Jaynestown (18 Oct. 2002)

Mal and the crew of Serenity land to pick up some contraband on the mud-producing planet of Canton where labor is provided under servitude run by the local magistrate. Jayne had once robbed... See full summary »

Director:

Marita Grabiak

Writers:

Joss Whedon (creator), Ben Edlund

Stars:

Nathan Fillion, Gina Torres, Alan Tudyk

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Nathan Fillion	...	Captain Malcolm 'Mal' Reynolds
Gina Torres	...	Zoë Washburne
Alan Tudyk	...	Hoban 'Wash' Washburne
Morena Baccarin	...	Inara Serra
Adam Baldwin	...	Jayne Cobb
Jewel Staite	...	Kaylee Frye
Sean Maher	...	Dr. Simon Tam
Summer Glau	...	River Tam
Ron Glass	...	Shepherd Book
Gregory Itzin	...	Magistrate Higgins
Daniel Bess	...	Mudder
Kevin Gage	...	Stitch Hessian
Zachary Kranzler	...	Fess Higgins (as Zachary Kranzier)
Jordan Lund	...	Foreman
Bob McCracken	...	Well-Dressed Man (as Bob McCraken)

Storyline

Mal and the crew of Serenity land to pick up some contraband on the mud-producing planet of Canton where labor is provided under servitude run by the local magistrate. Jayne had once robbed the boss with a partner but barely escaped by jettisoning from their getaway vehicle his partner (now waiting for revenge) and the money boxes (who have made him a legendary hero). Jayne is recognized by all and "welcomed" accordingly. Sub-plots show Simon and Kaylee face their growing romantic feelings, River first tries to "fix" the Bible and is later traumatized by seeing Book's hair. Meanwhile, Inara is "making a man of" the magistrate's resentful son who helps the crew escape out of spite to his father. But there has been a confrontation with Jayne's abandoned partner whose vengeful shotgun kills one of Jayne's young hero-worshipers, bringing Jayne to verge of philosophy with Mal.

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Plot Keywords:

hero | folk hero | revenge | statue | 26th century | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Mandarin

Release Date:

18 October 2002 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mutant Enemy

Technical Specs

Runtime:

44 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Adam Baldwin admitted to swiping the Jayne statue's head as a souvenir after filming the episode. Later on, additional shots were needed for the episode (scene where the crew first sees the statue) and the crack where the head was broken off and then reattached is visible.

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Goofs

Simon's cup jumps away from his mouth while he's drinking with Kaylee.

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Quotes

Jayne: [his speech to Jaynestown] Far as I see it, you people been given the shortest end of the stick ever been offered a human soul in this crap-heel 'verse. But you took that end, and you - well, you took it. And that's - Well, I guess that's somethin'.

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Connections

Featured in The Alyona Show: Episode 1 (2009)

User Reviews

Jaynestown

JAYNESTOWN

The good;

The bit where the gang see Jayne's statue alone had me laughing out loud, then the song is even better. Inara's confusion over her client referring to Jayne but she thinks it's Mal is also hilarious. The River/Book scenes where she tries to correct the bible are terrific. Also love the bit where Zoe welcomes 'her boys' home and her faked adulation of Jayne once she hears the story.

The bad; Handing Stitch the loaded gun is deeply stupid, no matter what the magistrate's motivation. What IS the cargo they pick up? Stitch fires a shot in the air when we first see him confront Jayne but doesn't work the action and eject the spent cartridge until he shoots the mudder, he actually threatens Mal with an empty gun.

Best line; Kaylee (to Inara who's off to see a client) "Have good sex!" also like; Simon; (upon learning of Jayne's folk hero status) "This must be what going mad feels like" upon hearing the Jayne song; "No, THIS must be what going mad feels like" plus Wash; "Let's go to the crappy town where I'M a hero" and; River (to Book whilst correcting the Bible); "Just keep walking preacher man!"

Packing heat; I'm informed that Zoe's cut down carbine is referred to as a 'mare's leg', possibly because of it's kick? Stitch has a sawn-off Remmington shotgun.

Kinky dinky; Simon finally tells Kaylee that she's pretty and they get all snuggly over 'mudders milk' (nice pun).

Notches on the Serenity bedpost; Jayne possibly sleeps with the barmaid but unconfirmed. Inara has another paying customer.

Inarra;2- 2 paying customers, 1 possible, Atherton. Wash; 1-the missus Zoe; 1-the hubby Jayne; 1 possible, Jaynestown groupie.

Capt subtext; I thought that the toppling of the Jayne statue was actually a comment about the similar destruction of Saddams statue during the liberation of Iraq but that actually happened afterwards (much as The Initiative on Buffy was very Guantanamo Bay but also occurred beforehand)

Total Serenity crew; 9 Mal, Zoe, Jayne, Wash, Kaylee, Inarra, Book, Simon, River

Subverting the Hollywood cliché; Big tough Jayne whimpers as he pulls the surgical tape off his skin

Whedon clichés; Devoted siblings, haunted charismatic leading man. Teenage girls with superpowers. Hookers. Babbling insane girls with truth in their madness. Fake cockneys. Misguided religious zealots. Numbered t-shirts. Girls with botanical names (Willow, Saffron, Jasmine). Absent/overbearing fathers.

Women good/men bad; Really like Inara's 'what makes a man' speech to her client. Not so fond of Jayne casually tossing his groupie aside the next morning with only a goodbye spank of her ass.

Kills; Jayne kills Stitch Jayne; 7-

Happy high-class hookers in Space; Inara kisses on the mouth. Her guild gives her enough leeway to reject her clients father if she'd wished to but she seems genuinely fond of the son. Ceremony plays an almost more important part for her in her work than the sex.

Know the face? Kevin Gage who plays Stitch essentially recreates his role of the odious Waingrow in the wonderful Michael Mann film 'Heat', best cops and robbers story off all time.

Whedon alumni- Joss likes to reuse the same actors in his series, let's count up their appearances (let me know if I miss any) Jack Jabaley; 2-the bartender here and Xander's friend Tito the Plumber from Buffy.

Crew injured; Simon gets roughed up AGAIN! He's beginning to remind me of Joxer the Mighty. As Kaylee observes "You got to be steeley, can't let men be stomping on you so much"

Reminds me off; Bare chested Jayne reminds me off the late Kevin Smith playing Ares in Xena. River sounds very like Fred when she starts talking physics when rewriting the bible. Book with his hair down reminds me of an Afro-American Albert Einstein. 'You fought the law' may refer to the song by The Clash. Mal's remark about the Mudder's Jayne fixation being about what they need as opposed to reality is reminiscent of the Dollhouse's philosophy.

Questions and observations; So, beer was intended to keep the masses down? I wonder what went wrong? Surely Stitch can't have been wholly in the box for 4 years, his muscles would have atrophied until he couldn't walk and no one would be able to stand the stench to release him. A town so backward they don't even know what a menu is, Simon really is in hell. He comes off the ship and starts really participating in their crime for the first time. Interestingly Zoe is left behind and Mal takes Wash with him, maybe because there's not going to be any gunplay in Canton. Jayne starts to develop a conscience, he and Mal beginning to bond again in the final scene. Stitch is one tough hombre to keep fighting with a Bowie knife in his chest (take that Deadliest Warrior who said the stiletto was better). Magistrate Higgins got what he wanted, his son is now a real man, standing up to his overbearing father. 8 out of 10, fairly lightweight but truly very, very funny episode with a Jayne brought to the fore for the first time and some absolutely killer lines.