Bone To Be Wild

(Subtitle: Bad to the Bone)

Hi everyone! Welcome to the SACC review of Bone To Be Wild, the episode with a plot like a tennis match (back and forth and back and forth! :-) ) As always all views are my own, if we came up with the same idea then chalk it up to great minds thinking alike! :-) WARNING!: If you read this review before watching this episode, you will be consumed by spoilers!

Overall:

• This show is about loyalty. The beginning of the series showed the crew of Moya all working on their own to achieve their own goals, and Crichton still a bit wide-eyed and curious about the new world around him. They have learned to trust and accept this new, multi-species family, and after all they have been through have circled the wagons to defend themselves. Crichton is a bit quicker to pull a weapon out for defense, and a bit slower to trust the first alien that comes along. And when it comes to helping a stranger or his friends, he is much quicker to defend his family. I think that’s why D’Argo blamed Crichton for "loosing" Zhaan to Br’nee that first time...he was faced with a choice between loyalty to his family or to M’Lee and he chose against his friends. The same battle is going on with the new baby, everyone needs to know if he will be a friend to Moya or to the PK’s so they know if the baby will become part of the family or part of the problem.

Crichton:

• Well after the last two weeks this episode was a comparative walk in the park! But we still had to have the Obligatory Crichton Bashing: Br’nee gets to punch and kick him quite a few times before Crichton gets the upper hand.
• At least he didn’t die.

The Good:

• Every single shot of Moya in that asteroid field was absolutely INCREDIBLE! Big round of applause to the effects team that came up with those sequences!
• Zhaan as a plant based life form was a pleasant surprise, but not totally without clue’s. She talks about "fibers" that need to be repaired in her arm in TtLG, the Delvians from RiB have a sacred Sanctaty Root, the photo-gasms from TtBRC, and in this episode she has no reaction to the cold on Moya, and the fact that a greenhouse-like asteroid would be a temple to the Goddess.
• Zhaan continues to mother Chiana, as Crichton asks about the baby at the beginning you can see Zhaan hugging the Nebari and gently rubbing her arms to help her stay warm.
• I love how everyone whispers when they are Running Silent, even though it probably isn’t necessary. Reminds me of the tense scenes in "The Hunt For Red October" when the subs are trying to avoid each other.
• New Opening Sequence! I’ve been wondering how long it would be before they added Chiana to the beginning, and how appropriate that they waited until we knew who the character that was going to die was! SNEAKY!
• "Let me explain to you what is going on right now inside my nose."
• I loved watching Pilot explain the problems they are having with the baby to Aeryn...his voice sounds like he’s not only struggling to "translate" Moya’s fears and problems, but also like he’s hesitant and worried about what he’s going to say.
• I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again because of those wonderful Pilot closeups...that being is SO utterly believable as alive, and NOT a puppet! WOW!
• Aeryn laughing and smiling as she says "Hello" to the baby and having him "talk" back was wonderful to watch! Makes me wonder how much she actually understands of his language, and how good a mother she would actually be.
• So Crais has not one, but two Hynerian heads mounted in his room, plus what looks to me like part of the outer hull of a Leviathan on his wall. Talk about trophies...
• M’Lee was excellent in this episode! Her acting was not only outstanding, but perfectly timed to the costume effects (red and blue headlights, spikes growing). The first great scene is when she’s smelling everyone, and you can see her face get a longing look and her head turn red when she smells bone in Crichton.
• It’s wonderful to see Crichton get to be a scientist again, if only for a few minutes when he’s learning about Zhaan being plant based. Even he looks a bit wistful to be back in a scientist roll for a moment.
• Zhaan hiding herself from Br’nee was not just a nice effect but interesting in and of itself...we know from TtBRC she can mask her scent, could she always hide her features or as a plant does she have the ability to blend into a plant environment?
• When Aeryn is talking with the baby, I love how she kneels down as if talking to a small child.
• "That is a very impressive machine. My aunt had one."
• There are a few times when I wish I didn’t know some spoilers before watching the show. Like I wish I didn’t know M’Lee was played by Ben Browder’s wife, because during the scene where M’Lee is stalking Crichton in Br’nee’s lab, and she’s calling out from the darkness "I’m hungry John!" I found myself wondering how weird that must have been to act out! :-)
• Crichton with a gun is still Crichton: He sends warning shots to both Br’nee and M’Lee before turning the gun on them. I thought this was an important point...he’s still the good guy we know and love, unwilling to kill, but is now prepared to.
• Poor Claudia Black...forced to spout technobable! :-)
• Rygel may be annoying, pompous, and easy to dislike, but when he’s right he’s right. Even Aeryn has to admit that when she says she won’t bring the baby into a battle and he says "Who said we have a choice?"
• More on loyalties...D’Argo may have JUST given Br’nee his admiration at his healing abilities, but when Crichton comes in to spill the beans D’Argo is very quick to back up his friend.
• The Oh You Are Right About That Line: "There is much cruelty in the universe" "We seam to have a treasure map to it."
• Horror fans will tell you that sometimes it’s best NOT to see everything, because your imagination is more powerful than anything that can be shown. Well the wince on Zhaan’s face when M’Lee went after Br’nee’s bones was MORE than enough to convince me I didn’t wana see her snacking!
• Ah how can you not giggle at Rygel’s smile when snuggling with Chiana. What a way to share body heat!
• More on loyalty..."I did what I had to for the good of the ship." Aeryn may be trying to be modest here, but it’s also a true statement.
• I think it’s perfect that Aeryn get’s to chose the name for the baby! And when Pilot tells her this, don’t just watch Claudia’s absolutely priceless acting there (and it took a few watchings to tear my eyes off her face at that moment), watch Crichton in the background with his look of wonder and awe, and Zhaan’s warm smile!
• Ten bucks says Scorpious knows what M’Lee is, and is going to let half the Carrier turn into crunchy snacks so she’ll tell him where Crichton is and where they are going! Don’t believe me? Check out his line: "Sometimes we must be willing to give of ourselves." Foreshadowing? I think so!!

Interesting Sidethought of the Week:

• Remember WAY WAY back at the beginning of the series when all Crichton had to wear was that bright orange flight suit, the tan pants and the white shirt? Then a little later he picked up black pants and a gray T-shirt? Then black pants? Then a black T-shirt? And now he’s been stuck in this PK black and red ensemble for a while? Well I wonder if his clothing changes are paralleling his personal changes. As he becomes less innocent, less trusting, and a bit "darker" his clothing has become darker. As much as I miss that orange flight suit (I STILL think he looked great in that thing!) I don’t think we’ll see him in it again.

The Bad:

• Three words: WHERE WAS STARK??? (note from the "future"...ok so they explained this away in the on-line review, but STILL!)
• Crichton himself sums up my other problem with this show: "You know it’s funny, sometimes I’ve very slow." Did he have to have a "Duh?" moment just to further the plot? He just finds out Zhaan is a plant...yet forgets so he could go running after the BONELESS Zhaan?

The Nitpicky:

• How come PK controls have NO labels? Just lots and lots of lighted buttons in pretty patterns?
• Added Dialogue: D’Argo: "You’re no longer the feral beast...that mean’s you’ve eaten. Who did you eat?" M’Lee: "This nice man I found with a big metal mask on."
• My friend grabbed this one...Chiana’s roots are beginning to show. :-)

He’s not the Mr. Roger’s Scientist we thought! - Crichton
Lauren (OboeCrazy)
SACCer #1: The Most Vocal Defender
TAC, TAR, and FA