Exploring the Uncharted Territories: A Farscape Viewing Experience

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by PsychoPere, Dec 22, 2010.

  1. Pemmer Harge

    Pemmer Harge Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Gotta love Won't Get Fooled Again. Typically crazy and I appreciate how they didn't try to recycle the idea that John's convinced this is really Earth.

    The Locket - well :adore: is all I can say. John and Aeryn are clearly one of the very best couples in sci-fi TV - I just think the chemistry they have is extraordinary. It's probably potluck whether this sort of thing works or not, but with these two actors it really, really works.

    The Ugly Truth is quite entertaining as well. Plakavoids!
     
  2. tomalak301

    tomalak301 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Season 2 is my favorite season because of episodes like Won't Get Fooled again, The Locket, and various others. The final four are awesome too, but you haven't gotten there yet.

    I've been in and out of a Farscape rewatch. I got up to PK Tech Girl but then decided it was time to rewatch TNG too. This thread is fun to follow though, and is putting me in a Farscape mood.
     
  3. label

    label Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Season 2 has most of the best John/Aeryn stuff, IMO. Season 3 has most of the best epic Scorpy/John stuff. Season 4 has Grandma. :eek: Worse addition to a show ever.
     
  4. tomalak301

    tomalak301 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    The last time I went through the series and got to Season 4, I didn't mind it too much, even with Noranti there. I agree she was the worst addition to the show, but that doesn't make her that bad. In the interest of not spoiling, I think the reason I liked Season 4 this time around was because there wasn't a long break in between Unrealized Reality and Kansas. Seemed like once the season got to those two episodes, things started to really flow and it ended up being relatively decent.
     
  5. label

    label Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Well, perhaps not. I may have been exaggerating just a smidgen for effect. It also didn't help that she played such a big part in so many poor episodes early in Season 4. (I hated the early 2 parter and Lava's a many splendid thing). Plus I didn't like how she frelled with John and Aeryn.

    Overall, season 4 rebounded to be a reasonably good season, just not quite on the epic level of Season 2 or 3.
     
  6. Bonzo the Fifth

    Bonzo the Fifth Commander Red Shirt

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    Yeah, you're in for a treat... the remaining episodes of the season are just one moment of awesome after another... :-D I'll hold my opinions about it until you've posted, but they're pretty sweet...

    Yeah, "Won't get Fooled Again" is close to my favorite 'comedy' episode, next to 'Crackers...' Now that someone else mentioned it, I guess I have to admit that Season 2 is probably my favorite, overall, as well, which is not to run down the later seasons overmuch...

    And I could deal with Noranti... she was weird, but at least she served a function as a drop in replacement for a certain character... Jool's the one I can't stand, personally... she never became useful...
     
  7. Bonzo the Fifth

    Bonzo the Fifth Commander Red Shirt

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    And yeah, going back to your comment about the John/D'Argo dynamic... in many ways, this relationship is just as important as the John/Aeryn one, in that these are the two people that manage to keep John grounded out here in the Uncharted Territories. Their relationship gets underplayed quite a bit in the show, but it's obvious that they have a lot of bromantic chemistry going on with one another...

    Yeah, I'm quoting ahead of the series again...
     
  8. RoJoHen

    RoJoHen Awesome Admiral

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    Well, how about not doing that? Or at least putting stuff in spoiler codes.
     
  9. tomalak301

    tomalak301 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    You know the thing that I love most about Farscape aren't the stories, but it's the characters and the character interactions with each other. Apparently people want characters to be "dark, gritty, depressing" a lot which is what I got from a show like Battlestar Galactica. While each character in Farscape had dark aspects about them, they were all really likable people, including the Muppets. Farscape get's criticized for having muppets, yet those Muppets are more developed and more well written than most shows with human characters can dream up. Each relationship grew organically, and it was just amazing to watch in the 4 seasons and miniseries worth. In terms of character dynamic/relationships, Farscape set the standard and I haven't seen it met yet in any show I have seen since. It was the most character-arc driven show I've ever seen and it is a shame this cast never won awards because it was a fantastic cast.
     
  10. Neroon

    Neroon Mod of Balance Moderator

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    Emh: Did you ever get an answer about Gilina?
    We get to see her again, albeit briefly, in the S4 episode "John Quixote"


    Regarding "Bone to Be Wild" breaking up the momentum, apparently it was originally intended to come much earlier in season 1 and for one reason or another had to be pushed back.


