3.5 arrival in Haven and Mal’s conversation with Sheppard Book

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  • The montage of their arrival and the name of the planet itself, Haven lends itself to the idea of the place being a haven for the crew
    • The place is dusty and rustic like a cowboy landscape which matches Mal himself
    • It even goes as far as the group sitting outdoors by a campfire in the evening, Jayne plucking at a guitar. If not for Serenity the ship, you wouldn’t even know it was a sci-fi film.
  • Mal and Book are away from the rest of the crowd in darker shadows with light from the camp fire highlighting their faces at times
    • They’re also on higher ground, so that Mal looks down on his crew in thought at times and their figures are always in the background, even if extremely blurred. This reflects the emotional distance he holds with them even as he discusses the current situation
  • The conversation is a crucial moment in Mal’s development as it is the first blatant mention of the theme that Mal carries as a character – belief
    • Mal tries to figure out why he saved someone that was not technically part of his crew. His dialogue seems retrospective and self-reflective at the same time as evident of the quick flashback to where he watching over the still-unconscious River
    • He’s unsure of his motivations, a man struggling between two priorities:
      • His mind is saying survival the priority
      • His values are saying that acting for a greater good is the priority
    • This builds upon previous comments about his actions as a Browncoat and the audience quickly understands that his “way” is something he buried long time ago because he thinks it’s how he got everyone killed
      • But it is who Mal really is and that side of him is trying to emerge