Firefly - "Shindig" (TV Episode Review #28)

When Serenity stops by on the planet Persephone, Inara gets a client to date; she’ll be going to a fancy aristocratic party.  Meanwhile, Mal gets a task from Badger, wants to make a deal with a powerful nobleman, Sir Warwick Harrow.  But Sir Harrow does not trust Badger, so he wants Mal to relay his message to him.  Good news, though: Sir Harrow is also attending the very party that Inara is going to.  Looks like Mal will have to crash the party.

This episode is all about Mal and Inara.  Being character-driven, it banks on not only these two characters’ personalities, but also on the performances of their actors as a result.  As such, Nathan Fillion and Morena Baccarin really get to show off their chemistry a lot more in this episode, and do they deliver.  Of course, their acting would not be as worth it if not for how clearly defined their motives and goals are in the script.  Furthermore, their interactions reinforce how much the two of them need each other in times of dire need, like when on the night before the duel, Inara and Mal are training together and express concerns for each other’s well-being.

Mal and Inara are not the only characters who have a chance to shine.  At the party, Kaylee gets to have her moments, too.  She doesn’t contribute much to the plot, but gosh darn it, is she so cute talking the other party guests!  As for this episode’s guest characters, the ones who standa out are Sir Warwick Harrow himself and Inara’s client, Atherton Wing.  Sir Harrow is a true gentleman, someone with true sense of class with a very polite demeanor.  He does seem like the kind of man that a lowlife like Mal Reynolds or Badger would want to do business with.  Atherton, as it turns out, is the episode’s antagonist.  At first he comes off as a kind and well-mannered gentleman, but is soon revealed as rather hotheaded and reckless.  What’s refreshing is how it’s executed: Atherton is not very overt and explosive about his impulsiveness, but instead telegraphs this impulsiveness in a very subtle way.

The plot of “Shindig” plays out more like a 19^th century romantic novel than standard space opera adventure.  (Episode writer Jane Espenson cited author Jane Austen as her influence in writing this episode, so it’s no wonder.)  Slow-paced and more focused on building character and setting, there are few sci-fi elements beyond Serenity. The narrative is generally straightforward, but with a twist in the last act; it starts off as a usual business deal getting made but veers into a climax that is basically two guys fighting over the same girl.  Regardless of how predictable this may get, it is how the characters’ personalities, motives, and goals are executed that makes the climax feel more lifelike.

While it’s not one of my personal favorite Firefly episodes, this is still a good episode as it is.  Cleverly written and often funny at times, it is one of the more unique episodes of the show, too.  It’s quite a breather to see the action take a back seat for a bit more character growth and world-building for once.