IvanF's Noname Archived Reviews for the Fourth Season of Stargate Atlantis (2007-2008)...

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- IvanF's No-Name Archived Reviews for
The Fourth Season of Stargate Atlantis (2007 - 2008) -

- IvanFian Last Updated: December 8th, 2008
- Notable Episodes: Lifeline, Reunion, Doppelganger, Miller's Crossing, Outcast, Midway, The Kindred (Parts 1 & 2), The Last Man
- Best Episode of the Season: Be All My Sins Remember'd

"Why, oh why, did Sci-Fi wait 'till Fall to start airing the fourth season of Stargate? What on earth or the Pegasus Galaxy could have possessed them to make such a dumbass move like that? And I'm not just saying this as a fan concerned about the ratings for this science fiction series now going against the remnants of TGIF...

But rather, I was just so lost without Stargate in the summer... so fucking lost in space...

I've missed Stargate. I still do, considering SG-1 for the first time in about ten years, is no longer part of my life. Now all that remains is Stargate Atlantis, and unfortunately I was not very impressed by the final stretch of episodes last season (both Vengeance and First Strike come to mind). While season three was overall alright for the most part, I thought the writers did a piss poor job of setting up a decent universe for the fourth season, which might just end up being the very last season of Stargate television if ratings don't go through the roof. And unfortunately for all us SGA fans, I really didn't think that Adrift did much to change my bleak outlook on the future of the series, alas...

It was a pure set-up episode for the rest of the season, I know. It was also the mid-episode of a trilogy (between First Strike and Lifeline), I'm aware of that too. It's just that, besides maybe the moment where the Puddle Jumpers all set off to take on an asteroid belt, Adrift was nothing more than an episode that felt lost. Or like Lost even, with nothing but a bunch of empty running threads leading nowhere when it comes to plot points and dialogue. The major moments consisted of the Atlantis shield failing (accompanied by the sudden appearance and departure of a real, genuine red shirt team), and of Dr. Zelenka getting hit by a bullet-asteroid, the likes of which apparently the non-space worthy Atlantis wasn't even able to hold against. Both of these situations led to nothing but patented Smallville, "oh shit" looks from the entire cast and crew. Notably Teyla and Ronan, who had nothing better to do but bat and roll their eyes and state the obvious...

What did Teyla and Ronan have to do this entire episode? They were useless enough in First Strike from last season, enough so that they were compared to that god-awful Fantastic Four movie of all things. But really, did we have to get yet another episode of them just sitting on their asses, doing absolutely nothing? At least Teyla has an excuse, with the actress becoming pregnant and no longer looking so spiffy in those mid-riff tank tops of hers. But Ronan, did we really have to get emo-sentimentality out of the guy? I respect the actor for his fighting skills, as Sateda last season was pretty fucking badass. In Adrift though, his performance was just goddam eye-rolling, trying to sound like he gives a damn about Torri Higginson's final performance as a regular on the series. In a fucking coma no less, her best episode yet...

Well, now that it has become more than obvious (from the starting credits alone) that Dr. Weir has been replaced in the series by none other than Amanda Tapping, I might as well be nice to the actress for once. While I've never been a fan of Torri Higginson so much, or her personality of Elizabeth, it was more of the writers' fault that they were too fucking scared to put real conflict in her character, the same sort of way that Star Trek Voyager failed in everything there was between Janeway and Chakotay. The writers never took risks with Weir, and a result, she became the General Hammond of the base without the cute, teddy bear sort of feeling (more like a bitch in charge, no less). Still, there are far worse actors on the show than she is (Teyla and Ronan, I'm looking at you...), and for Dr. Weir to get the Lt. Ford send-off here? Dear fucking God, what were the writers thinking?...

I don't blame the producers for bringing in Amanda Tapping. She's a great actress who was signed for an eleventh season of Stargate SG-1. She was the character who had the most chemistry with everyone on the old series, whether it be Jack or Daniel or even Teal'c at times, and I hear she was absolutely hilarious to have on the cast behind the scenes. The thing is though, did she really have to come in and replace Dr. Weir? It was the writers' own fault for treating Elizabeth as some bitch, bastard step-child, and now they're putting the onus on Amanda Tapping to fill in the shoes when it comes to all those hardcore SGA fans out there? I love Colonel Carter for the most part, but isn't ten years of her already enough? I love her chemistry with McKay, and even here she provided a lot of comic relief with Bill of all astute idiots. She's a great actress who I would welcome as a guest star anytime, but for her to be in charge of Atlantis? I'll give her a chance for sure, but still, why are the writers trying to turn the series into Stargate SG-2? WTF?...

