Here We Go Again!

So, I just finished watching the fourth season premiere of Farscape. I must say, that was... interesting. Some random thoughts (warning: contains spoilers vague enough to be annoying but detailed enough to be of concern):

So, apparently Crichton just decided to give up and go mad. Can't say I really blame him. Hmm. John Crichton. Arthur Dent. You know, I never noticed the resemblence before, but it's actually rather uncanny.

I haven't really looked at them close enough yet to be sure, but I don't think the visuals on new opening credit sequence are as exciting as the old ones. And they've changed the voiceover again, which is interesting. First and second season, it was basically just, "Help me, I'm a poor stranded human, I want to get home." Third season they added in some very interesting phrases that turned out to be hints towards how the entire season was going to develop, plot-wise. I think it also gave an interesting clue to Crichton's changing mindset, with those whispered additions to the commentary: "...full of escaped prisoners... my friends...," etc. And of course, that ended up being a major theme of the third season by the end, as well: this idea that Crichton is no longer the outsider in the Uncharted Territories that he once was, even as he no longer entirely belongs on Earth any more. And now the whispered interjections are gone, the ideas they embodied integrated into the normally-voiced monolog. A sign that Crichton has accepted the changes wreaked by the last three years and is coming to terms with them? Or am I overanalyzing? And how many hints are there in there of where this season is going to go?

Speaking of the credits, I see that Paul Goddard is gone from them again. Sigh. I'm gonna be real unhappy if they don't bring Stark back in the not-too-distant future. And not only because of my irrational fondness for the little nutcase, but also because the circumstances under which he left constitute a loose end as annoying as a piece of food stuck between your teeth. I wanna know if he's found what he was looking for. And if so, how and why and what it all means...

And speaking of where the season is going to go... I wonder to what extent this episode is meant to set the tone for the rest of the season (as the prophetically-named "Season of Death" certainly did for the last one). If so, things are certainly going to be... Did I use the word "interesting"? Because this one certainly is different in feel. It's even darker, and edgier and weirder than the third season generally was, a real portrait of people who have hit rock bottom. Mind you, I'm not complaining about that. I like the way the show has been continually reinventing itself over the last three years, especially as it's been done in a very believable way. And I'm all for "dark, edgy, and weird." I'm not sure how much darker it can get, though. I mean, it seems to me there's gotta be a light at the end of the tunnel somewhere... (Or maybe that should be the light at the end of the wormhole?)

But for the moment, man, they all look totally frelled-up. Especially Chiana. Poor Chiana. She didn't get a whole lot of attention last season, really. It looks like she might be getting focused on a lot more this season, and probably wishes she weren't...

I notice that they've managed to put off answering almost any of the big burning questions that the season three finale left us with, by the way. Damn writers are such teases...

As for the plot of the episode itself... Well, it did appear to have one. Something about space pirates who suck the brain fluid out of Leviathans or something. I dunno, I had trouble concentrating on the basic plot stuff, what with everything else they were throwing at us. At some point, I will definitely have to go back and watch it again and pay closer attention, if only to make sure I've got the backstory on the new girl straight.

Looks like we probably get to find out what happened to Moya next week. OK, OK. I can be patient... Sure I can...