Swedish for "Smith" ([info]colls) wrote in [info]bigdamn_rewatch,
2009-02-21 22:36:00
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Inara's syringe

During the reaver attack, Inara is shown looking at a hypo-syringe-thing with some sort of black liquid. I've seen a lot of buzz about this recently and wondered what folks here thought.

So, theories abound about what was in the syringe. Initially it seems that it's some sort of suicide cocktail. This theory has effectively been shot down by Joss.

Tim Minear has alluded that it's some sort of drug that will kill anyone (reavers) who have sex with her. This theory is so bizarre and gross that I'm personally hoping it was some sort of dark joke.

Other theories involve the contrasting ideas that she's terminally ill or that she has discovered the fountain of youth and it's some sort of anti-aging miracle.

What's your take?
Feel free to reference other episodes when discussing the character ~ I'm going to assume we don't require spoiler alerts in a re-watch. ;)



 
Tags: 01: serenity 1&2, discussion

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  • 20 comments

[info]forcedrhyme

February 22 2009, 04:14:25 UTC 3 years ago

Oh damn, I always thought it was some sort of suicide thing. When/where did Joss shoot that down?

[info]adverbia

February 22 2009, 04:40:27 UTC 3 years ago

Okay, here is everything I know about the Inara-secret thing. (references to graphic novels in addition to series)

1) in the Pilot episode, when they are passing the Reaver ship, Inara is in her shuttle looking at a box with a syringe in it. In the commentary, Whedon actually says that it is NOT a suicide kit as many people thought, but rather a plant for a later story arc.

2) in Out of Gas, Simon says that he doesn't want to die in space, and Inara says that she doesn't want to die at all.

3) in The Message, when they are all getting their mail, Inara discreetly hides a small package under her clothes and looks unhappy about it - this point is specifically outlined in the shooting script (which I have cause I am a dork).

4) In Heart of Gold, Nandi comments how shocked everyone was when Inara torpedoed her own career by leaving House Madrassa, and no one knows the reason why.

5) in Better Days (graphic novel), Mal sees Simon leaving Inara's shuttle and thinks that she was seeing him as a client. He confronts her and she says, "Simon is a friend and also a doctor" and then she refuses to say more. We are left with the impression that Mal thinks they have slept together. Then we get a red herring as Simon later acts all nervous when Kaylee makes a comment about going to see Inara in her shuttle (Those Left Behind (graphic novel)).

6) In Those Left Behind (graphic novel) River has one of her 'moments' when she is in Inara's shuttle and falls to the floor screaming "Belly!"

Last year, in a convention panel, Morena Baccarin does confirm that Inara is dying. I believe you can find it on youtube.

[info]little_dumpling

February 23 2009, 02:23:33 UTC 3 years ago

Inara discreetly hides a small package under her clothes and looks unhappy about it

Totally never noticed that! *runs off to re-watch the Message*


er... How did you get a hold of a shooting script?

[info]gogogidget

February 24 2009, 05:44:05 UTC 3 years ago

There are links to all of them in the episode guide here.

[info]gogogidget

February 24 2009, 05:40:19 UTC 3 years ago

The only thing about that is, in the Those Left Behind comic, River was distinctly not talking about Inara. Before she fell to the floor, she yelled "Belly!" then "Not yours, not hers, hers!" She was talking about the Blue Hands men trying to get into the ship through Serenity's hull, not anything to do with Inara's health.

Though the comic did have something interesting that I just noticed when I picked them up to check that. When Simon was taking River to Inara's shuttle, it was because River had injected herself with a lot of anesthetic medicine, which looked particularly black when it was running down her arms.

[info]adverbia

February 24 2009, 22:47:02 UTC 3 years ago

That's a good point - I just went back and looked at it too. Still, since River sometimes talks about herself in the 3rd person, I think it is deliberately ambiguous.

[info]pixienamedkatie

February 22 2009, 04:43:41 UTC 3 years ago

Heh, me too.

[info]fruitsgrow

February 22 2009, 04:44:14 UTC 3 years ago

[info]gogogidget and I discussed this once, and I think she came to the conclusion (or a possible) one that the drug is like the Pax. And I'm inclined to agree because after I found out it wasn't to kill herself, I decided the fountain of youth theory is ridiculous. l-lol.

[info]itinerant_vae

February 22 2009, 07:41:20 UTC 3 years ago

Morena's story on the syringe which she told at a convention...cripes, last year, I think? About April time? meshes with Tim Minear's version. The idea being that if she's in a situation where she's likely to be raped, she'd inject the contents of the syringe, and that it can then be sexually transmitted, so anyone that has sex with her will then die in agony.

What would actually happen to Inara afterwards wasn't made clear, but if Reavers were in the picture, I'm guessing she wouldn't much care...

[info]bookaddict43

February 22 2009, 07:47:11 UTC 3 years ago

I had heard the Tim Minear one too and even wrote a fic using the idea.

The being ill theory has merit too though. Perhaps this is why she doesn't want to get involved with Mal? Or perhaps secretly she's an assasssin and the syringe is full of her secret weapon?

[info]colls

February 27 2009, 13:35:46 UTC 3 years ago

sweet fic (I left you a comment there, too) ~ although I find your idea of "secret weapon" intriguing too... could it be something that doesn't kill her? Is that a plot bunny I hear? ;)

[info]robininseoul

February 22 2009, 12:50:37 UTC 3 years ago

Just recently, I think it was the Dollhouse panel at NYCC, Joss said that Morena spoiled the story at a con. I believe the bit about Inara dying is what he was referring to.

[info]little_dumpling

February 23 2009, 02:21:06 UTC 3 years ago

Joss said that Morena spoiled the story at a con

It seems very Joss to be disappointed about a spoiler to a show that will most probably never be revitalized. *cries softly in the corner*

[info]colls

February 27 2009, 13:37:12 UTC 3 years ago

that will most probably never be revitalized

*cries with dumplin*

[info]little_dumpling

February 27 2009, 18:25:10 UTC 3 years ago

*hugs you tightly*

at least we can keep the love of Firefly alive.

[info]b_cs

February 22 2009, 17:45:27 UTC 3 years ago

I always thought it was the suicide thing, too. I guess having it something more sinister would make for a better overall story-arc (which is yet another reason it's so sad this series ended before the story could be told).

[info]xenaclone

February 23 2009, 08:08:22 UTC 3 years ago

My 2p's worth (in spite of what Morena and Nathan have said):-

Some kind of Companion type 'medicine'. Anti STD, plus contraception, plus maybe something a little [or a lot] more sinister. Maybe even Inara doesn't know the full contents of what she's taking.

[info]robininseoul

February 27 2009, 10:45:20 UTC 3 years ago Edited:  February 27 2009, 10:45:57 UTC

I've posted this over at Joss'd!

http://www.jossd.com/2009/02/inaras-syringe/

[info]colls

February 27 2009, 13:38:11 UTC 3 years ago

Hey! Thanks for the pimpage! :D

[info]sl_podcast

March 1 2009, 07:50:55 UTC 3 years ago

I think both are right.

Syringe is a anti-rape drug AND Inara is dying. And all of this will be revealed in Firefly Between the Lines (I'm writing an Inara script - but of course Joss can change his mind at any time and I'll be totally Joss'd)
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