Talk:The Devil's Hands Are Idle Playthings

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Untitled[edit]

Wouldn't it be a reference as well to the movie Crossroads? (The 1980's one) about a man selling his soul to the devil for guitar ability? Lochok 12:48, 19 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

False Goof[edit]

When Leela encounters the Robot Devil during the intermission of Fry’s opera, Leela was making an oral contract with the Robot Devil so Leela can hear Fry's performance. This was impossible because Leela was deaf at this time. I am removing this goof because it seems that Leela knew what Robot Devil was saying due to his gestures.

Agreed. There's also the fact that Leela signed a piece of paper, so it wasn't an oral contract at all. 70.185.171.184 08:51, 22 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Holophonor[edit]

Seems kind of strange that kids are having a holophonor concert, when in "Parasites Lost" they mention that only a few people in the universe can play, and none of them can play it well. Continuity issue?

Perhaps, but maybe it's the difference between real orchestra players and little kids playing. It's just a matter of what the definition of good is in this case.--Scott73337 14:51, 25 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

False fact?[edit]

From the "References" section: The final scene in the episode (and series) is (deliberately) poorly drawn and animated, calling back to the first scene in the first episode of the series. Why does this sound not true? I'm just asking before removing this fact. --FlyingPenguins 02:31, 12 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I agree. That does sound like nonsense. But, as I'd assume [adult swim] is showing the "Space Pilot 3000" tomorrow, we'll hopefully get to find out. -- Kicking222 02:58, 13 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I agree as well, I thought the last scene was poorly animated in reference to Fry's poor skills, I'll watch tonight as well. Stardust8212 19:48, 13 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]
OK It does open with the animation of Fry playing a video game(somewhat poorly animated) which would seem to make this point valid however whether or not it was done intentionally to reflect the opening is still doubtful. Stardust8212 02:33, 14 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I think it's completely invalid. I removed that part of the "References" because those two scenes are absolutely unrelated. If somebody feels the need to un-revert my reversion, feel free. But playing a video game does not equal playing a holophoner. -- Kicking222 02:37, 14 April 2006 (UTC) [EDIT] And BTW, Stardust, nice little plot detail additions.[reply]
I added it, and will re-add it. This fact is stated in the DVD commentary for this episode. Ari 05:17, 28 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Is stated in the frakkin DVD comentaries by the animators! .Rent them and listen to it.. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.9.165.136 (talk) 10:26, 23 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

-Who is putting "reference needed" tags every times is stated "the autors knew this was going to be the last episode"... The say it quite clearly in the DVD comentaries.. when they began production of 4ACV18 they KNEW pretty well that there would be no more eps requested by FOX. You want references? rent the DVD and listen to the comentaries.. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.9.165.136 (talk) 10:38, 23 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's important to use in-line citations for these sorts of statements otherwise it will appear to anyone who hasn't rented the DVD as hearsay or [[WP:OR|original research, see Wikipedia:Verifiability for info on why we do this. If you know who said what in the DVD commentaries you can help by adding this information to the article. Read WP:CITE for more information on citing your sources in Wikipedia or let me know and I can help you. Stardust8212 13:45, 23 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Merge[edit]

I agree with the merge request, I think it would be best to include the song lyrics (as I see they are also being added in other episodes with songs) but most the rest of I Want My Hands Back is just a restatement of the plot of this episode. Stardust8212 22:19, 9 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • I also think the song info should be merged into this article, but I do not believe the lyrics are necessary. If other episodes have lyrics, then so should this one, but I don't think any episodes should. If anything, an external link with the lyrics on it should be provided. -- Kicking222 23:15, 16 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Capitalization error?[edit]

The article of this talk page is "The Devil's Hands Are Idle Playthings" while this talk page has the "are" uncapitalized. Shouldn't we move the article so it is spelled like this talk page? Funnybunny (talk/Counter Vandalism Unit) 00:40, 20 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I moved it to The Devil's Hands are Idle Playthings because I thought words like are, is, and, are, etc. aren't capitalised, even in titles.--M Johnson (talk • contribs) 23:50, 22 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No but the weird thing is the article and talk are different. The article redirects to the "Are" but the talk page there redirects to the "are" page here. It's a bit odd, I think the talk page has been moved but the article hasn't moved with it (and the redirects make a lovely circle). Stardust8212 01:45, 23 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I think I've fixed it all now. — sjorford++ 12:13, 7 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Great! Thanks. Stardust8212 13:56, 7 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I moved both pages to The Devil's Hands Are Idle Playthings - "Are" should definitely be capitalized. It's a verb. (So should "Is" fwiw.)Torc2 (talk) 03:18, 6 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Song that Fry was writing for Leela?[edit]

Does anyone have the information for the song snippet that Leela overheard Fry writing for her? From about 9:49 to 10:05 (also used at the ending, 21:48 - 21:54)

Was it an excerpt from some already-existing song, or did the Futurama crew do it on their own (which would be really quite significant since it sounds awesome :-) I think if this information is available it ought to be mentioned on this page. 


