notes on Farscape S3, 3x11 (Incubator) - 3x12 (Meltdown)
Past Farscape posts are indexed here.
PLEASE NOTE: I am watching Farscape for the first time, and I am staying resolutely spoiler free. As of this writing, the last episode I've seen is 4x13 (Terra Firma). You're welcome to comment on any eps I've seen, including those not mentioned here, but if you spoil me, I will beat you to death with a shovel. A vague disclaimer is nobody's friend. Also, please keep in mind that I wrote these notes while watching the ep; I work on the prose afterwards, but the notes themselves are limited to what I'd seen at the time.
3x11 Incubator
More melty prowler pilot: Just what I always wanted. Not. Ewww.
Hey, it's the return of Neon Blue Peacekeeper Barbie!
So, okay, Scorpy has had John's erstwhile chip put into his own head? And there's some leftover John in there? So now Scorpius has a HarveyJohn? And we're up to three Johns total? ...I love this show, but my head hurts.
I do like the way the episode manages to have Scorpy reveal his backstory to John, and thus to us, while keeping the "actual" Johns in the dark. (Efficiency, man. It's underrated.)
I'm curious about the extent to which our inevitable sympathy with young Scorpius is supposed to translate into acceptance of the older Scorpius' agenda. I mean, Scorpy's goal is clearly to provoke that sympathy in John (via horror, if necessary), to gain John's sympathy and aid by establishing that the Scarrans must not be allowed to have this technology because they are eeeeeeevil child abusers and torturers. But that scene of Scorpy's keeper torturing him with the Heat Lamp Of Doom reminded me of nothing so much as Scorpy's own Aurora Chair, which begs the question: does the fact that the Scarrans are eeeeeeevil mean that the PKs are not? Well, no, not automatically. It may be true that, as Scorpy claims, the Scarrans are explicitly bent on destroying all other sentient species while Sebaceans are not, but the PK attitudes about hybridity and beliefs about contamination seem to me a difference of degree rather than kind.
Note that I say PK and not Sebacean; the show's distinction between the two is particularly interesting as a contrast to the consistent use of "Scarran" as a single designation that encompasses both species and socio-military organization. Likewise, it's interesting that Sebaceans are obviously and explicitly much like humans physically while the Scarrans are very much not; this choice allows for a greater range of response to Sebaceans than to Scarrans. PK militarism is clearly suspect if not downright bad, but we've still met lots of sympathetic Sebaceans; we have yet to meet a sympathetic Scarran.
In other news: John's decided he can sense wormholes, huh? That's interesting. Possibly insane, but interesting.
Also interesting: that Pilot and Moya have dreamed of exploring deep space, truly unknown territory (as opposed to the remarkably populous "uncharted territory" Our Heroes have been zipping around in for the last couple of years). How would that work, I wonder, with crew aboard? How would one get, for example, food? I'm probably not supposed to be asking these questions, am I.
As of this episode, I like Jool. I like her willingness to help the defector control her own death. I like "the truth is never crap" - she's remarkably insightful when she's not being entirely self-involved. Insight goes a long way with me.
I do love that HarveyJohn has enough agency to shut himself down and take the wormhole data with him. The power of that image suggests the potential for equivalent capabilities in Our Actual Johns - interesting.
3x12 Meltdown
Given the fate of the last few PK phase shielding test pilots, "Meltdown" makes a rather unfortunate choice of title. Which is possibly why I persist in forgetting the actual title and thinking of it as The Smooth Jazz Frell Episode. Aeryn can distract me any time she wants. :::fans self::: "Resist the mist"? No way, man. The mist may not be their friend, but it is the friend of Aeryn/John shippers everywhere.
Oh, and there was a plot macguffin, too, wasn't there - demonic star critters or something. And Stark in High Drama mode: "I have A Plan!" What I like most about this bit of the ep is that even though the plan goes horribly wrong and they all almost die (hey, it's another week on Farscape!), a) Stark's attempt to save what's-her-name trapped soul girl is a lovely thing to do, b) John's reference to Zhaan snaps Stark out of the crazy enough to let the rest of them have some control of Talyn again, and c) he does get to save the girl after all.
And way back at the start of the ep: I have to admit, I completely bought the "reenactment" of Crais' confrontation with Xhalax. I'm willing to accept that it's *not* what happened, but I found it entirely plausible. I still don't trust Crais; I'm still bitter about his encouraging Aeryn to take the transponder link with Talyn (in "Green Eyed Monster") without telling her exactly what she might be in for.
