Firefly 1.12: "The Message"
Written by Joss Whedon and Tim Minear
Directed by Joss Whedon
In which the corpse of one of Mal and Zoe’s old war buddies is dropped in their lap, but when an Alliance cop comes looking to take it back, the situation turns out to be far more unusual…
Status Report
Though chronologically not the final episode in the “Firefly” story, “The Message” was the final episode produced, and so there is an inevitable air of loss throughout. Was Joss aware of the status of the series when he wrote the episode? Perhaps not fully, but the series was already on its last legs by the time the network approved the script, and Joss is not a stupid man. The theme of this episode is typically complex, slipping in and out of thought on loyalty, honor, and death.
Since this was not meant to be the final episode, there are some plot and character elements that build on what was established earlier, in keeping with the “complication” phase of the first season’s original structure. The complicated history between Mal and Zoe gets a slightly different take than what was presented in “War Stories”, but one entirely consistent with that portrayal. The difference here is that Wash doesn’t begrudge the history between Mal and Zoe; he has learned to respect it and Mal on a level he didn’t understand at the beginning of the season.
Joss always said that the “Firefly” universe would not deal with aliens (since humans themselves were complex and diverse enough for plenty of stories), and the teaser is a bit of a play on that mandate. It’s easy enough to guess that FOX asked for aliens, and well, this is what Joss would do in that situation, isn’t it? It’s also a nice play on the 1800s-era sideshow phenomenon, which fits nicely with the faux-Western conceit of the series.
Continuing the travails of Simon and Kaylee, sweetness turns to annoyance and worse when Simon puts his foot in his mouth yet again. Simon is absolutely correct in his assessment of Kaylee’s personality; she truly finds it best to approach the world openly and simply. She’s not naïve, per se, but she’s definitely not one for artifice. Knowing that, however, Simon tries too hard. He doesn’t seem to realize that Kaylee doesn’t want clever games; she wants someone who accepts her as she is. Simon, brought up in a world and culture where image is highly important, finds that mystifying.
Simon and Kaylee are not, of course, the only ones with relationship issues. As “Trash” made very clear, there’s still a lot being left unsaid between Mal and Inara. For all that Mal was proud of his acquisition of the Lassiter, and that it could solve a lot of problems for him and the crew, he avoids the most obvious option on the table: Inara and her list of contacts. He claims that he doesn’t want to pull Inara into his world and jeopardize her career, but as Inara points out, that doesn’t quite make sense. If anything, he’s more honest when he says he wants her out of the line of fire; it’s in keeping with his apparent mental picture of her as a “pure” source of potential redemption.
The crew’s reaction to receiving mail is revealing. Inara, in keeping with so much about her life, makes damn sure that her package is kept out of view. Jayne, on the other hand, doesn’t even bother hiding his glee at getting a package from his mother, regardless of how ridiculous it is. It reveals that Jayne does, contrary to evidence, hold someone in absolute regard! Kaylee is saddened to discover that she has nothing this time around; one gets the feeling that this is all too common, and that it bothers her to be “forgotten”.
Mal and Zoe, of course, get the package they really never wanted to see: the apparently preserved remains of an old war comrade, Tracey. The flashbacks to the war (which are damn good, given the budget limitations) show different sides to Mal and Zoe, familiar and yet less wounded. Mal is still intensely loyal to his ideals and his comrades, but he hasn’t lost his faith in the Battle of Serenity Valley yet. Zoe is efficient and strong, almost too much so; her time after the way, especially her relationship with Wash, seems to have restored what Mal still lacks. Tracey almost seems like a mascot. He’s not really cut out for the war, and he doesn’t seem to be fighting for the same reasons as Mal.
Earlier in the season, the rest of the crew might have resented how quickly Mal and Zoe toss up the fences between themselves and those not in the war, but too much has passed between them now. Wash doesn’t even bother asking Mal what he wants to do; he just assumes the choice and prepares to set course, much to Mal’s appreciation. Kaylee might find issue with Simon’s suggestion, but he’s only trying to help in the way he knows how. After the previous episode and all the talk about Inara’s schedule, her quick acceptance of the detour speaks volumes.
