The Mysterians

Director Ishiro Honda returned to straight up science fiction with The Mysterians. He also wants your women! So, hand over all of your hot Japanese women immediately!

Just three years after Gojira [1954] and only one year following the release of his latest kaiju-eiga [monster] picture in Rodan [1956], Honda opted for the science fiction jugular. Honda linked kaiju concepts into the world of science fiction for a nifty mix in his classic The Mysterians [1957]. This is the stuff that takes me back to days when all that mattered was running barefoot through the dry summer grass in the warm sun. I was essentially transported to exotic Japanese worlds thanks to the vision of one Ishiro Honda and a kind, local television channel that never hesitated to give us the very best in Japanese cinema monsters thanks to Creature Double Feature.
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Honda took a break from Godzilla for a period, opting out of directing Godzilla Raids Again [1955], but would return with King Kong vs. Godzilla [1962], the first of several Godzilla versus smackdowns. In the meantime, Honda dabbled in everything from drama to science fiction in its purest sense establishing the creation of some Toho gems that still stand the test of time. The Mysterians, along with some of his other efforts outside of the Godzilla mythology, are sometimes overlooked, but remain some of his essential best. Matango [better known stateside as Attack Of The Mushroom People] [1963], Battle In Outer Space [1959] and Atragon [1963] are some fine examples.

Prepare for science fiction mystery with Director Ishiro Honda's 1957 classic production, The Mysterians. For it's time, Honda created an imaginative picture riffing on the alien invasion concept. Certainly part of the reason for the colorful classic was the team behind it. Honda largely relied on the same creators who brought us Gojira. Writer Shigeru Kayama returned for scriptwriting chores along with new names Takeshi Kimura and Jojiro Okami. Honda's wunderkind producer, Tomoyuki Tanaka, was also on board as he was for most of Honda's work. Director of Special Effects, Eiji Tsuburaya, also returned. Tsuburaya, Tanaka and Kayama all participated on Godzilla Raids Again without Honda at the helm. Music compositions were provided by the returning Akira Ifukube. Three actors from Gojira including legendary actor Takashi Shimura, Momoko Kochi and Akihiko Hirata also returned. These three actors offered three of the four core perfomances in Gojira. One notable difference here is that the film is in color and for a DVD that certainly doesn't get the treatment one would hope for, it looks terrific.

The sci-fi film would be to some extent risque by today's standards. The back cover art depicting a giant robot mole "destroying everything in its path." It adds, "A dome appears out of the ground and a group of scientists are invited to meet the alien Mysterians from the planet Mysteroid. The Mysterians have come in peace." That's what they all say. There's just one minor little request. "All they ask of humanity is three-square kilometers of land and the right to interbreed with Earth women to repopulate their species." WHOA! That is a mildly significant request not to be taken lightly. It's a near gross premise and one that if remade today might be handled with some controversy. "Humanity declares war on the Mysterians." Grab your popcorn people.

One of the truly wonderful experiences when watching any kind of international film, in this case a Japan import, is to soak in the cultural subtlies or maybe even not so subtle cultural events of song, dance or social life. One of the things I personally love about the work of Honda or films distributed by Toho Studios is the sense of 'being there.' One of my personal goals is to someday go to Japan and get lost in translation myself. In the meantime, films like The Mysterians transport us to places through a medium that offers us the next best thing.

Akihiko Hirata and Momoko Kochi.

As the story begins, we learn Astrophysicist Ryoichi Shiraishi [played by Hirata; formerly Serizawa in Gojira] has broken off an engagement to the lovely Hiroko [played by Momoko Kochi; formerly Emiko in Gojira]. There sure are loads of scientists in Ishiro Honda films. I love that. Pandemonium breaks up the conversation as a forest fire is spotted across the water. Ryoichi runs to it and happens upon three young boys who are determined to put out the raging fire. The fire is burning from the roots upward and is clearly not your typical forest fire. Shiraishi spots something in the forest bubbling from the ground before the camera fades to black.

Kenji Sahara.

The next day Joji Atsumi [played by Kenji Sahara; a favorite of Honda] visits Doctor Tanjiro Adachi [played by Takashi Shimura]. He brings Adachi a report on a star named Mysteroid from Ryoichi. Mysteroid is located between Mars and Jupiter. Ryoichi calls it a mystery asteroid, Mysteroid. Atsumi gets a call that a landslide has occurred near Fuji where Ryoichi is staying. A whole village is swallowed by the Earth, trees and houses fall into the ground. Joji heads to the site.

Takashi Shimura with Sahara.

At the location, radiation was detected the day before, but is no longer present. Devastation is all around. Ifukube's unsettling score really adds to the effectiveness of the sequence. Ryoichi is believed to be dead. A review of a nearby river bed determines floating dead fish coming down stream. With camera in hand, Joji, with assistance from the Fuji authorities, continue his investigation. On a road, smoke smoulders from the police tires, the ground is hot and Geiger readings indicate radioactivity present. A landslide unveils a frightening robotic mole that burrows out of the mountainside. This is Moguera and part of Honda's ongoing love affair with the kaiju-eiga genre. This sequence is a whole lot of special effects fun.

With the jeep toasted, the men make a run for it. Later, back at the Fuji Police station, Joji learns Ryoichi's sister, Etsuko has arrived from Tokyo. An evacuation takes place. Is there ever a Honda picture where an evacuation doesn't take place? Firemen attempt to put out the fire [well, they are doing their jobs], but Moguera's eyes alight blue and fire lasers causing more random destruction. Evacuations to Koyama bridge continue as the military arrives. The army takes up position in the beautiful hills of Japan. Military men repeat over and over, "please, hurry and cross the bridge. It's the defense line." There's certainly no shortage of running down streets and across bridges in Honda films. Explosives are rigged on the bridge set against a beautiful Japanese backdrop. Flying saucers are spotted by Etsuko and Joji. The battle rages. In typical fashion, the Japanese throw everything they have at the thing except for the kitchen sink and nothing works against its extraterrestrial-generated metallic hide. Moguera makes its way toward the bridge. The army blows the bridge and Moguera falls and ceases functioning. Success.

