In Whole
OK class, let's begin.
After the PREVIOUSLY, we find Crichton stuck above Earth. Most beautiful sight he's ever seen.
And he's going to die there, stuck in space.
Back on Moya, his voice can occasionally be picked up. The wormhole keeps opening and closing, allowing his transmission through. D'Argo makes a decision - Moya and Pilot are to stay, everyone except Scorpius and Sikozu are to leave on his ship and pick up John. D'Argo also instructs Pilot to systematically shut down some of Moya's systems so Scorpius and Sikozu can't really have free reign, then they follow John's tune of "a hundred bottles of beer on the wall" down the wormhole.
Emerging, they pick John up above Earth. John asks for a radio signal, and D'Argo puts one on. It's a local radio station, with up to the minute news about President Reagan. President Reagan, John surmises, means it's the 1980s. Seeing as though they arrived before John left in the Farscape module, something will have gone wrong, as per Einstein's instructions. As such, John feels they should set down and make sure everything's OK.
Setting down on Earth, John has a look around while the others stay in the ship, cloaked invisible. John sees his mother, father, sister, girlfriend and himself, at a party in their garden.
A party celebrating his father's new position as Challenger captain.
The Challenger that blew up in 1986.

And there goes the opening sequence. John isn't in a distant part of the universe now, is he?

Back in Lo'la, John is telling the rest of the crew their predicament. If John's dad dies, John doesn't learn avionics. No Farscape project. Rygel and D'Argo stay in PK custody. Aeryn stays a PK. Chiana gets taken back to Nebari Prime. Following Einstein, fix the first problem, everything should go right. If John can get his father not to go on the Challenger, everything and everyone should remain safe. Fortunately, tomorrow is Halloween, so the others are not necessarily going to be taken immediately as aliens. Plus, they've got a place they can stay - an abandoned house, the former owner having being arrested as a drug dealer.
Arriving at the house, D'Argo complains about the dust on the planet, while Chiana plays with a pair of jeans. There are some photos left of some kids who used to live there sticking the middle finger up. John grabs the jeans off Chiana, decides to go out and try and stop his father.
John finds his family in the middle of an argument with his younger self, who storms off in "Betty", his truck. In anger, his father decides he's not going to leave on Monday to go on the Challenger, he's going to leave tomorrow. The time John has got to put everything right has just shortened quite considerably.
In the meantime, John decides to sneak to the porch and get some milk, but is caught by his younger self's girlfriend. John introduces himself as "Fred Scarren", they talk for a bit, then John leaves.
Meanwhile, D'Argo figures out how to turn the power on, while Aeryn reads "made in France" off the light fitting. The power surge D'Argo creates also turns on the TV, and Aeryn's obsession with Wheel Of Fortune begins. Very funny. Chiana examines the photo of the kid and the middle finger, and decides the middle finger gesture must be a greeting to a friend.
John, meanwhile, meets... John. Or more accurately, his younger self (well who did you expect?). Elder John introduces himself as "John Clarence" and shows he knows a few secrets about younger John, and tells him to get his dad not to fly on the Challenger. Elder John tells younger John why younger John gets upset - he thinks his father treats his mother (who relies on predictions from Tarot cards) badly. Younger John thinks Elder John is a government agent sent to test the family, and basically tells him where to shove it.
Back at the house, Aeryn is watching Sesame Street, even recommending it to D'Argo to try and learn a few words just in case, and complaining how slow the child on it is. Even Rygel is enjoying it, while D'Argo says that all the words Chiana has taught him - well all the necessary ones - are yes, no, bite me. Chiana, meanwhile, has decided to put on a nice floral dress, and decides to leave, giving the neighbour she passes the finger gesture as a greeting. The neighbour decides to look in, D'Argo and Noranti not in sight, sees Rygel laughing away to Sesame Street on the sofa, and leaves, looking more than a tad confused.
On the other side of the universe, Pilot informs Sikozu and Scorpius that PK Marauders are inbound. Grayza and Braca have found Moya. Scorpius recommends Starburst, but if they do Moya will never find the wormhole location again, starburst voiding all navigation data. Yet Pilot fears that if they are boarded, Moya will be enslaved and Pilot killed. Scorpius assures them that will not be the case, and they should let the PKs board, while Scorpius and Sikozu hide.
Back on Earth, younger John comes across Chiana, out examining pot-plants (I think). He thinks she's out to a Halloween party and offers her a lift. Chiana gets in the car in a most unconventional (and pant-revealing) way, finds out his name and tells him to drive, while younger John doesn't hear her correctly and decides to call her "Karen" instead of Chiana.
