A Christians perspective
POSTED BY: MalforPresident
UPDATED: Wednesday, September 10, 2025 23:49
VIEWED: 45327
PAGE 2 of 14
Quote:
Originally posted by est120:
I did not think the guy was surrendering. He just seemed to be climbing out of the crashed ship. As Alliance, he is a threat to the crew, so Mal shot him.
The guy's hands being up didn't give you a clear indication that he was surrendering? And how is a pilot of a crashed ship a threat? Don't know about the Alliance, but in the U.S. military, pilots aren't cross trained as infantry. Nope, Mal was taking revenge for Book and Haven, and Joss was saying, "Look, everyone! Mal's really, really angry."
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I wish I had a magical wish-granting plank.
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Someone described war in these few words
"War is hell"
In the field there is no room for compromise and all who are involved may be following orders or not. We all have our own consciences to deal with.
We have freedom of choice but we must suffer the consequences for our own actions.
I think Mal felt he had no time to deal with the Alliance scum who exterminated his friend Book and the innocent children. So his answer was simple and quick.
"Let God sort it out"
The surrendering soldier he shot had the choice of NOT killing the innocent children on Haven but his choice was made.
In other words
"He who lives by the sword...dies by the sword" ...Jesus in the Garden to Peter
The same goes for Mal...
I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.
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Quote:
Originally posted by misbehavin:
He's commented that the idea behind Serenity was that there is no clear good and evil and that the idea of sin is outmoded. On that I must disagree, but I still love Firefly!
I definitely agree with you here.
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I wish I had a magical wish-granting plank.
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Quote:
Originally posted by MalforPresident:
I'm a huge firefly fan, that also happens to be a Christian.
Me, too.
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When someone places both hands in the air it is generally considered to be a sign of surrender, yet Mal shot him. Not that I care, because the Alliance pilot just massacred all of Mal's friends.
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I too am a believer in the Lord, and I thoroughly enjoy this show, but have my reservations about it, as well. 
As I've pointed out elsewhere, I heard about this show before it ever aired, and when I heard about the Companion character, I wasn't interested in watching it (and never did during its initial run).
I discovered the show via the trailer for the film (which I saw on the first day), and then began watching the re-runs on Sci-Fi. I've been an officially-addicted Browncoat ever since.
While I'm certainly not overlooking (or condoning) the pre-marital/extra-marital sex (and references) (which is sadly found in nearly every bit of contemporary entertainment), I find myself thoroughly enthralled by this show/movie.
While I did purchase the "Serenity" DVD (on the second day after it came out), because the Companion/sexual stuff is more prevalent in the show than it is in the movie, I could not bring myself to purchase the "Firefly" DVD.
And as a brief matter of explanation, it's not that the Companion is simply there (a part of the show) that bothers me -- but that the whole show seems to be condoning (even glorifying) a behavior which I firmly believe to be wrong. I know such thinking likely seems prudish in this age (that sex is meant to be shared exclusively between two people who are married to each other), but I've seen firsthand the damage sex outside of marriage eventually brings. It certainly isn't a victimless crime.
The sad thing is, I don't think the inclusion of that conduct makes the show any more artistically gratifying. So why do writers feel compelled to throw it into their works? I have to confess that I'm quite clueless, and wish I knew the answer.
"Looked bigger when I couldn't see him."
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I am an Evangelical pastor and have enjoyed Firefly / Serenity immensely. Here's a review that I wrote about the series last November, which was posted on this forum at that time by one of my congregation members (which is how I found out about this group):
Author H.L. Mencken once said, “No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.” Of course, the converse of that maxim is that many, many people have gone broke due to overestimating the intelligence of the American people. Lately, most of them have been in the television and movie industries. It is a sad truth that directors and producers who want to create artistic programs and movies with emotional and intellectual depth can’t usually get enough of a response from the viewing public to cover their expenses, let alone make a profit. We want to blame Hollywood for the mindless garbage that it produces, but they’re only selling what we’re buying.
