Maldus vs. Stark? (Spoilers, for all seasons)

[Darth Buddha]

O.K. There are spoilers for Seasons 1, 2, 3, and 4 here... so beware....




The two rounds of Zhaan vs. Maldus were interesting... but last time it only took Maldus about a year to recover from being "dispersed". By end of Season 4, then, I reason that he'd have recovered again.

Stark actually took considerably LESS time to recover from being dispersed. Exact same word used by both of them. Both of them are non-corporeal beings who assume physical shells (or maybe they started out physical and now can go back and forth... but still).

Moreover, both these boys seem to get off with death. Maldus seems to get something out of engendering fear in the passage and feeding on death, or just fear alone. I don't know if Stark feeds or not (still, it IS kinda creepy), but jhe clearly gets something out of lessening fear AND pain, whether the person dies or not.

So I'm thinking Stark is MORE similar to Maldus than Zhaan was, spiritually speaking. I'm also thining Stark is stronger than Zhaan was on that plane...when Zhaan and Stark joined in "The Locket", there was a risk that Stark's mind would overwhelm Zhaan.

I think Stark wastes Maldus in a cage match...

What do you think?

[Farscapegoat]

I can think of a few reasons why we haven't seen Maldus.

Maldus might just want to build his power up more to take on the moyans. He may also not be able to find them, or may not even want to find them especially after Zhaan died.

As far as the "un-dispersal" goes there could be a simple answer. Maybe it was the way they were dispersed that caused difference. Stark was dispersed by a specialized machine whereas Maldus was dispersed by mental muscle.

Also Stark may not have to be uber-powerful to have recovered so fast. Stark may simply be better at re-corporealizing but not necessarily anything else on the other-worldly plane.

just some things to think about on the subject.

[mphase]

He would beat Maldus down.

From all the conversations between Zhaan and Stark it's pretty apparent that he has more physic muscle than her, Zhaan seemed to have more things to do with that muscle though. Stark would be much more suited for the whole dealing of death thing though, that's his arena and Zhaan was never really comfortable in it.

[Zantar]

Stark all the way.

[Ouroboros]

Isn't Maldis some sort of undead being or disembodied spirit now? I say Stark eats his soul just like everyone else's.:D

[Darth Buddha]

You hit on the $64,000 question...

Does he eat the souls? Or does he just get charged up by "touching the other side" when he helps people over, just as Dargo supposedly benefited somehow by helping the Luxan Holy Woman cross over.

Not that I'd expect ever to get a straight answer from Stark.... "Not exactly"...

[Zantar]

I think he just serves as a way to help people cross over. Ease their pains. In that way i think as they cross over he absorbed some of their "sins" so to speak. Hence how he talked about a big black area growing in his soul (i dont remember what episode sorry). That could also explain his EXTREME bipolar behavior.

[zelbinion]

If Maldus to gain access to all the death the Stark has seen, He would Feed Forever and become infintily stronger.
Stark does not draw strength from death, yet Maldus feeds on it. SO, Stark would have to lose the lunatic routine and actually act like a warrior. Its just not in his ability......He'd get his butt kicked

[Huh]

You know, I have thought about this before myself, because there is just something that seems "similar" between the Maldus and Stark, and not just that both have been dispersed at one point. I always thought that it would be a good way to resolve the issue of bringing Zhaan back. I don't want to get into a debate about whether or not she should come back, people always feel strongly one way or the other. But IF Kemper et. al. decide that she should return it would not be a hard stretch to imagine that Maldus had something to do with it. Perhaps he set up the entire situation leading to her death?

In any case, I think that Stark does have one advantage that may help him. Of course his character is really underdeveloped in my opinion, but from what he has said, his people have a certain detachment. When he was first talking with John in "The Hidden Memory" he said that some thought his people didn't have feelings, or something along those lines. And at times he seems rather detached from the horrors of a situation (when he can actually calm himself down). Also, if he is prepared it is very difficult to pull memories out of him, a huge tactic that Muldus uses to elicit the emotions that he wants. So the question is can Stark control himself enough keep Maldus out of his head?

I imagine that Stark would be a great target for Maldus. He has the pain and suffering of thousands of souls wrapped up in him. If you fed on pain and suffering wouldn't you want to get your hands on him?

Now this is a stretch, but I have also considered the possibility that Maldus is a Stykera. Perhaps his fate is what awaits Stark if he let's that darkness in him take over.

Of course all of this is pure speculation based on few facts. I could come up with a hundred scenarios where just the opposite is true and Stark is nothing but a fly on the wall compared to Maldus. But what fun would that be?