A meeting is called in a capital building. Joji explains a retrieved part from Moguera proves the monstrosity was not of this world. You actually needed to confirm that? It was a robot controlled by radio waves.

In the observatory, Dr. Adachi notes activity on the moon. Joji visits and Adachi tells him that Ryoichi's report on Mysteroid is "invaluable."

Adachi spots a satellite in space. The Mysterians are here. A visit of the lake indicates Ryoichi had been monitoring it for some time and witnessed a number of strange things. A dome surfaces from the ground. Adachi and Joji observe. The military are on standby. A voice announces "People of the Earth, let us avoid useless warfare." That's mighty swell of you, but let's not forget you drew first blood with your robot friend Moguera blasting his way through the village. So The Mysterians work in a bit of the old bait and switch. The Mysterians wish to "negotiate" with five men including Dr. Adachi and Joji. This is a pretty funny request from the military officer.

Question: "Do you promise that you won't kill them?" Answer: "Please don't worry." Oh boy. Well, ya see, there's nothing to worry about. All they'll need is your hot and juicy Japanese women. I love Japanese women by the way. I know I mentioned loving British and American chicks, but Japanese women may be a favorite. They are exotic and absorbingly beautiful. There are a few in Ishiro Honda's films that I love to this day, in particular Kumi Mizuno. Stunning I tell you. Anyway, Japanese women are to die for. They are striking! I've digressed long enough on that subject. So, the scientists enter The Mysterians' dome. Ifukube's score continues to mount tension complete with violin section. Inside, the men are given capes to protect them from the cool temperatures. I guess.

Costume and set design is superb on The Mysterians. The scientists are greeted by a man in a yellow space suit. No faces are exposed. They are tantamount to a preliminary version of the Power Rangers. The scientists are seated in a room filled with orange and blue electrical thing-a-ma-bobs. The Mysterians are pleased to meet the scientists. One of the scientists is rather brave. "We're not so glad after what you've done to us." Yikes! Keep it cool brother. The Mysterian leader tells the scientists it was "a little sacrifice to avoid a war." What the viewer learns from a Mysterian viewing screen is that the Japanese military attacked them first. Interesting twist. The alien identifies their planet Mysteroid as Planet No. 5. Could this be another allusion to Lucky Dragon No.5 [as covered extensively in my review of Gojira]? Adachi indicates the planet disappeared one thousand years ago, which is confirmed by the mysterious Mysterian. It was the result of an atomic war between The Mysterians. There is no question references to the Japanese attacking first, Planet No.5 and the atomic war are all allusions to the events of World War II. Some survivors fled to Mars. The alien humanoid indicates militaries start and cause war, but wasn't it Oppenheimer, a scientist, that developed the bomb? It's like the chicken and the egg theory. The Mysterians indicate they had H-bombs when humans were in the Neolithic Age. There is definitely an allegory to war here and it is a bit preachy. It is perhaps less than subtle. The Mysterians request a strip of land "and one more thing...," full access to sex with Japanese women. Alright!

Once again, with the consequences of World War II and the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima informing the work of this Japanese creative team much is in play that references this is indeed a product of their surroundings. The Mysterians have a high dose of Strontium 90 in their bodies. 80% of their babies are born deformed and disposed of. Their race is in jeopardy of extinction as a result of their own atomic wars, hence the need for babes. The Mysterians request five women and they already have three. The remaining two are stars Horiko and Etsuko. "Absurd!" declares Joji.

The Mysterians hold the scientists at gunpoint yet ironically announce they are "pacifists." That's a pretty tough argument to make considering you have guns pointed at heads and giant robots with laser beam eyes destroying homes. The meeting is adjourned and left to the scientists to decide the fate of their future.

Later, at the Ministry Of Defense, a meeting is called once again. The Japanese love meetings. As the meeting points out, The Mysterians have already seized land without request. They have also already abducted three women. This is unacceptable and counter measures are taken concentrating forces at Mt. Fuji.

Later, Joji informs the girls they are on The Mysterians' request list. This is a good sequence and one that indicates our friend Ryoichi is still alive as he is able to speak to his friends directly through their television. You see, the Japanese always seemed to be speaking to me and other youngsters this way when I was growing up. Here's Joji and the pussycats.

This isn't going to go well. Joji informs Dr. Adachi that Ryoichi is with The Mysterians and he has asked the attack be stopped. Before long the Japanese fire upon the dome. The dome is impervious to the assault by tanks, cannons and jet fighters. The Mysterians just sit back and watch from inside their dome and inside their dome heads. Some nifty effects are applied by Tsuburaya as UFOs zap the jets and take them out. Earth's defenses are simply no match for The Mysterians. These are some nifty effects shots.

Those shots are a nice precursor to King Ghidorah's own magic. The dome melts everything it touches with its gamma rays. It's kind of funny as I sit watching this mighty military do battle with a giant dome. It's kind of amusing, but I was kind of riveted by this killer dome [for a bit].

The Mysterians' power is equivalent to the Japanese earthquake of 1923 [referring to the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, 7.9 on the Richter Scale]. The Mysterians address the cities of Earth via their UFO transmissions. "Dear People of Earth. We do not like wars." These guys are tough hombres. They simply want their land and a few hot Japanese babes. It's a small price between intergalactic friends. The military and scientists regroup and rethink their plan against The Mysterian invaders. The military considers a design for a new weapon called an Electron Gun. Headlines make the newspapers like The Liberal Times [sure to go out of business] and taglines like Down With The Mysterians and Doomsday On Earth? "The Earth is one," declares Dr. Adachi. Even America and the Soviet Union now have a common foe. Dr. Adachi worries the alien invaders may establish a kind of beachhead and more invaders will come. He also alerts the media to their final purpose. Yes! They desire sex with hot Earth women. Bastards! Who doesn't? But get in line alien invaders! Hmm, maybe I'm a Mysterian. Can you imagine wars on Earth if such demands were made? We want your attractive Russian women and we will stop at nothing. Well, it is often said women have brought down civilizations. This time women truly are the root cause of the war.

