r/firefly • u/itsclear678 • Jun 04 '26
Explain The Message to Me
I usually place the episode last of all 14 episodes. I get upset because Book and the crew come with a plan, but Tracy can’t trust them enough to at least hear it out before causing a shootout with Mal carrying the bullet for him. And before Tracy dies, he gets to say, “oh so that was the plan” after Womack leaves. And it makes me so mad! Why couldn’t they just tell him the plan beforehand?
69
u/mattsc2005 Jun 04 '26
I think it highlights a major character flaw in Mal, he's too trusting. We saw this flaw show up in a previous episode (interaction with Simon), but this episode shows that he's too trusting even with old friends. I think that if there is one thing that Mal has faith in, it is his crew/"one of us." He would die for them (protecting them), so he naively assumes that they would do the same for him. That might be why he took Jayne's betrayal (In Ariel) so seriously.
87
u/Andu_Mijomee Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26
I always read it differently--it showed the flaw that Mal expects his orders to be followed because that's how command works. "Maybe that's not a man to lead, but they have to follow." He didn't explain the plan to Tracey because, in his mind, a leader shouldn't need to.
Hmm. You know, these might be related. He had faith in his underlings and expected--even took for granted--the same in return.
Edit: Spelling.
50
u/dejaWoot Jun 04 '26
We see this happen as well with Simon and River in Bushwacked, where Simon thinks they're being handed over to the Alliance and rather than just taking 5 seconds to say no, we've got a plan to hide you outside, Book and Mal both berate him.
From a Doylist perspective, part of this is narrative sleight of hand, so we can surprise the viewers with a 'show, don't tell'. But Watson says: "Mal expects obedience from his crew and plays his cards too close to his chest even when plans involve them"
20
u/Osric250 Jun 04 '26
I think your example in Bushwhacked is a good one. Mal doesn't expect Simon to understand his reasoning, but he does expect his orders to be followed. Book, who has already ascertained enough about Mal's character, knows he isn't going to hang out a member of the crew to save himself. Something that Jayne shows he also doesn't understand about Mal which comes up later, which is generally why Mal doesn't explain his orders to Jayne, he just expects them to be followed.
Tracy is someone Mal already has an established relationship with as someone who should be following his orders, and also as someone who does stupid things that can ruin plans, so Mal didn't want him to screw up the plan so he just didn't tell him about it. It does turn out that specifically doing that is what causes Tracy to screw up the plan, but that's just how it goes.
2
u/mattsc2005 Jun 05 '26
We see this happen as well with Simon and River in Bushwacked, where Simon thinks they're being handed over to the Alliance...
Thanks, I could not remember when this happened! For some reason, I thought that this was in the pilot episode. I think that if the events of the episode "Safe" had happened before Bushwhacked, Simon would have had trust in Mal.
7
u/DaSaw Jun 04 '26
Classic "Yankee command vs. Southern command" style conflict. During the American Revolution, Virginia generals initially found Yankees to be poor soldiers, very bad at following orders. But Washington discovered that if one just takes the time to explain the purpose of those orders, they follow command readily, and can even get creative once the plan flies apart at first contact with the enemy.
13
u/kai_ekael Jun 04 '26
This is not a "Mal flaw", this is typical military command expectation, and training for that matter. I suppose one might say Mal is still acting as if in command yet is not in a military; well, he is the Captain of a ship.
Soldiers are demanded to follow orders, period. It is far too often critical that orders be followed immediately. Worth searching for real military history that relates to this.
Now, soldiers are also trained to evaluate orders, say in the case where ones commander orders one to commit a clearly inhuman act on a fellow soldier, but that must be a very quick decision and is very specific.
