Attention Browncoats: Get ready to squee over this 10th anniversary poster

Fans of the cult TV series Firefly may not ever get their wish of having the show come back to the air, but they do have nostalgia! Geek swag purveyor Quantum Mechanix is currently offering up a 10th anniversary poster by graphic designer -- and Browncoat -- Jeff Halsey, who created the design after watching the series for the twelfth time:

"[Firefly] taps into the themes of freedom and creating a family that really resonate with me," says Jeff. "The show may have been short-lived, but the 'Verse will live on. I feel this poster is a reminder of that feeling and is a love letter to my favorite show."

September 20, 2002 marked the premiere of the "American space western" on Fox, which canceled the show after just 14 episodes. But fans have not let the show end up forgotten, as evidenced by their persistent presence on the internet. Look, Firefly was a groovy show, but if that had run for 10 years, do you think Joss Whedon would have made us The Avengers? Or Cabin in the Woods, for that matter? Okay, I'm sorry. That was rude of me.

The poster, which measures 27" by 40", is currently available for pre-order at Quantum Mechanix. Posters begin shipping September 20.

• [Reverend Loki]

  ” Look, Firefly was a groovy show, but if that had run for 10 years, do you think Joss Whedon would have made us The Avengers? Or Cabin in the Woods, for that matter?”

  I don’t know how well it would hold up after 10 years.  Firefly seemed like the show to me that demanded forward plot development – adventure of the week stuff was fine, but characters had to develop and change, you know?  I would, however, happily take two more seasons of Firefly, in exchange for two seasons of Dollhouse…  After that, the timeline can continue unchanged.

  “Okay, I’m sorry. That was rude of me.”

  We forgive you.

  • [jgs]

    For that matter, I’d trade The Avengers for another couple seasons of Firefly. But I can’t, so there it is.

  • [Brainspore]

    I agree with your assessment. Firefly was great but that ship would have run out of fuel a long time before it hit the 10 year mark. Even during the short run/feature film it had there were already some early warning signs of retreading past plots. (Oh no! River’s instability is upsetting/endangering the rest of the crew again! Could this be the time for her and/or Simon to part ways with the rest of the crew?)

    • [xzzy]

      The story as we have it available would have lasted at least 3 seasons before it got dull, I’d say. There was also enough villains revealed in those 14 shows to produce at least a season worth of “filler” if it was necessary.

      In that time I’d expect new plot elements woud have cropped up (a bunch of which showed up in the movie) that would let them pad out the series for a couple additional seasons if they wanted to.

      So yeah it probably didn’t have the legs of Friends or some other easy to digest sitcom, but it sure as heck had more than one season in it. 

      • [Brainspore]

        Three seasons sounds like a good run to me, especially if they planned out some story arcs with the goal of wrapping up the show in a finite number of episodes. I like shows where story and character development are valued over “let’s keep this thing going for as long as we can.” The best dramas on television are the ones where you don’t even know which main characters will still be alive by the end of the season.

  • [Jim Saul]

    Well, the thing about surprising character developments is that they are surprising. So it’s a pretty good assumption that we just scratched the surface of those characters.

    Whedon and the cluster of talent that have accrued to him are also particularly gifted at casting. I would have loved to see more of Jubal Early. So there are many worlds of potential story lines that were never touched.

    And what was with the Blue Sun?

    What if the crew of Serenity were just beginning their story? What if they grew from a desperate gang of outlaws to a juggernaught of history, as happened in Farscape?

    What if the worlds of the Alliance were just one tiny remote forgotten colony that is rediscovered by far more developed powers?

    What if intelligent aliens eventually made an appearance?

    I don’t think there would ever have been a shortage of ideas or possibilities.

    Plus, the actors certainly haven’t gotten harder to look at in the years since.

    • [dagfooyo]

      I agree that the series had sooo many places it could have gone.  But I’m really REALLY glad there weren’t any aliens in it.  I like to think Joss would’ve kept it that way.  To me, that was one of the most refreshing things about Firefly was that it had no aliens, and didn’t need any to be good.  Because basically every scifi show ever aired has had “aliens” that are basically people in makeup or at best people in suits.  Or, you know, CGI people.  I mean for god’s sake, there are things wayyy more alien right here on our ocean floor than nearly anything in SF.  Then again, maybe Joss would’ve gotten it right.

      • [Jim Saul]

        You’re right, that and no FTL really set the series on a different level than other space opera/fantasy.

        • [Clay Monts]

          Also, I want to know about Shepherd Book’s past. That dude had a really interesting back story that they never had a chance to explore. That and his and Inara’s spiritual conversations are what I feel most cheated out of by only getting the one season. 

• [SoItBegins]

  ~ You can’t take the sky from me ~

  Rest well, Firefly.

  • [WhyBother]

    Never thought about it until now, but about a third of the episodes are about breaking down or trying to land a job before they run out of fuel.

    So really, they’re in danger of losing the sky about 30% of the time, before anyone actually tries to take it….

    • [dmatos]

       Ah.  You can’t _take_ the sky from them, but they can still lose the sky due to mismanagement or bad luck.

      • [Reverend Loki]

         Which I suppose doesn’t preclude Bain Capital from purchasing the operation, looting all of said operation’s remaining quantity of sky in the form of executive bonuses and payouts for Bain’s investors, and then spinning off the now-skyless operation to collapse on it’s own.  That technically qualifies as mismanagement.

