Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Relationship Spotlight: Simon & River Tam (Firefly)

 
Like most of Joss Whedon works, Firefly best quality is its magnificent ensemble of characters and the relationships between them.  No doubt the show will be featured again in relationship spotlights to come, but first, I want to look at the extraordinary bond between the Tam siblings.
 
Back when I discussed the Murrays, I said it would have been so easy for Meg to resent her prodigious genius of a baby brother.  Much the same could be said about Simon; while he makes it clear that he’s incredibly smart and accomplished in his own right, he maintains that he looks like “an idiot child” next to River.  Her brilliance is wide-ranging and effortless, but it’s never been the slightest issue between them.  Even when they were children, he would just smile indulgently as she corrected his textbooks.
 
Despite their central-planet upbringing and their family’s wealth, they’ve made their way by leaning on one another.  When River is in dire straits at the Academy, her parents regard her nonsensical letters as just another of her silly games, while Simon is the one to realize they’re encoded.  His good name, career, and fortune are all given gladly in his efforts to help River get out, and he aligns himself with Serenity and her crew of outlaws to take River on the run.
 
His character’s defining attribute is the care he provides for his little sister.  He’s entirely motivated by helping her recover from the trauma, torture, and experimentation she suffered at the Academy.  In order to do so, his own morals and safety are of little consequence – even though he’s a doctor and dedicated to protecting life, he commits violence for River’s sake, and the straight-laced young citizen with the pampered childhood plans a heist of an Alliance hospital to gain access to specialized medical equipment and understand her condition better.
 
To the show’s credit, Simon’s self-sacrifice stops short of saintliness.  As much as he’s devoted to helping River, he’s frequently overwhelmed by their new life as fugitives and by her altered mental state from her experiences.  She’s returned to him with erratic behavior, dangerous tendencies, and a fractured thought process.  Sometimes he’s broken by his inability to help her, and sometimes he’s fed up with being her caretaker.  He loses his temper and speaks in anger, but at the end of the day, his lot is cast with hers.
 
It’s a little harder to gauge the relationship from River’s side, since her character is so wrapped in psychoses and trauma.  As such, she’s often not terribly present in her own scenes, but to the extent that she is able to push through the muddle and connect, she connects with Simon.  She’s aware of all that Simon’s given up to save her, and her despair at her situation is magnified by feeling like a useless burden to her brother.  One of the most affecting moments in the series comes, not in an episode, but in the movie Serenity, when River is able to return the favor and take care of Simon for a change.
 
Beyond the large-looming plots of sacrifice, mental instability, and evading the law, they’re simply a great pair.  I love the hints of comparatively normal sibling behavior we get in River’s more lucid moments:  the way they tease each other, and the brief scenes in which they’re allowed to enjoy themselves.  This is where an idea of the real River comes out, where Simon is at his most genuine and relaxed – they really do bring out the best in one another.

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