Farscape Rewatch: A Constellation of Doubt (4.17)

Sep 12, 2021 14:53

Wiki summary: Attempting to come to terms with Aeryn's abduction, Crichton retreats to his room and watches a documentary detailing humanity's reaction to Moya's recent visit to Earth.



I've seen the basic premise of this episode executed in a couple of other shows, including my beloved Babylon 5 (where it's done twice, once with an independent media and once with a fascist-controlled one), and I have to say that the Farscape version integrates it best in the show. Not least because without it, I'd complain that the two Earth episodes mid season are a bit short on showing us how our regular characters other than John and Aeryn responded to Earth. A Constellation of Doubt has other things going for it as well - the reactions we see in the fictional documentary are actually credibly mixed and full range, not all pro or all against, even if the moderator/host is biased. (Incidentally, something that has changed between my first watching of this episode and my rewatching it now is both that I've now watched non fictional US tv, and history happened. Compared with the utter vlleness of Fox TV and its like, especially post 9/11 Fox TV, and even the non-Murchoch-owned channels back then, let alone now, this entire fictional docu is incredibly mild and downright open minded. One shudders to think of the rants from the usual suspects rl would have produced.

Moving on from the premise, the episode is also a neat ensemble piece (which is always welcome in this most John/Aeryn-drama-centric of seasons). The D'Argo scenes highlight again how utterly unlike the Space Warrior Cliché he is, and there's a poignancy to the fact he's interacting with Bobby, i.e. a boy at an age just a bit younger than Jothee in Luxan years. BTW, using Bobby as the red thread in general was inspired, instead of John's father yet again. Noranti's matter-of-fact sharpness about killing (and the different takes of religion on it) and Chiana's comment on the sexualized girl fashion versus the voiced horror at teen sex are examples of the show managing to deliver its social commentary in an entirely ic (for the character in question) way. It'sa good episode for Chiana in general, including the on board Moya scenes. Maybe I missed it back in the day or maybe I just didn't remember, but her holding John's hand during the tv watching and him returning her handsqueezing was something that caught me by surprise and moved me. Her scene with Sikozu also underlines her concern for John and Aeryn, and it's interesting that it's Chiana in this episode's present day scenes who talks to everyone else (well, John does, too, but because they come to him - Chiana seeks out the others), not D'Argo.

Chiana also seems both honestly surprised and hurt by the tv broadcast, while the others aren't exactly thrilled, but not really surprised to hear the various comments about them the humans make. Which tells you something about the optimistic way Chiana saw Earth (because it's Crichton's home planet? Because people were nice to her to her face?). Conversely, the episode makes the point that the various people commenting on the aliens (other than Olivia and Bobby), both in the negative and in the positive, are mostly projecting what they want to see into them, and then fit the characters into these formats. And yet, even possibly the most negatively drawn commenter (the psychologist) isn't always presented as wrong, either - her comment on John's state of mind (as betrayed by his telling Bobby he's always waiting for something to happen) and his PTSD is dead on.

Speaking of John's state of mind: the episode culminates in him losing it towards Sikozu until he realizes when and where he's heard the word "Katratzi" before, and then his going to Scorpius. This very last scene made me realize once again that actors must be able to switch the intensity/slashiness factor on or off. John and Scorpius have had various scenes this season. But none showcasing the kind of of fucked up intensity and chemistry their s3 "Into the Lion's Den" scenes had. (Which actually works on a Watsonian level with John withdrawing emotionally and isolating himself because he's afraid Scorpius will get to him somehow.) And no, all of a sudden, wham, it's all back. Despite physically, not much happening: John enters, monologues, Scorpius doesn't move and doesn't say a word, John leaves, Scorpius sits up. But at the same time, emotionally, wow.

(Also wow in a depressing way, because you can tell John actually believes it at that moment when he says "I care about one thing" and one thing only, this being Aeryn. I mean, I don't think this is literally true even this late in the show - he does care about the rest of his friends, what happens to his home planet, and the rest of the galaxy - but in terms of sheer obsession eclipsing everything else at this very moment, he has become that single-minded and tunnel-visioned. It reminds me of a reader commenting on my story Lebenswerk (about Max (von Mayerling) and Norma Desmond of Sunset Boulevard) how you can see their lives increasingly narrowing down to the kind of obssessive self imprisoned state they're in when Joe Gillis meets them - "the pictures have gone small" indeed - and that's true for John Crichton here as well.)

Lastly: this is an episode chock full of good lines. Sikozu's snark re: the Scarrans having possibly achived their interstellar empire by not advertising the location of their supersecret base is one of my favourite lines of hers, both in writing and delivery. And his morose state not withstanding, John's "the son of a bitch will probably get an Emmy for this" made me smile as well.

The other episodes This entry was originally posted at https://selenak.dreamwidth.org/1459112.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.

episode review, farscape, farscape rewatch

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