Farscape...what a gem!

[rabid1st]

I am probably going to be mentioning Farscape in my television meme. But I just wanted to share a thought about the perfection of this series. I am watching it from the beginning again. Something I did with Buffy last year. I had expected to be a little disappointed with the Buffy repeats and found myself pleasantly surprised by the fact that they held up so well. But I truly had expected that I would cringe over Farscape. I remembered S1 as being quite a trial to watch, until Nerve, at least. But, on this rewatch, I've found that knowing what I know about Farscape and how it will end...makes it a positive joy to watch again.

You will all recall that I have mentioned over and over again that the wrong ending to Tennant's Run of new Who, the lack of character development or storyline commitment, will ultimately corrupt the future success of the show. This is playing out now. But it will continue to play out in a more subtle fashion for those of us with DVDs. Fans can't really rewatch Doctor Who S1-S4 with the same sense of hope we had the first time, because we know that it fails to satisfy in the end.

Knowing something ends on a whimper rather than singingly, affects how you view it in retrospect. And knowing that Farscape had one of the most satisfying ends in television history, really makes watching it again a delightful experience. If you have never watched Farscape...you might have to grit your teeth through the first ten episodes...but believe me it is well worth the effort in the end. And I am not talking about happy endings, nor promising you one. Instead I promise completely satisfying character development, because there was certainly large hunks of unhappy in the Farscape viewing experience. "People really bleed when they are hit in Farscape" as the quote goes. The writers really understood how and when to make the audience suffer, something RTD and Whedon and Moore and Chris Carter did not know.

If you watched most or all of Farscape, as I did, go back and see it again and take the time to admire how very groundbreaking this series was. Yes, Rigel still looks like a Muppet, there's no denying it. But the show goes out of its way to make him a fully rounded character as well. One point struck me very strongly on the rewatch...and that was that every character on the show is fully realized and developed. And every one of them had blood on their hands. Every character murders someone. Though in Crichton's case...maybe we should call it accidental homicide, but it is the opening act of his character. Seriously, what show makes every character in it so conflicted from the outset? Only Farscape. Okay...and maybe the Sopranos, eventually.

Rae

Comments

[maniacalshen.livejournal.com]

Plus, besides the character growth and conflicts, Farscape had its fun parts! Like the endless chin-thong jokes, as well as, "MY SIDE YOUR SIDE." I never did make it through the fourth season, though. I actually saw about half the final miniseries, then went and watched seasons 1-4.5. I should probably go back and restart Farscape at some point.

Fans can't really rewatch Doctor Who S1-S4 with the same sense of hope we had the first time, because we know that it fails to satisfy in the end.

Yeah, I find I haven't been inclined to watch my dvds... at all, really.

[auntiesuze.livejournal.com]

Loved loved LOVED Farscape. They wrapped it up so beautifully, and kept it true to the series - some sad ends and some happy ones, but they all made sense. I definitely wouldn't mind rewatching this series from the beginning.