My left hand and both feet feel as though someone has drawn a razor across them, going from between my two middle fingers (or toes) down to the heel. The pain comes and goes, but at midday, I was hobbling and my left hand was a claw.

The handful of episodes on the Firefly: The Complete Series DVDs range from the merely enjoyable to the great, but Joss Whedon’s Firefly is somewhat frustrating as a “complete series” because he wasn’t given time to complete it, or even to put a satisfactory ending on the show’s television incarnation.

Mysteries abound after the final episode, with the secrets of many of the characters frustratingly only hinted at, at best.

That said, the series is one of the strongest science fiction television series to date and marks a maturation of Joss Whedon’s craft — many of the same archetypes from his Buffyverse appear here, but in more complex and satisfying form. Well worth seeing for any science fiction fan, particularly those who prefer their starships a little more Millennium Falcon and a little less Enterprise.

Strongly recommended.