Editing Fractures

{{Infobox Episode
| Title        =Fractures
| Image        =[[File:Fractures.jpg|250px]]
| Caption      =
| Season       =3
| Episode      =18
| Airdate      ={{d|August|24|2001}} (US); {{d|January|14|2002}} (UK)
| Production   =10318
| Writer       =[[Rockne S. O'Bannon]]
| Director     =[[Tony Tilse]]
| Guests       =[[Tammy MacIntosh]] ([[Joolushko Tunai Fenta Hovalis|Jool]]), [[Kate Beahan]] ([[Hubero]]), [[Matt Doran]] ([[Markir T'al]]), [[Thomas Holesgrove]] ([[Naj Gil]])
| Episode list =
| Prev         =[[The Choice]]
| Next         =[[I-Yensch, You-Yensch]]
}}
The reunion of ''Moya'' and ''Talyn'' is not the happy one the crews imagined.  Things are complicated by the arrival of another transport pod of escaped prisoners and a traitor that could bring them all down.
==Synopsis==
''[[Moya]]'' has detected a [[transport pod]] closing in to rendezvous with ''Moya'' and everyone has concluded that it must be the crew of ''[[Talyn]]''. [[John Crichton]] is anxious, asking [[Ka D'Argo]] which shirt (green or black) looks better. Meanwhile, [[Joolushko Tunai Fenta Hovalis|Jool]] advises [[Chiana]] on what to wear for the reunion and the pod arrives as Crichton and D'Argo speculate on the state of ''Talyn''{{'}}s crew. The four go to the [[maintenance bay]], but out of the pod step a [[Scarran]], [[Nebari]], and a female [[Hynerian]], along with an unconscious [[Peacekeeper Tech]]. They say that they've just escaped imprisonment and ask for help.

The Scarran, [[Naj Gil]], says that they were part of a [[Peacekeeper]] weapons test, to see how different species would react to their new weapon. Chiana, Crichton, and the Nebari, [[Hubero]], are on the pod looking for a [[Boolite]] – a creature that has been blown to pieces but can survive as individual parts for half a [[cycle]].

On ''Talyn'', [[Rygel XVI|Rygel]] asks [[Bialar Crais|Crais]] where they are and Crais replies that ''Talyn'' has found ''Moya'' at the extreme range of his sensors. [[Aeryn Sun]] enters with [[Stark]]'s mask and tells ''Talyn'' to intercept. When [[Pilot (Moya)|Pilot]] senses ''Talyn''{{'}}s approach, D'Argo sends Crichton to welcome them back.

In private, Chiana tells Hubero that she does not trust him, suspecting that he is a spy for the Nebari Establishment. Hubero then nervously drops "his" pants, revealing that he/she is an "[[androgen]]". Under the extremely conformist rule of the Nebari Establishment, intersex infants are terminated at birth, with only a small handful escaping on the fringes of society. Chiana accepts this as instant proof that Hubero was even more of an outcast in Nebari society that she was.

Rygel is first out, but is hesitant when Crichton speaks to him. Crais is next, but when Aeryn steps out and Crichton acknowledges the "familiar face," she simply says "Hello John" and walks away. Immediately noticing a problem, Crichton asks what's wrong and Crais informs him that the other Crichton is dead.

Rygel returns to his quarters to find the female Hynerian, [[Orrhn Pak|Orrhn]]. She gets in his good books by treating him as a [[Dominar]], flirting with him intently. Meanwhile, as Chiana, D'Argo, Jool, Naj Gil, and Hubero are in the bay, Chiana has a flash, saying that she heard a pulse blast, causing panic. Aeryn wanders past the Tech's cell and he tries to convince her to let him go and of the value of the escaped prisoners, but she doesn't care anymore.

Crichton unpacks the other John's stuff, and after sizing up their [[pulse pistol]]s, he takes back [[Winona]]. He throws Stark's mask aside, causing an image of him to appear. Stark says he has a message for Crichton and only Crichton, but is interrupted by Pilot who has detected a Peacekeeper distress call – from aboard ''Moya''!

Pilot says that ''Moya'' will [[starburst]] and ''Talyn'' will follow on a close trajectory to meet up later. Chiana blames the Naj Gil, but D'Argo sticks up for him as he never left his side and points the finger at Hubero instead. Chiana jumps to her defense for the same reason, as Rygel acts as an alibi for Orrhn, as they had apparently been, ahem, let's say 'amorously' occupied at the time. Crichton wants to lock the prisoners up, but they all refuse in favor of continuing to accompany the person they'd been paired with. Everyone leaves and with Aeryn facing away from him, following a long look a crestfallen Crichton leaves too.

