Petition for return of Farscape

[Newbie]

to: Little Grey Girl
i totally agree with you..

[cyberman]

Well this thread didn't really go in the direction the author intended. As far as signing a petition. I'd put my name down on any list if it stands for making more Farscape regardless of how futile the gesture might be.

Regarding the merits of the PKWs. I think you certainly have to appreciate the context in which it was created. The return of Farscape borders on a miracle when you consider all the hurdles it had to jump before being realized.

I don't think anybody would disagree that a fifth season of Farscape would have been far more preferable to a mini-series. Heck, Henson and company initially refused to compromise with Sci-fi on the idea of a mini-series. Sci-Fi had presented them with this option as a chance to finish out the story. Only after closing the book on Farscape (assumed to be forever) was a mini-series considered by the creative team. And thank goodness the cast and crew was willing. Nobody inside considered season 4 to be the end of the story. I know I didn't.

There is no question that the PKWs is a truncated version of 22 episodes for season 5. But at least the story got to be told. And when you consider the challenge of boiling down 22 hours into 4 I think they did a damn fine job. Of course many of those 22 hours would have been one-shot stories unrelated to the major story arc... bur certainly the major story told in the mini would have been told over the course of 6, 8, or even 10 episodes. And all the sideline stories addressed in the mini would have comprised the majority of the rest of a season. So, Yes. The mini was rushed, truncated, and less than what any of us would have wanted. But it was also a tremendous feat of television that we can all be proud is the final chapter in our favorite series.

[Up From The Depths]

There is no question that the PKWs is a truncated version of 22 episodes for season 5. But at least the story got to be told. And when you consider the challenge of boiling down 22 hours into 4 I think they did a damn fine job. Of course many of those 22 hours would have been one-shot stories unrelated to the major story arc... bur certainly the major story told in the mini would have been told over the course of 6, 8, or even 10 episodes. And all the sideline stories addressed in the mini would have comprised the majority of the rest of a season. So, Yes. The mini was rushed, truncated, and less than what any of us would have wanted. But it was also a tremendous feat of television that we can all be proud is the final chapter in our favorite series.

I question that PKWs is a truncated version of 22 episodes for season 5, for two reasons. While the writers and producers say that they had seasons four and five all planned out, the aimlessness I saw in season four makes me doubt their sincerity. The day they release an episode-by-episode synopsis of what they were planning, I'll buy it, but until then I just hear weak excuses for the mini being rushed, truncated (actually, bloated, considering how much of it had nothing to do with anything), and less than what any of us would have wanted. Secondly, the "22 episode plan" assumes no stand-alone episodes, when even season four was about 1/3 stand-alone.

Even if we grant though that PKW was a severly truncated telling of the plans for season five, then it would have been a surefire recipe for failure from the start. If they had to compromise and water down and brutally hack and slash in an attempt to do 22 episodes worth of conclusion (!!!) in four episodes, then why bother doing it at all? Better plan: throw the "22 episode plan" to the wolves and start over with the important questions - what do we want to resolve, and how can we do it best with the characters we've created while staying true to the spirit of the show?

If you really think that can't be done in three hours of screentime, you haven't sat through a Godfather movie lately.

[cyberman]

Up From The Depths, clearly you were not happy with PKW. I had my fair share of problems with the story, but as a whole we disagree.

Regarding the season 5 that never was. You are right. The creative team didn't have a detailed 22 episode plan prior to the begining of a season. They have said as much in interviews on the DVD's. But they did have a larger story arc that they would have followed, like they did in Seasons 1-4. The aimlessness you describe are those stand-alone stories they use to fill the gaps in-between their larger story arc.

Your question of "why bother doing it at all?" is one that Henson had early on when negotiating with Sci-Fi at the end of Season 4. It is rumored that Sci-Fi proposed a mini-series so that Farscape could finish telling their story. Henson declined.

Ultimately Henson (IMHO thankfully) chose to tell a mini-series story when Farscape was all but dead and buried. Your suggestion that they should chunk the "22 episode plan" (something they probably didn't have detailed out anyway) and start over by answering the important questions is probably what they tried to do. Obviously you don't think they succeeded in their attempt. I believe they did.

[lovingfarscape]

i think having a petion is a good idea but if farscape was cancelled it was cancelled. Sci-fi channel seems to be idots to cancel something that i find alot of ppl love. But do u think they will listen to us, they did the first time do u think now.

[johncrichton411]

But do u think they will listen to us, they did the first time do u think now.

umm they didn't listen to us... i hope that was a typo?

[lovingfarscape]

that wasnt a typo they did the gave us pkw

[BritAngie]

that wasnt a typo they did the gave us pkw

Actually sci fi only aired it. Hensons, Hallmark and an unspecified UK consortium actually funded and made the mini series. It was already filmed before sci fi was even aware of it.

