Serenity (Pilot): Thoughts on Dobson Interrogation Through Landing on Whitefall
-I'm a big fan of Mal and Jayne in the whole "pain is scary" exchange. I think the timing of it just hits.
-"It's a girl. She's cute too. I don't think she's all there; 'course, not all of her has to be."
JAYNE COBB WHEN I FUCKING GET YOU--
I just hate this line. Jayne that is a mentally damaged, traumatized sixteen year old girl. She is like twenty years younger than you and she is fresh out of two years of medical torture and she has no idea where she even is or what is real in her environment. Sure, maybe he was just saying that because he wanted to be as scary/dangerous as possible to intimidate Dobson but that's still not a great angle and I still hate it. I'm willing to give him some leeway in the this is the pilot meta sort of way, though. But also I'm going to hit him with hammers I'm going to throw him at a wall I'm going to patiently explain to him that he can't say stuff like that
-what's all that behind Jayne? Newspapers? Do they just keep newspapers to entertain passengers? How often do you think they even take on passengers at all?
-I'm glad we get everything set up in the pilot but FUCK this crew cannot catch a break. Everyone's reactions to the reavers really sells it,(as does the score!) especially how up front Zoe is with Simon. She just delivers what he needs to know and moves on, and that's what he needs in that moment. I really do love the Zoe and Simon dynamic and I think it develops nicely in the show and would have continued. She can help him understand life on the Rim without being mean for no reason (Jayne) or making it awkward (Kaylee) or being just fucking weird about it (Mal).
-Mal just staring at River. He wants to hate her SO bad but unfortunately he was hardwired with "defend young women" protocol (for better or for worse) and also Kaylee already likes her.
-Mal being so tender with Kaylee...very very important to me.
-Sort of interesting to me that Simon is asking for inoculation packets when a doctor and a student who attended a government military school would probably be the most vaxxed people on the ship. I would imagine that the minute you're accepted to MedAcad they put you on a schedule to get every single vaccine on Alliance records.
-"Kaylee's very dear. To all of us." Oh I'm sure.
-Absolutely hilarious that Inara is being, all things considered, extremely gentle and understanding with Simon until the moment Mal appears, at which point Simon becomes a prop she can throw.
Inara: "You're lost in the woods. We all are. Even the captain. The only difference is, he likes it that way." Mal: "No the difference is, the woods are the only place I can see a clear path." Simon; overwhelmed, autistic, and concussed: what the FUCK are you two talking about
I am NOT mentally prepared to witness whatever these two freaks have going on I NEED to get out of here.
-The weird tense catwalk scene was the first one they filmed in the whole show! Quite frankly I am impressed with how good Simon's bruise continuity looks from the shuttle to here, because this means that the Inara scene must have been filmed way later considering the recast.
-Do you think Mal turned around and left so soon after dropping "Kaylee's dead" because he knew he would crack and start laughing if he kept looking at Simon? Also Simon's confusion to horror is so tasty.
-There's yet more goofy running on Simon's end, and he sends the punching bag in the cargo bay swinging. Why do we never see anyone using that thing?
-Mad as fuck. There goes Wash's plate from dinner.
-"You depend on luck, you end up on the drift. No fuel, no prospects. Begging for Alliance make-work." First of all, what the hell is Alliance make-work second of all, has this happened to him before?
-So. What are everyone's thoughts on where Dobson actually got his tiny knife/whatever tool he's using to get free? I watch this show pretty often with friends who all absolutely despise Jayne and all of them immediately jump to the conclusion that Jayne aided Dobson and simply didn't follow through with the entire betrayal, and while he's not my fave, I don't know if I think Jayne gave Dobson the knife. Either Jayne is betraying or he isn't; he's not going to do 30% of a betrayal. I doubt the crew would have left anything on Dobson, though. My tentative theory is that Shepherd gave it to him. His comment of "I think you're in more danger--" later might suggest he's already told him "you're in danger so here's something to help".
