Text Transcript
<D’Argo’s panic clip>
No, D’Argo, you aren’t dead, and neither am I! I’m here for Season 2 deep dive recaps.
We return to the action, or nonaction, in Farscape shortly after the Season 1 cliffhanger—a cliffhanger miraculously resolved off camera. I know the episode started with an unrelated scene with Zhaan, but I will address that another time when it connects with a later episode.
Everyone’s tense at the beginning of “Mind the Baby.” Crichton is tense because he’s stuck on an asteroid.
<”This rock gets a 9 on atmosphere but only 2 on food and water.”>
D’Argo is tense because the whole situation stinks.
<”So now we evade Scorpius, and then …”>
Aeryn is tense because she is being duplicitous.
<Aeryn and Crais clip>
Three tense people of different species lead to confrontation.
< Aeryn: (contrary)>
This asteroid should be labeled Plot Convenience 201b and it’s currently at its closest approach to Earth though light cycles away from reality. Same as with the asteroid in “Bone to Be Wild,” asteroids aren’t massive enough to retain an atmosphere. Anyway, the asteroid has enough atmosphere for our three tense heroes to have an argument—two actually but we’ll get to that in a bit.
“Mind the Baby” is a busy episode, with four plot threads going on simultaneously. In addition to D’Argo and Crichton stranded on Plot Convenience 201b, we have Crais on Talyn.
<Crais yelling at Talyn .. “very good, Talyn”>
We have Chiana and Rygel on Moya.
<” Pilot: Moya is returning …>
And we have our new villain and his henchman.
<Braca walks in on Scorpius>
Because Scorpius is out there, Aeryn had to make an executive decision.
< Aeryn: (turning to face them) In order to save your lives>
Yes, asteroid Plot Convenience 201b.
<more of the clip>
So, Crichton charges after Crais—he’s now a prowler pilot, remember?
Just as Aeryn made a “hold her nose” deal with Crais, Crais has made an even more detestable deal.
<Crais and Scorpius>
Scorpius’s formidable single-mindedness is now fully evident. Crais is walking a fine line, but he’s doing well playing the poor hand fate has dealt him. Talyn is literally a lifeboat for Crais, though we’ve seen hints that Talyn means something more than that to Crais.
Crais is being more levelheaded than Crichton, who has arrived on Talyn. How did he know where Talyn was? Anyway.
< Crais: What do you want, Crichton?>
Crichton’s the one who’s lost his head—he’s being an overly emotional cowboy.
Meanwhile, back on Moya.
<Moya comes running …. We gotta stick>
Wait, what trial? Interesting story, but again, I will address that in the recap of a later episode. In this episode, Talyn calls for mommy and Crichton arrives with Crais.
< Yo, Chi!>
Crichton has to rush back to pick up D’Argo and Aeryn, and how the three of them fit into the two-person prowler is left unexplained. Talyn panics and make a break for it.
<Braca informs Scorpius>
Moya chases Talyn, unable to calm him. Aeryn is also unable to calm him. Crais knows something.
<Crais and D’Argo>
Crais has a new-found confidence, a swagger the opposite of his defeated meekness the previous time he was in that cell. Meanwhile…
< … no plan whatsoever >
That would be correct, Scorpy.
< or they’re …>
You aren’t the only one engaging.
< Pilot: Talyn sees the Carrier.>
To make another tense argument short, Aeryn insists the best option is for her and Crais to board Talyn and give him guidance.
<Crichton: Your nephew wants to see you.>
Aeryn is still being levelheaded but Talyn has other ideas.
<hand of friendship>
After a brief scuffle, Aeryn scurries back to Moya, and Crais takes a dig at Scorpius.
<final progress report>
Talyn starbursts away. Moya starbursts away. “Mind the Baby” creates more loose ends than it resolves. But that’s what a season premiere episode is supposed to do.
Ponderables
I know there are a number of scenes with Zhaan in this episode, but I will address them and the interesting story behind then, in the recap of the eighth episode of Season 2.
Ya know, not to get weird about it, but how do they know that Talyn is a male leviathan?
If anyone had doubt about whether Aeryn and Crichton had really had sex on the fake Earth, that is dispelled.
< Crichton: I have a question . . . >
That wasn’t part of the illusion. However, that encounter was under extreme duress. Not so the encounter at the end of the episode.
<Aeryn and Crichton in Pilot’s den>
I’m not convinced that Aeryn would be willing to be that intimate with Crichton this soon. What do you think?
At one point, Pilot says the command carrier will be in range in 6,000 microts. That’s interesting because we’ve deduced that a microt is about the same as a human second. < one mippippi > We also know about an arn, which we’ve assumed is roughly equivalent to a human hour. There are 3,600 seconds in an hour and 6,000 microts would seem to be nearly two hours, which clearly isn’t what Pilot means. Between Pilot’s announcement of 6,000 microts and Aeryn’s of 5,000 microts until the carrier is in range, 90 seconds passed. I don’t think 1,000 microts is equal to 90 seconds. Earlier in the episode, Zhaan says
<you have 30 microts>
And as impatient as she is at that moment, she doesn’t mean 2.7 seconds. The reference to 6,000 microts is a rare mistake by the writers. If they had written 600 microts, it would have made much more sense.
One delightful nugget in this episode is our first comic sequence between Crichton and D’Argo.
<rock, paper, scissors exchange>
First of many.
Crichton makes a cultural reference to the Menendez brothers, who, interestingly, have come up again in the news as prosecutors rethink the sentencing of the real-life murders. Farscape was years ago, but it retains relevance.
I hope my deep dive recaps will retain relevance with you, dear viewer. Please help me stay relevant by donating through the Ko-Fi link below.
https://ko-fi.com/farscapecontinues