# Venture Brothers "The Invisible Hand of Fate"
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [June 16, 2008, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125 "2008-06-16T17:08:14Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@vibrotronica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vibrotronica)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/1 "2008-06-16T17:08:14Z")
Another strange backstory episode, this time starring Billy Quizboy and Peter White. I’m not sure what to think about the direction the show is taking this season, but one thing is for sure:
The Nozzle is calibrating.
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### Author:  [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/2 "2008-06-16T17:40:45Z")
I had to go watch it on adult swim today because I fell asleep at 10. But yeah, interesting back story. The Phantom Limb seems to have more backstory than anyone else. It was a little gratuitous to me to see the future Dr Girlfriend in that time and place. But what was with the green eyes?
Col. Gatherers disguise and comments are especially funny considering previous appearances.
And the OSI sequence was great for the way they sent up many aspects of GI Joe. Especially the leader of the Village People, I mean, combat team being called “Shore Leave.”
“Do Not Move While …_The Nozzle_… Is Calibrating.”
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### Author:  [@Johnny\_Ecks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ecks)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/3 "2008-06-16T17:53:39Z")
I liked this one fairly well- the GI Joe parody alone was worth the price of admission, but a few things bothered me- First, treating the Guild like a threatening secret society doesn’t mesh with the way it’s been treated before- Everyone seemed to know about it and accept it, maybe even approve of it (Orpheius’s Arch tryouts, Rusty invokes the rules to get Dean released for medical treatment, Brock setting up security for the tag sale, the agreement the guild has with local police).
Second, where did Quizboy get his medical expertise? The guy can install cybernetic hands and reattach severed limbs- when did that happen?
On the other hand, the timeline seems to be fairly consistant, and it was nice to finally know Phantom Limb’s origin- and Sgt. Hatred’s as well!
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### Author:  [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/4 "2008-06-16T17:56:18Z")
That was Sgt Hatred!? Holy Shit! I wondered why they showed that guy putting on a guild ring!
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### Author:  [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/5 "2008-06-16T18:03:05Z")
[QUOTE=Johnny Ecks]
Second, where did Quizboy get his medical expertise? The guy can install cybernetic hands and reattach severed limbs- when did that happen?
[/QUOTE]
Haven’t seen the current episode yet, but he gave Jonas Venture his robotic arm at some point in the previous two seasons. I think he gave Rusty a hand, too.
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### Author:  [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/6 "2008-06-16T18:23:11Z")
Yeah, it was entertaining enough, and it clearly answers the question of Myra’s relationship to the boys.
But I agree with **Johnny Ecks** … it doesn’t feel like it synchs up with the world from season one & two. Mr. White previously didn’t have the unnatural attachment to Billy we see in this episode. They came across as disfunctional roommates, nothing more. (Think about the House of Mummies episode where he’s totally cool with using Billy as a guinea pig for the shrink ray.) Where did Billy learn medicine? When did the Guild become so secret that most of OSI doesn’t believe in it?
Part of the problem is that the world of the Venture Brothers is clearly ludicrous – that’s part of the fun. As long as they left it unexplained, I was willing to go along with it. But the more backstory they provide, the more holes they create. Grr.
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### Author:  [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/7 "2008-06-16T18:27:17Z")
Jackson Publick said on his blog that he meant for this episode to be the penultimate episode of S2, but ultimately, the season finale turned into 2 episodes, so this one had to be moved to S3. He said that he wasn’t exactly happy about it, but that’s just the way it worked out. I don’t think anybody needs to be concerned about the direction the season is going, since this was more or less an accident.
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### Author:  [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/8 "2008-06-16T19:58:29Z")
I think the Guild is well-known… in certain circles. It may also be that they’ve raised their profile in the last 19 years after the events of this episode. It’s likely that after the signing of the Treaty of Tolerance, they laid low for a while to consolidate their influence.
Clearly, Billy Quizboy went on Card Sharks after these events, got money to put himself through school legitimately, and he and White founded Conjectural Technologies.
😃
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### Author:  [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/9 "2008-06-16T20:03:22Z")
[QUOTE=CandidGamera]
It’s likely that after the signing of the Treaty of Tolerance, they laid low for a while to consolidate their influence.