Well, McKay did start off as a SG-1 character himself, but he really only started to shine with his debut on Atlantis. And here again, he was the star stealing every scene, bringing out the only real laugh with his comment about Asteroids (which I can relate to... I think I got a score of zero in Missile Command, to be honest...). He always has the greatest of banter with Sheppard, and he provided the only real credible threat of this episode when he butted heads with the guy over who was officially in charge. However, there was just something uncharacteristic about the both of them when it came to the handling of Dr. Weir's critical condition...

Maybe McKay just has a thing for Dr. Keller and her sweet man-voice (and who wouldn't... if she was still cute as fuck like Kaylee was...), but I found it weird that he would be so confident in reactivating Niam's nanites when it was 'only' Elizabeth's life on the line. Normally, McKay is the one who sees things more objectively (and through his ego when it comes to science, which may apply here), while Sheppard relies on instinct and gut feelings and shit. It just struck me as artificially weird, the conflict between the both of them, that Sheppard seemed so callous when it came to Dr. Weir's life hanging in the balance. Except for some random stares between the both of them, it was like John didn't even care about Elizabeth at all, as if he dumped her ass the moment she became a recurring guest star. WTF?...

I really don't know. But meh, at least we got some decent scenes of Sheppard and McKay blasting asteroids to pieces, and Teyla looking all concerned as she shook her booty to the director sound of "boom". Zelenka got a few moments of heroism in, including that patented "oh shit, to be continued" look when McKay was smirking over a ZPM heist. Meanwhile, Keller was hot as fucking hell with all her non-sensical ravings and rantings about medical crap (which she apparently called River Tam up for pointers, might I add). And of course, I've gotta give extra props to Dr. Weir, for having her hair sliced off and her skull ripped apart, only to be back and looking fine and beautiful in no time, without a hint of bed-hair. The ghost of Carson Beckett would be proud, wherever the fuck that Scotty-would-be actor has beamed himself to lately...

Adrift was not a bad episode, but it did feel like an episode that was half an hour too long in the end. It was filled with a bunch of character moments that felt elongated and forced, and a bunch of contrived scenarios that reminded me of the times I tried to write a 200 page novel with only 20 pages worth of content. I understand that this was the second of a three part trilogy of stories, but it was also the season premiere of the show. And I'm sorry, considering this may very well be the last season of Stargate Atlantis (and maybe all of Stargate, period) that we may ever get, I was hoping the series would truly come out fighting and blasting, right out of the gate...

... sigh... I was just so lost without Stargate in the summer... so fucking lost in space...

I didn't like the feeling... I don't want a life without Stargate, to be honest...

This along with Adrift were the episodes to set up the mood, atmosphere and story arcs for the entire fourth season, for what could be the very last year of the show and the whole bloody franchise. I was not very impressed with Adrift, but Lifeline at least brought a little bit of life back into the series, the kind of which may give the show an extra chance at having a real fifth season. Arguably, there were a ton of flaws with this episode, namely that the Replicators were complete morons in everything they did (eg: no sensors to detect human life signs in their city, they were too stupid to shoot at the Puddle Jumper from outside the AR field, etc...), but thankfully the overall story and character developments were enough to temporarily suspend my goddam constant nit-picking. And hell, even Elizabeth got to be a bit of a badass, tricking Obereth and us viewers like she did with that whole mind-fuck switcharoo of hers...

Goodbye, Dr. Weir. This was the send-off episode for Torri Higginson, and while I still find it a capital crime that she was booted off her own fucking series like she was, at least she got a better farewell than Lt. Ford ever did. It was weird how distant and how much of a guest star she felt like in Adrift, but she was more or less back to her 'regular' self here in Lifeline, and it was all for the better. She was a selfless woman in her departure, sacrificing herself (not only through death, but perhaps in assimilation) to save her team, and she never hesitated once in doing so. I could nitpick and complain that essentially Stargate Atlantis has become Star Trek Voyager redux, that the Replicators have become as dumbass as the latter Borg, and that Dr. Weir might as well now be called Seven of Nine. But still, plot point stupidity and redundancy aside, I did like how committed she was to her team. She even got a few of those wistful looks between her and Sheppard, the kind of which may roll my eyes but just felt sorely lacking in Adrift for some goddam reason...

I sincerely hope that this is not the last we've seen of Dr. Weir, not just for the actress' sake but also for Sheppard's overall character development. It's always been implied that he had something for her, and while nothing could ever develop while they were both regulars, it's possible she could return as a guest star and sparks (literally) can fly. Whether she comes back as a the queen bitch of the Replicator hive or not, it should be interesting how John Sheppard reacts. Either way, it's finally time for both of these characters to have some real contact and conflict between their emotions and personalities. I don't want the series to become the OC or some soap opera bullshit like that, but since the writers were so afraid of ever developing something between the both of them before (or else it might become as bad as the O'Neill and Carter thing was in SG-1 season four), they have no excuse to keep things boring now. That is, provided that they don't completely write-off and ignore the Dr. Weir character from existing in the fucking first place like they did with Ford...