Crais is trying to put the Boolite back together and Jool offers some of her biological know-how as to how it should be done, since he is struggling quite drastically, (like mistakening it's anus for it's mouth.)

Crichton and Aeryn are repairing the transport pod, with her handing him requested tools as she works. She ignores his attempts at humour, but when he tries to talk about the other Crichton, offering his condolences, she gets up and leaves without a word. D'Argo enters and offers some advice, which is at first refused. When Crichton changes he's mind and asks, he says that he actually has no advice to give but that he understands it's tough, Crichton's jealousy over his own double/twin. Crichton says that the other guy, the actual copy died, and D'Argo recognizes that the problem is that Aeryn now thinks of him as 'the copy' instead.

Crichton wakes Rygel from his sleeping with Orrhn and tells him that the prisoner's pod will be ready in half an arn. Rygel says that he doesn't want her to go because he thinks he's falling in love with her, but Crichton says to make the best of that half an [[arn]] they have left, for if he truly cares for her it's all the better he lets her go. When Crichton leaves, Orrhn opens her eyes and says she heard it all and likes it, then asks if he's ready to go at it again as she's heard Dominars are always up for it, needing no rest. Meanwhile, Chiana asks Hubero what her crime was and she replies that she's a non-conformist; and being an androgen (not male, not female) she pretty much had no choice but to be one.

Crais and Jool have managed to get the Boolite talking somewhat and Crichton asks who the traitor is, but it says it doesn't remember. Crais says that the memory may be in brain matter that they have yet to add or has already been destroyed in the blast. Pilot suddenly screams "shots fired" – they rush about and find the Scarran has been shot. D'Argo threatens Hubero and then grabs Orrhn. Both Chiana and Rygel stand by them once again though, so Crichton gets a reluctant D'Argo to release them. Pilot says that another signal was sent, this time including ''Moya''{{'}}s coordinates.

They find a transmitter expertly assembled from scraps of Moya and Crichton goes to the caged Tech only to find that the [[DRD]] watching him sensed no movement. Pilot says that the pod will be fixed in a quarter of an arn. As Crichton tells Rygel and Chiana that one of their people is the traitor, Chiana hides with Hubero in one of the empty metal crates while Rygel and Orrhn hide out in an access shaft, only to go at it again in there too.

Jool and Crais heal the Scarran, as D'Argo and Aeryn search for Chiana. D'Argo is about to speak to her about Crichton, but she quickly tells him not to. When they leave, Hubero tells Chiana that she doesn't want to cause her any trouble and runs off to return to the transport pod. As Jool and Crais finish assembling the Boolite, more fire is detected; the DRD was destroyed and the Tech's cell has been opened. Naj Gil awakes, as Orrhn wakes Rygel. She tells him that he must move his ass now and much to his surprise pulls a knife on him to emphasize her point.

As the others search, Orrhn tells Rygel that she struck a deal with the Tech before on the pod, and then on ''Moya'' she was pleased to find a great bargaining tool – Rygel himself, of royal value. She reveals that she is actually a 'lowly' soldier, and he will be far more valuable than herself and a PK Tech and had to shot Naj Gil when he spotted her earlier scouting about. Rygel doesn't understand as all Hynerians sleep for hours after 'pleasure', but Orrhn reveals that the 'pleasure' was all his as she faked her orgasms so she didn't fall asleep with him and could roam ''Moya'' freely. Suddenly ''Moya'' is neutralized so that she can't move. The Tech appears before Jool and Crais and opens fire on them. Running through the passageways, Orrhn shoots and kills Hubero, much to Chiana's distress. The Tech makes it to the pod, where Orrhn is waiting for him with Rygel as a hostage. They leave ''Moya'' and begin broadcasting their location, as Crichton and Aeryn  with D'Argo take pursuit in his new [[Lo'La|ship]].