Back at the house, a policeman pulls up (D'Argo calls him an Enforcer). Aeryn tries to talk him away with his English, while D'Argo puts on an American Football shirt, Rygel pretends to be a Kermit toy, and Noranti pretends to be a geriatric old lady (well, not pretend really) and reads what appears to be a flattened Pizza box. The dust makes D'Argo sneeze and come out of his hiding place (well, behind a column) and the officer wants him to "remove his Halloween mask" (Noranti knows VERY good English by the way). Noranti decides to take matters into her own hands, drugs the officer and gives him a vision of D'Argo removing his mask to make everything OK again ("see the hoo-man you expect"!!!). The officer leaves, slightly befuddled but OK with everything he sees. Aeryn though believes it best to find Crichton.
Finding Crichton on the streets, John tells Aeryn his dad is leaving tomorrow, then finds his mother in the garden reading Tarot cards, who died four years before he left. He decides to talk to her (no Aeryn) and says he admires her Tarot reading. Crichton says he did a reading, and saw Jack, and tells her to make him stay until Monday at least, before leaving.
I don't know what they're watching on the TV this time, but we're back in the house. John thinks of a plan, remembering when he was trapped in a fire 17 years ago, and in a coma for two days. His father dropped everything to stay with him, so he'll recreate it with his younger self to try to get him to stay. Noranti says she can concoct something to simulate a coma, but John refuses, given Noranti's track record. Then they notice Chiana is still missing.
Chiana and younger John are (somehow) talking about fathers, and the future, while the policeman is back. Noranti springs up from behind the fence, says "hello Cookie Monster" and drugs him.
We find Noranti in the house's drained garden pool, the officer tied to a chair and another TV infront of them. D'Argo finds them. Noranti is trying out the coma concoction on the officer - whatever she does, he doesn't feel it. D'Argo is angry with her though - Crichton told them not to make things worse. D'Argo and Noranti put the officer into his patrol car in the back seat with Noranti, D'Argo in the driver seat. After putting on the spare officer's hat, D'Argo tries some voice commands with the car ("machine, go!" and "prepare for engagement!"), eventually decides turning the ignition may be a good idea, and nearly runs over the neighbour. He gives the neighbour the finger gesture and gradually drives off.
Back on Moya, the PKs have landed and question Pilot. Pilot says he does not know where John is (sort of a half-truth anyway) and says no-one else is on board. The PKs decide anyway to search Moya.
Back on Earth, it's night time. John enters the house to find a manic Rygel carving away at pumpkins. Turns out he's got high from some candy, and thinks them to be an illegal drug, but illegal or not he simply must have more!!! John has arranged it with his younger self's girlfriend Kim to meet his younger self tomorrow.
Back on Moya, Scorpius tells Sikozu to leave him and hide - he will be fine. Sikozu leaves, the turbines hiding her heat signature, and Braca arrives, seeing Scorpius. You're dead, Braca informs Scorpius. Scorpius asks him if other PKs will come down here, and how many there are. Thirty PKs plus Grayza, none will follow him down there if he so wishes it. Scorpius takes Braca by the neck... and kisses him on the forehead, congratulating him for a well planned conspiracy.
It's morning back in Florida, Earth (for that is where it is set), and the officer (now known as a chief) is found by his colleagues. Very confused, the chief decides he needs a search warrant...
Meanwhile, D'Argo has got the charges ready to create more smoke than fire. Noranti is still wanting to use the coma syrup to keep younger John unconscious - should work for three arns, having being tested on the chief. John goes to fetch his younger self, and finds himself unexpectedly joined by Chiana. He looks in on his parents having a happy moment, Chiana never having seen her parents in a happy moment. Finding himself at the meeting point with his girlfriend, John has a quick chat with her, before Chiana suddenly knocks her out. Chiana decides to take care of younger John, while John takes care of his younger self's girlfriend.
You can probably guess where this is going.
Next comedy scene - some kids arrive at the house, trick-or-treating. Rygel beckons them in, waits until they set a bag of candy down, then scares them out and loots the candy. John comes in, tells him off (aww, and we would have loved him to get away with it!) and Rygel professes his love for all the main brands of confectionary - M&M, Kit-Kat and the rest of them. John leaves Rygel to his candy-loving (though not with the candy, unfortunately) and checks how everything is going. D'Argo has the charges set, but Noranti needs another half arn with the coma syrup and tells Chiana to keep the younger John busy.
Typical Chiana, she decides to make out with him in his truck in the garage.
