Farscape was an Australian-American science fiction television series that aired from March 19, 1999 to March 21, 2003 that utilized various alien makeup and prosthetics just as many shows set in galaxies far far away do. However, they didn’t stop there. The show was bold enough to use puppets or as I like to affectionately call them, muppets as two of their main characters. The show featured Rygel and Pilot, who were animatronic puppets provided by Jim Henson's Creature Shop.
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| Rygel - standing ( or rather sitting) at an impressive 26 inches. |
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| Pilot - Even better than "The Navigator" |
I actually missed watching this show the first time around it was on because I was in college and either trying to study or asleep (plus I didn’t have any money for cable). A couple years ago, I started watching it simply because of its concept: a show like Star Trek with more humor in it that found a way to put muppets in it?? No one that says they like Sci-fi could avoid at least watching one episode just to get a feel for it. Well, I watched one and I was hooked.
The lead human character, John Crichton, is a modern-day American astronaut who accidentally flies into the entrance of a wormhole near Earth during an experimental test flight. He is adjusting to his new surroundings the best he can even though he is often viewed as an idiot. He somehow manages to remain just cocky enough to appeal to both males and females during the series. The main female character ,Aeryn Sun ,plays a stranded Peacekeeper but there is more to her then just being a warrior. As the show progresses, more depth is added to her character as she is able to show her vulnerabilities.
What really set the show apart was the muppet concept. It was a fresh and new idea and it was very well done. Rygel is the formerly deposed ruler of the Hynerian Empire and former Peacekeeper prisoner for over 130 cycles. He is always getting into trouble and for the most part only looks out for himself. Pilot is a member of a race known simply as "Pilots," who are bonded with the organic Leviathan spacecraft and become their navigator companion, and liaison to passengers. Pilot is much more then this throughout the series though and I found him to be often the most gentle and caring of all of the characters. The dialogue for the Rygel and Pilot was excellent throughout the series and whenever they were “interacting” with the actors, I never thought to myself ,”It’s a muppet.”
I challenge anyone to make another show with muppets in space that works so well...even down to dealing with muppet love and sex (as yes, they did that as weird as that may seem). I leave you with this clip from Rygel....
The lead human character, John Crichton, is a modern-day American astronaut who accidentally flies into the entrance of a wormhole near Earth during an experimental test flight. He is adjusting to his new surroundings the best he can even though he is often viewed as an idiot. He somehow manages to remain just cocky enough to appeal to both males and females during the series. The main female character ,Aeryn Sun ,plays a stranded Peacekeeper but there is more to her then just being a warrior. As the show progresses, more depth is added to her character as she is able to show her vulnerabilities.
What really set the show apart was the muppet concept. It was a fresh and new idea and it was very well done. Rygel is the formerly deposed ruler of the Hynerian Empire and former Peacekeeper prisoner for over 130 cycles. He is always getting into trouble and for the most part only looks out for himself. Pilot is a member of a race known simply as "Pilots," who are bonded with the organic Leviathan spacecraft and become their navigator companion, and liaison to passengers. Pilot is much more then this throughout the series though and I found him to be often the most gentle and caring of all of the characters. The dialogue for the Rygel and Pilot was excellent throughout the series and whenever they were “interacting” with the actors, I never thought to myself ,”It’s a muppet.”
I challenge anyone to make another show with muppets in space that works so well...even down to dealing with muppet love and sex (as yes, they did that as weird as that may seem). I leave you with this clip from Rygel....
1 comments:
I didn't really get into this series, but I would like to go back and watch it when I have time. I think the only reason I saw muppets was because I came in half way through the series. I will take your recommendation.
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