A Different View on E:FC


Usually, i'm reluctant to write a review or post my thoughts on shows, because i'm more interested in what others have to say and their opinions. But i've read a lot of the posts regarding E:FC, that baffled me, to be frank, and decided, as i've seen the series from start to finish more than 5 times (it's my fave show, alongside with Cold Squad and First Wave and Babylon 5), to give you my POV of the series, to make things a bit clear and to adress some issues that i've noticed that seemed to make a lot of the fans stay clear of this wonderful and unique series.
I would like to apologize first if the post runs to long, but i've given it a lot of thought, and i'd appreciate everyone who managed to read it to the end. and, as stated, it's just my opinion.

So, here we go:

1. William Boone VS. Liam Kincaid- now, don't get me wrong, i've loved Boone's character. he was human, passionate, always willing to learn more, protective of his friends. but eventually, he wasn't a fighter, and as the 1st season progressed, he became more of Taelon fan. I grieved his passing at the end of the 1st season, but Boone's problem was that he didn't want to fight, not even on his principles, not until something really horrible happened, say- the death of his wife, Kate. and even then, the series showed him very reluctant to continue fighting for the good cause, and as evident in the 2 eps of the 5th season he appeared in, he didn't really cared what would happen, even when his sister died after becoming an hybrid. that's why he died, i guess.
Liam, on the other hand, was not only a fighter, but a true human soul. Being a hybrid himself (part Human, part Kimera), made his character more complex (that remained with him until the end). In my opinion, it made him ask the more important questions, like: who we are, what are we capable of, what's are strong point or weak point, and what we achieve if really believe. Not only that, Liam was bridge between the Taelons and Humans, more so than Boone. That, coupled with his complexity and his quest to understand himself and others, made him a character to remember, very deep and believable (Robert Leeshock did a great job as Liam Kincaid). Furthermore, i don't think Liam was perfect. far from it is the truth, as he made a lot of mistakes on the way and made some wrong choices. But his strong point was his ability to understand his mistakes and trying to correct them, to become more than himself, always trying to be better than he is now while questioning himself all the way.

2. Story-arcs/Continuity- I've read a lot of comments by users stating that E:FC suffered from plot-holes, lack of continuity and it was episodic. But, careful exmination of the subject suggest otherwise. watching the show from start to finish reveals that the show not only was continuous, but every episode was a puzzle piece that shed some light on the characters, the way they lived, the Taelon agenda and much more. (Take in consideration that the series was about learning and realizing what it means to be human, with all the ups and downs).
If you watch the series start to finish you will notice how many plot-lines have been continuous, and could be even considered as Story-arcs: Da'an and Zo'or's realationship and battles, Liam and Da'an, the Taelon's true agenda, Human free-will, the bio-surrogates, the taleon/Jaridian conflict- its history and consequences, the Atavus and a lot more. they just didn't explain and put it all in your face, rather (like a lot of Canadian TV-Shows) they made is like a puzzle- every episode is a another piece that shed some light on the whole picture. eventually, everything falls together, if you just think about it.

3. Season 5- I agree, the 5th season was a bit weird and hard to swallow, but it still retained a lot of the dark feel, the intelligence, the mythology and wonderful stories. it was weird without Da'an and Liam, but the writers did a great job, given the problems they had, in keeping the story interesting and the feel. It was even logical- the Taelons and Jaridians were one species once, the Atavus, and that the only way for them so survive (and keep in mind that the episode "Avatar" (S01E04) even forshadowes those events with the creature dubbed the Sleeper, which resembles the Atavus). the 5th season even continued some of the plot-lines from previous seasons while embarking on new ones, and Renee eventually learned herself the real meaning of being human, just as Liam did.
Granted, it was a bit foolish of the writers not to let Sandoval learn the truth about Liam, but i don't think that would've made much difference, as Sandoval, by that point, was so filled with hatred and became so cold, i believe he would've killed even his son and if meant he would get his way. He himself said before he died that he would've done evrything the same all over again (a very Sandoval thing to say). And why Renee didn't tell Liam that his father's dead? well, i can't really answer that, only to say that maybe, given that she knew how it would hurt Liam, she decided it was best to postponed that bad news until later.


