Season Two Episode Reviews

2X22    Die Me, Dichotomy 
Plot:  Moya and John are taken to an alien healer as John is taken over by the Scorpius chip.

Certainly not the best but very good, though a lot of the emotions ring false.  John becoming Scorpius was very cool, though I thought the Scorpy-makeup was pretty unnecessary (not to mention the fact that he just looks weird in it and not in a good way).  The alien healers made for a very interesting couple.  John's brain surgery has to be the topper for the most disgusting thing they've done yet.  The John-Aeryn dogfight over the ice planet was absolutely beautiful, movie-quality CGI, plus Aeryn's 'death' was a very involving moment.  Her funeral however rang completely false since we all know she's going to live and for them to act like she's dead is ridiculous since she's going in cryo-storage (this seems like gratuitous pulling at the heart strings).  I was expecting a lot more action, though I should've realized it'd be like "Family Ties", but even so Scorpius arriving at the ice planet in secret was a bit disappointing.  And the big cliffhanger was an extreme letdown especially after all the hype.  Great John-Scorpy scene though.  I really hope Scorpy does get the wormhole tech, it would really up the stakes of the series and push it more into the political-military realm.

2X21    Plan B (Liars Guns and Money part 3 of 3) 
Plot: The gang and their mercenary allies storm the Shadow Depository to rescue John from Scorpius.

Without a doubt the best episode yet, and I can't see the next one topping it.  I love the interaction between Moya and the mercs, it's all very funny.  Crais and Talyn make extremely welcome appearances, and I'm glad to see they've finally decided to accept Crais as good now.  But man, Aeryn giving herself to Crais, if that's what happened, is incredibly creepy.  Jothee is an interesting character.  I'm glad they don't focus on Scorpius interrogating John or it could have become a "Nerve" rehash.  Natira is creepy as ever when she talks about taking John's eyes.  Scorpius finally confirms my theory that he wants wormhole tech not for conquering but to ensure peace by defeating hostile powers (like the Scarrans).  The entire second half has to be THE most visceral kinetic action sequence I have ever seen in TV perhaps anywhere.  I never expected that Farscape could achieve this level of excitement; I haven't felt this worked up over a TV episode since DS9's "Sacrifice of Angels".  The shootouts, the betrayals, the sacrifices, everything is perfection.  I was shocked at the Zenetian betrayal and at the Sheyang's sacrifice.  Talyn destroying the Depository was beautiful.  The episode ends on a wonderful down note too, with John having lost control to Mental-Scorpy and begging D'argo to kill him; something tells me all those riches they just won will be used up finding him a cure...

2X20    With Friends Like These (Liars Guns and Money part 2 of 3) 
Plot: Alien spiders threaten Moya; Scorpius holds Jothee and the gang recruits old foes to help.

While perhaps not as good overall as part one, it's filled with enough shocking plot twists to make it another spectacular success.  Scorpius nabs Jothee!  John is talking to Mental-Scorpy!  Stark continues to go more nuts! But the greatest plot twist of all was Durka appearing in command of the Zetetians and capturing Rigel! My god I was NOT expecting that!  And Rigel killing Durka was totally unexpected and one of the most satisfying scenes they've ever done. I was literally cheering, it was wonderful!  The final plot twist of John switching himself for Jothee was another shocker; looks like we're in more for 'Scorpius Tortures John' scenes!  The alien spider subplot wasn't the most original thing in the world but it did manage to be very suspenseful through the very real threat to Moya.  And Moya took a heavy hit that will have lasting consequences.  Scorpius and Natira continue to interest, and their sex scene was HIGHLY disturbing.  It's absolutely incredible how they bring back the aliens four previous Season One episodes for a team-up like this, it's just incredibly cool and great continuity.

2X19    A Not So Simple Plan (Liars Guns and Money part 1 of 3) 
Plot: Stark returns with a plan to rob a criminal bank to free Jothee but Scorpius interferes.

