Too Much Farscape

Well, the Sci-Fi Channel has announced which Farscape episodes thy're going to be showing on tomorrow's all day "Chain Reaction." I was particularly interested in learning this, as I've promised to tape the whole thing for the friend I got addicted via the 1st season DVDs a month ago. (She's started calling me "the sci-fi pusher." I've just got this image now of myself standing on a streetcorner in trenchcoat lined with videos and DVDs saying, "Psst, kid, want some Farscape? The first season's free!") Anyway, I was hoping that, between Friday's marathon and the four second-season episodes they showed earlier this month, there'd be enough to get her pretty well caught up on the second and third seasons, in terms of the important story- and character-arc stuff. And overall, I'd say it's looking pretty good on that front. They're going to be showing almost the entire third season (what they've got pegged as "essential epsiodes") and there are quite a few second-season eps in the "sexiest episodes" lineup, too.

But there are, unfortunately, some gaping holes. Like the absence of "Won't Get Fooled Again," which, in amongst all its surreal weirdness, does reveal a Major Plot Point without which none of the rest of the second season actually makes a whole lot of sense. Well, I think they pretty much screwed up any impact that particular plot twist might have on new viewers by showing "Beware of Dog" immediately before "Crackers Don't Matter" a couple of weeks ago, anyway... Good thing for my friend that she's got me to put the episodes in order for her, that's all I've got to say... I also really, really wish they'd seen fit to show the "Liars, Guns & Money" three-parter instead of the "Look at the Princess" trilogy. Not only is it much more important in terms of character and plot, but in my opinion it's also a much better story. Ah, well, guess it simply wasn't "sexy" enough. Sigh. And "Self-Inflicted Wounds" doesn't count as "essential third season"?! Poor Zhaan. No respect. I'm also a little bummed that "Different Destinations...", which is one of my personal all-time favorite episodes, isn't going to be featured, though even I have to admit that it's not like it's all that important to the story arc. "The Choice" seems like a strange omission, though. Even if nobody but me actually cares about the comings and goings of Stark, you'd think the John/Aeryn fans Sci-Fi is obvously courting would regard it as essential...

Damn it. Why was I not taping this show before? Why do I always end up kicking myself for not taping things? You'd think I'd eventually learn...