Serenity Found

by Jane Espenson

  The similarity under pressure, however, was most obvious in the episodes “War Stories” and “Objects in Space.” In “War Stories,” Mal never lost his sarcastic edge while being tortured by Niska. He looked for and found his opening to strike back at his captors, and he didn’t let himself stop fighting until the fight was over. In “Objects in Space,” Simon reacted in much the same way when he was taken captive by bounty hunter Jubal Early. He kept his sass thoroughly intact, no matter how threatened he was, waited for his opportunity, and then tried to take on an armed, armored man nearly twice his size while he was unarmed, barefoot, and in his pajamas-and then kept trying to fight even after he was shot, because he thought he was all that stood between Early and his sister.

  You could probably swap these characters in these situations and get almost identical results. Simon being tortured by Niska might have made different snarky wisecracks, but he would have kept up the sarcasm until the very end-and as a doctor he might have been even more creative about the way he turned the torture implements on his torturer. Likewise, Mal, put in Simon’s situation with Early, would have been just as sarcastic, defiant, calculating, and reckless, though he probably wouldn’t have used the word “incorporeally” in his taunts.

  Although Simon and Mal had very different upbringings, there is one major element in their backgrounds that they have in common. They’ve each faced their own “Serenity Valley” of sorts, a time when they were disappointed and betrayed by something or someone they believed in, and when they found out that they really were all alone in the universe.

  Mal had the literal Serenity Valley, the battle where he and his forces were left without support to face the enemy on their own. According to a deleted scene from the episode “Serenity,” the soldiers were left in that hellhole without supplies or help while the leaders negotiated a settlement. It was in Serenity Valley that Mal lost his faith in God, when he learned that prayers aren’t answered, and his faith in his cause, when he learned that his loyalty wasn’t returned by the people to whom he gave it, those who left him and his people to die in the aftermath of battle. He was left believing in nothing but himself and Zoe, with no greater cause than just getting by.

  We saw Simon’s metaphoric Serenity Valley in flashbacks during the episode “Safe,” when he learned that the parents who had seemed supportive of him wouldn’t be there when he really needed them. They wouldn’t believe him when he was worried about River, and they didn’t support the actions he took to help her. His father’s declaration that if he got in trouble again, he would be on his own, his father would not come for him again, was for Simon the equivalent of the moment when Mal learned that there would be no air support at Serenity Valley. Someone he believed in and counted on had let him down, bringing everything else he believed in into question. The fact that it was the government Simon had previously supported that had harmed River was yet another betrayal.

  Both Mal and Simon even responded to their own Serenity Valley experiences in a similar way, by escaping society and heading for the blackness of space-the only place where they could have any semblance of freedom. We don’t know the whole story of how Mal went from the immediate aftermath of Serenity Valley to purchasing Serenity, but he makes it clear that he wants no part of the government’s control over his life, and he took the person who mattered most to him at the time-Zoe-with him. Simon’s escape was somewhat less than voluntary, as he had government agents chasing him, but he, too, wanted to get away from government control and took the most important person in his life-River-with him. And of course, both of them ultimately ended up in the same place, on board Serenity, and they both found a new kind of home and family there.

  FROM “SERENITY” TO SERENITY

  So, is Mal the hero, or is Simon-or is there even a distinction? In a sense, these aren’t two separate characters but rather different reflections on the same character, which allows us to see the hero in different phases of his life and on different parts of his journey. The two of them represent the range of possibilities for each other’s futures. Depending on what happens to them, how they react to events, and the choices they make, each could end up very much like the other.

  The comparison between the two characters and their journey as the two heroes of the saga is most obvious between the episode “Serenity,” which begins the story, and the movie Serenity, which completes the story arc (for now, we can only hope). These two “episodes” taken together present a complete mythic hero’s journey for these two characters.

