What Gives With Inara?

POSTED BY: Jongsstraw
UPDATED: Thursday, September 6, 2007 14:59
VIEWED: 15078
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NBZ

Sunday, August 26, 2007 12:38 PM

Possible.

The reason them two even get close is that she is not crew. He probably used her shuttle to hide a lot from the crew. Her as a sounding off board. You know after he made a decision no-one was happy with. Couldn't show weakness in front of crew as that will have greater chance of mutiny.

At the end of HoG though, Mal was not too bothered by her being a companion. I don't think it is as much of an issue to him as it is to us in our current world.

PLATONIST

Sunday, August 26, 2007 4:00 PM

Good point about Inara Not being crew in Mal's eyes, nbz.

I always saw their relationship as seperate to both of their roles, in their worlds. It is almost an escape from the stress of wearing the Captain hat and the Companion hat. That's why we see the vid moment in his bunk. That's what he is missing, the outsiders opinion.

And I think Mal especially wants to keep Inara away from his not so savory business dealings.

I even think that may be one of the reasons he lets her go when she leaves the ship, to keep her safe.
But, then of course the Operative finds her...

Inara crew, no way ever, Mal won't have a shipboard romance with a crew member, a lover or life partner that is on the ship, yes, that may or may not help out once in a while.

2X2

Tuesday, August 28, 2007 3:41 PM

I agree with EmpireX... it really is interesting to see how differently we all interpret the same scenes. :o)

So, here's my interpretation.

At this point, in OiS, both Mal and Inara know that they each have feelings of some sort for each other. Mal found out in HoG - Nandi's little line about how he hadn't told her about Inara's feelings for him, big sudden eye-opener for Mal. And then in the final scene of HoG, Inara pretty much admits/confirms it with her talk of living with love and getting tied to it and not wanting to leave, when Mal is on the verge of laying his feelings out on the table (not that Inara didn't already know). So they both know that there are feelings there.

When he touches her lip out of such obvious concern, I think it does shock Inara - he's not supposed to touch her like that, she can't *let* him touch her like that - and there's this exchange between them as their eyes meet, a little discussion like "what are you doing? you can't do that" from Inara and then I've always read an 'apology' in the way Mal takes his hand away, a sort of "sorry, forgot" kind of thing.
Then Inara pulls away, not because she's being rude or even rebuffing him, but because she has to get away from him herself, because that kind of caring and compassion - coming from Mal - has the potential to ... break her, undo her, shatter her control, what have you... the potential to make her give in and stay even though she knows that to remain who she is (at that moment) she needs to leave Serenity...

~2x2~

JONGSSTRAW

Tuesday, August 28, 2007 5:39 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by 2x2:]I agree with EmpireX... it really is interesting to see how differently we all interpret the same scenes. :o)

So, here's my interpretation.

At this point, in OiS, both Mal and Inara know that they each have feelings of some sort for each other. Mal found out in HoG - Nandi's little line about how he hadn't told her about Inara's feelings for him, big sudden eye-opener for Mal. And then in the final scene of HoG, Inara pretty much admits/confirms it with her talk of living with love and getting tied to it and not wanting to leave, when Mal is on the verge of laying his feelings out on the table (not that Inara didn't already know). So they both know that there are feelings there.

When he touches her lip out of such obvious concern, I think it does shock Inara - he's not supposed to touch her like that, she can't *let* him touch her like that - and there's this exchange between them as their eyes meet, a little discussion like "what are you doing? you can't do that" from Inara and then I've always read an 'apology' in the way Mal takes his hand away, a sort of "sorry, forgot" kind of thing.
Then Inara pulls away, not because she's being rude or even rebuffing him, but because she has to get away from him herself, because that kind of caring and compassion - coming from Mal - has the potential to ... break her, undo her, shatter her control, what have you... the potential to make her give in and stay even though she knows that to remain who she is (at that moment) she needs to leave Serenity...

Not the same Inara we saw at the end of Our Mrs. Reynolds......when she admits with a quivering voice to Mal that she didn't hit her head, she is totally un-guarded at that moment and ready to be swept off her feet by the man she loves....but alas not to be. Watching that scene time and again is both very sad and funny at the same time.

2X2

Tuesday, August 28, 2007 6:30 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Jongsstraw:
Not the same Inara we saw at the end of Our Mrs. Reynolds......when she admits with a quivering voice to Mal that she didn't hit her head, she is totally un-guarded at that moment and ready to be swept off her feet by the man she loves....but alas not to be. Watching that scene time and again is both very sad and funny at the same time.

No, but quite some time has passed by OiS, enough for Inara to 'regroup', if you will, rationalize why it's better that Mal hadn't figured out the truth...

But yes, in that moment, Inara was ready to admit it and see where it would take her. I don't think Mal has any idea what kind of opportunity he missed right there!!! :oD

~2x2~

MAL4PREZ

Tuesday, August 28, 2007 7:43 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by 2x2:
... a little discussion like "what are you doing? you can't do that" from Inara and then I've always read an 'apology' in the way Mal takes his hand away, a sort of "sorry, forgot" kind of thing.

Such a perfect description! Or at least, that's how I see it!

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hmm-burble-blah, blah-blah-blah, take a left

MAL4PREZ

Tuesday, August 28, 2007 7:50 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by ncbrowncoat:
Quote:
Originally posted by wytchcroft:
there are many potential scenarious between them that could be explored. but in terms of the show on tv? a high risk of the 'Moonlighting' factor if they actually got together and the friction was lost...
Why did you have to bring up "Moonlighting"? Perfect romantic tension until....they got together.

OK, how weird... I brought up that show on another thread a week after you guys posted this - but I hadn't seen this, I swear!

It's just so apt. I think it would be very hard to have Mal and Inara together and keep up the entertainment factor. They're so good for snark and tension, just like Cybil and Bruce (I forget hte character names!)

-----------------------------------------------
hmm-burble-blah, blah-blah-blah, take a left

2X2

Tuesday, August 28, 2007 8:09 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by mal4prez:
Such a perfect description! Or at least, that's how I see it!

:oD I'm glad I'm not the only one!

~2x2~

HOPERULES

Tuesday, August 28, 2007 8:56 PM

The trick is to keep a couple interesting even when the crutch of unresolved sexual tension is gone. Most screen writers and actors can't seem to pull it off.

May have been on the losing side, still not convinced it was the wrong one.

AGENTROUKA

Sunday, September 2, 2007 5:35 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by mal4prez:
I think it would be very hard to have Mal and Inara together and keep up the entertainment factor. They're so good for snark and tension, just like Cybil and Bruce (I forget hte character names!)

Aww, are you sure? Because I can think of a lot of scenarios that have them a couple with lots of tension and conflict.

Mal still has issues about their different class backgrounds and his own personal ability to be happy, about where he wants to go in life...

Inara still has her secrets, she has intimacy issues that wouldn't go away for a while, she has a profession that she loves that is incompatible with Mal's idea of a relationship...

Their world views would continue to be different, their tendency to withold information would likely be slow to change, the way they handle conflict would be a source of conflict all by itself..

Tons of stuff to explore even when sex isn't in there.

The idea that unresolved sexual tension is the dealbreaker is very sad and untrue and disrespectful to the nature of relationships.

Zoe and Wash, after all, also don't live off their unresolved sexual tension (there is none) and they are a compelling couple with many issues left undealth with after the movie.

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