing more, and is meant to be an homage to a great storyline, not an uncouth cribbing of it. If you have any questions, feel free to drop me a line.)

As you all may or may not have known, I have been idly looking into creating a Browncoat-style costume for the past few months... Granted, I have nowhere to show it off (especially after missing ComiCon, much to my continual annoyance), but it is something to occupy my time and imagination. Of course, if anyone is aware of any decent costume contests in San Diego that do not require invitations, I might just be interested.

Moving on, I recently stumbled across the 76th Independent Battalion, an organization deadicated to carrying on the memories of Firefly and Serenity. Granted, this is not the 57th Overlanders Brigade (the "Balls and Bayonets Brigade") to which Malcolm Reynolds himself belonged, but that would be kind of cheating to insert yourself right into the storyline like that... at least from my no-cosplay-experience point of view. At any rate, how does this organization go about bringing the light of Firefly civilization to the fuzzy-wuzzies? Well, think 501st Legion, only without the classy white uniforms (sarcasm implied) - basically, these volunteers plan on assembling uniforms to wear, and then assembling themselves at conventions, events, and suchlike around the country, and spreading the Good Word by presence and by showmanship, and I am all for it.

What really attracted me to the webpage, however, is the comprehensive and remarkably detailed explanation of how to construct a true-to-form Browncoat uniform. And, even better than the instructions themselves, they actuall provide links to online stores where one can procure some of the more-difficult-to-find items - something I had been searching for. Hell, they even provide you links to instructions to make your own chainmail sleeves, much like Zoe wore during the Battle of Serenity Valley - how much more detailed do you want?

On top of being a positively outstanding information source concerning the materiel and equipment necessary to put together an accurate Browncoat uniform, the 76th Brigade also seems like a rather worthy organization in and of itself - after all, it puts out information and publicity concerning Firefly, and there can be little wrong with that. In fact, I am a scant few inches away from putting in my own application myself... but I have a few qualms. First, my schedule and monetary constraints rarely support me being able to get to conferences/events (case in point: ComiCon), especially ones out of state. Second... and, well, the third reason are kind of intertwined. The second reason is actually just cost, but that dovetails nicely into the third.

One of the things that is easily noticeable in Firefly and Serenity is that the Independents, by the time they and the Alliance were exchanging blows on Hera, were pretty much as rag-tag as one could be, and still be considered an army. Any vestiges of honest uniform design had pretty much gone out the window, except for a few minor details like scarves, patches, and weaponry. And, hell, I can hardly blame them for that - you use what works, and when something of your clothing bites the big one, you replace it with whatever you have on hand, especially when you are losing the war by leaps and bounds. Whatever supply lines they may have had were no doubt nuked by the Alliance, and probably had been heavily disrupted for years, so getting mil-spec uniform items probably would have been a little difficult. That, and the Independents came from all walks of life, all backgrounds, and all worlds, and probably contributed heavily to their uniforms with whatever they had at home when they joined up.

What I am trying to say is that "standardized uniform" was probably one of the last things on the Independents' minds. Their primary concerns were probably easy identification of each other, and differentiating themselves from the Alliance (not hard, given their German/Soviet uniforms). That said, the individuals in charge of the 76th Brigade seem intent upon creating just that - a standardized uniform. Now, I can certainly understand that when it comes to public events, a uniform (harhar) appearance give the most weight to your presence, but that has to be carefully weighed against the people you are portraying yourselves to be - if they are an off-the-wall, farm-bred, rag-tag buch of misfits throwing their lot in together to rail against an oppressive, nanny-state government intent upon subjugating the known universe, look like it. I mean, hell, take the brown coat, for example... An exact replica of the coat Mal wore while piloting Serenity is available through AbbyShot, and I have found that some of the best, cheap coats that are readily available and vaguely resemble your standard brown coat are Australian oilskin dusters - take off the stupid little cape, slap on a patch, and you are set. However, according to the 76th Brigade's webpage, neither of these items would be acceptable.

