The Great Farscape Rewatch

Why yes I do suck

2009-01-18T11:00:00.000-08:00

I can't seem to bring myself to delete this even though the re-watch is over. Perhaps I'll finish updating it someday but that is an awful lot of TWoP posts to go through. On the off chance there's anyone out there still reading this and someone would like to catch this beast up, drop me an email and I'll add you to the permissions list. Otherwise, this poor little blog will just keep sitting here waiting for me to do something with it. Which may or may not actually happen.

What can I say; real life got the best of me for so long that now I have a long ways to go to catch up. We'll see how it goes. I finally started updating my other blogs again, so it could happen.

Real Life dealys

2007-09-01T19:28:00.000-07:00

Dreadfully sorry about the lack of updates here my frustrated readers.

Real life reared its ugly head in that annoying way it has of doing. Expect some catching up to be happening over the next few weeks. I haven't determined a definite plan for how to go about it yet; either skip to the current episodes and grab one old one that I've missed each week until caught up or just do a series of shorter write ups until I've plowed through. But I'm not abandoning this project and my time should clear up enough to start having new material up sometime in the next two weeks.

1-3: Exodus from Genesis – This little mutiny.

2007-06-26T03:10:00.000-07:00

"Evil gets you a double post."

(poster by gilliam)
Holy sweet blue vomit Batman, Farscape IS kind of minty. This one was, is and will be the beginning of addiction for many. Granted more will fall in the episodes to come (and a few were gone from moment one), but this is the true beginning of the curve. The line forms on the left. Mind your toes.

"...I have the image of John and Aeryn looking out towards the ‘swarm’...with the text, ‘All are bases are belong to Farscape’ [written] below it. Smitten."

The power of the Scape compels you. And don't worry it will keep its promise, though it may get hotter than squag once or twice along the way. Oh and the eyeliner might get a bit thick. And you may have to play nice with parasites.

"The fact that it's only half over when the Moyans and the bugs make peace is a great upending of audience expectations even further."

At first the sharp cuts to “commercial” and exotic speech patterns and heavy colors and slightly askew camera angles seem so overpowering. Our expectations are almost upended too much. We’re still in the adjustment phase, taking in as much as we can.

“...he complains to Zhaan basically that the cool kids don't like him ‘cause he's not a badass.”

But we ARE getting the hang of a few things now. There may be much to assimilate but we're falling into a rhythm. The small things no longer elude us quite so much.

"...it contains an entry from my soon-to-be bestselling book, Everything I Ever Needed to Know, I Learned From Farscape: 'NEVER swallow a Dentic.'"

OK so some small things are not all that elusive to begin with. But there are other moments -- subtle hints of added layers -- that once flew past many an overwhelmed new Scaper.

"My first Farscape experience was watching VHS tapes copied from VHS tapes copied from TV - with Finnish subtitles."

To be fair, some may have had unusual... obstacles for their first time through. But the flickers of facial expression, unusual character choices, and those precious quotes we hold so close; it’s all building upon itself. In hindsight it’s really quite dizzying and we find new things to pick apart.

"… why does [John] choose a plan that endangers her? Even D’Argo seems surprised. And it’s seriously endangering her given that the heat increase is torturing her even worse (and thus putting her in deeper jeopardy for the living death) than it is the other PKs on Moya."

He does this precisely because he already loves her a little. He already knows that she's already come up with the idea herself, somewhere in her fevered brain. This is exactly what she would want and she even nods her assent before he can ask. Already they are so connected.

"Oh. My. Gawd. Look what Scaping has done to me; it has released my inner 'shipper."

All TV should be this good. Just as Farscape turns every concept it depicts violently on its ear, it creates sci-fi fans and romance junkies where they did not previously exist. Violently anti-shipper as a general rule? Clearly you haven’t met Aeryn and Crichton yet. Don’t like shows in space (I’m looking at you Barry Diller)? You know I’ve got these DVDs; you should come over sometime and watch ‘em. It’ll be fun. Sure, we can stop after the first few if you don’t like it.

"...this is the first time Aeryn gives even initial glimmerings of respect to another character on Moya. The fact that it is Pilot - arguably the most alien looking critter on board - is very interesting given Aeryn's inbred horror of 'irreversible contamination'."

This time around I’m noticing aspects of physical presence that hadn’t struck me before. Some are specifically designed to add to the layers…

"Aeryn turned to look at John as if to say: "We are not familiar in that way... how would you know how I feel?" and Crichton's little pause at that point suggested that he realized that perhaps his phrasing was a little too... intimate. heh."

… and some of them are just islands of brilliant in an already splendid sea of remarkable …

"Notice how the DRDs are rolling around all concerned too? I find myself watching the DRDs this time around. There is a story to their activities also."

… and some precious little nuggets manage to be both.

