Big Damn Inara Theory

POSTED BY: raptored
UPDATED: Tuesday, October 17, 2006 23:35
VIEWED: 34764
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ELOISA

Sunday, February 5, 2006 7:05 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by nuclearday
Just got done watching "Objects in Space," and there's a couple thoughts I ended up with. River's snippets of the crew's inner thoughts are what I keep coming back to when I'm trying to figure some of these mysteries and as usual, I'm coming up with blanks by going in that direction. (Still wonder if it's significant that Kaylee is the only one who doesn't have one of those 'psychic moments' with River, but that's neither here nor there.)

What got me thinking, though, is Jubal's comment to Inara as he's locking her in the shuttle. The whole thing about men being the stronger gender but only women can bear children... I keep coming back to that comment, it's got to mean something, right?

I saw some other posts about maybe Inara having a child, or possibly something related to that. Can't remember the episode, but I remember Kaylee asking Inara about the Companion's stance on dating. Inara says it's very complicated. Maybe she fell in love with someone before coming on board and had a kid with him? Is that what she's running from?

Also, IIRC, there's the scene with Simon and Inara during the 'Out of Gas' episode. Simon talks about it being his birthday and Inara gives him a sympathetic look... Watching the commentary, I believe it's Tim Minear mentioning that that's one of the clues. Is she thinking of her child's birthday at that point?

The wall I run into with this train of thought would be the vial in the Serenity pilot. Going on a child-bearing track at least. It's rather evil-looking for a contraceptive, and some sort of abortion injection wouldn't help with reavers.

While I'm at it, here's a totally off-the-wall and likely untrue theory: This being sci-fi and considering we've seen in the Message that they can replace most of your insides, maybe Inara is already 'with child', and she keeps it with science-type stuff in a state of suspended animation at a very early stage of development. (Like I said, off-the-wall...) Part of her Companion examination during 'Ariel' could be to check on the state of the fetus. The only thing that helps with this theory, is that it could help explain the vial in Serenity. It's either something to abort the pregnancy, or more likely, an injection to resume it's growth. (ie, she's not looking at the vial and thinking of using it, she's looking at it with regret at what cannot be?) Probably not, but worth a shot.

Still, think so far from what I've seen the most compelling theory is the idea of her being a type of assassin. She's certainly had enough combat training... and remember that Jo/Saph/Bridge had the same sort of training, and used the "goodnight kiss" technique...

Kinda fits. Explains the vial at least... Would Jubal's comment then mean that part of the terms of her being a companion would mean that she can't have children? Fits with the clue from the "dating" conversation, as that could certainly complicate a relationship... But what about the "birthday" clue. Is it that she physically can't have children or did she have one at some point and it was taken from her (or worse)?

I had had similar thoughts about Inara and either children or enforced sterilisation, though of all the massively obvious snippets on this, I forgot about Early's one to her in OIS. Specifically, I was going off two bits that you've not mentioned - the tone of her voice when she says "Families?" in Bushwhacked when they're looking at the derelict for the first time, and the way she reacts to Mal in OMR when he asks her to imagine him with a "passel of critters" around his feet. The latter is possible to read as plain jealousy of Saffron - but if you're assuming that there's something wrong about Inara and kids, it takes on a different dimension.

Just my tuppence ha'penny.

***
http://forums.ffonline.com/forumdisplay.php?f=19
Creative Writing

NCBROWNCOAT

Thursday, February 9, 2006 5:00 AM

The last few posts have had me thinking. The syringe is in a padded box and is obviously precious to Inara. Could it be her unfertilized eggs or even her reproductive organs themselves?

Of course pregnancy would destroy the career of a Companion and they could have been preserved for after she retires as a Companion.

All of us are familiar with freezing invitro fertilized human eggs for implatation later but the technology for preserving a woman's unfertilized eggs for future use is now in it's infancy.

Women in their 40's or over that have fertility problems have the option to use donor eggs but they now have to be harvested and fresh from the donor for invitro fertilization to a receipient that has been prepared with hormone injections. What if you could preserve your own eggs... and what if you could preserve the reproductive system (mainly ovaries)to be "cloned" for later use.

NUCLEARDAY

Thursday, February 9, 2006 12:53 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by ncbrowncoat:
The last few posts have had me thinking. The syringe is in a padded box and is obviously precious to Inara. Could it be her unfertilized eggs or even her reproductive organs themselves?...

I hadn't thought of that... If you can take out and replace someone's vital organs ala "The Message", it's certainly not too "sci-fi" for the Firefly 'verse. Good thinking.

AGENTROUKA

Thursday, February 9, 2006 10:05 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by ncbrowncoat:
The last few posts have had me thinking. The syringe is in a padded box and is obviously precious to Inara. Could it be her unfertilized eggs or even her reproductive organs themselves?

Of course pregnancy would destroy the career of a Companion and they could have been preserved for after she retires as a Companion.

All of us are familiar with freezing invitro fertilized human eggs for implatation later but the technology for preserving a woman's unfertilized eggs for future use is now in it's infancy.

Women in their 40's or over that have fertility problems have the option to use donor eggs but they now have to be harvested and fresh from the donor for invitro fertilization to a receipient that has been prepared with hormone injections. What if you could preserve your own eggs... and what if you could preserve the reproductive system (mainly ovaries)to be "cloned" for later use.

Seems unlikely to me.

Removing the reproductive system, or even just a part of it is too risky. The vial could so easily be destroyed by accident and then what?

No halfway intelligent woman would risk her future children like this.