    This really is a fun thread to watch fro all of the reasons mentioned so far. I'm hosting a marathon in honor of a friend's birthday, and this has been helpful by reviewing which episodes to show.

    Other notes....
    - "Nerve"/"The Hidden memory" were the very first episodes of Scape that I ever saw. I was immediately hooked by the emotional content, the way I was drawn to care about Gilina in such a short amount of time.

    - "The Way We Weren't" is a superb example of how to execute a "bottle show". It was my favorite episode of the series up until season 2's finale. For once we have one of the protagonists actually do something that seems so out of their character as we'd been led to believe so far. They weren't being possessed by yet another spatial anomaly. This wasn't be done by some doppelganger. This really was Aeryn. She really was a part of the Peackeeper squad murdering the previous pilot. It really did happen just the way we see it.

    - "The Locket" is schmaltzy in a way but I am a hopeless romantic, ergo I love it! Incidentally, watch the scenes where they are planting trees very closely. In a couple of shots you can see cars moving in the background. :lol:

    - A few years ago I had the honor of interviewing Rockne O'Bannon at a convention, as part of a audience Q&A session. One that I asked him was if he ever thought that "Farscape" had pushed the envelope a little too much. He replied that he thought perhaps in "Won't Get Fooled Again" the hallucinations with his Mom might have.......
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2011
  11. HighteeHeller

    HighteeHeller Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I love this thread. As i do every time someone watches farscape for the first time and shares in the wonder.

    I bought the box set before xmas and have been watching it again..for the 9th time, maybe? Cant remember. As rojohen says, i like to get others to watch it with me, and in fact i plan on giving my box set away to a friend who i know will love it.

    I might be the only one who feels this way, but season 4 is my favorite. I like sikozu, i love the stories, the writing is tight, heavily plotted, solid story telling.
     
  12. RoJoHen

    RoJoHen Awesome Admiral

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    It took me rewatching it to feel this way. As much as I love the first 3 seasons, and as odd as Season 4 felt the first time I watched it, I have come to love it and do in fact consider it my favorite season. The first half has a lot of subtle stuff going on that you don't really notice the first time around, and the second half is just full of awesome excitement.
     
  13. PsychoPere

    PsychoPere Vice Admiral Premium Member

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    Speaking of which, I kept chuckling at Browder's played-up accent as old Crichton.

    So long as it's nothing that could potentially ruin the enjoyment of the moment, I'm not too bothered by it. In this case, for example, it's pretty obvious how close D'Argo and Crichton's friendship already is and how it'll continue to strengthen. Plus, I've already seen PKW; I really only remember two specific bits of the miniseries, but one of those bits that I can recall was
    D'Argo's death.
    I certainly do appreciate the concern about spoilers, though!

    This show would be nothing without the characters and the chemistry between the various actors. I loved BSG, but it was a very different "love" than what I could ascribe to Farscape. I'll admit I'm one of those folks who likes "dark, gritty, depressing" characters and situations, but I don't want every show to be like that either.

    That was actually me who asked; Emh has seen the series many times before, and is largely responsible for me giving it a go. ;) To answer your question, I did get one previously, but I appreciate you remembering it nonetheless.

    I could see that. I haven't had to go through a situation like that myself, but I thought Browder's performance in those scenes was as beautiful as it was heartbreaking.


    I mentioned previously that I received a copy of KRAD's House of Cards novel and that I was considering taking a short break to read the novel at the point between the two episodes in which it was set. Obviously I didn't take that break (I wanted to maintain the momentum I had started building up in watching the season), but I am about halfway through the book, and will probably comment briefly on it after I finish. So far I'm enjoying it.

    On another note, I'm glad so many people are having fun reading this little thread. :)


    A Clockwork Nebari
    - I wanted to see more Nebari, and now I've got 'em. These Nebari are just as creepy as Salis was. Maybe a little less so, since they don't have his eerily calm demeanor.

    - "Winona." Of course Crichton would name his pulse pistol. Did the producers/writers ever state if the name was a reference to a specific person?

    - I can't recall Pilot cursing before this episode. I was pretty amused when he referred to the "frelling collar" the Nebari put on him.