"...the possessed Zhaan is introducing her 'aggregates,' Aeryn kind of pulls herself up straight and slaps her hand on the table with the most adorably indignant look on her face. Hee! Claudia Black is made of awesome."

The best humor comes in the darkest of times and the scariest of monsters are often overly familiar. That mix of moods, genres, tones, characters -- high comedy in the midst of confusion; I praise this show for its thematic daring but the truth is that few programs try this blend because so few could ever meet this high of a standard.

"But on the phrase, 'I want neither,' Aeryn braces herself against Crichton to stand up. Even as she vocally expresses her wish for isolation and independence, she is physically reaching out for support."

It almost hurts to go through these baby steps with them; there are trials ahead, and also great rewards. Yet, somehow the first choices are harder each time through.

"This is a pretty intense revelation to lay on the audience among so many other revelations about Aeryn, but Farscape moves fast and they don't dawdle when telling their story."

I don’t think I ever realized just how fast they built their foundation of people, places and artifacts, until the first time I re-watched all of Farscape, after having seen everything but Peacekeeper Wars. On my first trip theough the Uncharted Territories, they seemed to be finding their footing – even floundering a bit -- and I still see some of that now. But the devil is in the details.

"Is this the first episode in which John's moral reticence begins to slip? He punches bug-John, deriding himself for having fought fair in the past. Oh, John."

Already we have duplication, a meme to become very important down the road. They will battle clones, twins, and genetic extrapolations for a long time to come. Not to mention the internal struggles each will face. Eventually we all fight our worst enemies in ourselves.

"John being Captain Spazz is one of the things that initially repulsed me about Farscape, but is also what drew me in."

And in my universe, that IS a compliment. It should be noted, however, that this is a piss poor choice as a first episode for most.

"I wrote a paper on it about abjection and gendered subject formation, so I had to rewatch it a lot. We had to present our papers to the class and most of us showed clips. *sigh* Showing clips from this ep was a mistake. What do you call it when you do the opposite of Scaping people?"

The fandom equivalent of the Living Death? I keed. And yet, it is more accurate than you think.

"… one thing that disturbed me was D'Argo cutting into Moya without warning. In the background you can hear Moya moaning and it just made me angry at him. Early D'Argo grates."

Seriously. We don't kill our own for mercy though. Oh no, it's Advance Pattern Durka all the way. We give them more Scape; and ever so obligingly, Scape just gives them More.

The ridiculous delay was brought about by a teeny tiny kitten. There are worse ways to end a day.

Now then, my body has functions so "let there be light... banter!"

1-2: I, E.T. -- Mud is mud.

2007-06-14T01:22:00.000-07:00

"Is 'killing a bird' a euphemism for 'choking the chicken?'"
(poster by gilliam)

Somehow, I always forget about John's eye. Which is, I think, melting my brain. At the very least I'm having sympathy seizures. Again. Seriously, how do I forget about this every time? Clearly I have issues.

"You know you’ve got a pacing problem when the script calls for every character to stick his or head in the tiny hole to confirm that, “yep, there’s a peacekeeper thing in there."

And that would be one of them. It's certainly the cause of a great deal of the tumbleweeds that lurched across Rewatch landscape the first day after our weekly appointment. But we'll face the pain together. Strength in numbers. They'll all learn that soon enough. The formula serves it's purpose with algebraic accuracy.

"It made me think that Farscape was going to be mundane. Man, it is a good thing I'm comfortable with admitting when I am wrong enough to basically be the walking definition of wrong."

Last week, the Moyans were introduced to a great catalyst in each other. Now comes the awkward adjusment phase where every thought is debatable. The moment seems so quiet but there's a storm of change beneath the surface.

"See, for various sentimental reasons, this is one of my favorite episodes. Let the I, E.T. smackdown begin."

Gloves and mouthguards all around, then. And I think a helmet might be cushy.
Faustro does look a little like E.T. and it is a real kick in the pants, now that you mention it.

"Rygel biting off a chunk of Aeryn's arm and then swallowing it made me sit up and take note: this is not your usual sci-fi show!"

WWKND? Oh, the depths of disgusting we shall plumb. Even as I squirm and cover my eyes, I'm more charmed with each innard added to the soup. Bring on the entrails and vomit, I say. Did I mention I have issues?

"I loved the irreverence of this episode. Suddenly, Earth is not the center of the universe, and humans are the scary aliens."

And he is not just human, this Scary Alien (tm). He is like us, except he's an astronaut; an idealized portrait of geekdom. He's an action nerd, like we've all dreamed we could be. All of John's frames of reference are the stories he's consumed. His ramblings are gibberish to his companions, but speak deep truths to his own kind. And now he is Scary Alien (tm) when he's still new to all this scary alien crap.

"...this is one of the better episodes to rewatch because it pretty much exemplifies for me the entire Farscape experience..."