Another spectacular fast-paced action-packed episode filled with plot twists.  Stark's return was a tad anti-climactic and rushed.  The bank heist plot was extremely exciting and involving, the sets were massive, the location CGI was spectacular.  Natera is an interesting villain, another telepath, most especially for her connection to Scorpius.  Of course it's wonderful to see Scorpius again, plus he seems to have his own angle going on here. John constantly being driven nuts by Mental-Scorpy was both funny and tragic.  The final confrontation between John and Scorpy was unexpected and shocking and moving, though I'm sure he survived.  Stark is acting suspiciously, I wonder if it's even really him.  The cliffhanger was very unexpected, it suggests Scorpy was hiding some secret weapon at the shadow bank, but I fear a retread of "Exodus From Genesis" here.  An extremely exciting opener for the season finale!

2X18    A Clockwork Nebari 
Plot:  The Nebari capture Moya and cleanse the crew, exposing Chiana's secret.

A stellar episode that really opened up the Farscape universe.  After this episode the Nebari are now one of the big three players in the galaxy (the others being PKs and Scarrens) and big things seem to be coming.  The Establishment infected half the galaxy with the Contagion to prepare for their invasion, and the Resistance (led by Chiana's brother Neri!) is working to stop it.  Amazingly cool stuff, the Nebari make for excellent villains (add to this their extremely powerful warships which outclass the PKs!).  It's also interesting to learn of the cold war condition with the PKs, and that Scorpius attacked this particular Nebari ship which was coming after Chiana (though it makes me really wish to see a WORKING Nebari ship).  The mental cleansing is done to great effect with the exception of Zhaan's absence from the episode (she should have been immune and used her powers to free the others!), D'argo is once again hilarious as an effeminate.  John gets some stellar material and his surfer dude persona is hilarious.  The scene where John gets his eyes pulled out has to be the most disgusting thing I have EVER seen.  Wonderful to see Mental-Scorpy free him of the mind control.  I had forgotten all about it, but Chiana's past/secret was a doozy, and it was great to see Neri in the flesh and alive.  Quite a plot twist!  As was Milac turning out to be in the Resistance.  Loved Pilot's violent resistance to the control coller, and his fancy PK-attack illusion complete with a talking Crais (Crais appears!  yay!).  I can't wait to see the next Nebari involvement in the series (perhaps their intended takeover of the galaxy?), can't wait to see Chiana reunited with Neri, and I can't wait to get some action after all the nice set up on Jothee being sold into slavery.  Farscape's future has never looked brighter!  We may be in for a three month spell of no new episodes, but we went out on a very high note!

2X17    The Ugly Truth 
Plot: After a meet with Talyn goes bad, the gang is imprisoned and questioned by the aliens who were attacked.

Very interesting episode, though I'm very disappointed we once again get nothing of substance with Crais/Talyn.  I liked the Rashamon/ Unusual Suspects style of retelling one scene from several POVs, but it got a little tedious aside from the hilarious character impersonations.  The Placavian sets and makeup were astounding.  I like the infighting amongst the gang, the mystery of who fired the shot (it seemed Stark was the obvious choice all along).  Stark's sacrifice really shocked me, and it was incredibly moving, though I really hope he survives to be seen again.  The final revelation that Talyn fired the shot on Moya's orders also surprised me.  I spent the whole episode waiting for Moya and Talyn to team-up to rescue the gang, which would have been cool.  Here's hoping Crais/Talyn's next appearance with be more substantial...

2X16    The Locket 
Plot: John and Aeryn are trapped in a time anomaly in which they spend decades.

