One of the things I just love about this show is the fact that,when all is said and done, the Captain is a petty crook, and not even a very sucessful petty crook. He doesn't have all the answers, his plans never work, and other criminals don't like or trust him (like Badger says, he's a man of honor in a den of theives or like Fanty and Mingo say, he's unpredictable). This goes against every formulaic TV rule in the book, the hero always getting the last laugh.

And speaking of laughs, my favorite line in this scene is when Inara says, "They were little geisha dolls with big heads that wobbled." Mal defensively, "People love those."

I really get a kick out of these motivational posters, and your not too late at all.