Farscape returns to an old fashioned bottle episode when Moya gets caught up in a deadly space plant. It smells like onion and it won't stop growing even as drama over Aeryn's baby unfolds within.
Season Four, Episode Six: Natural Election
And the title seemingly refers to a request from Pilot (Lani Tupu) at the end of the previous episode, that the crew finally pick a captain. Before the final election, they decide each person should serve temporarily, and we join our heroes while Dominar Rygel (Jonathan Hardy) is having his turn.
As a former ruler, you'd think he'd be a natural, but the poor little guy beats himself up when things go wrong on his watch. It really has been a long time since he had legions doing his bidding, I guess.
What goes wrong is a plant, one that seems to be getting bigger and finding new ways of clogging Moya's works. This doesn't stop chatter about pregnancy, though, and Aeryn (Claudia Black) makes the unwise decision to confide in Chiana (Gigi Edgley). The latter seems to think nothing of immediately telling D'Argo (Anthony Simcoe) but she does seem a bit upset when the news spreads.
The news is that Aeryn isn't sure the father is John Crichton (Ben Browder), be it the current resident of Moya or the deceased twin from last season. There's an interesting bit of info about Sebacean biology, that Aeryn's body could have kept a conception in stasis since well before she met Crichton. Nonetheless, I found the drama about whether Crichton's the father a bit disappointingly typical compared to the usual, weirder Farscape fare. I also dislike Aeryn casually throwing away the tension about the Crichton copies by saying there's no longer any distinction in her mind between the two men. The plant plot therefore is much more interesting. I liked how it's Scorpius' (Wayne Pygram) coolant rods that save the day.
This isn't the best episode of the series, though it's not terribly bad. Maybe the best part to me is Sikozu (Raelee Hill) showing increasing eagerness to help Scorpius. I like how the show uses this to help distinguish her from Jool. And anyway, they'd make a cute couple.
. . .
Farscape is available now on Amazon Prime.
This entry is part of a series I'm writing on Farscape for the show's 20th anniversary. My previous reviews can be found here (episodes are in the order intended by the show's creators rather than the broadcast order):
Season One:
Episode 1: PilotEpisode 2: I, E.T.Episode 3: Exodus from GenesisEpisode 4: Throne for a LossEpisode 5: Back and Back and Back to the FutureEpisode 6: Thank God It's Friday Again Episode 7: PK Tech GirlEpisode 8: That Old Black MagicEpisode 9: DNA Mad ScientistEpisode 10: They've Got a SecretEpisode 11: Till the Blood Runs ClearEpisode 12: Rhapsody in BlueEpisode 13: The FlaxEpisode 14: Jeremiah CrichtonEpisode 15: Durka ReturnsEpisode 16: A Human ReactionEpisode 17: Through the Looking GlassEpisode 18: A Bug's LifeEpisode 19: NerveEpisode 20: The Hidden MemoryEpisode 21: Bone to be WildEpisode 22: Family Ties Season Two:
Episode 1: Mind the BabyEpisode 2: Vitas MortisEpisode 3: Taking the StoneEpisode 4: Crackers Don't MatterEpisode 5: Picture If You WillEpisode 6: The Way We Weren'tEpisode 7: Home on the RemainsEpisode 8: Dream a Little DreamEpisode 9: Out of Their MindsEpisode 10: My Three CrichtonsEpisode 11: Look at the Princess, Part I: A Kiss is But a KissEpisode 12: Look at the Princess, Part II: I Do, I ThinkEpisode 13: Look at the Princess, Part III: The Maltese CrichtonEpisode 14: Beware of DogEpisode 15: Won't Get Fooled AgainEpisode 16: The LocketEpisode 17: The Ugly TruthEpisode 18: A Clockwork NebariEpisode 19: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part I: A Not So Simple PlanEpisode 20: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part II: With Friends Like These . . .Episode 21: Liars, Guns, and Money, Part III: Plan BEpisode 22: Die Me, Dichotomy Season Three:
Episode 1: Season of DeathEpisode 2: Suns and LoversEpisode 3: Self-Inflicted Wounds, Part I: Would'a, Could'a, Should'aEpisode 4: Self-Inflicted Wounds, Part II: Wait for the WheelEpisode 5: . . . Different DestinationsEpisode 6: Eat MeEpisode 7: Thanks for SharingEpisode 8: Green Eyed MonsterEpisode 9: Losing TimeEpisode 10: RelativityEpisode 11: IncubatorEpisode 12: MeltdownEpisode 13: Scratch 'n SniffEpisode 14: Infinite Possibilities, Part I: Daedalus DemandsEpisode 15: Infinite Possibilities, Part II: Icarus AbidesEpisode 16: Revenging AngelEpisode 17: The ChoiceEpisode 18: FracturesEpisode 19: I-Yensch, You-YenschEpisode 20: Into the Lion's Den, Part I: Lambs to the SlaughterEpisode 21: Into the Lion's Den, Part II: Wolf in Sheep's ClothingEpisode 22: A Dog with Two Bones Season Four
Episode 1: Crichton KicksEpisode 2: What was Lost, Part I: SacrificeEpisode 3: What was Lost, Part II: ResurrectionEpisode 4: Lava's a Many Splendoured ThingEpisode 5: Promises