A surprisingly excellent and touching episode.  The interaction between Old-John and Old-Aeryn was just perfect and incredibly moving.  The makeup jobs on the two were absolutely phenomenal.  Annix, Aeryn's grand-daughter, was a very interesting character even if we only saw her briefly.  It's wonderful to see Stark again, plus he's extremely helpful (with a hint of romance for Zhaan...?).  I love that scene where Mental-Scorpy visits Old-John, and we learn the village people all know about John talking to himself.  Aeryn dying on the trip up was really shocking, and John's quiet grieving of her was perfect.  The ending even has some nice action as they get trapped in a time freeze and Old-John has to haul ass to the bridge.  Then even after that, we get yet another shocking plot twist; Jothee is about to sold into slavery!  Can't wait to see where this goes!  As for John and Aeryn not remembering anything... that's to be expected though it's interesting that Zhaan and Stark do.

2X15    Won't Get Fooled Again 
Plot: Chricton finds himself back on Earth but Scorpius is telling him it's a ruse.

This has got to be the best episode EVER!  A perfect blend of humor and tragedy!  Amazing performances from all around, particularly John!  It's amazing how involving these episodes are when John is put through hell.  This episode is just about perfect.  It's wonderful to visit Earth again and get some beautiful city location shooting, and I love that John KNOWS it's fake which means he can do whatever the hell he wants.  And of course the various incarnations of our characters are hilarious, particularly D'argo the party monster.  Great to see Jack Chricton and DK again (who we haven't seen since the pilot!).  Stellar continuity references (particularly John immediately checking the trick that got his way out of the faux Earth in "Human Reaction"!).  And of course the icing on the cake, Scorpius.  I love the way he meets John and tries to help him, explains his situation.  Plus how hilarious was John chatting up the faux-Scorpy-drummer!  But then things get horrible with John being visited by his dead mother, then being SEDUCED by his dead mother, my god.  Crais is hilarious as an over-the-top cop, and what could beat the three 'scape chicks trying to seduce John followed by Rigel in bondage leather whipping his crotch!  I don't see how they could EVER top this!  And of course once we get to the actual plot of the episode, it's even better.  It was a great plot twist to have it be the Scarrens interrogating John, to learn what Scorpy's interest in him was; I feared the Scarrens would be forgotten after the Princess Trilogy.  And man, Scorpy has been in John's head all this time in the form of a chip?!  That is horrible and amazing!  John's dispatching of the Scarren was a beautiful scene (the Scarren suit looked MUCH better than last episode) and that final scene where Mental-Scorpy erases himself from John's perception was amazingly creepy and tragic. Can't wait to see what happens next with this plot line!

2X14    Beware of Dog 
Plot: The gang purchases a Vorc dog to hunt parasites on Moya, which almost kills D'argo.

A great standalone episode with great mystery, action, and a little bit of story arc as well.  The Vorc was just a hilarious creation (though the taker has to be when he was humping Aeryn's leg!), and the mystery/plot twist of who the monster was was handled great.  I really liked the idea of injecting the Vorc with translator microbes so it could understand them.  And the final plot twist that RIGEL was the monster was just great, not to mention the great shoot-outs (have I mentioned I love those guns!).  But the best thing of all are the Scorpius cameos, it really makes this episode something more than normal.  I also love that final John-Aeryn conversation which explains the end of "Princess 3".

2X13    The Maltese Chricton (Look at the Princess part 3 of 3) 
Plot: Chricton goes into hiding while Scorpius attempts to foil the Scarren plot.