    • [Antinous / Moderator]

      Never thought about it until now, but about a third of the episodes are about breaking down or trying to land a job before they run out of fuel.

      Only because Dr. Smith sold the deutronium for some food.  Wait….you’re not talking about Lost in Space?

• [Just Good Sense]

  ::checks…double-checks…URL in browser bar::

  Hmm. For a second there I thought I was on tor.com.

• [Jeff Halsey]

  Hey, I designed that! Love the Boing and couldn’t be more stoked to see my work posted here. Oh, and the answer to your rhetorical question is ‘yes’ :)

• [Spieguh]

   Nuts, shipping to AK is more expensive than the poster itself. So it goes.

  • [simmotommo]

    Try it to Australia. Still bought one though.

• [foobar]

  Well, now I feel old.

• [ewiebe]

  I’m likely going to regret this but here goes. Firefly was really just a TV show from a long time ago that was not good enough to merit this continued devotion. Really. What is it with Whedon?  He obviously pressed the right buttons for some (a small number ultimately) really determined people who probably need to broaden their horizons. Let’s move on and support new creative endeavours by lesser known creative folks. After having watched it all a couple of times now I just think it’s probably a good thing it didn’t go on too long. 

  • [Rindan]

    Let’s move on and support new creative endeavours by lesser known creative folks.

    Like who?  The reason why Whedon is worshiped on a geek alter is that he is one of the few people who manages to bring some love to us in a world of crime dramas, Jersey Shores, and repo truck reality TV.  I’m not saying that his talent is unsurpassed, but he is talented AND occasionally manages to scrape together a few bucks to execute on his ideas.  That puts him out well ahead of the pack.

    It has been 10 years.  In that 10 years, which non-Firefly live action space series was your favorite?  We got Battlestar Galatica (worst ending evah!) and maybe Dr. Who if you are flexible in your definitions.  That is pretty much it.

    The guy is worshiped because he manages to get his shows on (briefly) and they are good.  I am totally ready to build an alter to anyone else that can do the same.  I am a polytheist and can worship multiple gods without breaking a sweat.  They just need to give me a sign.

    • [ewiebe]

      OK I agree that Firefly was and is better than most of the dreck on TV. But cultish devotion doesn’t do anyone any good. As for who, I don’t know, but they must be out there.  Boing Boing seems a good place to start looking … 

      I don’t have a secret stash of better stuff, just the hope that other creative people can get some love too. 

  • [bardfinn]

    “… not good enough to merit this continued devotion.”

    Curse your sudden – but inevitable – betrayal!

  • [Susan Carley Oliver]

    not good enough to merit this continued devotion
    Why does my devotion have to correlate to your judgment? In my opinion Firefly actually is good enough.  Go figure!

    He obviously pressed the right buttons for some (a small number ultimately)
    Do you have numbers to back up your “small number” assessment? Because it looks like enough people liked what he accomplished in Firefly to greenlight an entire movie sequel, which helped him win the Avengers nod.  

  • [SamorituPleviak]

    Fandom is not a zero-sum game. The fact that I love Firefly does not preclude the possibility that I will encounter new things to love as well — there is no need to “move on”. And frankly, telling fans that they need to broaden their horizons is patronizing and insulting.

• [sypper kypper]

  The design is great, but the shipping to Sweden is ~40 USD= 2x the price of the poster.

  • [bluest_one]

     In this day and age, why can’t someone ship it digitally to a local printer, who prints it under license?

• [Scratcheee]

  If Firefly was still on, there’d be all kinds of arguments about when Firefly jumped the shark.

• [Kevin]

  Anyone catch the FAIL in the poster??

  True Geekdom…

  • [Mr_Mechant]

    The chinese characters mean Serenity, not Firefly.

• [Jonathan Dowland]

  If we had more Firefly, I’d wager we wouldn’t have had Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.

  • [Tynam]

    I liked Terminator.  But I’ll make that trade, cheerfully.

    (Also, not true – they’d have cast someone else.  Although probably not somebody as good.)

• [R_Young]

  Blasphemy.

  Simple bloody blasphemy.  You’re all gorram heretics in my sight.  Firefly should have lived into the eons and beyond.  We should be excited to have our children become old enough to watch it.  

  All this trash talk about what could have happened?  Lunacy, shared by children who’s inability to tolerate the pain they feel has forced them to denigrate the best show in history in order to ease the strain on their psyches.

  A fanatic I may be, but at least I haven’t destroyed my own Sky.

• [John Pen]

  Buffy & Angel lasted many. many years incontrovertibly showing  Whedon could’ve given it whatever it needed over however long a run.  Dollhouse was JW trying to make a sows ear far silkier then it had any right to be.  Adapting someone else’s idea the way he had to almost insured that result.  The Avengers was very slight & did not begin to show off his talent it’s the proverbial bicycle compared with the F16 Firefly represented.  Cabin in the woods is intriguing enough but again does not rise to the standard of his best work.  He & we need a TV passion project that is his from beginning to end.  We’re still waiting.

• [Cesar Manuel Jumpa]

  Cowboy Beebop rip-off. A good Cowboy Beebop rip-off to be fair.