Again, do not misunderstand me - a good impact is what you are looking for in a parade or other event, and looking as close to similar to each other as possible is the perfect starting point to do that. But I am also of the mindset that some degree of consideration should be made for those of us with neither the discretionary income, nor the skill with needle and thread, neessary to make something exactly the same as everyone else's... much less the whole "room for creativity" thing. I dunno, I may be looking at this too much from the "cheap and easy" standpoint... I guess I am just not that much of a die-hard Firefly fan as I may have initially thought.

Any way you look at it, this organization is doing good things, and people are having fun doing them. Here is to hoping they keep flying, and increase their ranks as much as possible... who knows, I might just sign up one of these days.

Who knows, this might turn into something. Update: Added/changed a few things.

With bullets repeatedly slamming into the other side of the crate he was hiding behind, Jonah realized he was not having the best of days.

“Ni ta ma de! Tianxia suoyoude ren. Dou gaisi! Would you go tsao de bastards stop shooting at me!?”

In fact, it started a few days back, when he first landed on Silverhold. He had always heard interesting stories about how these particular colonies took a much more police-state viewpoint on law enforcement, but he was not banking on quite so fast of a response time out here in the far reaches of a largely unoccupied cargo-handling facility. Unfortunately, he had not accounted for the fact that the Silverhold Enforcement Squads purchased hovercraft a few months back. Intel does tend to be useful from time to time. At the moment, though, Jonah could have settled for just a single distraction…

“Soon as you come out from behind that box!”

The job he originally took that ended with him on Silverhold facing impending perforation was simple enough - pick up some rich dandy's cargo from Beaumonde and ferry it here. Hell, the cargo was even perfectly legal and legit, with the Alliance, with the Silverholders, and with Beaumonde. Unfortunately, on the rather long jaunt between worlds, Jonah got to thinking, and that is generally a bad habit for anyone with too little cash, a small criminal record, and the desires for something a little better than what he has now.

“And how the tyen shiao duh am I supposed to accomplish that with you shooting at me?”

Once he got within range of Silverhold, Jonah made contact with a few acquaintances he had made there a few years back, to see if they had anything they wanted to ferry off-planet in a… surreptitious… manner. Unsurprisingly enough, they did, and to make matters even better, considering the size of Jonah's transportation, it was not a particularly large item. In fact, it fit into Jonah's pack with room to spare. The meeting went exactly according to plans, the item was handed over along with instructions on where to drop it off on Persephone to get paid, and the parties went their separate ways. Things started going south a few minutes after Jonah left the meeting, with the first real indication being, coincidentally enough, someone trying to shoot him. That pattern had continued for the better part of the past two days, and things were looking like they were coming to an end, one way or another.

“A'ight. We stop shooting, you come on out.”

The sad thing was that he even had is own firearm with him, and was a rather fair shot with it at that. Of course, the worse thing was that he was out-numbered about six-to-one, and while he had more than enough bullets for that kind of situation, they had even more, and could probably shoot faster. Being a mostly law-abiding citizen of the great and almighty Alliance occasionally has its drawbacks. Well, actually, those drawbacks strike more than occasionally, but considering the shortcomings of the current governmental administration while being shot at does not tend to extend one's life expectancy.

All things considered, and given the behavior of the Enforcement Squad up until now, their offer was certainly a reasonable one. And, if it were not for the fact that he was currently in the possession of some slightly illegal (at least in their opinion) goods, he might have honestly taken them up on it - after all, his papers were in good standing, and no government had any crimes levied against the particular name imprinted upon the set he had with him now. But seeing as how he did not want to spend the next night (or the quite-a-few thereafter) in a confinement cell, he did the next best thing to turning himself into the authorities.

He ran.

Waiting for the last bullets to splatter into the dirt around him, he poked his head over the edge of the box, and eyed the six Enforcers still watching him over the barrels of their firearms. Fortunately, this also gave him the chance to verify the contents and design of some of the other crates and containers laying about the cargo handling area they were currently situated in. One of them suited his fancy, so the time of action was upon him. Unfortunately, he was a born and bred coward, so it took him a moment to get all of his thoughts together.