The way the series ended was great, as it caught the true spirit of the show. there were a lot they should've done, but given that Tribune always interfered with the show and demanded the changes themselves, the writers and producers did a great job. sure, maybe if Paul Gertz and the others had their way the series would have gone to a much better places and would've played differently, and the end-result was still good. not the way we all had wanted, but still good.

In conclusion- Earth: Final Conflict was a series about trying to reach higher, to become more than we are, to realize our place and our connection to the universe, to nature, and what it really means to be a human being and human, period. in that department, the series did great. the stories, the special effect, the actors, producers, writers- they all did a wonderful job, and the series should be remembered for that. And i do thing that the late Gene Roddenberry, despite the problems that show suffered from, would be proud of that.

<If you survived until now, my heartfelt thanks goes to you, and i'd really love to know what do you think. as i stated, those are just my opinions, and other's opinions really interest me.>

Good Day to you all
=)

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[deleted]

I agree with everything you wrote especially your comments about Season 5. The Atavus were a logical beginning to the Taelons, especially given the connection they were shown to have with them in earlier seasons, and this is what gave them an integral connection to the plot. As well, the actors playing the lead Atavus were very good at their jobs, and the end of each of the villains was appropriate to them. This is what made the show great. The shows' overall story line was what made it cool to watch. The shows' overall thoughtfullness is what made it memorable.

Anybody want a peanut ?

- Fezzik, " The Princess Bride " ( 1987 )

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Liam, on the other hand, was not only a fighter, but a true human soul. Being a hybrid himself (part Human, part Kimera), made his character more complex (that remained with him until the end). In my opinion, it made him ask the more important questions, like: who we are, what are we capable of, what's are strong point or weak point, and what we achieve if really believe. Not only that, Liam was bridge between the Taelons and Humans, more so than Boone. That, coupled with his complexity and his quest to understand himself and others, made him a character to remember, very deep and believable (Robert Leeshock did a great job as Liam Kincaid).


I agree with you about Liam Kincaid. I preferred him to Boone. Liam was a much more interesting and complex character, and the fact that he was part-human and part-alien made him fit right into the science-fiction context, and the Roddenberry universe. The fact that he was multi-racial also was very appropriate for today's world in which more and more people are of multi-racial background.

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5th season, for me, is like another show I have to get to know. Yes, it's a logical continuation but, apart from some characters and the setting they're in, it's a new story, new rules. It's some kind of vampire story only they feed on lifeforce instead of blood. But I've only seen the first five and I'm not giving up. This "new" show might be good as well so I don't want to complain.

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I own the entire series and when I feel like doing a rewatch, I usually watch the pilot first then skip the rest of Season 1 and continue with Season 2 until the end of Season 4 then I stop. Season 1 of EFC reminds me of Season 1 of "Babylon 5", it sets up some of the groundwork for later seasons but just isn't as entertaining or good as the 3 seasons that followed. Season 5 on the other hand, looks, feels and basically is a completely different series to me, I don't like it and never will.

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Wow. I'm glad to see that there are people out there who share the same feeling that E:FC wasn't a bad series. I thought that everybody had given up on EFC. Even some friends of mine are convinced that by season 2, the series became bad and by 5 abysmal.

To Robertjmr72:
I too own the entire series (and proud of it!!!), and I love watching it from start to finish. Yeah, S1 is a bit slow as it's really a long prologue and establishes many of the stories that would be important for the rest of the seasons (yes, even to season 5), but I still love it. There are lots of great eps. in that season, and what cab I say? I love seeing how puzzle pieces are slowly coming together (As it's how I see EFC: a big puzzle that's coming along together slowly but surely). And BTW, S1EP4, "Avatar" is crucial for the Atavus story line, especially the end of the episode, when we see the drawing that's dubbed as the "Sleeper".

