After an exhaustive amount of research and skullsweat, QMx finally brings you the official Map of the ‘Verse! This gorgeous thing has been in production for months now and it’s finally here for you to goggle at. And goggle you will.
(Yes, I’m still catching up, but check out the end of this post for free and cool stuff).
Over two years in the making, the Map of the Verse measures 25 inches by 38 inches and is printed on both sides of a sheet of 65 lbs cover stock (believe me, we needed the space). It documents the names, positions, sizes, populations and other never-before-published details of the 215 terraformed planets and moons orbiting the five star systems that comprise The Verse of Joss Whedonโs Firefly and Serenity.
The Map of the Verse encompasses every bit of information about the Verse we could lay our hands on. It not only includes all the worlds from the show and movie, but also extended canon from licensed products and even a few from popular fan fiction. A team of researchers including folks from The Signal Podcast and other luminaries of the Browncoat community worked diligently on the science of The Verse, factoring in distances, orbits, masses, stellar classes and a lot of other astrophysical stuff that frankly made my head hurt. It was our goal that The Map of the Verse makes sense โ scientifically and in terms of story continuity โ and thanks to the help of many, many dedicated people, I think we were able to come pretty close to achieving that goal.
I was in the Brain Trust helping compile all this stuff, although I was pretty much useless when they started talking about planet masses and orbital mechanics (and there was a LOT of orbital mechanics discussions). Mostly, I helped compile names and then watched the smart people run with it. But they got input from just about anyone, official or unofficial, who ever speculated on Joss’ universe to make it as complete as anything could ever be.
And the stunning art by Serenity graphic designer Geoffrey Mandel makes it all work. He designed the maps for the movie (and they were considered during this as well) and he’s good at this stuff: he created the official and popular Star Trek Star Charts. The Map of the ‘Verse has been his dream project for quite a while, and it really shows in every loving detail.
The Map of the ‘Verse is available from QMx in two different formats: : a folding roadmap style ($26.95) and a print shipped rolled into a tube ($34.95). You can also buy the rolled version from TFAW.com for $31.45.
You can also download the new “The Verse in Numbers”, a white paper on the discovery, colonization and structure of The Verse. Free! (Use this link, the one at QMx is wrong at the moment). J. Chris Bourdier has accomplished the gargantuan task of pulling together everything ever said about the structure or history of the ‘Verse and compiled it into a 100+ page work. Really incredible.
shiny stuff..
now somebody make FF MMO already! we have more than enough content/fans 8)
Verse Map: the definition of “must-buy.”
Shiny, indeed. I look forward to pausing episodes just so I can establish my bearings.
Just a small question… Why is New Kasmir listed as a planet?! It was implicated in the series that it was a city (in War Stories, Zoe says something like, “we were in trenches OUTSIDE of New Kasmir…”).
Delighted – There are instances of capital cities sharing the name of their host planet (Ariel and Ariel City being one example). So in that case it’s likely they were on New Kasmir, and outside of New Kasmir. Hopefully, there wasn’t a “New Kasmir Road” in town, or citizens’ heads would explode.
Absolutely beautiful stuff. And The Verse In Numbers is a (forgive me) stellar piece of work. Thanks to the brain trust for sharing this! I have a quick couple of questions about something Andy Gore mentioned that we might learn: Where is the Blue Sun Corporation headquartered at? Did anyone ever come up with a date of incorporation for it?
Did the city name from Jane Espenson’s missing ‘Firefly’ scene end up making the list? Hearing her tell that fun story at Creation’s 2008 Serenity/Firefly con, it was a no-brainer to suggest trying to get it added.
Of course, my old brain has misfiled the name of said city, so I can’t refer to it properly. ๐
Hey there Miz – The Map of the Verse is literally the 30,000 km view of the Verse, and so doesn’t include city names. But if you were at the Creation con, you’ll know we have something else coming up that helps address this issue ๐