The Stargate Franchise - A First Timer's Watchthrough
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I mentioned in one of my other episode reviews that most of the episodes seem to be centered around McKay, and I'm starting to wonder if the writers just didn't know how to write for the other characters. It makes me wonder what changed between SG-1 (Where I thought the cast was well balanced other than Season 10 where it felt like Vala got most of the episodes) and Atlantis, but I'm starting to get a Voyager vibe from this series. I like Voyager, but it's acknowledging that these writers only know how to write for certain characters while the others get left behind.
I like the idea of the episode where it's a day off. This episode made Atlantis feel much more communal than other episodes, like it was actually this big city.
I remember always being surprised in the first couple seasons (or "Sunday," for that matter), when we saw people were living out in the piers of the city. Given that I though the expedition couldn't have started with more than a couple hundred people, and even when they got into regular contact with Earth, I doubt it could've grown much after that, I'd always assumed everyone lived in the central part of the city, if not the center tower itself. Like, Lorne might've had that entire apartment building to himself, which seems like a terrible idea. What if he trips and breaks his ankle coming out of the shower? What if there's an energy being that lives in the power conduits of that building that invades his dreams every night?
Saw him in a sitcom as a character's dad. He is still scary.
I vaguely recall seeing something on Gateworld, maybe, back in the day.
McKay definitely seems to be the favourite character in the writer's room. Probably a combination of rude characters can be rather fun to write for and David Hewlett was so awesome with whatever material he was given.
McKay also tends to be a fan favorite as well. I think it's safe to say that even though it wasn't designed to be this way he basically became the star and main lead of the show. As huge fan I loved it but naturally others didn't. I agree with it being because he is rude and funny and well acted and also he had great chemistry with Shepard who was the clear lead going into the series so it worked out with it being a kind of buddy show with those two with the others providing character support. As for the character changes I actually like all of them. I never cared much for Weir and A lot of that has to do with me preferring the original actor used on Stargate before they recasted. Higginson was fine but I think the character would have worked better if they had never changed actors.
Jason
Jason
I'm going to talk about Weir more tonight after I finish the 3 part finale/premiere, but I do wonder what it would have been like had the original actor stayed. I also wish they had kept her tenacity as a negotiator as a primary feature of the character rather than some directions they did go.
Submersion
There's the Teyla episode I've been waiting all season for. The team (Pretty much the entire cast which makes me wonder, who was watching over Atlantis as the time) seek out an Ancient drilling station only to find out a Wraith Queen was stranded there and found her chance to finally escape. Teyla is able to telepathically link to the Queen and trick her into turning off the auto destructed from her cruiser. I just appreciated that Teyla was the star in this episode, and there were elements from the past (Her DNA being part wraith, the Ancient Wraith War) were used to tell a really good Atlantis story. There was some predictability here, like the two scientists who were basically red shirts, but I just liked that Luttrell can finally use her acting chops in good ways.
You know what sucks about having a minority opinion on something? You have to learn to tolorate it or hate the show. I mean we're having this discussion about the new Star Trek series and Serialization vs. Episodic right now in the Discovery forum, how in serialization if you only have one plot running everyone needs to get on board with that plot. I think the same can apply to characters like McKay. McKay might be a fan favorite, and David Hewlett is doing a great job, but the guy never really changes. He's a jerk, and always will be a Jerk. The least he can do is respect people by calling them by their appropriate names. When the writers decide, hey, this character is popular so lets write all the episodes for him, and then I think he's a pompous a-hole, it's like great, how will I be annoyed by McKay this time around. I've tried to see why people like him. Maybe it's a failure on my part.
I think the being jerk is easy to forgive because it comes with the humor and also he does save the day a lot. He does care about the characters even while being rude to them. He can act like a asshole but he isn't like a mean person who likes to hurt people so it's easier to accept his behavior. Like he makes fun of Shepard but Shepard is his best friend as well. Same with Zelenka and the others.
Jason
Jason
Making fun of people's names doesn't strike me as humorous though. Yeah he saves the day a lot, but I feel like episodes tell him to not be a jerk and he will never change. They just revert McKay back to being an asshole at the end of the episode. Take for example the one with his sister or the Tao of Rodney, just recently. You'd think outside influences might allow him to maybe calm down a bit? He still goes overboard and I don't really find insulting people funny anymore. I guess maybe you can have an ounce of arrogance while still maybe respecting people. I just wish maybe they start toning it down.
It's one thing to be very arrogant, and a know-it-all but McKay is consistently rude and disrespectful to others. The way he mistreats Zelenka is horrible and not funny at all.
I agree. They could write good episodes for McKay, Shepard, and Ronon and a couple good ones with Teyla and that was about it. Sadly, they did not know what to do with Weir or the other characters that got relegated to the background.
But even McKay, is it really well written to have the character progress then just to not the next episode?
At least season 10 of SG1 with Vala had a point as she was very important to the story.
