Blue Hands Demise?

POSTED BY: Calhoun
UPDATED: Friday, April 28, 2006 14:52
VIEWED: 12258
PAGE 1 of 1

CALHOUN

Friday, February 24, 2006 8:44 PM

For those of us who've read the comics

Select to view spoiler:

I just got me the Serenity graphic novelisation which I had been led to believe ended the threat of the blue hands guys but it seems they werent killed just incapacitated.. I am missing something? If you have read the comics what is your take on the blue hand guys?

CALHOUN

Saturday, February 25, 2006 1:22 AM

erm.. anyone?

CHRISPV

Saturday, February 25, 2006 1:41 AM

Select to view spoiler:

Well, the second to last page, second panel, shows the two skeletons that are all that's left of the Blue Hand Group. My take is that Wash's little maneuver smashed them against something, the cabin was depressurized, and then, well, things got icky.

Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal, Fox!

CALHOUN

Saturday, February 25, 2006 2:31 AM

I didnt see that! Damn I just lent the comic to my brother too so I cant check it out... Thanks anyway, that would be fair conclusive though.

KIZYR

Saturday, February 25, 2006 6:35 AM

I do believe that these aren't the only "Blue Hands". Perhaps they were the ones assigned to the River case, but that's all.

At the very least, I think the Hands of Blue are a bit like a combination detective / police force privately owned by Blue Sun, meant to track down any "stolen merchandise". KF

~KF

Lord, I'm walking your way. Let me in, for my feet are sore, my clothes are ragged.
Look in my eyes, Lord, and my sins will play out on them as on a screen. Read them all.
Forgive what you can and send me on my path. I will walk on until you bid me rest.
~Haven Prayer

SIGMANUNKI

Saturday, February 25, 2006 7:26 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Kizyr:

I do believe that these aren't the only "Blue Hands". Perhaps they were the ones assigned to the River case, but that's all.

I would tend to agree with this. After all, how could two people rise to such high power and not be associated with a greater entity? I mean, the officer in Ariel pretty much shoved his whole head up the blue hands...

To weild that much power, and be the only two... Just doesn't make sense.

To conjecture, I would think that the Blue Hands were the ones charged with keeping the students where they were supposed to be and/or retreival, and/or ...

Select to view spoiler:

But, after failing to do so, they sent in a... larger force to handle the situation.

But, that's just me trying to justify some inconsistencies that I've seen (and not having read the comic yet - on order

).

----
"We're in a giant car heading into a brick wall at 100 miles/hr and everybody's arguing about where they want to sit."
-David Suzuki

V

Wednesday, March 8, 2006 5:28 AM

Select to view spoiler:

The comic also revealed that they weren't just "blue hands" but full on blue bodysuits for some reason, perhaps for augmented purposes

Remember, Remember the fifth of November

MATTCOZ

Wednesday, March 8, 2006 5:33 AM

Wow, I don't even remember those last few pages, I must have stopped reading.

ALGUS

Wednesday, March 8, 2006 5:40 AM

They were called independent contracters, so it's conceivable there were only two of them and they were just hired out but the general agreement is that they were in the employ of Blue Sun and taking that into consideration I would agree with the theory that they were likely only two members of some sort of secret police force. The script for The Train Job says "Whatever the CIA is in the future, it's these guys"

Now obviously that was just a comparison to give whoever an idea of what they were to look like, but I dont think they would have focused so much on making them look like secret agents if they were just something else. The guy in The Message was plenty menacing without having that spy look.

Kind of spooky when you think about it, a corporation that has a standing secret police force that excels in assassination? Just how powerful is Blue Sun?

---
Where's the KABOOM?! There was supposed to be an earth-shattering kaboom! *sigh* Delays...delays...

V

Wednesday, March 8, 2006 6:00 AM

Didn't Joss say at one point Blue Sun was like Wal-Mart cross bred with Microsoft? Makes sense.

Remember, Remember the fifth of November

MATTCOZ

Wednesday, March 8, 2006 6:07 AM

I don't think we've seen the last of them, or their kind atleast, no way they go out that easily. They conveniently showed only their heads in the picture, we still don't know what was underneath those blue suits.

Quote:
Originally posted by V:
Didn't Joss say at one point Blue Sun was like Wal-Mart cross bred with Microsoft? Makes sense.

It was Microsoft and Coca-Cola.

BROWNCOATSANDINISTA

Wednesday, March 15, 2006 4:48 AM

Yes, because the Blue Sun isn't as evil as Wal-Mart.

If anyone gets nosy...Shoot em.
Shoot em sir?
Politely.

MATTCOZ

Wednesday, March 15, 2006 5:18 AM

I guess he did compare them to Wal-Mart at one point, so Wal-coca-soft.

CHRISPV

Wednesday, March 15, 2006 5:51 AM

So, we can kill Blue Sun by killing its heart, somewhere in the electronics behind the TVs with a Pepsi while playing the Ballad of Serenity on an iPod?

Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal, Fox!

THESOAPBOXER

Saturday, March 25, 2006 5:54 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Algus:
They were called independent contracters...

I've thought about that too but...

Select to view spoiler:

couldn't they have been talking about Dobson and his lackeys?

