History Series / Firefly

* The Beforetimes: People in the 'verse often have fond memories of EarthThatWas, back when things like fruit and other real food was readily available.

* SeeNoEvilHearNoEvil: At the end of "[[Recap/FireflyE04Shindig]]", Mal and Inara are sitting on the edge of the gangway over the main cargo area, seemingly alone. It is only when the camera shot changes to a view of the whole deck, that we see the cargo of cows, who are audibly mooing.

* SeeNoEvilHearNoEvil: At the end of "Shindig", Mal and Inara are sitting on the edge of the gangway over the main cargo area, seemingly alone. It is only when the camera shot changes to a view of the whole deck, that we see the cargo of cows, who are audibly mooing.

* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: Wash's toys which he is seen playing with in the pilot.
** Also, in the flashback in 'Safe,' young River (while playing) claims they've been cut off from their platoon because the Independents were using dinosaurs.

* SpaceCossacks: "Take me out to the black, tell 'em I ain't comin' back..."

[[http://www.hulu.com/firefly/ Hulu]] has all 14 episodes of the series available for streaming. (NOTE: [[NoExportForYou Does not play outside of the US]].) It is also all up for instant stream on Disney+, Amazon Prime (if you buy the series), and Hulu Plus. Starting March 6th 2011, the show also began playing, in the correct order, on the Science Channel and in glorious HD. This page has a [[{{Recap/Firefly}} recap page here]].

''Firefly'''s life story is an interesting one: despite its early cancellation, it became a runaway cult hit DVD series spawning media including a feature film titled ''Film/{{Serenity}}'' and various comics and books. A full list of media can be found on the [[Franchise/{{Firefly}} Franchise page]].

[[caption-width-right:350:(from left) [[BoisterousBruiser Jayne]], [[WrenchWench Kaylee]], [[BadassPreacher Book]], [[TheMedic Simon]], [[HighClassCallGirl Inara]], [[TheCaptain Mal]], [[TheLancer Zoe]], [[AcePilot Wash]], and [[PsychicPowers River]]. Inside her boots: [[DoesNotLikeShoes River's feet]]. In the background: ''[[CoolStarship Serenity]]''.]]

* SpaceFighter: The official term is ASREV[[note]]short for ''A''lliance ''S''hort ''R''ange ''E''nforcement ''V''essel[[/note]], but everyone calls them "gunships". [[AllThereInTheManual According to the RPG sourcebook]], they're atypical for this trope in that instead of being fighter jet-sized, they're roughly the same size as regional passenger jet (83 feet long). They carry a crew of up to four and often double as police squad cars [-[[RecycledInSpace IN SPACE!]]-]

* VengefulWidow: Maude Reynolds, Mal's mom. She got mad at the Alliance stealing stuff from her, then her husband died and her ranch was burned. She's intent on sticking it to the Alliance whether Mal joins her or not.

* FourTemperamentEnsemble:
** Sanguine: Wash and Kaylee.
** Choleric: Mal and Jayne. They are basically the same person except Mal joined the armed forces and learned to discipline his temper. Jayne has alwasy been an independent contractor with little discipline or regard for teamwork.
** Melancholic: Simon and River (before the brain experiments).
** Phlegmatic: Book and Inara. While each chose a very different path in life they are both remarkably similar. Showcased in the pilot episode where they have a quiet bonding moment.
** Eclectic: River after the brain experiments.

* GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex: From "Shindig":
-->'''Wash:''' I like our party better. The dress code is easier, and I know all the steps!
-->'''Zoe:''' ''[contented sigh]'' I'd say you do at that.

* TheGovernment: Alliance.

* LineOfSightAlias: A variation occurs in ''What Makes Us Mighty'', when Mal has to provide a name for River on short notice and ends up calling her "Ocean".

** Subtle version in "Heart of Gold". Mal and Inara dress up and pretend to be a couple to go stake out the villain of the week together at a theater. No big deal is made of this. Mal agrees to help a friend of Inara fight against the villain, one thing leads to another, [[CryCute Inara]] [[LoveHurts finds out]].

* HackerCave: Mister Universe's home in the movie.