Peeling back the image even more. That same sense of impending everything, but less overwhelming than last week. I can breath enough to see the color; honeyed light sticks to each image. These early days I think they used a single color for each episode; crayons for grownups just like the "puppets" are.

So there.

1-1: Premiere -- "Um, Canaveral?"

2007-06-03T16:18:00.000-07:00

“Farscape put the "oy" in HoYay!” – Quizzical1”

We’re at the beginning again and for the very first time. At first the visceral effect is subtle.

“For me watching the Premiere is like looking at baby photos. For people who don't know and love the show, watching Premiere is like looking at a stranger's photos of his/her kid. You might say, "How Cute!" "Look at the muppets, the aliens, and the living ship!” – Sturf

(poster by gilliam)

The first thing I notice is that I feel everything; the events at hand, impending stories and arcs. The colors seem off, the sound feels old. I am profoundly uncomfortable as I watch the sunrise with John. I think his rattlers are contagious.

“One thing I really liked was Crichton's first sight of Moya. He says: "Thats big. Thats really big." but isn't looking down, or to the side which would be the conventional choice. He is looking upward. I just noticed that this re-watch and I was charmed.” – Firecraker1

My friends are back; these characters feel like family. I love them all for now, though I'll want to shake each and every one of the dirty little rats at some point down the road. It's going to be a great couple of years.

“What a nostalgic reaction I had to watching this episode. Knowing all that is to come, all that the characters will go through, this seems like visiting them in their most simplistic, straightforward representations.” --Stillshimpy

D’argo and Zhaan, so beautiful and cold; I never know how much I’ve missed you until you return like this, in all your violent innocence.

“Part way through the episode we are introduced to "Officer Aeryn Sun" (and for those of us who have discussed this before - Aeryn Sun is everything Crichton cannot live without "Air and Sun".” – Firecracker1

Oh, Aeryn, the way you never were. Aeryn is brittle until Crais condemns her. Then she opens, locks onto John with her eyes and you can see Velorek behind them. She’d have been more without either of them, regardless of what she thinks.

“In fact, every time I watch one of these episodes, I realize just how many layers of detail there are, and imagine how many things I must be overlooking.” --McKinley

As Crais says, peel back the image. In some ways he will break my heart more beautifully than any of the others. “Talyn, Starburst.”

“...I was struck by how many indignities are thrust upon Crichton: has a module accident, injected and colonized with alien microbes, strangled, spat upon, tongued, stripped, probed, beaten, arrested, threatened with torture, and has an eargasm. That's a lot of angst for one episode.” – Quizzical1”

“What is the matter with you people?” *points to neck* “Tongue!” Hee.

“We're scifi fans. We can fanwank anything!” “I think at that point, [the DRD] fired into his head a message about products he could purchase. He became so distracted by that, that when the message ended, he had forgotten that the DRD had ever fired anything at his face, and then he went stumbling into the room with tentacle guy and blue lady.” – Quizzical1

On this re-watch, I had an experience I’ve never known before. The show began to overwhelm me and I found by the end of the episode I was a bit shaken with it all. There’s almost too much, washing over me. This show is psychotically alive, in Technicolor.

Now go play.

Back and Back and Back to the Beginning: “Ooooo, what a shiny new thread!”

2007-06-02T23:09:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Great Farscape Rewatch. If the image below has you sagely nodding your head while muttering to yourself, “Yes, but he’s not supposed to have his clothes on,” then you’ve come to the right place. Our humble beginnings can be found buried within the Farscape message boards of Television Without Pity, the home of Tubey and his Minions of Snark.

(motivator by Raksha)

The plan is evil in its simplicity; watch one episode of Farscape per week, in proper order, and try not to get ahead of yourself on the forums. I'll be haphazardly chronicling the whole experience because I'm a masochist. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

Specials honors (in a form to be decided) will be awarded to any re-watching Rewatchers who manage to keep their episode consumption to one per week. To any first time viewers; welcome to Crack TV.

Speaking of conversion, some of you old timers may find this is the perfect time to Scape a Newbie or twelve. Good on you. Bring them on down to the TWoP Scape message boards as each episode "airs" to join in the discussion. Just make sure you read the FAQ and site rules before you start posting (for reals). Or else Tubey will smite thee with his antenna of fury.

Newbies in particular may want to read the reviews at Neon Hummingbird's Tourist's Guide Through the Uncharted Terretories and Farscape World. They were written as the show aired and should remain relatively spoiler free.

Also of interest is the Karlsweb Ezine, with their insightful reviews, EnScaplopedia, and gripping Fiction in Tenchnicolor series (some of which turned out to be disturbingly prophetic in hindsight).

You can find other relevant links, including a schedule in the sidebar. If you think of something I may have missed, send me an email via my profile.

Special thanks go out to beebs and gilliam for their wonderful Rewatch graphics in use on this site and throughout the fandom, to Quizzical1 for organizing this whole thing. It's gonna be along hot summer.