Inside the dome, we get the accompanying weird sound effects that are attributed to the voices of the aliens. The Mysterians are working on a project of their own ready in 500 Earth hours. When completed Eastern Japan will fall under Mysterian control. So much for those peace-loving Mysterian ways.

The Americans meet with the Japanese. The USA is also watching The Mysterians from a satellite in space. The meeting convenes and Joji asks the Americans if they would like to speak with Ryoichi. They contact him via television. The Americans ask if he is ashamed abandoning his people. He conveys that he is a scientist and The Mysterians are interested in ending atomic wars. Ryoichi informs the men that humankind will perish in 20 years if atom bombs are not eradicated. It's fairly evident just how devastating the two atom bombs were on the Japanese psyche. Ryoichi drops a bit of a bombshell of his own, not that it should be surprising, but The Mysterians want to rule the Earth. They left that bit out earlier. All the hot women in the world would definitely do the trick. Ryoichi clearly believes in The Mysterians and that their intentions are noble. Ryoichi displays a visual of The Mysterian satellite in orbit around the Earth and expresses the superiority of The Mysterian UFO power. They have command of the skies. If you control the skies, conventionally, you control the war. The men determine they must fight back.

People from every nation join the fight. For a film from 1957, Honda does a pretty impressive job of expanding the playing field and creating the impression of a global conflict. He implements just the right complement of character drama and special effects. The men discuss the dome and its weakness. It is immobile and it's electric ray grows weaker over distance. The Mysterians are susceptible to heat as well. This information comes by way of Dr. Adachi. You'll recall the scientists needed capes to keep warm inside the dome. We shall see.

The military men stand by in bunkers and discuss the quiet stand off. Their discussion could easily be a reference to the growing Cold War [1947-1991]. Massive rocketships are launched toward The Mysterians' dome by the allied forces. Bombs are dropped on the dome. The Earth defenders grow weary in their seemingly futile efforts to stop The sex-starved, child-bearing hungry Mysterians. The Electron Gun appears to be [almost] ready and will be loaded.

The Mysterians contact Earth Defense and inform them they have now usurped a seventy-five mile radius and if anyone enters they will be destroyed. Meanwhile the scientists and meeting of the minds are placed in a situation that sounds strikingly familiar and uncomfortable. The men consider hydrogen bombs as their only option. Dr. Adachi insists they mustn't be used. They have a lens reflector they plan on using against The Mysterians as an option. The question is how to use it and where to place the lens. The Japanese response: "We'll hold a conference." HA! Great idea! Let's give The Mysterians more time to dig in.

In the evening, Horiko is abducted from her home by, you guessed it, a Mysterian. I suspect Horiko and Etsuko were requested by Ryoichi who is now with The Mysterians. Etsuko is abducted next. Some military personnel and others enter their apartment and witness the abduction of Etsuko into the sky where a UFO awaits. With all of that advanced technology the best The Mysterians can do is essentially float up to the ship via strings?

With the Electron Gun still unavailable and The Mysterians' underground base nearly complete, the Earth Defense Force feels an attack on the alien invaders must be made. This conference yields the same result as the last conference. We must attack now. "Let's do our best." It wasn't good enough last time, so enough conferencing already. What needs to happen before the attack? Evacuation! Of course, people must evacuate a 75 mile radius. Whew! Those poor Japanese citizens. This must get tiring. There's always a shot of someone from the military waving folks along. These people are running too! I mean, if the poor guy waving ever stepped in their way he'd be run over quicker than you'd say "road kill."

Dr. Adachi fears Hiroko and Etsuko are lost to The Mysterians. It will be "impossible" to save them. Joji feels differently and informs Dr. Adachi of a cave he found that leads into the aliens' lair. The attack on The Mysterians will commence with Marcalite Farps [dish arrays] and Joji makes a run for it. A rocket is propelled toward the sky. Joji makes a play for rescuing Hiroko and Etsuko.

Meanwhile, the skyship is impervious against the Mysterian attacks thanks to the lens technology. They launch two dishes and they make their way toward The Mysterians' dome. The dishes angle toward the dome. I was a little surprised the dishes weren't blown out of the water before getting set up. The laser battle commences. Rockets launch. This appears to go on almost endlessly. Joji makes his way underground and jumps one of the Mysterians taking his weapon. He should have taken his outfit too. He puts the gun to another's head and asks for the women. Elsewhere, the women are held in confinement and a Mysterian in yellow gets them all and tells them to follow him. Could it be Ryoichi? I suspect so.

Outside, the dome is ineffective against the dishes. The dishes have 20 minutes of power remaining. The dome is significantly impacted and The Mysterians request the attack stop. Earth defense indicates they will stop if The Mysterians leave and leave their hot babes alone of course. Water spouts from the lake flooding the valley and the village below. The Mysterians are quite impressed with their own devastating power. Things go awry when Joji throws a wrench in the works and blows up their electronic modules with his newly acquired ray gun. Joji is captured. The dishes have five minutes remaining. All hell is breaking loose inside The Mysterians dome. Joji is captured by Ryoichi. Ryoichi releases them, but will remain with The Mysterians eventhough they tricked him. Ryoichi has to set things right.

The Mysterians are dying. It's all over for them. Meanwhile, their ace in the hole, Moguera is digging underneath the Earth and it takes out a dish, but the dish crashes on top of the poor robot. Game over! Ryoichi is blowing everything up. As the survivors make an escape. Ryoichi considers killing them, but decides not to fire upon them. It would have been symbolic of their extinction had he done so, but Ryoichi would not do it.