A confused mess of a resolution to the trilogy with some ridiculous bits but some good bits as well.  The episode begins with the gang being to talk to John through a headset, something which was never mentioned earlier and which really detracts from the horror of being in stone, very lame.  Cargn decapitating John was quite a shocker however, as was Scorpy being the one to save then himself getting shot up.  But then we get that Aeryn mountain climbing subplot, which while having some nice location shooting is a gigantic waste of time, not to mention it being ridiculous that she just runs out on a crisis like that.  We also get the inexplicable John-Jenavian alliance (which on a second viewing still makes no sense!), and even more inexplicably, John has sex with her!  First of all he's married, and second of all what about Aeryn!  It just seems totally out of character.  The best stuff of the episode was D'argo teaming up with Scorpius to take down Cargn, and the hints of a coming PK-Scarren War (THAT is something I am looking forward to!).  The final battle with Cargn was just really cool all around, and I love the revelation about Scorpy's nature and his suit's function.  And that cool scene where John tries to kill Scorpy but can't, great.  Unfortunately the remaining political crisis is solved ridiculously easily.  Cargn kills Clavor, then John just has Tyno go in his place and pretend he's John (despite the fact that everyone saw John at the wedding!), it just totally blows the build-up of the trilogy!  And I found the holo-daughter thing a tad silly and manipulative.  Even the Moya subplot is pretty wasted.  The great god Kahaynu, sucked into an engine? Please.  I thought Zhaan would use some arcane power to defeat him a la Maldis, what a waste.  But I did like the twist that it was a test of Zhaan's character, if she can be trusted with Moya's power.  It's also a shame this subplot ended so quickly and easily.

2X12    I Do, I Think (Look at the Princess part 2 of 3) 
Plot:  Chricton fends off several assassination attempts; Moya's creator sentences her to death.

A true classic, with one of the most amazing/hilarious sequences I've ever seen.  Fortunately there's tons of action to makeup for the slow part one, in fact it's nothing but action.  The entire sequence of Chricton and Braka on the ship was one of the best sequences I've ever seen.  First of all, John was hilarious in his insanity.  Second of all, it really built a sense of doom at the end when John is trapped on the ship, with a great deal of help from the music, then in his desperation he hears Scorpy's voice egging him to jump into space while the ship explodes around him.  Wow!  Not to mention Rena, whose voice was just hilarious and her comic death.  Jenavian turning out to be a PK plant was an interesting twist, though on first viewing I didn't realize she was Clavor's fiancee (this whole plot's just too damn complicated!).  It's a shame there was just about a total lack of John/Aeryn material.  I really like the way our characters respond to political sniping with direct violence.  The subplot was also excellent, Kahaynu was very interesting and the FX in his appearance was wonderful.  It's interesting that Leviathans were created for peace, and that they would kill one if it was used for violence (great Talyn mention!).  And that final scene where Zhaan is comforting a dying Pilot, and he says "I am ready now... I have seen the stars".  It actually brought a tear to my eye, and was a great reference to "The Way We Weren't".  And man what a cliffhanger, John as a statue.  Again this situation is perfectly played for the pathos, you really feel for John and understand how he reaches the point where he just surrenders.

2X11    A Kiss Is But a Kiss (Look at the Princess part 1 of 3) 
Plot:  The crew visits a planet caught between the PKs and Scarrans, where Kryten is betrothed to the Princess.

Sure it's a lot of set-up and has about 20 characters introduced, but it's still damn good.  It's great to FINALLY get an episode that is important and introduces a new spectrum to the Uncharted Territories.  We've got these Independent Colonies who are neutral but trapped between the influence of the PKs and the Scarrans, with the Princess being the focal point of the intrigue.  And to think, all this came out of Crais' throw-away insult to Scorpius as a "Scarran half-breed" in Season One!  Speaking of which, FINALLY we get to see Scorpius again, and man was that creepy when he hugged Kryten!  Apart from the palace intrigue and Kryten's dilemma (which is handled beautifully, a real sense of dread is built) we get a lot of kissing... in fact I could have done with a lot less.  However it was hilarious that Kryten walks in on Chiana and D'argo having sex TWICE!  And we get some major John-Aeryn material, obviously Aeryn is still a little freaked out at the prospect of a relationship with Kryten, not can she live without it.  Something tells me this trilogy will advance their relationship greatly...  We also get the beginning of a very interesting subplot about Moya meeting her creators... cool.  Can't wait for Part Two!  Oh, and this episode made a beautiful use of CGI, huge sets, location filming, and tons of extras!  Kudos!  If only the episode wasn't breathless in it's introductions to new concepts and characters who will be important over the next three episodes.

