Investigating 'Farscape': Uncharted Territories of Sex and Science Fiction
By (Author) Jes Battis
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
I.B. Tauris
30th March 2007
United Kingdom
General
Non Fiction
Literary studies: c 1900 to c 2000
Science fiction
823.087609
Paperback
256
Width 138mm, Height 216mm
334g
"My name is John Crichton. 'I'm lost'. An astronaut. Shot through a wormhole. In some distant part of the universe. 'I'm trying to stay alive'. Aboard this ship. 'This living ship'. Of escaped prisoners." During its fourth and - for the present - final season, "Farscape" was the Sci-Fi Channel's highest rated original series. With its dedicated fan-base, "Farscape" seasons are still top-billing Sci-Fi DVDs. This first proper analysis of the show, written by a scholar-fan, uncovers "Farscape's" layers and those of the living spaceship Moya. Jes Battis proposes that "Farscape" is as much about bodies, sex and gender, as it is about wormholes, space ships and interstellar warfare. It is this straddling of genres that makes the show so viewable to such a broad audience, of which almost half are women. He explores "Farscape's" language and characters, including Moya, its creation of 'family and home', of masculinity and femininity, and the transformation of an all-American boy.
""His passionate love for the show breathes in almost every line."" - Roz Kaveney
Ph.D. student, Department of English, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver. Author of 'Blood Relations': Chosen Families in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and 'Angel' (2005).