[mattwillal]

Actually sci fi only aired it. Hensons, Hallmark and an unspecified UK consortium actually funded and made the mini series. It was already filmed before sci fi was even aware of it.

This brings up another point, did we/will we ever find out who the UK investors were?

I for one would like to thank them, however I suppose that they will get most of their thanks through the sale of PKW DVD's (assuming they were smart enough to do a George Lucas & demand a percentage of all merchandise sales).

The rumour was that the investors heard about Farscape through the fan campaigns, however it would not surprise me if at least one of their number was already a fan.

Perhaps someone who posts on these very forums...

[NCStacie]

I would love to have Farscape back.

[BritAngie]

Actually sci fi only aired it. Hensons, Hallmark and an unspecified UK consortium actually funded and made the mini series. It was already filmed before sci fi was even aware of it.

This brings up another point, did we/will we ever find out who the UK investors were?

I for one would like to thank them, however I suppose that they will get most of their thanks through the sale of PKW DVD's (assuming they were smart enough to do a George Lucas & demand a percentage of all merchandise sales).

The rumour was that the investors heard about Farscape through the fan campaigns, however it would not surprise me if at least one of their number was already a fan.

Perhaps someone who posts on these very forums...

Nope-we never ever did find out and I doubt we ever will to be honest. And yes they did indeed hear about Farscape through the fan campaign according to Brian Henson. We don't know the specifics but the amount of noise we made was heard by the industry and I guess they heard through that channel somehow? I don't know. And yes the dvd's are an important money spinner. Infact dvd sales is a huge component these days for any venture in gaining a return on an investment. I think DK said that with the regular series of Farscape the show is still in the red in terms of investment-that it's not until dvd sales and syndication that it stands any chance of edging back into the black. I'd imagine the mini would be in the same situation-so getting people to buy the Farscape dvd's is just as important at the moment as ratings in terms of return.

If anyone wants to thank those who invested-then buy the dvd and recommend it to everyone.

[Up From The Depths]

Regarding the season 5 that never was. You are right. The creative team didn't have a detailed 22 episode plan prior to the begining of a season. They have said as much in interviews on the DVD's. But they did have a larger story arc that they would have followed, like they did in Seasons 1-4.

If we can agree on this, can we also agree that the "they tried to cram 22 episodes of story into 4 episodes of time" excuse is hogwash?

[cyberman]

If by excuse you mean an excuse for being a crappy piece of television, I can't agree because I liked the mini-series. Just because I would have prefered a season 5 doesn't mean I have to hate the mini.

But I can agree that the mini-series was not 22 episodes boiled down into 4. I do believe that the mini-series represents aspects that would have appeared in multiple season 5 episodes. How many, I cannot say.

[scapecadet]

Regarding the season 5 that never was. You are right. The creative team didn't have a detailed 22 episode plan prior to the begining of a season. They have said as much in interviews on the DVD's. But they did have a larger story arc that they would have followed, like they did in Seasons 1-4.

If we can agree on this, can we also agree that the "they tried to cram 22 episodes of story into 4 episodes of time" excuse is hogwash?

Don't forget that the main arc stories used to be moved on even during stand alone eps - some important developments were just slipped in involving only a short scene or conversation that fitted in the stand alone ep, but was important in the overall development of a character or a relationship. That is why FS was such a joy to watch - things were generally allowed to progress at their own pace without being hothoused into resolution within 50 minutes. So I feel that to argue about the exact number of eps being compressed is like splitting hairs really. And there is no need to have all 22 eps planned down to every detail including synopsis - it would be enough to have a broad arc for each character/relationship from the point where they were at the end of S4 and where they will be at the end of S5. I believe that had to be there (and I don't doubt it was) in order to coordinate all the different writers involved. But a certain flexibility was always required, as the show was famous for welcoming actors' input etc..
I also believe that it was impossible to just forget S4 and go in an entirely different direction in the mini - can you imagine the discussions here, had they not addressed most of the issues at all? It was all tidied up (more or less successfully, but at least almost all of it) and the stage is set for a new beginning..
Let's hope that enough people liked PKW to make a new FS project an attractive and viable proposition for investors, Henson's and the actors
I, for one, would be really excited and definitely very interested in anything new and would certainly welcome it and watch it (and hopefully love it as well

[DCscaper]

I, for one, wholly enjoyed PKW, and thought it was a fabulous and beautiful way to end the series.

No, it wasn't an ideal way to end it, considering that there was originally supposed to be an entire Season 5, but it was the absolute best they could've done within the span of 4 hours.

There were small things that I didn't like about it, but overall, after watching it, I felt satisfied with the way the story was told. Knowing that the future of Farscape, if there even will be a future, was entirely uncertain, the creators gave us the last chapter of the saga.

If more of the story is in the wings and has the opportunity to be told, I'll be estatic to see it. But if not, I'm happy with what Brian Henson managed to give us.