  -Is a piece of the "The Pathétique Sonata" from Beethoven. Its stated in DVD comentaries.


(any confirmation of this? I've listened and the snippet mentioned above really doesn't sound like the "The Pathétique Sonata"; at the very least it was rearranged with different instruments) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Build6 (talk • contribs) 10:10, 8 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Robot Wheel[edit]

Do we need something on the wheel? Possibly the list of the names shown or something? Go Futurama! Sp3000 10:31, 24 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

This is already in the article On the spinning wheel that the Robot Devil uses to select what robot hands Fry shall switch his hands for, the names are actual names of robots that have been on previous episodes (and/or this episode). and I'm against adding more lists to the episode pages when simple statements of what the list would contain are just as effective. As usual though that's just one opinion. Stardust8212 15:02, 24 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]
BTW, I think that the wheel is a little outdated since it has Liubot on it. Go Futurama! Sp3000 23:33, 25 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]
It seems an anon user has now added this info. I'm personally against it as its a big piece of fancruft in my opinion. I'm leaving it for now and seeing how things pan out, maybe someone else will revert it or at least also express their opinions here right now it seems we have one for and one against it. Stardust8212 00:37, 9 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Fry's Opera[edit]

Do you think we need the song somewhere? I'm thinking on another page but I'm not starting since I'm not sure of whether to add or not add the segments in between (ie the flash cards, break before Act 2, people clapping). Go Futurama! Sp3000 23:33, 25 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not sure if it's needed or not but it should not be its own page, that would be speedily deleted as copyright violation. Stardust8212 00:27, 27 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Broken template at bottom of page[edit]

Not sure how to fix that... appears to be a nested template that has been redirected. Can anyone fix that please? 75.73.47.55 05:23, 20 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Nevermind, I think I got it. 75.73.47.55 05:25, 20 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Definition of irony?[edit]

This episode caused everyone on the Internet to think they know what "irony" means and that everyone else is wrong. (Sidenote: irony has several definitions. Most of the times this episode says aren't ironic, are in fact ironic, albeit a less-common definition of the word.) Not that that's one of my pet peeves or anything. If so many weren't serious about it, it would be hilarious.

Shouldn't the fact that Futurama generated this meme be mentioned? --StarManta 07:31, 3 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I've never heard of the meme but I think something like this would need a reference to be included. Granted nothing else in the article is referenced but this particular item skirts the line of Original Research a little too closely. Stardust8212 12:47, 3 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I find it ironic that Bender told the Robot Devil that it was not ironic when the wheel landed on him when in fact it was. It was the Robot Devil's intention to punish Fry by making him feel guilty about stealing another robot's hands, when in fact the Robot Devil ended up punishing himself. --Froibo 19:34, 4 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I think it should at least be mentioned in the article/the plot that irony was a recurring element in this episode. BTW Froibo you obviously missed the point of the whole irony thing in the episode. The reason Bender says its not ironic is because based on the classic definition of irony (which is finally declared at the end of the episode) situations like that are not ironic. Nevertheless, irony is used in that sense, but that's all part of the episode. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.69.61.208 (talk) 00:07, 29 October 2009 (UTC)[reply]

scifi.com review[edit]

With the latest push to get secondary source for TV episode articles I thought I'd go ahead and throw in here with an article I found. Hopefully I'll have time to read it and interate the info in the near future. If anybody wants to help with this process please see the discussion at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Futurama. scifi.com article Stardust8212 19:53, 11 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]


Possible Goof?[edit]

It could be just a minor thing, but when everybody had left the opera, and Leela asked for the end, it seemed that she lost the robotic ears. Anyone who can accurately verify that? --Scott73337 15:17, 25 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, she does lose the ears however this should not be added to the article per the guidelines at Wikipedia:Television episodes#Things to avoid unless you can find a reliable secondary source which specifically discusses this. Stardust8212 15:31, 25 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Cultural references[edit]

As I recently brought up at the wikiproject (here) it is time we did something about the cultural references sections. I am moving all unsourced references to the talk pages for the time being in hopes of creating a better, more thoroughly sourced article. Please discuss this action at the wikiproject link above so as not to split it over 72 different talk pages. The information removed from the article follows. Stardust8212 01:01, 7 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

