FarscapeWeekly Farscape Mind the Baby episode review wrocs

Flashback: Mind the Baby (March 2000)
Season 2, episode 1

This column was first posted over on the SciFi Channel's Farscape bulletin board on 30 March 2000, shortly after its first airing. I have revised and reformatted it for viewing here, but essentially the content is identical. It's interesting to see all the questions about where the new season was taking us, especially looking back from today's perspective. Enjoy!

The Setup, The Look

Mind the Baby, the Season Two Premiere! Well, sort of. I got the feeling we were missing about half an episode, if not more... obviously a bunch of stuff happened off-camera, and frankly I was disappointed that there was so much that was left up to our imaginations... scenes I would've liked to see: Aeryn swooping in to save John and D'Argo; Aeryn cutting that deal with Crais; Crais's difficulties with Talyn before Aeryn agreed to help him...not to mention the whole Zhaan thing, but I presume when we finally get to see Re:Union [1] all of those particular gaps will be filled in. And Rygel and Chiana, too -- obviously the whole bail-or-stay routine is becoming practically old hat for those two, and Chiana's reference to events in Re:Union was pretty blunt: they didn't bail on us, we shouldn't bail on them. Talk about a 180 degree shift in attitudes from the we-all-hang-together vibe of Family Ties! Some of that was OK, and since I do have a vivid imagination I can easily accept those off-camera scenes, letting my mind do a little wandering. I just wish I didn't have to do quite so much work myself... this is supposed to be entertainment, after all! Well, I suppose that's enough whining, and this is supposed to be about the cool stuff, and there was plenty of it, so let's go!

First off, I had to note that I could tell the difference between the "old" CGI and the "new" CGI.[2] I don't know which I like better, I just noticed it's different. Still very cool though. I really liked the shot coming up Moya's underside and then pulling back to reveal her entire massive hull in all its glory. **sigh** Unfortunately we didn't get that good a look at Talyn... but I have to give kudos to the artistic directors (or whatever you call those people) who designed Talyn's command center. I think it's awesome, and the effects there were terrific. The set on the asteroid was great, and the camera work there too was wonderful -- particularly that one pull-back scene where we get see D'Argo's tongue unfurl and sting Aeryn. Whoa! I admit, that one got a couple of rewinds-&-rewatches. I give this ep a solid 8 on the Eye Candy scale.

The Characters

On to the Moya-ites (Moyaoids?)...I loved Pilot in this episode. Pilot with Attitude! The look of absolute disgust on his face when he overhears Rygel & Chiana thinking about running, and the disdain with which he offered them the transport pod was magnificent. Lani Tupu definitely worked his butt off in this episode -- both Pilot and Crais had quite a bit of screen time -- finally! It was so nice to hear that Pilot was feeling better now that Moya has calmed down a bit. I'm wondering if poor Pilot didn't go through more than he had any right to expect during Moya's pregnancy. If Leviathan gestation is anything like human's, then those hormonal fluctuations, not to mention all the normal worries and concerns that accompany reproduction, wreak havoc with your psyche -- I'm sure Pilot is massively relieved that it's just over. And the final scene with John & Aeryn sitting in Pilot's den was terrific for many reasons, although I have my issues with it... more on that later. But it was great to get that seldom-seen view of Pilot's chamber, and I loved seeing all the DRDs there, too. A cool bit... did everyone notice that DRD harassing Crais when he was on the deck, after John had shoved him there? I couldn't tell if the DRD was injecting Crais with something or not, but at the very least there was some mini-bumper car action going on there.

Rygel, ah, those intons[3] sneak up on you at the most inopportune moments. You could tell he really thought Aeryn, John, and D'Argo were all dead or lost to the Peacekeepers -- and believing that, and that Talyn had irretrievably fallen to Crais, why should they hang around? (Oh, stop rolling your eyes. I count myself among Rygel's staunchest defenders.) Remember, survival is utmost in the little aquatic's brain. Still, I was highly amused at D'Argo's "Are you not well?" while John was attempting a bone-crunching Hynerian Heimlich maneuver. The puppetry work on Rygel was exquisite in this episode... his facial expressions were so convincing. He seems a bit more fluid in those tiny movements about the face, and of course Jonathan Hardy's voice work just brings the whole package together wonderfully. Sometimes Rygel makes it hard for me to love him, but all faith is tested from time to time -- this particular test is stretching on a little longer than I would like it to. That's another issue that I would've liked to see adressed in some way. No way do I believe that the rest of the crew is going to let Rygel live it down that he tried to sell them out, and then brought Crais aboard, which led to Talyn's kidnapping, followed shortly by Talyn's Patty Hearst maneuver. There has got to be some fall out sooner or later; I just hope we get to see it on screen. I'm also hoping big time that Rygel gets to do something redeeming to salve his own small but nonetheless existent conscience.

