TNMC
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Greetings Scapers!
At the end of last week's episode, "Thanks for Sharing," Moya's crew was split up, with Aeryn, Stark, Rygel and one Crichton going off with Talyn with Crais. How long this new direction of the show lasts is yet ot be seen, but it starts off in killer fashion, with an episode penned by series star himself, Ben Browder.
"Green Eyed Monster"
Season III, Episode VIII
Directed by Tony Tilse
Written by Ben Browder
This episode is not exactly heavy on plot. The short of it is that Talyn gets swallowed by the titular Budong (the creature from "Home on the Remains," but alive this time), and Crais, Aeryn and John must find a way out. (Stark and Rygel are on a transport pod orbiting the planet.)
The real issue of the episode, however, is the love triangle-of-sorts developing between John, Aeryn & Crais. How can this be? Well, remember when Aeryn told Crais that he could have anything he wanted if he'd help them rescue Crichton? So the question is -- did they or didn't they? At first it seems clear -- Crichton comes across a PK Vid Chip that shows that exchange between Aeryn and Crais, and then what appears to be the two of them gettin' it on. But it's not that simple. Talyn distrusts Crichton, since he is not Sebacean, hence not a PK, and might be trying to pull a fast one on him. In any case, to say that this upsets John would be quite an understatement. And after walking in on what could best be described as a "Three's Company" moment between Crais and Aeryn, John is sure that something is going on between them.
For the time being, however, they must figure out how to escape the ginormous creature before reaching its inferno of a stomach. Stark actually proves useful here as he suggests they make the Budong vomit by setting off an explosive chemical reaction. Of course, doing so proves to be quite dangerous, especially for a Crichton that Crais would just assume not have around...
"Green Eyed Monster," or GEM as it's already become known, was originally entitled "Das Budong." Personally, I think that's the cooler name, but it doesn't detract any from the great episode.
This is definitely a character-driven episode, which furthers the relationships of John, Aeryn and Crais -- in short, it's a shipper's paradise. We also get a peek into Crais' mental connection with Talyn, which turns out, isn't such a walk in the park after all. But aside from that, it has all the humor (Rygel puking on Stark) and great lines you'd expect in a Browder written episode. A sampling:
Aeryn: "It should work."
Crichton: "Good, I must be smarter than I look."
Aeryn: "That would be easy."
Stark (seeing that Rygel has untied himself): "You're loose!"
Rygel: "Not half as loose as Chiana."
John: "So lemme get this straight...assuming this thing isn't constipated, you wanna fly out the ass?!"
Rygel (to Stark): "Oh wonderful -- they're alive. Now you can torture them with your inane dribblings."
Of course, what sealed the deal on me loving this one was Browder's several references to some great sci fi flicks. When Aeryn is trying to see the inner wall of the Budong, she says, "Still nothing. Pitch Black." When coming up on the Budong, partially hidden by the planet's rings, Crichton exclaims "That's no moon." And if that weren't enough, the entire Talyn trying to kill John scenario was obviously meant to recall 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Now if all that weren't enough, we have a truly fantastic exchange between John and Aeryn to close it out. An exchange so good, I've done something out of the ordinary and transcribed it for you here. Enjoy.
Aeryn (holding the PK Vid Chip): "Have you seen this?"
John: "Yeah."
Aeryn: "When did you see it?"
John: "Aeryn, I'm not your boyfriend, I'm not your husband, I'm not your anything. You can do what you want..."
Aeryn: "It's not real. You know that, don't you? The...last part...Talyn altered the images...I never recreated with Crais...not that it should matter."
John: "It does."
Aeryn: "It never did before...see, I had this life. I liked it. It had rules - I followed the rules, and that made everything right. And then you come along and frell everything up. This strange human with arrogance, stubborness --
John: "Dumb."
Aeryn: "Let me finish. You saw the recording, and didn't say a word. You are like a plague John Crichton. You have ruined my life, and yet I just keep coming back... You could talk now..."
John: "Let me show you something. Come here...I'm not going to bite. This is a star chart. These are the names I give the stars."
Aeryn: "They've already got names."
John: "Yeah, but Mintaka 3 sounds boring to me. Anyway, that's Huey, Louie, and Duey. See that one -- that's that star right there -- the bright one. It's my point of reference -- my guide, and it always becomes the center of my chart. I always name it Aeryn."
Aeryn: "You say it's your guide?"
John: "It's my one constant... Would you like to name some stars?"
Aeryn: "There's a lot of them..."
John: "Then we can take our time..."
Reading this doesn't even do it justice -- you had to see it, especially for the amazing way it was shot. I just hope the writers don't frell us over down the line. Because if this Crichton dies, it would be like "The Locket" times a thousand. So frustrating...
Anyway, great sfx (the Budong), great writing, and all around good stuff. Next week, it appears we'll get an episode that solely features Moya's crew -- a malovolent energy being is on board, and presumably doing bad things. See you then.
Episode Rating: 7 out of 10- your resident Farscape guru, Ultra Magnus
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