When Farscape first premiered on The Sci-Fi Channel back in 1999,
it was a rare thing. Farscape was a step up for the network in
that it was a first-run series that was originally produced for Sci-Fi. But it
was also a rare thing in that it was one of the most creatively rich series ever
imagined for television. Created by Rockne S. O’Bannon, and co-produced by Brian
Henson, the son of famed Muppets creator Jim Henson, Farscape told of the
adventures of astronaut John Crichton (Ben Browder), who--during a mission in
orbit of earth--was accidentally shot through a wormhole, emerging on the other
side of the galaxy, where he becomes hunted by Peacekeepers, a fascist military
organization that’s personified by the driven Captain Crais (Lani John Tupu),
the commander of a powerful carrier. Crichton takes refuge aboard the
living ship Moya, which is operated by the kind-hearted Pilot (voiced by Tupu in a dual role).
The first season of Farscape is wonderfully unsettled, as Crichton
struggles to make his way amid the wide-spread mistrust amongst the former
prisoners of the Peacekeepers: Zhaan (Virginia Hey), a blue-skinned mystic with
homeopathic skills; Rygel, (voiced by Jonathan Hardy) a slug-like former ruler
of his realm; Ka D’Ago (Anthony Simcoe), a deep-voiced Luxan warrior in the best
Klingon tradition, and Officer Aeryn Sun (Claudia Black), a captured Peacekeeper
pilot who has been deemed "contaminated" by her own corps, thanks to her exposure
to these interstellar fugitives. Everyone on board Moya is trying desperately to
get home, and will do anything to accomplish that goal--such as the drastic
measures that Zhaan, D’argo and Rygel take in DNA Mad Scientist, where--in
exchange for information on the location of their respective homes--they remove
one of Pilot’s arms as payment. The overall story picks up more steam in the last
third of the first season as we are introduced to the engaging Chiana (Gigi
Edgely) and the creepy Scorpious (Wayne Pygram).
By Season Two, the ghoulish (and far more threatening) Scorpius has taken over
the relentless pursuit of Crichton, thanks to information about wormholes that
had been downloaded into his mind. But the second season also sees a welcome
jelling of the family unit aboard Moya, as they begin to rely on one another to
the point of where they become friends. And all along, the writers of Farscape
are steadily and carefully building their own mythos, one that easily rivals the
imaginary universes of Star Trek and Star Wars. It soon becomes clear that the
Farscape writers remember their history, down to the smallest of details, and
while each episode can stand by itself as an enjoyable story, it’s also a part
of a larger, epic mosaic. Nowhere is this more true than in the third season
episode "Eat Me" where Crichton, D’Argo and Chiana encounter a nefarious villain
aboard a derelict leviathan who has the odd ability to duplicate his victims.
When Crichton gets duplicated, instead of wrapping up the problem by the end of
the episode, the twin Crichtons return to Moya, where--for the better part of the
season--their separate adventures are played out to great effect. Like most SF
shows, Farscape used the hoary clichés of the genre--but unlike most SF shows,
Farscape wasn’t afraid to turn these clichés on their ear. The twin Crichton
storyline was used to introduce the looming epic conflict between the
Peacekeepers and the Scarrens, a hostile race who are also after Crichton for
his wormhole knowledge. And, in many cases, the Farscape writers turn the standard
SF cliché into a hysterically funny moment. One of the rare SF series with a
fantastic sense of humor (much like Stargate: SG-1), Farscape isn’t afraid to make fun of itself. And episodes like the zany Scratch N’ Sniff are genuinely
humorous, without feeling forced.
But if any one word can easily describe
Farscape, it would be passionate. It told its stories--whether comedic or
serious--with great passion. And thanks to the infusion of wild-looking aliens,
courtesy of the Henson Company, the series could never be accused of being timid.
While there were the occasional moments when the series did overreach, it’s
misses were few and far in-between. Don’t let the presence of the Muppets fool
you, Farscape was a series made for adults--adults with a good sense of humor
and an appreciation for the fantastic. Watching the series in this four season
box set is really the best way to enjoy the intricately plotted, epic tale that
spans a universe. But be warned that Farscape was abruptly cancelled at the end
of the fourth season, leaving a major cliffhanger unresolved. Although the cast
and crew reunited and made a superb mini-series called Farscape: The Peacekeeper
Wars, this is not available on this DVD set. Trust me, you will want to buy or
rent the mini-series, for it eloquently wraps up one of the best acted, best
written and just plain entertaining TV shows seen in the last forty years.
--SF