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[foxtrot3d]

Well, after long hearing about how this show was some of the greatest Sci-Fi ever, a friend finally convinced me start watching Farscape. However, ever since discovering Firefly to be mediocre at best after such praise I knew I would probably have to temper my expectations, and boy was I right. Basically, I really don't get the hype surrounding this show, it is nowhere close to AMAZING sci-fi and is, at best, just an average TV show. Now, currently I've just finished S3 so I feel I'm in a good place to judge this show and explain to you why I just don't feel it.

Basically, the only thing compelling about the show to me is the Crichton/Aeryn romance which has just become tedious and boring at this point due to all the contrivances the writers invent to explain why they can't be together for this episode. Aside from the romance the only other great thing the show really does is the amount of pop culture references Crichton is able to thrown in every now and then. But, everything else is just average or just plain bad. There is next to zero world building, the supporting cast of characters are really paper thin, almost zero explanation of technology, barely any exploration of higher themes, etc.

I actually find it hard to even classify the show as sci-fi due to the utter lack of world building and explanation concerning the world, I finally came to the conclusion around S2 that the show was really a comedy/drama that happens to take place in Space and to just not think about things. I could go on and on about the just implausible nature of the world the show is set in and lack of explanation. I mean just what the hell is Starburst? How fast do ships travel in that part of the galaxy? Why are Astrological/Starcharts so damn hard to find? What exactly are the Peacekeepers? How did they start? Are they a government, a PMC, some sort of Galactic Empire? Why would anyone choose a living ship over one with machinery that obeys commands? Etc., etc.

Now, I'm not expecting the show to be Star Trek and spout technobabble at every scene but I do expect some cursory information to explain the internal rules inherent in this world. Even Star Wars which is damn near Science Fantasy is able to explain to you the internal logic and limitations of its world, thus tension is created when we rub up against the outer limits of these rules. In almost every battle type sequence in Farscape I felt an utter lack of tension because I just had no idea what the internal rules were.

Finally, I just want to briefly reiterate how utterly basic and lacking the characterizations of the supporting cast is. Essentially, after your first encounter with these characters you can basically sum up their characters entirely and they'll never really change. D'argo is basically an Klingon, he's angry all the time but has a soft little spot in his heart. Gianna is a crazy, do whatever she wants type. Xan is the spiritual, alien whom basically just ends up being Chakotay "let me tell you about my people" nonsense. Stark is, well I don't think even the writers know what the fuck he is at any given moment, he changes to serve the plot. Rigel is an asshole, and it's truly a wonder why he wasn't blasted out the air lock after the first betrayal. Anyway, you get the point, these characters are rarely ever explored any deeper and what you see on the surface is mostly what you get.

Well, this rant ended up being longer than I thought and I still have more complaints, but I'll stop right here so everyone can tell me how wrong I am.

 

[Principate]

Eh I rarely ever watch normal farscape episodes, I do occasionally watch Peace Keepers Wars, which is certainly one of the better sci fi "movie" finales for a series.

 

[cackhyena]

I like it. More shows need puppets rather than shitty cgi or nothing but humanoids.

 

[Cipherr]

Well, after long hearing about how this show was some of the greatest Sci-Fi ever, a friend finally convinced me start watching Farscape. However, ever since discovering Firefly to be mediocre at best after such praise I knew I would probably have to temper my expectations, and boy was I right. Basically, I really don't get the hype surrounding this show, it is nowhere close to AMAZING sci-fi and is, at best, just an average TV show. Now, currently I've just finished S3 so I feel I'm in a good place to judge this show and explain to you why I just don't feel it.

Basically, the only thing compelling about the show to me is the Crichton/Aeryn romance which has just become tedious and boring at this point due to all the contrivances the writers invent to explain why they can't be together for this episode. Aside from the romance the only other great thing the show really does is the amount of pop culture references Crichton is able to thrown in every now and then. But, everything else is just average or just plain bad. There is next to zero world building, the supporting cast of characters are really paper thin, almost zero explanation of technology, barely any exploration of higher themes, etc.

