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selenakWiki summary: When it becomes clear that only one of the two ships must survive, the crews of Moya and the Pathfinder vessel must make a choice. In the end, one of Moya's own must make the ultimate sacrifice.
And thus the Passion of St. Zhaan ends. Sorry, but this time around the way Zhaan's death plays out like a martyr's really hit me in a way it didn't the first time around. In my historical fandom the last two years, we at one point talked about how what seems a "good" death to a great many people today - sudden, no advance warning, no pain - was regarded as a horrible one from a religious pov for many a century, as you were supposed to confront your life and sins, repent, forgive your enemies etc., face death in the full knowledge of it, and depending on which century and which dominant religious attitude we're talking about, suffering (and the acceptance of same) was even seen as a plus. Zhaan dies an exemplary death in that sense, though in this episode, as opposed to the last one, she at least mainly interacts with her fellow crew members as opposed to having to comfort Stark about the fact she's dying, and we also get to see flashes of her old temper and get reminded that serenity was always a choice for Zhaan, not something that came automatically to her but something she had to struggle for, which made her that much richer a character. I also appreciate that the first of these conversations she has is with Aeryn, since I think how Aeryn feels about the fact that Zhaan is basically dying her own death slowly in front of her is way more interesting than how Stark feels about it.
And yet. The script has such weird lines, as when, in the Zhaan and D'Argo conversation, it's brought up they are a family now, and he says "you birthed it" (their family). Which made me go, huh? Because Zhaan definitely wasn't a "mother" or "heart of the team" kind of character in s1 just because she was the ship medic. Not Zhaan, who for the greater part of s1 saw their being on Moya together just as temporary as most of the others did, whose ruthlessness in DNA Mad Scientist as that much more shocking than everyone else's because unlike D'Argo, she didn't try to make it up to Pilot later, and unlike Rygel, she didn't see herself as a "me first" person to begin with. If any one character in s1 had the narrative function of bringing the ensemble together as more than casual fellow passengers, it was Crichton in his original optimistic giving everyone a chance vein. (I'm not saying all the developing relationships back then revolved around him, they didn't - Aeryn and D'Argo, Aeryn and Pilot, D'Argo and Zhaan were all relationships developing between each other - but he was the character saying "we should go back for X", or make the case for first Aeryn and later Chiana as a fellow passenger. Saying that Zhaan "birthed" their dysfunctional yet close family feels like retconning Zhaan into someone she hadn't been.
The very meta moment where Zhaan says goodbye and designates each of the other regulars with adjectives, otoh, mostly works on both a Doylist and a Watsonian fashoin for me. To reiterate: "Sensitive D'Argo, exuberant Chiana, selfless Aeryn, wise Rygel, innocent John." "Innocent" for John is poignant precisely because it's no longer true, and yet it very much was when he was there for Zhaan all the way back in s1 when she had her first big crisis in Blue Raphsody. "Sensitive" isn't what she used to call D'Argo back in the day - that was "sweet" - and yet it's not wrong, not just when he's brooding over his breakup with Chiana. Zhaan never called Rygel "wise" before, and truly, he's usually not, though he can be very clever, and in s3 as I recall from this point onwards, the scripts will increasingly let him be. "Selfless" for Aeryn instead of, say, "brave" is an interesting choice and not wrong, as Aeryn's state-trained "everything for the greater good" (of the PKs) has united with the way life as a fugitive and having relationships with non PKs has altered her to produce an attitude where she is ready to sacrifice herself or at least risk her life, not just for someone she's in love with like John but for strange children locked somewhere as in two eps ago.
Something I had completely forgotten: Aeryn telling the others in this episode she doesn't completely trust John's judgment and she's pretty sure he's "still talking to Scorpius". I must say, hats off, writers, this makes complete character sense, both that she would recognize the signs of John zoning out to have clone conversations and that given the neural clone had done his best to kill her and is in any case a clone of Scorpius, this would make her cautious to trust John again.
Meanwhile, what's actually going on in John's head is the first time since Won't Get Fooled Again that Harvey (now increasingly coming into his own personality) does something useful for John (pointing out what Neeyala's doing) since he's decided he doesn't want to die (along with John) but survive (meaning John has to as well). He also for the first time since he was in charge in s2 creates the environment they're talking in, drawn from John's memories, and although John is angry and somewhat disturbed about this, the end up in the Americana pop corn movie scenario at the end of the episode again. John reacting to the guilt about Zhaan and the current uncertain situation with Aeryn (and the near miss of Earth, again) with withdrawing into his own head (literally) is anything but a healthy coping mechanism, but then: therapy is hardly available on board this ship. And he still manages to be a good friend to D'Argo and provide a shoulder to lean on about the Chiana situation.
I must say, though, D'Argo having reached the self pity stage of break up woes makes him less sympathetic. "I gave her all I had and it still wasn't enough" - what? I'm not saying it's unrealistic or ooc. Romantic breakups are messy, and that's certainly one of the most common reactions to feel, even if there wasn't the son/girlfriend betrayal element as well. It still doesn't make it true; for starters, D'Argo certainly didn't give Chiana the attention to find out whether his ideas for their future were in any way what she wanted (though John had warned him this might not be the case), he expected her to change while not intending to change himself.
Lastly: after the "I liked him" (Rygel re: Pilot, assumed to be dying at this point), "He liked you" exchange between Rygel and Stark, I expected a later reveal that Stark had lied in order to get Rygel on board with Team Not Abandoning Moya And Pilot, but such a reveal didn't come. Rygel's reaction - being stunned and later, when Pilot is recovering, downright tender - is a neat little glimpse into Rygel, for all his determination to look out for No.1. and refusal to admit to sympathy for anyone else, still having the need for affection (both to receive and express).
