Fear not, intrepid SF fans, only the very teensiest of spoilers will be found here.
...I guess the main question is whether there's enough interest, and whether it's too OT for this forum. A direct tie in to "survival" is going to be a bit of a stretch... well, they're surviving...
As an old time trekkie, I pride myself in being able to rationalize nearly anything. <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> Let's see...
Mal & Zoe are two of only a small handful of survivors of the battle of Serenity Valley. In many ways, the show is about the "survival mindset" that keeps them going and the people they take along with them.
Something similar could be said of some of the other characters, too. For instance, River has survived unknown tortures and her and Simon's stories are about surviving and recovering from that. Their whole life now is one of Escape and Evasion. We don't know that much about Book, but he is obviously living a new life after losing or leaving his old one.
I love the spisode "War Stories" because it gives us a clear example of how Mal uses words to motivate and focus his own mind and that of Wash to persevere amidst pain and fear. A nice glimpse into his survival mindset again.
More tangibly, the episode "Out Of Gas" is obviously a good lesson in being "Equipped To Survive". Kaylee told Mal
twice in previous episodes that they needed a new compressor coil, but he had other priorities and so they all learned the lesson, "If you think it's expensive now, try buying it when you
need it."
OH! Right. Here's a funny one. A lesson in survival priorities. When the life support is out, River says to Book that he doesn't need to be afraid of running out of air, of "dying gasping". She says they'll all freeze to death first. <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> (Okay, I'm reaching for that one, but Jayne preps a suit for Mal for when the air runs out and Mal goes to the bridge and wraps up in a blanket instead.)
Of course, in the pilot movie, they have their stolen salvaged cargo of rectangular bars of gold metal that's so important the Alliance cruiser is going to launch fighters to capture them, the stuff is so "hot" that their fence refuses to move it for them. It's obviously quite valuable stuff, and it isn't until near the end of the show that we find out that all this fuss is being made over foil wrapped food rations!
Er... I'm running out of ideas here... but it sure is a good show.
The good news about the delay is that it will no longer have only a month to make its money before being trounced by Episode 3. By releasing in September, it'll probably do better. Sure hope the theory holds up to the reality.
Stay safe,
J.T.