I actually find it hard to even classify the show as sci-fi due to the utter lack of world building and explanation concerning the world, I finally came to the conclusion around S2 that the show was really a comedy/drama that happens to take place in Space and to just not think about things. I could go on and on about the just implausible nature of the world the show is set in and lack of explanation. I mean just what the hell is Starburst? How fast do ships travel in that part of the galaxy? Why are Astrological/Starcharts so damn hard to find? What exactly are the Peacekeepers? How did they start? Are they a government, a PMC, some sort of Galactic Empire? Why would anyone choose a living ship over one with machinery that obeys commands? Etc., etc.

Now, I'm not expecting the show to be Star Trek and spout technobabble at every scene but I do expect some cursory information to explain the internal rules inherent in this world. Even Star Wars which is damn near Science Fantasy is able to explain to you the internal logic and limitations of its world thus tension is created when we rub up against the outer limits of these rules. In almost every battle type sequence in Farscape I felt an utter lack of tension because I just had no idea what the internal rules were.

Finally, I just want to briefly reiterate how utterly basic and lacking the characterizations of the supporting cast is. Essentially, after your first encounter with these characters you can basically sum up their characters entirely and they'll never really change. D'argo is basically an Klingon, he's angry all the time but has a soft little spot in his heart. Gianna is a crazy, do whatever she wants type. Xan is the spiritual, alien whom is basically just ends up being Chakotay "let me tell you about my people" nonsense. Stark is, well I don't think even the writers know what the fuck he is at any given moment, he changes to serve the plot. Rigel is an asshole, and it's truly a wonder why he wasnt blasted out the air lock after the first betrayal. Anyway, you get the point, these characters are rarely ever explored any deeper and what you see on the surface is mostly what you get.

Well, this rant ended up being longer than I thought and I still have more complaints, but I'll stop right here so everyone can tell me how wrong I am.

You are absolutely right. Farscape was one of the first times GAF steered me wrong years ago. The show is a mess IMO. They had me stick through it through the "Peacekeeper wars" or whatever, but it NEVER got better. What you are seeing is what you get.

It cant lick the bootstraps of other older scifi like Trek, B5 and the lot. I have no idea where this shows rabid fanbase comes from, its dreadfully mediocre.

 

[Wiktor]

To me it got great since The Flax, which was episode 12 in season 1. From there it was the best sci-fi show I've ever seen and once S2 got rolling it became the best show period for me. S3 was just mindblowing through and through.

But at the same time this is a very divisive show. More than any other big SF series, so I can understand how some people might not like it. I pity those poor souls though

 

[foxtrot3d]

I like it. More shows need puppets rather than shitty cgi or nothing but humanoids.

I will also give a plus to the puppets and general creature designs. It does put Star Trek to shame with its "yeah we're a totally difference species than human look at our weird nose or ears." Farscape is willing to make ugly and much less humanoid aliens.

 

[Darth Pinche]

Some of the OP's questions about the Peacekeepers are answered in the Peacekeeper Wars. But if you are not into it by the 3rd season, ut won't grow on you any further. It took me until later first season to get into it.

 

[Denton]

Didn't like the first season much, but once scorpius arrived to the scene, it became awesome.

 

[cackhyena]

I will also give a plus to the puppets and general creature designs. It does put Star Trek to shame with its "yeah we're a totally difference species than human look at our weird nose or ears." Farscape is willing to make ugly and much less humanoid aliens.

Yep. I can totally understand not digging the characters too much, though

 

[Wiktor]

Yep. I can totally understand not digging the characters too much, though

Farscape lives and dies on it's characters. More than any other SF show. If you won't fall in love with them, you won't like the show. Period.

 

[Log4Girlz]

Way too simplistic. The sci-fi is like all over the fucking place. Bored me to tears. I pretty much like everyone except Cretin.

 

[cackhyena]

Farscape lives and dies on it's characters. More than any other SF show. If you won't fall in love with them, you won't like the show. Period.

