| Farscape episode | |
|---|---|
| “My Three Crichtons” | |
| |
| Episode no. | Season 2 Episode 10 |
| Writer(s) | Grant McAloon (Story by Gabrielle Stanton & Harry Werksman, Jr.) |
| Director | Catherine Millar |
| Production no. | 10212 |
| Original airdate | July 14, 2000 (US); October 2, 2000 (UK) |
| Episode chronology | |
| ← Previous | Next → |
| "Out of Their Minds" | "Look at the Princess - A Kiss is but a Kiss" |
A mysterious sphere engulfs and spits out Crichton along with a couple of all too familiar faces.
Synopsis[]
Aeryn Sun is in the maintenance bay, pulling some Moya components out of John Crichton's module to use in her Prowler. Unsurprisingly, he objects, when a ball of energy suddenly penetrates Moya's hull, and examines everyone in turn. When it reaches Crichton it hovers above his head, so Aeryn shoots it, but it envelopes Crichton...
Ka D'Argo comes along to see what's happening, and the ball starts to vibrate, throwing Crichton back out, shortly followed by some sort of beast, which lands on Crichton and runs off. Crichton can't remember what happened when he was inside the ball, while Zhaan finds some blood from the beast on the floor. Rygel tells D'Argo to sniff out the creature, but D'Argo can only smell Crichton.
Chiana is trying to get Crichton to explain what happened, but he asks her to get him more clothes. Zhaan says that since Crichton was not cut, the blood must have come from the creature, but it's definitely Crichton's blood. Chiana is in Crichton's quarters, but the beast is there and corners her. He says "Chiana" and stumbles over some words. She tries to run, but he pins her down, and he convinces her that he is Crichton.
Chiana takes him to Zhaan, but the real Crichton is less that convinced and asks it what it wants. It jumps on Crichton and Zhaan knocks it unconscious with a sedative. Zhaan later tells Crichton that her blood analysis proves that it is his blood, and he wonders why anyone would clone him. The ball starts fluctuating again, and out pops another Crichton, this time an apparently more evolved "future" version with a super-brain.
The crew lock future John in a cell, and the real Crichton quizzes him. Future John explains that he is like an alternate version of Crichton, with all his memories intact, so the real Crichton questions him to test his memories. The ball starts fluctuating again, and now it's creating an inter-dimensional portal that is trying to pull Moya through. Future John tells Aeryn to use the defense screen to counter the pull, but the real Crichton has already thought of it. Future John tells Aeryn that they have to do this right, so she agrees to take him to help, but only at gunpoint.
Crichton is sorting out the defence screen, when future John says that they have to calibrate it to the ball, so they must reduce the setting to 85%. After quickly mulling it over, Crichton goes with it and the screen is successful in reflecting back the ball's pull, but Pilot says it will probably only last about four arns.
The beast John wakes, with Chiana by his side, and again gets angry, although she manages to calm him down. Future John comes along with Aeryn, but says that they won't learn anything here. He mentions that Crichton is the template, the original, and they are the copies and then asks Pilot if the ball has communicated yet, but the real Crichton is already looking at the signals. Future John joins him, and re-analyses the communications. The ball starts communicating, but now only the Crichtons can hear. It is a vessel and it needs one of the "samples" to go back. If it doesn't get one, it will absorb all bio-matter within a certain distance of its radius. D'Argo asks what's going on and Crichton says that one of them is going to die.
Beast John tells Chiana that it will be him who dies, but Chiana suggests the "guy with the big head". Future John thinks that the ball is a remarkable device, and the real Crichton realises that it must have chosen him because it's never had the chance to get data on a human. Future John says that the answer is to return the "most expendable" one of them (beast John), but the real Crichton says no. Rygel agrees with future John, but Crichton says they may be wrong, and they can't just chuck him through like he's nothing. Future John says that they'll see what they can do, but when the time comes...
Chiana tells the beast that he knows Crichton, and they'll get through it. He says that he does know Crichton, he'll save Moya, save Pip – there's only one answer. Pilot says that he doesn't think that future John will be successful in analysing the samples. Pilot says that he and Moya would never expect an innocent being to die, and he will understand if Crichton leaves. Crichton says he won't, and Pilot says that if they have the solution... but Crichton will not stop until he has to. The defense screen is failing, and so Crichton is called to command. Future John is talking with Zhaan, but he says he won't find a solution – it's over. Zhaan can't believe that he's giving up, but he says he's facing reality. Zhaan says that he is no longer the Crichton she knew.
Crichton is trying to patch up the screen, as D'Argo tells him to start facing reality, but he needs more time. The wires explode, and the defence screen is almost down. Future John tells him that it's time, and offers to take care of it. Crichton asks how he can be so calm, but he says that he is prepared to do what has to be done, and tells Crichton not to feel bad. D'Argo goes with Crichton, but Chiana has hidden beast John away; she set him free. Chiana chews Crichton out, saying that he thinks beast John is nothing, but he's him.