Joe Flanigan also got to provide a much better and somewhat canon performance in Lifeline than he did in Adrift. While in Adrift, he felt cold and callous and calculating in just how much he was willing to let Elizabeth die (and tore at Rodney in return), you could at least tell in Lifeline that he was torn between his feelings for her and his duty as a soldier. He cared for her, you could tell in Lifeline even by the teen angsty, lengthy stares between the both of them. I just found it sadly refreshing that the writers took this long to finally recognize that the two actors do have chemistry between the both of them. And having Sheppard go into some story arc of trying to find her to rescue the damsel in distress, may not actually be a bad thing for the series in the long run. Provided that is, that the producers don't completely forget Elizabeth ever existed in the fucking first place. If they hook up Sheppard with Carter instead, I think I'm going throw up in my mouth, thank you very much...

It's interesting what the writers have done with Carter so far in Atlantis. It's obvious she's replacing Weir in command, as evident from the goddam opening credits, but so far they've kept the Colonel so low key in everything she's done that you could swear she was just a useless guest star. What did she really do in this episode, but sit in the red shirt chair on the Apollo and fire a few missiles, and mock Bill Nye for his obsession with World of Warcraft? If anything though, her speech with Sheppard at the end, talking about the new planet that Atlantis had just landed on, was a real pre-cursor to their struggle for power against each other throughout the rest of the season. I've never thought the two had chemistry on screen together and I still don't, but meh, at least even ten seconds of communication between her and Rodney McKay was enough to wet my appetite for some more. I definitely love Amanda Tapping as an actress, I enjoy Samantha Carter as a character, and I'm hoping that her arrival on the series turns out better than I'm expecting at this point in time...

If anything, she and David Hewlett have amazing chemistry together. They had it in SG-1's Redemption and Pegasus Project, and she was even funny to watch as a hallucination in Grace Under Pressure. I don't doubt for a second that we'll get a lot of great moments between the two of them from now on, although I do fear that the writers will completely subdue her personality in fear of Atlantis fanatics panicking over an SG-1 invasion. She and McKay both know science all too well, so it will be interesting to see how the show-runners will handle their mutual egos and intellect. But for now, in Lifeline, it was still all McKay's brilliance and genius shining through, whether it was getting a Puddle Jumper to make a hyperspace jump, or getting all flustered when Ronon actually understood what he meant about not being able to jump back...

Ronan didn't have to say much this episode, thank God. He didn't achieve much either, just tagging along with a useless AR gun after the Replicators adapted to the Star Trek phasers on the show. But at least he didn't feel out of place or completely useless, which is more than I can say for Teyla who I simply cannot stand in charge of Atlantis. I mean, I understand the actress is pregnant and all and can't do nearly as many stunts as she did before, but honestly, why the fuck do they leave her in charge of the fucking last base of the Ancients? WTF?...

I can understand why Ronan at least has a basic understanding of technology that makes "string theory look like non-linear dynamics" (which is still hard as far as I'm concerned, as proven by my goddam failures of university marks...), considering he comes from a 50-60's era society. But Teyla, she should know nothing more than the fact that glowy buttons do something to make a big kawoosh. Why the fuck have the writers made her a genius at understanding all the charts and computer screens of fucking Atlantis? It just perverts the point of her whole character, allowing the writers to force her into becoming 'smart' enough to be the leader of the most advanced city-ship ever made. WTF?...

Aside from the whole Elizabeth and John Sheppard shit, Lifeline wasn't the greatest when it came to character development. Still, I can't help but feel a bit of new hope for the series though, when it comes to the inevitable war arc they've been building up to, starting from First Strike. Here in this episode, the team manages to reprogram the Replicators to attack the Wraith for the first time in ten thousand years. Of course, we viewers know there was probably a damn good reason why that attack order was shut off, and I'm guessing it's because from a purely logical point of view, the best way to defeat the Wraith is to destroy all their sources of food. So I'm imagining, once the Replicators start attacking all the humans in the Pegasus Galaxy, the Wraith and Atlantis will have to tag team up to take on the big baddies of the season. While of course that kind of concept ain't anything new for Sci-Fi (the Dominion War arc in DS9 will probably still be considered better) or even for Stargate (didn't the Goa'uld team up with the SGC against the old Replicators for an episode or two?), it's still something relatively exciting to breath new life into the goddam series for once...

I enjoyed Lifeline. Sure, it was full of cliche plot-holes, but hey, it had Carter on the Apollo, mouthing off to McKay as she was nuking the fuck out of a Replicator mothership. So how the fuck can I really complain?...

It wasn't the greatest of episodes, but it definitely was interesting and emotional enough with Dr. Weir's departure to keep me tuned in for next week's show. But then again, I've always been a hardcore Stargate fan, ten years and running now, looking back through the hourglass. I'm just hoping that enough people tune in again next Friday, for there to be ten years more through the goddam gate...

