The Rhetoric of Unpopular and Underground Media Main Site: Let's try this again

You may have noticed (or you were paying attention in class) that the assignment for Friday changed. I decided that I wanted to give you more time to explore sci-fi and Firefly before diving into some deeper issues about representation.

First off, before Monday, you need to watch more Firefly. Consider this a reading assignment: think critically, take notes, and expect a quiz in class. You will need to:
-Finish the first episode, called "Serenity"
-Watch the second episode, called "The Train Job"
-Watch the sixth episode, called "Our Mrs Reynolds"

This is another two-parter for the blog.

For Friday, I'd like you to think about your Wednesday reading, the episode in class and (if you've gotten ahead), the other episodes assigned to you. I'd like you to make an argument for what kind of genre Firefly belongs in. As you can tell from what we talked about in class, the episode itself and the reading, this is going to be nigh impossible. So focus on what the role of genre is and how Firefly does (or doesn't) fit into that. What I mean is: What does "sci-fi" do and mean? The "western"? European and American based ideas of "Asian" or "Chinese" culture? (I'm putting those in air quotes because the representation in Firefly--and elsewhere--gets conflated and un-authenticated quite a bit.) You could even ask yourself about mainstream cable television as a genre, since this did originally air on Fox. By answering those questions, you might then ask yourself, what does Firefly do and is that is more or less similar to one of these genres?

Next, I'd like you to take a look at these Firefly memes, which I've collected in the last few weeks or so. Why do you think Firefly created--and still holds sway over--such a large, dedicated fan base?

Remember your PRIORS guidelines and to keep your blog post around 500 words.