I don't think so. I like the show because it feels more alien than most in the right way. I like some of the characters and think some fall flat. I still dig it.

 

[Gallbaro]

Oh yes? Well I don't like this thread!

Scorpius us really the take off point.

 

[Wiktor]

I don't think so. I like the show because it feels more alien than most in the right way. I like some of the characters and think some fall flat. I still dig it.

You didn't like Chrichton and Aeryn? Other might be ingorable, but I have hard time imagine enjoying the show without liking those two.

Anyway, characters was the main why I loved this show. I loved how Crichton was obviously slowly getting insane and nobody noticed because they had no clue how humans are supposed to behave. I like how those characters never turned into truly good people. They might have done some good, but they always remained bastards. Plus Chrichton/Aeryn is the best genre romance. Period.

Other reason was the craziness of it all plus the willingness to take SF tropes and run with them far farther than anything else ever did.

 

[crazygambit]

Didn't like the first season much, but once scorpius arrived to the scene, it became awesome.

Agreed. One of the best villains on TV ever. Also Harvey was cool.

As for the internal logic of the universe, it does exist, it's just that we're looking at the world through Crichton's eyes and there's much he doesn't know.

The show is pretty great and entirely watchable today, even though it's been like 15 years, which is impressive in its own right.

 

[danm999]

Doesn't sound like the show is for you honestly. It's not for everyone, and that's ok. Different strokes and all that.

It's a show that tries to stress how space is a strange, cold and cruel place where you don't understand the rules and fucked up shit is happening left and right and you can't even go to the bathroom without something untoward happening. Like how there's no unifying empire out there, and that cultures and regions are so grotesque and bizarre that even powerful spheres of influence like the Peacekeepers are little better than candles screaming at the dark.

That lack of specificity in internal rules is totally intentional because it creates an atmosphere where strange and unnerving stuff is happening even several seasons into the show. In fact some of the best episodes involve something totally strange happening and even the most well traveled of the crew of Moya are just baffled as they try to piece together what the hell is going on.

But if you really want some more specific answers/speculation of my own;

I mean just what the hell is Starburst?

Some sort of Leviathan means of travelling faster than light they likely evolved/were designed with to escape predators/attackers. Sort of like an adrenaline burst in humans (hence them not being able to do it too often).

How fast do ships travel in that part of the galaxy?

We don't know. We don't have any solid metric to compare the measurements of the Uncharted Territories to our own.

We don't even know that it's our galaxy. It may well be another galaxy entirely.

Why are Astrological/Starcharts so damn hard to find?

It's not that they're hard to find. It's that the ones Moya's crew want are hard to find. They're lost far from home.

Because space is vast.

The crew of Moya are so far from their homes that often people haven't even heard of their species and vice versa. They have no common points of reference. They don't even have easy methods of detecting basic cardinal directions like we would on Earth (like, say, telling which way is East or West based on the Sun).

The crew of Moya don't even seem to be able to identify the stars that should appear near their homes (and to be fair, could you identify what the stars near our sun are supposed to look like?). The one time they think they've nearly found an accurate starchart in the first season is when the navigation is totally handled using their DNA, rather than any intrinsic knowledge they have of their local stellar cartography.

It's almost impossible to navigate like this, or to purchase correct navigational data even if it's on hand. You can never tell if you're actually moving closer or farther from your destination with each move.

What exactly are the Peacekeepers? How did they start? Are they a government, a PMC, some sort of Galactic Empire?

As others have said, this stuff gets answered later in the show, but basically the Peacekeepers are a vast military for hire made up primarily of a species called Sebeceans, but not all Sebeceans are allied with the Peacekeepers.

Why would anyone choose a living ship over one with machinery that obeys commands? Etc., etc.

Generally they don't. Peacekeepers tend to live on Command Carriers, use them for fighting and enslave Leviathans for grunt work dominating them and their Pilots with control collars.

The crew of Moya are on her because they're desperate. If they could have stolen something else, I'm sure they would have.

 

[foxtrot3d]

D
Because space is vast.

