Serenity : asianess in a not so asian show

Okay so after watching Serenity I am more impressed with the Firefly series. The movie brought with it more visible Asian aspects of the show, regardless of the fact that there is not one Asian person in the ENTIRE series. This Asianness is more represented in River Tam, who in my opinion was totally B.A. for demolishing what looked like an entire armada of reever cronies, set on devouring the flesh of her and her companions.

The anonymous agent of the Alliance also was particularly "Asian" in the sense that he believed in the purpose behind the Alliance, which is to bring unity and stability to its subjects, which is a very common Asian concept to sacrifice the liberties of one's own life for the good of the state.

Over all I was pleased with the way the movie took place, and for me it provided me with a sense of closure for the abrupt ending to the entire series.

My Sister's Keeper

Simon and River are two of the most interesting characters for me. In the opening scene of the film Serenity, we see that Simon has gone to extreme lengths to get back his little sister, he has stolen a uniform, clearly done some research, and excellently b.s’d his way into a top security area to steal back his sister.

Take a moment and remember the first time we saw Simon. Looking like your standard creepy thin-man, he had the Cillian Murphy-suave, mixed with a Michael C. Hall dementia, and my first thought was “Oh crap, another creepy-thin man bad guy I am attracted to.” Well, not exactly.

Firefly sets the viewer up to think that anyone dressed in a nice suit, and is rude to the captain and crew must be a danger. This stereotype is nicely expelled in the Pilot, yet the viewer is still left jonesing for more when it comes to River and Simon. I felt as though Serenity, to a large degree filled that void for me.

In the well done, attention grabbing first scene we are treated to this very interesting aspect of the Character (in both senses of the word) of Simon. The way he interrogates the officer/doctor who is in charge of River shows something that is very reminiscent of the first time we saw him, the time when we were not sure if he was a “good guy” or a “bad guy.” He asks the man for details, almost painfully specific about what is happening to River, and what has been done for her. Granted, he is a doctor so he, to at least some degree, is asking so he can know how to help her, but he also seems to be asking because he wants to know the details in all their painful detail.

It is like he needs a justification for what he does to the man, and it is also as though he needs to know what River went through so he can be fully penitent for not being there for her when he should have been. Simon clearly has a desire to protect his sister, and he also clearly has guilt for not having done a better job. In the show, we get the impression from some of his dialogue that he was busy, happily furthering his career, and not paying as good attention to what was happening to his sister while she was away being “taught” i.e. being experimented on.

A catholic teacher I once had said to be that the first question of the Bible is “Well am I my brothers keeper?” and that supposedly the rest of the Bible is meant to prove that the answer is yes. This is what I feel from Simon, the rest of the show, and finally culminated in the movie is the image of Simon, trying to take care River, trying to love her and keep her safe because a long time ago he failed at that for selfish reasons.

Because of this the end of the film means so much more, in his last speaking moments, when the audience thinks he might be dying his last words are not for Kaylee, who wants him real bad, or for anyone else who might be able to physically help him, they are for his sister, the one person he loves more than anything. It is as though in the moment he might die, he is most worried that he might leave his sister alone.

River knows he loves her, she was not hurt (un-recoverably) by his un-tethered thoughts in “Objects in Space” she loves her brother for the thing that he has most tried to do, and the thing he fears he failed to do, that is, for taking care of her, loving her, and being one of the only people to not think she is a freak.

Harkening back to the moment when he asked her “am I speaking with Miranda now?” and we saw the classic sister eye roll, we were shown the idea that they had specific brother and sister roles. This makes it even more perfect that in the end, River becomes the “keeper” not just for her big brother, but also for the entire crew.

It is Simon’s sacrifice that saves them all, it is his putting all on the line to save and love his sister that inspires her, that recaptures her focus and makes River realize, in the end of the film, that she must act in order to save those she loves.

"People Don't Like to be Meddled With"~ River

Serenity is another movie depicting the destruction of civilizations when the government/ruler attempts to decide what is best for its citizens. Why is it human nature to desire a perfect world? Perfection is subjective in the first place because we all have different ideas of what would be considered supreme. The German Nazi's considered a certain heritage, beliefs and looks as supreme and murdered those who were not in possession of those traits. The Egyptian rulers considered Hebrews inferior, and held them in bondage, in the same way caucasions treated African Americans. Does this make Nazi's, Egyptians and caucasions evil? No, it just makes them people with a desire to create a perfect world, from their subjective view of perfection. I am glad that the Serenity crew suceeded in holding the Alliance back and would compare it to the defeat of Nazism, slavery, and discrimination. It brought freedom from government oppression. I think Wash said it best when he stated, "I'm a leaf...watch how I fly." A leaf is a free object on the breeze and when you're truly free there is no limit to how high you can fly.

Mal reads poetry!

Operative: "That girl will rain destruction down on you and your ship.

She is an albatross, Captain."

Mal: "Way I remember it, albatross was a ship's good luck, 'til some idiot killed it."

(to Inara) "Yes, I've read a poem, try not to faint."

--Serenity (2005)

The above exchange is one of my favorite moments from Serenity (which is expected from an English major, I suppose). The poem they're referring to is "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. I think the Operative's literary reference (and Mal's reaction) is a really smart way to talk about River since there are varying opinions among Serenity's crew about whether keeping River on board is a good idea or a completely terrible idea. When the Operative suggest she's nothing but bad news, Mal quickly points out that River has become a problem mostly because of guys like him. In this case, The Operative would be the "some idiot" who "killed it" (or at least really, really wants to).

Though the exchange is quick--and still packed with Whedon-esque humor--there is a lot happening within the dialogue. The Operative deems River capable of destruction, and Mal is in a tough spot where he could easily agree since he's been struggling with Simon and River's involvement on the ship for a while. In this moment, however, I feel like he realizes River may not be at fault and there is a much deeper darkness out of her control. Mal uses his famous humor to not only snap back at The Operative but also defend River and claim (or perhaps reclaim) her as a part of the crew--for better or for worse. (Also, I think it's a pretty funny moment for Mal to try to point out to Inara that he is well read.)

Here's an excerpt from Coleridge's poem (it's pretty long, so if Mal did in fact read it, good for him!):

And I had done a hellish thing,

And it would work 'em woe:

For all averred, I had killed the bird

That made the breeze to blow.

Ah wretch! said they, the bird to slay,

That made the breeze to blow!

Nor dim nor red, like God's own head

The glorious Sun uprist:

Then all averred, I had killed the bird

That brought the fog and mist. . . .