[Zantar]

what is a stykera? where do they reference that?

[ctheokas]

Stark would rule the day. Oh and "Hell Yeah!"

[Ouroboros]

Does he eat the souls? Or does he just get charged up by "touching the other side" when he helps people over, just as Dargo supposedly benefited somehow by helping the Luxan Holy Woman cross over.

:p I wasn't really serious about the whole soul devouring Stark that was my take on him from the eeeevilest Moyan thread. Now that you mention it though...... hmmm. He does get their memories and such doesn't he?

[Clarsax]

The way I see it, when Stark helps someone cross over, an impression of that person's pain and certain memories close to the surface are involuntarily taken up by Stark's energy. Helping someone seems to hurt him and gives him copies of memories that resonate in his mind. The time he felt 9,999 other baniks die in season 2, he lost it for a long time and he said he could feel all of them screaming in his head. I don't think they were the actual souls of those people, but just the impression of the pain they experienced at the point of their crossing. I think this is why Stark rarely uses his abilities - each time he does it brings him pain and costs him some of his sanity.

Stark probably could keep Maldus from winning simply by starving him. He said in Hidden Memory that while he and other Baniks feel emotions, thier emotions don't always show, and he was able to keep things from the Aurora chair for two years without Scorpius ever finding them. If he needed to, Stark could probably stay emotionally calm long enough to starve Maldus out. I can't see Stark easily beating Maldus any other way. Yes, Stark lies, and he's shot people before, but the only time I can remember Stark hurting someone else with his abilities was the biloid in We're so Screwed. The real Stark never used his powers to harm others and if Maldus was able to remain impervious to physical attacks as he was during his other appearances, then Stark might have a very hard time winning in the fight.

[Zantar]

We really dont know what stark would do when he gets angry. As someone else pointed out he had more spiritual power than zhaan and that is what matters. And he has a mean streak the size of texas if hewanted to unleash it. If he unleashed the power of the evil he has seen no way could maldus stand up. Stark may seem a insane loony sometimes, but that is just waht he wants people to think. I think he is alot more powerful than he lets on.

[Darth Buddha]

Don't you find it strange that a species so spiritually and mentally powerful is a "slave race"?

[Eric Satan]

yes

[Zantar]

Originally posted by Darth Buddha
Don't you find it strange that a species so spiritually and mentally powerful is a "slave race"?

If you were so mentally powerful why would you seek power? I dont think they bother to resist most of the time. Perhaps reached the point of spirituality that they dont see the point to violent resistance, and just perform their functions in life. Also they could have developed the spirituality during the time they became a salve race, and cant comprehend fighting back at this point.

[Huh]

We no nothing of the banik race, so anything could be possible.

I haven't seen all of season 4, but it has been my impression thus far that while there may be many baniks there are not many Stykera. So it could be that even if they could organize a revolt of sorts, there are not enough of them to make an impact. Or it could be that the Stykera were the strength of the Baniks and whoever enslaved them found the key to knocking them out. For example, if Stykera number 1 in a million, perhaps all one has to do is kill 20,000 people in each province of their planet and that would be enough to stun all nearby Stykera. You can defeat anyone if you know their weaknesses.

Also, has it struck anyone else that Stark at points seems to be quite young? Maybe not in human years, but he certainly acts immature. Perhaps he is young for a Stykera and hasn't come into full control of his powers or hasn't reached emotional maturity.

Finally, I imagine that it is exceptionally difficult to grow up with such abilities, particularly as a slave where your people are dying around you all the time. If Baniks are rather "emotionless" or emotionally muted, I could see that the stress of being a stykera and exposed to numerous deaths as a child could make someone a little crazy, much like Stark is now.

There is a much contridiction between Stark's actions/personality and what we know about Baniks. While this could be explained easily, most of it probably arises from using the character as a tool or means to achieve a particular end rather than developing the character and his background.

[Darth Buddha]

What's a Stykera? Sounds familiar, dammit.

[generic_screenname]

I think Mauldis would appear to have the upper hand at first. I've always seen Mauldis as the most evil character on the show, so he'll probably use his trickery every chance he gets. Using either physical strength, his kooky magic, or both, he'd knock Stark to the ground several times before preparing to finish him off. But then Stark spazzes out, starts talking to Zhaan and while Mauldis tries to figure out what's going on, Stark lifts his mask, revealing a shimmering light that blows the ever-loving crap out of Maulidis, melting him like a Nazi. That'd be pretty cool.

