John, D'Argo, Chiana, and Jool are in trouble. Their transport pod is damaged and it's starting to de-pressurize. With time running out, the crew comes across a derelict ship - a Leviathan. The huge ship is still wearing a control collar, which means Peacekeepers must be inside. Ignoring D'Argo's reservations about landing on the ship, John pilots the transport pod into the silent, but potentially deadly Leviathan.

The crew has a simple mission: locate the needed supplies to repair their transport pod and get out as quickly as possible. However, they don't find any Peacekeepers, which is good and unsettling at the same time. The ship is inhabited by zombie-like creatures that appear to be eating the Leviathan. John and D'Argo explore the ship in search for supplies while Chiana and Jool guard their only escape. Rummaging around the Leviathan's decrepit passages, John's curiosity gets the better of him. Ignoring D'Argo's wise suggestion that they stick to the salvage plan, John goes it alone in search of the one creature on board that can explain what happened to the Leviathan, the ship's Pilot.

What John finds in the Pilot's den is startling and sad - a disarmed, pathetic, and crazed creature slowly being eaten alive. The Leviathan, named Rovhu, was assigned the duty of transporting just one passenger, Kaarvok. Criminally insane, Kaarvok somehow took over the ship after it was attacked by Scarrans. The cannibalistic zombies inhabiting the ship are all that's left of the Leviathan's Peackeeper crew.

Before John and D'Argo can retrieve the needed supplies, D'Argo is confronted by Kaarvok and loses. Meanwhile, Chiana becomes impatient and leaves Jool alone to protect the ship. Searching the Leviathan for her cremates, Chiana finds John, but only in time to witness Kaarvok injecting a large syringe into D'Argo's head and sucking out his brains. John and Chiana must get the supplies and off the ship. However, they are in a race against time, the cannibalistic zombies, and the brain sucking nut.

Not to be forgotten, Moya received a distress signal and starbusts without notice. Aeryn, Stark, and Rygel are stunned to find Talyn badly damaged and adrift. Boarding the previously undefeated gunship, Aeryn discovers Crais unconscious. Rygel would like to make Crais' situation permanent, but Aeryn steps in and keeps Crais safe. Whoever nearly destroyed Talyn is obviously very powerful. The fact Talyn's attackers might still be near by is an added source of concern for all aboard Moya.

Analysis:

I assume you like Farscape. How about Night of the Living Dead? Does Hannibal Lecter float your boat? Combine all three, remove any semblance of a plot, and this episode is for you! Honestly, this is not one of my favorite episodes, though I understand and appreciate why it could be enjoyed by some scapers. I only watched it once, so I only have a few things to say about it.

Jool. That woman is really starting to get on my nerves. However, I believe her character will soon be written off the show or be the benefit of some much needed character development. What bothers me about Jool in EM is the attempted-suicide scene. I was almost hoping she would go through with it, which bothers me. I resent that my favorite show now has me rooting for a character to kill themselves. I never felt that way about Crais, Scorpy, or any of the various bad-guys we've seen through the years. That scene is very hard for me to watch and completely out of place for Farscape, no matter how dark it wants to be.

As noted in my reviews of BTBW and HOTR, I am not impressed by cannibalism plots. This episode is not as grotesque as HOTR, but the dark, depressing theme is similar. The fact that it happens on a Leviathan and major characters are the ones being eaten makes it more disturbing than HOTR.

There is one major difference that separates this low-rated episode from all the other forgettable episodes of the past. The last 6 minutes of Eat Me is setting up a major plot development, specifically the fact that John now has a twin. Kaarvok make duplicates of Chiana and D'Argo, but killed one of each. He never had the chance to kill the Crichton duplicate, which leaves Moya's crew with two, identical Crichtons. Having duplicate characters is not an original idea in science fiction, but it is clear that the two-Crichtons situation is not a one-episode stunt. Apparently, this is a permanent plot development for the show. How will John deal with himself? How will the crew manage with two Johns? Was the Scorpy in his head duplicated? What about the on-again, off-again J/A relationship? The endless possibilities are a much needed diversion to an otherwise forgettable episode - if only I could forget this episode.

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Originally aired in the US April 20, 2001

Written by Matt Ford

Directed by Ian Watson

Image Gallery

Music video "Eating the Residents"