The crew of Moya are so far from their homes that often people haven't even heard of their species and vice versa. They have no common points of reference. They don't even have easy methods of detecting basic cardinal directions like we would on Earth (like, say, telling which way is East or West based on the Sun).

The crew of Moya don't even seem to be able to identify the stars that should appear near their homes (and to be fair, could you identify what the stars near our sun are supposed to look like?). The one time they think they've nearly found an accurate starchart in the first season is when the navigation is totally handled using their DNA, rather than any intrinsic knowledge they have of their local stellar cartography.

It's almost impossible to navigate like this, or to purchase correct navigational data even if it's on hand. You can never tell if you're actually moving closer or farther from your destination with each move.

That to me is utter nonsense and the biggest part of the show I have a hard time swallowing. How is it that any species anywhere can travel FTL and yet not have proper navigational equipment on-board? Every ship should have a computer with the latest astrological charts. And, the species on Moya arent unheard of, the Hynerians seem to control a good chunk of the galaxy and most people seem to know what Luxons are, hell in S3 the Sebeccans end up allying with them. So how could there not be simple star charts to their home systems? And just how the hell does Moya navigate then if it has no navigational charts? Why is there a place called the Uncharted Territories? Uncharted to who? I can go 30 min explaining why calling a place "Uncharted" makes no sense based on what the show has explained at this point or at least what such a phrase would then logically imply.

A lot of people seem to be excusing these plot holes because it's meant to make space seem strange and weird as it is to Crichton. However, A) these aren't simply strange mysteries they are plotholes and B) Crichton knows more than the audience after like the first three episodes. JC has a damn near PhD in astrophysics, engineering, and whatever else the plot calls on him to be able to interface with and repair alien technology. So, JC knows how this all works while we the audience are just left there grappling at trying to understand even the most basic questions of how people get around in this galaxy.

 

[danm999]

That to me is utter nonsense and the biggest part of the show I have a hard time swallowing. How is it that any species anywhere can travel FTL and yet not have proper navigational equipment on-board? Every ship should have a computer with the latest astrological charts.

Moya's a prison ship that's supposed to be tethered to a convoy of Peacekeeper ships via a control collar. She doesn't operate independently.

There's a pretty good reason you'd never give a prison ship a functioning navigation system in case exactly what happens in the first episode happens. Especially since she's harbouring a lot of high risk political prisoners who, if they returned to their worlds, could cause loads of damage.

And, the species on Moya arent unheard of, the Hynerians seem to control a good chunk of the galaxy and most people seem to know what Luxons are, hell in S3 the Sebeccans end up allying with them.

From what I gather, the Hynerians control space near their homeworld, not in the Uncharted Territories. And the sole colony of Hynerian worshippers they find in the Uncharted Territories are beyond primitive. They're stone age. They're no help.

And yeah, the Peacekeepers who end up allying with the Luxans probably know the way home, but it's fairly obvious why the crew of Moya can't get navigational data from them.

So how could there not be simple star charts to their home systems? And just how the hell does Moya navigate then if it has no navigational charts?

Think of the scale of space. To navigate successfully to a destination you need things like points of reference, distances, headings. If the crew had these, they wouldn't really need star charts. They could sort of head in the direction of their homeworlds space and wing it.

They're totally lost.

Or let me put it another way. In one of the first episodes, when Rygel gets kidnapped, he meets a guy who rules an empire of 10,000 planets. And despite Rygel being the ruler of a sizable empire himself, this guy has simply never heard of Rygel or his people. I mean, the scale that must exist for those two empires to never have had contact would be staggering.

Why is there a place called the Uncharted Territories? Uncharted to who? I can go 30 min explaining why calling a place "Uncharted" makes no sense based on what the show has explained at this point or at least what such a phrase would then logically imply.

That's just it! It's Uncharted from the perspective of the people on Moya (ie; the Luxans, the Delvians, the Hynerians).

To the people that live there, it's probably very much charted space. They just don't have any common reference to share with the people on Moya to direct them home.