  The two characters were constantly depicted as reflections of each other throughout the episode “Serenity.” When Simon was first introduced, there was a long shot of him and Mal, facing each other across the cargo bay ramp. They stood on either end of the screen, framed as though they were looking into a mirror at each other, establishing the sense of comparison and contrast. At that point, Mal was a man without any mission greater than finding a customer for the cargo they were carrying, and he believed in nothing other than his ship and his crew. Simon was the one with a capital-M Mission, the one that would affect the rest of the story and change everyone’s lives. He was still idealistic enough to believe that good and right would ultimately win-enough so that when he was later caught by the federal marshal he felt that if he could just explain what had really happened, if the marshal could only understand why he’d taken River, everything would be okay. Even though he’d lost absolutely everything, he was still able to believe strongly enough in his love for his sister to get them both through the crisis and to hope that love would influence others.

  In a structural sense, the moment when Simon boarded Serenity with River in the cryosleep chamber was when the story really began for the crew of Serenity, because it was the moment of change-yet another reason why FOX should have shown this episode first during the series’s original run. Simon’s story had already begun off-screen, when he learned River was in danger and accepted the responsibility of saving her.

  Plot-wise, Mal and Simon have similar story arcs in the episode. Mal brought a box on board the ship and kept the secret of what was really in it (the marked goods) from his crew. He tried a dangerous plan (dealing with Patience) because he was desperate to keep flying. He ended up in a gunpoint standoff that was resolved in part by someone outside the standoff (Jayne) intervening. Likewise, Simon brought a box on board the ship and kept the secret of what was really in it from the crew. He tried a dangerous plan (essentially holding Kaylee hostage) because he was desperate to keep running. He ended up in a gunpoint standoff that was resolved by someone outside the standoff (Mal) intervening.

  When Mal became aware of the change Simon had brought to his ship, he wasn’t welcoming of it. He decked Simon in the cargo bay as a suspected spy; planned to space him or, if things went well, strand him on an inhospitable planet, even after learning Simon’s true story; and decked him again when Simon remained defiant. As much as he hated the government, Mal wanted no part of Simon’s mission, and he didn’t want it associated with his ship. But then Mal had a change of heart after seeing Simon holding the federal agent at gunpoint, and instead of putting him and his sister off the ship, Mal offered Simon a job.

  Mal knew what he was getting into at that point. He knew he was taking on fugitives, that by doing so he was in effect taking on Simon’s mission of keeping his sister safe, which also meant that he was putting himself in more active opposition of the Alliance government. He knew that he was forever changing life for his crew. As the two men discussed the specifics of the job offer and what it meant for them, again they were framed as though they were looking into a mirror, on either side of the screen in nearly identical poses. The story question that seemed to be raised in this moment was how the decision would change them both, since they both had similar potential. Would Simon change to be more like Mal as he faced life on the fringes of society, becoming hard and bitter from having his ideals shattered? Or would Simon’s influence revive Mal’s long-lost idealism, his
ability to believe in something greater than his immediate surroundings, to the point where he would be willing to take action to right a wrong instead of just keeping his head down and staying out of trouble?

  The other story question raised in this moment is a central, unspoken conflict that would go on to drive much of the series and provide the core emotional conflict in the movie. We knew that the things these two believed in the most strongly were bound to be mutually exclusive at some point. Mal wanted to protect his ship and crew and stay out of major trouble, as much as possible (minor trouble is just a bit of fun). Simon wanted to protect River at all costs. As long as protecting the crew was the same as protecting River, they would be fine. But we knew that if there was ever a situation in which protecting River meant putting the crew at risk, or protecting the crew meant putting River at risk, well, there were two very strong-willed, determined, and occasionally reckless men who would be at odds. Mal’s promise to Simon in “Serenity” that if he ever shot Simon, “you’ll be awake, you’ll be facing me, and you’ll be armed,” had the ring of foreshadowing to it (though the premature cancellation of the series that required the shortening of the major arcs meant we never got to see that foreshadowed moment-or we haven’t yet). A couple of times during the run of the series situations arose that skirted such an opposition between River’s safety and the crew’s, but it never came to all-out war between Simon and Mal.