    - "You're really not cleansed?" "Nope. My thoughts are as dirty as ever." :lol:

    - I was not at all surprised that Harvey was able to interfere with the Nebari mental cleansing. As bad a situation as having a mental clone of Scorpy in his head might be, it's also come in handy on a few occasions.

    - Speaking of "surprise," Crichton's efforts at acting cleansed were just... ridiculous (in a good way). However, it was so different from the agreeableness of the others that I find it hard to believe no one caught on from his performance alone. Guess that comes from the Nebari not having met a human before, and that Moya's crew generally consider Crichton to be nuts anyways. Rygel did a much better job.

    - Fairly good episode. Interesting, though not altogether surprising, that there's a Nebari resistance movement against the Establishment. I hope we get a chance to properly meet Nerri at some point down the road, rather than simply through a recorded message.


    Liars, Guns and Money Part I: A Not So Simple Plan
    - Stark is back! ...again. He better stick around this time, or I'll stop caring about him entirely. :p

    - I've said it a few times before, but I think it's always worth repeating: the alien designs on this show are really great (Natira, for the specific example spurring this thought).

    - Only on Farscape would a character not share the whole heist plan with the entire crew... Stark is lucky Crichton didn't deck him when he found out the plan involved D'Argo getting detained by the Shadow Depository.

    - Stark has serious guts, wanting to steal from Scorpy to free Jothee. Regardless of his assertion, I think that decision was spurred by a desire for revenge, rather than being an "added bonus" as he claimed.

    - Chiana being defensive of D'Argo is cute. She's also pretty wise, considering she's supposed to be the young one. "Friends support one another unconditionally." "They also forgive."

    - The disgust on Braca's face as Scorpy replaced his cooling rod was quite evident. Considering how opportunistic he seemed to be in easily transitioning from loyalty to Crais to working for Scorpy, I wonder if he'll attempt to stab Scorpy in the back at a future point.

    - Crichton's efforts to resist Scorpy's orders near the end was very gripping, and was probably the best part of the episode. This part of the trilogy didn't necessarily knock anything out of the park, but it was a strong part one.


    Liars, Guns and Money Part II: With Friends Like These...
    - I really appreciate the little moments that D'Argo and Aeryn get together, such as the conversation in the teaser of this episode where Aeryn tried to comfort D'Argo that Jothee would be happy to see him again. These two in particular have come a long way since the series premiere.

    - Crichton's plan to assault the Shadow Depository to rescue Jothee was impressively ambitious in scope. It's neat to see how so many seemingly standalone season one episodes are now coming back to have greater importance. It was surprising to see even Durka return.

    - Scorpy and Natira's dalliance was damned disturbing. I don't want to see any more of that.

    - Chiana is coming into her own, slowly but surely. I think it may be most noticeable here, between her threats to Stark if Scorpy kills Jothee due to Stark's bluff, to the way she sort of "takes charge" to explain the fires to John when no one else is in a position to talk, to getting right in Teurac's face as the mercenaries are arguing.

    - A short but heartwarming reunion between D'Argo and Jothee. Aeryn and D'Argo's expressions as they realized why Scorpy would have released Jothee was demoralizing. This episode nicely upped the stakes from part one and provided a cool little jaunt through the show's history to date at the same time.


    Liars, Guns and Money Part III: Plan B
    - I love watching Stark's crazy act. "My side, your side!"

    - My instincts tell me that Crais still can't be trusted, yet he does seem to have changed considering how reluctant he is to bring Talyn into combat situations that aren't purely self-defense. I wish we could see more of his seeming evolution directly, rather than these occasional guest spots.

    - I can't help but smile every time I see Rygel's staff crowned with Durka's head.

    - The assault on the Shadow Depository was kickass. It was so much fun watching Moya's crew leading such a full-scale effort. I'm surprised and impressed that Teurac was willing to sacrifice himself for the mission. I'm also impressed that Rorf jumped in front of pulse rifle blasts to protect Crichton. I especially liked the editing during the cover of darkness sequence as Aeryn, D'Argo, and Bekhesh made their way through a corridor.

    - Aeryn saying "the frell you are" and punching Crichton in the face when he was losing his mental fight against Scorpy's influence gave me a good chuckle.

    - Thrilling episode, filled with great action, a worthy conclusion to a damn good trilogy.