It wouldn’t be an episode of “Firefly” without some brush with Alliance authority, but the twist this time is the nature of that confrontation. Previous encounters with the Alliance have been either highly bureaucratic (the typical uniformed nitwits) or incredibly sinister (the apparent black ops “hands of blue” squad). This episode continues to demonstrate how corrupt the Alliance can be on a day-to-day basis, down in the trenches, and where certain lines are drawn.
This is an interesting perspective, especially since the Alliance has been depicted from the beginning as an organization with little or no redeeming value. That being the case, it’s very easy to assume that Womack is operating with the full consent of his command structure, and that his methods are sanctioned. The twist is that Womack is operating outside of the bounds of his jurisdiction, which is key to the plot; this give the Alliance at least some level of humanity and morality, thus blurring the lines and making the Alliance less monolithic.
The crew reacts to the change in plans and their thoughts on mortality in a few different ways. Kaylee seems to focus on Tracey as the romantic hero that Simon clearly hasn’t been for her lately; also, Tracey’s desire to go home resonates with her apparent feelings of homesick isolation in the teaser. Book responds as a man of God would, and River responds the way an odd, psychic nutcase would. Jayne, on the other hand, shows an amazing capacity for deep feeling, openly discussing how thoughts on death bring out a desire to live life to the fullest. It’s that much easier to understand his point of view, and why he’s so close to losing sight of his own humanity: he’s let the desire to live life to the fullest overwhelm any concern for others.
Mal and Zoe, of course, get drunk and tell their war stories. Interestingly enough, Inara is there, which suggests a desire to help Mal find comfort in a time of mourning. It’s not as if Inara is making any kind of overt move, but part of her training must be psychiatric in nature. The festivities are quickly brought to an end when Womack comes along, demanding that “stolen goods” be returned. Mal and the others are thinking about the previous episode and Saffron, but it turns out to be a bit more complicated.
Mal clues in on the connection to Tracey’s body, and once the adventure turns a bit more towards more familiar territory, thoughts on death and dying are tossed aside. Mal lets Simon do an autopsy after all, and Jayne is back to wondering what could be smuggled in Tracey’s body (gold!). Again, it’s not so simple, because Tracey’s not dead, just in a drug-induced state. He’s also a living incubator, and Womack wants the stolen organs back. (The obligatory exposition scene is kept interesting by some fun interplay between Simon and Jayne, never mind the Kaylee fascination.)
Mal and Zoe are placed in the familiar position of saving Tracey from his own foolish decisions, and this time around, it’s just as likely to get them in a world of trouble. The first instinct, of course, is running and hiding, which brings on one of the better CGI sequences of the entire series. The effectiveness of the sequence is increased by the personal tension added to the mix: Kaylee and Tracey seem to make a connection (and given her past activities, that’s not something she’d necessarily wait to act upon), and Book notes something critical about Womack and his methods, which leads him to suggest (when things go badly with the running and hiding) that Tracey be turned over.
Tracey, of course, hears this part of the plan, and this leads to the inevitable tragic conclusion. What’s odd is how preventable the situation could be. There’s no reason why Mal and the others can’t explain the plan to Tracey; it’s not like a genuine reaction on his part would be all that better than false resignation. It seems designed to place Mal and Zoe in direct conflict with the man they were mourning only moments earlier, but that could have happened in a less contrived manner.
That flaw is offset largely by the very strong scene where Book confronts Womack, and shows a bit of steel in the process. Book seems to take a great deal of exception to Womack and his methods, and it seems rather personal. This lends credence to the idea that Book was once part of some secret military intelligence division, perhaps focused on internal affairs. That would make someone like Womack particularly disgusting to Book. But taking that thought a little further, one has to wonder if Book himself went bad for a while, taking liberties with his own restrictions to get the job done. If that were the case, then it would go a long way towards explaining his need for redemption and his decision to turn towards God.
The very final scene was, as mentioned nearly everywhere in the fandom, the final scene to be filmed. Joss himself is in the scene, since it became to everyone involved an impromptu funeral for the series itself. In a way, the use of Tracey’s message became something of a metaphor for the end of the series itself; the fans were the ones who carried the series to the end and beyond. Joss was always incredibly honest about his respect for the fans, and in many ways, their equal measure of passion for the series and its characters made “Serenity” a reality. (Which, of course, only makes the hue and cry of some “fans” over the plot of “Serenity” incredibly ironic…respect the artist for his choices, even if those choices are not what you would prefer!)
