Farscape Rewatch: Throne for a Loss (1. 04.)
Easterly greetings, Scapers! Remember, your Dominar approves of sugar highs, so have at it with the chocolate.
Wiki summary: Rygel's plot to appear regal backfires when he, along with a much needed part of Moya's propulsion system, are snatched by Tavlecs who possess drug-dispensing power gauntlets.
This one isn’t one of the Farscape greats, but it does show our crew in the still getting to know each other stage. The series is a bit obvious in (literally) throwing John at Aeryn and vice versa at every given opportunity, but that gives future vidders a lot of material work with. 😊
More seriously, the show really does take its (realistic-feeling) time for its crew bonding. Aeryn is after all a (just about) former Peacekeeper - who didn’t leave because she thought Peacekeeper policies towards Luxans were bad - , so D’Argo’s hostility and distrust are earned, but then so is the tentative bonding over mutual warriorness. That Aeryn knows about Luxan physicality enough to save his life here is an interesting detail; at a guess, Peacekeepers weren’t taught about the non-Sebacean races to help them…
Zhaan’s subplot with the Tavlek shows she’s both compassionate and strong (physically and morally, and btw, I don’t recall Zhaan showcasing this kind of physical strength in later seasons? But then it’s been years) - though other than making this character point about Zhaan and telling the audience „no lectures“ at the end when he goes back to doping using the gauntlet, it feels somewhat random.
The white bleeding: I was spoiled for Zhaan being a plant the first time I saw this episode way back then, but I probably would have written it off as „different blood color for aliens = standard trope“ things otherwises, see also D’Argo in this episode. Mind you, I really like that there are plant-based life forms in humanoid shape in this universe, it’s part of what makes it different, but it’s been so long that I don’t remember - other than Zhaan’s people, do we meet more species that are plant based?
This is when we first learn that for all of Rygel’s insistence on his royal dignity, he’s been deposed, and very aware no one cares whether he lives or dies, including his new crew mates on Moya.(Whom the plot has been careful to give the ruby as a reason to retrieve Rygel.) There's a bit of a chicken/egg thing re: how this explains Rygel. From what I remember Rygel mostly is used as comic relief early on, with his more thoughtful moments - and the part where Rockne O’Bannon’s or David Kemper’s observation that he’s the most intelligent regular on Moya is verifiable - coming later, but his reaction when Jotheb wants to use him in the Consortium is an early hint. Also, once you’ve seen the Peacekeeper Wars, it’s impossible not to grin when it comes to Rygel swallowing that gem for additional reasons than those the episode offers.
Crichton being able to deal with the glove for longer without going crazy than the more naturally aggressive D’Argo and Aeryn could: works with early John, but somehow I doubt later Crichton would qualify. I don’t mean he’s by necessity more attack prone, but he is, due to several season’s worth of trauma, much more paranoid, and presumably the glove would bring that out…
The other days
This entry was originally posted at https://selenak.dreamwidth.org/1393403.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.
Wiki summary: Rygel's plot to appear regal backfires when he, along with a much needed part of Moya's propulsion system, are snatched by Tavlecs who possess drug-dispensing power gauntlets.
This one isn’t one of the Farscape greats, but it does show our crew in the still getting to know each other stage. The series is a bit obvious in (literally) throwing John at Aeryn and vice versa at every given opportunity, but that gives future vidders a lot of material work with. 😊
More seriously, the show really does take its (realistic-feeling) time for its crew bonding. Aeryn is after all a (just about) former Peacekeeper - who didn’t leave because she thought Peacekeeper policies towards Luxans were bad - , so D’Argo’s hostility and distrust are earned, but then so is the tentative bonding over mutual warriorness. That Aeryn knows about Luxan physicality enough to save his life here is an interesting detail; at a guess, Peacekeepers weren’t taught about the non-Sebacean races to help them…
Zhaan’s subplot with the Tavlek shows she’s both compassionate and strong (physically and morally, and btw, I don’t recall Zhaan showcasing this kind of physical strength in later seasons? But then it’s been years) - though other than making this character point about Zhaan and telling the audience „no lectures“ at the end when he goes back to doping using the gauntlet, it feels somewhat random.
The white bleeding: I was spoiled for Zhaan being a plant the first time I saw this episode way back then, but I probably would have written it off as „different blood color for aliens = standard trope“ things otherwises, see also D’Argo in this episode. Mind you, I really like that there are plant-based life forms in humanoid shape in this universe, it’s part of what makes it different, but it’s been so long that I don’t remember - other than Zhaan’s people, do we meet more species that are plant based?
This is when we first learn that for all of Rygel’s insistence on his royal dignity, he’s been deposed, and very aware no one cares whether he lives or dies, including his new crew mates on Moya.(Whom the plot has been careful to give the ruby as a reason to retrieve Rygel.) There's a bit of a chicken/egg thing re: how this explains Rygel. From what I remember Rygel mostly is used as comic relief early on, with his more thoughtful moments - and the part where Rockne O’Bannon’s or David Kemper’s observation that he’s the most intelligent regular on Moya is verifiable - coming later, but his reaction when Jotheb wants to use him in the Consortium is an early hint. Also, once you’ve seen the Peacekeeper Wars, it’s impossible not to grin when it comes to Rygel swallowing that gem for additional reasons than those the episode offers.
Crichton being able to deal with the glove for longer without going crazy than the more naturally aggressive D’Argo and Aeryn could: works with early John, but somehow I doubt later Crichton would qualify. I don’t mean he’s by necessity more attack prone, but he is, due to several season’s worth of trauma, much more paranoid, and presumably the glove would bring that out…
The other days
This entry was originally posted at https://selenak.dreamwidth.org/1393403.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.