The other days
And thus the Passion of St. Zhaan ends. Sorry, but this time around the way Zhaan's death plays out like a martyr's really hit me in a way it didn't the first time around. In my historical fandom the last two years, we at one point talked about how what seems a "good" death to a great many people today - sudden, no advance warning, no pain - was regarded as a horrible one from a religious pov for many a century, as you were supposed to confront your life and sins, repent, forgive your enemies etc., face death in the full knowledge of it, and depending on which century and which dominant religious attitude we're talking about, suffering (and the acceptance of same) was even seen as a plus. Zhaan dies an exemplary death in that sense, though in this episode, as opposed to the last one, she at least mainly interacts with her fellow crew members as opposed to having to comfort Stark about the fact she's dying, and we also get to see flashes of her old temper and get reminded that serenity was always a choice for Zhaan, not something that came automatically to her but something she had to struggle for, which made her that much richer a character. I also appreciate that the first of these conversations she has is with Aeryn, since I think how Aeryn feels about the fact that Zhaan is basically dying her own death slowly in front of her is way more interesting than how Stark feels about it.
And yet. The script has such weird lines, as when, in the Zhaan and D'Argo conversation, it's brought up they are a family now, and he says "you birthed it" (their family). Which made me go, huh? Because Zhaan definitely wasn't a "mother" or "heart of the team" kind of character in s1 just because she was the ship medic. Not Zhaan, who for the greater part of s1 saw their being on Moya together just as temporary as most of the others did, whose ruthlessness in DNA Mad Scientist as that much more shocking than everyone else's because unlike D'Argo, she didn't try to make it up to Pilot later, and unlike Rygel, she didn't see herself as a "me first" person to begin with. If any one character in s1 had the narrative function of bringing the ensemble together as more than casual fellow passengers, it was Crichton in his original optimistic giving everyone a chance vein. (I'm not saying all the developing relationships back then revolved around him, they didn't - Aeryn and D'Argo, Aeryn and Pilot, D'Argo and Zhaan were all relationships developing between each other - but he was the character saying "we should go back for X", or make the case for first Aeryn and later Chiana as a fellow passenger. Saying that Zhaan "birthed" their dysfunctional yet close family feels like retconning Zhaan into someone she hadn't been.
The very meta moment where Zhaan says goodbye and designates each of the other regulars with adjectives, otoh, mostly works on both a Doylist and a Watsonian fashoin for me. To reiterate: "Sensitive D'Argo, exuberant Chiana, selfless Aeryn, wise Rygel, innocent John." "Innocent" for John is poignant precisely because it's no longer true, and yet it very much was when he was there for Zhaan all the way back in s1 when she had her first big crisis in Blue Raphsody. "Sensitive" isn't what she used to call D'Argo back in the day - that was "sweet" - and yet it's not wrong, not just when he's brooding over his breakup with Chiana. Zhaan never called Rygel "wise" before, and truly, he's usually not, though he can be very clever, and in s3 as I recall from this point onwards, the scripts will increasingly let him be. "Selfless" for Aeryn instead of, say, "brave" is an interesting choice and not wrong, as Aeryn's state-trained "everything for the greater good" (of the PKs) has united with the way life as a fugitive and having relationships with non PKs has altered her to produce an attitude where she is ready to sacrifice herself or at least risk her life, not just for someone she's in love with like John but for strange children locked somewhere as in two eps ago.
Something I had completely forgotten: Aeryn telling the others in this episode she doesn't completely trust John's judgment and she's pretty sure he's "still talking to Scorpius". I must say, hats off, writers, this makes complete character sense, both that she would recognize the signs of John zoning out to have clone conversations and that given the neural clone had done his best to kill her and is in any case a clone of Scorpius, this would make her cautious to trust John again.
Meanwhile, what's actually going on in John's head is the first time since Won't Get Fooled Again that Harvey (now increasingly coming into his own personality) does something useful for John (pointing out what Neeyala's doing) since he's decided he doesn't want to die (along with John) but survive (meaning John has to as well). He also for the first time since he was in charge in s2 creates the environment they're talking in, drawn from John's memories, and although John is angry and somewhat disturbed about this, the end up in the Americana pop corn movie scenario at the end of the episode again. John reacting to the guilt about Zhaan and the current uncertain situation with Aeryn (and the near miss of Earth, again) with withdrawing into his own head (literally) is anything but a healthy coping mechanism, but then: therapy is hardly available on board this ship. And he still manages to be a good friend to D'Argo and provide a shoulder to lean on about the Chiana situation.
I must say, though, D'Argo having reached the self pity stage of break up woes makes him less sympathetic. "I gave her all I had and it still wasn't enough" - what? I'm not saying it's unrealistic or ooc. Romantic breakups are messy, and that's certainly one of the most common reactions to feel, even if there wasn't the son/girlfriend betrayal element as well. It still doesn't make it true; for starters, D'Argo certainly didn't give Chiana the attention to find out whether his ideas for their future were in any way what she wanted (though John had warned him this might not be the case), he expected her to change while not intending to change himself.
Lastly: after the "I liked him" (Rygel re: Pilot, assumed to be dying at this point), "He liked you" exchange between Rygel and Stark, I expected a later reveal that Stark had lied in order to get Rygel on board with Team Not Abandoning Moya And Pilot, but such a reveal didn't come. Rygel's reaction - being stunned and later, when Pilot is recovering, downright tender - is a neat little glimpse into Rygel, for all his determination to look out for No.1. and refusal to admit to sympathy for anyone else, still having the need for affection (both to receive and express).
The other days
