Rave Reviews

Farscape fans aren't only unhappy about the loss of a favourite series. They're unhappy about the loss of a rare, intelligent piece of entertainment that challenged and astonished its viewers on a weekly basis. Ironically the SciFi Channel, less than three months' before they cancelled Farscape, trumpeted its own role in bringing quality television to the air, citing Saturn awards that named Farscape the best cable/syndicated television series and star Ben Browder the best actor in a science fiction/fantasy series.

TV critics have been equally impressed by Farscape.

Robert Bianco, TV critic, USAToday
"[F]ans of this sophisticated space opera have joyfully embraced the tangled plots and sudden shifts that have made it one of the hardest shows to follow on television. With some series, you get lost if you miss a few episodes. With Farscape, you can get lost if you don't look up quickly enough after the commercial break. And that's why we love it. … Farscape, of course, wouldn't be Farscape if it spelled things out for us. One of the great pleasures of the show is that the writers seem to assume we're as smart as they are."

Rob Owen, TV editor, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"Sci Fi Channel's "Farscape" is one of the best shows on the air. In his round-up of the best TV of 2001, Owen wrote: […] "Farscape" remains the genre's brightest beacon. No other series takes the chances or confounds viewer expectations the way "Farscape" does. Experimentation yielded surprising, heart-wrenching results … . Good stuff."

Matt Roush. TV critic, TV Guide

"Impressive in scale, deluxe in design, generous in humor, suspense and emotion, Farscape is a rare treat and a wild ride."
"Moya no more? I couldn't be more disappointed to hear that Sci Fi has opted not to support a fifth season of its signature series, Farscape. Since its unexpected and unheralded arrival in March 1999, this lavishly produced (for basic cable) space adventure quickly established itself as the most irreverent, unpredictable, sexy, intelligent and exciting sci fi show on TV."
"I agree that this is a very bad show of faith by the Sci Fi executives, who had previously announced a pickup of a fifth season. Of all cable entities, you would think Sci Fi would understand the value of nurturing a cult series, especially one as fabulously produced, written and acted as Farscape. The triumph of the bean counters has produced a public relations disaster for the network. It may take a while for them to climb out of this hole."

In the American print version of TV Guide, in Roush's Rant
(September 28 - October 4)
"Does cable's Sci-Fi Channel not understand its core audience--a group known for putting the *fan* in fanatic? Some of these people still haven't forgiven NBC for canceling the first Star Trek, in 1969. How does Sci-Fi expect such ardent souls to react after it gave the fantastically entertaining FARSCAPE the boot before it could film the promised fifth season? (The remainder of the fourth season resumes in January.) Yes, the show is expensive-it certainly looks it-but even if the ratings were flat, Farscape gave the network credibility, acclaim and prestige. Without it, Sci-Fi is just another green-cheese merchant."

Diane Werts, Glued to the Tube, Newsday.com
"Farscape [has] millions of fans riveted to this fantastically fun cable romp -- an unsung or at least undersung series that regularly makes some smart critics' 10-best lists. […] The sci-fi-phobic need not worry. You want cute guys? They're here. Cool chicks? Sure — and they may stomp you senseless. There's also sarcasm and satire. Explosive action. Intensely real emotion. Literate, witty writing and acting. Showy special effects. Suggestions of steamy sex, and some swearing (cleverly, in alien languages, like that in the opening sentence). Even terrestrial pop culture jibes, playing off Road Runner cartoons, the inescapable Madonna or final-frontier colleague Captain Kirk."

TeeVee.org (May 14, 2002)
"By breaking all the rules, the producers and cast of Farscape have given television a new kind of space opera. It's more honest, more emotional, and a lot more exciting. … Which makes John Crichton and company the only TV space crew boldly going where no one has gone before."

TeeVee.org (January 13, 2002)
"This mind-bending sci-fi puppet show has been growing on me for the past couple of years, but this season Farscape really came into its own, with one of the most high-stakes season-ending cliffhangers I've ever seen. … Yeah, Farscape is the show with the space puppets -- I mean, space muppets. But it's also one of the best sci-fi series on the air. It's complicated, quirky, and unlike any series that has ever come before it."

Boston Herald, Friday Rant
"Can a cable channel commit suicide? The Sci Fi Channel's decision to can 'Farscape' sure borders on a desperate cry for help. 'Farscape' was the first original program to give the station credibility. (Anyone remember 'Mission: Genesis?' Anyone?) 'Farscape' clicked with both viewers and critics by breaking all the rules about what a sci-fi show could be. Ratings may be down a tick, but the show was pushed to a later time slot, where adult demos are still robust for advertisers. And it's not as if Sci Fi is brimming with original programs. Executives might be looking at the bottom line, but the decision to drop 'Farscape' is a gross misunderstanding of its audience. Sci-fi fans are astonishingly loyal and have very long memories. Sci Fi will now be known as The Channel That Killed the Coolest Show on Television. As Farscape's Rygel might say, 'What a bunch of frellin' yotzes.'"

Starburst.com, UK sci fi site
"... if you like your Sci-Fi challenging, unexpected, intelligent, witty, engaging, and populated with complex characters you can really care about, then accept no substitute. Farscape it must be."

Michael Peck, TV critic, TV Guide
"Henson and Hallmark have opted to serve up impressive visuals; interesting, layered characters; actors who add nuance to their roles and a well-balanced mix of drama and humor overall. Browder in particular brings wiseass charm to a character who in lesser hands might otherwise offer only pretty-boy poses and flatly delivered, regularly scheduled cracks."

Jared Delaney, TV critic, TV Guide
"[Farscape] is a feast for the imagination and currently the best sci-fi to be had on TV. The premise is simple and classic. … The difference here is the sheer imagination behind it. [I]n a strange universe where interstellar travel is common, there are so many different species it makes the cantina scene in Star Wars seem like bland Wonder bread. … The show's visuals are stunning and lush. … There is an oddly pleasing, organic feel to the effects, as if the technologies of this universe (the spacecraft Moya, for example) were grown, rather than constructed. Even shots of empty space aren't empty. They're filled with colorful gases and nebulae, like some primordial soup. But this show isn't just about effects. It's the stories that will bring you back week after week. Intelligent, witty and creative, the scripts sparkle."

Joyce Millman, TV critic, Salon.com
"The special effects from Jim Henson's Creature Shop are way cool."

Linda Stasi, TV critic, New York Post
"What makes this show different from all other shows that have come before it? The writing is really good. The characters are well thought out and look great -- and I like that the human is the alien. The crew is not a group working together. Each has his own agenda and each wants off the ship and to go home. Watch this show -- or I'll send Scorpius, the baddest being in the universe, to hunt you down like a loose Luxan."

FARSCAPE and all related characters and elements are trademarks of The Jim Henson Company.