Top 12 Episodes of Firefly-Number 4

Number 4-Jaynestown

While on a basic pick up trip, the crew discovers that Jayne is a local hero to the people who are indentured servants on a planet that sells "mud." Jayne is a hero because he had to abandon a case full of money and it landed in the middle of the town. The people think that it was done out of altruism, but it was just a mistake.

This is an important episode for Jayne. It shows that there is a time and circumstance where Jayne will stand for something more than just money. There isn't a whole lot more, but there is something.

In the end, Jayne has a confrontation with the old partner that ends in one of the "mudders" jumping in front of a bullet for Jayne. Jayne wins the fight with his old partner, but the young man doesn't survive. he never really stood a chance.

This episode is great because we get to see so much of Jayne in it. There are other things going on, but it isn't focused as much on Mal. Sure we get to learn more about him, but it isn't all about him. Besides, Jayne is an interesting character, and this episode really shows what kind of a man he really is.

Here are some other fun/important moments in the episode:

• Simon only swears when the need arises. (like finding a statue of Jayne-see above)
• Inara helps a young boy becomes a man, and learn to stand up to his father.
• Summer tries to repair the Bible.
• Preacher tries to interact with Summer, with limited success.
• Preacher's hair is crazy when he lets it down.

Top Twelve Episodes of Firefly-Number 5

Number 5-Ariel

This episode is a great chance to get to know almost everyone better. The only character you miss seeing is Preacher, and he wouldn't want to be a part of things anyway.

River just keeps getting worse and worse. Her brother decides that he needs to do something drastic to uncover what the alliance did to her mind. He has a crazy plan, that might just work.

Is the Simon some kind of criminal mastermind? It certainly looks that way. It takes a lot of preparation, but the crew is able to break the Doctor and River into the hospital by faking their deaths and pretending to be an ambulance crew. They are able to steal a ton of medication while Simon scans River's brain. It looks like it is going to work perfectly, until someone throws a monkey wrench in the works.

Let's take a moment before we get there to look at some of the character development moments. It's pretty much a tie between Simon and Jayne as far as who has the most character development so we'll talk about them separately later.

• Kaylee and Wash build a medical transport ship out of a scrap yard.
• Mal and Zoe struggle with all the medical lingo.
• Mal has to make some hard choices about who he supports and how he does so.
• Awesome medical scan effects.
• River's head is messed up thanks to the Alliance.
• There are some crazy, messed-up people after River.
• Do not mess with Mal-ever.

Stuff for Jayne

• Works hard to learn his lines and gives them just to prove he could.
• Betrays Simon and River for the money.
• Cares what people think. Even when he thinks he's going to die, he begs Mal not to tell the real reason he is going to die.
• When it comes down to it, Jayne is a fighter.

Stuff for Simon

• Simon comes up with a great plan.
• Simon saves a patient that gets the wrong treatment.

Top Twelve Episodes of Firefly-Number 6

Number 6-Objects in Space

Do you know what Firefly really needs? Someone to make Jayne look a little less crazy. That's definitely what you get with this episode. Jubal Early is definitely the craziest person to ever grace the decks of Serenity. He even makes River look sane.

It's sad to note that one of the best episodes around what is happening with River, is where the story ends thanks to Fox.

Jubal Early is a messed up bounty hunter who is trying to collect the reward on River. He does a great job of dealing with the crew and company. He does some extremely strange things. Check them out here:

Jubal's path:

1. Fights Mal and beats him pretty easily. Locks him up in his room. 
2. Locks up Zoe and Wash.
3. Is really, really mean to Kaylee. (Also suggests he might be Santa or a part of Serenity forever)
4. (He also threatens to rape her, which is not cool Joss Whedon.)
5. Knocks out Preacher.
6. Says lines like this: Doctor: Are you alliance? Jubal: Am I a lion? Doctor What? Jubal: I don't think of myself as a lion. You might as well though. I have a mighty roar. Doctor: I said Alliance. Jubal: 
7. Hits Inara.
8. Has a conversation with River as Serenity.

This episode speaks to so many great components of the show. It's good that this was the last of the episodes, but it's a shame that it had to end at all. "Does that seem right to you?"

Top 12 Episodes of Firefly-Number 7

Number 7-Our Mrs. Reynolds

Yes, pretty much every episode of Firefly is all about Mal. You'll just have to deal with it. In the beginning of this episode, the crew is celebrating with the local on a planet where they have just helped eliminate some local bandits (which included Mal in a dress and pretty bonnet.) Mal dances with a pretty girl and that seems to be all there is to tell. Not much of a story, right?

Wrong.

Back on the ship, Mal discovers his new wife waiting to serve him. No, he doesn't know anything about her until they meet again. Sure he enjoyed dancing with her, but that doesn't mean he wanted to be married to her. The crew takes advantage of the situation to give Mal a hard time even though Mrs. Reynolds doesn't seem to enjoy the situation.

However, it turns out that Mrs. Reynolds is not anything she pretends to be. She takes down pretty much the entire crew and sends Serenity on a course to get dismantled for parts. Here are a few interesting points:

• Mal breaks down and kisses poisoned lips.
• Inara breaks down and kisses Mal.
• Wash doesn't break down, but still gets hit in the head.
• Jayne is just Jayne, like always.

Top Twelve Episodes of Firefly-Number 8

Number 8-Shindig

This episode is a lot of fun. Not only to you get to see Mal in a duel, but you also get to see Kaylee in one of the most ridiculous outfits ever. Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself again. Let's take a step back and approach this from closer to the beginning.

The crew gets a lead on a transport job, but because of a variety of issues, Mal has to prove to the client that he is respectable enough to take the job. This involves a variety of problems, but Mal manages to overcome each of them.

Inara takes a Companion job with a guy that turns out to be a complete jerk with control issues. He expects her to leave her life and become his Companion full time. She holds off on the question. Meanwhile, Kaylee is overcoming the silliness of her dress the only way that she knows, being an amazing engineer. After she gets put down by the mean girls, she's surrounded by men that are impressed by her knowledge.

At one point, Mal get frustrated by Inara's date and somehow ends up on the wrong end of a sword duel. Somehow Mal survives this and even gets the contract.

One major point for this episode is that it may or may not have the moment where Mal gets stabbed in the place of the pressure point the bad guy in the movie uses against him. I'm not 100% sure that is right, but it's pretty darn close.