On Moya, Scorpius is talking to Braca. It seems Grayza doesn't suspect Braca is Scorpius' spy, and that Grayza is forming an alliance with the Scarrens. Scorpius determines she must be stopped - the Scarrens will agree, then betray the entire Sebacean race. Scorpius wants Braca to stall her.
Earth again. The police have the warrant, and younger John is asleep in the house. Noranti gives the syrup to Chiana, who feeds it to younger John. However, as he drinks it Aeryn and John arrive, the police just behind them. Younger John goes into spasms and seems to die. As this happens, John begins to turn invisible, Back To The Future style, and then corporeal. He is simply invisible at the moment, the syrup and younger John's death slowly undoing his life. The police enter, and Aeryn and D'Argo take them out. Noranti had made another weight miscalculation, the chief's weight having being greater than younger John's. She gives younger John a quick antidote (unfortunately, mouth-to-mouth style), and John turns slightly visible. It will take some time for him to become fully corporeal (or whatever it is) again. John in the meantime will use this state to his advantage, and go get his father. One of the policemen wakes up, Noranti tells him they're aliens, and D'Argo tongues him.
John meanwhile, totally invisible apart from his shadow (bizarrely enough) finds his mother in the garden reading Tarot cards. In a sweet moment he speaks to her, telling her John is in danger at the house, and she runs to Jack as John tries to warn her of something, possibly her own death. John slowly becomes fully corporeal again.
Back on Moya, Braca tells Grayza Moya is devoid of all other life. Grayza has accessed the memory banks, and determines both Moya and Pilot do not know where John is. She sends Braca away to prep the Marauders for their meeting with the Scarrens, before summoning a creature from the shadows. This creature, whatever it is (it looks like a ninja adaptation of one of Xhalax's blood trackers kinda) is locked onto Crichton's DNA. It cannot be detected by Moya, and will remain until Crichton returns.
Back at the house, the smoke is already filling the air. Noranti drugs younger John, to make him forget (Chiana adds "except for Karen Shaw, and the four wheel drive"), and does the same to the police, bar one. Chiana stops her, telling her it is time to leave, and they all leave. They bundle the police back into the car, everyone else moves to the ship, and Jack arrives. John, Aeryn and D'Argo watch on from outside, and the neighbour (known as Dot) pokes her nose round the corner as well. John knows Dot will screw things up, so Aeryn takes her out. Inside the house though, Jack hits his head against the light fitting Aeryn was reading at the start, and falls unconscious.
D'Argo says that if Jack stays in the house much longer it will catch on fire, and John and D'Argo go in to bring out father and son, running out of the way just before they both wake and his mother arrives. Jack catches a quick glimpse of regular John as he leaves.
At the police station, the chief Noranti failed to drug is giving his account. The others look at him in a "he's nuts" fashion, but the officer insists Rygel's pumpkin is a sign.
Going into space, the crew in Lo'la hear Pilot and Moya's signal, but cannot see them. Pilot tells them that radio traffic suggests they are in the year 2003. Following their signal through the wormhole, John and the others find Moya... orbitting Earth. Coming on board, the cargo bay doors open to reveal...
Jack Crichton, along with a few official looking, possibly FBI or IASA, people...
TO BE CONTINUED (don't you just hate it when it says that?)

What I thought
Holy. Flying. Frell. How damn good? This episode has everything, except the regular fighting. But in an episode this damn good, does it matter? Everything makes sense in a beautiful, heart-rendering, and hilarious way. It is so funny to see the Moya crew getting used to Earth, with Aeryn involved in some comedy scenes watching the TV, learning Earth culture from Wheel Of Fortune and Sesame Street (she learns English pretty fast, as do the rest of them, but it's only basics, and it's just a TV show anyway). The situation on Moya, with Scorpius and Braca, is a very nice plot twist, as is the cliffhanger. John's few moments with his mother are short, sweet, and perfectly executed. It is hard to describe exact things that make this episode so perfect, it is the mix of hilarity and more plot points than half of the first season really, all condensed and lovingly poured into 45 minutes of some of the best quality television I have witnessed. The only imperfection is the occasional use of English, mainly by Chiana, who seemed to have picked it up rather quickly, but I'm willing to forgive. Oh, and you can't forget Noranti popping up from behind a fence, saying "hello, Cookie Monster" and blowing her sands at a police officer (known, thanks to D'Argo, as "an Enforcer"!). Believe me, after the disappointing Prefect Murder and Coup By Clam, and the confusing (but necessary) Unrealized Reality, this is the best episode of the season so far, just pipping John Quixote, and possibly the best episode yet. I would give it a 6, but it's unfair to the rest of the eps, so it's gonna be a very, very strong 5 out of 5!

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