In the end, the battle is extensive and a bit overdone. In an effort to showcase the special effects of Eiji Tsuburaya, Honda and company get a little carried away with the visuals and the film tends to suffer for it slowing down in the final act. It just seemed to go on endlessly. A bit of editing may have been in order. The Mysterians do escape. Dr. Adachi takes their message as a warning and Director Ishiro Honda would like us to us to take away that same message. The Mysterians, while humanoid, were essentially a representation of ourselves. It's certainly a product of its era and one that still looks fairly impressive given its production limitations. I'm not entirely certain I could recommend it, but it is an interesting period piece that holds up reasonably well. I've seen younger films that have dated far worse. The Mysterians may be dubbed "The Greatest Science-Fiction Picture Ever Conceived By The Mind Of Man," but that may be a stretch. Toho enjoys exciting taglines like Marvel Comics enjoyed "In The Mighty Marvel Tradition." Toho, in Toho Scope, is all about proud tradition and empire building, but while The Mysterians is probably not all that, it's a crazy ass treat when you consider that bit about the women.

The Mysterians: B-

Producer Footnote: Tomoyuki Tanaka [1910-1997]. Tanaka headed Toho Studios for a period. Tanaka produced every Toho monster movie from the first Godzilla, Gojira[1954] through Godzilla vs. Destoroyah [1995]. He also produced several of Akira Kurosawa's best pictures. In total, he was involved with the production of more than 200 films in his fifty-one year career.

Actor Footnotes: Akihiko Hirata [1927-1984]. He appeared in Gojira [1954], Rodan [1956], The H-Man [1958], Varan The Unbelievable [1958], Mothra [1961], Gorath [1962], King Kong vs. Godzilla [1962], Atragon [1963], Ghidorah, The Three-Headed Monster [1964], Ebirah, Horror Of The Deep [1966], Son Of Godzilla [1967], Latitude Zero [1969], Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla [1974], Terror Of Mechagodzilla [1975] and The War In Space [1977].

Kenji Sahara [1931-1984]. He appeared in Gojira [1954], Rodan [1956], The H-Man [1958], Mothra [1961], Gorath [1962], King Kong vs. Godzilla [1962], Matango [1963], Atragon [1963], Godzilla vs. Mothra [1964], Ghidorah, The Three-Headed Monster [1964], Frankenstein Conquers The World [1965], War Of The Gargantuas [1966], Son Of Godzilla [1967], Destroy All Monsters [1968], Godzilla's Revenge [1969], Space Amoeba [1970], Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla [1974], Terror Of Mechagodzilla [1975], Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah [1991], Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II [1993], Godzilla vs. Spacegodzilla [1994] and Godzilla: Final Wars [2004].

Momoko Kochi [1932-1998]. Kochi appeared in Gojira [1954] and returned for Godzilla vs. Destoroyah [1995].

Yumi Shirakawa [1936-]. Shirakawa appeared in Rodan [1956], The H-Man [1958] and Gorath [1962].

The Mysterians Promo

Director Ishiro Honda's love for science fiction is great and perhaps greater than his love for kaiju eiga. With The Mysterians [1957] he includes one creature in Mogera [also Moguera] producing a deliciously epic crossover. The Mysterians is the first authentic science fiction film to genuinely establish his love for the genre. The Mysterians is by Toho, producer Tomoyuki Tanaka, director Ishiro Honda, special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya and composer Akira Ifukube.

Deadwood S1 Ep4: Here Was A Man

Deadwood's Timothy Olyphant and John Hawkes- neither one Crazie in Deadwood!

The visual exploration of Ian McShane and and the scheming underbelly of Deadwood continues with its wonderful cast of characters. Al Swearengen [McShane] meets with E.B. [William Sanderson] to work out a deal. McShane discovers his little friend continues his own conniving ways.



Wild Bill Hickok [Keith Carradine] pays a visit to Al Swearengen.



Al feels the weight of Deadwood and his many plots weighing down upon him and lashes out in frustration at one of his many minions.



Here Was A Man: B+
Writer: Elizabeth Sarnoff [Lost, 4 episodes of Deadwood]
Director: Alan Taylor [Oz, Sex And The City, The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Lost, Carnivale, Rome]

Farscape S1 Ep1: Premiere

"My name is John Crichton, an astronaut. A radiation wave hit and I got shot through a wormhole. Now I'm lost in some distant part of the universe on a ship, a living ship, full of strange alien life forms. Help me. Help me. Listen, please. Is there anybody out there who can hear me? I'm being hunted by an insane military commander - doing everything I can. I'm just looking for a way home." -John Crichton-

"Farscape depends on the eccentricities of its apparently mismatched group to tell some of the most interesting genre stories since the original Star Trek burned brightly over 30 years ago." -James E. Brooks [Starburst #257]-
 

My short attention span had me itching for something new and fresh [new and fresh to me]. I've been watching Dexter and Deadwood and enjoying those series immensely, but I was looking to roll the dice with a science fiction series that would match that kind of quality television within my favorite genre - science fiction. Farscape is science fiction ecstasy for a guy like me. Farscape takes place in another universe, because it is an off the charts revelation. Farscape does everything but disappoint. It is a vibrant, crazy, inventive, wacky, ultra-cool and snappily written series with a capital 'F' for FUN. As Crichton himself notes, "There's life out here Dad. Weird, amazing, psychotic life. And death. In Technicolor."
 

I did have my reservations about Farscape. The brainchild of Creator Rockne S. O'Bannon and The Jim Henson Company, helmed by Brian Henson, clearly Farscape would be given unfettered access to Muppet insanity. While I liked Jim Henson's The Muppet Show [1976-1981] as a child, and Yoda [Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back] was genius, was I ready for unchecked, unregulated Muppets in full-on, unbridled dramatic situations within my adult science fiction programming? After all, I still need to really revisit The Dark Crystal [1982] and Labyrinth [1986] in good faith to make an honest assessment on those films. Nevertheless, while Jim Henson's creations were more fantasy-oriented, his son, Brian Henson, went straight for the science fiction jugular co-producing Farscape.
 

