Watching Farscape for the first time (limited spoilers please)

[James Cole]

I had long been interested in trying Farscape out, but Netflix didn't have the first season and to buy it on DVD would be incredibly expensive for a blind buy. But I was able to order the Australian version of the first season for 20 bucks and it came today.

I was hoping the board's Farscape fans could suggest some things to look out for in the first season as I start to watch it. Any bad episodes that I shouldn't unfaily judge the series by? And which are the ones I should really pay attention on?

Thanks

 

[Brent]

Stick through it through the first season, the latter seasons are even better. The wackiness throws people off sometimes, just stick with it, you won't regret it.

 

[species5618]

I'm up to 1x11, halfway through the first season...

...it gets better though, right? So far it's been pretty much standalone episodes with the usual tv formula of a problem presented to the protagonists and eventually solved by the protagonists within the hour ("Throne For a Loss" and "Thank God It's Friday, Again" come to mind). There is some character development, especially with D'Argo and Zhaan, but I thought this show featured serious story arcs. Perhaps it's more of a season 2 thing...

Love Claudia Black, though.

 

[Hyperspace05]

"PK Tek Girl" is one of the better ones in the early part of the season (the first episode I saw, and it hooked me) - and it does have some repercussions down the line.

But the final few episodes of season 1 are *very* strong IMO...

If you don't like the show much after that, I wouldn't bother continuing.

As for story arcs, they certainly do appear and become more intense in later seasons - Although beyond a couple 2/3-parters the show never gets completely serialized (like '24').

 

[HighteeHeller]

I'm always so happy to see a new Farscape thread started.

The first season starts off a little slow but by A Human Reaction things really start to pick up and begins to shape what happens throughout the rest of the series.



<----I'm a fan, can ya tell?

 

[Praetorian]

Yes, by the end of the season it gets significantly better. I enjoyed alot.
However for me the Second season was quite a disapointment. At least the first half. The second half ain't bad at all..
I do intend to see the Third season but haven't found affordable dvds...
Can't explain the disapointment without spoiling you so I won't! Let's just say the show didn't took the direction I thought and hoped it would.

 

[DS9Continuing]

The thing with Farscape (like Babylon 5) is that things you thought were throwaway alien-of-the-week bumf become a lot more important as you get deeper into it. So it's best not to discount anything straight away, because you never know.

 

[chrisspringob]

I'm up to 1x11, halfway through the first season...

...it gets better though, right? So far it's been pretty much standalone episodes with the usual tv formula of a problem presented to the protagonists and eventually solved by the protagonists within the hour ("Throne For a Loss" and "Thank God It's Friday, Again" come to mind). There is some character development, especially with D'Argo and Zhaan, but I thought this show featured serious story arcs. Perhaps it's more of a season 2 thing...

It gets better late in Season 1 (the last 6 or 7 episodes or so), but then the quality drops again in early Season 2. About midway through Season 2, the quality picks up big time, and it starts to get more and more serialized. Mid-season 2 to the end of Season 3 is fantastic. But the seeds of that story arc are planted in those late Season 1 eps.

 

[InklingStar]

Most of the first season is rather typical sci-fi, basically introducing the characters. But watch for Crichton to put on a Peacekeeper uniform - it's never the same after that.

 

[V]

Farscape's season finales are actually FOUR part episodes; that is, four episodes AT THE END of a season, not including the start of the next season.

The Farscape season 1 finale is when it started REALLY, REALLY getting good.

Mild spoilers: the Primary villain of the entire series isn't actually introduced until the season one finale.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Oh wow you're in for some good times!

The first season is unrepresentative of the show as a whole. It underwent a serious change in its character and whole approach near the end of the first season - going from something that seemed too kiddie to something far more adult. Watch the premiere, then if you get bored, watch "PK Tech Girl," "Durka Returns," and start watching in earnest with "A Bug's Life."

And when you get to "Bad Timing" at the end of S4, no spoilers, but just remember: some of us watched that thinking that was the end of the whole series! The preceding episode was titled "We're So Screwed." Well, it's funny now.

And I am shocked and amazed Netflix doesn't have S1! What the frak errrr frell is going on!?!?!

 

[Dorian Thompson]

"Jeremiah Crichton" really, really stinks as a season one episode. Please discount it. Don't judge the rest of the series' quality by that episode. It's extremely dumb. I do agree that the season one finale episodes are high quality and that's when the series really, really takes off.

 

[RoJoHen]

I'm gonna go ahead and agree with everybody here. The first 3/4 of Season 1 are pretty basic scifi. Not awful, but not particularly exciting either. "A Bug's Life" is when it starts to get really good and the story arcs begin.

 

[Mr Light]

Farscape is one of my top five favorite shows ever, but the first season isn't very good. It's not until 1X19 that the show finally begins to deliver on its promise. And a lot of the early episodes are just terrible. I recall "Thank God Its Friday Again" being particularly annoying. But by S2 rolls around it becomes the most amazing show... and S3 is even better!

 

[OdoWanKenobi]

The third season is far and away the very best, but don't discount the rest of the show. I'm really sad that the DVDs are so hard to come by. I would love to own this show.

 

[Icemizer]

Farscape introduced some of the best and most complete alien characters ever to grace the small screen. Equally bizarre, horrifying, and eye catching. Keep watching you will not be dissapointed.

 

[The Borg Queen]

I don't know why they call it Farscape.

A better title would be "The John Chriton Show" because that's essentially what it is.

I'm a fan of Farscape, but I can't stand Ben Browder's crappy overacting in this series. It makes me feel very conflicted.

 

[Mr Light]

I thought Browder was an excellent actor in Farscape. I always remember the scene where he's being tortured and driven insane and he's sitting there in the cell quietly saying "Danger Will Robinson, Danger, Beware of the Chair", it sounds like horrible dialogue but when he delivers it you can really see him slowly going insane and breaking his will in his teary ice blue eyes.

 

[scorpius1701]

I think once you get past "Jeremiah Crichton" the show really takes off.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

I didn't "get" the show when I tried to watch it occasionally on SCIFI. Years later I had to forcefeed myself three or four episodes a day on disc through most of the first season until I started loving it, but at first that was kind of like someone holding my head underwater.