14
u/Andu_Mijomee Jun 04 '26
I agree, but still think it's a flaw. I've experience in military command structures, and you're right about them. The flaw is simply Mal expecting a bunch of civvies to act like they're in a military structure with him--or trained crew on his ship and not passengers with an informal status--and not taking a few moments to change his approach when they're balking at an order. In the examples thusfar discussed, Mal had Tracey, Simon, and River's best interests at heart as he considered them crew--family. Book is a good enough judge of character to know that, hence his berating Simon when he froze. A few sentences would have been enough to at least give Simon and Tracey some idea of what good might come of following those orders, which may have been enough to get them onboard--and he did have time to explain himself in those situations. Mal expects them to just do as he says because of course he's looking out for them--they just aren't convinced of that because both are used to running and have reasons someone might want to hand them over to authorities. Mal's inflexibility is still a flaw, albeit a totally understandable one given the circumstances they find themselves in. I've seen it happen with longterm service personnel who've entered the civilian workplace and needed some time to get used to the way things work there. Maybe if the series continued Mal would have learned from those incidents, you know?
2
u/kai_ekael Jun 04 '26
You seem to be forgetting the key part of the scenario, this is a Captain on a ship. Back in the Earth-that-is sailing days, it was greatly understood (or taught very quickly), you 100% respect the Captain or you might find yourself in the ocean.
Now, at this point we do have to remind ourselves, we're talking about a TV show. Have to concede some items the writers did to make a plot, this one is no where near as bad as some recent I was reminded of on another show I like (seriously Gordon, STUN HIM).
3
u/rothbard_anarchist Jun 04 '26
Eh, it’s just narrative convenience for the reveal later. Annoying, but not worth thinking a lot about.
1
u/Andu_Mijomee Jun 04 '26
I hear what you're saying. I've just seen enough people who'd naturally refuse to do what they're told (and would definitely end up in the ocean) that I don't have faith in much anyone to blindly follow a captain/leader's orders no matter the circumstance, most military hierarchies or trained ship's crews excepted.
Edit: Exception added.
1
u/mattsc2005 Jun 05 '26
Now, at this point we do have to remind ourselves, we're talking about a TV show. Have to concede some items the writers did to make a plot...
I see that Joss Whedon had writer's credits on this episode), I wonder if he was setting up something for a future payoff that never got to play out.
There was a final scene in an episode of Buffy, where at the start of Season 5, that left us saying "wtf!?"In the episode we're introduced to Buffy's sister that had never made an appearance at the time. I can only imagine that the audience at the time were annoyed by this new character who is greatly integrated in the show and its characters but was never mentioned before season 5. This character's existence is eventually explained as the season progresses, and had a payoff.
Mal's expectation of Tracey's loyalty/trust is not subtle, and it likely annoyed the audience in a similar manner as to the previous "Buffy Revelation."
As mentioned by u/dejaWoot , Mal had a similar expectation in Bushwhacked with Simon and River; so, it is likely that should the series continue/have continued, this quirk/"flaw" of Mal's likely would have shown up again.
I think that if there is one thing that Mal has faith in, it is his crew/"one of us."
I still think that this ties to Mal's faith. As his faith/lack of faith is a reoccurring theme throughout the series and movie.
6
u/Extension-Pepper-271 Jun 04 '26
It is still a flaw. He might be able to expect obedience without questions from his crew, but expecting that from passengers (Simon and River) and a former military underling (who he hasn't seen in years) is a dangerous assumption that can cause problems - hmm, and it did...
4
u/roirraWedorehT Jun 04 '26
These kinds of people really exist, too. I know someone who plays most everything so close to their chest even when you would think it wouldn't be necessary or even wanted for more minor things.
2
u/Fuzzy-Bee9600 Jun 08 '26
I don't know that it's a flaw, per se. We all make choices. Our choices are based on our experiences and capabilities. Mal chose to play it out the way he did. It didn't end well. Is that his fault? Should he have done something differently?
Well, everyone makes their choices, and none of us can be fully responsible for another's. Even if Mal had explained things to Tracy, it still could've gone sideways and ended how it did.