Next -- Chiana, my nominee for the Peter Pan award! Couldn't see the wires for that leap but I thought the trajectory looked a bit weird. Crichton was as surprised as I was by that move, but I did like it. It's pretty cool. Also, it explains how she could've killed Salis, if she leapt with dagger in hand... but that's just speculation. I'm still on the fence about the true murderer there, but I don't think it's beyond Chiana to kill, especially in a self-defense situation as that realistically could be called. It was fun to see Chiana try to step into the "house mother" role as Zhaan "blissed off." Trying to get Zhaan's attention with that lovely breathless tirade was classic. It reminded me strongly of how my 3-year-old tries to get my attention when I'm on the phone. I just wish my tactics at getting him to leave me alone were as effective as Zhaan's! You have to admire Chiana's guts in letting the prowler come aboard, and meeting it alone, with weapon at the ready. And her savvy in grilling John -- just enough -- when he first came through the door. All in all, a great performance by Gigi Edgely, one among many for her.

Zhaan, poor Zhaan, what did they do to you in Re:Union? I won't speculate because I know we'll get some answers down the road, and how long do you want this thing to be, anyways?[4] At any rate I enjoyed her activities while rejoining the Seek, particularly that "ear kiss" that knocked John for a loop. The Zhaan-John scene rivaled the Zhaan-Chiana scene for laughs. "She thinks I'm dead!" Zhaan's absolute serious, completely stupid response.But my absolute favorite scene, I think in the entire episode, hands down goes to Claudia Black, as Aeryn rails Zhaan for her selfishness. I have known a few such "enlightened" souls, and let me tell you, if I could so eloquently smack them around verbally as did our "simple warrior", I would take delight in revealing to them their own vacuousness. Yeah, the Seek is a fine way to spend your life if you're sitting in a monastery somewhere, well taken care of. But out in the middle of the Uncharted Territories, with Peacekeepers all around, not to mention a couple of emotionally unstable Leviathans, rejoining the Seek full-time is probably about the worst decision you could make. In Zhaan's defense I will say she's alot older than anyone else aboard, clocking in at over 800 cycles. When you've got a lifespan that long, I think it's much easier to make a commitment to something like the Seek, because you know you've got a couple of centuries to spare here or there. Plus I have the impression that Delvians are pretty hard to kill, especially the Pa'us, so the survival instinct's nagging is probably somewhat muted.

Perhaps this will come up in Re:Union, but Zhaan's face definitely had fewer silver and gold markings -- perhaps her makeup has been retooled to be less difficult for Virginia Hey, but also I'm thinking it is a sign of her new status on the Seek. I will be very interested to hear what, if anything, we learn about this in Re:Union and future episodes. Speaking of Ms Hey, I just loved how spacey she was, and how abrupt with Chiana, that wonderful exchange, "Will you do it?" "No." And her anguish at giving up the Seek (at least, slowing it down a bit), but also her good sense! Amazing, that. A character actually using common sense, "Um, you know, Aeryn's right, this just isn't a good idea right now" You could just see the little thoughts churning, and as much as Zhaan hated to admit it, hated re-anchoring herself to the material world and all its miseries, she knew she had to, so she did. How fortunate for us that she will be cherishing D'Argo along the way...[5]

Somethings about D'Argo's new look I liked, somethings I didn't. I liked the nose-plate, but I'm not sure about the new hair (including facial hair) style... it has somehow changed the shape of his face too much. The coloring I'm assuming is just a reaction to having to breathe vaccuum for too long, and I'm wondering if it will eventually fade? That would be my guess, unless they're going for whole-sale transformation ala (I hate to do this, really) Worf (Michael Dorn) in the first few seasons of Star Trek:The Next Generation? Worf's appearance changed substantially from the early episodes to the later ones... I cringe seeing him with that short hair in the earlier episodes! Ahem. Back to D'Argo here... Like John (more later), D'Argo seems so relieved to be alive that there is an almost inappropriate light-heartedness to him. I was hysterical at the scene where he's playing "rock, paper, scissors" with himself! Two rounds, and he declares, "A tie." Plus the whole fatalistic conversation with Aeryn, "Besides, if I die, you can eat me." "You don't look ripe to me." This was classic Farscape dialogue, so much better than all the mini-sermons we got in Family Ties.