2X10    My Three Chrictons 
Plot: An energy anomaly creates two more Chrictons, one a cave man one an alien genius.

A very interesting moral dilemma, and the gimmick of three Krytens was very cool, but it's all a bit too straight-forward.  Obviously Futuro-Kryten would be evil, obviously Caveman-Kryten would be good (though I was hoping he was the real Kryten and the normal one was the impostor).   And Futuro had a very weird, annoying Southern accent.  I was expecting this to be a comedy, and it would have made a great comedy with three Krytens, but instead it's drama, which is a real shame.  Great to see the Defense Screen used again, some great slo-mo shots and some memorable high shots of Pilot which really emphasize his emotion and make him look very different.  I also like Chiana siding with Caveman-Kryten and helping him escape.  Not too much that's really hot about this one...

2X9    Out of Their Minds 
Plot: An alien weapon switches the personalties of the crew.

Wonderful!  Hilarious!  One of the best ever!  Though it's not as zany and funny as "Crackers", this ep has some of THE funniest scenes yet in the show.  And plus we also get a cool scifi plot, very cool huge spooky looking aliens, and finally we get to see Crais and Talyn again, even if briefly!  What more could you ask for!  The body swapping idea was pure gold, though sometimes it was a mixed bag.  For example Kryten as Rygel was hilarious, and he got the voice perfectly.  D'argo as Chiana was a laugh riot (effeminate D'argo!).  Chiana did Pilot perfectly.  Aeryn did a great Kryten, except for the fact that she couldn't do the accent very well.  Rygel didn't sell at all as Aeryn though, and Pilot-as-D'argo was basically Crais (remember the same actor does the voice for Pilot and Crais!).  Gotta love those little picture IDs!  The most hilarious thing I think we'll ever see is Aeryn-as-Kryten feeling herself up and shaking the bacon, closely followed by Kryten-as-Rygel having to be instructed by Aeryn-as-Kryten on how to take a piss, which is followed by D'argo-as-Chiana attempting to seduce Kryten-as-Rygel (VERY freaky!).  Though Zhaan doesn't get to share in the body swapping fun, she does get some nice material as a prisoner on the Halosian ship trying to seed discord between the two aliens.  And Pilot gets some great material as he's left paralyzed in Chiana's body and must instruct D'argo on how to hear Moya.  And the ending is very sweet and touching, when Kryten and Aeryn practically mount each other in celebration and reveal they both took advantage of each other... and of course Chiana and D'argo go off to have sex.  Actually it was a bit disturbing how ready Chiana was to spend the rest of her life as a man, and how she took "I like your body" as a sweet compliment... I thought her relationship with D'argo was going to be the opposite of the physical-based ones she's had before in order to survive, so this seems a bit weird.  I'm so happy to finally see Crais and Talyn again, and it's interesting that they were of a peaceful mind (or at least Crais was), interesting.  Oh, and did anyone notice that MASSIVE shot of Moya in Pilot's Den?!  I had no idea the ship was that humongous, I thought it was only like ten stories tall!

2X8    Dream a Little Dream 
Plot:  The withdrawn season premiere; Zhaan is framed for murder on a lawyer planet, Chiana and Rigel must defend her.

Relentlessly dark but a decent episode for Zhaan, Chiana, and Rigel.  Zhaan's madness is handled very well, particularly when she visited by the ghosts of Kryten, Aeryn, and D'argo.  I really liked the concept of a planet of lawyers (and the city FX was very wierd), and found the conspiracy to take away equal rights for the minority the most interesting part of the episode.  Chiana and Rigel as lawyers was both good and funny (though I question using Chiana since she's practically a kid).  The final twist that frames Rhumann is neat, though they might have explained it a bit more, we've never seen Moya do whatever it is she did before.  I think I would have prefered this as the season premiere (if you toss in Crais saving Aeryn, Kryten, and D'argo), another thing they never explained was Moya fighting the Sheyang at the top of "Baby".  The frame with Zhaan and Kryten was nice, particularly since we hardly ever see these two alone and they have an interaction interaction.

