The return of Talyn's crew to Moya doesn't go as well as Crichton had hoped.
Written by Rockne S O’Bannon
Directed by Tony Tilse
The crew of Talyn finally rejoin Moya and find a group of escaped prisoners on there. No change, then, except that this is a very suspicious new group that Crichton, D’Argo and the rest have rescued. There’s a new Nebari who makes friends with Chiana, a love interest for Rygel and even a warrior – albeit a Scarran – to work with D’Argo.
All of which makes things very difficult when it appears that one of this trusted group is broadcasting a signal to the Peacekeepers.
What made this such a thoroughly good mystery was that we'd been given reason to suspect everyone and, more cleverly, to completely trust everyone at times too.
As a standalone episode it had an excellent plot with good gags, good new characters – though the new Nebari’s medical history felt superfluous – and a tremendous sense of pace.
But it wasn’t just a standalone episode. Alongside the main story ran a pivotal event for this season when Aeryn rejoined the Crichton on Moya. There was a smart line as Crichton got to say "there’s a familiar face" to her: on one level just a normal thing for him to say on seeing her again, on another a painful reminder to her that the other Crichton had died.
Their delicate relationship is going to be a part of the rest of the season, but this also set up the major plot lines for the remaining episodes as Crichton decides to pursue Scorpius. That ending felt a little melodramatic for Farscape, but you just know we’ve got some good episodes to come.
Review by William Gallagher
