Brian Henson gives puppet creatures room to be awkward, unpredictable company. We rate his work on Farscape, where increasingly involved relationships reward the patience demanded by early melodrama and effects that have aged.
Fi1m perspective
The creatures in Farscape (1999) are odd, and the company takes time to like. Brian Henson's work as executive producer and director is worth that patience: this is science fiction willing to let its characters be difficult. We grew fond of them because their increasingly involved relationships gave us reasons to care beyond their unusual appearance. That is where we find Henson most persuasive, giving puppet characters enough attention for their feelings to matter.
His earlier work on Labyrinth (1986), as a voice performer and puppeteer coordinator, involved complex animatronics. His first feature as director was The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992), followed by Muppet Treasure Island (1996). The former keeps the Muppets' irreverence alongside a sincere treatment of the story, which is a useful clue to his priorities. The Happytime Murders (2018), an adult puppet crime comedy, takes that interest in combining puppets and live action to a different audience.
On Farscape, the collaboration matters as much as Henson's appetite for the unfamiliar. Rockne S. O'Bannon is the creator and writer, while the Jim Henson Company Creature Shop team provides the puppetry and effects. The complex aliens give us a reason to look, but they would be a thin reason to stay without the developing relationships. Henson deserves credit for supporting that combination, without being mistaken for its sole author.
There are limits to the appeal. Farscape's ageing effects can distract, and the early melodrama asks for goodwill before the characters have earned much of it. Henson later directed the Peacekeeper Wars (2004) miniseries, continuing his involvement beyond the original programme. Our recommendation rests on the series' growing emotional complications, not on an obligation to admire the ingenuity of its puppets. Give Farscape time to settle, but do not expect an easy first evening.
Biography
Brian Henson (born 3 November 1963) is an American puppeteer, filmmaker and actor. He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson and serves as chairman of The Jim Henson Company.
Henson began working on his father's productions as a teenager. He performed the voice of Hoggle in the film Labyrinth (1986) and also appeared in Return to Oz (1985) as the voice of Jack Pumpkinhead. He has directed several Muppet films, including The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) and Muppet Treasure Island (1996), and served as a director and executive producer on the television series Dinosaurs (1991) and Farscape (1999).