The plan is to shoot the pod with a harpoon and board it to retrieve Rygel that way. Crichton worries the shot won't hold, but Aeryn reminds him [[Green Eyed Monster|it did]] with the [[Budong]], however he has no idea what she's talking about, giving Aeryn the sad reminder that this isn't the Crichton she fell in love with. They take the shot and it works, and Aeryn and Crichton hook slide over to the pod. They blast their way in and Aeryn shoots the Tech dead. As Orrhn tries to escape with Rygel on his [[ThroneSled]], Crichton only just manages to hold onto Rygel. When Orrhn realises she's doomed, with only Rygel holding on keeping her from floating away into space, she attempts to sweettalk him not to let her go, but to no avail, he sadly but determined let's her float off into space to her death. Crichton looks on and flippantly nods : "''women''". ''Talyn'' returns, as Aeryn, Crichton, and Rygel are lifted off the pod via the harpooned rope, ''just ''making it as the pod explodes below in their wake.

Crichton is in his quarters, finally listening to his message, which is actually from the other John who recorded it after the destruction of the Scarren Dreadnought, just before he succumbed to his radiation poisoning. The other John explains that while the Scarrans are back to square one with the [[wormhole technology]], the Peacekeepers are Crichton's problem; [[Scorpius]] cannot be left to crack the secrets which he might be very close to doing. Aeryn drawn by Crichton's voice silently eavesdrops and overhears as the other holograph John tells him not to push her because she needs time. They have a final go of rock-paper-scissors and as usual both draw the same rock, rock, scissors - just as before. Finally he emotionally wishes Crichton luck and a final goodbye. The message ends leaving a contemplating Crichton, as Aeryn silently steals away on the brink of tears.

With everyone assembled in Pilot's den, Crichton explains the situation. Pilot says that he and ''Moya'' are against the idea and ''Talyn'' disagrees, too. Chiana says that they don't know how far Scorpius is in his research, or where he is and asks how Crichton will stop him. Jool opts out and Crichton says though he doesn't like it either he doesn't see another option. Unfortunately he knows he must do this, but understands if they wish to opt out as he's aware they need not. After a long, lingering pause, the others watch on as Aeryn slowly rises and joins Crichton, on seeing her join Crais soon follows. While D'Argo rolls his eyes, in a 'oh damn, here we go again' attitude, Chiana thinks it's crazy and says that they're all going to die. Crichton asks if she's saying it because she's actually 'seen' it or if she's just guessing. John goes on to say that we all have a path to follow and he knows this is his, it's just something he has to do – he's going to hunt down the [[command carrier]], and he's going to stop Scorpius at all costs. 

==Memorable quotes==
*
:'''John''': Which one, green or black?
:'''D'Argo''': This is not the time.
:'''John''': D'Argo, green or black?!
:'''D'Argo''': Well, the black, of course. Far be it from me to say, but I've always thought the color of that green shirt doesn't suit the shape of your body.

*
:'''Jool''': Aeryn's fine. I'm sure the other you has taken extra good care of her. I mean... all I meant was, I'm sure he did everything that you would have done, if you had been there with Aeryn all this time....

*
:'''Chiana''': Not quite the reunion we were expecting, the other Crichton dead and Stark searching for Zhaan's spirit.
:'''D'Argo''': Well, with a single Crichton and Stark missing, perhaps it will restore some sanity to the ship.

*
:'''Rygel''': And since she came aboard, sweet Orrhn has been atop me...or beneath me, or-
:'''John''': Okay, there's a mental polaroid we can all live without, Ryg.

*
:'''Hubero''': When they finally find us, they'll be angry at you for hiding me.
:'''Chiana''': They get angry with me a lot.

*
:'''Orrhn''': What's their plan?
:'''Rygel''': Ahhh, they're going to kill you bitch.