  Which brings us to Serenity the movie. As we pick up with the crew after a gap of several months, the questions raised at the end of the pilot episode seem to be answered. Simon has become like the Mal of the series-harder, angrier, more confident, more defiant. He’s also become emotionally closed off to everyone but River, barely even looking at Kaylee, with whom things had been looking up in the final episode of the series. We don’t have much indication of what happened to Simon in the timeframe between the series and the movie, but whatever it was stripped away most of Simon’s softness, youth, and vulnerability. As the ultimate sign of his transformation, this time he’s the one to hit Mal with a sucker punch in the cargo bay. Because they seem to have reached an impasse in which, in Simon’s opinion, Mal’s view of what’s good for the ship and crew isn’t in line with what’s good for River, Simon plans to leave the ship. He’s ready to stand on his own.

  But it also seems that some of Simon has rubbed off on Mal. He may act colder and harder-edged, but when River collapses after the fight in the Maidenhead, Mal’s instinct is to bring her and Simon back on board, and he can’t even explain why. She’s proved that she isn’t helpless at all, but Mal seems to sense that this actually puts her and her brother in even more danger, not least because Simon is ill-equipped to handle a semi-psychotic fighting machine armed only with a safety word. In making the decision to bring River back on board and keep her on board even though he knows that the Alliance is actively seeking her, Mal takes on Simon’s original mission to a degree he never had before, and this time willingly instead of by chance. And in doing so, he picks up again with the same battle he was fighting in the first scene of the pilot, openly rebelling against the Alliance.

  By the midpoint of the movie, Mal has totally taken over what once was Simon’s mission. Mal is the one meeting with the Operative, coming up with the plans, and making the decisions. In doing this, he frees Simon to lay down his burdens and focus on just being a big brother. Keeping River out of Alliance hands isn’t solely his responsibility anymore. Even though the whole situation is about his sister and himself, Simon is just along for the ride. The Operative wants River and Simon; they are his quarry, and he has no quarrel with Mal or Serenity. But Mal puts himself in the position of intermediary. Simon and River never meet the Operative face-to-face during the entire film. In fact, at the film’s climax, Mal goes on alone to complete the mission that will ultimately make River safe from the Alliance.

  Although Mal is unquestionably the hero of the movie, Simon is still a co-hero of the saga, and he gets the proper ending to his hero’s journey. One of the final stages of a mythic hero’s journey is a symbolic death and resurrection, a moment when all seems lost and the hero is as good as dead, before he comes back, reborn, a new man. Both Mal and Simon go through this phase in the movie.

  Mal is nearly defeated by the Operative during the final battle. He’s run through with a sword, and only an old war wound saves him from paralysis that would have ended the fight. He comes back from what appears to be certain death, and he returns from completing the mission a changed man. After what he’s gone through, he’s learned to believe again in something greater than himself. He’s taken on the kind of cause he’d given up on and, as his final scene with Inara demonstrates, he’s begun allowing himself to open up more emotionally.

  Simon also faces death in the climactic battle, when he is shot and gravely wounded. As he lies dying, he and River change roles. He lets go of his personal mission to protect her, as she comes into her own and becomes the protector. His letting go during this symbolic death means that he returns from his injury a changed man. He’s reborn as someone who is open to love, who allows himself to live his own life, to do something for himself-something he’d forgotten how to do in his preoccupation with River’s safety. His mission is complete and he has the chance to enjoy his reward: being able to start a relationship with Kaylee.

  In the end, Mal and Simon have each learned, changed, and grown from the experiences they’ve had because of the other. If Simon had never boarded Serenity, Mal might never have learned to believe again. He might never have opened himself to a cause greater than himself. If Simon had never boarded Serenity, he might never have learned to be part of a family again, to trust in those around him and know that they trusted him, too.