2X7    Home on the Remains 
Plot:  The gang must work on a mining camp Chiana knows for food; Zhaan's hunger drives her insane.

An average episode with some good bits and some uninteresting bits.  The uninteresting bit is of course the Chiana-B'sogg plot, as well as B'sogg secretly controlling the Keedva beast.  However it is interesting to hear something about Chiana's dead brother Neeri (then again do we really need a sequel to the awful episode "Taking the Stone"?!).  I did like the Budong Carcass Camp though.  The FX of this massive dead beast was absolutely beautiful, now I want to see one alive!  The sets were huge and populated by tons of aliens, something we haven't seen yet this season after having tons of it last year.  The Keedva beast on the other hand were absolutely terrifying, particularly when it was lunging at Kryten and Rigel, though in its fight with Kryten it looked a tad fake.  Kryten hanging off of Rigel's sled with both of them biting each other is a classic!  The Zhaan plot was very good on other hand, it's nice to see her dark side again.  And her with plant buds shooting spores all over Moya makes for an interesting image.  I also like Aeryn trying to handle the situation, and Zhaan kicking her ass (notice that Zhaan can fly in this episode; in "Picture" that was in a mindscape!).  I was shocked at the D'argo-Chiana kiss, I thought it was just another foreshadowing bit, them having a relationship so early in the series leads to believe one of them is not long for this world (ie Chiana).  Yet another costume change: Zhaan looses her gold turtleneck, Chiana gets a new black uniform, and Kryten now wears a black shirt with his black Peacekeeper coat; he looked cooler with the bit of red.  Another minor nit; here they're starving to death, it would have been nice to have gotten some lead-in to this earlier episodes.  Maybe it's from Kryten shooting up all those crackers...

2X6    Picture If You Will 
Plot:  A myserious portrait predicts the death of the crew thanks to Maldis.

This was a pretty good creepy episode with the welcome return of Maldis.  The top half about fighting the prophecy of their deaths was pretty cool, particularly seeing them die in gruesome mannors.  Once we get into the painting to confront Maldis things really pick up though.  I love the surreal FX-ladden  look of this sprit world!  The best scene in the episode was the all-too-brief exchange between Kryten and Maldis; these two make a hilarious pair trading Earth sayings, and it's a real shame we got so little of it.  In fact looking back, Maldis should have been in the whole episode rather than just the end- since this is his sequel appearance he should have been all over this episode interacting with the gang, Kryten in particular.  I really liked Zhaan and her secret plan, not to mention her superman-style attack on Maldis!  Then using all the weapons on Moya to blast away Maldis' giant hand... cool!  And how awsome was Aeryn casually murdering the merchant just because Zhaan told her to!  I am curious about the romantic connection between D'argo and Chiana, it's been hinted to before.  There was tons of great continuity in this ep; the broken defense shield from "PK Tech Girl" & "Mind the Baby", Kryten and Zhaan sharing Unity in "Rhapsody in Blue", and so on.

2X5    The Way We Weren't 
Plot:  A recording three years ago reveals the hidden past of Pilot, Moya, and Aeryn.