The most recent example of this kind of artistic injustice is the movie “Serenity”. Never heard of it? I’m not surprised. Would it help if I told you that it was based on a recent television series called “Firefly”? Never heard of that either? I rest my case. In my opinion, this was one of the best series on television in the past few years, but it was cancelled a couple of years ago, after one season, because no one was watching. That includes me; I only heard about the show a few months ago. After hearing numerous recommendations, I purchased the DVD set for the series and loved it. It’s now one of my favorite programs; too bad it’s dead!
Joss Whedon, the producer of the series, believed so much in the quality of his story that, against all odds, he took it to the big screen. The movie, “Serenity”, came out a couple of months ago, but it quickly tanked at the box office and is now probably out of all the theaters. So why am I reviewing and recommending it to you now? Because the movie will come out on DVD in a few months, and it looks like that will be your last chance to enjoy this unique and well-done story.
I should start by saying that this is a science fiction movie, but before half of you stop reading, let me make it clear that the futuristic elements of the story are truly secondary - part of the scenery, not a major player. As a matter of fact, Whedon purposely places events on other worlds that look like the old West, complete with horses, saloons, and tumbleweeds. The idea is that in the next 500 years the human race expands into the galaxy from planet earth, and the farther from earth you go the less technological and the more frontier-like (and barbaric) civilization becomes. It is on this “outer rim” of civilization that most of the action occurs. And all of the characters in the series and movie are human; there’s not a single alien.
The central character is Malcolm Reynolds, a tough former soldier of rebel armies who lost a devastating war against the all-powerful Alliance. He escapes with only his trusted lieutenant and eventually acquires a “firefly-class” cargo space ship so that he can make a living transporting stolen goods. To supplement his ill-gotten income he takes on a motley group of passengers, each with their own complicated pasts, and together they form an odd family. Along with the crew there is a mercenary, a doctor, a “shepherd” (minister), a “companion” (geisha), and the doctor’s sister, who was rescued from some kind of diabolical experimentation at the hands of the Alliance.
The strength of the series and movie is the depth of the characters. By the time I had watched the first couple of shows I felt like I knew and cared about the captain and his crew. The dialogue is well-written, with a good mixture of crisp, laugh-out-loud humor and heart-felt drama. I have to warn you that there is some violence and sexual content that make portions of the movie and a few of the shows inappropriate viewing for younger and undiscerning viewers (one show in particular that is inappropriate for any of us).
My overall impression of the series and movi
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Quote:
Originally posted by cartoon:
While I'm certainly not overlooking (or condoning) the pre-marital/extra-marital sex (and references) (which is sadly found in nearly every bit of contemporary entertainment), I find myself thoroughly enthralled by this show/movie.
I do agree that the mention of sex was very prevalent throughout the firefly series, and I do suppose that I've become desensitized to that kind of material. Before I get started on this next rant, let me just state that I was a virgin until marriage, and will encourage my children to make wise decisions in this vein. However, in terms of what a companion "is", I find it very interesting that history has come full circle in the firefly universe. If you read the Old Testament, especially the book of Esther, you will find the reference of an entity (primarily women) known as concubines. Concubines were from a verying social status and were often groomed and raised for the approval of a King, so that the King might pick her as a queen. Being a concubine was an exalted position in a world where sexual prowess was considered a positive. That being said, Jesus clearly states that we are to have one wife, and Paul tells us to not even have a hint of sexual immorality among us (that is- for those who are followers of Christ). I can see how this matter would deter some people from watching firefly, but I find even more important lessons found in Inaras tales (i.e. that it is impossible to have a sexualy intimate life without becoming emotionaly attached. Even after years of training)
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You have a right to your beliefs in your personal life, Cartoon, and I would not try to change those even though I do not agree with them. However, I would like to point out that Firefly doesn't necessarily glorify the Companion lifestyle. It is clearly shown to be a source of great tension in the relationship between Mal and Inara.
Also, as someone who fancies himself a writer, I don't like when people ask, "Why did they have to put that in the story?" or "Why didn't they do it this way?" or "Was that really necessary?" For one thing, you could say these things about any element in a story, and if you took away everything someone questioned you would have nothing left. For another thing, the answer is that it's what the writer wanted to write about. If a storyteller is telling a story that's not to your liking, then you can find another storyteller that suits your fancy better. However, if the storyteller's story is compelling enough to you, then I would suggest you just grin and bear it.
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"Remember, there's a big difference between kneeling down and bending over."
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