Ummm, Ian...

That scene with the operative calling Book by name is only in the novelization; it's not in the movie or in the shooting script. In fact, I think that's one of the places DeCandido did a poor job in an otherwise good book. Anyway, it's not "canon".

The implication that Book was an operative or something similar (or someone that trained or directed them or ...) is overwhelming; we'll just never know what it was exactly. Except that "ballet dancer" was part of it. ;)

It seemed fairly obvious to me that everything mentioned in Firefly about Book's past was completely answered in Serenity. Not overtly, but simply by the presence of the Operative and the fact that he calls Book by his first name (Derrial).

I've heard this theory elsewhere, and sad to say I didn't get it right away, but right after he saw the movie, a friend of mine said "well, now we know the secret of Book's past." "We do?" I said.

"Yes. He's a former Operative."

Okay, it's only obvious after you see it. I didn't at first. But every possible question from Firefly is put to rest by that answer.

I too disagree with Akbar. I didn't mind that they didn't wrap up the histories of Inara or Book. The movie gave closure to the two main stories of the show. 1) Mal finding true "serenity" after gaining purpose and faith and 2) River being healed after revealing the Alliance's secret.

If they delved into any other subplot the movie would have been way too long and convoluted.

I tend to agree with Akbar where that scene from the movie is concerned. I, and a lot of fans of Firefly that I know, took it the same way. But that is neither here nor there. Getting back to the episode...

I do agree with Keith that this isn't the best of the Firefly episodes. However, I do think that the scene at the end cements so many things with regards to Mal and the lengths he'll go to in protecting his crew that it is still a really good episode. And while the Jayne line is great, the best line from the show goes to Zoë in this exchange.

Mal: Well, look at this! Appears we got here just in the nick of time. What does that make us?
Zoë: Big damn heroes, sir.
Mal: Ain't we just?

Big Damn Heroes has taken on a life of its own among the various fan factions. To the point that the majority of the hardcore fans referred to Serenity as the Big Damn Movie.

And one more time...because Keith brought it up...again...enough with the order. Gah, I find that so annoying for some reason.

I've said this before and I will say it again. It is science fiction - no one is ever so dead that that they have to stay that way.

you say tomato, I say thank you Joss for pissing all over a great story, changing history and destroying any future this story has to tell.

Fox took away your toys and instead of being a good kid when given the chance to play with them again you decided to break them so no one else can ever play (plus not bringing Tim Minear and Ben Edlund onto the film production was quite apparent how much of Firefly was more them than you ever put forth)

Akbar, perhaps it was his way of telling people that, as fans, sometimes we have to just accept things as they are. Joss Whedon certainly did not "give the middle finger" to us. He created a great show that you obviously enjoyed and cared about to the point that you would feel betrayed. I think Whedon's message is for all of us, fanboys or not, to just enjoy these things rather than nitpick over it.

well, given an complete run of the show, sure.

However, Joss ran the entire story into the ground in Serenity. There is nothing more to tell and by NOT including Books history he has closed off that end of the story. Granted, if the story continued we may have found out another way since others did know his past (like Early or his obvious alliance connections.)

But Book saying he himself will not tell was clear to me that Joss didnt care about that story line anymore OR the fans who wanted to know.

See, I loved this episode because it was Simon/River-centric. Their brother-sister relationship is one of the things that made Firefly special to me.

And no, we NEVER EVER find out the truth about Book.

IMO Joss gave all the fans the middle finger in Serenity when he wrote this exchange:

Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: You seem to know a lot about that world.
Shepherd Book: I wasn't born a shepherd, Mal.
Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: You'll have to tell me about that someday.
Shepherd Book: [pause] No, I don't.