Vengeance
Boy the Michael experiment has been one disaster over another. I don't know how Weir leaves the show but if the IOA did decide she was endangering the expedition because of Michael, I actually would understand why. I actually think this is the best Michael episode so far. He used the Teranans (Inferno) to make a new bug creature army and Atlantis kinda helped him. This was almost like Atlantis does Alien and Michael is a lot more scary here than in any other episode so far. I also liked that this episode tried to do what Common Ground did, which was explore what is it like to be a Wraith. Are they scientists, is there a Wraith that's as know-it-all as McKay, stuff like that. After watching Common Ground I was really hoping we might dig deeper into Wraith Culture and while that didn't come to fruition yet, This episode did actually bring it up which I appreciated.
Boy the Michael experiment has been one disaster over another. I don't know how Weir leaves the show but if the IOA did decide she was endangering the expedition because of Michael, I actually would understand why. I actually think this is the best Michael episode so far. He used the Teranans (Inferno) to make a new bug creature army and Atlantis kinda helped him. This was almost like Atlantis does Alien and Michael is a lot more scary here than in any other episode so far. I also liked that this episode tried to do what Common Ground did, which was explore what is it like to be a Wraith. Are they scientists, is there a Wraith that's as know-it-all as McKay, stuff like that. After watching Common Ground I was really hoping we might dig deeper into Wraith Culture and while that didn't come to fruition yet, This episode did actually bring it up which I appreciated.
Neither did the writers.
First Strike, Adrift, Lifeline
That was a hell of a three episode arc. I loved all 3 of these episodes so I'm going to talk about observations in list form.
1) I said I would talk about Dr. Weir and I might as well make that the first thing. I find Weir probably the most tragic character in the Stargate Franchise. She comes in as this strong negotiator, willing to Stand up to Ba'al and is given the chance of a lifetime to head the Atlantis expedition. She constantly needs to prove herself and even when she does over and over, the Military still seems uncomfortable with her methods. In the first episode of this arc, I actually felt it when she mentioned the fact that she was a woman in charge. I was really hoping the writers would be past the whole woman having to prove herself thing over and over. I mean look at Carter. She got promoted twice (three times after this arc), blew up a sun, and was a great leader. Why couldn't Elizabeth be the same? I don't think the writers did any favors for her either, even though when she did have an episode, Higginson acted the hell out of it.
Looking at these three episodes, I think this might have been Dr. Weir at her "slightly below New Order" best. She stood up to Ellis, made the hard choices, and the stuff with Rodney and Keller trying to save her life with the Nanites was a really nice call back to one of my favorite episodes of the season, Real World. I also liked how she was used in Lifeline, who she did stand toe to toe with Oberoth, and I kind of worry about her future now in Replicator control. I'm not a fan of the writers writing her off (Think the Jennifer Lein Situation in Voyager), but I think this was as good a send off as you could have in a show like this.
2) The Visual effect in these episodes were outstanding. From the Beam hitting the Atlantis Shield in First Strike (And the tower explosion), to the Puddle Jumpers shooting at the Asteroids in Adrift, to the jumping scene of Shep and Zelenka, to just watching Atlantis fly. I should have guessed that the finale was going to have Atlantis fly to end, it considering that's what happened in The Return, but it was still a hell of a way to end Season 3.
3) McKay didn't annoy me in these episodes. In fact, his scenes with Sheppard and Weir were really nice. Ronon's scenes with Dr. Weir were also really sweet.
4) I like Dr. Keller already. I know they had previously used Jewel Strait before, but now it will really feel like a mature version of Kaylee. I'm looking forward to seeing her as Doctor.
5) I heard the phrase "Five by Five" a few times during this arc. It reminded me of Eliza Dushku as Faith in Buffy and Angel. I just found out she went back to school and got her degree. Congrats to our darker Vampire Slayer.
6) Watching these episodes, I was thinking about the Season 5 premiere "Enemies" and how I was slightly annoyed they wrapped up that cliffhanger as quick as it did. I really liked how this entire three episode arc was basically Stargate: Lost in Space. Everything that could go wrong, kinda did, and it was just fun watching them come up with various solutions. Maybe that's why I wasn't annoyed at Rodney here. He is very good at his job and they played to his strengths.
7) The scenes with Sam and Dr. Lee were lightweight. They were good but not entirely memorable. I am wondering how they are going to use Sam this season. Is she going to just gate in when called or is that posting on earth going to be really quick.
8) Teyla was underused again. I shouldn't be shocked by that, but I am disappointed.
I probably missed some things, but overall I really enjoyed that. I guess to keep this somewhat short, the thing I can say about Season 3 as a whole is it felt like a tale of two halves. The first half was great, with great character development episodes and it kept me intrigued throughout. The second half things started to feel Season 2-ish. I still think Season 3 is light years ahead of Season 2, but Season 1 is still my favorite season of this series so far.
In terms of 5 favorite episodes for Season 3:
Setada
Common Ground
Real World
First Strike
No Mans Land/McKay and Mrs. Miller (Yeah, these are tied, and M&MM is probably my favorite McKay episode of the series, and you know my feelings on McKay)
Looking forward to Season 4.
That was a hell of a three episode arc. I loved all 3 of these episodes so I'm going to talk about observations in list form.
