Farscape

Gullible Jones · Post by **Gullible Jones** » 2008-01-26 06:33pm

Ghetto edit: Wow, apparently yes. From what I'd seen of Farscape, I had figured it was soft SF rather than science fantasy...

Netko · Post by **Netko** » 2008-01-27 02:26am

Considering that there are a few "sufficiently advanced to seem like magic" capable aliens around in Farscape, especially later on, I always just grouped Maldis among them - except that he prefers to have a flair for the dramatic, so his "spells" work pretty much in the B5 Technomage style. But yes, the two (?) episodes with him did feel a bit out of sync with the rest of the series, universe-continuity and SoD-wise.

That's in the pilot as well. And that probably should have been spoilerized, there Netko, but oh well.

Probably... still - ever since the pilot we know that there's something like that going on considering that they look like exactly like humans in a show that is decidedly unorthodox about its aliens, and I haven't spoiled the details.

Adrian Laguna · Post by **Adrian Laguna** » 2008-01-27 03:09am

I really like Farscape because of the humour, and the fact that Crichton is always a few fries short of a Happy Meal. Like how he named his gun "Winona". In one episode he is using another gun and it runs out of ammo in the middle of a fire fight at which point he says, exasperated, "Winona would never do this to me."

Darwin · Post by **Darwin** » 2008-01-27 03:46am

Adrian Laguna wrote:I really like Farscape because of the humour, and the fact that Crichton is always a few fries short of a Happy Meal.

Yeah, Crichton builds up a good thick layer of crazy, starting with the mindraping he gets in the chair, and dealing with the neural clone, and just all the general wackiness going on around him. From season 2 on, he comes off as really rather unhinged.

Lazarus · Post by **Lazarus** » 2008-01-27 02:17pm

I'm watching the show all the way through, at the moment I'm part way through Season 2. I watched from half way through Season 3 onwards on TV so the middle is sort of missing...

I love Farscape when it sticks to the main plot, i.e. the episodes leading up to and immediately after the end of seasons etc. I like it less when it goes into plot dead ends that have no affect on the rest of the show and you can skip without missing a beat. Taking the Stone is a good example, probably one of the worst episodes of Sci-Fi I have ever seen, but I couldn't quite persuade myself to just skip it, though I wish I had. Stand alone episodes which DO have an affect on the plot (PK Tech Girl for example) are much better generally.

The show is best when it stays away from excess muppetry and disappearing up its own arse with contrived, pointless episodes.

Post by **NecronLord** » 2008-01-27 06:17pm

The point is, Maldiss is the most extreme example of a magical entity in Farscape. There's more, Zhann, for instance, has magic powers. Stark is blatantly magical, and at one point (IIRC) actually comes back from death due to being magic. Luxan priestesses (Oricans) have magic.

Scarrans have magical powers too. They even call the furnace-beam a 'mind probe' at one point.

SpacedTeddyBear · Post by **SpacedTeddyBear** » 2008-01-27 06:29pm

"Crackers Don't Matter" was the episode that got me latched onto the series.

Crichton:What the hell is this?
Zhaan: Heat-deflecting paste, you'll burn up in there without it.
Crichton: Smells like puke.
Zhaan: I pre-digested it to increase its potency.
Crichton: It's puke!?!

Post by **Coyote** » 2008-01-28 10:37am

Farscape is very character-driven, which IMO makes it cool. We've all seen really shitty science fiction shows where they try to cover up bad dialogue and uninspiring characters with glitzy effects and 'gee-whiz' bullshit.

Farscape does not have a lot of space battles, it does have magic, and it has cheap special effects... but the characters and snappy dialogue make up for it. Bear in mind at the beginning you're not really supposed to like all the characters and indeed it is set up so that you'll be annoyed by many of them... only to see them change into a team. Chiana's transformation is the most radical, she becomes very much a team player (in her own wierd way).

The beginning all hinges on Ben Browder-- you stick with it because you feel a sense of kinship to Crichton's bewilderment, and your sense of kinship to the other characters slowly expands as Crichton's does. Ben Browder pull sit off very well, I think, but all the characters grow and change, some more significantly than others.