I was equally cautious due to my pre-established perceptions of both Ben Browder and Claudia Black. Having watched all of Stargate SG-1 Season 9 and 10, starring Ben Browder and Claudia Black, I had my doubts about Farscape. It wasn't at all that the two actors offered poor performances in SG-1 by any means. In fact, I don't think the creators of Stargate SG-1 could have come up with a better alternative to losing actor Richard Dean Anderson following Season 8 then to fill the void with Browder and Black. They were terrific replacements for the absent comic timing of Richard Dean Anderson, but like any good franchise it just wasn't the same. The SG-1 formula was established and it lost a little something, while gaining a different dynamic for the remaining two seasons. Black and Browder were wonderful to watch, but SG-1 had changed. On SG-1, often referred by some fans of the genre as Fargate, Browder and Black certainly brought with them their unique talents and their on screen personal charisma as well as their chemistry [minus the romantic elements; Black saved the romantic link for actor Michael Shanks on SG-1]. The Browder character's sometimes irreverent, cheeky sense of humor certainly compensated for the absence of Jack O'Neil, but Claudia Black became a bit of an irritant in her role on the series for me. Having watched some Farscape, I've quickly learned Black clearly played her character differently on SG-1 than she does on Farscape and I'm thankful for the difference. Black's performance on Farscape is played with an almost tough, guarded, leadership-styled machismo with moments of vulnerability, while she's a bit of a loose cannon or an almost flaky con on SG-1. The latter became tiresome and I was concerned I might see more of it on Farscape. Not so. I discovered Browder and Black [one of the best in television teams] are brilliantly cast and opposite one another are a joy to behold. Black really emphasizes her handle on the Farscape role in a wonderful interview captured in Starlog #283. "In order to play her the way I do, I shut down as a person. I become very closed and the boundaries come up." This is a unique approach from the character she would play on Stargate SG-1. On Farscape, together, Black and Browder, opposite an all around stellar ensemble cast, generate a science fiction adventure that far exceeded my expectations. I may need to revisit SG-1 someday to enjoy the contrast in the performances from these fine actors.
 

1-Adam-12, 1-Adam-12, the son of Kent McCord has gone missing.

On Farscape, Black and Browder seem very much at home in their performances, ironic, given Browder's fish-out-of-water character, John Crichton, is out of sorts and a long, long way from home. Aboard Moya [potentially one of my favorite vessels next to the Eagle, Enterprise and Galactica] the two clearly bounce off one another with outrageously fun abandon. Everything is extreme, rules are out the window and Farscape is quite simply a wild ride. The entire cast seems to quickly play to each other's strengths on the series catapulting quite naturally into the essence of the show. There is a touch of the awkward initially, but nothing too obvious. By comparison, Babylon 5 was a mess in its introductory season. It took a bit of time for the characters to click there for me. With Farscape, like Firefly, the ensemble hits the ground running. There's a good, old-fashioned, Star Wars-like zest to the excitement. It's clear right away that the creators grounded John Crichton in their insane reality by allowing Browder's character to reference popular culture and pay tribute to the science fiction he loved back on Earth making him an every man like us. There is no shortage of homage to the best in popular culture throughout Farscape, but it's welcomed. It's often a comic infusion that informs and anchors the character and brings us back home when the tension is high in Crichton's alien universe. I have a feeling I'll be enjoying the series' mythology, relationships and strong concepts immensely. Browder and Black belong to Farscape in a way I could never quite embrace or reconcile for SG-1. Right away, the Farscape wormhole has delivered me to a place I'm excited to investigate in a way the Earthbound SG-1 never could. Farscape clearly deconstructs and establishes no rules. Anything can go. The crew travels inside Moya, a living ship!
 

Farscape offers a seamless blend of fantastical science fiction, rich with imagination, fortified by strong writing and character delevelopment. Welcome to Farscape, Season One, Episode 1, Premiere. What a premiere it is.
 

The opening shot of John Crichton is a powerful one with the space shuttle in the foreground of the setting sun. It is an image emphasizing Crichton's final moments on Earth. Inside NASA's launch facilities, Crichton is seen off by his father, Jack Crichton [Kent McCord]. You'll remember McCord from the disastrous Galactica 1980, but also the classic Adam-12 [1968-1975]. He leaves his son with some inspired words about being his own man. "Each man gets a chance to be his own kind of hero." He gives his son his ring. It is clear from the exchange that his father was once an astronaut and once walked on the moon. To some degree, his son walks in his shadow and clearly has big shoes to fill. But Commander John Crichton is a scientist about to pilot his own self-designed spacecraft dubbed Farscape 1 into a little experiment utilizing the Earth's gravity as a "speed booster" to slingshot himself at unrecorded speeds into space. The reasonably risky, complex, but pioneering idea quickly goes awry when a little bitty wormhole gobbles him up and Crichton disappears from radar and winds up somewhere else in a galaxy far, far away. This is important. It is a unique concept. Luke Skywalker was already established and living in a galaxy far, far away. The crew of the Enterprise knew their coordinates. John Crichton is floating out there in the great unknown and attempting to get his bearings. The wormhole effects are impressive and even more exciting in their design than those established on Stargate SG-1. At least this was my initial awe factor. It's a thrilling sequence.


 

John Crichton is now a long way from home. The opening credits sequence is exceptional and the music provided by SubVision [the Neal family] and Composer Guy Gross is weirdly epic enough to heighten the sense of uncharted sci-fi adventure. The theme itself was orchestrated by SubVision with female vocals delivered by Avigail Herman. The credits are given a slight makeover, with narration included, provided by Ben Browder, following Premiere with Episode 2. We will have that sequence for you next episode.
 

Crichton is floating in space when he is hit by an unidentified vessel on his wing. That craft crashes and explodes. Crichton is clearly lost with no absolutely no coordinate information and no communication back to NASA. He happens upon the Leviathan biomechanoid-vessel known as Moya, which is well under siege. Moya is a beautifully imagined and designed creation. It is smooth, rounded and aero dynamic in design resembling that of Earth's own ocean-based life forms. Crichton is pulled aboard the space-going Moya. His craft, now docked inside, is scanned by a small, electronic, mustard-yellow, mouse-like creature dubbed a DRD. The creation immediately brings to mind the mouse droids of Star Wars as they scurry about Moya. The instruments of Farscape 1 ignite on fire and Crichton exits his craft. The small droid escorts him to the helm where he meets two of the regular cast members, Ka D'Argo [Anthony Simcoe] and Pa'u Zotoh Zhaan [played with alluring sensuality and sex appeal by Virginia Hey]. Both are busy navigating the craft and doing everything possible to keep the enemy fighters at bay and fend off their attacks. How do you like this for clever? This is how the creators decided John Crichton and all of the aliens would understand one another - Translator Microbes. The microbes colonize at the base of the brain. It's an effective technique and reminds me of inventive moves by filmmakers in the handling of foreign language translations. Director John McTiernan handled the move from Russian nicely in The Hunt For Red October [1990] and Director Howard McCain hammered home a technological angle in Outlander [2008] in the move to Nordic/English. Writer Rockne S. O'Bannon and Director Andrew Prowse are flawless in their execution here.