1) I said I would talk about Dr. Weir and I might as well make that the first thing. I find Weir probably the most tragic character in the Stargate Franchise. She comes in as this strong negotiator, willing to Stand up to Ba'al and is given the chance of a lifetime to head the Atlantis expedition. She constantly needs to prove herself and even when she does over and over, the Military still seems uncomfortable with her methods. In the first episode of this arc, I actually felt it when she mentioned the fact that she was a woman in charge. I was really hoping the writers would be past the whole woman having to prove herself thing over and over. I mean look at Carter. She got promoted twice (three times after this arc), blew up a sun, and was a great leader. Why couldn't Elizabeth be the same? I don't think the writers did any favors for her either, even though when she did have an episode, Higginson acted the hell out of it.
Looking at these three episodes, I think this might have been Dr. Weir at her "slightly below New Order" best. She stood up to Ellis, made the hard choices, and the stuff with Rodney and Keller trying to save her life with the Nanites was a really nice call back to one of my favorite episodes of the season, Real World. I also liked how she was used in Lifeline, who she did stand toe to toe with Oberoth, and I kind of worry about her future now in Replicator control. I'm not a fan of the writers writing her off (Think the Jennifer Lein Situation in Voyager), but I think this was as good a send off as you could have in a show like this.
2) The Visual effect in these episodes were outstanding. From the Beam hitting the Atlantis Shield in First Strike (And the tower explosion), to the Puddle Jumpers shooting at the Asteroids in Adrift, to the jumping scene of Shep and Zelenka, to just watching Atlantis fly. I should have guessed that the finale was going to have Atlantis fly to end, it considering that's what happened in The Return, but it was still a hell of a way to end Season 3.
3) McKay didn't annoy me in these episodes. In fact, his scenes with Sheppard and Weir were really nice. Ronon's scenes with Dr. Weir were also really sweet.
4) I like Dr. Keller already. I know they had previously used Jewel Strait before, but now it will really feel like a mature version of Kaylee. I'm looking forward to seeing her as Doctor.
5) I heard the phrase "Five by Five" a few times during this arc. It reminded me of Eliza Dushku as Faith in Buffy and Angel. I just found out she went back to school and got her degree. Congrats to our darker Vampire Slayer.
6) Watching these episodes, I was thinking about the Season 5 premiere "Enemies" and how I was slightly annoyed they wrapped up that cliffhanger as quick as it did. I really liked how this entire three episode arc was basically Stargate: Lost in Space. Everything that could go wrong, kinda did, and it was just fun watching them come up with various solutions. Maybe that's why I wasn't annoyed at Rodney here. He is very good at his job and they played to his strengths.
7) The scenes with Sam and Dr. Lee were lightweight. They were good but not entirely memorable. I am wondering how they are going to use Sam this season. Is she going to just gate in when called or is that posting on earth going to be really quick.
8) Teyla was underused again. I shouldn't be shocked by that, but I am disappointed.
I probably missed some things, but overall I really enjoyed that. I guess to keep this somewhat short, the thing I can say about Season 3 as a whole is it felt like a tale of two halves. The first half was great, with great character development episodes and it kept me intrigued throughout. The second half things started to feel Season 2-ish. I still think Season 3 is light years ahead of Season 2, but Season 1 is still my favorite season of this series so far.
In terms of 5 favorite episodes for Season 3:
Setada
Common Ground
Real World
First Strike
No Mans Land/McKay and Mrs. Miller (Yeah, these are tied, and M&MM is probably my favorite McKay episode of the series, and you know my feelings on McKay)
Looking forward to Season 4.
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Reunion
Well it didn't take long for Carter to come back to Atlantis afterall. She's the new boss. I figured as much. I wish they had done it at the end of the last episode, but then we wouldn't have had a very nice scene between Sam and Teal'c a the beginning. I had to look up the Undomesticated Equines quote and it came from the episode where Jack was speared against the wall in Season 2. Man that was a long time ago. I liked the scene with Rodney and Zalenka with Rodney thinking he was going to be the head of Atlantis. That was funny.
The main plot was a good one featuring Ronon and 3 fellow Satedan, turned Wraith Worshipers. It was another good character study for Ronon and Momoa played the role really well. Also, I could tell that Luttrell looks very pregnant so I'm probably expecting even less Teyla this year. I guess I'm used to it.
So far the Season is 3 for 3 on great episodes.
Well it didn't take long for Carter to come back to Atlantis afterall. She's the new boss. I figured as much. I wish they had done it at the end of the last episode, but then we wouldn't have had a very nice scene between Sam and Teal'c a the beginning. I had to look up the Undomesticated Equines quote and it came from the episode where Jack was speared against the wall in Season 2. Man that was a long time ago. I liked the scene with Rodney and Zalenka with Rodney thinking he was going to be the head of Atlantis. That was funny.
The main plot was a good one featuring Ronon and 3 fellow Satedan, turned Wraith Worshipers. It was another good character study for Ronon and Momoa played the role really well. Also, I could tell that Luttrell looks very pregnant so I'm probably expecting even less Teyla this year. I guess I'm used to it.
So far the Season is 3 for 3 on great episodes.
Quite the contrary, Teyla actually factors in quite importantly in season 4's arc.
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