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On Television |
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The Peacekeeper Wars
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Fans finally get big payoff
for the cancelled series
By DONNA J. PLESH
of TheColumnists.com
Farscape: The Peacekeeper
Wars
9 p.m. Oct. 17 and 18 on Sci-Fi Channel
To Be Continued. And so ended the 88th episode of the Sci-Fi Channel series "Farscape."
What most fans of the show
already knew was that was that the series would not return for
a fifth season. According to Sci-Fi, the saga of astronaut John
Crichton (Ben Browder), accidentally carried to a far off galaxy
by a wormhole in space, was dumped because of its "inability
to grow beyond its core fan base."
But fans never gave up. They sent e-mails, petitions, picketed
Sci-Fi Channel offices and eventually got their way--sort of.
"Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars" is a two-part miniseries featuring the return of all the characters, finding them in the middle of an intergalactic war.
The miniseries is a wonderful
treat for fans--filled with lots of gee-whiz special effects,
battles, drama, emotion, joy, and tears. For viewers who somehow
missed the show during its series run there's a basic recap of
the plot that airs within the first 15 minutes of the miniseries.
When we last saw Crichton, he and his alien love Aeryn Sun (Claudia
Black), were in a boat on a placid lake. Crichton had just proposed
to Aeryn, pregnant with his child, when both of them were seemingly
incinerated by a bolt from the skies.
But, this being TV and fiction, they really weren't dead. They
were just crystallized and put back together, crystal-by-crystal,
just in time to find out a galaxy-wide war was raging between
the Scarrans (the aliens who look like reptiles) and the Peacekeepers
(who are anything but). And Crichton is wanted by both sides
since he possessed the knowledge of wormhole technology. And
he who controls the wormholes controls the galaxy.
Added to the mix is a new race, the peace-loving Eidelon who eons ago had the capability to make warring factions settle disputes peacefully. Can they regain that long lost knowledge and stop the war? Can Crichton and alien friends--Ka D'Argo, Chiana, Sikozu, Rygel, Pilot, Stark, Jool, Noranti, Moya and Scorpius (friend/foe) save the galaxy and themselves and live in peace?
Not only are all the original actors back, but so is the creative team behind the series: Executive producer/writer David Kemper, executive producer/director Brian Henson, and creator/writer/executive producer Rockne S. O'Bannon. What they all have put together is a wonderful and fitting finale (or is it really??!!) to one of the best sci-fi series ever to hit the small screen. Don't miss it!
Here's a primer on the main Farscape characters:
Commander John Crichton (Ben Browder): U.S. astronaut sent aloft in an experimental spacecraft that is accidentally shot through a wormhole into a galaxy far, far away. He winds up aboard a spacecraft inhabited by a band of alien fugitives who become his friends.
Officer Aeryn Sun (Claudia Black): A Sebacean (they look like humans), Aeryn was trained as a Peacekeeper warrior. She becomes Crichton's friend--and love.
Ka D'Argo (Anthony Simcoe): A fierce warrior of the Luxon race, he was wrongfully imprisoned by the Peacekeepers. He becomes Crichton's best friend.
Scorpius (Wayne Pygram): A hybrid of races who looks like a corpse, he has been after Crichton for his wormhole knowledge. Mainly a foe, Scorpius has sometimes aided Crichton.
Chiana (Gigi Edgley): A Nebari (her body hue is gray), she's sexy, seductive, and out to make things better for herself. And she is strongly attracted to D'Argo.
Sikozu (Raelee Hill): Brilliant, and resourceful, she is an expert on Leviathan ships.
Noranti (Melissa Jaffer): Often called Grandma by Crichton, she has three eyes and psychic powers.
Stark (Paul Goddard): He is a former slave who has the power to ease the pain of those who are dying.
Jool (Tammy MacIntosh): Of the Interion race, she has orange and yellow hued skin and a fiery temper to match. She was saved from death by Crichton.
Rygel (voice of Jonathan Hardy): He's 26 inches tall and is the (exiled) ruler of 600 billion Hynerians. He's arrogant, selfish, has a bad temper, but is an ally, often grudgingly, of Crichton.
Moya: A Leviathan, a huge living ship, that is the home to Crichton and his friends.
Pilot (voice of Lani John Tupu): Pilot is a human control panel for Moya--and is symbiotically linked to the ship. He is also loved and trusted by Crichton and the others.
©2004 by Donna J.
Plesh. The photo is courtesy of the Sci-Fi Channel
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