It'd be like asking people from Iron Age Japan to point you back to Spain. They might know every hill and valley nearby intimately, but ask them to redirect you to somewhere they've never heard of, or they aren't sure where it is, and they'll likely look at you funny.

However, A) these aren't simply strange mysteries they are plotholes and B) Crichton knows more than the audience after like the first three episodes. JC has a damn near PhD in astrophysics, engineering, and whatever else the plot calls on him to be able to interface with and repair alien technology. So, JC knows how this all works while we the audience are just left there grappling at trying to understand even the most basic questions of how people get around in this galaxy.

I'm fairly sure several episodes in Crichton makes the complaint to Zhaan that it takes him half an hour to figure out how to open the door on the ship. His lack of knowledge and sophistication kind of turns into a saving grace several times throughout the series (Crackers Don't Matter for example, if you've gotten to that episode).

 

[DBT85]

I loved it Scorpious was a great bad guy and chip in the head.

 

[teiresias]

The characters are amazing and it's one of my favorite shows ever. To say any of the characterization is lazy is being completely disingenuous. You have the entire Chianna and Dargo plot, Chianna's back story and emotional interactions with everyone on board, you have Zhaan being a repentive yet still completely capable of killing murderer and her battle with that in numerous episodes. About the only one given short thrift in specific plot development is Rigel, but his character changes immensely over the course of the show.

Crichton, of course, has the expertly scripted and acted descent into madness over the course of two or three seasons.

Then you have the two characters that come in later.

The nonsensical aspect of them not knowing where they are is either dropped or ignored for most of the show, since it does make little sense. It's better to just realize that all of them are escaped prisoners so returning to their homeworlds (particularly in Rigel's case) probably isn't the smartest move if they're trying to avoid being recaptured.

I honestly don't get the rest of the quibbles you have with it. Mostly all of that is explained in the context of the show.

 

[GKSilKamina]

Man, I love Farscape. I do see your points, though. Unfortunately if you've made it all the way up to season 3 and STILL don't like it, there isn't anything going forward that'll convince you otherwise. Season 4 starts going downhill after a while...

 

[foxtrot3d]

Gaf I started S4 because fuck it I finish what I start and man it's already off to a dumb start. First of all I was completely lost throughout this entire two parter as to what exactly the fuck is going on. First, Crichton is a crazy hobo on a dead Leviathan and space pirates crash in to steal Leviathan goop so we can be introduced to the newest supporting cast member. So after that nonsense is dealt with we find that D'argo and Princess Scream are on some ancient planet that has this dig site underway and somehow this is all of a sudden important to D'argo and the Princess. Not only that we learn that Princess, despite being portrayed as some medical student, is all of a sudden really adept at and interested in archaeology.

But wait before the episodes even start we treated to a "previously on," except parts of that previously includes scenes that never occurred last season making me question the order of the episodes. Specifically, Scorpius losing his command and that titty bitch taking over. So, Flash forward and it turns out she wants Crichton because "why not," and this planet is somehow important because of some probes and metaphysical ramblings from grandma about peace.

Blah, blah, good guys win and we learn some nonsense about humans being connected to the Sebaatians and Princess' race Ancient Aliens style. And, then of course since we have a new supporting cast member, we have to lose someone to make room. Thus Princess, in her new found interest in archeology, decides to stay on the planet to "help" the priests. But wouldn't grandma staying make more sense? Shhh, no more questions now. Yeah, seems pretty clear they just gave up on trying to make that character work after getting rid of Zhaan and now with grandma they have a new metaphysical/spiritual character to fill the gap left by Stark and Zhaans departure thus making Doc Princess worthless.

Anywho, I just needed to rant after witnessing that train wreck of an episode.

 

[Sober]

The season 4 opening is a bit of a mess, as you pointed out, part of the previously was actually a deleted scene. S4 gets better after a few more episodes when Aeryn joins up, I think Claudia Black couldn't actually film most of the first few episodes of S4. The 2-parter is probably the most boring thing though, but it becomes important by the end of it all.

