What Scrappy said. Whedon is doing exactly what he did with BTVS - playing with the conventions of a genre. The Reavers may occupy the same space in the Firefly world as "bloodthirsty savages" do in the traditional Western, just as the Independents function as "Confederate soldiers who are starting over on the Frontier". None of that indicates anything about Whedon's attitude toward Native Americans or the Civil War. Whedon is simply using the framework and stock characters of the Western genre to tell his story.

They may be like orcs from LotR or the Magogs from Andromeda.

But I don't think Joss will have a big glowy dark lord be an organized evil directing their activities.

River seems to have an extreme mystical sensitivity to them, which maybe hints at something more? Or just a plot device?

I think Joss is merging the western theme of "blood thirsty savages" with the freaks from Road Warrior/Mad Max or the Morloks from the Time Machine.

The Reavers have strayed from civilization and lost their humanity. The 13th Warrior was on TV last nite and that film deals with the same themes. A culture that does not view its self as human and preys upon human civilization.

I don't think that exact parallels, old west settlers vs. native, can be drawn.

Especially considering how, in space and on newly-terraformed planets, there is no such things as 'natives'. At best, there's the conflict between we-were-here-first, leave-me-alone wildcatters and the legally-endowed, dominant-paradigm-perpetuating settlers. And cowboys-and-schoolteachers is a worthwhile conflict to study, but it doesn't carry the same connotations of racial/cultural conflict as cowboys-and-Indians.

OK-- so who has read the pilot and wants to talk?

Is there a link to the pilot online?

Me! Me!

Inara is so much less annoying in the pilot, and the tensions are higher, and...

Damn it.

Fox was on c-r-a-c-k

I'm with those that see a distinction between the Western genre (which has bloodthirsty attackers) and a depiction of the American West. Space Western only need draw from the former.

OTOH, I could see a Reaver story where we get the full "why" of it all. Which need not be as simple as what we've seen so far.

Megan -- it's where Shrift keeps her stuff.

I really! liked th pilot, although I was amused by the description of Kaylee as 'zaftig'-- although knowing Joss he really wanted zaftig and ended up with not-skinny.

The pilot explained TONS of stuff that I was confused about, and unless the acting was really bad, I don't see why they didn't air it. There was a ot of exposition, but alot of action, too.

Also, it explicates Jayne in a way I'm not sure I should share until more people have read it.

Megan -- it's where Shrift keeps her stuff.

I don't seem to have that bookmarked. Could someone send it to my profile address?