“Y'all done trying to ruin these good people's cargo?” was about the only thing that came to Jonah's mind to buy time.

“Wouldn't 'a had to if you had just stopped runnin' when we told you to.” Of course, it was the largest, most heavily armed and armored Enforcer who spoke up, causing Jonah to momentarily wonder if the size and accouterments came with the job, or vice versa.

However, having reached the extent of his witty repartee, Jonah simply called out, “Fair 'nuff,” got to his feet, and promptly shot the compressed gas cylinder sitting a scant ten feet from the farthest-left Enforcer.

Considering that he never bothered shooting back at the Enforcers while they pursued him, they certainly were not expecting that reaction to their demands to come out. Additionally, considering that it was a compressed gas cylinder he shot, the target of his aggression immediately launched itself across the area, careened into a stack of containers, and sent the whole pile flying into the air. By way of a distraction, it certainly served its purpose - the Enforcers ducked and covered like their lives depended on it (the odds were good that they did), and Jonah took the opportunity to run like hell.

His ship had been in sight for the past five minutes that the Enforcers spent riddling his hiding spot with holes, and he had already planned his route through the crates down to every last turn. Granted, the terrain changed a little with the whole compressed-air rocket darting back and forth around the boxes, but Jonah made the distance in what was record time, at least for him. Having the foresight to mash the controls on his remote before reaching the ship, he dove in through the now-open hatch, sealed it tight behind him, and crawled into the pilot's chair. The Enforcers had the opportunity to squeeze off a few shots and mar up his paint job before Jonah was able to floor the throttles, vector the thrust, and get his bird off the ground, cargo and, more importantly, himself perfectly intact. Headed for the black as quickly as his bucket of bolts could take him, he knew that the Cortex would be swarming with information about himself, his illicit cargo, and his ship in very short order. His only hope at the moment was that he could outrun any aerospace intercepts sent his direction, and head outbound before anyone decided to start hunting him down.

Finally breaking clear of the forces of gravity and tendrils of atmo, he plotted the quickest course (at least for his ship) to Persephone, checked all of the automatic systems to ensure they were working in at least moderate order, and stuffed the circuitry of the comms control panel back into its box. Something about the vibrations of leaving atmo always made it fall apart… Pushing back from the pilot’s console, Jonah allowed himself a moment’s pause, and rested his face in his hands.

“Aiya. That was a close one. You know, I really wonder what it was that Zel gave me…”

Hearing the distinct sound of a round being chambered into a firearm behind him, however, convinced Jonah that his series of bad days was far from being over.

Go. Watch this video.

NOW.

Now that is out of the way, I have to admit, for being an amateur spliced-together film, that is just all manner of shiny. And do not even get me started on how awesome it is that Firefly and Serenity made it into space on the International Space Station, and now have a large number of astronauts hooked on them. Maybe bringing the weight of some real space-farers to the table will tilt Joss into writing a sequel...

Well, it is not wine, but I still appreciate the plug SerenityStuff.com put in for my book, Everything I Need to Know About Life I Learned from Firefly. And, I confess, no, it does not have any decent chili recipies in it, nor any information on how to handle pets (a bit on Companions though... not to say as though Companions are similar to pets, though... there is just no way to make this sound right, is there?), nor mortages (lowlife, petty-theft criminals it does cover, though), but it is still a somewhat-entertaining read.

Just as a reminder, as a way to avoid any possible copyright infringement problems, I make effectively no profit off the book - I just rounded the price up to the nearest whole-ish number, simply because I like things even like that. The book exists solely to get the good word of Firefly out to the masses, nothing more. Additionally, if you have any suggestions after reading the book, please, let me know. I have been toying with the idea of going back and adding some more stuff, and that would only serve as an additional incentive.

Keep flyin'!