  The story, such as it is, is mythically complete. Our heroes have taken on their mission, faced death, and returned as new men. But we can always hope that there’s another mission out there, some other wrong that needs to be set right, some other learning experience. The way these two characters reflect, contradict, complement, and reinforce each other opens the door to a variety of future storylines. Their different backgrounds mean that they’re bound to clash, while their similarities could mean that they don’t provide much in the way of checks or balances. If they ever agreed fully on something and went after it together, their combined stubbornness, persistence, and recklessness could be a force to be reckoned with-or a disaster in the making. And wouldn’t that be fun to watch?

  SHANNA SWENDSON became a devoted Browncoat a few minutes into the first airing of “The Train Job” and still hasn’t given up. Although her comic fantasy novel Enchanted, Inc., was published by Ballantine Books in 2005, the highlight of her year was attending the Hollywood premiere of Serenity (although she was too shy to actually talk to anyone involved in the movie). In between watching Firefly DVDs, discussing the series with anyone who’ll listen, and meeting up with other Browncoats, she’s written two more novels, Once Upon Stilettos and Damsel Under Stress, as well as contributing to the Smart Pop books Flirting with Pride and Prejudice, Welcome to Wisteria Lane, So Say We All, and Perfectly Plum. Visit her Web site at www.shannaswendson.com.

  Of all the characters of the Firefly universe, Book was almost certainly the one we got to know least well. Greene suggests, aptly, that “Book reflected Mal that was, but is no more: Mal as believer.” The analysis goes beyond that, into a look at what belief-at what faith-typically means in a Jossian world. It also presents a very compelling political reading of the Firefly world. Whether or not you feel, as Greene does, that something important was neglected when Book died, we can all agree that if the show had been allowed a longer run, there was much more we would all have liked to have known about the good shepherd.

  The Good Book

  ERIC GREENE

  “I wish they hadn’t killed you in Serenity,” I earnestly protested to Ron Glass at a recent screening of Otto Preminger’s celebrated yet lamentable Porgy and Bess. He smiled a smile that could best be des
cribed as, well, serene, and told me how nice everyone on the production had been, what good people they were. And I don’t doubt it. I didn’t think it was malice that led to Shepherd Book’s demise. But I wish he had lived.

  Book was an endless font of paradox that drew me in, made me want to know more. We all have our share of complexity, of course, but sometimes you encounter people whose inner worlds seem so rich that you could spend a lifetime delving into them and never get bored. That was Book. Perhaps it was the juxtaposition of a man of faith running with a gang of criminals, Friar Tuck in outer space. Maybe it was his discomforting familiarity with secret military operations and the tantalizing suggestions of a shameful hidden past as an Alliance agent/interrogator/torturer (“I don’t give a hump if you’re innocent or not so where does that put you?”-how chilling is that in these Abu Ghraib/Guantanamo days?). Or the fact that, as Joss Whedon says on the DVD commentary for Firefly’s pilot, Book was “a man of peace, not at peace.” It could simply have been the elegance and beauty Ron Glass brought to the character. But definitely part of the fascination was Book’s relationship to Mal.

  All of Serenity’s denizens were defined in large measure by their relation to Malcolm Reynolds. One of the remarkable things about Firefly’s very large ensemble is how vividly the characters were drawn, both by the writers and by the actors. There is an impressive consistency to how they behave, react, and speak which might not seem very difficult with only a few characters, but poses a challenge with a large cast sharing limited screen time. Often TV characters exist to convey information or advance a plot and are therefore largely interchangeable. On Star Trek, for instance, Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and to a degree Scotty, were distinct individuals but, outside of job-specific lines like “hailing frequencies open,” much of what was said by Sulu or Chekhov or Uhura could have been said by any of them. Reading a line of dialogue from Star Trek: The Next Generation, one would be hard pressed to guess if it had been written for La Forge or Riker, O’Brien or Crusher.