What was Inara thinking

POSTED BY: Zeek
UPDATED: Monday, January 15, 2007 12:05
VIEWED: 7072
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ZEEK

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 2:41 PM

So, I'm thinking over Inara's first meeting with Mal that we see in flashback form in Out of Gas. What was she thinking getting mixed up with this crew? She seemed to know there was some questionable business going one when she said "What business is that exactly?" to Mal. Plus Mal flat out gets angry at her and calls her a whore. Personally I wouldn't want to be caught out in the dead of space with a captain who thinks I'm a whore and a crew of criminals. I mean if she met Jayne at all why wouldn't she turn tail and run?

Is she just that good at reading people? Does she know Mal is a decent guy deep down? Was it strictly business because she knew Mal would see the advantage to having her onboard and would keep her safe? What do you guys think she must have been thinking to set out with this crew?

SPACEANJL

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 2:51 PM

I think this ties in with the 'Big Damn Secret' that made Inara leave Sihnon. We never found out what it was, but Joss had it mapped out and Morena at least knows what it is, and how it affected her character.

Speculation - she was looking for some degree of freedom, for whatever reason, and a smaller ship would give her that. Maybe she needed to be below the official radar for a while -she was obviously avoiding larger, fancier vessels. And she assumes that the Guild will keep her safe, as well. It's not until Atherton Wing that she gets an inkling that maybe the reach of the Alliance and the Guild is not quite as powerful and encompassing as she thought. Also, Mal. The woman has eyes. However professional she intends to be, there was always a spark.

Jayne...admires Inara. He doesn't despise her profession, almost certainly wishes he could afford her, and Mal probably threatened him with something dreadful (possibly Zoe ) if he even looked at her the wrong way. For all his snarling, he's Mal's guard-dog, and he does what he's told. Mostly.

TERRI

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 3:06 PM

I agree SpaceANGL, almost all the way. Except for the Jayne guard dog part. I think we still had a bit to go before Jayne had that kind of loyalty to Mal. He was getting there, but not quite there yet. As far as Inara, yeah, all, IMHO, true. Of course, let's not forget her almost immediate attachment to Serenity. She fell in love almost as hard as Mal did.

MRBEN

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 3:12 PM

Was Jayne even on the ship when Inara joined? Do we have a canonical timeline for this?

mrben

"Carpe Aptenodytes"
http://www.jedimoose.org

SPACEANJL

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 3:39 PM

'OMR' Mal; "You're not the man I met a year ago"

But Jayne joined the ship after it was flying (hence after Wash and Kaylee) and after their first run-in with Patience on Whitefall.

Inara's been on the ship eight months by the 'Train Job'.

I estimate from this that he's been on the ship a little longer than Inara, but after the rest of the crew.

NEWOLDBROWNCOAT

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 4:32 PM

It seemed to me that renting to Inara was one of the first things Mal did after Serenity was functional, from Out of Gas. Jayne came later.
Can't prove it, but I think the sequence was:

Mal & Zoe
Bester
Wash
Kaylee
Inara
Jayne

I wouldn't come to blows with anybody who disagrees, especially over Wash and Kaylee

SPACEANJL

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 4:52 PM

Inara says in the Train Job she's been on the ship eight months. I'm just sayin'...

ECGORDON

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 4:53 PM

First off, the line "What business is that exactly?" was Simon's in the pilot episode, followed by "What? I'm a dead man, I can't know?"

Inara never makes direct reference to the type of work Mal and crew take on during their first conversation on the shuttle. She does say something about needing assurance that she could keep her appointments, "So far as such assurances
are possible on a vessel of this type."

In my opinion, when Inara told Mal that she had supported Unification it was just a smokescreen. She was actually endeavoring to contact people who would soon be in postitions of power on their worlds, people who were not satisfied with the status quo. If you recall, many of her clients (Atherton is the exception) were younger men whose fathers were highly placed in their society, and then there was the female counselor, who was probably due to hold an even higher office later on. Inara was working within some organization that opposed the Alliance. All just opinion and speculation of course.

wo men ren ran zai fei xing.

CAVALIER

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 5:39 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by ecgordon:
In my opinion, when Inara told Mal that she had supported Unification it was just a smokescreen. She was actually endeavoring to contact people who would soon be in postitions of power on their worlds, people who were not satisfied with the status quo. If you recall, many of her clients (Atherton is the exception) were younger men whose fathers were highly placed in their society, and then there was the female counselor, who was probably due to hold an even higher office later on. Inara was working within some organization that opposed the Alliance. All just opinion and speculation of course.

Hmm… hadn’t thought of that. Certainly her career choice would provide good cover. I doubt there is much reason for suspicion in her choice of clients, though. Young wealthy men with social status to maintain seem likely clients in her profession and price range.

MRBEN

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 6:45 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by NewOldBrownCoat:
It seemed to me that renting to Inara was one of the first things Mal did after Serenity was functional, from Out of Gas. Jayne came later.
Can't prove it, but I think the sequence was:

Mal & Zoe
Bester
Wash
Kaylee
Inara
Jayne

I wouldn't come to blows with anybody who disagrees, especially over Wash and Kaylee

In OOG Zoe and Mal meet Wash for the first time, when he talks about his 'genius mechanic' which turns out to be Bester. So you're definitely right about Wash and Kaylee.

Jayne and Inara is another matter. I sort of get the feeling, particularly from the conversation in Persephone during the pilot, that Jayne hasn't been on the crew that long, and thus I also think he came last.

mrben

"Carpe Aptenodytes"
http://www.jedimoose.org

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