  • When Leela talks about her ex-boyfriend, Bender asks "So musicians really Rodger your Hammerstein?", a reference to the songwriters Rodgers and Hammerstein.
  • The name of the building where one of Fry's holophoner concerts take place is called Hovercar-Negie Hall, a play on the name of the concert venue Carnegie Hall in Manhattan.
  • At the holophonor recital, when another student is performing, a couple jumps over barrels (with a number 100 appearing above their heads) as they walk up stairs, which is similar to the gameplay in Donkey Kong.
    • Both the first episode (“Space Pilot 3000”) and this, the final episode of Futurama's original run, contain a Donkey Kong reference.
  • The title of this episode is a play on the phrase “Idle hands are the Devil’s playthings.”
  • The name of the opera hall where Fry’s opera debuts is MHOp (Metropolitan House of Opera), a reference to both IHOP (International House of Pancakes) restaurants and the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City
  • During the intermission, Hedonismbot can be heard complaining that he has not finished vomiting. Upper-class Romans, whom the Bot parodies, supposedly vomited up meals in order to give themselves more opportunities to enjoy the pleasure of eating.
  • This episode marks the return of the Holophonor, originally seen (and played by Fry) in "Parasites Lost"; it is stated in the audio commentary that it was inspired by the Visi-Sonor, an instrument in Foundation and Empire by Isaac Asimov.
  • Bender and Fry are seen riding Segway PTs on their way to Fry's recital, which promptly crash into each other.
  • The Robot Devil's leaping out of a Refrigerator to contact Bender is slightly reminiscent of a scene from Alan Moore & Dave Gibbon's graphic novel Watchmen, in which the same is done by Rorschach to terrify Moloch.
  • The Opera named "Leela: Orphan of the Stars" may be a reference to Orphan of the Stars, a space opera comic book from the series Valérian: Spatio-Temporal Agent.
  • The line in the opera, “I want my hands back!” is a direct musical quote from the Commendatore’s line from the beginning of Act 2 scene 5 of Don Giovani by Mozart.


All these references are valid. All are in the episode. User talk:salaz131 — Preceding unsigned comment added by Salaz131 (talk • contribs) 17:42, 9 April 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Godzilla[edit]

I don't recall Godzilla appearing in this episode at all. Lots42 (talk) 09:25, 24 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

He's in the opera very briefly, I don't remember it clearly but I know Bender says something along the lines of "I don't remember ever fighting Godzilla but that's exactly what I would have done". The note about it in the cultural references section is still unsourced original research though so it could easily be removed. Stardust8212 11:22, 24 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It was after the "Amy, Fry is looking at me, what should I feel..." and before the intermission. Arias2141 (talk) 12:45, 20 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Series Finale?[edit]

This episode was the last one bought by FOX and the company never intended on renewing it because the executives didn't really care for the show. Lack of advertising and schedule jumping caused the show to fail. Also FOX had planned on ending the show before this episode was produced. The reason it's been recognized as a Season Finale is because The Curiosity Company had said this might be the last episode they would ever make. Had the show been renewed before it's seven year hiatus this episode would have been a season finale Matthew Cantrell (talk) 18:04, 10 July 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Hell and Devil categories[edit]

As what's in this episode are specifically Robot Hell and the Robot Devil, who is never once suggested to be the "human" Devil, are these categories really appropriate here? DonIago (talk) 15:52, 6 November 2014 (UTC)[reply]

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Leela's last line - false trivia?[edit]

I just listened to the DVD commentary of this episode, and there's no mention of John Ritter's death impacting Katey Sagal's ability to record her last line, just '8 Simple Rules' in general. Additionally, this fact is brought up during Leela's singing during the opera, and it's stated that Katey had a sore throat. This would heavily imply that the lines that took 6 months to record were the ones she sang. It wouldn't make sense that a sore throat would impact her simply saying "I want to hear how it ends". The DVD commentary does say "the last lines of the show", but lines are recorded out of order all the time, so I wouldn't take this at face value. 86.29.169.24 (talk) 20:50, 28 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Also, the episode ultimately aired less than a month before John Ritter's death and the recording must have taken place well before then, since voice recording usually comes before animation. Also, for all anybody knows, this episode was finished but it aired later than intended because Fox kept pre-empting the show back then. That part of the trivia is a little suspect. 98.152.135.10 (talk) 16:22, 6 September 2023 (UTC)[reply]
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