Firefly # 3: Objects In Space

Episode 14
First Aired December 13th, 2002

Sadly, Firefly only got one season, but while it certainly wasn't perfect, it was by far the best opening season of Joss Whedon's first three shows (not a single episode from the first seasons of Buffy and Angel made their lists, but first season episodes from both shows were considered). Ok, the comparison isn't exactly apt because I have nothing else to compare the 14 episodes of Firefly against (the film Serenity doesn't count because it was a film), but the episodes of Firefly were so good that I have a harder time thinking about how much better it could have gotten than I do thinking about how much the first season episodes of the Buffyverse could have improved (I of course believe that it COULD have gotten better, especially knowing what I know from Serenity).

"Objects In Space" was a great season finale, but it was not meant to be a series finale. The first time I saw it, I didn't like it because it didn't answer any questions (and Serenity hadn't been announced yet). Upon watching it again, I realized that it was indeed a terrific episode that would have been an incredible season ender. The main purpose of the episode is to finally have River become a full member of the crew; all season, she was an outcast, unable to do anything except make trouble for the crew of Serenity. "Objects In Space" showed us that she would continue to make life difficult because of her status as a wanted fugitive, but it also showed us that she may be able to pull her weight on the ship and can come back from her insane mindset.

On the surface of the episode, the plot is about a bounty hunter sneaking onto Serenity to capture River. He effectively neutralized the various crew members with methods tailored to their personalities; he attacked Mal and Book (further proof that Book was more than a simple man of the cloth), locked Zoe in her room with Wash, and sadisticly threatened to rape Kaylee if she made trouble for him. He then captured Simon and tried to force him to help him find the missing River. River meanwhile was hiding and was able to use the ship's intercom system to speak with the various crewmembers to put a plan into motion to retake the ship.

The episode also is very philosophical; the bounty hunter wonders aloud to Simon about the meaning of various objects. He talks about the way of the world and how it is unfair in some ways (though many of these ways are twisted outlooks on life). River also thinks about meaning, but her warped worldview is what causes her to make these statements. When she holds up a gun, she sees it as a stick, and states that it is just an object. That is true, but to her, it is a harmless thing, but the rest of the crew feels differently.

"Objects In Space" is a great way for Whedon to express some of his philosophical views in both ways he agrees and disagrees with, and the episode makes for a great way to end the season. Too bad it ended the series... sort of (the episode that aired last was actually the two-part pilot, "Serenity").

Up next: Firefly #2...