Controversial Mal characterization
POSTED BY: SpaceAnJL
UPDATED: Saturday, January 3, 2009 06:12
VIEWED: 42749
PAGE 1 of 12
I know Mal is probably short for 'maladjusted' rather than Malcolm, but could we maybe see a way forward for him that doesn't end in misery and angst? (Yeah, I know it's Joss - puppy sandwiches all round.)
I'm not advocating instant bounceback from the trauma of war. I'm not in favour of any fic that sweeps every human reaction under the carpet in favour of fluffy bunnies. But could there possibly be a glimmer of hope for these people? That maybe this little group could put the 'fun' back in dysfunctional, and have something approaching a normal existance, emotionally speaking. And no, I am not advocating spacespawn and wedding bells. This is me.
Maybe I'm just trying to find a balance between drama and humour that feels like real people to me. I just think more could be made of NF's gift for comic timing - I know Joss hoped to take advantage of it. And any guy that will let it all hang out ('Trash') deserves some laughs.
So, a Mal who doesn't end up married to Inara and knee-deep in brats, but equally doesn't end up eating his pistol on some lonely asteroid? Any takers?
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Mal seemed pretty hopeful at the end of Serenity...
Just sayin' Chrisisall
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
I'd prefer to see an old Mal as the Uncle Jesse of space!
Still findin' ways to run shine and stick it to the man, if only his crazy ass nephews would stop blowin up the outhouse with the old exploding arrowhead gag!
Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."
http://manwithpez.livejournal.com
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
At some point after the war Mal made a decision that doing crime is ok and justifyable. I'm not sure when that occured. In Out Of Gas when he's showing the ship to Zoe he talks about being free of the Alliance, taking jobs as they come, living like normal people etc...doesn't really refer to doing crime to pay for that lifestyle.
I'd like to know what Mal did between the end of the war and buying Serenity...that would help explain his acceptance of being a thief.
In Serenity, during the pre-Mule boarding exchange with River he says..." This is what I do darlin', this is what I do." His facial expressions clearly indicate he is terribly conflicted about what he has become, his voice quivers a bit, and his eyes dance around....I really feel for him at that moment, as if he's saying THIS is what the Alliance has forced free-thinking men to do.
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
a lot of interesting thoughts here... and they illustrate why Mal is such a magnetic character to us fans!
(Jongsstraw - you are on my wave length... im considering trying a gap filling one shot to explore the shift in himself and his career - and why Zoe went along with it.
manwithpez - this too! Mal can be a broad comic foil and FUN gorram it! i decided to write an up coming piece with saffron in to explore this element.)
ok, nuff of that - some thoughts on Mal outside of his personality.
i'm becoming quite interested in Mal as a symbol of the Paternal. River refers to him as a Dad. and the crew of Serenity are very much a family unit.. part of the show's appeal. cool. BUT
this kind of paternalism can have a dark shadow.
(The kind whedon explored in Family - Buffy5 for one thing)
on one hand paternal characters and authorities are very protective - we look to our own, etc.
but this can implode into prejudice about 'others' seen as threatening.
(i see Mal's protection of Nandi and her girls in two lights: a daddy protecting the girls, maybe... or possibly a sort of growth to take on a cause he has no stake in, from Serenity will not truly gain. Given this, the writers make sure that growth comes at a cost - nandi's death and the pain it causes.)
Or just into a genial belief that 'Daddy knows best' which can result in the kind of benevelant empire you see in Star Trek's Federation, (the ambiguities of which were not explored untill Inserruction and Deep Space 9.)
similarly Han Solo
(- whose relationship to the 'Kid' Luke Skywalker and his sister Leia is not far removed from the Mal - Simon/River dynamic -)
became a less intersting character when his own latent paternalism was subsumed within that of th e well intentioned rebel alliance. a rebel alliance whose effects have not been explored on screen - post Jedi. when the Empire falls - what do you get replacing it?
star wars is a fairy tale - and fairy tale sdo not go further than endings - which is one reason why people are wary of simliar situations in real life - the fall of saigon, the ussr, iraq ad nauseum, all much more 'difficult', morally ambivalent and interesting.