_____________________________________________
Could you please just make it stranger? Just stranger. Odder. Could be weirder. More bizarre. How about uncanny?
~Joss Whedon

LAMPYRID

Sunday, March 26, 2006 2:47 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by thesoapboxer:
I've thought about that too but...
Select to view spoiler:
couldn't they have been talking about Dobson and his lackeys?

"Dobson and his lackeys" seem to be just independent, not working for anyone but Dobson. Different agendas. The Blue Hands wanted River, Dobson wanted revenge, an association of convenience.

"Independent Contracters" is vague. Maybe freelancers, mercenaries or bounty hunters, but it also could be a private corporation with a "services" company providing contractors to the Alliance, or Parliament.

There had to be a reason River was paralyzed in fear of them. After all, she didn't fear Early, who is pretty scarely. But when the Blue Hands appear, she leaves Wash, Simon and Kaylee to deal with them? After seeing her save the crew in OIS, this was very disappointing.

BROWNCOATSANDINISTA

Saturday, April 1, 2006 6:28 PM

Didn't the operative say "Most of them, Yes." on the second to last page? I think that they're not yet dead. ((Cue the Princess Bride or Spamalot refrences))

If anyone gets nosy...Shoot em.
Shoot em sir?
Politely.

GEDEON

Saturday, April 1, 2006 7:24 PM

I don't see the Blue Hands as killers.

I see them more as Cleaners.

To me, the Operative is the real hunter. He goes out and doesn't seem to count the dead on the way.

The Blue Hands are cold, but they always walk. These guys don't seem to have anything to prove, don't seem to kill along the way. Even if they do kill Feds on Ariel. Those Feds had specifically talked to River Tam.

LAMPYRID

Saturday, April 1, 2006 7:38 PM

I didn't look at that close enough.

In the picture above, I never noticed that was the Blue Hand's ship docked to the Alliance cruiser.

The way I see this:

The Operative is on the crusier when he receives the message "Our independent contractors have disappeared". He replies with "Much of them", refering to the two skulls we see in the docked ship.

Then he accepts the assignment.

LAMPYRID

Saturday, April 1, 2006 8:27 PM

I think we are suppose to see a similiarity in the way River kills in War Stories, and the way the Blue Hands kill in Ariel. To River, it is just a math problem, no appropiate emotion, and this freaks out Kaylee. The Blue Hands are the same, they kill without emotion.

To answer my own question as to why River fears them. In the Firefly script, "Dead or Alive":

http://www.fireflyfans.net/feature.asp?f=45

On River telling her story to the children. She's smiling, enjoying herself.

RIVER
(sweetly sing-songy)
And then the beautiful princess got
tired of waiting for her handsome
prince and tried to escape, but they
found her and to punish her they
locked her in a smelly, white, cold
room where the evil blue demons
strapped electrodes to her face and
started to shock her. Zap, zap, zap,
until she couldn't stop screaming.
Only no one could hear.

River's still smiling, the kids not so much. In fact, they're just a little bit freaked out by the story and by the freaky lady telling it.

SIMONB

Saturday, April 1, 2006 10:05 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Kizyr:
I do believe that these aren't the only "Blue Hands". Perhaps they were the ones assigned to the River case, but that's all.

At the very least, I think the Hands of Blue are a bit like a combination detective / police force privately owned by Blue Sun, meant to track down any "stolen merchandise". KF

Yeah, I agree. I've posted this link before I know (and it's a Wiki link so not official) but it's mighty interesting all the same:

http://www.fireflywiki.org/Firefly/BlueSun

Also, there was an intereview with Ron Cobb who designed the Hands of Blue ship seen in Ariel on the 'net some time back (lost the link, sorry) but it called the Hands of Blue ship in Ariel the Blue Sun ship at once point, so clearly there is a connection here.

Quote:
The Blue Sun Ship appeared in the November 15th episode "Ariel" and is one of the Alliance's ships

- Shiny. Let's be bad guys.

That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons even death may die

BROWNCOATSANDINISTA

Monday, April 10, 2006 1:54 AM

Wouldn't the operative consider them all gone though, being assumably dead? I think they may be around still, to freak us out with their bleeding causing thingy.

If anyone gets nosy...Shoot em.
Shoot em sir?
Politely.

GRIMLOCK

Monday, April 10, 2006 7:22 AM

Can a browncoat get an a full title or ISBN or something? What exactly are we talking about? Post BDM comics?

SIMONB

Monday, April 10, 2006 10:23 PM

SERENITY a comic now available as a very thin graphic novel, set between the series and the BDM:

• Paperback 104 pages (February 2006)
• Publisher: Dark Horse Comics,U.S.
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1593074492

- Shiny. Let's be bad guys.

That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons even death may die

VINTERDRAKEN

Monday, April 24, 2006 4:35 AM

Always got the impression that these fellows are the "Operatives" of the Blue Sun Corperation.

You can’t stop the Signal.
Keep spreading the word about Firefly!

GRIMLOCK

Friday, April 28, 2006 2:52 PM

V wrote:

Select to view spoiler:

The comic also revealed that they weren't just "blue hands" but full on blue bodysuits for some reason, perhaps for augmented purposes

Can you be a bit more specific. I'm working on a fic where a character, a character-not River, gets into it w/ a HOB. It would be useful to know just how tough these guys are.