I just watched one of Mr. Whedon's (the Joss one's) work.

It had a flow that's peculiar. It didn't have the stereotypical multi-blocked scenes of comicbook-based shows, but it still had the feel of reading a comic book, moving from frame to frame in zig-zag or lazy-drifting fashion or even with an inline, overlaid frame (without a scene-within-a-scene layout on screen). Yet, it was also like a novel. When the page turned, you got a whole page of words to the story flowing without individual frames.

Detail wasn't wasted to the point of overwhelming or distracting. Detail was to excruciating levels only where it was needed. Music was an accent to a scene and not the scene, but it remained exceedingly important. Sublty was not missed, but it remained subtle. Reliance was more on the story and the actors than effects or props (and I mean actresses, too — the industry makes no such distinctions, and neither, do I here).

The best part: Nothing was forced upon you. It felt natural. Even the remarkable irony that was tossed back and forth between pro- and antagonists was believably appropriate. Suspension of disbelief was easy.

However, therein was the problem. It was obvious the rare occasion when an actor was unable to perform something or a scene was just impossible to maintain the unforced environment. The good news, though: All flaws were forgivable. It was like a small pebble was tossed into a pond, and then, it was forgotten as all the elements continued to stabilize the intended environment.

It was a work of great care and respect to the story and the audience.

So I'm left with the question: How much of it all was the story or the actors or the editing or the directing? I had no idea what to expect so expectation wasn't a factor in the equation this time (but one cannot deny the massive effect that expectation has).