Top Five Performances: Farscape – “Out of Their Minds”

I’m still working my way through Farscape on Netflix, so I haven’t talked about it yet.  For now, I’m holding off until I finish the series, but the latest episode I watched, “Out of Their Minds,” is a big body-swap extravaganza just begging to be talked about.  Zhaan doesn’t get in on the action, but the other six members of the ensemble switch consciousness with each other, not once, but twice in one episode.  I always like seeing cast members playing one another’s characters – here are my top five for the story.

Rygel in Crichton’s Body

Oh man, this is a hoot.  Ben Browder has Rygel’s voice down pat, as well as his little grunts and mumbles.  It helps that the writing gives him such terrific material, but Browder’s performance takes it from funny to hysterical.  And even though Browder’s obviously not a puppet, his bearing and movements seem so Rygel.  Looking at him, I always saw Rygel and not Crichton.

Crichton in Aeryn’s Body

Crichton-in-Aeryn is an interesting one for me, because while both characters are confident, take-charge types, they go about it in different ways, and it’s neat to see Claudia Black differentiate between the two and capture Crichton’s particular brand of commanding.  Again, the voice is spot-on, not just in manner but delivery.  Black really feels like Crichton here, down to the smaller mannerisms (like chewing on his thumb.)  Oh, and Crichton-in-Aeryn having to talk Rygel-in-Crichton through the process of peeing with a human body is sensational. 

Pilot in Chiana’s Body

So far, my feelings toward Gigi Edgley are just so-so, but she does such a great job as Pilot.  The voice is very well-done, and she really gets Pilot’s still, quiet gravity.  She’s… I don’t want to say “regal,” because that’s not it, but you can tell she’s much larger, a higher form of being, when she plays Pilot.  He’s operating at a more complicated level than anyone else (which, by the way, makes the body-swap even harder on him,) and Edgley captures that beautifully.

Rygel in Aeryn’s Body

Though not quite as fun as Rygel-in-Crichton, this one’s still a stitch.  Black gets lots of exasperated!Rygel to work with, and she has his pompous irritation down to a tee.  Her posture is excellent, too.  Of everyone, I think Black does the best job at cross-gender body-swapping.  She’s really effective at sounding/seeming male without it feeling over-the-top or put-on.

Chiana in Pilot’s Body

This one’s not as dramatic as the others, since the puppet work for Pilot can’t really match Chiana’s distinct physical movements.  But even without those visual cues, Lani John Tupu’s voice work conveys Chiana so well.  I associate Chiana so much with the way she moves that I wouldn’t have guessed someone could create such a good impression of her just from her voice.