Memory Ngulube joined Screen Rant in April 2024 as part of the Movies and TV team. Since then, she has written for the Perennials and Streaming team, covering a wide range of topics from new releases to old movies and TV shows. Memory is currently a Classic TV writer.
Before joining Screen Rant, Memory was a freelance copywriter who specialized in email marketing and social media management. While she enjoyed her job, her true passion was always movies and TV.
When she isn’t writing for Screen Rant, Memory can be found reading, baking (which is one of her passions), or watching her favorite K-drama.
Nathan Fillion has starred in several memorable television shows throughout his career, but few have developed the same cult following as Firefly. The short-lived space Western may have lasted only one season, but it’s become one of the most beloved canceled sci-fi shows in television history. However, Firefly isn’t the only science fiction series in Fillion’s career to have inspired viewers, and its Rotten Tomatoes scores reveal an interesting contrast with another one-season show the beloved actor recently starred in.
Airing earlier this year, HBO and DC’s Lanterns was one of 2026’s most anticipated TV shows. While Firefly earned a respectable critics’ score and an extraordinary audience rating, Lanterns has attracted stronger critical approval, despite a more divided response from viewers. The two shows’ contrasting Rotten Tomatoes scores prove once again that critics and audiences do not always agree on what makes science fiction television compelling. For Fillion, whose association with Firefly remains a defining part of his television legacy, the comparison also offers a reminder of how differently these kinds of shows can be received, even within the same genre.
How Lanterns’ Rotten Tomatoes Scores Compare To Firefly’s
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Lanterns and Firefly are both critical and audience successes in their own way. At first glance, the HBO superhero sci-fi series seems to have the upper hand, boasting a near-perfect 91% Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score. However, the audience’s Popcorn Meter score shows a painfully obvious discrepancy. Viewers had a completely different opinion about how good Lanterns was, awarding the show a middling 67% approval rating.
Firefly, on the other hand, has a respectable though not overly enthusiastic 77% critics’ score. Though the show’s critical rating isn’t bad by any means, it pales in comparison to Nathan Fillion’s latest superhero series. The 2002 space opera’s audience rating tells a different story, though. Since its abrupt cancellation in 2003, Firefly has become a bona fide cult hit, which is why it boasts an impressive 96% Rotten Tomatoes audience score.
Rotten Tomatoes scores provide an overview of how reviewers and general audiences feel about a movie or TV show. However, these scores still merely reflect people’s personal opinions, professional or not. Critics favor Lanterns, but viewers overwhelmingly favor Firefly. The former has the stronger professional review score, while the latter has cultivated the more passionate and enduring audience response. These numbers reveal two different kinds of success for TV shows.
Why Firefly & Lanterns Both Have Split Opinions
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With the high praise Lanterns has received from critics, it’s only natural to assume most audiences would feel the same way. However, that hasn’t been the case, given the 24-percentage-point difference between the show’s audience and critics’ scores. One of the biggest reasons Lanterns has divided viewers is that it takes a grounded approach to a property known for its cosmic imagination.
For critics, this restraint is part of the show’s appeal. The emphasis on character development, strong performances, and mystery gives the series an identity beyond the familiar superhero formula. Viewers who are not particularly interested in comic books can still appreciate the human drama at its center.
However, some Green Lantern fans understandably wanted something different. The mythology offers enormous possibilities that the show barely explored. When a series based on such an expansive universe spends much of its time on Earth, some viewers may feel that it neglects the very elements that make Green Lantern special.
Firefly has a particular advantage over Lanterns. It originally premiered over two decades ago. The genre-blending that proved to be too bold for network TV then is why it’s still so beloved now, so much so that Fillion and Co. are working on an animated revival. However, the blend of Western conventions and futuristic science fiction can also feel jarring at first.
Reviewers expecting the elaborate technological concepts of Star Trek or Battlestar Galactica may have found the show’s relatively small-scale adventures underwhelming. In the end, critics and audiences tend to value different things. One side might appreciate Lanterns‘ nuance with its characters, while Firefly fans love it for its fun dynamics and entertainment value.
Lanterns season 1 is streaming on HBO Max. Firefly is available to watch on Prime Video and Hulu.
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Follow
Followed
TV-14
Drama
Adventure
Science Fiction
8/10
2289.6/10
Release Date
2002 – 2003-00-00
Network
FOX
Showrunner
Directors
Allan Kroeker, David Solomon, James A. Contner, Marita Grabiak, Michael Grossman, Tim Minear, Vern Gillum
Writers
Cheryl Cain, Drew Z. Greenberg, Jane Espenson
Cast
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Mal Reynolds
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Zoë Washburne
Firefly is a sci-fi TV series set in the year 2517 and centered on the ragtag crew of the spaceship Serenity. As humanity spreads out a new star system, Captain Malcolm Reynolds and his crew navigates conflicts and alliances while pursuing their own interests across lawless territories.Main Genre
Sci-Fi
Creator(s)
Executive Producer(s)
Joss Whedon, Tim Minear
Producers
Ben Edlund, Gareth Davies
Seasons
1
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1 star
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Follow
Followed
TV-MA
Drama
Mystery
Action
Adventure
Science Fiction
898.8/10
Release Date
August 16, 2026
Network
HBO
Cast
-
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Kyle Chandler
Hal Jordan
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Aaron Pierre
John Stewart
Lanterns is a 2026 DC superhero detective series centered on veteran Green Lantern Hal Jordan and new recruit John Stewart. The two intergalactic peacekeepers investigate a murder in Nebraska, drawing them into a dark Earth-based mystery with deeper implications for both men.Showrunner
Chris Mundy
Directors
Alik Sakharov, James Hawes, Stephen Williams, Geeta Patel
Writers
Damon Lindelof, Chris Mundy, Tom King, Vanessa Baden Kelly, Justin Britt-Gibson, Breannah Gibson
Main Genre
Sci-Fi
Creator(s)
Tom King, Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof
Executive Producer(s)
Chris Mundy, James Gunn, James Hawes, Tom King, Damon Lindelof, Peter Safran, Ron Schmidt
Producers
Breannah Gibson, Kiegan Downs
Seasons
1
Expand
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Your Rating
Firefly is a sci-fi TV series set in the year 2517 and centered on the ragtag crew of the spaceship Serenity. As humanity spreads out a new star system, Captain Malcolm Reynolds and his crew navigates conflicts and alliances while pursuing their own interests across lawless territories.
Your Rating
Lanterns is a 2026 DC superhero detective series centered on veteran Green Lantern Hal Jordan and new recruit John Stewart. The two intergalactic peacekeepers investigate a murder in Nebraska, drawing them into a dark Earth-based mystery with deeper implications for both men.
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