I've always felt that Wash's and Book's deaths were because of the movie, not just a natural development of the show itself. As such, while I could certainly see characters dying, it wouldn't have happened as quickly as the actual timeline suggests .
Here's what I think:
Book: I always thought Book was undergoing some form of penance. His past suggests far too much knowledge of the underworkings of the Alliance, and I have a feeling he dropped out and found Jesus as a form of redemption. Also, Ron Glass always struck me as a little leery of doing this job long-term. I think he would have liked to cut his role short and have Book go out with a bang. I expect that two or three seasons into the show Book would have died a heroic death that redeemed something he had done in the past. The consequences of that death would continue to ripple throughout the rest of the show (perhaps a grandchild, despite his assertion that he wasn't a grandpa!).
Wash: whenever the end did come to the series, I think Wash was going to die, which is of course what happened in the movie. But I think a lot of development was going to happen up until that point. I can only guess as to what precisely, but as we saw in Heart of Gold, at least one development should have occurred: he and Zoe should have had a child. That Whedon was introducing this notion so early in the series suggests to me he wanted to explore this. Indeed, this is still an option after Wash's death.
Zoe: what always blew me away about Zoe is that she is Mal's subordinate. Frankly, she seems more officer material than Mal ever was. Beyond the stuff with Wash above, I would have bet anything we would have learned more about Zoe's army career and why she wasn't leading her own platoon.
Inara: ultimately, Inara is a limited character for an ongoing series. She would either have to be significantly changed by a number of circumstances, or she would die. Her role is love interest, and her gimmick is courtesan. Both of those avenues of exploration would get old very quickly. Look at how things were developing in the actual show and movie: Inara had left Serenity. That being said, I would hope for a significant change rather than a death.
Jayne: if anything was going to happen to Jayne, I'd say he'd lose an eye or a limb or something. He'd still be 'Jayne' of course, but I think having a handicap (besides his lack of social skills) would add greater depth to an already great character.
Kaylee: I see Kaylee going through some kind of intense depression and being changed by it, similar to say Ginny Weasley's character. Something bad was going to happen to her and it would hurt her in a way that would never leave her. This would be after she and Simon became an item, and it would drive a wedge between them. I think they'd eventually reconcile towards the end of the series, however.
Simon: As River becomes more independent, I think Simon would latch on to Kaylee more, and her rejection of him because of whatever harm she has gone through would tempt him to distance himself even more, perhaps leaving the crew for a time. I also think something would happen that would sorely test Simon's oath to do no harm to those on his operating table--perhaps whoever had harmed Kaylee or River would be under his knife, and Simon (who is not needed by River and rejected by Kaylee) might just embrace the darkness, just that one time...with bad consequences, of course.
River: Unlike her fate in Serenity, I think River would have faced a long road of finding out how to control her mental abilities and conditioning and maintaining her sanity. Obviously Blue Sun would be involved in this process. I always felt her becoming the pilot was a bit of an add-on. I think her true fate would be that of a counter-agent to the Alliance.
Mal: Ultimately, I think Mal's fate is to continue to fight against the Alliance, and it wouldn't surprise me to find him involved in some kind of insurrection. If the Miranda issue came to light inside the series, I think that would have served as a stepping-stone to curtailing the Alliance and allowing some worlds to splinter away and becoming independent again.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2009-02-09 05:45 am (UTC)Here's what I think:
Book: I always thought Book was undergoing some form of penance. His past suggests far too much knowledge of the underworkings of the Alliance, and I have a feeling he dropped out and found Jesus as a form of redemption. Also, Ron Glass always struck me as a little leery of doing this job long-term. I think he would have liked to cut his role short and have Book go out with a bang. I expect that two or three seasons into the show Book would have died a heroic death that redeemed something he had done in the past. The consequences of that death would continue to ripple throughout the rest of the show (perhaps a grandchild, despite his assertion that he wasn't a grandpa!).
Wash: whenever the end did come to the series, I think Wash was going to die, which is of course what happened in the movie. But I think a lot of development was going to happen up until that point. I can only guess as to what precisely, but as we saw in Heart of Gold, at least one development should have occurred: he and Zoe should have had a child. That Whedon was introducing this notion so early in the series suggests to me he wanted to explore this. Indeed, this is still an option after Wash's death.
Zoe: what always blew me away about Zoe is that she is Mal's subordinate. Frankly, she seems more officer material than Mal ever was. Beyond the stuff with Wash above, I would have bet anything we would have learned more about Zoe's army career and why she wasn't leading her own platoon.
Inara: ultimately, Inara is a limited character for an ongoing series. She would either have to be significantly changed by a number of circumstances, or she would die. Her role is love interest, and her gimmick is courtesan. Both of those avenues of exploration would get old very quickly. Look at how things were developing in the actual show and movie: Inara had left Serenity. That being said, I would hope for a significant change rather than a death.
Jayne: if anything was going to happen to Jayne, I'd say he'd lose an eye or a limb or something. He'd still be 'Jayne' of course, but I think having a handicap (besides his lack of social skills) would add greater depth to an already great character.
Kaylee: I see Kaylee going through some kind of intense depression and being changed by it, similar to say Ginny Weasley's character. Something bad was going to happen to her and it would hurt her in a way that would never leave her. This would be after she and Simon became an item, and it would drive a wedge between them. I think they'd eventually reconcile towards the end of the series, however.
Simon: As River becomes more independent, I think Simon would latch on to Kaylee more, and her rejection of him because of whatever harm she has gone through would tempt him to distance himself even more, perhaps leaving the crew for a time. I also think something would happen that would sorely test Simon's oath to do no harm to those on his operating table--perhaps whoever had harmed Kaylee or River would be under his knife, and Simon (who is not needed by River and rejected by Kaylee) might just embrace the darkness, just that one time...with bad consequences, of course.
River: Unlike her fate in Serenity, I think River would have faced a long road of finding out how to control her mental abilities and conditioning and maintaining her sanity. Obviously Blue Sun would be involved in this process. I always felt her becoming the pilot was a bit of an add-on. I think her true fate would be that of a counter-agent to the Alliance.
Mal: Ultimately, I think Mal's fate is to continue to fight against the Alliance, and it wouldn't surprise me to find him involved in some kind of insurrection. If the Miranda issue came to light inside the series, I think that would have served as a stepping-stone to curtailing the Alliance and allowing some worlds to splinter away and becoming independent again.
Anyway, that's my take! :)