 

D'Argo and Zhaan work in conjunction with Moya's central navigational brain dubbed Pilot, an extraordinary animatronic creature, designed by the brains of the Jim Henson Creature Shop in London, England and exported to Australia. Moya is clearly unable to escape and break free from the assault because she has been harnessed by a "control collar." The prosthetic and make-up work on D'Argo and Zhaan is stunning, meticulous and truly beautiful in detail. The set designs spare no expense. They offer lush, alien, gorgeous realizations of Moya's interior. The effects, too, are splendid and manage to look remarkably strong considering their vintage. Enter Dominar Rygel XVI, another animatronic/Muppet revelation. Rygel informs his fleeing shipmates that Moya was scheduled to take them to Terran Ran. The passengers are clearly on the run and were scheduled for imprisonment. Rygel informs Crichton he will look after him if he looks after Rygel later in return. Moya's hull integrity is fast approaching compromise as a result of the assault and battering of laser fire against it. She is failing quickly. With a stroke of luck, D'Argo's brute strength rips a number of Moya's many living cables [like bleeding arteries] and the restraining collar around the hull breaks apart. D'Argo calls for "Immediate Starburst!" It's Moya's version of the Battlestar Galactica hyper jump and it is gloriously cool. The Leviathan known as Moya escapes with mere moments to spare.


 

Cut to the ships left in the wake of Moya's exit and we meet the Peacekeepers led by Captain Bialar Crais. Crais' brother was killed in his Prowler in the collision with Crichton's Farscape 1. Despite the fact it was an accident Crais wants Crichton's head. My son, who is loving the show as much as me, noticed there are many Leviathans and we can only deduct that Moya, while alive, is not in complete control of her destiny, but is rather dependent on her occupants including Pilot and the crew. The multi-armed Pilot appears biologically fused with Moya. Whether Pilot is a separate, parasitic creature or more of a symbiote is unknown. There is much we will learn going forward. Could the control collar be something the Peacekeepers have harnessed across the Leviathan species to control them? Perhaps Moya is as free as its occupants now.

Back on Moya, Crichton is snotted upon by Rygel and D'Argo has a frog-like tongue capable of disabling an individual on contact as he does with Crichton. These are the types of moments that really inject Farscape with fun and emphasize this won't be your Daddy's science fiction adventure.

 

During Starburst a Prowler shoots through the wormhole along with Moya. With things calmed down Zhaan and D'Argo officially introduce themselves to one another. Zhaan is a Delvian priest and the two discuss the "fourth sensation" as developed by her people. She was imprisoned for being an anarchist, "the leading anarchist." D'Argo is a Luxan warrior who has seen "only two" battle campaigns, so scoffs Zhaan. The two aliens discuss aspects of their past lives. Peackeepers, though anything but, appear to be more like an Imperial army hell-bent on quashing anyone or anything that doesn't comply with their concept of "peace." This is certainly reminiscent of Star Wars on its face.


 

Zhaan concludes, "then perhaps together a warrior and a priest can help save each other."
Elsewhere on Moya, Crichton awakens in a cell. The irascible, Yoda-like [in size] Hynerian Dominar Rygel XVI informs Crichton he was the overseer of over 600 billion people of the Hynerian Empire before he was falsely imprisoned by his cousin, which he plans on correcting in the future. Do you just love the toad-looking character that is Rygel?

Rygel indicates Translator Microbes are typically injected at birth for any species. Crichton realizes he is imprisoned with a Peacekeeper, Officer Aeryn Sun, Icarion Company, Pleisar Regiment. Upon greeting her Crichton is quickly beaten down. The violent scene between her and Crichton reminded me of a sequence from Stargate SG-1. In the SG-1, Season 8, Episode 12, Prometheus Unbound, Claudia Black's character is also encased in black garb and the scene plays out in a beat down of Michael Shanks character Daniel Jackson that reminisces of this original introduction. That SG-1 episode feels like an homage to this scene. Officer Sun is a special Peacekeeping commando. Crichton attempts to make his case to Zhaan that he is human, but they are taken to eat. There's a sense that Crichton's precarious existence in this strange new world might land him on the menu.



Farscape: a place where blue is the new green. Yes, blue aliens are hot too!

This is indeed a snapshot of the chemistry that is quickly developing between the unlikely team of alien castaways. Farscape is strong out of the box. In fact, I would go so far as to say the character drama in play within Farscape is equivalent to the strength of the writing that would be found in Firefly's brief run. Ship Moya, again - a life form, is hurting following D'Argo's attempts to remove the Peacekeeper restraining harness and is unable to generate great speeds at this time. The team plans to land on a local planet despite little intel of a Peacekeeper presence there. The discussion is interrupted by a gaseous fart comprised of helium compliments of Rygel. All in the room begin speaking like Mickey Mouse. How many science fiction shows are this unabashed in their humor? Crichton is shocked to find Rygel can pass pure helium flatulence. Rygel indicates it occurs when he is nervous or angry.


 

Once on the planet, Rygel makes an effort to barter with a local monstrosity. There is indeed a bit of Star Wars Mos Eilsey Cantina about the terrific costume work in play on a planet that looks remarkably similar in style to Coruscant upon entry. Meanwhile on Moya, Crichton comes to the realization he must have made his way to this reality via a wormhole. Moments later, Sun and Crichton escape their confinement on Moya. Here's a classic exchange between Crichton and Sun played beautifully by Browder and Black.