Of the three unaired episodes, this is probably the strongest. There’s a mournful quality to the entire production, an air of loss that overcomes the weakness of the circumstances of Tracey’s death. Kaylee’s little diversion with Tracey is also a bit forced; if her feelings of isolation are really the reason for it, then it’s not as clear as it could be. But this also a good continuation of the events of “War Stories”, even if it’s not nearly as intense in the long run. It should be remembered that these episodes were meant to take the relationships and assumptions of the characters and shake them up; the problem is that the “resolution” phase of the season, which would have started after “Objects in Space”, never happened, and the original purpose of these “complication” episodes is therefore unclear.
Memorable Quotes
WASH: “Oh my God, it’s grotesque! Oh, and there’s something in a jar…”
WASH: “A man walks down the street in that hat, people know he’s not afraid of anything.”
JAYNE: “Damn straight.”
JAYNE: “What’d you all order a dead guy for?”
MAL: “Everybody dies, Tracey. Someone’s carrying a bullet for you right now, doesn’t even know it. The trick is to die of old age before it finds you.”
MAL: “Using corpses for smuggling is a time-honored repulsive custom.”
JAYNE: “Maybe it’s gold!”
ZOE: “And maybe this was a friend of ours, and you wanna show a little respect.”
JAYNE: “I got respect. But I’m just saying…gold!”
MAL: “All right…now you care to explain why it is you got yourself all corpsified and mailed to me?”
TRACEY: “That call means you just murdered me!”
MAL: “You murdered yourself, son. I just carried the bullet for a while.”
TRACEY: “When you can’t run anymore, you crawl…and when you can’t do that…you find someone to carry you.”
Final Analysis
Overall, this episode is the best of the three unaired installments, even if the final showdown with Tracey is the result of some serious plot contrivance. There’s an underlying sense of loss to the entire hour, and the final scene is really a farewell to the series as it was. This episode has some stunning CGI sequences, and Joss does the usual great job of melding dark humor with drama. It’s not the best “Firefly” episode, but it is another strong one.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Original Rating: N/A
Final DVD Rating: 8/10
Directed by Joss Whedon
In which the corpse of one of Mal and Zoe’s old war buddies is dropped in their lap, but when an Alliance cop comes looking to take it back, the situation turns out to be far more unusual…
Status Report
Though chronologically not the final episode in the “Firefly” story, “The Message” was the final episode produced, and so there is an inevitable air of loss throughout. Was Joss aware of the status of the series when he wrote the episode? Perhaps not fully, but the series was already on its last legs by the time the network approved the script, and Joss is not a stupid man. The theme of this episode is typically complex, slipping in and out of thought on loyalty, honor, and death.
Since this was not meant to be the final episode, there are some plot and character elements that build on what was established earlier, in keeping with the “complication” phase of the first season’s original structure. The complicated history between Mal and Zoe gets a slightly different take than what was presented in “War Stories”, but one entirely consistent with that portrayal. The difference here is that Wash doesn’t begrudge the history between Mal and Zoe; he has learned to respect it and Mal on a level he didn’t understand at the beginning of the season.
Joss always said that the “Firefly” universe would not deal with aliens (since humans themselves were complex and diverse enough for plenty of stories), and the teaser is a bit of a play on that mandate. It’s easy enough to guess that FOX asked for aliens, and well, this is what Joss would do in that situation, isn’t it? It’s also a nice play on the 1800s-era sideshow phenomenon, which fits nicely with the faux-Western conceit of the series.
Continuing the travails of Simon and Kaylee, sweetness turns to annoyance and worse when Simon puts his foot in his mouth yet again. Simon is absolutely correct in his assessment of Kaylee’s personality; she truly finds it best to approach the world openly and simply. She’s not naïve, per se, but she’s definitely not one for artifice. Knowing that, however, Simon tries too hard. He doesn’t seem to realize that Kaylee doesn’t want clever games; she wants someone who accepts her as she is. Simon, brought up in a world and culture where image is highly important, finds that mystifying.
