Episode Report Card Strega: B- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Obligatory Rashomon Reference
By Strega | Season 2 | Episode 17 | Aired on 09.07.2000
Zap, boom. Rubble flies toward Talyn, shaking it. Crais exclaims, "The Plokavians will have great difficulty believing that was an accident. We'd better go!" It's quite a long, articulate exclamation, really. Zhaan's a terrible liar. Zhaan says that they should wait to explain in case "the authorities" turn up. Crais vetoes that, and pulls out his spare transponder. "Leave now, or I'll force you!" he shouts, as he pops it in. Zhaan helpfully tells Stark, "He has another transponder." Ha! Even in her own version of events, she offers redundant exposition. The guns pop out of the walls, and Aeryn and Crichton cower hilariously. Crais orders them to go, and Crichton and Aeryn skedaddle. Crichton has the most amusing terrified expression, while Zhaan looks completely calm. Heh. She voiceovers, "There was nothing we could do, so we boarded the transport pod to return to Moya."
Interrogation room. Wow, the footrest-lamp is really quite Freudian, isn't it? Zhaan finishes her story and asks, "Any more questions?" as she looks around. The room is silent. I think Steve and Eydie went out for coffee about half an hour ago.
Brig. Everyone's staring into the blackness. Crichton says, "This is the weirdest hoosegow I've ever been in." Then he says, "Slammer, clink, jail, prison." Is he having a Howard Hughes moment or something? Aeryn asks how many prisons he's been in, and Crichton replies, "Just what are you implying?" You're the one making the implication, actually. The elevator pops up out of the frisbee again, and Crichton asks Zhaan how it went. She says, "I told them what I saw. I hope they believe me." Steve calls for Stark, who steps into the elevator. D'Argo glares at Stark as he descends.
Interrogation room. Stark explains that he didn't believe Crais's story about the dampening net. Steve asks why. Stark says, "He's an ex-Peacekeeper Captain who abandoned his own people and abducted Talyn. He's completely power-mad." He adds that Crichton didn't trust Crais, either.
Flashback. We skip the preliminaries this time, and go straight to Crichton saying, "You expect us to help you?" Stark's version is particularly funny because everyone's acting like they're on quaaludes. Or like they're in a Sergio Leone movie. But I repeat myself. Even when they're arguing, they speak calmly. Crais says that Talyn won't let him make the modifications. Aeryn sniffs, "Good for Talyn." Zhaan sneers that Crais doesn't seem to have complete control of Talyn, and D'Argo purrs, "John, give me the word and I'll break his neck." Crais says that Talyn chose him to be Captain, and Aeryn suggests that they might override that decision, and holds up the transponder. This time, when Crais says that he's only used the ship's weapons in self-defense, Zhaan says, "As you did with the Halosians," like she's disagreeing. Crichton says that they won't help him. Crais doesn't raise his voice a bit when he says, "You'll regret this." Hee. The console beeps, and Crais goes to chat with the Plokavians without mentioning if they're early or on time or what. Instead, he mellowly declares that the deal is off. The Plokavian growls, "I cannot permit that. The contract stands." Crais marches over to the weapons console and slams his palm onto a button. Boom. So, according to Stark, nobody liked Crais's plan, and the Plokavians were jerks.