(As noted elsewhere on the board what happens post-BDM will have to touch on this)
Is Mal aware of any of this - i am making any sense?? - scattered thoughts as always...
post on!
make someone a browncoat today - don't drive nobody away
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Actually, this makes more sense to me before Mal commits to a wife, babies etc...Grown-ups need to come to terms with who they are and what they want before successful relationships are established, not in spite of or because of them.
And IMHO that is where Joss left us at the end of the movie.
Mal has some pretty big issues, though. It will be a painful process. Have you read any Tamsibling?, she does wonders with the crew's inner conflicts and relations.
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
I'm working on it, but fan fic doesn't flow fast for me. It didn't before I was in school. These days? It's slower than snail's pace.
I could see him hooking up with Inara, but not getting married, then sticking together when she gets pregnant. Then of course, Inara dies when their daughter is like five or something. Y'know, your typical bittersweet *koff*English*koff* ending.
Of course I'd get skewered - virtually here, and physically once the MNIndys found out - if I killed Inara, so I won't be writing that anytime soon.
Mal is on a journey and journies take time. There's lots on the to-do list - make peace with God, find a way to get past the war, figure out how to get Inara to give up whoring - not necessarily in that order either. So if a happily-ever-after is to be found for Mal, it likely won't be anytime soon.
Doing the impossible makes us mighty
Minnesota Browncoats
http://www.mnfirefly.com/portal/html/index.php
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
TamSibling?
yeh! she's a gorram miracle worker on that score!
I hope she realises...
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Good topic SA. And by the way, may I just say that as much as I come off strong with my opinions about fic stuff, I'm so glad that people disagree because these discussions are the funnest way to avoid work LOL! Keep it coming!
So... it's entirely possible that Mal could end up happy as can be, and if he were a real person I'd be all for that as soon as possible. Thing is - he's a fictional character, and any happy ending for him is... an ending. It is for me, because what happens after is just less interesting.
It's like what Frodo and Sam talk about on the stairs of Cirith Ungol: the stories that are the worst for the people in them are often the best to hear. Happy stories get dull. And it's not just me - sexual tension pulls in more viewers/readers than what comes after the couple gives in... anyone remember the show Moonlighting in the 80s? As soon as Cybil Shepard and Bruce Willis got together, the show sucked.
I see Firefly as being about Mal's struggle through his issues. It's not that I want him to go down the toilet, but I want to see all that happens before he gets his happy on. And having a woman (or man, let's include all our slashy friends LOL!) hand him his healing on a plate... well, I've said too much about that already.
SA: of the extremes you present - wedded bliss versus bullet eating, I like neither. But I tend to openly criticize the former much more. I've yet to see a fic where Mal completely fails, but I've seen plenty that gives him that unrealistic instant bounce to happy-joy-joy land.
As for humor/darkness balance - if only we could all do it half so well as Joss!
Quote:My newest, if I ever get the damned thing done, addresses this...
I'd like to know what Mal did between the end of the war and buying Serenity...that would help explain his acceptance of being a thief.
-----------------------------------------------
hmm-burble-blah, blah-blah-blah, take a left
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
I dunno that Mal made a 'shift' per say to crime, my take on it is that his grand shceme of living free of the Alliance, fell way short. As a result, and in order to keep flying, he had to do what was necessary. And that included the odd petty crime.
BUT if you'll notice, most of their heists go against the Alliance which he sees as bad, so that justifies the crime in his mind. Doesn't make it right mind you...
I see him more as a Robin Hood persona. Isn't that, after all, what the Browncoats/Independants were all about? Standing up against the Alliance for the little guys?
Now I may be WAY off base but...
_______________________________________________________________
"Got a headful of lightning
And a heart full of rain
And I know that I said
I'd never do it again
Oh and I love you sweet baby but I always take the long way home."
NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME