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| Farscape- The Good Guys... Captain Bialar Crais | |
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Captain Bialar Crais (Lani Tupu) was 'selected' to become a member of the Peacekeepers along with his brother Talvo when they were but young children on a Sebacian farming colony. Not being born into Peacekeeper servitude was considered something of a stigmatism... and for Crais becoming a Peacekeeper Command Carrier Captain was certainly no small feat. He is cunning and intelligent, though he often lets his emotions get in the way of his better judgment. When Crichton popped through the wormhole his first alien 'encounter' happened to be Bialar's brother. After a collision between the ships, Talvo Crais lost control of his Prowler, crashed into an asteroid and was killed. Crais pursued John, ruining his career after failing to return to first command so that he could continue his pursuit. After his run in with Scorpius and his stint in the Aurora chair, it was revealed that Crais had killed Lt. Teag, the only officer on board the Command Carrier other than Crais who was aware of Crais' orders to return. Certain to face court martial and then death, Crais fled to Moya telling Scorpius he planned on convincing the Crew to surrender. Scorpius, also double dealing, then had Crais deemed 'irreversibly contaminated' in order to official take command of Crais' command carrier. This was a bit of irony, as it was the same way he had effectively destroyed Aeryn sun's career. Crais assisted the crew of Moya in escaping Scorpius and destroying Scorpius' Gammek Base, but he had his own agenda and kidnapped Moya's child, the Leviathan/ Peacekeeper gunship hybrid, Talyn. Though he took control of Talyn, he remained in contact with the crew of Moya, possibly because he had some affection for the Peacekeeper Aeryn Sun, possibly because Talyn needed more than he could provide. Whatever the reason, Crais' motives remain his own. He has, over time, become something of an ally to the crew, though possibly never completely trusted. More than anyone, save perhaps Aeryn Sun, Crais is a man who lost his home. This wounded him deeply... and like Aeryn, Crais had to completely refocus his attention inwards. He found something to hold on to finally with Talyn, the leviathan/ peacekeeper gunship. When Talyn, torn between his PK hostility and his Leviathan gentleness reached a stage where he could no longer cope with his inner conflicts, he lashed out at a harmless ship filled with hundreds of innocents, and then at his own Mother, MOYA. Talyn was immediately remorseful, but it was clear something must be done. Crais, with Moya and Talyn's approval, pulled the plug on Talyn's higher brain functions. Crais now, was utterly alone. Though still with Crichton and the others, he was never one of them. No one was likely to develop a bond with the man who had hunted them for so long, save perhaps Aeryn, who perhaps understood Crais, but would not leave the side of Crichton. When Crais at last found purpose again, it cost him his life. With one part vengeance, one part sacrifice and one part nobility, Crais boarded Talyn while in the same Command Carrier Scorpius had taken from him, reconnected Talyn's higher brain functions and chose, with Talyn, to Starburst while docked in the Command Carrier. Talyn and Crais died a hero's death. It was this act alone that would prove to John Crichton that Crais could be changed and trustworthy and no other act would have been able to put the punctuation on the end of that relationship. It was the dopple-John's death that had proved to Crais that John was a man worth his respect and trust and it took Crais' death to prove to John he was just as honorable in the end. Crais was one of my favorite characters after he left the peacekeepers. As a villain he was shown as being fairly predictable, unstable and without imagination. It seemed almost laughable that the peacekeepers would have such a weak character in charge of a Command Carrier. No offense to Lani Tupu- the problem was never in the acting. He always portrayed the Captain exactly as he was written. The problem was that Crais was not a character who could have maintained as the primary villain of the show... he was simply too flawed and unimaginative. After his expulsion from the peacekeepers he finally grew into a worthwhile character as the shows went on. The biggest interest in Crais was the fact that I never knew what he was after... he was a bit of a rogue among rogues. He kept his emotions and his ambitions fairly close to his chest... a stark difference from the temperamental Captain of the first season. |
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