Firefly came before, and off top of my head, was the first show to incorporate cutting edge "zoom" techniques in its space/cgi sequences, which BSG later became very well known for. u can also see "Serenity" flying overhead in the BSG mini-series pilot (the scene where Roslyn is at the docs office getting her diagnosis). most fans agree it was an homage to Firefly.

in terms of "gritty sci fi", id say Firefly kicked that trend off too. again predating BSG. and SGU, which i personally dug just on how wide a scope it was setting for itself, and was totally prepared for it to go at least 5 seasons. but it did become a slog at one point. some iffy acting didnt help. n the fan backlash from SG1's predominantly PG fanbase didnt help. a cool show but nowhere near BSG or Fireflys quality.

im a huge fan of both shows (FF+BSG), they got plenty of similarities but enuf differences too. for one had the hand of Joss, which meant you were gonna get the crazy dramatic moments but with heapings of sharp humour. characters are always front n center in a Jossverse, which given enuf TIME (aka more than a single season, half of which didnt even air) flesh out gloriously til they're almost real ppl living real lives. all the central and peripheral characters were pretty memorable and hecka likeable (Badger, YoSaphBridge, Early). Mal Reynolds in particular is often compared to Indy, and has won more than a few polls for "best sci fi captain" or something along those lines.

...actually im not quite sure how to explain it to someone whos already made up their mind? i also dont understand how u can laud BSG but see no value in Firefly?

let me keep it simple: if the opening scenes of Wash playing with his dinosaurs don't tickle ur fancy? its not for u. u may not have a sense of humour or a sense of adventure or fun.

BSG was HEAVY television. i redid the entire series with wifey pretty reecntly and that 4th season packed way more of a wallop than the first time. makes a lot more sense (in that ye it got religiousy near the end, but it was ALWAYS religiousy (i made up a word) from the beginning). it made a point to deal with on-the-nose topics but in its space-opera format. it was amazingly cerebral, had outstanding sfx, and characters you could love AND hate simultaneously depending on the episode. tonally, a completely different show to Firefly. the comparisons pretty much end at "its in space, its got wicked sfx, the characters rock".

V.