As I stated in my earlier post, I can understand to some degree why S5 is so disliked, and why people think that it's so differebt, but personally, I think that people who don't like it are looking at it the wrong way.The Atavus were integral to the whole story- they were, after all, the race who started it all, and the proto-species that the Taelons and Jardians came from.I actually thought that S5 was full circle, kinda like "from ashes to ashes", so to speak. to tell ya the truth, the first time i saw the fourth season ender, i guessed that the Atavus will come out out of the chambers, it was obvious enough, as it was the only way for Taelons and Jaridians to survive- to go back to their origins. Ofcourse, as seen in S4E12 "The Summit", both species' physiology had become so different, and that is why, eventually we got the Aggresive Atavus that were dorment for millions of years.
True- We have no Liam, no Da'an, most of the cast is gone, but I feel that the stories were still great, very emotional and intelligent, and eventually it came to a somewhat satisfying end (to me atleast). And Jayne Heitmayer did a great job holding the series on her own alongside Von Flores (I just love that guy!).

And BTW, if there readers out there who want to share their thoughts, please do! It's interesting to read what other people thought about EFC.

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[deleted]

There were a few good episodes in Season 5, and I agree that Jayne Heitmeyer should be given credit for her strong performance.

But it was unfair to expect her to carry the series by herself. She and Robert Leeshock were a good team, and Liam could have helped Renee deal with the Atavus because of his alien background.

It's a good thing they brought back Liam at the end of the season because otherwise it would have been worse.

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i really liked the whole series as well. I just have a problem with one of the things you mentioned. you said "And why Renee didn't tell Liam that his father's dead? well, i can't really answer that, only to say that maybe, given that she knew how it would hurt Liam, she decided it was best to postponed that bad news until later. ". However, Liam made it abundantly clear that he never thought of Sandoval as his father. Haa'gel was Liam's father, he just happened to be possessing Sandoval at the time of conception. Liam made a few references to Sandoval being his surrogate father but he never felt much of any real paternal connection to him. I don't think Liam would have been very broken up over the news of Sandoval's death. Other than that, I completely agree with everything else you said. Excellent show all around.

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Liam may not have thought much of Sandoval, that much is true. And he really considered him a father, which is understandable, giving that Sandoval was not much of a human being.

Liam may not have been broken up about Sandoval's death, but he would've felt a bit distraught and sadness. You see, unlike most of the people and aliens that surrounded Liam, Liam was compassionate and caring. He cared deeply about everyone around him, even those who sometimes hurt him. For example: even when, in the 3rd season, Da'an had betrayed Liam's trust and almost got him killed, their relationship was strained for a bit, but Liam always cared about Da'an, and he always fulfilled his duty, not only because it was his duty- but because Liam always cared about Da'an. Their relationship, although never truly recovered, managed to stay stable and they always respected each other, which is BTW, a sign of true friendship.
There are more examples, of course, throughout the series.

And also, keep in mind, that although Renee may have felt that Liam never considered Sandoval his father, she knew how Liam was compassionate and cared about others, and she knew that in some way, his death would sadden him, because, and Liam had stated that in the fourth season, to him Sandoval represented all that was wrong in humanity that was caused by the Taelons. Yeah, he thought that Sandoval may be hopeless, but he still considered him a human being.

That's my two cents, anyways.

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I don't entirely agree with your assessment of Boone. Its true that in the begining he seemed relunctant to join the liberations cause and most likely wouldn't have if his wife lived despite not completely trusting the Taelons by his own admision to Kate. But then I think that helped for his character to devlopment going from a relunctant hero to someone who really did care about finding out what the truth behind the Taelons agenda was.

Also lets not forget Doors wasn't exactly an angel himself. He came off, espicially in the first and early second seasons, as a fairly shady guy himself. Boone deffinetely had reason not to trust him much more than the Taelons.

I also don't entirely agree about Boone becoming more of a Taelon fan as time went on. He simply was taking on the role of the bridge between two worlds that Liam eventually became. Boone wanted to know why the Taelons were here and wanted to stop them from violating human civil rights as much as the liberation. But he also knew that things weren't just completely black and white with them, especially after Sandovol told him about humans and Taelons needing each other to survive. He wanted to change their minds through his relationship with Daan, to get them to see humanity as equals and to actually work together with us as equals to stop whatever was threatening both our species.