 

Sun and Crichton head to the planet below in her Prowler. Crais and company pick up her signal and send Peacekeepers to the planet. Crichton realizes he's not in Kansas anymore. "I'm on another planet." Sun has relayed her position to Crais. D'Argo arrives on the planet and threatens both Sun and Crichton just before the arrival of Crais and company. D'Argo is quickly subdued. Sun attempts to make a case for Crichton as a human from "Earp." She states, untruthfully and knowingly, that Crichton is not intelligent or brave enough to attack a Prowler. Crais believes Sun has spent too much time with the enemy Crichton. Crichton attempts to disown any type of connection made between he and Sun out of concern for her treatment by her own. Sun's race is Sebacean and are primarily Peacekeepers. This group is led by Crais who alludes to a concern regarding Sun's detention and the proverbial Stockholm syndrome whereby a prisoner can develop sympathy or feeling towards their captor[s]. Crais refers to the Peacekeeper High Command's clear parameters regarding contact with unclassified alien life forms and exceeding a specific length of time in their care. Peacekeepers consider their people contaminated beyond a certain point. Sun, along with Crichton, are quickly arrested along with D'Argo. Crais is certain Crichton intentionally murdered his brother. It's all perception and clearly Crais sees things his own way.
 

Crichton and friends overpower their Peacekeeper detainers. Crichton fires one of their laser pistols. "Don't move or I'll fill you full of little yellow bolts of light." This is the classic kind of tongue-in-cheek humor that runs abound in Farscape. This is a fine moment between some of the principals once again.


 

The show speaks to human nature and our own cultural hang ups with such insightfully sharp dialogue. All of the characters reconvene on Moya. The Peacekeepers are in hot pursuit. The starburst escape option is unavailable. Crichton wants to attempt his theory by heading back to the planet via gravitational pull with Moya. "Can this ship thing be flown manually?," inquires Crichton. Crais readies weapon cannons. Zhaan declares "death" is their only alternative. Rygel responds "what a charmer." Pilot places Moya in manual mode for Sun to pilot. She dives straight into the planet's atmosphere at Crichton's instruction. Pulling out of the planet's gravitational drag Moya soars into space safely. Crais has lost her.
 

The exploration of sensuality and sexuality begins.

Following their escape Zhaan presses her face to Crichton's causing an intense sensation, perhaps the Delvian equivalent of a kiss or something more. The sensual world of Farscape is certainly another layer or component of the show often absent in science fiction. Later, Crichton and the crew take a little time for themselves. Zhaan meditates nude [there ya go]. D'Argo sharpens the blade of his Qualta Blade. Unafraid of getting off on the wrong foot, D'Argo threatens Crichton that he should not stand in the way of his freedom. Sun calls the Luxans brutal, violent and indiscriminate. Crichton pipes up mockingly referring to the Peacekeepers, "unlike your people."


 

Crichton affectionately takes some time to repair, with blue tape, his little DRD droid friend. Rygel tries to knick Crichton's equipment proving himself to be a bit of a thief, but Crichton informs him that it is his equipment. Rygel asks if he is a sound sleeper.


 

Farscape is a wild ride in, as Crichton calls it, "technicolor." The reason why the humor is so potent is explained best by Rockne S. O'Bannon in Farscape: The Illustrated Companion. "The idea of Farscape is taking essentially any one of us, and dropping us into Star Wars. John Crichton has seen Star Wars; he's seen all the Star Trek films. He's seen all the same television shows, movies, books and all those things that we know, like Monty Python, and can bring that to bear on the world that he's in." With tongue firmly in cheek, Farscape brazenly combines humor, emotional power, character drama and riveting yarns inside of a strong, well-planned science fiction mythos. Farscape promises to be one hell of an absorbing good time ride. I am on board the good ship Moya. This is rare, brilliant, emotional stuff fused with thoughtful ideas and a promise to defy convention. Premiere may be a touch busy, but rarely do season openers spin this much excitement with seeming ease in a first go. I've never been happier with the wormhole concept and we're right there with you John Crichton.

Premiere: B+

Writer: Rockne S. O'Bannon

Director: Andrew Prowse

Pop Culture Reference: "Boy was Spielberg ever wrong. Close Encounters my ass." -John Crichton-

The Creators: "We wanted it to be more alien than any other series - bolder, more emotional - and to have stronger, richer characters than on other SF shows. We knew we needed a concept that allowed the characters to be a little more dialled up." -Brian Henson-

"Brian was looking for a television series that would really show all the facets of what the Henson Company could do.... They wanted to do something on board a ship that had an animal team - a more Star Wars-like series. ... It would be very dissimilar from Star Trek. Rather than have the Star Trek military hierarchy and all that, it would be a situation of anarchy." -Rockne S. O'Bannon-

Season One Cast:

Ben Browder [John Crichton]

Claudia Black [Aeryn Sun]

Anthony Simcoe [Ka D'Argo]

Virginia Hey [Pa'u Zotoh Zhaan]

Jonathan Hardy [voice of Dominar Rygel XVI]

Gigi Edgley [Chiana]

Lani Tupu [Pilot]

Paul Goddard [Stark]

Lani Tupu [Bialar Crais]

Wayne Pygram [Scorpius]

Special Guest: Kent McCord [1942-present]. American born. McCord is no stranger to science fiction having taken a co-lead as Troy in the original Battlestar Galactica spin-off Galactica 1980. He appeared in Seasons 1 and 2 as a recurring character in SeaQuest DSV [1993-1995]. He also made appearances in Batman [1989] and Predator 2 [1990]. His greatest role came as Jim Reed in the classic Adam-12 [1968-1975] opposite Martin Milner for 175 episodes.

Deadwood S1 Ep3: Reconnoitering The Rim

One of the wonderful things about taking a look at the Ian McShane highlights from the HBO series Deadwood is that it gives you a good flavor for the story and the ideas in play in David Milch's recreation of the wild west. Through the highlights presented featuring co-lead Ian McShane, you really get a sense of this place called Deadwood and the hardships and the cutthroat nature of frontier America in the 1800s.