* HappilyMarried: Zoe and Wash.

* HearingVoices: River.
* HelplessWithLaughter: In "Trash", everyone has a different reaction to Mal strutting onto Serenity naked. Wash's is to laugh so hard he can't talk. It may be {{Corpsing}} because Nathan Fillon was wearing a small frontal coverlet with Joss Whedon's face on it, but not confirmed.

* UsedFuture: Justified.

* VengefulWidow: Maude Reynolds, Mal’s mom. She got mad at the Alliance stealing stuff from her, then her husband died and her ranch was burned. She’s intent on sticking it to the Alliance whether Mal joins her or not.

* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Badger gives Mal a villainous one when he backs out of a deal and leaves Mal holding the bag.
-->"What were you in the war, eh? That big war you failed to win. You were a sergeant, yeah? Balls and Bayonets Brigade. [[PunctuatedForEmphasis Big. Tough. Veteran.]] Now you got yourself a ship and you're a captain. Only I think you're still a sergeant, see? Still a soldier. Man of honor in a den of thieves. Well this is ''my gorram den,'' and I don't like the way you look down on me. I'm above you. ''Better than.'' Businessman, see? Roots in the community. You're just a scavenger."

** For extra brutality, Niska tortures Mal to death, [[UpToEleven then resuscitates him so he can torture him to death a second time.]]

* NothingIsScarier: Holy shit yes the Reavers. This is taken UpToEleven in "Bushwhacked" which relies explicitly on the horror of the aftermath of a Reaver-attack.

* MoodWhiplash: In the pilot. "He's psychotic!"

* NiceHat: These are very popular in the show.
** Jayne gets several of these, lampshaded both by the characters in story and the production team in the commentary. The most notable one is the hat he gets in "The Message":
-->'''Wash''': A man walks down the street in that hat, [[StealthInsult people know he's not afraid of anything]].
** And Badger's "very fine hat".
** Also inverted with Two-Fry in the pilot, though he does get the comment from Mal -- which was Jayne's cue to blow his brains out. Though it ''was'' a nice hat.
** Mal also gets one as part of his disguise at the beginning of "Our Mrs. Reynolds":
-->'''Mal:''' I swear by my pretty floral bonnet I will end you.
** In the commentary, Joss mentions that it's almost entirely bad guys who wear hats.

* StealthInsult: Wash, on describing Jayne with his hat on in "The Message": "A man walks down the street in [[NiceHat that hat]]..."

* IllGirl: River, of course. And as revealed in "The Message", Jayne faithfully sends money home to treat his ill brother Mattie's damp lung disease. [[spoiler: Also, [[WordOfGod Inara]].]]

* PlayingWithATrope
* PlayingWithSyringes: River at the academy.

* ItOnlyWorksOnce: At the end of ''Life Signs'', [[spoiler:Simon has been provided with a small sample of Doctor Esau Weng's medical nanites, but there's so little of them that he knows he'll only be able to cure Inara of her illness with them and that would exhaust everything they have. Even then, he had to spend the better part of a week working with River in a highly advanced medical laboratory to assure himself that they were programmed correctly to treat Inara's illness]].

''Firefly'' is a ScienceFiction SpaceWestern that ran on the Creator/{{FOX}} Network in the 2002-03 season. It was canceled after 14 episodes were produced, three of which not airing until after the show's cancellation. Its quick cancellation helped give rise to TheFireflyEffect. A DVD box set was released in December 2003 and has sold briskly ever since.

* AdultFear:
** The series posits the very, very real fear that your children could be targeted by a variety of threats, including rapist pirates and the government - which also brings up hefty fears of government repression and regulation.
** There's the fact that the Tam siblings are forced to become outlaws because their own parents would turn them back to the Alliance, despite the clear evidence that the Academy was doing horrible things to River. This plays off of the fear of child abuse and children being unable to rely on their parents for sufficient protection.
** River had been recruited by a ''prestigious school'' because she was ''gifted''. Why? So she could be abused, tortured, and experimented on. It gets worse... she was regularly sending back perfectly innocent and happy letters in her own handwriting so all this happens ''without you ever suspecting a thing''.