if the show didnt get cancelled, who do you think wouldve been the first to die?

POSTED BY: standing8
UPDATED: Friday, July 9, 2004 05:10
VIEWED: 14070
PAGE 3 of 5

PREV PAGE 1 2 3 4 5 NEXT PAGE

DRAKON

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 9:24 AM

Mal already died. He got better.
Death is not the disadvantage that it used to be. Especially on a Joss Whedon show.

"Wash, where is my damn spaceship?"

SOLON

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 9:25 AM

The smart money is definitely on Inara, Jayne, or Book going first. In that order of probability I’m inclined to believe.

My personal opinion however, based on nothing more than my gut feeling, and ME’s proud, Doylesque tradition, is that Wash may in fact have been the first to go. Wash is a sweet, funny, easily likeable guy, which just makes it all the more tragic. His untimely and/or unnatural death however opens up all kinds of very interesting dramatic territory most obviously between the captain and Zoë, whose widowing would take her in a very interesting, and probably scary direction. Wash’s death would catch everyone off guard, and create a very real problem for continued smuggling and for everyone on board generally with the sudden dramatic decline in piloting talent on board. He’s also the person on the crew, perhaps excluding Kaylee, who seems to least have it coming. Wash’s death would be a shocking, unexpected, brutal blow, both to his shipmates, and to the show’s audience. Because of this, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was Wash who was on the most borrowed of time.

If it were up to me though, I’d’ve put Inara on the chopping block first. The prostitute-as-philosopher thing had some merit, and there was certainly some unexplored territory with the character herself, but she seemed by far the least interesting, the least compelling, the least likable of all the travelers, and the most easily replaceable. Her high status as a companion was used as a plot device many times; too many times for my personal taste. Her own decisions and development seemed to be leading her away from the rest of the crew fairly rapidly anyway. Instead of incorporating herself into the Serenity crew, and making the Serenity her home, as Simon, River, and Book, who been aboard for far less time were doing, she was increasingly isolating herself as the series went on. There was definitely more ground to explore with her, but I’m unsure as to how much more of it was going to be interesting, fresh ground.

The role that Inara fills on the ship could be partially or completely filled by a number of interesting possibilities. In fact, there had been some introduction of some potentially edgier replacements. The return of Yo-Saff-Bridge is a possible example. She obviously could fulfill the role of unrequited romantic foil for Mal, in addition to the distrustworthy dynamic that she brings to the shipboard situation. Quite frankly, I’d like to have been able to see her interact with Jayne on a more continuous basis. Those two together could’ve led to some very serious, and entertaining trouble. Whether you like, hate or are indifferent to the concept of Our Mrs. Reynolds being around on a more long-term basis, you do have to admit that she has the uncanny ability to complicate a scenario. She has the added benefit of being quite handy, and unopposed to helping out, in a heist situation. The indiscriminate brain-melter happiness of the Blue-hands could’ve lead to the defection of some sort of a former Alliance agent who’d been in prolonged contact with River Tam, and thus fears having been put into the queue for having his cerebrum extracted through his nose if he turns them in, but who is able to retain some pull with local Alliance, either through simple, elaborate, or double-crossingly nonexistent deception. New temporary or “Temporary” passengers or long-term shuttle tenants are also a ready possibility.

I think it’s fairly clear that had the show gone on long enough for the producers to start offing beloved characters in classic ME style, that the show had fairly limitless and interesting potential for growth for better or worse beyond what it was when we all loved it(or at least liked it enough to be speculating or lurking on these boards over "what could've been"). I can’t bring myself to think that it’s a good thing that Firefly died before it produced a single horribly bad episode.

RICHARDWORTHINGTON

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 9:43 AM

It would be Zoe, probably some big firefight, the crew taking on overwhelming odds and winning, Zoe turning to walk back and check they are alright and gettign shot by one enemy who is not yet dead. After this both Mal and Wash would be seriously affested, Mal has always had a dark side but showing Wash going for revenge and not caring about what happens to him in the process is a classic, if cliched story. An evolution of Wash as he tries to come to terms with Zoe's death would be good, plus there has to be his and Zoe's baby thrown in somewhere, either born just before the event that sparks this firefight or managed to be saved while Zoe dies.

"Well my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle."

SOLON

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 9:55 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Talonpest:
Definitely River. She was just there as a plot device to add the X-Files element to the show, so once they followed that plot to its logical conclusion she would become far too powerful to remain on the ship. Joss has always said that Firefly was supposed to be about the little people that history forgets about, and that doesn't describe what River would have become when she got her act together.

I don't know about that. Even if River was just a plot device to disappear when her arc is over, which I doubt, I don't think that she'd be the first to die anyway. Do not count on that story being bloodless on either side. The Blue Hands don't seen shy about leaving bodies in their wake looking for her. The alliance is coming after her with more than just those nifty little stun guns, and River lives with several people ready, willing, and able to kill to defend her(including herself apparently), as well as at least one who is willing to put his life on the line for her in a more direct, unquestioning way.

