Malcolm Reynolds

Latest revision as of 03:57, 19 November 2024

Malcolm Reynolds is a male television character who features in Firefly.

Biography

Malcolm Reynolds was a male human born on September 20, 2486 in the time after mankind had made an exodus from Earth and colonised numerous star systems. (Movie: Serenity) It was said that he was raised on a ranch on the planet Shadow by his mother alongside forty hands. (Episode: Our Mrs. Reynolds)

Mal volunteered for the Independents army during the Unification War against the Alliance, gaining the rank of sergeant during that time. His loyal second-in-command Zoe was by his side for most of the war, surviving many dangerous conflicts with him. The show mentions three such battles, including the Battle of Du-Khang in 2510 and a long winter campaign in New Kashmir where he commanded a platoon.

The unit was mockingly also called the Balls and Bayonets Brigade. (Episode: Serenity)

Mal was hunted by one Unificator named Boss Moon after becoming captain of Serenity. Other Browncoats in the area tried to ignite a new war, and Mal had to get the Alliance to stand down. He was forced to join forces with Boss Moon to survive the danger they were in, and eventually, he surrendered to the Alliance. He was ordered to bring down his mother, Maude Reynolds, in exchange for his freedom. He failed to catch her, but the fact that he did bring down a corrupt sheriff led to him being temporarily made sheriff, with Boss Moon as his partner.

Mal, Zoë, and Jayne are attempting to melt open the hatch of an abandoned wreck of a carrier in space. Wash is on Serenity in the pilot's station keeping watch when he detects a Tohoku-class cruiser, the I.A.V. Dortmunder, approaching them and the wreck. He contacts Mal, who tells him to cut all power on Serenity to escape detection. Wash tells the ship's engineer, Kaylee, to shut everything down. The cruiser detects some residual heat from Serenity, and they actively begin scanning. Caught in the act, the Serenity crew double-times loading the cargo while the cruiser deploys gunships to stop them. Mal has Wash engage the 'crybaby', a decoy distress beacon whose transmission is mistaken by the Dortmunder to be another ship in trouble. Mal gets his team and cargo on board and signals Wash, who turns Serenity away from the cruiser and speeds away. The cruiser halts deployment of the gunships so that it can go help the 'other ship', but does put out a bulletin that a Firefly-class ship is carrying stolen Alliance goods. Inspecting the cargo, Mal seems troubled by the fact that the cargo, which consists of hundreds of unidentified bars, are stamped by the Alliance. The crew starts hiding the cargo as Mal has Zoë contact Badger, their fence on Persephone, that the job is done. Zoë and Wash leave for the bridge. Mal announces that they will be taking on passengers on Persephone before heading to Boros. Mal asks if Inara has checked in, and when he is told she had not, he asks them to let her know that a speedy departure from Persephone might be needed. Serenity lands on Persephone and the various crew members split up; Kaylee stays around to find passengers, Wash takes Serenity's utility vehicle to get supplies, and Mal, Zoë, and Jayne go to speak with Badger. Badger was not happy that Mal's team got caught in the salvage operation, even though they weren't identified, because the cargo was 'molecularly stamped' and as such it could be traced. He refused to take the cargo or pay for it, much to the anger of Serenity's crew. Guns were drawn, but Badger's men outnumbered the Serenity crew and, after Badger smugly insulted Mal, the crew were forced to leave empty-handed. (Episode: Pilot)

Mal and company discuss how to unload their cargo while returning to Serenity. Despite being shot by her in the past, Mal decides to try selling it to a woman named Patience on a terraformed moon called Whitefall, despite Zoë's objections. As the crew all arrive at Serenity new passengers are coming on board, including a man named Dobson, and a wealthy doctor named Simon. Zoë is not happy about having a bunch of passengers sitting on top of their stolen cargo, but Mal quietly laughs it off. Inara arrives in her shuttle, and the crew and passengers prepare to take off. In flight, Mal, Kaylee, and Zoë lay out the ground rules. Mal, who appears to be antireligious, learns that Book is a shepherd, but Kaylee assures everyone that it's not a problem. Wash arrives and Mal covers up the illicit nature of their impending transaction by telling the passengers that the ship's been ordered by the Alliance to take some medical supplies to Whitefall, the fourth moon of Athens, so they'll be going there before heading off to Boros. (Episode: Pilot)

Mal found himself torn between his duties as Sheriff and his crew, even arresting them at one point. He was pitted against a new 'bandit king' who was causing trouble in the area. Eventually, he was pressed even more to choose, and ended up leaving the job behind to rejoin his crew.

