Watching the Original Fox "Firefly" Broadcasts with Fellow Browncoats is Always a Mighty Fine Shindig
Watching the Original Fox Firefly Broadcasts with Fellow Browncoats is Always a Mighty Fine Shindig
As the cap’n, it’s been a real honor to host the shindigs our brigade has been holding nearly every Friday since September 20 to watch the original Fox broadcasts of the eleven Firefly episodes that aired back in the fall of 2002, complete with their commercials. It’s kinda crazy to think that last night’s episode (Shindig) marked the point where we are more than halfway through the season as folk originally saw it 22 years ago.
So far, my cat Rorschach and I have welcomed a dozen different Browncoats into our home for the watch parties, including some who were getting involved in our brigade’s activities for the first time. What is even more encouraging is that for the past two weeks— more than a month after we started having these shindigs— we’ve still seen new Browncoats join in along with some of our regular attendees.
It has been wonderful to get to know everyone a bit better and watch the show we all know and love in a way that makes it a more communal experience. I expected it would be fun to revisit all the vintage commercials, as well as the ad spots that Fox created for the show itself that failed so spectacularly to capture the tone of the story. What has been really shiny, though, is how a favorite moment in an episode I’ve watched dozens of times never fails to hit differently when I’m watching it with others who appreciate it as much as I do. I can honestly say these Friday-night watch parties have become something like a homing beacon in the work week for me. I just can't wait to get to the next one.
The enthusiasm and camaraderie have really been something special. I love seeing people show up in their Firefly-themed t-shirts and Jayne hats, and I appreciate all the snacks and drinks that folk have contributed over the first six weeks (even though we always have plenty available here already). It’s also been fun to see how my cat has been so friendly at these shindigs. I think he’s enjoying them almost as much as I am. The fact that Rorschach is willing to snuggle on the couch with members of our brigade whom he’s just met can only mean he’s tuned in to something we’ve all known for years— Browncoats are good folk.
We still have two watch parties this month (for Safe and Ariel) before we take the same extended break for Thanksgiving that Fox took just over two decades ago. Then they resume for the first three weeks in December (with War Stories, Objects in Space and the 2-part Serenity pilot episode), after which our little trip back in time will be at an end.
Maybe we’ll do it all again in six years, when the calendar lines up just right once more. But maybe we won’t. So, if you’ve been thinking of joining us one of these weeks, all I can say is stop dreamin’ and start drivin’! You can register for the remaining watch parties now at https://www.theriversandbridgesbrigade.com/watchparties. We’d love for you to join us. Rorschach and I will save a seat for you.
Keep flyin’,
Chris