Certainly one of the best episodes, aces in emotional content but lacks in action.  The whole flashback story on Moya was intensely interesting; from Aeryn betraying the only man she loved, to the story of Pilot's bonding with Moya and deal with the PKs, to the death of the original Pilot, to the revelation that it was Crais who created Talyn and Velorek who prevented it.  Wow!  Intensely cool.  Even the present frame is awsome.  Pilot is one of my favorite characters and its great to finally get a big episode for him and his origan as well.  Kryten acts nice and subdued for once when comforting Aeryn.  And that last scene where Aeryn and Pilot reconcile and she strokes his cheek... I actually got a little misty eyed.  Great continuity all around, particularly for specifically mentioning "DNA Mad Scientist" where Aeryn got Pilot's DNA and the rest stole Pilot's arm.  I felt that the rest accusing Aeryn was a tad hypocritical considering all they've done.  But the best stuff is definitely with Pilot.  I love how he was rejected by his people but made a secret deal with Valorek to become a Pilot by killing the previous one... all because he wanted to see the stars.  And just imagine him being in constant pain for three years- wow.  I look forward to seeing Pilot naturally rebond with Moya over the next year.  And how bout that last scene where Aeryn indirectly confesses her love to Kryten!  I am curious at how similar Kryten is to Velorek, it's almost disturbing...  Tidbits: I am really curious why Crais was so crazy about getting this project done, did he have hidden motives?  Will we get reference to this when next we see Crais/Talyn?  Since Pilot's body is grown all over Moya, how could cutting ONE tube disconnect him from Moya?!  Will they ever Rigel something to do aside from being obnoxious?

2X4    Crackers Don't Matter 
Plot: A strange alien brought on board to help is connected to the crew turning insane and paranoid.

This is without a doubt the best stand-alone, and maybe the best episode period!  Never have I laughed so much so hard in the space of an hour.  Normally the show manages maybe three funny lines per episode, but in this episode practically ever other line was a classic.  Too many to mention!  The crazed paranoia and in-fighting was just hilarious (and also nice to see some conflict among them after being so buddy- buddy recently).    I particularly love Kryten's craziness and being haunted by Scorpius (who wants to have margaritas and pizza!).  The image of Scorpy in a hawaiian shirt holding margaritas has to be one of the funniest things I have ever seen, especially since up to now Scorpy has been so intimidating and scary.  And of course Kryten's final anti-light costume looked all the more ridiculous/hilarious, especially with him bellowing "humans are SUPERIOR!".  Hell, I even liked T'raltixx (who was played by the guy who does Rigel's voice!), neat look and wierd guy and those eye beams were pretty cool.  And Pilot gets to play a big role!  I love this episode!  This has totally availed my fears about this season after two clunkers.  Little bits: funny how D'argo and Chiana were getting so intimate.  funny how Kryten and Aeryn didn't trust each other.  Beautiful FX as always of Moya flying between pulsars.  The directing on this episode is fabulous, the camera is always swaying back and forth so the viewer feels uneasy, plus all those classic Farscape Rami-zooms where the cameras zooms in and away from the character, all wonderful!

2X3    Taking the Stone 
Plot:  Chiana joins a suicidal cave jumping cult on a grave world after learning of her brother's death.

This must be the worst episode yet!  It's boring and uninteresting, a snails pace plot that goes nowhere.  It's nice to give Chiana an episode, but it just turned out stupid.  We never learned enough about her dead brother Nerri to care about her grieving for him, and thus her cause for rebellion is not properly motivated.  The cult/gang whatever was also extremely uninteresting, including their lame secret, who cares?  There's not even any action to lighten it up, and the Rigel sub-sub-plot bout stealing cursed loot is also pretty lame.  The only good thing in this episode is the Kryten-Aeryn relationship dealing with Chiana, Kryten bullying his way around and Aeryn being more understanding, than the end where Kryten asks Aeryn if he's been acting crazy lately (it's nice they address this, it means its purposeful as a result of the 5parter).

2X2    Vitas Mortis 
Plot: D'argo falls for a Luxan holy woman whose youth is restored at the price of Moya's life.