No thoughts on the S3 ending though?

 

[Violet_0]

Ep17S1 "Through the Looking Glass" and definitely Ep24S2 "Crackers Don't Matter". Those are easily the best episodes by a long shot. I stopped watching at the end of season 3 and honestly the rest of the show actually isn't all that good

 

[foxtrot3d]

No thoughts on the S3 ending though?

What? It was just boring and contrived. Crichton manages to blow up the carrier denying Scorpius wormhole tech, Crais sacrifices himself because it became harder for the writers to justify his characters existence, and they all escape. And then Aeryn tells Crichton peace out and gives some other contrived explanation as to why they can't be together this episode. Then of course we get a last minute "twist" that Aeryn is pregnant, thus making her reasons for leaving ever more idiotic, and Moia gets sucked into a wormhole so we can end on a bunch of cliffhangers.

Hey by the way, in the S4 opening Crichton has clearly spent some months working out the wormhole formula but in the S3 finale the other scientists seemed to indicate that they were REALLY close to cracking it. In fact, it seemed possible that Crichton could have cracked it all in the short time limit Scorpius gave him. However, all of a sudden it's taking him months to crack it again. I love it, keep moving that goal post.

 

[squidyj]

I caught the first few episodes and then I said fuck it I'll just watch star trek.

 

[foxtrot3d]

I caught the first few episodes and then I said fuck it I'll just watch star trek.

A wise decision.

 

[soundscream]

It took me half of S1 to really get it. If you have watched all the way through S3 and still don't like it.......you are lost.

No accounting for taste

 

[irfaanator]

Didn't like the first season much, but once scorpius arrived to the scene, it became awesome.

scorpius is like the greatest villain ever

 

[BeEatNU]

In the beginning I hated it but forced myself to watch it. After like season 2 I was hooked. I enjoyed it a lot. I even enjoyed the movie since it tied up loose ends and such.

I've been thinking about re watching it.

 

[foxtrot3d]

scorpius is like the greatest villain ever

I'm gonna reserve judgment on Scorpius until I've finished the series but so far:

Dukat>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Scorpius

 

[soundscream]

I'm gonna reserve judgment on Scorpius until I've finished the series but so far:

Dukat>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Scorpius

Dukat during the final season knocks him down a couple of pegs, where Scorpius motivations and actions remain consistent throughout the series, plus we get Harvey!

 

[foxtrot3d]

Dukat during the final season knocks him down a couple of pegs, where Scorpius motivations and actions remain consistent throughout the series, plus we get Harvey!

Again, I'll reserve judgment til the end but it seems that Scorpius is widely inconsistent starting off. At his first introduction he just seems like a crazed evil villain, he indiscriminately kills (or rather allows the deaths of) lower officers, cares little about the deaths of his fellow Peace Keepers, tortures Stark consistently and later Crichton. Only later do we learn that he's actually more or less a patriot trying to save the galaxy from the Skaarans. But, then why were you such a dick to your fellow officers and generally everyone else before hand? The Scorpius we later come to know seems nothing like the one we are introduced to early on.

On the other hand I think Dukat remains pretty consistent throughout DS9, the only sucky part was how his story ended. Plus, Dukat gave us "Waltz," and nothing tops that.

 

[waypoetic]

I think it's called "The Claudia Black Show"?

 

[RandyBobandy]

Is this the shitty Australian show? I gave up on that after 7 episodes

 

[soundscream]

Again, I'll reserve judgment til the end but it seems that Scorpius is widely inconsistent starting off. At his first introduction he just seems like a crazed evil villain, he indiscriminately kills (or rather allows the deaths of) lower officers, cares little about the deaths of his fellow Peace Keepers, tortures Stark consistently and later Crichton. Only later do we learn that he's actually more or less a patriot trying to save the galaxy from the Skaarans. But, then why were you such a dick to your fellow officers and generally everyone else before hand? The Scorpius we later come to know seems nothing like the one we are introduced to early on.

On the other hand I think Dukat remains pretty consistent throughout DS9, the only sucky part was how his story ended. Plus, Dukat gave us "Waltz," and nothing tops that.