This is a beautiful, classic moment. I'm not sure I've ever heard anyone deliver the word "fucknut" with such utter flair. It also speaks volumes about the perception of Al Swearengen's tactics as a businessman.

What I love about Al Swearengen's character is how in-your-face and up front he is about his feelings. He doesn't hide his intentions and comes right at you. Here he greets the new town arrivals in the form of the Bella Union, led by actor Powers Boothe [Tombstone]. Swearengen is a dog and lacks the political acuity or sophistication of the likes of Boothe's character who plays opposite McShane here.

Farting takes on a whole other level of business here. It almost puts the farting sequence in Blazing Saddles [1974] to shame, not really, but of course that was a comedy.

McShane is a treacherous and savvy villain and this sequence plays it with some deliciously intimate, close-up and personal shots opposite William Sanderson. Sanderson [Blade Runner], like many of the players in Deadwood, has a number of agendas. Survival in Deadwood is the end game and a dangerous business. It's amazing how far we've come.

Swearwengen returns to sealing the deal with the "hardware boys" further illustrating just how good Timothy Olyphant [The Crazies, Justified] and John Hawkes [Identity, The Perfect Storm] are in their respective roles in this series.

Again, this is merely a brief synopsis of the latest installment of Deadwood. It's a deliciously addictive show like many of the shows on HBO.
*

Reconnoitering The Rim: B

Writer: Jody Worth [Hill Street Blues]

Director: Davis Guggenheim

Shatnerthon!

This is a small tribute to Stacia's Shatnerthon! over at her own She Blogged By Night. I wanted to post a little thanks. I submitted one of my older Star Trek posts, Captain Kirk's Guide To Women, which I had a bit of fun with once upon a time. She was sweet enough to post her own kind thoughts on her site.

It was hard to decide on a Star Trek-centric, William Shatner-centric post to be honest. Like any good Star Trek: The Original Series episode, I like just about anything starring the man. I was torn between my review of Has Been, a recent episode review or a bit of Star Trek doll [ummm, action figure] humor. I opted for the book review and Stacia set phasers for stun. Thanks again Stacia and to J.D. over at Radiator Heaven for the inspiration to go for it.

By the way, if you're a fan of anything and everything William Shatner you must go to She Blogged By Night and savor Stacia's thorough film analysis regarding the icon's work, including many of his early classics and lesser known works, which are lovingly covered in detail by the night blogger herself.

SciFiNow: Babylon 5: Ten Of The Best

I ran across a Babylon 5 Ten Of The Best article over at SciFiNow by James Rundle. You know my love for top ten lists knows no bounds. I thought I would bring this to visitors here who are fans of the Babylon 5 series. It doesn't match up to my own Big 10 preferences [and maybe not yours], but it's a reasonably sound list. SciFiNow indicates this is not THE best 10 episodes, but ten of the best. I've included the summary-based information from the piece for your discerning eyes. The article appears to have a predisposition for the more action-oriented installments.

Signs And Portents. Season One. "There may not have been a huge amount of action in this episode, but it was crucial to the overall development of the further plot. It introduced, obliquely, the Shadows, Mr Morden, and foreshadowed (no pun intended) the Narn-Centauri War."

Babylon Squared. Season One. "A mind-bending, reality-warping episode that mastered the art of raising questions for long-running arcs well before Oceanic 815 crash-landed on a time-shifting island."

Chrysalis. Season One. "The finale of the first season also saw the departure of Sinclair as the station’s commander, the transformation of Delenn into a Minbari-Human hybrid, the assassination of Earth President Santiago and more. A moving, and deeply important installment."
In The Shadow Of Z’ha’dum. Season Two. "Morden has been a shadowy, elusive presence on the station up until this point, but finally, we start to get some answers. Babylon 5 always excelled at presenting infodumps gracefully, and this is a fine example of that, where we learn the framework of the verse."

Severed Dreams. Season Three. "Dramatic, action-packed and well-written, Severed Dreams is possibly the best episode of Babylon 5, and always a fan favourite. The Earth Alliance civil war is kicked off in style here, complete with the kind of space battle you’d never see in Star Trek."

Z’ha’dum. Season Three. "A climactic moment features some brilliant (for the time) CG work, good acting from the ever-reliable Bruce Boxleitner, plot development and one of the most beautiful scores in the entire series. A truly vintage episode of the later Babylon 5 era."

Into The Fire. Season Four. "After all of the feints, heavy losses, pitched battles and more of the last few years, the Vorlons and the Shadows finally get a fat lip from the younger races and told to bugger off. It’s a little cheesy, but man, what an incredible space battle."

Endgame. Season Four. "Along with Severed Dreams this was one of the best episodes of the series as a whole. Its complex, multi-layered story added to some great action as Sheridan and his alien allies launch their final attack to topple the neo-fascist regime of President Clark."

The Deconstruction Of Falling Stars. Season Four. "Many fans consider this to be the actual ending of Babylon 5, and I’m inclined to agree. Unlike most shows, B5 actually gave us a full conclusion not only for the crew, but also for the entire human race as a whole. Far reaching, and very satisfying."

Movements Of Fire And Shadow. Season Five. "The true reason behind the Centauri attacks (as if we didn’t already know) is revealed, and one of the darkest plotlines of the entire series comes full circle, eventually leading to the destruction of Centauri Prime and the proof that you just shouldn’t bargain with the Devil."

Farscape Promo Starlog Magazine

FARSCAPE: Your World Will Never Be The Same.

This is a terrific advertisement I ran into on the back cover of Starlog #283. I post it here because it's not one I've seen. It's also unique and distinguishable from the various art covers issued for the initial Farscape Starburst Editions of the earlier DVD releases by volume from ADV.

It not only captures the essence of the program and the impact of this universe on its hero, John Crichton, but speaks volumes about the science fiction experience a new viewer will enjoy right along with him.

The mosaic of the show's principal characters is also quite beautiful as a backdrop to that classic logo design in gold.

May The 4th Be With You