# Explain Firefly **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 16, 2004, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421 "2004-07-16T14:58:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/101 "2004-07-21T04:06:49Z")
> [@Teelo](#): > > In ‘Objects in Space’ an unusual but funny conversation between Simon and the Bounty hunter Jewbul Early. It’s Jubal. > [@](#): > > SIMON > Are you Alliance? > > EARLY > (not understanding) > Am I a lion? > > SIMON > What? > > EARLY > I don’t think of myself as a lion. > (smiles) > You may as well, though: I have a mighty roar. > > SIMON > I said “Alliance”. > > EARLY > Oh. I thought – > > SIMON > No, I was… > > EARLY > That’s weird. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 8:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/102 "2004-07-21T08:26:52Z")
You know, I’ve sen lots of “insane” characters on TV, but Jubal Early was something different: he was the best depiction ever of a man who Just Ain’t Right in the Head. The fact that he was played by the same actor who did ADA Paul Robinette on the first few seasons of _Law & Order_ made it even more amusing. ---
**Author:** ![tagos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@tagos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tagos)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/103 "2004-07-21T10:54:11Z")
> [@Bryan Ekers](#): > > My favourite cliché-destroying bit (and there are an awful lot of them): > > Mal is in violent fistfight with the man who had earlier tortured him severely. Zoe, Jayne and Wash come running in to rescue Mal. > > Zoe: [seeing Mal locked in struggle, gives instructions to Jayne and Wash] Stay back, this is someting the Captain has to do for himself. > Mal: [desperately] No, it’s not! > Zoe: Oh. [she, Jayne and Wash put about fifty bullets into torturer] > > Brilliant. That was a great bit . My favourite is the opener of one of the last episodes, which starts with Mal wandering buck naked in a desert. He sits down and says sardonically, ‘Well that went well.’ The the episode tells the story behind it in 2 flashback strands. Firefly was just so good! ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/104 "2004-07-21T14:00:57Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > The fact that he was played by the same actor who did ADA Paul Robinette on the first few seasons of _Law & Order_ made it even more amusing. _Thank you_. I knew I’d seem him before but couldn’t place his face. I guess I could’ve checked imdb, but I wasn’t motivated enough. ---
**Author:** ![petelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/71c47a/32.png) [@petelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/petelin)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/105 "2004-07-21T15:00:38Z")
Hey, **Smeghead** and/or **Tengu** , do you mind sharing where you found the extended blooper clip? That sounds pretty funny. ---
**Author:** ![Santos\_L\_Halper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/santos_l_halper/32/1_2.png) [@Santos\_L\_Halper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santos_L_Halper)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/106 "2004-07-21T15:24:45Z")
My favorite exchange from _Objects in Space_ was: **EARLY:** You know, with the exception of one deadly and unpredictable midget, this girl is the smallest cargo I’ve ever had to transport, yet by far the most troublesome. Does that seem right to you? **SIMON:** What did he do? **EARLY:** Who? **SIMON:** The midget. **EARLY:** Arson. Little man _loved_ fire. Every time I hear it I break up. Especially the way Jubal says “little man _loooved_ fire…” Joss Whedon says on the comentary track that it’s one of his favorite scenes. What a great show. Eric ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/107 "2004-07-21T15:53:14Z")
> [@Manda JO](#): > > Remember, too, that earlier in that episode Jayne swore up and down like the most injured of innocents that he his guns were under lock and key and that River’s getting her hands on one was just one more piece of proof of here pyscho-wacky dangerous abilities. I completely missed that. Now that scene is even funnier. Daniell ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/108 "2004-07-21T19:09:52Z")
> [@petelin](#): > > Hey, **Smeghead** and/or **Tengu** , do you mind sharing where you found the extended blooper clip? That sounds pretty funny. I got it off one of those services about which we are forbidden to speak on the boards. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/109 "2004-07-21T20:57:38Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > one of those services about which we are forbidden to speak on the boards. The Salvation Army? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/110 "2004-07-21T22:25:05Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > The fact that he was played by the same actor who did ADA Paul Robinette on the first few seasons of _Law & Order_ made it even more amusing. The same actor (Richard Brooks) also played a (more or less) reincarnated Carthaginian warrior in _Brimstone_, another brilliant series cancelled way before its time. In that episode, he gets to make a cool speech about crushing your enemies, the details of which I completely forget but it was right up there with Ah-nuld’s “hear the lamentations of their women”. He’s a tall muscular man capable of coming off really cold-blooded. Pity he didn’t pursue a career in action movies after leaving _L&O_, but maybe he seemed too articulate for them. He shoulda built a career out of playing the bad guy, or maybe he could have played the lead in “I, Robot”, sparing us Will Smith’s forced comedy. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/111 "2004-07-21T22:42:22Z")