The ball fluctuates again, and future John tells Aeryn that they must re-assess, and says it would make sense to get rid of Crichton, but she disagrees so he knocks her out. Crichton finds beast John, but lets him go, and joins future John in the maintenance bay. Future John says that he thought he would let beast John go, but Crichton says that they couldn't save themselves at someone else's expense. Future John says that he sees him as Crichton sees beast John, and fires at him. Crichton dodges, and future John says that if Crichton wasn't here he would not volunteer to go. Crichton pulls his gun on future John, but throws it down; he couldn't do it. Future John knocks him down, saying that with Crichton here he would always be an outsider. Crichton says that if he's the future then he is glad he won't be here to see it. Beast John suddenly leaps in and kills future John with a pipe. Saying that this is not his place, beast John accepts his fate. When Crichton says that he understands, beast John carries future John through the ball.
D'Argo comforts Crichton, saying that future John was only one of possible genetic path. Chiana says that she heard what he did, but he says that it took a while and it needed help. Chiana says that she's glad it worked out and he says he wishes he could be, but the least developed one did the right thing, and somehow she knew he would. She says she knew because she knows him, and then she leaves him alone.
Memorable quotes[]
- Chiana: It's like he's got your memories.
- John: Chiana, half of this galaxy has my memories.
- Future John: I'm John. John Crichton.
- Aeryn: I don't think so. For start, John has more hair...amongst other things. Going to blame that on feeling cold?
- Rygel: Listen to this! Double the Crichton, and you double the waste of time!
- John: I always thought I was the good guy, Chiana...but it was the least developed one of me, the one I thought least likely, who did the right thing. Somehow you knew.
- Chiana: I know you.
Background information[]
- This is the first episode of the series not to contain any guest stars.
- In the script, the three versions were called "Futuro", "Neandro", and Crichton. ("Cool Farscape Facts" - Starburst Edition DVD v2.2)
- Neandro's outfit was created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop as a fur suit with a muscle suit underneath. ("Cool Farscape Facts" - Starburst Edition DVD v2.2)
- The makeup was inspired by Dick Smith's work on Altered States. ("Cool Farscape Facts" - Starburst Edition DVD v2.2)
- Ben Browder joked that since playing Neandro, "I haven't stopped cussing, and I loved having the freedom to crawl around on the floor with Chiana." ("Cool Farscape Facts" - Starburst Edition DVD v2.2)
- This episode, while broadcast before the "Look at the Princess" trilogy, was actually filmed after. It was designed as a "bottle show", and Rockne S. O'Bannon stated, "the mere fact that Ben has to put on all those makeups belies the idea it's a bottle show. Even when Farscape does a bottle show, it still has lots of challenges, such as your lead actor in lots of different makeup!" Browder was surprised by the change, saying "There's some Aeryn/Crichton development when he comes out of the sphere, but airing it first was a decision made later. Sometimes we shot out of order, knowing we were going to shoot out of order. But not on this." ("Farscape Chronicles" - Starburst Edition DVD v2.2)
- Browder adopted separate accents to further differentiate the characters. He said, "the actual reason for differentiating an accent was because there was a lot of stuff over the comms. I looked at the script and through that if I sounded the same over the comms talking to myself, it would be confusing as to who's talking. If you listen closely, you actually hear Bill Clinton as the future guy. Nobody got it. Normally, in most science fiction, the evolved person is going to be very well spoken and have an English accent. But I think the future is Bill Clinton." ("Farscape Chronicles" - Starburst Edition DVD v2.2)
- Aeryn's reference to Future John's lack of "equipment" harks back to her earlier comment in "Out of Their Minds" about having been in John's pants (that, and the events of "A Human Reaction").
Links and references[]
Starring[]
- Ben Browder as John Crichton, John Crichton and John Crichton
- Claudia Black as Aeryn Sun
- Virginia Hey as Zotoh Zhaan
- Anthony Simcoe as Ka D'Argo
- Gigi Edgley as Chiana
Guest cast[]
- Matthew Le Nevez as Crichton Double
Puppeteers[]
Voice artists[]
- Jonathan Hardy as Rygel
- Lani Tupu as Pilot
References[]
arn; Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure; champagne; Command; comms; Crichton, Jack; defense screen; Delvian; DK; DRD; Farscape-1; Farscape Project; frell; hezmana; Human; Invasion of the Body Snatchers; Luxan; maintenance bay; metra; microt; Moya; neural cluster; O'Connor, Alex; Pip; propulsor control unit; prowler; pulse pistol; Quasimodo; sleep shot; The $64,000 Question; The Hunchback of Notre Dame; transport pod; yotz
External link[]
- Farscape World Synopsis by Dani Moure