Clearly, Billy Quizboy went on Card Sharks after these events, got money to put himself through school legitimately, and he and White founded Conjectural Technologies.
[/QUOTE]
The fanwank! It burns us!
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### Author:  [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2008, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/10 "2008-06-16T20:52:50Z")
I see it like this:
When Billy first heard Col. Gathers mention The Guild, he asked if it was the one from the Rust Venture cartoon. Clearly, that cartoon was based on the actual adventures of Rusty Venture and Team Venture in the 60’s/70’s, where they no doubt had lots of contact with The Guild (what with the formation of Rusty’s Law and all.) So back then lots of people probably knew of The Guild. Twenty years later, The Guild has gone away, and people don’t really think it existed, or was anything substantial, like the Jedi from Star Wars. In another twenty-ish years later (ie,“now”,) The Guild comes back, but is now too burdened down with bureaucracy to be any real threat.
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### Author:  [@Heller\_Highwater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heller_Highwater)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/11 "2008-06-17T00:49:10Z")
I think **bouv** has it. I just watched the episode on the AS website (I missed the first half last night), and I noticed that Brock mentioned something about trying to prove the Guild was _still_ operating, rather than that it existed at all.
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### Author:  [@ArizonaTeach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArizonaTeach)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/12 "2008-06-17T01:43:28Z")
[QUOTE=Hypno-Toad]
And the OSI sequence was great for the way they sent up many aspects of GI Joe. Especially the leader of the Village People, I mean, combat team being called “Shore Leave.”
[/QUOTE]
I think that Shore Leave was the code-name of the sailor…
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### Author:  [@holmes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/holmes)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/13 "2008-06-17T02:31:41Z")
I don’t think they were mean to be Joes, but [SHIELD](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S.H.I.E.L.D.)
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### Author:  [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/14 "2008-06-17T02:55:37Z")
[QUOTE=holmes]
I don’t think they were mean to be Joes, but [SHIELD](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S.H.I.E.L.D.)
[/QUOTE]
Yes, they are more like S.H.I.E.L.D. in what they do, and especially the blue uniforms, but that little musical montage in this episode was a direct parody/satire of G.I.Joe.
[Take a look for yourself.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DN034sBeF4c)
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### Author:  [@ArizonaTeach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArizonaTeach)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/15 "2008-06-17T03:09:15Z")
[QUOTE=ArizonaTeach]
I think that Shore Leave was the code-name of the sailor…
[/QUOTE]
Which, now that I reread your post, is exactly what you said. :smack:
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### Author:  [@holmes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/holmes)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/16 "2008-06-17T03:11:11Z")
Ah…I missed that part of the show. You are correct, sir!
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### Author:  [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/17 "2008-06-17T04:42:18Z")
Oooh, almost forgot, obligatory [shirt-of-the-week link.](http://www.astrobasego.com/shirtoftheweek.html)
So far I’m glad I didn’t shell out for the entire shirt club. While I liked the designs on the first two, I never wear black, so I would never wear them, and what’s the point of a t-shirt if not to wear it? And this weeks? No thanks. A sub-par design, and another color I would never wear.
And there hasn’t been enough talk about…_The Nozzle.__The Nozzle_ played an integral role in this episode and you people aren’t giving _The Nozzle_ the respect that _The Nozzle_ deserves.
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### Author:  [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/18 "2008-06-17T04:52:05Z")
[QUOTE=Pochacco]
Yeah, it was entertaining enough, and it clearly answers the question of Myra’s relationship to the boys.
[/QUOTE]
Really? I don’t think it answered it at all. It’s still not clear to me that she is the mother of those boys, and I think the show is toying with us on that very point.
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### Author:  [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/19 "2008-06-17T12:27:24Z")
[QUOTE=bouv]
And there hasn’t been enough talk about…_The Nozzle.__The Nozzle_ played an integral role in this episode and you people aren’t giving _The Nozzle_ the respect that _The Nozzle_ deserves.
[/QUOTE]
You obviously looked away from _The Nozzle_.
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### Author:  [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)
#### Post date: [June 17, 2008, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venture-brothers-the-invisible-hand-of-fate/453125/20 "2008-06-17T12:51:39Z")
Nevermind.
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