Big Orange · Post by **Big Orange** » 2008-02-01 10:06am

Coyote wrote: Farscape does not have a lot of space battles, it does have magic, and it has cheap special effects...

I wouldn't call the first rate television CGI, amazing animatronics, and convincing alien prosthetics "cheap" at all, with only most interior sets (outside of Moya) on Farscape hinting of a relatively low budget, even though the writing and characters are vastly more important than flashy whiz bangs and consistently slick locations (which was why I eventually gave up on Voyager and have never gotten into Stargate Atlantis, two shows that likely had/have bigger budgets).

If you're looking for a cult Australian show that is made on a genuine shoe string budget, try The Tribe.

Thanas · Post by **Thanas** » 2008-02-02 08:01pm

Farscape rocks.

Great acting, consistent story writing and virtually no OOC.

Oh, and the fandom is pretty awesome as well...and very talented.

Frell the weaker species.

PREDATOR490 · Post by **PREDATOR490** » 2008-02-02 11:15pm

Big Orange wrote: If you're looking for a cult Australian show that is made on a genuine shoe string budget, try The Tribe.

Kinda a different genre though...

The Tribe is a bunch of 10 - 20 year old kids acting in a shopping mall and a barren city. Additionally, I thought the Tribe was from NZ anyway ?
I would have thought it had a rather decent budget but oh well...

Farscape may have 'cheap' effects but they do tend to use them well enough within the story for it to work and the effects are used more as an addition rather than the focus. A pit which other shows tend to fall into like Voyager. No matter how much Voyager may have spent on effects like Scorpian or Endgame it does not change the fact the show was completely shit. Star Trek Nemesis being the latest example of great effects at the expense of consistancy.

Farscape was character driven, specifically Crichton / Aaron. Everyone else was basically secondary to Crichton which actually made it more appealing for me. Afterall we are supposedly looking at this universe through Crichton's perspective with him learning about it as we do in the beginning and watching him develop from the 'cant open the doors stage' to being able to make wormhole superweapons. As a byproduct we also get to see the toll it takes on him living like this with him being a relatively normal human at the start to becoming the kind of guy who will cheat, blackmail, murder and even commit galactic destruction to achieve his goals.
I found this particular style very refreshing next to Star Trek or your standard Sci Fi shows that have the hero's remain noble to the end with their principles. Farscape has your average Joe Crichton from modern'ish times in this situation allowing an element of relation you cant get from other shows.

With this in mind, who gives a fuck if they use the same stock footage of Moya exiting Starburst or the Command Carriers. If your focus is the characters then showing lots of flashy explosions is counter productive in the end and for the most part dosent mesh well with Farscape setting. Moya has no guns or decent combat ability and the premise is criminals on the run from military hardware so you dont have much avenue to have space battles like Star Wars or Stargate.
The other noteable thing Farscape managed to incorporate was modern'ish references like Star Wars etc for humor while still keeping the story going. Stargate tends to do this as well but with them its more isolated with them having comedy 'filler' episodes and then you get the 'serious' development episodes. Farscape as far as I can recall did it more fluidly by mixing in humor with the serious stuff even when it's in morbid arcs.

Vertigo1 · Post by **Vertigo1** » 2008-02-08 07:43pm

Wait until you get into season 2 and watch "Won't Get Fooled Again". If that doesn't grab you, absolutely nothing will.

(All I will say about that is that they make fun of themselves.)

Boyish-Tigerlilly · Post by **Boyish-Tigerlilly** » 2008-02-08 10:35pm

I just recently, this summer, got into the show. I like it too. So far, my favourite episode is the one where Chriton and co get stuck on a planet of people who pick magical turnips for the PK, making them free-love hippies.

NomAnor15 · Post by **NomAnor15** » 2008-02-09 12:36pm

Yeah, it's definitely getting better as it goes along. I just saw the episode "The Flax", which was probably my favorite so far.

Vertigo1 · Post by **Vertigo1** » 2008-02-10 04:12pm

NomAnor15 wrote:Yeah, it's definitely getting better as it goes along. I just saw the episode "The Flax", which was probably my favorite so far.

I have to ask....how hard was it to breathe when you saw D'Argo getting hit on by the pilot?

