The Man Dressed in Brown
Malcolm Reynolds was a soldier, smuggler and revolutionary best known for his role in the 26th century Stellar Revolution (sometimes also called the Second Browncoat Uprising, Reynolds' Revolution and the Second Unification War). Reynolds was born on the outer world of Shadow and raised on a ranch. Reynolds would grow up relatively well-enough-while by no means educated on the level of the average core world, the ranch he grew up in was one of the more prosperous ones. Reynolds developed a strong religious faith during this time and, as tensions between the core and outer worlds grew, became increasingly sympathetic to the separatist cause. When the outer worlds seceded, Reynolds would join the Browncoats and participate in a number of battles as a part of the 57th Overlanders Brigade. Reynolds fought in the Battles of Du-Khang, New Kashmir, Sturges and Serenity Valley, the final fight of the war.
Reynolds was left disillusioned and faithless by the Browncoat defeat in the Unification War, which also claimed the lives of several close friends in the separatist forces. Banding together with his lieutenant Zoe Alleyne, Reynolds would begin the life of a smuggler, purchasing a
Firefly-class ship he dubbed the
Serenity and spending eight years engaging in petty crime. However, this would change in 2518, where Reynolds played a key role in revealing the UAP's disastrous experiments on the planet Miranda and the resulting creation of the scourge known as the Reavers that the Alliance had covered up. The backlash to this revelation was swift and intense and uprisings broke out not only on a number of outer worlds, but even on some core worlds. Many of the rebel leaders contacted Reynolds in an attempt to make him the leader of the rebel forces-a role he was purportedly reluctant to assume. However, after some persuasion by members of his crew, Reynolds accepted the role as de facto leader of the Compact of Free Worlds.
Reynolds was by all accounts a rather hands-on leader, taking the
Serenity to various worlds in order to bolster rebel forces. Reynolds' support helped dislodge Alliance holdouts on several outer worlds and helped ferry reinforcements into the rebellious sectors of the core. By 2526, the UAP had lost control of several inner worlds including Higgins' Moon, Jiangyin, Beaumonde and Ariel. However, pockets of pro-Compact rebels had been crushed on a number of core worlds, including Londinium and Sihnon, the two capitals of the UAP. While the Compact had numbers on their side, the UAP forces remained better trained and better equipped. Reynolds consequently came up with a bold gambit aimed at taking down the UAP for good.
The bulk of the Compact fleet was dispatched towards Sihnon en masse, ostensibly with the goal of taking control of the planet. The UAP dispatched the bulk of its defenses towards Sihnon to intercept the invaders, while crucial leaders on the planet were temporarily evacuated towards Londinium. However, on April 5th, a small, but well-armed fleet headed by the
Serenity struck Londinium, bypassing a number of core worlds on the way. Planetary defenses were raised, but despite the efforts of the remaining Alliance forces, the Compact fleet was able to enter the planet's atmosphere and targetted the capital district. The anti-spacecraft defenses were sparser than normal, as many had been sent to Sihnon to defend the planet and thus the Compact forces were able to land on the surface. Reynolds personally led Compact forces in storming the Central Directorate, the building where the core leadership of the UAP was holed up. A brutal firefight ensued between the guards and the Compact's forces, but ultimately the latter were able to seize control of the building.
However, Reynolds himself did not make it into the Central Directorate-he was fatally wounded by a UAP security officer. The leadership of the Compact was passed on to Simon Tam, a key political advisor to Reynolds. Tam would go on to accept the surrender of the surviving UAP leadership and preside over the establishment of the new Compact of Free Worlds confederal governing structure. Reynolds himself remains a generally revered figure in the known 'Verse and monuments to him can be found on a number of planets.