Because hes a Dick, he only cares about achieving his revenge by any means necessary. The back story only explains why he is an asshole, but never justifies anything he does.

 

[Hilbert]

It took me a while to get into it myself.

But once I realized how fucking DARK the show gets, I was pretty hooked.

 

[CrichtonKicks]

Honestly you really should stop watching. Despite a few stumbling blocks in a couple of places S4 is pretty awesome (and so is PKW) but Season 3 is almost universally thought praised as the best season of the show. If you don't' like it now then absolutely nothing left will change your mind or even address any of the complaints that you have with the show.

 

[Davey Cakes]

I thought the show was a fun ride all the way through, with a Season 3 peak.

It's adventure Sci-fi mixed with Space Opera. I mean, it's in line with other "watchable" Sci-fi shows like Star Trek, Babylon 5, and Stargate.

If you're past season 3 then you should just stop. The show has a good ending but you won't care likely.

Is this the shitty Australian show? I gave up on that after 7 episodes

It's considered one of the best shows ever in its genre.

A wise decision.

Star Trek TNG and DS9 are my favorite Space Operas. It's possible to like all of these shows.

 

[PaulloDEC]

It's campy, pulp action-adventure-scifi. If you were expecting anything remotely like Firefly you came to the wrong show.

If you're into more adult sci-fi, there's plenty of shows out there catering to that. If you want batshit-crazy outer-space adventure with muppets and blasters and loads of stuff that cares more about being fun than making sense, Farscape is for you. And I say that as a huge fan.

 

[border]

7Why are Astrological/Starcharts so damn hard to find?

At least once an episode they make reference to the fact that they are in the "Uncharted Territories." They are in the outskirts of civilization, where Peacekeeper rule and influence is limited.

 

[saunderez]

It's campy, pulp action-adventure-scifi. If you were expecting anything remotely like Firefly you came to the wrong show.

If you're into more adult sci-fi, there's plenty of shows out there catering to that. If you want batshit-crazy outer-space adventure with muppets and blasters and loads of stuff that cares more about being fun than making sense, Farscape is for you. And I say that as a huge fan.

Very fair assessment. You also have to have a strong tolerance to Crichton going apeshit and screaming all the time. It's a prereq for like half the season.

 

[Forsythia]

Crichton was an asshole. Scorpius on the other hand was great and saved the show for me. The aliens looked... interesting, but ultimately dumb. At least they were not the typical 'human with a weird forehead' alien.

I enjoyed it, but it certainly isn't as great as some people make it out to be.

 

[Davey Cakes]

I enjoyed it, but it certainly isn't as great as some people make it out to be.

I agree that the show isn't even that great. I'd be willing to give it a 7/10 or 8/10 overall. Had highs and lows, but the highs struck a real chord with me.

However, honestly I'd almost prefer to overrate it a bit.

I say this just as a means of support for the show and its dedicated fanbase. You don't see many shows like Farscape these days.

 

[DeaconKnowledge]

You are absolutely right. Farscape was one of the first times GAF steered me wrong years ago. The show is a mess IMO. They had me stick through it through the "Peacekeeper wars" or whatever, but it NEVER got better. What you are seeing is what you get.

It cant lick the bootstraps of other older scifi like Trek, B5 and the lot. I have no idea where this shows rabid fanbase comes from, its dreadfully mediocre.

Didn't it get cancelled? That's where the fanbase came from. GAF loves an underdog.

 

[foxtrot3d]

Star Trek TNG and DS9 are my favorite Space Operas. It's possible to like all of these shows.

TNG and DS9 are not Space Operas, well maybe DS9 is a little bit towards the end. Not that Space Operas are bad or anything, Star Wars is the greatest space opera ever made and my favorite movie of all time. But, Star Trek is definitely not one.

If you're past season 3 then you should just stop. The show has a good ending but you won't care likely.