NomAnor15 · Post by **NomAnor15** » 2008-02-10 07:40pm

Vertigo1 wrote:
NomAnor15 wrote:Yeah, it's definitely getting better as it goes along. I just saw the episode "The Flax", which was probably my favorite so far.
I have to ask....how hard was it to breathe when you saw D'Argo getting hit on by the pilot?

Very hard indeed

. What I really liked though (in that scene) was Crichton giving D'Argo the exact same look that D'Argo gave him and Aeryn (sp?). Gotta love karma.

B5B7 · Post by **B5B7** » 2008-02-11 06:44am

I recently rewatched all of Farscape via DVD season sets that borrowed from public library - including season 4 that I had never seen before as was never shown by channel 9. I own the 'Peacekeeper Wars', so actually watched that before saw S4. Seeing it like this instead of the botched way they were shown on TV enabled me to appreciate it more. Rygel in the past put me off the show, but now I don't mind.

Everyone should see episode 305 'Different Destinations', and contrast how time travel was dealt with in this compared to a typical ST episode - it's brilliant.

Darwin · Post by **Darwin** » 2008-02-11 12:45pm

B5B7 wrote: Seeing it like this instead of the botched way they were shown on TV enabled me to appreciate it more. Rygel in the past put me off the show, but now I don't mind.

Ah, Rygel. For the most part he's a total self-serving dick but he's pulled the crew's asses out of the fire more than his fair share. 1: he's the only one with any real diplomatic skills, demonstrating the on multiple occasions, (Zhaan can pass sometimes, but isn't reliable, has a more than a bit of the crazy, and of course isn't a factor later on) and on top of that, he's nearly always RIGHT in his assessment of folks, and isn't shy about saying so. Rygel's a much needed reality check on a crew full of idealists and dreamers and criminals.

Plus the season-2 expensive rebuild of all the puppets and prosthetics helped hugely.

Vertigo1 · Post by **Vertigo1** » 2008-02-12 02:24pm

B5B7 wrote:Rygel in the past put me off the show, but now I don't mind.

Spoiler for those that haven't seen season 4:

I just about DIED from laughing in that episode where they get sent back to keep Crichton's dad from going up on the Challenger! Rygel addicted to sugar.....ROFL

Post by **Coyote** » 2008-02-12 03:29pm

[SPOILERS]

Rygel was redeemed, in my eyes, when they went to the planet of the dead, after Crichton-II died. He was the only one that seemed to have Aeryn's interests and feelings at heart.

Big Orange · Post by **Big Orange** » 2008-02-18 06:24pm

PREDATOR490 wrote: Farscape may have 'cheap' effects but they do tend to use them well enough within the story for it to work and the effects are used more as an addition rather than the focus. A pit which other shows tend to fall into like Voyager. No matter how much Voyager may have spent on effects like Scorpian or Endgame it does not change the fact the show was completely shit. Star Trek Nemesis being the latest example of great effects at the expense of consistancy.

Actually "Scorpion" and even "Dark Frontier" were generally better than shitty "Endgame", while the better parts of VOY and ENT have held up not especially badly in comparison to the very mediocre TNG movie series that has deflated a lot more in the last ten years.

But Farscape is very easily better than those two underperforming shows hands down, as well as SG: Atlantis, most of the later seasons of SG-1, and some parts of the otherwise solid DS9 (which although has not dated nowhere near as terribly as early TNG, kinda of feels too narratively mechanical and formulaic in places, occasionally sploshing about with TNG preachiness).

And while some people complain about Farscape itself being cancelled after four seasons, with most of the main story arcs being closed in The Peacekeeper Wars, I don't think that is a bad thing at all - the Star Trek franchise and Stargate shows ground themselves down into triteness because they ground on for too many more years longer than they should've, with the writers and casts getting bored alongside the increasingly disenchanted fans (which is why the BBC are going give DW a longish break).

DPDarkPrimus · Post by **DPDarkPrimus** » 2008-02-21 03:41am

I watched the remaining few episodes I had left on the last collection I had purchased so long ago, and over-all the CG still is pretty good. Of course so much of the show being done with prosthetics and puppets means that it will ALWAYS look good.

I need to order all the rest of the Starburst collections I don't have yet in one fell swoop, before Amazon runs out.