Even if you see River as nothing more than the means to an interesting story, and again, I question the depth of your perception on that particular issue, I would be quite surprised if she were the first to die or disappear from the ship permanently. More than anyone else on the ship, her story is intimately linked with Mal and Zoë’s story. Her loss mirrors their loss. Her brother may have lost his home, his job, his property, and his preconceived perceptions of the order of the galaxy to the Alliance in order to get her back, but he is still fundamentally the same person. River is deeply and irrevocably changed by her involvement with them. River’s life, her freedom, her rights, her very person were valueless to these people who conquered the known galaxy, and who altered this girl. What was done to her, and what is happening to her as a result may be an interesting story, but they are not all that River is. She is more than what they’ve done to her. She is more than that to her brother, She is becoming more than that to her shipmates, and most importantly, she is more than that to herself. That’s why I think that she is more than just a plot device. She’s a girl who has a potentially very interesting existence beyond the chase that she is currently embroiled in. She may or may not survive it. She is in fact obviously in more than a bit of peril, but she’s a legitimate character, albeit an unusual one, and I’d be very surprised if she was destined to be the first of the nine to be shuffled off.

BROWNCOAT1

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 11:43 AM

As much as I hate to think of a beloved BDH being killed off on the show, we all know how Joss is only too comfortable w/ killing off characters.

We already saw Mal die, although only briefly. I think we would have seen several more near death or brief death instances w/ several of the characters, then at the end of season two we would have seen either Book or Simon die.

Book has the whole mysterious past thing going. At some point he would have revealed to, or had revealed by another character, who & what he was in the past. I think that tension and mistrust would have followed being resolved when Book sacrificed himself to save a crew memeber or the entire crew.

It could also be Simon. As we discover more about what was done to River, the Blue Hands get more deadly in their attempts to recover River. Near the end of season 2 River would become more coherent, finally coming to grips w/ what was done to her and why. The Blue Hands, or their agents, would be about to bring her in when Simon sacrifices himself to save her. This would result in some serious drama for both River and Kaylee.

"May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."

SHINYSEVEN

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 2:09 PM

Whosever agent asks for the largest salary increase!

But in plot terms, Zoe would be the LAST to go, not the first, because she's the best able to take care of herself, even if her body armor has a few dings.

The Jossverse is a hospitable place for Ophelia-esque crazy girls, so River has job security. I agree that killing Simon to save River would be the high-angst option, and that always appeals to a segment of the viewership.

As a Blakes7 fan, I find the idea of a show about Mal that doesn't have Mal in it half the time strangely appealing, but I agree that for ordinary series purposes Mal *has* to stay alive, and Inara is the most expendable because she has the most tenuous connection to the crew. On the other hand, she also has places she can go (and probably so does Book, depending on what HIS damage is) and therefore can be out of the show without being killed off.

Sadistic crap legitimized by florid prose

SOLON

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 3:25 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by BrownCoat1:
It could also be Simon. As we discover more about what was done to River, the Blue Hands get more deadly in their attempts to recover River. Near the end of season 2 River would become more coherent, finally coming to grips w/ what was done to her and why. The Blue Hands, or their agents, would be about to bring her in when Simon sacrifices himself to save her. This would result in some serious drama for both River and Kaylee.

I'd agree that Simon is definitely next in the order of most likely to die first, maybe even beating out Book for the dubious honor; what with his devotion to his sister and propensity for getting into violent situations that he hasn't the physical prowess to extricate himself from. I tend to think however, that he has great potential for growth in many different directions; many of which are interesting. The same is not necessarily true of Jayne and Inara. I think keeping Simon around has a better payoff than speeding him to the grave, or the post-office box as the case may be.

LIZ

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 4:07 PM

I don't want to think about any of them dying... but i find it terribly interesting that there is a theory for everyone in the cast except Kaylee.

what, we like her too much to consider it? she's the heart of the ship, the optimistic one, the one death that would be the hardest for everyone (audience and crew member alike) so it would have the most impact. (oh wait, are we not saying Kaylee because Jewel sometimes stops by? )

I don't think anyone would want Kaylee to go, but all the more reason to wonder if she'd be first (after all we nearly lost her in the pilot).

STANDING8

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 4:42 PM

inara wouldnt die cause shes the eye candy. as hot as kaylee is and fly zoe is, inara is the obvious eye candy imo. but even storywise inara is a very important cause she provides access to alot of places(upperclass places perhaps) where the crew might not have access to. and with that comes more opportunities for different stories to tell, shes the key for that. you could argue the doctor but he cant cause hes a fugitive. i think she would have stuck around for awhile.

after book i would think either river dies, or goes missing. but down the line i saw river getting better mentally and being more powerful. and turned evil for a period like willow in buffy.

-Soul Rebel-

http://www.livejournal.com/users/standing8/

CAPTAINTIGHTPANTS

Wednesday, July 7, 2004 4:49 PM

I think it will be whichever actor gets offered the best pilot option first. Something they can't say "no" to.

How's that for cynical?

You're gonna come with us...

PREV PAGE 1 2 3 4 5 NEXT PAGE