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Originally posted by Katesfriend:
Jayne was ready to sell River out in Serenity, when he tried to take her on a shuttle ride off the ship right before River located Miranda. The question then is did the events in the BDM change Jayne enough that he won't do it again.

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Originally posted by audelair:
I thought about this a lot after I finished the series. My conclusion was "no", he would not try to sell out the Tams. I don't think Whedon would have wanted to revisit the idea of Jayne betraying the Tams because it would have made his character boring.

I think Whedon tried to resolve this from many angles, as well:
- First, Mal's chat with him in the airlock shook him real well.
- Simon and River found out about it, and Simon forgave him, and I think Jayne respected that.
- The operative stated at the end of the movie, that the Alliance is no longer after the Tam's. So the focus of the crew's conflicts with the Alliance should no longer surround the Tam's. It's likely Jayne will never get another offer.
- He got screwed by the feds, anyway, so he may see very little reason to trust them again in the future, no matter how good the offer is. I think Whedon was very purposeful in having the Alliance screw Jayne.
- Jayne rightfully is probably scared of River by this point.

Also, it's important to realize that Mal always knew that Jayne is the betraying type. Mal got Jayne to betray his old crew, so he's certainly aware of the risk of betrayal. Mal was very well aware of how much Jayne disagreed with Mal's decision to keep the Tams on board. Mal was also confident enough in Jayne's betrayal to knock him out with a wrench without any proof.

Yet, Mal still trusts Jayne and even lets him stay very well armed. The fact that Jayne is the betraying type, and the fact that Jayne often vehemently disagrees with Mal (regarding the Tams, regarding giving back the cargo, regarding going through Reaver territory), and the fact that Mal knows all this and still trusts him, and that Jayne always pulls through... I think this is one of the great mysteries of the show. Mal has a tremendous power over Jayne that is never explained. This is the invisible bond that holds the crew together, and I think Jayne's relationship with the crew was one of the most brilliant plot devices.

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