But so would a match between Stark and the evil Stark from the game in John Quixote that had the mask on the other side of his face. The evil Stark is probably stronger, because for some reason evil twins are always stronger. Evil Stark would trap him in a hall of mirrors and jump out and attack, then go back and hide in the mirrors. But I don't know, maybe the masks join together and Evil Stark disappears or something. And then there's this big explosion of light and fireworks where he was previously standing. That would rule.

But what I really want to see is the Hynerian civil war. Millions of little Rygels duking it out in little tanks and little ships. How frelling cool would that be?!

[Darth Buddha]

OOOO - YEAH!

Old Rygel really came into his own in Icarus Abides. Waste those Charrids, slug boy!

But back to my question...

WHAT THE FRELL IS A STYKERA!!!?

[generic_screenname]

Originally posted by Darth Buddha WHAT THE FRELL IS A STYKERA!!!? [/B]

This is from the (shudder) Scifi website (http://www.scifi.com/farscape/lifeform/baniks.html):
BANIKS

The Banik species is mysterious; I know very little about it. I suspect that it has been unable to develop its own strong identity because so many of its members are enslaved throughout the Uncharted Territories. Scorpius had no qualms about sacrificing 10,000 Banik slaves in his quest to capture Crichton; the sad truth is that Baniks are rarely considered to be people in their own right.

The Stykera are a breed of Banik who possess such strong spiritual energy that it manifests as a glowing surface over part of their face. Usually, they must keep this surface masked to prevent the energy from dissipating.

Stykera are most famed for their ability to help others' lifeforces cross peacefully into death. I also have seen evidence that they can communicate telepathically, as well as sense profound truths about the nature of space and time. They are, themselves, capable of existing in a noncorporeal form, which is why our resident Stykera, Stark, wasn't killed when the Plokavians dispersed him.

Having not met many Stykera, I'm unclear whether Stark's borderline insanity is typical of his breed. Personally, I'm more inclined to blame this trait on the years Stark spent first as a slave, then as Scorpius' prisoner. Regardless, I am moved by Stark's dedication to his fellow Baniks, and I hope that the species will, one day, live in freedom.

[Darth Buddha]

Thanks, G_S, I was wigging out for a while.

And you are made of far sterner stuff than this shaven headed freak... to brave THE SCIFI WEBSITE.

I owe you a debt of honor!

[generic_screenname]

Thanks. I should go take a shower. I feel unclean after going to that unholy place.

[witchdoctor]

I had an idea for another possible advantage Stark would have over Maldus. This assumes that Maldus is an incorporeal being that has taken physical form. (BTW, the idea that Maldus is an example of when Stykera go bad is interesting too.)

If Stark really does help people transition over to the "other side" and has abilities or powers that help him do that, then maybe he could somehow do so to Maldus in such a way that he is prevented from entering the physical plane again. That might allow them to give finality to Maldus' demise. Zhan then Stark together might have been the team to give Maldus the fatal one two punch. Though from the Horizons story, we know that John and crew actually physically visited death, so its possible that Maldus could still be encountered, even if vanquished forever from the material plane.

[Darth Buddha]

Uh, oh... I had a thouhgt. tark munches on Maldus as he crosses him over, permanently, and suddenly he's not nearly as nice a guy as he used to be.

MY SIDE, MY SIDE. NO YOUR SIDE!

[leeturnbull]

i was glad that we moved on from Maldus, to be honest i did not like the character and the story was much better once he went.

I hope he never comes back

Lee

[witchdoctor]

Maldus was only in two episodes. I didn't think he had that much effect on the plots of the show, other than the episodes he was actually in. That being said, I agree that the Maldus episodes weren't my favorites.

[Darth Buddha]

Actually, I was O.K. with the first Maldus episode, but the second seemed gratuitous.

[JrMissToughChick]

Originally posted by Zantar
what is a stykera? where do they reference that? in LGM Scorpy asks if any of the Baniks are Stykera when he learn they none of them are he says I could have replaced the one I lost not a quote though so aperently Stark is a special breed of Banik.

~JrMTC~

[StarsGoBlue]

Someone (trying to remember who, but brain is swiss cheese) wrote a cool fic about Stark becoming a stykera... I thought it was well done. I'll look for the link and post it here and at Infinite Realities.


But about the poll, I love my my crazy-as-all-hezmana Stark. Maldus wouldn't stand a chance against him, 'cos Maldus would expect Stark to act logically, like the other species he's come up against. And Stark would just go all Astro-Boy wiggy on him and that would be that.


Love me my Stark. Oh, yes indeedy! Now to find that fic...

*****Stars :groove:

edited to add: It was ||Scorpius||! I thought so... here's the link: http://forums.scaperoute.com/kansas/index.php?board=4;action=display;threadid=11726