==Background information==
* Scorpius/Harvey does not appear in this episode.
* [[Paul Goddard]] makes his final appearance of the season in this episode.
* When [[David Kemper]] saw the first dailies of Orrhn in her red feather boa, he joked that {{w|Carol Channing}} had taken a guest role on the show. [[Jonathan Hardy]] commented that Orrhn was a "common little creature. She looked like {{w|Phyllis Diller}} to me." ({{cff|3.3}})
* [[Fiona Gentle]]'s voice on set for Orrhn used a cockney accent. [[Tony Tilse]] decided that the character needed a voice that was more "posh." ({{cff|3.3}})
* When Crichton interrogates the Boolite, who at the moment is little more than a talking orifice, he remarks, "This is a little too [[Naked Lunch]]." This is a reference to the [[William S. Burroughs]] novel of that name, and later film, which featured a talking orifice of similar nature. ({{cff|3.3}})
* Both [[Lani Tupu]] and [[Tammy MacIntosh]] enjoyed the comedy scenes with the Boolite, though Tupu worried that his scream would seem out of character. ({{cff|3.3}})
* [[Thomas Holesgrove]] enjoyed playing the role of a peaceful Scarran, for once. ({{cff|3.3}})
* The cliffhanger at the end of the episode was deliberately heightened as producers knew that some viewers would have to wait months between episodes. ({{cff|3.3}})
* Jool receives an eye injury during the firefight and wears an eyepatch in this episode and the next. The real reason for the eye patch was that actress Tammy MacIntosh had experienced a minor injury to her right eye which temporarily prevented her from being able to wear one of the contact lenses needed for the Jool make-up.[http://www.snurcher.com/episodes/318.shtml]
* This marks the first appearance of a living Hynerian other than Rygel on the series, though the remains of two appeared in "[[Family Ties]]" (heads of decapitated Hynerians, Crais' trophies), as well as the only on screen appearance of a female Hynerian.
* The small pistol wielded by Orrhn while kidnapping Rygel is actually the "laser knife" from "Premiere" (little yellow bolts of light). She is holding it almost opposite from Crichton's grip of the same weapon.

==Links and references==
===Starring===
* [[Ben Browder]] as [[John Crichton]]
* [[Claudia Black]] as [[Aeryn Sun]]
* [[Anthony Simcoe]] as [[Ka D'Argo]]
* [[Gigi Edgley]] as [[Chiana]]
* [[Paul Goddard]] as [[Stark]]
* [[Lani Tupu]] as [[Bialar Crais]]
* [[Wayne Pygram]] as [[Scorpius]]

===Guest stars===
* [[Tammy MacIntosh]] as [[Joolushko Tunai Fenta Hovalis|Jool]]
* [[Kate Beahan]] as [[Hubero]]
* [[Matt Doran]] as [[Markir T'al]]

===Puppeteers===
* [[Sean Masterson]]
* [[Tim Mieville]]
* [[Mat McCoy]]
* [[Mario Halouvas]]
* [[Fiona Gentle]]
* [[Zoe Skinner]]

===Voice artists===
* [[Jonathan Hardy]] as [[Rygel XVI|Rygel]]
* [[Lani Tupu]] as [[Pilot (Moya)|Pilot]]
* [[Nicholas McKay]] as [[Naj Gil]]
* [[Alexandra Fowler]] as [[Orrhn Pak]]

===Uncredited co-stars===
* [[Thomas Holesgrove]] as [[Naj Gil]]

===References===
[[androgen]]; [[arn]]; ''[[Barbarella]]''; [[Bishan]]; [[blixk]]; [[Boolite]]; [[Buckwheat]]; [[budong]]; [[William S. Burroughs|Burroughs, William S.]]; [[caloric]]; [[command carrier]]; [[commerce planet]]; [[cycle]]; [[darcat]]; [[Dewey Duck|Dewey]]; [[Dominar]]; [[Donald Duck]]; [[DRD]]; [[dren]]; [[frell]]; [[Furlow]]; ''[[Lo'La]]''; [[Huey Duck|Huey]]; [[Hynerian]]; [[iridium alloy]]; [[Janeray syrup]]; [[Jensile Province]]; [[Louie Duck|Louie]]; [[Luxan]]; [[mag-stet]]; [[maintenance bay]]; [[Mickey Mouse]]; [[microt]]; ''[[Moya]]''; ''[[Naked Lunch]]''; [[Nebari]]; [[Nebari Prime]]; [[neural cluster]]; ''[[Othello]]''; [[Outer bay doors]]; [[Peacekeeper]]; [[Peacekeeper Retrieval Squad]]; [[Peacekeeper Tech]]; [[Pilot's den]]; [[Pip]]; [[Polaroid]]; [[pulse pistol]]; [[rock, paper, scissors]]; [[Scarran]]; [[Scarran heat producing gland]]; [[Scorpius]]; [[Sparky]]; [[starburst]]; [[Stark]]; ''[[Talyn]]''; [[ThroneSled]]; [[tralk]]; [[transport pod]]; [[turbo-sealer]]; [[Uncharted Territories]]; [[welnitz]]; [[Winona]]; [[wormhole technology]]; [[Zotoh Zhaan|Zhaan, Zotoh]];

===External link===
* {{fsw synopsis|10318}}
[[Category:Season 3 episodes]]