For a guy who was in a coma for God knows how many days (we'll surely never find out)[6], D'Argo's brain was certainly firing on all synapses. That instanteous decision to knock Aeryn out was awesome. Not to mention how he and John decided who would go and collect Crais... the "rock, paper, scissors" schtick was inspired. After this particular adventure, John has definitely moved into comrade-in-arms status with D'Argo, a friend as well as a companion. When D'Argo starts quoting Crichton, ("go down in a swing... er... swinging.") you know that a substantial corner has been turned. Even in Family Ties, the respect was there, but since D'Argo believed they were all going to die anyway, it didn't matter much. But Crichton hung on to D'Argo out there, and the plan actually worked. Without Crichton, D'Argo would be dead now, and I think our Luxan appreciates that fact. Kudos to Anthony Simcoe for bringing out more of both D'Argo's decisive nature and inner conflicts, in that conversation with Crais.

Aeryn had some of the best lines in this episode, and Claudia Black's performance was awesome. Oh, I could hear legions of 'shippers shouting "Yes!" as she admitted, with that wonderfully twisted expression, "Just the once." I, on the other hand, sighed, because I had them pegged as being comfortably intimate, just not talking about it. One of the very best things about this episode is that it actually clarified John and Aeryn's relationship. Two scenes -- John insisting that Aeryn look him in the eye, and then John insisting that he won't let Aeryn go -- were defining. In the earlier scene we see that they have never talked about this before, just kept going with the flow. But now, Crichton is putting it all out there -- we should trust each other, whatever our relationship is. And then, faced with Aeryn leaving, possibly forever, Crichton realizes he can't just let her go, and he actually tells her that. Of course he lets her go, but he had to let her know what he was feeling. It was beautifully done, as was the, "Here's hoping history repeats itself," scene. (I particularly liked it the tiny cut-away to Crais, looking embarassed and annoyed.) At any rate, I love Claudia Black for her range and the dynamics she brings to the role -- she was completely believable in every scene, particularly in her near-panic when Crais accepts the neural implant from Talyn. That hand-to-hand was a bit of a stretch, as you know there was no way Crais could easily remove the implant once it was "installed". But it was a nice bit of fight choreography. Still, Aeryn always loses in hand-to-hand, going all the way back to Exodus from Genesis and Matala. (Of course, Matala cheated.) Just one of these days I'd like to see Aeryn win. But it's more realistic that she lose; Crais out masses her considerably, and Talyn was rooting for Crais, after all. I never appreciate those "thwok" and "crunch" sounds that get added to fights; if the participants were really doing that much damage, they should both be bleeding on the floor from more than one orficie. And I swear Crais broke Aeryn's arm with one move, but apparently not.

Crais! Oh, oh, oh! What can I say, I love him. No, that's not right. Well, I love having him around, how's that? What a great source of conflict. How he gloated when Aeryn said, "I want to come with you." You could see that for one instant, he was thinking, "I got the girl! I got the girl!" But then Crichton's little speech nixed that right out. At least Crais got to be a thorn in Crichton's side in more than ways than one. And his "status reports" to Scorpius were awesome! You know that Crais enjoyed every moment of them, every lie he spun out to Scorpius's knowing ears. Yes, I'm sure Scorpy knew that Crais was lying when he said he had no idea where Crichton was in the first report, and Crais knew that Scorpy knew, too. But what could Scorpius do about it? Nothing. Excellent planning (or luck) on Crais's part. And you have to wonder, as Aeryn did, if Crais will change? He seemed willing to rethink all that the Peacekeepers had instilled in him, but that still doesn't mean that he'll come through this mid-life crisis any less a madman.