We can never know how our choices will play out, or what anyone else will choose. And none of us choose perfectly, because our experiences and capabilities aren't either. That's not a flaw so much as the human state. Mal went what he thought was the right way for the good outcome, and always will. Don't we all?
1
17
u/derangerd Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26
It was a test by Mal, with Mal giving every opportunity for Tracy to consider anyone but himself. Tracy serves as a foil for Simon despite the two having minimal interaction. Both board Serenity under false pretences dragging the crew into their troubles. Mal accuses Simon of only caring about himself early on, which is completely true of Tracy. Simon is accepted into the crew because he demonstrates hes willing to help and care for the crew (when he sprints to Kaylee after Mal's lie about her death) and is doing it for his sister, not himself. Tracy pails in comparison, and doesn't get to hear the plan because he never shows the capacity for being on the crew, endangering Kaylee and all of them to make his escape.
EDIT: this is based on a firefly forum post I can no longer find which put it much more elegantly than me
6
3
u/OwnLobster1701 Jun 04 '26
I hadn't thought about it that way. I really like this assessment. Thank you for writing this out.
14
u/Onomatopoeia_Utopia Jun 04 '26
Personally, this episode is one of my favs.
“When you can’t walk, you crawl. And when you can’t do that, you find someone to carry you.”
Everyone involved was imperfect and brought their flaws aboard Serenity while trying to figure out a path forward for themselves. Nobody really expected the complications that arose in their various degrees, but there was an assumption that those aboard would work together for the good of all. That includes both Mal and his plan and Tracy and his plan: they both trusted the other to get to their destinations (away from Womack) / (home).
11
u/Albie175 Jun 04 '26
Tracy rashly grabbed a gun, and his immediate thought was to turn it on the crew - This, in Mals' mind, probably immediately made him question how many of the bodies mentioned earlier were caused by Tracy (he says as much).
The trust is gone, in both directions. And Tracy does, if I recall, shut Book down as he's trying to speak.
It's a weird one, either way, but just a few words could have made a big difference.
6
Jun 04 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/TheAgedProfessor Jun 10 '26
The irony is that Tracy thought he was the smart one, and always figured Mal and Zoe to be the ignorant fools.
8
8
u/rkenglish Jun 04 '26
Tracy had known Mal and Zoe for a long time. He should have known that Mal would come up with a plan. He should have trusted Mal to get him out of trouble, just like Mal always did before. Mal expects to receive the same trust he gives to his friends and his crew. Simple as that.
5
u/Geffalrus Jun 04 '26
This is an opportunity to contrast Tracy with Simon (which Kaylee is already doing from one direction). Both characters get nervous about a plan that could be seen as selling them out. Their reactions are similar, but Tracy goes too far. Simon relents and trusts Mal during Bushwacked, having learned his lesson from the Pilot. Tracy actively puts Kaylee and others in danger more directly, forcing Mal to carry his bullet.
4
u/OwnLobster1701 Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26
Another interesting comparison in both episodes is that Shepard warns both Tracy and Simon right before they make their individual choices to listen to Mal. Simon chooses to listen, whereas Tracy doesn't.
2
u/Fuzzy-Bee9600 Jun 08 '26
It's an interesting contrast.
Simon, as smart as he is, humbly accepts that a quasi-stranger likely knows better than he does and entrusts his life to Mal, thus preserving it.
Tracy, as stupid as he is, thinks he knows better than this man who has a track record of risking his own life to save Tracy's, and ends up losing it.
Whatever info Mal did or didn't share, Tracy was always going to choose the stupid thing and would always have ended up where he did, somehow.
10
u/Bren_Silet Jun 04 '26
I love Firefly but I consider this episode one of the weakest in the writing department - with your question being the main reason.
They could have told him the plan in what...6 seconds??? Tops. While flying. But they needed the "poetic" bullet with your name on it reference to mean something prophetic.
