Farscape return? It could happen...

From SDCC: Tor.com link

I have mixed feelings on this one.

On the one hand, Farscape was one of the best, most original SF shows (at its height - there were some clunkers, and it tapered toward the end) ever aired. The universe has plenty of spin-off and sequel potential. And seeing what the Henson company could do now would be spectacular, given what they gave us 20 years ago.

On the other... 20 years ago, all this was true. Even with the same cast, even with the same crew, I'm not sure that lightning can be captured in the bottle again. And they did do a decent (if rushed) wrap job in their 2-hour finale. Is there a need to revisit? (And if they're thinking reboot... no.)

(At least they're talking Amazon Prime, not SyFy. Backstab me once, shame on you...)

Kjbartolotta said:

Huh-WHA!? I mean, I kind of agree with you. And, though it felt like they were cramming a whole season into 2 hours, I did feel like Peacekeeper Wars wrapped every up nicely (that last scene still gives me the feels). But boy would I love to return to that universe with all its zaniness, excellent non-cliche worldbuilding and wonderful characters. But is it Farscape without Ben Browder and (more importantly) Claudia Black?

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Yeah - they'd almost have to "next gen" it, if they didn't do a completely different story arc with all-new characters. (Crichton did leave that info on the moon to get humans into space, IIRC... could be series potential in our planet's first, not accidental, journey from our home system.) Even then... Farscape without D'Argo...

I'm still torn. Part of me would love to see it, while part almost wants them to let sleeping franchises lie. The SF landscape is radically different now than it was then. For one thing, at the time, it was the closest thing to Star Wars (in terms of truly wild aliens and some hints of mysticism/stuff that might pass for magic) that was on the airwaves, and now we've had SW not only on TV, but crammed into every available entertainment orifice Disney can cram it into, and then some. And Star Trek's been revived. And... well, it's got some stiff and high quality competition, on cable and streaming, on a level that I don't recall existing two decades ago. Not that I put anything past good writers, but are they up for the fight, or are they going to try too hard to emulate what worked back then, appealing mainly to the original Scapers?

Kjbartolotta said:

Wait, if they do a next-gen thing, wouldn't D'Argo be the main character? Or are we talking about a different D'Argo? ;P

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The original D'Argo, Ka D'Argo.

Kjbartolotta said:

I'd be ok with next-gen. I think could do it if all the passion was there. So much of what made the show fun for me was obviously the crazy space opera setting, but really it was the care and love that went into it. The writers and actors clearly loved the characters and there always seemed to be sense everyone was enjoying the heck out of themselves. IIRC, Virginia Hey even put her life at risk to keep playing Zhaan as long as possible. Plus, Scorpius, how you gonna top that guy?



I would go one better to say it was the best, or at least my favorite. But maybe that has something to do with the time in my life in which I watched it, which gets into my larger philosophical problem with reboots. Nostalgia is indelible, but it makes nothing new.

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Yes, timing has a lot to do with how people react to, and remember, SF shows. Some shows I loved at the time haven't aged well, but the memories and feelings remain.

As for a show being "the best," that would require watching all the shows. And there are some darned good shows that have come out before, and came out after, and are still out there but I haven't seen yet. And many of them are apples and oranges, frankly, making quantification impossible. (How do you compare Farscape to The Expanse, for instance? Two totally different worlds, both great in their own respects and in meeting their own goals, but I'd never want a crossover because the vibes are so completely different.)

BenPanced said:

Oh, look. Another streaming service everybody's going to have to join. I say it's spinach, and I say the hell with it.

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Not everybody. No law saying you have to join. And at this point it's just speculation anyway. (I expect that the success or failure of the Henson-produced Dark Crystal prequel series on Netflix might enter into negotiations on Farscape, another Henson-linked franchise; a success could give them more leverage.)

The old business models of broadcast or even cable TV have shifted irrevocably with streaming becoming a thing. It's how the entertainment landscape's moving, for good or ill. Even the traditional networks are moving their premium stuff behind subscription walls (CBS All-Access, anyone?). And SyFy was also not available everywhere for quite some time; it's not exactly over the air for free consumption with antenna, after all, so one was already paying for access via cable/fiber optic/dish/etc.

For now, I consider that I get a good return on my investment with Prime and Netflix with the quality and variety of shows they provide. Maybe someday we'll get truly a-la-carte entertainment where we only pay for the particular shows we want to watch. Until then, one must pick and choose.

And if there is new Farscape offered on Prime someday, I expect I'll give it a try.