It's from Serenity: The Official Visual Companion by Whedon himself. He states that after reading the historical novel Killer Angels by Michael Shaara, he wanted to develop a show about the losing side of an American Civil War type conflict. He also has Mal say "We will rise again" in one episode, which is a standard Southern slogan about the Confederacy.
I thought the show made it pretty clear that the Alliance didn't have the greatest control over the outer planets, and there's always someone in the government who can be paid off when control is lax and plausible deniability is high. Besides, a war wouldn't be a good explanation, because what's the first thing you do to a surrendering enemy? Make them disarm.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2011-09-05 05:07 pm (UTC)I thought the show made it pretty clear that the Alliance didn't have the greatest control over the outer planets, and there's always someone in the government who can be paid off when control is lax and plausible deniability is high. Besides, a war wouldn't be a good explanation, because what's the first thing you do to a surrendering enemy? Make them disarm.