Simon and Kaylee are not, of course, the only ones with relationship issues. As “Trash” made very clear, there’s still a lot being left unsaid between Mal and Inara. For all that Mal was proud of his acquisition of the Lassiter, and that it could solve a lot of problems for him and the crew, he avoids the most obvious option on the table: Inara and her list of contacts. He claims that he doesn’t want to pull Inara into his world and jeopardize her career, but as Inara points out, that doesn’t quite make sense. If anything, he’s more honest when he says he wants her out of the line of fire; it’s in keeping with his apparent mental picture of her as a “pure” source of potential redemption.
The crew’s reaction to receiving mail is revealing. Inara, in keeping with so much about her life, makes damn sure that her package is kept out of view. Jayne, on the other hand, doesn’t even bother hiding his glee at getting a package from his mother, regardless of how ridiculous it is. It reveals that Jayne does, contrary to evidence, hold someone in absolute regard! Kaylee is saddened to discover that she has nothing this time around; one gets the feeling that this is all too common, and that it bothers her to be “forgotten”.
Mal and Zoe, of course, get the package they really never wanted to see: the apparently preserved remains of an old war comrade, Tracey. The flashbacks to the war (which are damn good, given the budget limitations) show different sides to Mal and Zoe, familiar and yet less wounded. Mal is still intensely loyal to his ideals and his comrades, but he hasn’t lost his faith in the Battle of Serenity Valley yet. Zoe is efficient and strong, almost too much so; her time after the way, especially her relationship with Wash, seems to have restored what Mal still lacks. Tracey almost seems like a mascot. He’s not really cut out for the war, and he doesn’t seem to be fighting for the same reasons as Mal.
Earlier in the season, the rest of the crew might have resented how quickly Mal and Zoe toss up the fences between themselves and those not in the war, but too much has passed between them now. Wash doesn’t even bother asking Mal what he wants to do; he just assumes the choice and prepares to set course, much to Mal’s appreciation. Kaylee might find issue with Simon’s suggestion, but he’s only trying to help in the way he knows how. After the previous episode and all the talk about Inara’s schedule, her quick acceptance of the detour speaks volumes.
It wouldn’t be an episode of “Firefly” without some brush with Alliance authority, but the twist this time is the nature of that confrontation. Previous encounters with the Alliance have been either highly bureaucratic (the typical uniformed nitwits) or incredibly sinister (the apparent black ops “hands of blue” squad). This episode continues to demonstrate how corrupt the Alliance can be on a day-to-day basis, down in the trenches, and where certain lines are drawn.
This is an interesting perspective, especially since the Alliance has been depicted from the beginning as an organization with little or no redeeming value. That being the case, it’s very easy to assume that Womack is operating with the full consent of his command structure, and that his methods are sanctioned. The twist is that Womack is operating outside of the bounds of his jurisdiction, which is key to the plot; this give the Alliance at least some level of humanity and morality, thus blurring the lines and making the Alliance less monolithic.
The crew reacts to the change in plans and their thoughts on mortality in a few different ways. Kaylee seems to focus on Tracey as the romantic hero that Simon clearly hasn’t been for her lately; also, Tracey’s desire to go home resonates with her apparent feelings of homesick isolation in the teaser. Book responds as a man of God would, and River responds the way an odd, psychic nutcase would. Jayne, on the other hand, shows an amazing capacity for deep feeling, openly discussing how thoughts on death bring out a desire to live life to the fullest. It’s that much easier to understand his point of view, and why he’s so close to losing sight of his own humanity: he’s let the desire to live life to the fullest overwhelm any concern for others.
Mal and Zoe, of course, get drunk and tell their war stories. Interestingly enough, Inara is there, which suggests a desire to help Mal find comfort in a time of mourning. It’s not as if Inara is making any kind of overt move, but part of her training must be psychiatric in nature. The festivities are quickly brought to an end when Womack comes along, demanding that “stolen goods” be returned. Mal and the others are thinking about the previous episode and Saffron, but it turns out to be a bit more complicated.
Mal clues in on the connection to Tracey’s body, and once the adventure turns a bit more towards more familiar territory, thoughts on death and dying are tossed aside. Mal lets Simon do an autopsy after all, and Jayne is back to wondering what could be smuggled in Tracey’s body (gold!). Again, it’s not so simple, because Tracey’s not dead, just in a drug-induced state. He’s also a living incubator, and Womack wants the stolen organs back. (The obligatory exposition scene is kept interesting by some fun interplay between Simon and Jayne, never mind the Kaylee fascination.)