Honestly you really should stop watching. Despite a few stumbling blocks in a couple of places S4 is pretty awesome (and so is PKW) but Season 3 is almost universally thought praised as the best season of the show. If you don't' like it now then absolutely nothing left will change your mind or even address any of the complaints that you have with the show.

I always finish what I start.

 

[border]

It cant lick the bootstraps of other older scifi like Trek, B5 and the lot. I have no idea where this shows rabid fanbase comes from, its dreadfully mediocre.

Almost every significant SyFy channel show in the last 10-15 years has a rabid fanbase. I don't see why it is that hard to understand. Farscape serves an audience looking for a particular type of whacky outer-space adventure.....complaining that it doesn't live up to Star Trek is like complaining that Guardians of the Galaxy isn't as good as 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Not everything is going to rival Star Trek (which as a franchise is about 50% disposable garbage at this point, I'd note).

 

[wildfire]

Farscape is great. I don't recommend going any further if you already finished season 3 and didn't like it.


What I love about Farscape is that:

- it feels like you are exploring new uncharted territory with beings and technology that shatters expectations.

-They actually attempted making non-humanoid beings as a big part of the show unlike every other scifi out there.

-The one area I find odd is your idea there is no characterization. I could agree with the idea that certain characters became stagnate for long stretches but there was always episodes where we have seen growth. Chianna who is by far the most stagnate character was only interested in herself and her brother. Overtime she has gone from shifting her personal relationships with Rygel to Crichton to Dargo to Joffie to the crew in general. With each shift in personal alliance she has matured a little (hence why she is stagnate) more. All of that build up doesn't come together until her brother comes back into the picture reminding her of the lives they ran away from. He couldn't have relied on his sister back in the day when she first started with Moya.

This show hasn't just made the main characters great but they also made a bunch of one off characters for stand alone episodes great to watch as well. Some of my favorite one off characters were the sentient carnivorous girl whose species nearly bought itself to destruction through their mismanagement of keeping a healthy supply of prey and the mad doctor in season 1 who offered various enhancements to the crew at a high price to their personal safety.


-Just like you I love the relationship that was building between John and Aeryn but unlike you I also loved the relationship that was building up between John and Scorpius.

-It would be flat out crazy and it was fun just watching the spectacle of the insanity.

 

[Kai Dracon]

Farscape is a character piece and everything happens to service the characters and their personal journeys. That's pretty much it. As well, the characters are larger than life and practically animated; the tone of the show is such that things like puppets don't seem out of place.

That the characters are drawn in four colors may make them seem flat or shallow to some, and may make them seem iconic to others. However, the general idea is that while the characters are designed like living cartoons, there is naturalistic depth to them under the surface. They do go on quite a trip over the course of the series.

I quite enjoyed it, but honestly approached it as theater, not nuts and bolts science fiction.

Either you believe in the characters and, therefore - political maps are unnecessary, or you don't. In which case - chocolate?

 

[foxtrot3d]

Honestly you really should stop watching. Despite a few stumbling blocks in a couple of places S4 is pretty awesome (and so is PKW) but Season 3 is almost universally thought praised as the best season of the show. If you don't' like it now then absolutely nothing left will change your mind or even address any of the complaints that you have with the show.

Well I finished S4, HOLY LOL at that ending. So Crichton stops the Scaarans from invading Earth, learns he's gonna be a dad, and proposes to Aeryn only for them both to be smashed to bits. HAHAHAH! I guess I gotta watch the Peacekeeper Wars to finally be done with the show. The only positive I have to say about this season was the brief return of Harvey, always a lot of great fun with his bits. That said, I found Crichton's return to Earth half way through to just be nonsensical, as if humans wouldn't react exactly the way they did in the Ancient's mind simulation. No, instead they invite all the aliens over for lunch and TV interviews with a nice secure beach house in Florida. Get the fuck outta here, if our own government didn't lock them up crazed weirdos would launch an assault on the compound and kill them all. And then, no Earth officials thought it would be a good idea to keep Crichton and the crew under constant surveillance allowing him to leave the solar system when he got tired of sticking around with no fuss.