Hoban Washburne

name
Biographical information
Gender	Male
Eye color	Blue
Hair color	Blond
Family	Zoë Alleyne Washburne (Wife)
Occupation(s)	Pilot
Alias	Wash
Statistics
Ship(s) captained or crewed	Serenity

[Source]

"I am a leaf on the wind..."

―Wash

Hoban "Wash" Washburne serves as the pilot of Serenity, a transport ship captained by Malcolm Reynolds. He is married to the ship's first mate, Zoe.

Early life

Raised on an unnamed planet with pollution so thick the stars were not visible, Wash became a pilot in part to see the sky beyond his home. According to the Serenity novelization (which is not considered canon), Wash was second in his class. Mr. Universe, Wash's friend in flight school, was top of the class, since he hacked the records. In order to buy Wash's silence (and save himself from a threat of bodily injury at the hands of Wash), Mr. Universe offered Wash his services whenever they were needed.

Unification War

On the commentary on War Stories, Tudyk says that he believed Wash served in the Unification War. According to him, Wash served as a pilot during the war, although he did not specify which side. However, Tudyk jokes that his ship was shot down after a single flight and he was put in a POW camp, where he spent the remainder of the war entertaining the other prisoners with shadow puppets. Wash himself makes a reference to shadow puppets in the Firefly episode, The Message.

After the war

Wash then traveled widely, visiting odd worlds where, for example, juggling goslings was the principal form of recreation. His skills as a pilot grew, and by the time Wash met Malcolm Reynolds, his reputation had grown to the point where he was actively courted by multiple captains in search of a good pilot (Mal tells Zoe that Wash has a list of recommendations "as long as [his] leg" when Zoe expresses her dislike of Wash). Wash accepted Mal's offer, and in the course of time, fell in love with and eventually married Reynolds' second-in-command, Zoe. This pairing is especially ironic, given that Zoe's first impression of Wash was one of immediate dislike and distrust (though it is hinted in Out of Gas this dislike may be due to his disturbing mustache, which he does not have later). The two have a passionate and strong relationship, despite Wash's occasional concern over Zoe's strong personality and her tendency to assume the more aggressive, traditionally male role in the marriage, a concern compounded by Zoe's fierce loyalty and devotion to Mal.

A laid-back guy with a dry and occasionally laconic sense of humor, Wash tends to represent the pragmatic, cut-and-run opinion in any shipboard debate, and often serves as the calming influence in heated arguments. His actions sometimes appear cowardly (or at least less than heroic), but Wash has proven his resolve and willingness to both put himself in harm's way and do violence on behalf of his friends on many occasions. His loyalty to his fellow crew is unshakable, as is shown when he insists on rescuing Mal from the clutches of the crime lord Adelai Niska in "War Stories", despite clashing with Mal over Zoe earlier and having been severely tortured by Niska to the point of barely being able to stand.

As a pilot, Wash's flying style oscillates between near panic and a Zen-like calm. The attitude he conveys seems to be in inverse proportion to the degree of danger he believes he and the ship are in at any particular moment, acting the most calm when facing the greatest danger. His mantra, which he quietly recited in the movie Serenity during a highly stressful situation — "I am a leaf on the wind; watch how I soar" — has become a favorite quotation among fans, although Wash apparently does not know what it means. On the DVD commentary for the episode The Message, Alan Tudyk described his piloting during the chase sequence as being similar to Jerry Lewis.

Wash

Wash keeps a collection of toy dinosaurs in the ship's cockpit and plays with them during lulls in the action. Tudyk has described Wash as "the Space Xander", referring to the character's similarities with Xander Harris from Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

In the 2005 film Serenity, Wash dies near the end of the film when a harpoon launched by a Reaver ship impales him, killing him instantly. His shipmates erect a memorial to him (it is unclear if this is a tomb, as well) on Mr. Universe's moon. River Tam then takes up his duties as pilot of Serenity (under the supervision of Mal Reynolds); as a tribute to Wash the collection of toy dinosaurs remains on the pilot's station of the bridge.

Name

It is unknown as to why he prefers to be called Wash, rather than by his given name Hoban Washburne, even by his wife Zoe. The Serenity film novelization has Mal confront this point in his narrative. His reasoning is simply, "Why would anyone call themselves Hoban?"

Behind the scenes

Wash is portrayed by Alan Tudyk in the television series Firefly and the motion picture Serenity.

In an interview for the literacy group 826NYC Joss Whedon revealed that if Firefly had not been canceled Wash would still be alive.

Appearances

• Firefly
  • "Serenity" (First appearance)
  • "The Train Job"
  • "Bushwhacked"
  • "Shindig"
  • "Safe"
  • "Our Mrs. Reynolds"
  • "Jaynestown"
  • "Out of Gas"
  • "Ariel"
  • "War Stories"
  • "Trash"
  • "The Message"
  • "Heart of Gold"
  • "Objects in Space"
• Better Days
• Those Left Behind
• Serenity

Notes and references

1. "More Than a Marriage of Convenience," Michelle Sagara West, Finding Serenity, ed. Jane Espensen, BenBella Press 2005, pp. 97-103, ISBN=1932100431.