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Title

Directed by

Written by

Original air date

Production
code

1

"Serenity"

Joss Whedon

Joss Whedon

December 20, 2002

1AGE79

Malcolm Reynolds is a veteran and the captain of Serenity. He and his crew are smuggling goods, but they need to pick up some passengers for extra money. However, not all the passengers are what they seem. 

2

"The Train Job"

Joss Whedon

Joss Whedon & Tim Minear

September 20, 2002

1AGE01

The crew of Serenity takes on a train heist commissioned by a crime lord. They steal the goods, only to find it is medicine that is desperately needed by the town. 

3

"Bushwhacked"

Tim Minear

Tim Minear

September 27, 2002

1AGE02

Serenity is pulled in by an Alliance cruiser while investigating a spaceship that was attacked by Reavers. Simon and River must hide to prevent capture, while something is wrong with the lone survivor of the attacked spaceship. 

4

"Shindig"

Vern Gillum

Jane Espenson

November 1, 2002

1AGE03

Inara attends a formal society dance, only to find Malcolm there as well, attempting to set up a smuggling job. Mal comes to blows with Inara's conceited date and finds himself facing a duel with a renowned swordsman, and only one night to learn how to fence. 

5

"Safe"

Michael Grossman

Drew Z. Greenberg

November 8, 2002

1AGE04

Mal must choose which crew members to save when one is gravely wounded and two others are kidnapped. Simon finds an uneasy haven in a remote village, but River's uncanny perceptions jeopardize the Tams' temporary safety. 

6

"Our Mrs. Reynolds"

Vondie Curtis-Hall

Joss Whedon

October 4, 2002

1AGE05

As an unexpected reward for an unpaid job, Mal finds himself married to a naïve, subservient young woman named Saffron. The crew are amused at his discomfort and Book lectures him on propriety, but things are not as smoothly straightforward as they thought them to be. 

7

"Jaynestown"

Marita Grabiak

Ben Edlund

October 18, 2002

1AGE06

Returning to a planet where he ran into some serious trouble years ago, Jayne discovers that he's become a local folk legend. Mal decides to use this entertaining distraction to complete a job, but some unfinished business may derail his plans. 

8

"Out of Gas"

David Solomon

Tim Minear

October 25, 2002

1AGE07

After Serenity suffers a catastrophe that leaves her crew with only hours of oxygen, flashbacks show how Mal and Zoe acquired Serenity and assembled their motley band. 

9

"Ariel"

Allan Kroeker

Jose Molina

November 15, 2002

1AGE08

Hard up for cash, Serenity takes on a job from Simon: help him get a thorough diagnostic of River in return for the opportunity to loot the vast medical stores of an Alliance hospital on central world Ariel. But River's pursuers are hot on their trail, and they receive some unexpected inside help. 

10

"War Stories"

Jim Contner

Cheryl Cain

December 6, 2002

1AGE09

Angered at Zoe's unshakable war connection to Mal, Wash demands a shot at a field assignment. Unfortunately, crime lord Niska chooses this moment to exact a brutal vengeance for Mal's failure to complete an earlier job. 

11

"Trash"

Vern Gillum

Ben Edlund & Jose Molina

June 28, 2003

1AGE12

Saffron returns to plague Serenity with a scheme to steal a rare antique weapon from a wealthy landowner. Unfortunately for Mal, she neglects to mention just how she came across the information needed to break into the landowner's home. 

12

"The Message"

Tim Minear

Joss Whedon & Tim Minear

July 15, 2003

1AGE13

A former Independence soldier who had served with Mal and Zoe returns in a dramatic manner, with a vicious Alliance officer chasing after him for some unusual smuggled goods. 

13

"Heart of Gold"

Thomas J. Wright

Brett Matthews

August 19, 2003

1AGE10

A Companion-trained friend of Inara's who runs a brothel on a remote planet calls for help from Serenity when a local bigwig reveals his intentions to take the baby from a girl he impregnated. 

14

"Objects in Space"

Joss Whedon

Joss Whedon

December 13, 2002^[1]

1AGE11

Serenity encounters a ruthlessly professional bounty hunter, Jubal Early, who will stop at nothing to retrieve River. But River, feeling unwelcome on the ship, takes a novel approach to escaping from the long arm of the Alliance.