Take Me Out To The Black...

I SAW SERENITY LAST NIGHT!!!

It was every bit as great as I hoped, and BETTER!!!

One of the things I dig about Joss Whedon's storytelling is that he's not afraid to do things that enhance the drama of the story, even if he risks alienating some of the fair-weather fans!!!

He gets that if you want people to feel like they've just experienced something, you have to charge them an emotional toll. You know?

That's part of what I like about the horror genre: There are no guarantees. Like, in an action movie you KNOW that no matter how banged-up the heroes might get, they're all going to come out just fine. And with that little bit of extra security -- that sense that "Oh, I dig this character, so she's going to survive whatever gunplay or fireworks she endures" takes away from the emotional investment. It allows you to watch without getting too tense.

But in horror movies you know that EVERY character might die! You're INVESTED in what's going on on-screen... Well, if the characters are well-written...

And Joss WRITES WELL!!!

And as an experiment, Traci agreed to come with me! She hasn't seen a single scene from the show FIREFLY, and when she saw the trailer for SERENITY she thought it was just another crap movie coming out.

So I asked her if she'd go with me and give me an articulate description of her experience as a non-fan watching the flick.

And she did!!! She gave me a great deal of insight!!!

I'm dying for Tuesday, when Brian and I go see it!!! (My second time, his first.)

DUDE!!! SERENITY RULES!!! JOSS WHEDON RULES!!!

LIFE IS GOOD!!!