But mostly? Silly, sexy, and nobody we care about died. Woo-hoo!
PLEASE NOTE: I am watching Farscape for the first time, and I am staying resolutely spoiler free. As of this writing, the last episode I've seen is 4x13 (Terra Firma). You're welcome to comment on any eps I've seen, including those not mentioned here, but if you spoil me, I will beat you to death with a shovel. A vague disclaimer is nobody's friend. Also, please keep in mind that I wrote these notes while watching the ep; I work on the prose afterwards, but the notes themselves are limited to what I'd seen at the time.
3x11 Incubator
More melty prowler pilot: Just what I always wanted. Not. Ewww.
Hey, it's the return of Neon Blue Peacekeeper Barbie!
So, okay, Scorpy has had John's erstwhile chip put into his own head? And there's some leftover John in there? So now Scorpius has a HarveyJohn? And we're up to three Johns total? ...I love this show, but my head hurts.
I do like the way the episode manages to have Scorpy reveal his backstory to John, and thus to us, while keeping the "actual" Johns in the dark. (Efficiency, man. It's underrated.)
I'm curious about the extent to which our inevitable sympathy with young Scorpius is supposed to translate into acceptance of the older Scorpius' agenda. I mean, Scorpy's goal is clearly to provoke that sympathy in John (via horror, if necessary), to gain John's sympathy and aid by establishing that the Scarrans must not be allowed to have this technology because they are eeeeeeevil child abusers and torturers. But that scene of Scorpy's keeper torturing him with the Heat Lamp Of Doom reminded me of nothing so much as Scorpy's own Aurora Chair, which begs the question: does the fact that the Scarrans are eeeeeeevil mean that the PKs are not? Well, no, not automatically. It may be true that, as Scorpy claims, the Scarrans are explicitly bent on destroying all other sentient species while Sebaceans are not, but the PK attitudes about hybridity and beliefs about contamination seem to me a difference of degree rather than kind.
Note that I say PK and not Sebacean; the show's distinction between the two is particularly interesting as a contrast to the consistent use of "Scarran" as a single designation that encompasses both species and socio-military organization. Likewise, it's interesting that Sebaceans are obviously and explicitly much like humans physically while the Scarrans are very much not; this choice allows for a greater range of response to Sebaceans than to Scarrans. PK militarism is clearly suspect if not downright bad, but we've still met lots of sympathetic Sebaceans; we have yet to meet a sympathetic Scarran.
In other news: John's decided he can sense wormholes, huh? That's interesting. Possibly insane, but interesting.
Also interesting: that Pilot and Moya have dreamed of exploring deep space, truly unknown territory (as opposed to the remarkably populous "uncharted territory" Our Heroes have been zipping around in for the last couple of years). How would that work, I wonder, with crew aboard? How would one get, for example, food? I'm probably not supposed to be asking these questions, am I.
As of this episode, I like Jool. I like her willingness to help the defector control her own death. I like "the truth is never crap" - she's remarkably insightful when she's not being entirely self-involved. Insight goes a long way with me.
I do love that HarveyJohn has enough agency to shut himself down and take the wormhole data with him. The power of that image suggests the potential for equivalent capabilities in Our Actual Johns - interesting.
3x12 Meltdown
Given the fate of the last few PK phase shielding test pilots, "Meltdown" makes a rather unfortunate choice of title. Which is possibly why I persist in forgetting the actual title and thinking of it as The Smooth Jazz Frell Episode. Aeryn can distract me any time she wants. :::fans self::: "Resist the mist"? No way, man. The mist may not be their friend, but it is the friend of Aeryn/John shippers everywhere.
Oh, and there was a plot macguffin, too, wasn't there - demonic star critters or something. And Stark in High Drama mode: "I have A Plan!" What I like most about this bit of the ep is that even though the plan goes horribly wrong and they all almost die (hey, it's another week on Farscape!), a) Stark's attempt to save what's-her-name trapped soul girl is a lovely thing to do, b) John's reference to Zhaan snaps Stark out of the crazy enough to let the rest of them have some control of Talyn again, and c) he does get to save the girl after all.
And way back at the start of the ep: I have to admit, I completely bought the "reenactment" of Crais' confrontation with Xhalax. I'm willing to accept that it's *not* what happened, but I found it entirely plausible. I still don't trust Crais; I'm still bitter about his encouraging Aeryn to take the transponder link with Talyn (in "Green Eyed Monster") without telling her exactly what she might be in for.
But mostly? Silly, sexy, and nobody we care about died. Woo-hoo!