Mal and Zoe are placed in the familiar position of saving Tracey from his own foolish decisions, and this time around, it’s just as likely to get them in a world of trouble. The first instinct, of course, is running and hiding, which brings on one of the better CGI sequences of the entire series. The effectiveness of the sequence is increased by the personal tension added to the mix: Kaylee and Tracey seem to make a connection (and given her past activities, that’s not something she’d necessarily wait to act upon), and Book notes something critical about Womack and his methods, which leads him to suggest (when things go badly with the running and hiding) that Tracey be turned over.
Tracey, of course, hears this part of the plan, and this leads to the inevitable tragic conclusion. What’s odd is how preventable the situation could be. There’s no reason why Mal and the others can’t explain the plan to Tracey; it’s not like a genuine reaction on his part would be all that better than false resignation. It seems designed to place Mal and Zoe in direct conflict with the man they were mourning only moments earlier, but that could have happened in a less contrived manner.
That flaw is offset largely by the very strong scene where Book confronts Womack, and shows a bit of steel in the process. Book seems to take a great deal of exception to Womack and his methods, and it seems rather personal. This lends credence to the idea that Book was once part of some secret military intelligence division, perhaps focused on internal affairs. That would make someone like Womack particularly disgusting to Book. But taking that thought a little further, one has to wonder if Book himself went bad for a while, taking liberties with his own restrictions to get the job done. If that were the case, then it would go a long way towards explaining his need for redemption and his decision to turn towards God.
The very final scene was, as mentioned nearly everywhere in the fandom, the final scene to be filmed. Joss himself is in the scene, since it became to everyone involved an impromptu funeral for the series itself. In a way, the use of Tracey’s message became something of a metaphor for the end of the series itself; the fans were the ones who carried the series to the end and beyond. Joss was always incredibly honest about his respect for the fans, and in many ways, their equal measure of passion for the series and its characters made “Serenity” a reality. (Which, of course, only makes the hue and cry of some “fans” over the plot of “Serenity” incredibly ironic…respect the artist for his choices, even if those choices are not what you would prefer!)
Of the three unaired episodes, this is probably the strongest. There’s a mournful quality to the entire production, an air of loss that overcomes the weakness of the circumstances of Tracey’s death. Kaylee’s little diversion with Tracey is also a bit forced; if her feelings of isolation are really the reason for it, then it’s not as clear as it could be. But this also a good continuation of the events of “War Stories”, even if it’s not nearly as intense in the long run. It should be remembered that these episodes were meant to take the relationships and assumptions of the characters and shake them up; the problem is that the “resolution” phase of the season, which would have started after “Objects in Space”, never happened, and the original purpose of these “complication” episodes is therefore unclear.
Memorable Quotes
WASH: “Oh my God, it’s grotesque! Oh, and there’s something in a jar…”
WASH: “A man walks down the street in that hat, people know he’s not afraid of anything.”
JAYNE: “Damn straight.”
JAYNE: “What’d you all order a dead guy for?”
MAL: “Everybody dies, Tracey. Someone’s carrying a bullet for you right now, doesn’t even know it. The trick is to die of old age before it finds you.”
MAL: “Using corpses for smuggling is a time-honored repulsive custom.”
JAYNE: “Maybe it’s gold!”
ZOE: “And maybe this was a friend of ours, and you wanna show a little respect.”
JAYNE: “I got respect. But I’m just saying…gold!”
MAL: “All right…now you care to explain why it is you got yourself all corpsified and mailed to me?”
TRACEY: “That call means you just murdered me!”
MAL: “You murdered yourself, son. I just carried the bullet for a while.”
TRACEY: “When you can’t run anymore, you crawl…and when you can’t do that…you find someone to carry you.”
Final Analysis
Overall, this episode is the best of the three unaired installments, even if the final showdown with Tracey is the result of some serious plot contrivance. There’s an underlying sense of loss to the entire hour, and the final scene is really a farewell to the series as it was. This episode has some stunning CGI sequences, and Joss does the usual great job of melding dark humor with drama. It’s not the best “Firefly” episode, but it is another strong one.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Original Rating: N/A
Final DVD Rating: 8/10
posted by John Keegan | 17:42
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