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"Kryptonite... silver bullet... Buffy?... What's it gonna take to keep you in the grave?" - Crichton to Scorpius
Episode 4.05, "Promises"
Air Date: 7.12.02
Written by Richard Manning
Directed by Geoff Bennett
After a very enigmatic start to season four, "Promises" seemed, well, promising in terms of finally getting some answers. After all, the producers wouldn't keep us in the dark for another week, would they?
When we last left the crew, they were aboard D'Argo's ship, having finally received word from Pilot & Moya. En route, Crichton asks the million dollar question - what exactly happened to Moya after it was sucked through that wormhole? Frustratingly enough, Pilot doesn't really remember. He simply says that they were examined by someone, but not mistreated... Alrighty then... that certainly clears things up.
A little apprehensive that Pilot & Moya may have some unwelcome guests on board, John goes in first to check it out. Well, Crichton gets two surprises for the price of one. First, the long awaited return of Aeryn. The happy reunion is short-lived, however, as she collapses in his arms saying that she is once again suffering from the sebacean heat delirium. And then she makes John promise not to hurt 'him', because 'he' saved my life. The mysterious savior? None other than Scorpius, who strolls on up, requesting asylum, of all things.
A short time later, a gigantic Hokothian ship emerges, with its captain, Ullom, claiming that he induced Aeryn's sickness, and that only he can cure it. He claims that Aeryn was part of a group that assassinated the Prime Hokothian just recently, and is demanding the names of her employers and her accomplices. He is willing to exchange information for the antidote. Predictably enough, Aeryn is not about to cooperate.
Elsewhere, Grayza and Braca have keyed in on Moya's location and plan to use a prototype missile on her, one that would kill her, but leave the crew unharmed. Fortunately, Scorpius still has spies in the PK ranks, and is privy to this information. Speaking of Scorpius, about this time he and Sikozu seem to be bonding fairly well, as she has no ill-will towards him, and he's simply grateful that someone doesn't think he's a total low-life. When she asks how he survived Arnessk, though, he simply answers "Foresight and preparation." Ah, let vagueness reign.
Crichton walks in as the two are speaking, and gets naturally suspicious of what's going on. To prove his good will, Scorpius offers John a chance to rid himself of Harvey once and for all. John accepts, and it's R.I.P. Harvey. (you don't need specifics - it's typical Farscape medical science. You jam something in someone's head/neck and it just works) John is still unwilling to completely trust Scorpy, though, and leaves him locked up as they desperately try to save Aeryn life before it's too late to starburst away from the incoming missile.
Billed as somewhat of an event episode, I have to say I was a little let down by this one. It just didn't quite come together for me. Too many potential plot holes. I say potential because you never quite know what will be explained later and then all of a sudden something you didn't understand makes total sense, but at the moment, I have issues. First off, to stave off the living death, they keep Aeryn in a thermal cooling chamber deep inside Moya. John asks how Aeryn knew of the room. "Scorpius found it." What? I'm sorry, but this is way too convenient, and doesn't really make much sense. In Farscape's third episode of season one, "Exodus from Genesis", Aeryn was suffering from the heat delirium, and they simply kept her in her quarters. Shouldn't Pilot have known about this chamber? Shouldn't Moya have known about it? It's not like Moya can't think. (and please don't email me saying the aliens in that episode were in control of the chamber, because eventually a truce was made with those guys and they still didn't move Aeryn) Okay, that's my first point of contention. Moving along. I think there was some confusion on the drawing board about what that PK missile was exactly supposed to do. The PK tech said it would destroy Moya's biologics, but not harm the crew. So when Braca fires it and it destroys the leviathan decoy, should he not have been a little surprised, if not enraged? He simply wasn't, so something doesn't add up. Personally, I think that would have harmed the crew. Third, when the Hokothian ship showed up, Moya was unable to starburst because of its incredible mass. Later, however, Sikozu figures out that it's mass is actually quite small, and that it was merely an illusion, or trick. So then, why exactly couldn't Moya starburst? You can't fake mass. It's either there or it isn't. But I guess that one is kinda nitpicky and scientific. So whatever...
But there were other things I just plain didn't like. Crichton came off to me as damn near unlikable in this episode. He was nearly out of character with his level of antagonism towards Scorpius. Did they not bond at all during the end of season three? It sure seemed like they had, on some level. Has Scorpius done anything evil since then? No. Even after he's saved Aeryn, removed Harvey from John's head, and saved the entire crew, John is still hostile to him. And then the entire Harvey thing. Talyn John's eradication of Harvey nearly killed him. It was an ordeal. This, by contrast, was easier than taking an alleve to ditch a headache. It was just too sudden for my tastes. But above and beyond that, why is John so adamant on getting rid of Harvey anyway? The guy had saved John on many occasions, and knows Scorpius better than anyone. Not to mention the comic relief! I mean, damn... ah, Harvey will be missed. That's for sure.
Other things that may be explained later: how did Ullom know Moya's name, and that Aeryn was on her? What did Sikozu mean by 'damaged leviathan and fraudulent pilot'? Does she know something about what really went on in between season three and four? Is it possible she's been on Moya before? As part of that whole leviathan tissue harvesting thing? Who knows. Well, I guess David Kemper. But certainly not us, not yet.
Oh, and finally - per Pilot's request that the crew must choose a captain? I know changing things up is Farscape's style, but I don't like this one bit. One thing that's always made Farscape completely unique in the land of ship-based sci fi is the lack of a captain. Plus, I like the fact that Crichton is the unspoken leader. I wouldn't want it to become official. But what's the alternative? Chiana? D'Argo? Wrinkles?
Scorpius?
An ambitious episode, but I feel like it just missed the mark a bit. Of course, as always, the acting and especially the visuals were top notch. The bottom line, Aeryn is back - which is fantastic. Thought it would be nice to know what's up with that whole pregnancy thing... Looking back at the timeline, it's perfectly likely that she was four-five months pregnant at the end of season three, which means she could have given birth while separated from the crew. Again... I guess we'll have to wait and see.
Episode Rating: 7 out of 10. A generous 7 for the return of Aeryn.
- your resident Farscape guru, Ultra Magnus
Next Episode - 1.06, "Natural Election" -- (minor spoilers) Crichton's efforts to reconcile with Aeryn are put on hold when he makes a breakthrough in his wormhole research and Moya is threatened by a parasite.
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