It's much more practical to suspend fertility in the traditional way. An implant of a sort, renewed during their annual exams, for example.

The whole "child in a vial" idea seems too risky for the very practical and realistic (psychics aside) Firefly 'verse.

ARCADIA

Friday, February 10, 2006 4:53 PM

Quote:
At a writer’s conference last autumn Tim Minear apparently revealed the purpose of the syringe. It was filled with a toxin which when injected into a person has no harmful effects on them but would kill anyone who had sex with that person. The plan apparently had been to have a very dark episode late in the first season of Firefly in which Inara would have been attacked and raped by Reavers and would have survived through her use of the syringe).

Thanks for the link with the transcript. I am off to read it now. I've heard this rumor before. A friend of mine when to a screenwriting confrence and was lucky enough to have a small session with Tim and a giant session with Joss (he got autographs from both -- even stole Tim's pen!). Tim told them -- very, very bitterly, appearently -- about the Inara raped by reaver story that was rejected by fox. I always suspected that this was what the syringe was for, or at least that it was part of Inara's secret, but then I was told that it wasn't... *confusion* Anyway, thanks for the link.

"Objects in Space"
River: It's just an object. It doesn't mean what you think...

LITTLEMOUSE

Friday, February 10, 2006 7:37 PM

No problem! I live to serve. *bows*

Yeah, that sounds like the same conference referenced in the transcript.

------------
"People tell you things all the time without talking. The way they move; the way they aren't talking." -River Tam, R. Tam Sessions: Session 1 Excerpt

CTHAWK

Thursday, February 16, 2006 7:41 PM

I like two ideas presented here. First, the ageless Inara and second, the eggs/embryos/fertilization theory.
I think perhaps Inara may have been hooked on some sort of drug which reduces the effects of age but may lead to some sort of terminal illness. The check up in Ariel (is that right?) could be the regular medical treatment she needs, the River insight in OiS could be here finding out she has been diagnosed, and the comments about her not wanting to die at all in OoG might support her trying to put off the inevitable. If this is not a communicable disease then there would be no reason for her to be disbarred from the Companion's Guild.
Thus if she is older and physiologically altered she may not be able to have children and would use the syringe as a pregnancy method. The look of regret in the pilot could just be her thinking about potential not realized.
I also think the Companion's Guild is not some mysterious front for the Alliance. I believe that it is tolerated and powerful because the companions know many secrets about high ranking Alliance/Parliment leaders. It is a relationship of mutual convenience/benefit where morality is second to profitability and desire. (I think this fits with Joss's ideas about human nature and about power.)
Let me know what you think.

CTHAWK

Thursday, February 16, 2006 7:43 PM

I like two ideas presented here. First, the ageless Inara and second, the eggs/embryos/fertilization theory.
I think perhaps Inara may have been hooked on some sort of drug which reduces the effects of age but may lead to some sort of terminal illness. The check up in Ariel (is that right?) could be the regular medical treatment she needs, the River insight in OiS could be here finding out she has been diagnosed, and the comments about her not wanting to die at all in OoG might support her trying to put off the inevitable. If this is not a communicable disease then there would be no reason for her to be disbarred from the Companion's Guild.
Thus if she is older and physiologically altered she may not be able to have children and would use the syringe as a pregnancy method. The look of regret in the pilot could just be her thinking about potential not realized.
I also think the Companion's Guild is not some mysterious front for the Alliance. I believe that it is tolerated and powerful because the companions know many secrets about high ranking Alliance/Parliment leaders. It is a relationship of mutual convenience/benefit where morality is second to profitability and desire. (I think this fits with Joss's ideas about human nature and about power.)
Let me know what you think.

KLEE99

Tuesday, February 21, 2006 3:09 AM

This companion/assassin theory has merit.

Why else would a sophisticated woman like Inara join a crew of roughneck pirates? She must have been assigned to them.

But if she is rebelling against her masters, how could she return to Ariel for a medical exam? How could she continue to have dealings with high profile clients without being caught? Perhaps she is good at using false identities.

SPOOTY

Tuesday, April 11, 2006 11:02 AM

Hi, first time poster, been a lurker for about a month.

From what I gather from the OiS commentary is that Early and River treat people completely differently from others. They treat them like objects too - Objects in Space.

Early deals with every person on the boat differently, Mal is a physical threat so he takes him out first, Zoe a threat so he keeps her locked up, Kaylee is no threat but he knows how to scare her like a little mouse. What is notable about this is the way he takes down Shepard Book instantly and also 'That ain't a Shepard'. Early is borderline psychic, or extremely intuitive as is River (moreso than Early obviously).

Now to pull this back on track, Early would have treated Inara completely differently had she been an assassin and River would be able to see right through her. Sure Early hits her but that's for 'visiting his intentions' and trying to mess with the plan (perhaps cause she would try to surpress or kill him with the use of that vial).

The idea that it's time travel I think is out the question due to it's been stated that Psychic was as far as Joss was willing to take this, but I can see how it could be impressionable because of the nature of the show being Sci-Fi we've no idea what could happen ie.

Select to view spoiler:

when you first hear River has become the ship you've no idea whether to believe it or not without Joss telling you

I'm willing to stick by the Tim rumor, even though it doesn't sound particularily strong. Perhaps we will see more or understand more at a later date but as it stands I think it's safe to assume what we've been presented with, that being that it's a suicide kit and it does sit kinda nicely, even though through watching the commentary and speculating it's purpose leads to more discussions.

Interesting topic all the same, guess I better go introduce myself properly now :P

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