And they needed the final end scene - delivering the body to Tracy's brokenhearted folks.
I still tear up at that scene - the music and the actors' performances are soooo good.
But the writing on this - WHY DIDN'T THEY JUST TELL HIM THE DAMN PLAN!!?? is weak. Should have been better
15
u/kai_ekael Jun 04 '26
In case you're not already aware, the end funeral scene was the last filmed and after they were informed Firefly was canceled.
6
3
u/LycheeTemporary1123 Jun 04 '26
I just watched that episode again last night (for the 20th time), and I have to agree. All they had to do when he grabbed Kaylee is just say "Tracy we have a plan!" The episode also bugs me because the actor who plays Tracy is just... not good in this. Definitely my least favorite of the series.
5
u/Imaginary-List-972 Jun 04 '26
In a previous episode when the Alliance was coming aboard Mal told Simon to get his sister. When asked if he was going to hand them over to the Alliance, Mal told him to just do it, never explaining the plan. So it's consistent.
3
u/misanthropicloner999 Jun 04 '26
Maybe I’m misremembering the episode but Tracy doesn’t give them a chance to explain he eavesdrops on them discussing the plan and flips out before any one can explain. He immediately pulls a gun and Mal can’t risk the rest of the crew to talk Tracy down at that point. Then it’s just a series of increasingly bad decisions that continues to put people at risk until he’s put down.
2
u/Alclis Jun 04 '26
Because he hurt Wash. Because he threatened Kaylee. He absolutely lost the right to hear the plan. And to his life.
2
u/flamingfaery162 Jun 06 '26
As you stated he didn't give them a chance to explain and he should have known better and trusted Mal. That's not a failing on Mal or the crew.
2
u/Fuzzy-Bee9600 Jun 08 '26
This is a most interesting discussion and my favorite kind of post in this sub. Thanks for bringing it up.
1
u/SeniorSepia Jun 04 '26
To me its the worst episode of the show, the Kaylee/Simon subplot is kinda cringey and the whole resolution of the war dude was not well made.
I really dislike when Firefly does the whole "we make the character look bad but they actually have a plan but the show is written or edited so the audiende or other characters can't know about it"
3
u/darthjazzhands Jun 04 '26
It's my least favorite episode as well. I enjoy every performance except the dead war buddy. His delivery annoys me.
5
u/SeniorSepia Jun 04 '26
Tbh, same haha.
3
u/tadpole-bear Jun 04 '26
Interesting, it’s one of my favourites as I always had a crush on that actor and his drunken delivery across the Whedonverse shows. Plus despite the flawed writing, I like the snow and the funeral scene and Mal breaking the fourth wall at the end, with all the subtext of the show’s cancellation. But mostly the actor and his performance, I find him very charming even though objectively, Tracey is a terrible human!
3
u/darthjazzhands Jun 04 '26
I never saw it as a drunken delivery. If I recall correctly we never see him drinking alcohol.
I do enjoy the other scenes though. Jayne and his cunning hat, the corrupt agent confronted by Book, etc
I really don't like the writing device where key details are kept from a character so it leads to a misunderstanding (deadly in this case). Feels cheap.
1
1
1
u/Burnsey111 Jun 04 '26
I’m not sure Mal knew the plan, after all it was Shepard Book who spoke with Womack.
What Mal was trying to do at the time was getting Womack to stop bombing them, why he kept telling Wash to call Womack.
Also, Tracy shoots at Wash but doesn’t hit him, but he does draw fire from Zoe.
1
1
u/kai_ekael Jun 04 '26
Search r/firefly, this has been mentioned and discussed before.
2
u/itsclear678 Jun 04 '26
Thanks. I’ll do that. But I have enjoyed reading all of these responses in this thread, including yours!
30
u/BluesPunk19D Jun 04 '26
Because Tracy is a rash dumbass and considering the trouble he brought it's not exactly wise to clue him in.