I loved **Heart of Gold** , but then, I’m an unrepentent shipper when I watch my favorite shows, and I latched onto Mal/Inara immediately. She was so sad. ☹ My favorite episode is a tie between **Out of Gas** and **Jaynestown**. I love Tim Minear (he’s responsible for my favorite Angel episodes as well, such as **Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been?** ) and **Out of Gas** just shines with his brilliance. The structure of the script, the way they used different lighting effects for the different flashbacks, the hotness of Captain Mal saving his ship and his life, and the fact that it was downright scary. Being stuck in a situation like that would be one of my biggest fears. I think **Jaynestown** is the best commentary on organized religion that I had ever seen. From Book and River’s exchange (and River “fixing” the Bible), to Jayne’s confusion about the kid who took the shot for him, to his disgust with the statue at the end. And it was so subtle. Ben Edlund didn’t bash us over the head with the theme, and it was wonderful. I’m going to meet Jane Espenson next Saturday. I’m very excited about it, and i was trying to decide what I should bring for her to sign. I have all the BtVS and AtS DVDs, but I think I’m going to bring the Firefly set because she was responsible for **Shindig** and Mal fighting with a sword. I love fighting with a sword. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/112 "2004-07-21T22:43:49Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > I got it off one of those services about which we are forbidden to speak on the boards. Scientologists? ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/113 "2004-07-21T22:49:39Z")
Are we allowed to mention Kaylee’s cuteness? ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/114 "2004-07-21T23:36:17Z")
Can I be the first one to mention that I was extremely creeped out by Kaylee’s introduction in “Out of Gas”? It just seemed way out of character for her and seemed to be added solely for shock value. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/115 "2004-07-21T23:39:12Z")
Hey, I appreciated very much that three of the lead women were enthusiastically sexual beings. ---
**Author:** ![cbawlmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@cbawlmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cbawlmer)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/116 "2004-07-21T23:54:39Z")
Count me in as a huge fan. I saw every episode when it aired on Fox. I made my husband watch the show and he loved it too, even though he claims he didn’t like many of the characters. 😕 I’m a Wash fan. I love the scene in “Serenity” where he’s playing with the model dinosaurs. “…And we will call it, ‘This Land’!” Mmm, break me off a piece of the funny, competent guy who loves his wife. I can’t wait for the movie. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2004, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/117 "2004-07-21T23:57:56Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > one of those services Top Value trading stamps? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/118 "2004-07-22T00:02:25Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Can I be the first one to mention that I was extremely creeped out by Kaylee’s introduction in “Out of Gas”? > > It just seemed way out of character for her and seemed to be added solely for shock value. First one? I think you’re the _only_ one. And you can’t call it out of character unless the show previously established that she was shy and/or prudish, which I’m fairly sure they never did. Quite the contrary, it was a fantastic character _establishing_ moment, in a series that was full of such (see also: the jet intake, Mal’s practical joke in the pilot, Book and his kneecaps, etc.) It took me by surprise, because up to that point, I’d had Kaylee pegged as the show’s “Willow,” a character for whom such sexual forwardness would definetly be out of, er, character. But Kaylee is a farm girl with a very practical outlook on life. The cliche of the sweet, tomboyish, innocent-yet-slutty farmgirl is as old as… well, at least as old as the Western genre, which tells you everything you need to know about where the inspiration for this character comes from. I think I speak for many when I say that scene is a big part of Kaylee’s appeal: she’s cute, she’s smart, she’s into “guy” things, and she likes to have sex. She’s second only to Inara (the bisexual space prostitute who flies around the galaxy rescuing geeky young men from their own virginity) in being calculated to appeal to the hormonally frustrated fanboys in the audience. Which is not a bad thing! Worked on me, I can tell you. But the point is, while Kaylee banging the original engineer on the Firefly was unexpected, there’s no way you can reasonably say it was out of character. It’s just that she wasn’t the character you thought she was. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/119 "2004-07-22T00:09:33Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > It took me by surprise, because up to that point, I’d had Kaylee pegged as the show’s “Willow,” a character for whom such sexual forwardness would definetly be out of, er, character. But that’s my problem with it. Up until that point, Kaylee was very much a character meant to resemble Willow. We were never shown anything different and in fact we were shown several times that Kaylee doesn’t know how to act around a boy she likes. She gets all shy and flustered. Then all of sudden, she is this very sexual being with a huge past that doesn’t jive at all with the Kaylee we’ve been shown. And I know I’m not the _only_ one that thought this. I brought it up at another message board I frequent and while I was in the minority, I had a few supporters. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2004, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421/120 "2004-07-22T00:19:01Z")
There were lots of other signs of Kaylee’s open sexuality, like when Inara is heading off for an appointment and she yells, “Have good sex!” I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: The women of **Firefly** most closely resemble Heinlein’s female protagonists - strong willed, competent, aggressive, and sexual. I find that portrayal very appealing - it annoys me to no end that women often get typecast two ways - sexual and helpless (bimbos or airheads), or competent and butch or sexless. Firefly’s females don’t fit into either category. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-firefly/255421.md?page=7)