So whadd'ya think of... Farscape: Scorpius (0-3)? (SPOILERS)

[Mike@Pilots Chamber]

Well, after much confusion (thought it'd be a five-issue arc, with the first issue being issue #0), we have our first arc of the Scorpy comics. And what a comic we have!

Following the events of "The Beginning Of The End Of The Beginning", Scorpius has been banished from Hyneria. Going into self-imposed exile on an ice planet, he begins to wonder when he will actually serve some masters that are worthy of him, while ruminating with his pet lizard he's named John. The PKs signed a deal with his nemesis, the Scarrans. Rygel, upon reassuming his throne, cast him out. Until a dog-like race called the Grennij descened upon his home. Scorpy seems the Grennij - they seem primitive, but their ships are anything but - and realises they're an advance force for someone else. With a little bit of cunning and balls, Scorpius becomes their guide. He discovers that the Grennij are preparing for an invasion by the Kkore - a mysterious race which inhabit a region of space which only opens every 25 cycles. After killing the captain and assuming his command, Scorpius' audacity in battle earns him an audience with the Kkore themselves. Following much discussion and mind-probing (or lack thereof - Scorpy's Scarran training helps in this case), the Kkore decide to keep him on as advisor - so long as he shares everything in his mind. The final scene shows Scorpius strapped into a Kkore aurora chair, willingly giving every memory to his new masters - or does he?

Firstly, this comic is remarkable. The pacing of it is brilliant - each comic is a different part of the story. The opening of the comic is eerily reminiscent of Disney/Pixar's Wall-e in that there is no speech. There doesn't need to be. Which makes Scorpius seem all the more twisted, his loneliness weighing on him.

The Kkore are different - the Grennij themselves are well-defined, but I do like the idea of the Kkore actually being physically very large rather than standard human size.

The artwork can't fail to impress - Mike Ruiz and Nolan Woodard do an excellent job on the ice planet (I do like the more rough feel of it), the lighting and shading, and Scorpy's memories and flashbacks. The cannon scene is also great. Just one thing though - when Scorpy first goes into the aurora chair, I don't recognise the bottom-left image of a woman with an explosion behind her. Nevertheless, we don't know Scorpy's full back story.

Covers - I've got 0A (great montage), 1A (again, good though Scorpius looks a bit gimp-like), 2A (I don't normally like shots that could come from the comic story itself, but this is a good one) and 3A (Scorpy in chair - looks good but would've preferred something else).

The story itself is also good - not full of action, but a lot of plots and politicking. Script is great, especially Scorpius' thoughts and significant parts of his past.

Overall, this is up there with the best Farscape comics. Excellent artwork, a great plot that clearly sets Scorpius back up as a major player and brilliant pacing. 5 out of 5.

EDIT - dammit, messed up the poll for the top option. Sorry everyone!

[gregorach]

I really enjoyed this one. Scorpy's sheer audacity shows exactly why he is the most Magnificent Bastard anywhere in the UTs! After the kinder, gentler Scorpy of Season 4, I'd kinda forgotten just what he's capable of. Tricking his way into command of the Grennij fleet (by massacring a bunch of Sheyangs) and then getting most of them killed, all just to attract the attention of the Kkore, was a stratagem beyond anything we've seen him attempt before.

But... Does he really know what he's getting himself into? Is he prepared to see the Kkore take the entire UTs, if not the entire galaxy, to satisfy his thirst for revenge? And what will the Kkore do with him when they're finished? We don't really know anything about their objectives and motivations...

I was wondering about the woman in the bottom left of the Aurora chair double spread too... I think it might be his mother, but I'll need to rewatch Incubator to check. Oh noes!

Overall, I'd have to give this one 6 out of 5. Fantastic stuff!

[Nicola]

I was kinda surprised actually at Scorpy's determination to get revenge against... the Peacekeepers???

Scorpy has always been revenge minded - and he used every tool at his disposal to get revenge against the Scarrans. Every setback he ever had in his long and varied career just required him to readjust his trajectory - but he never changed his focus. So this sudden switch in 'enemy' to the PKs is disconcerting to say the least.

The Scarrans aren't defeated - by a long shot - and Scorpy's focus should be on Scarran treaty violations. Not defeat of the Peacekeepers.

IMHO of course.

[gregorach]

I'm not sure that he has refocussed to the PKs... Like you say, that would seem kinda out of character. I'm assuming that it's just another stepping stone on the way to his real objective, just like the Sheyangs, Captain Grrior, and Ordre'el Prime. It just so happens that (a) the Kkore seem to be focussing on the PKs first, and (b) that's the force that he can most credibly claim to have useful intelligence about.

Although, given everything that's happened, I don't imagine that he'll mind stepping on the PKs along the way too much ... But we all know that if the Kkore are set on conquering the UTs, the Scarrans have to be next on their list. (Unless the Nebari show up... )

Remember, Scorpy always thinks ahead! Way ahead... And remember what his Scarran "mother" taught him about making himself a good servant.

[Mike@Pilots Chamber]

In my review I forgot to mention that I liked the use of many old episode settings when Scorpius was telling the Grennij about the UTs - evoking memories of The Flax and The Locket. Good one that.