    Die Me, Dichotomy
    - The scene where Aeryn and Crichton finally admit their love for one another explicitly was very touching... until, of course, Harvey's influence caused Crichton to knock Aeryn out.

    - For the most part, this was a much more quiet and introspective episode than the last few, but that was fitting due to Crichton's descent into insanity and the overt emergence of Harvey's influence in taking over Crichton's body.

    - The chase scene with Aeryn in her Prowler and Crichton/Harvey in the module was, to use a cliché, "edge of your seat." Love a good atmospheric aircraft chase (or spacecraft, in this case).

    - Crais is almost becoming a member of the crew (in a general, rather than specific location sense :p). His concern for Aeryn in particular seemed to be genuine, and he seems to be embracing efforts to aid the group. Maybe he genuinely has changed.

    - Aeryn's funeral ceremony was beautiful but haunting.

    - Re: the ending - frell, frell, frell. 'Nuff said, I think.
     
  14. Neroon

    Neroon Mod of Balance Moderator

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    Sorry about getting things all frelled up there.

    Actually, it was the dealing the whole Oedipus complex in addition to her dieing so painfully that I think he felt was potentially over the edge.

    And I can't say I disagree on that. But in the end it was effective in showing just how messed up the Scarran was trying to get him.
     
  15. PsychoPere

    PsychoPere Vice Admiral Premium Member

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    No worries!

    Oh, right. I wasn't thinking about the first part, just focused on the second. It didn't stand out quite as much in that regard to me when I watched the episode, but I can certainly see where O'Bannon (or anyone else) would think that was pushing things a bit far. I also agree with your take on it.
     
  16. The Nth Doctor

    The Nth Doctor Infinite Possibilities... Premium Member

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    The return of Stark is magnificent indeed. You can't imagine how thrilled I was when he finally returned..twice! I don't think I'm revealing too much when I say he and Crais are season 3 cast members, two of many reasons why season 3 is my favorite season.
     
  17. RoJoHen

    RoJoHen Awesome Admiral

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    Stark is actually my favorite character in the entire show. The actor plays him perfectly. He's such a freaking nutjob half the time, but he has much quieter moments as well, and you tell that he is full of so many emotions that are a result of his hard life and the torture from Scorpius' Aurora chair.

    My favorite Stark moments are from the upcoming Season 3 two-parter "Self-Inflicted Wounds."

    That said, the end of Season 2, starting with "Liars, Guns, and Money," was actually my first introduction to Farscape. I had seen bits and pieces of the show on the Sci Fi Channel, and it had always intrigued me, but I could never really get into it. Then one night I was watching it, and this episode was airing for the first time. I watched it and was thoroughly impressed, even though I had no idea what the hell was going on. The chemistry between Crichton and Aeryn was so wonderful (and still the best chemistry of any TV couple I've ever seen) that only 4 episodes later I was heartbroken to see Aeryn die. It was one of those, "There is no way in hell she is actually going to stay dead" kind of deaths, but it was still tragic.

    As for his gun, we never get Winona's last name.

    I don't really have a whole lot to say, except I am very excited that you are starting Season 3. This season takes risks and does things that other shows would never dream of doing. It's also the season where the main arc of the show gets kicked into full gear.
     
  18. label

    label Vice Admiral Admiral

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    That flight scene between Aeryn and John/Harvey and then after Aeryn's craft is damaged and John can do nothing but helplessly watch as Aeryn plumits to her death is still one of the most intense, thrilling, sad, tragic, epic scenes I've ever seen on any show. That's one that stays with me a long time after I watch it each time. Season 1 was pretty good overall, but, the two trilogies, The Locket and Die Me Dichotomy along with a few others from Season 2 are what vaulted the show into my top 5 Sci-Fi shows of all times. Truly excellent season with few exceptions.

    Season 3 is a bit more epic and not quite as John/Aeryn centric as season 2, but still very, very good.
     
    Last edited: Jan 12, 2011
  19. RoJoHen

    RoJoHen Awesome Admiral

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    Well, it is and it isn't. :evil:
     
  20. label

    label Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Yeah, it definitely focuses on them in places I won't go into here to avoid spoilers, but I felt like the main arc of Season 3 shifted to revolve more around Scorpy, Peace-keepers and to a lesser degree, the Scarran threat. Somehow, for me at least, Season 2 felt a bit more "intimate" and a bit more John/Aeryn but that could just be me.