Unfortunately a pretty sub-par episode with a boring snail's pace.  I certainly understand what they were going for, it just wasn't too exciting.  Its great to finally see another (female) Luxan, and D'argo gets a nice little romance here (but did we really have to have all that Luxan sex and pillow talk?!  Ugh, that really hurt the show).  I much prefered the 'Moya Hijinks' subplot, while not very original it was really nice to see the gang finally deal with a comical problem rather than capture and death at the hands of Scorpius.  I really liked Chiana in this episode, for the first time I realized that Chiana is just a teenager, just a kid, I always took her to be an adult like the rest of them.  It's interesting.  And I love seeing everyday things like Chiana doing laundry and bickering with Aeryn about doing HER laundry.  Also cute was Rigel getting stuck in the hull breach (along with the classic Kryten line "Lucky for us, Sparky's got a big ass!").  I appreciate that Nilaam wasn't evil and sacrificed herself to save Moya, of course that means this episode doesn't even have any action to speed it up...  The best thing about this episode was the caring the gang shows for each other, particularly Kryten's concern for D'argo and D'argo calling Kryten "John" and listening to him... before the 5-parter they wouldn't do this, but that has made Kryten and D'argo close friends, and its great to see that.  I also liked Aeryn showing such concern for Pilot and Moya (Aeryn and Pilot held hands!  awww).  Even Zhaan tickling Rigel's feel and gigling was great.  And Pilot says he'll die with Moya and wants it that way.  They're a family baby!  On a superficial note, everybody but Chiana got new costumes!  D'argo's was okay, Zhaan looked like an idiot in that turtleneck, Aeryn's was only vaguely different, and I don't like Kryten's; he's wearing that fascist looking uniform that Crais wears with the long tail; I much prefer the red n' black military uniform plus Kryten looks a bit too fascist for my tastes now, especially with his gun always at his side.

2X1    Mind the Baby 
Plot:  The gang fights Crais for possession of Talyn as Scorpius continues to pursue them.

This episode was so rushed and fast moving it was practically impossible to keep up with it.  It felt like three episodes, but they were very good episodes!  While certainly one of the better episodes, it's break-neck pace does hurt its value.  This episode was about one thing; Crais and Talyn, Scorpius was  just a subplot.  There were so many shocking revelations here: Aeryn working with Crais, Crais working with Scorpius, Talyn turning on Moya and choosing Crais, wow.  Crais has certainly changed from a one-note hot head to... whatever the hell he is now.  He's kind of taking the DS9's Dukat route (Cardassian military officer-renegade-wierdo cultist), but I have faith that his route will not suck in the end like Dukat's did.  Zhaan's behavior was very wierd and confusing, I really wish they didn't put it in the episode because it didn't get the screentime it deserved (in the Audio Commentary they say we'll learn more about this including why it started).  In fact,  I feel like I missed an episode (Re:Union was the name of the 1st episode and Mind the Baby the 2nd, but then Re:Union disappeared... did we really miss an episode?!!).  Moya fighting the Sheyang for all of five seconds really needed more screentime, Zhaan's craziness, Aeryn rescuing Kryten and D'argo then making the deal with Crais, we need to SEE this damnit!  I'm really shocked at Talyn's actions, choosing Crais over Moya.  I'm also pissed our crew didn't get to keep Talyn but rest assured Talyn will be back soon.  Great continuity bringing back the "PK Tech Girl" defense shield (I forgot all about it!) but it stinks why they didn't even mention the goddamn thing when trying to escape Scoripius in the last episode!  Scorpius getting that fuel in his ear was one of the most disgusting things I've seen on tv, I love it!  More mysteries with Scorpius...  I really love that last scene where Kryten and Aeryn are cuddling in front of Pilot, awww....  On a superficial note, D'argo's costume has been really changed.  Now he's more brown instead of yellow, he looks a bit shorter in the face, and his eyes seem a different color.  Also, Rigel and Pilot seem to be just a little bit more mobile and expressive now.  Oh, and I love love love this netcast audio commentary by the two head honchos of the series describing the episode, this was just so freakin' cool!  They should do this with every epsiode!