Farscape s04e09: A Prefect Murder

Series

Farscape^[1]

Season

4^[2]

Episode

9^[2]

Director

Geoff Bennett^[2]

Writer

Mark Saraceni^[2]

First aired

9 August 2002 (United States)^[2]

YouTube upload date

13 November 2025^[1]

Running time

44 minutes 16 seconds^[1]

Summary

The crew of Moya lands on a xenophobic planet ruled by a Prefecture held by clan leaders.^[4] Chiana is punished with banishment for an indiscretion involving the son of the next Prefect, and because Moya is disabled in orbit, the rest of the crew must negotiate with Gaashah, the clan leader next in line for the Prefecture, to remain on the planet.^[4] The episode turns on Aeryn Sun's assassination of Gaashah while she is under a form of mind control, an act that nearly plunges the roughly two hundred divided clans back into war.^[1][4]

What happens in "A Prefect Murder"?

The planet's roughly two hundred clans have only recently moved from warfare to a fragile peace.^[4] Chiana, having been with the son of the next Prefect, is punished with banishment and cast out from the clan structures that govern the planet.^[4]

With Moya disabled in orbit, the rest of the crew has to come to terms with Gaashah so that they can keep their ship in place and stay on the surface.^[4] During the negotiations, Gaashah warns John Crichton that returning to the planet after his ascension would be suicidal for Chiana and for anyone who stands with her.^[4]

At the center of the episode, Aeryn kills Gaashah while subject to a kind of mental influence she neither chose nor could identify at the moment.^[4] The death of the next Prefect threatens to reverse the recent movement from war to peace and drive the fractured clans back into open hostilities.^[4] The rights holder's description puts it the same way: on the xenophobic world, Aeryn comes close to dragging the clans back into war after unknowingly killing the next Prefect under an unfamiliar kind of mental influence.^[1]

0:00 A Prefect Murder The full episode as published by the rights holder, from the opening scene to the end of the upload.

Memorable quotes

“I am leader of my tribe now. Which makes you what? Just like all the rest?”Zerbat23:11

“I killed them. I killed those people. I ki... I killed them all.”Aeryn28:13

“Excellent! You have extinguished this threat to our peace. I declare a feast to celebrate.”Falaak38:01

“I'll not be judged by you or your pitiful council. Is that your father I hear screaming for mercy?”Zerbat39:31

In the episode

1:06 Chiana is banished from the planet Chiana is officially banished from Gaashah's clan after her scandalous behavior, while John and Aeryn converse on a transport pod above.

7:16 Chiana tries to return to the planet Chiana begs Gaashah to let her come back as Prefect, but he refuses, fearing it would be suicide for her and her friends.

11:27 D'Argo and Gaashah share a meal D'Argo and Gaashah eat local delicacies and discuss the fragile political peace between the two hundred clans.

13:01 D'Argo catches Sikozu sneaking around D'Argo discovers Sikozu off Moya and threatens her, demanding she keep her secret and return to the transport pod immediately.

18:03 Gunshots ring out across the planet Aeryn, acting strangely, takes a comm call from John, and gunfire suddenly erupts across the settlement.

20:04 Gaashah lies dead in the street D'Argo accuses Aeryn of shooting Gaashah during a public confrontation with a local guard and chieftain.

22:02 Zerbat demands the right to avenge his father Gaashah's son Zerbat claims leadership of his clan to hunt down Aeryn, arguing it is his legal right.

24:30 John finds Aeryn in a daze John finds Aeryn wandering alone, and she realizes she shot Gaashah but cannot remember why.

25:30 Paroos reveals Aeryn killed seventeen people Paroos questions Aeryn and reveals she killed seventeen people, suggesting she was being used by someone seeking war.

29:30 Zerbat aims a gun at John and Aeryn John presents insect evidence to Zerbat, who points a gun at his father's suspected killer and demands justice.

31:03 Falaak and E'Alet argue over payment Falaak argues with E'Alet about the failure of their insect control plot and refuses to pay the agreed sum.

33:29 Chiana goes blind inside the hive Chiana enters Falaak's palace and is stung by the bugs, leaving her temporarily blind as the hive takes over.

36:30 Aeryn fights the bug's control Aeryn struggles against the bug's mental influence, demanding D'Argo knock her unconscious to stop the violence.

40:38 Sikozu and Zerbat discuss their future With peace temporarily restored, Sikozu tells Zerbat she cares about him and wants to leave the planet together.

Air date, credits and where to watch

A Prefect Murder first aired in the United States on 9 August 2002 and is the ninth episode of the fourth season of Farscape.^[2] It was written by Mark Saraceni and directed by Geoff Bennett.^[2] Rockne S. O'Bannon created Farscape, which the rights holder describes as the Sci-Fi Channel's first original series.^[1]

The full episode can be watched on this page because the rights holder published it on its own YouTube channel on 13 November 2025, in an upload that runs 2 hours, 56 minutes and 32 seconds.^[1] The automatic captions of that upload are the source for the account of the episode above.^[4]