In Serenity, Mal discovered the truth about the Miranda incident and the dispersal of Pax on the planet. He commits himself to getting the truth out and returns to the moon owned by Mr. Universe to broadcast the signal. The Alliance and The Operative attempt to stop him, but he manages to navigate the dangerous path to Mr. Universe's backup broadcast station and the tape is broadcast all over the 'verse. Sadly, the fight wounds the crew and costs the life of Hoban Washburne, Serenity's pilot.

Later, Mal is found by a group calling itself the New Resistance. They appear to be trying to start another war, but are really a group assigned by the Alliance to root out Browncoats. Mal manages to get through the trouble with them and leads the charge to save Zoe from the prison she was sent to in Serenity: Leaves on the Wind.

Mal is initially absent in the Return to Earth-That-Was comics, though he shows up during the arc and winds up butting heads with temporary captain Kaylee as the crew attempts to right things on Earth-That Was. By the time of Brand New Verse, Mal is conspicuously absent, with Zoe flying the ship as the last remaining crewmember.

Overview

Personality and attributes

He said himself that, "If the Wind blows Northerly, I go North.". (Episode: Serenity)

Some believed that even after the war that at heart he was still a soldier and a sergeant who was a man of honor that operated in a den of thieves. (Episode: Serenity)

He was very protective of his crew and fiercely loyal. He retained the idea that you never left someone behind and, once you are a part of his crew, you are assured his protection. He treated an attack on a member of his crew as being tantamount to a direct assault on him and would not stand for it. He was also a natural leader, inspiring loyalty that was reciprocated as was shown in both his war experiences and in his relationship with his crew. It was hinted that Mal and Inara Serra, a courtesan or Companion, had strong feelings for one another. Both tried to hide their true feelings and seemed to only release the tension by quarrelling most of the time.

The war and the Battle of Serenity Valley destroyed Mal's religious beliefs. He spoke of God when rallying his troops, and kissed a cross hanging from his neck before going into battle during the Battle of Serenity Valley. Later, however, he was uncomfortable having Shepherd Book on his ship, and the difference of opinion on the matter of religion was a constant source of (usually friendly) conflict between the two. (Episode Serenity)

The ship was a means of escaping the loss of the war and the resulting Alliance dominance over the systems, and Mal's attempts to get by in a Universe that had forsaken him. He took whatever jobs he could get, turning a blind eye if he could to the legality of the job, but never doing the wrong thing in terms of morality (he will happily steal medicine supplies from Ariel for sale on the black market as none of it will be missed on a central planet, but in the episode The Train Job, he returns the medicine he discovers is stolen as he knows the Alliance won't get another shipment to them in time). He was a man of compassion (refusing jobs that would involve him in slavery, for instance), with a strong sense of nobility. He was, however an anti-hero (or perhaps more specifically, a partial moral relativist) and would kill those who threatened him with a philosophy that, "If someone tries to kill you, you try and kill 'em right back." He was not above joking with his crew or picking bar fights, but he retained his honor in the face of adversity. What separated him from typical heroes was that Mal was the type of person who was willing to shoot first and skip the question; oftentimes not even bothering with a "fair fight." He was not above petty theft, smuggling, or even killing, but often rationalized such behavior to make it appear more noble or valiant, such as stealing from Slavers.

Though having lost faith in religion, he retained a strong faith in humanity as he believed that River was human and not a living weapon. (Movie: Serenity)

In the beginning, the relationship did not go well with Inara stating her support of the Alliance and Mal responding that she could not have been the only whore who did, but as time goes on they both develop an obvious if unacknowledged attraction to each other. This would be demonstrated by each other's actions such as Mal defending Inara's honour and risking his life in the subsequent duel, and Inara breaking down when she thinks Mal has been killed and kisses him.

Powers and abilities

He came to be the ship captain of a transport that was called the Serenity. (Episode: Serenity) The vessel was a rundown 03-K64 Firefly-class transport.

Notes

• Malcolm Reynolds was created by Joss Whedon where he was portrayed by actor Nathan Fillion and featured in the setting of the Firefly universe.
• Conceived by Joss Whedon, the character Malcolm Reynolds was the only definite character he had in mind when formulating the ensemble cast. He wanted a hero, but not a hero in the classic sense; someone that is "everything that a hero is not".
• In the Firefly Companion v1 (2006), Fillion shared his own views on the character stating that each member of his crew represented an aspect of his personality that he lost, "In Wash, he has a lust for life and a sense of humor he's lost. In Jayne, he has selfishness. In Book, he has spirituality. In Kaylee, he has innocence. Everybody represents a facet of himself that he has lost and that's why he keeps them close and safe, and yet at arm's length."
• Writer said that the characters mission was, "It's just about getting by. That's always been the mission statement of what the show is — getting by."

In other media

Comics

Appearances

• Firefly:
• Serenity:

External Links

• Firefly Wiki Entry
• Wikipedia Entry

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