How do you work a sword fight into a futuristic sci-fi show? Well, you can do what George Lucas did and turn the weapon of honor into a sword made of lasers, or you can do what Joss Whedon and Jane Espenson did in Episode 4 of Firefly and just accept that a space show can be whatever you want it to be. Because there's no such thing as human society in space or on other planets, stories that take place in those settings can take any form the writer wishes. Given sufficient technology and enough room for every possible iteration of human civilization, there's no reason why there couldn't be an entire planet dedicated to whatever aesthetic one would want. In "Shindig" we get a closer look at planet Persephone, the first world we ever visited (not counting flashbacks) on Firefly. It's a world dedicated to the finery of an era that's bygone for us 21st century viewers, let alone the 26th century people of the show's universe. Persephone has its own isolated high society of hoop skirts, lavish balls and a code of honor enforced by duels with cold steel. Naturally, it's a great place for the swaggering brigands who live on Serenity to stand out like sore thumbs... thumbs that want to punch people.

"Shindig" is also the closest viewers ever get to Inara Serra. We get to see how she selects her clients, how she behaves while on the clock and we even get a glimpse into why she chooses to fly around with a bunch of criminals instead of living in luxury alongside the kinds of people who use her services. When Mal and the crew return to Persephone to resupply and look for new work, Inara takes the opportunity to spend a few days with a client named Atherton Wing. He's a familiar TV archetype, the heartless rich guy who believes he can buy and sell people as he pleases. It's no mistake that the episode opens with a seemingly unrelated bar fight started by Mal after he discovers the man he's playing pool with is a slaver. It's especially important to show Mal taking a firm stance against slavery considering the obvious parallel between the Browncoat resistance and the Confederacy in the American Civil War. It also puts a fine point on exactly why he disapproves of Inara's profession. Aside from outright jealousy, Mal hates the idea of people being owned by other people, no matter how it's dressed up.

Really, this entire episode exists outside of the sci-fi premise of Firefly. Aside from things like floating chandeliers and high-tech lock picks, "Shindig" is every bit a Victorian society tale. Like a funnier, better written, better acted Star Trek, Firefly is a show based around a pulpy, infinitely flexible premise that affords a buffet of disparate stories. It manages to be a Western one week, a high sci-fi adventure the next, then dive into Jane Austen territory without a second thought. So, when it seems appropriate to ask "why is Summer Glau monologing in a cockney accent?" it's just as fitting to ask "why not?"

Of course, if Firefly was nothing but a series of costume changes and random sets it wouldn't be nearly as interesting as it is. No matter what their weekly adventures are, the character are all consistent throughout the series. As a show driven by its strong characters, the worlds around them change to reflect something about them. In an episode about Inara there's nothing wrong with everything taking place in an anachronistic ideal of high society. It's her world, or rather a world that mimics her. At the same time, the wealthy layer of Persephone is also everything Inara is running from. It's cruel, pretentious and hollow, no matter how pretty or polite it is on the surface. It's just a shame we never got the chance to learn more about what specifically drove Inara to the fringes.

Best Moment: The classicist in me adores the dance scene, if only because it's very Pride and Prejudice. Still, Summer Glau's inexplicable cockney routine is just odd enough to be alluring.

Notes: If any of you readers are watching V, how is Morena Baccarin doing in her role on that show?

Episode Rating: 4.5/5- Though the scenes on Serenity in "Shindig" are all interesting in their own way, they still seem like filler. I wish something more important had happened in those moments. Otherwise, it's cool that a sci-fi show managed to do Victorian storytelling without seeming out of place.