However he was still willing to use force to stop Taelon projects as well. He lead that attack in destruction on the Taelon lab in Russia to destroy the probe, he tells Hagel in season 1 finally that the Taelons are his enemies too and tries to convince Hagel that they can be allies before the cops show up and screw everything up. He tries to expose Zoors portal project even before knowing his sister is one of their experiments and is quite dangerously defiant of Zoor at times. Ofcourse he wasn't going to be stupid either, he knew the computer virus was a bad idea in wrath of achilies and was proven right. He also was suspiciouse something wasn't right about the probe after learning to read Taelon and sure enough the probe turned out to not even be Taelon.

In the end he struck me as someone who was willing to look at every angle before making a judgment call and who wanted to free humanity without killing the Taelons in the process. And I feel liam and Daan I will never betray my own species convo in season 2 would have gone to Boone if he hadn't been killed off.

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Hello there,
sorry it took so much time to answer to this thread, but i'm working so hard i'm hardly near the comp, but i'm thrilled to see the discussion still goes on, to some extent.

First off, an answer to AreYouWetYet:
The series showed us that there were two off-shoots of the Atavus. The first one- the one that stayed on the Taelon\Atavus\Jaridian original homeworld. Those Atavus actually used the shaqarava after the Kimera interfered with their evolution. Howlyn's branch came to earth probably before the arrival of the Kimera, so they didn't really had shaqarava, but these finger-cleaves. Why? because they weren't were interfered by the Kimera, I.E.- they are the original Atavus. If you want to see an atavus with Shaqarava, see ep. 4X12- The Summit, where we see a true atavus before the split and after the Kimera interference. I hope this answers your question.

To sirress-
I guess i came off as a Boone disliker to some extent, although I agree with everything you've said about Boone, expect one thing- the person who actually led the attack on the russian lab to destroy the Jaridian probe was a mercenary named Sloane (played by Paul Johhanson, ep. 1X20). In that specific ep., Boone was a bit on the sidelines. However, as I said I agree with your assement of Boone, but still you could see as the first season progress, that alothough he tried to do his best as a double agent, most of the times he was too much on the Taelon side (altough i loved his speech in 1X18- Law & Order, where he tried to save Rho'Ha, to no avail). To me, as it is proved in the fifth season, Boone was always the reluctant warrior, who became a bit too fascinated with the Taelons. Liam never hesitated to face-off Da'an or Zo'or if he felt they did something wrong, nor did he hesitated to face-off other humans if he felt they did something wrong. Liam, to me, was much more netural, as he did try to save everyone, Taelons, Humans and Jaridians, while trying to understand who and what he is.
Furthermore, Boone's wife had to be killed in order to convince Boone to assume his part a double agent. Liam, on the other hand, within his first 24 hrs of life, never hesitated and stepped up to lead the resistance and also protect Da'an, no matter what. Liam always fought for what he believed was right. Even when Boone's sister was "violated" (1X19- Through the Looking Glass), Boone never really faced-off with Zo'or about that, he never really anything about it. It ended with Sahjit escaping the portals kept being spread around the world.

Just to be clear- I don't hate Boone, I liked him a lot, and he was a very complex and reach character (although not as much complex and reach as Liam, IMO), but at the end of the day, he didn't do a lot to further the resistance cause or to face off the Taelons, compared to Liam. I actually feel sorry that they never met, they both would've been, along with Lili and Renee, a great to team to try and save everyone from passing into oblivion.

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Alright then, you just made me think up a superhard
plot hole.

The Taylons split from Jaridians when they were Atavus.

I do not recall ever seeing the Atavus use Shakarava,
but that was the reason for their division.

They were SUPPOSED to have Shakarava,
not magic fingernails.

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Been too long ago for me to think about that! Interesting though! ;-)

- Jamie/Fiero425 - - http://www.childrenofrassilon.com/earth-final-conflict--oz.html -

- - http://scifiblogs3.blogspot.com/2012/12/earth-final-conflict.html - -

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