We learn that D’Argo is not the military commander that the tattoo indicated. “Once he’s established in that way, then you need to break away from it as quickly as you can, to show that you’re not just the next bodybuilder that rocks up on set and can’t bring any nuance to a character.” “The difficulty with a character like D’Argo, is that you need to be the archetype,” explains Simcoe. Not always in that order.Īs the series continued, Simcoe’s portrayal of D’Argo expanded the role to explore the character’s deeper motivations. In D’Argo’s case, it was to take control, trust no one, and shoot the enemy. This behavior continues throughout much of Farscape’s first season, as the writers sought to establish the characters and their relationships with each other. D’Argo: “We will cut off the tip of our small finger for identification.”Ĭrichton: “How about something a little less permanent?” For example, in the Farscape episode ‘Exodus from Genesis’ (S1, Ep3), when the crew of Moya encounters clones of themselves, D’Argo immediately leaped to a radical solution to differentiate the crew from their clones. Throughout much of the first season, D’Argo remains fixedly within the archetype. His violent rages would define how we first perceive D’Argo’s personality. But was D’Argo as much a warrior as he first seemed? D’Argo the Warriorĭ’Argo was strong, aggressive, resilient, and assertive all of which are qualities typically associated with the warrior archetype. One of the most prominent elements of D’Argo was the Luxan symbol for a general that was tattooed on his chin, irrevocably marking him as a warrior. Unlike Worf, who remained surly and aggressive throughout the entirety of Star Trek: The Next Generation (and found his light and shade in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine instead), D’Argo became someone with far deeper motivations beyond his initial archetype. “You could read into that as much as you like, but it was more to do with ‘What’s going to make this not look like some guy in a rubber suit?’ and make it look as realistic as we possibly can.”Īs the series developed, and we learned more of D’Argo’s backstory, we came to understand that there was far more to this alien warrior than just major anger-management issues. “I think a lot of those design choices were ‘What are the colors and costumes that are going to show the latex as being fake?’” Simcoe told The Companion. D’Argo’s prehensile tongue was capable of delivering a potent neurotoxin that could knock out his prey, and his allies too when they annoyed him, which was often. Eight tentacle-like ‘tenkas’ hung down the back of his head, which swept around as he turned. | Jim Henson Company, 1999.ĭ’Argo had thick brow ridges, a plated nose, and a pointed chin. John Crichton (Ben Browder) encounters D’Argo (Anthony Simcoe) for the first time in the Farscape episode ‘Premiere’ (S1, Ep1). Although vaguely humanoid in size and shape, the resemblance ended there. This was not just an actor in platform boots and wearing putty on their forehead, but a stunningly realized alien. Here was someone you did not want to frell with.Īnthony Simcoe made a memorable first impression as D’Argo. The towering muscular form of Farscape’s Ka D’Argo, as he ripped apart a control panel to take control of the living starship Moya, told the viewer everything they needed to know during the scant few seconds of his introduction. Warning: This article contains spoilers for the Farscape episodes ‘Premiere’ (S1, Ep1), ‘Exodus from Genesis’ (S1, Ep3), ‘DNA Mad Scientist’ (S1, Ep9), ‘Till the Blood Runs Clear’ (S1, Ep11), ‘Family Ties’ (S1, Ep22), ‘Crackers Don’t Matter’ (S2, Ep4), and Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars.

Gigi edgley