Speaking of Scorpius, he's a gem of an opponent. Smart, ugly, and determined, with lots and lots of backup. Here's hoping he pops up frequently in Season 2.[7] Poor Neim seems to have been given the boot, there's a new bob-haired blonde attending the Master and replacing his power cells or whatever those things were.[8] Man it was freaky watching that thing spin into Scorpy's head, and he didn't look very comfortable during the process, either. The hapless Peacekeeper Lieutenant was obviously distracted by it, fascinated and repelled simultaneously. I wonder how much heat the Lieiutenant has to take when his subordinates (like that tactical officer who mis-forecast Talyn's starbursting ability) make errors?

Last but not least, we finally come to Crichton, who is apparently so astounded by the fact that he's still alive that he's got an extra bounce in his step and not one, but two, quips ever at the ready. The whole mid-life crisis thing with Crais was a bit much for me, especially after the absolutely perfect, "I know, I know, I should've called, but I was in the area and I thought I'd stop by," thing. Having survived against all odds, John is at the point where Zhaan was in Family Ties, savoring every moment as a gracious gift from God. That's what gives him the intensity to put Aeryn on the spot about their relationship, basically saying, "Let's stop dancing around this thing and get it out in the open. That last close call was too close." His reunion scenes were all steeped in that boundless joy, that "I still can't believe I'm alive" glow. He was nearly knocked over by Chiana but didn't mind a bit, and wasn't at all pissed at Rygel. His scene with Zhaan was awesome, he was practically bouncing off her like a wall. I loved parts of that final scene with Aeryn, in Pilot's den -- the easy comfort with which he encircled Aeryn, finally getting to feel protective of her, to just hang onto her for a while after coming so close to losing her. The one problem I had is, why is it that Aeryn and Pilot are asking John what's going to happen to Talyn? My guess is this: Talyn can be fairly well compared to an average teenage human male, and John's the only one with direct experience of what it's like to grow up male. Pilot isn't anything like human or even Leviathan, and Talyn isn't wholly Leviathan. But surely Aeryn would have some experience of young males, growing up? Wouldn't she have some theories, as well? She knows Talyn better than anyone... It is a small thing, but still, coming as it did at the end of the episode, it left a tiny off taste there for me. All in all, though, Ben Browder's performance managed to radiate a sense of "I've been running on adrenaline for more days than I can count, don't push me, I'll explode" which I think was perfect for the circumstances. We didn't seem him really relax until that final scene, when there was at last a sense that some things had come to a resolution.

The Wrap

One thing we don't know, though, is what is going to happen to Talyn now that he has selected Crais. Having starbursted away, we can only speculate... could Moya follow starburst to find Talyn? It's not exactly clear how that would work, since it was stated that if Moya starburst, the Peacekeepers would not be able to find her. But one Leviathan following another might be a different story, especially if Talyn no longer resented Moya's presence. To me, Talyn's selection of Crais and bonding with him made perfect sense. Crais is a very strong figure and knows how to command. Sure, Aeryn was nice and all, and seemed to understand him, but Aeryn was never a Captain. Aeryn may have a handle on the tech aboard Talyn but she doesn't have the weight of Crais's accumulated experience to offer. As much as I hate to say this, I'm not sure Talyn made a bad decision at all in bonding with Crais. This situation, if they pay it any attention at all, could get very interesting.

All in all, a good episode, and a solid effort by the cast all around. I'm a bit miffed about what we didn't get to see, although of what we did get, I can't think of anything I'd leave out. It's not like we got a lot of filler in our 44 minutes; I don't think we got any. Maybe we should start a petition to expand to a 90-minute format? Nah, that would make it nearly unsellable in syndication... too bad. I know when this gets re-sold I'll be catching re-runs as often as I can.

Footnotes

[1] Re:Union was the original production title of the episode that was to later become Dream A Little Dream.

[2] CGI work for season one was by Garner MacLennan Design; for season two (and presumably the future), it was handled by Animal Logic. Check out their Farscape home page (note that you need the Flash plug-in to view this site).

[3] Intons are kind of like Hynerian hiccups.

[4] Don't answer that.

[5] Well, that's the way things were headed!

[6] Actually, I think we did find out later that it was 7 days, although I can't remember where.

[7] Remember, this column was written back in March of 2000!

[8] In Look at the Princess, we find out that they're cooling rods.