This week's episode was perhaps a bit cliche, a bit predictable and perhaps more of a bloody sitcom than anything else. But I don't know, I also felt it had the right spirit for Stargate Atlantis back for the first time in probably over a year. There was just that right sort of friendly, familiar balance of action and comic relief, with good character development and comedy banter littered throughout the hour. It wasn't the most original or engrossing episode of television ever made, but honestly, the best of Atlantis was never meant to be that way. It was an enjoyable character piece with some good development of central story arcs for the rest of the season, and so far Reunion has become my favourite episode for this newly born fourth season of the show...

Ronon continues to the best, least developed character on the show, and I mean that in a good way at least as far as Reunion is concerned. Because like Teal'c back on SG-1 (who ironically was also in this episode, but I'll talk about that later), it's Ronon who gets the best episodes devoted completely to him and his character's background. Like last year with Sateda and Runner the year before, the actor is finally given the green light to shine when it comes to his Klingon code of honour, and he does it again here in Reunion. The comaraderie he shows with his old friends felt real and natural, not just forced nostalgia. And he definitely looks pained in his decision to leave his new buddies at Atlantis, even if it was just through a wistful glance in the Wraith corridors as the two teams parted ways. Maybe it was more of strong writing than anything else, but you could sense Ronon being torn between his loyalties, and the actor played the part very well when outlining his reasoning to Sheppard, Carter and Teyla...

Teyla herself was a little out of whack, especially when she was whacking Ronon out of spite during training. Maybe the actress' hormones are so out of control now that they aren't able to hide back her pregnancy, but she really did act like mostly a bitch throughout this entire damn episode. Then again, at the same time, her shrill mood almost suited the atmosphere, as you could really tell at times that either a) the actress was hungry as hell, or b) Teyla really was hurt that Ronon was so ready to abandon her for his old Satedan friends. At the same time, you could actually feel Ronon wish that Teyla could understand and accept his situation and decision, much more so than whenever he talked with the rest of the team about his dilemma. It was obvious from the start that Teyla and Ronon were getting close on Atlantis, possibly even being 'shipped by the writers from all their alone time together, but it's only episodes like Reunion where that relationship starts feeling real. Even if it was just a forced speech by Teyla about her desire to stay with her Athosian people, there is still chemistry between both actors that works so naturally on screen...

Meanwhile, Ronon's real props come from all the battles he waged and fought in this episode. Now, I still don't get how Teyla could get her tiny ass kicked by two Satedans that Ronon easily dealt with later, yet she can hold her own against Ronon herself (unless she only specializes in stick fighting and not hand to hand combat). But no matter what, I gotta give the dual thumbs up to the hardcore bout between Ronon and his friends. It still didn't match the great epicness of the one on one battle between him and Ford in Runner, or just how brutally lop-sided his fights were in Sateda last year, but Reunion still featured great choreography and some sweet ass martial arts kicking by that Iron Chef guy over there. Personally, while I was not surprised at the fact that the Satedans were truly wolves in disguise (was there any real threat of Ronon leaving the show, Elizabeth Weir style?), I was happy that the lead bad guy got to live and die another day, as it really helps to have an arch-nemesis with actual fighting skills for one of the heroes on the show. Now, as long as the writers don't just randomly blow him up in 48 Hours like they did with Tanith (Teal'c's rival enemy) back on SG-1, then all will be fine and dandy...

... heh... 48 Hours, if I recall, was also Rodney McKay's first introduction to the Stargate universe... ah yes, good times...

I am nostalgic over Stargate SG-1, as I really do miss the series (or how it was back in its prime, at least). What I didn't get though, was why the writers chose to just insert a true SG-1 scene into the beginning of Stargate Atlantis here. Colonel Carter was finally promoted to become the new leader of the Atlantis base, so I know it was appropriate that she would get some sort of send-off from her old team. But the thing was, if anyone was appropriate to be there to congratulate her, it would be General O'Neill or Daniel Jackson, both of which have been on SGA before. But Teal'c, why Teal'c? Not only that, but there were so many SG-1'isms there (such as his "indeed" and "undomesticated equines" inside joke) that as much as I may miss the old show, this moment just didn't feel like it belonged in the Atlantis universe. Plus, Carter crying like a baby when her only "real" experience on the series in the past was a five second clip of her saying, "Atlantis", just didn't seem to work out in this new environment of hers, not even for an old SG-1 nostalgic like me...

Amanda Tapping in interviews though, admitted that she really tried to up her acting game when it came to taking over Dr. Weir's role on the show. She knew how hard it would be to win over the fans, and to be honest, I think she did a spectacular job of doing so outside of that whole out-of-place Teal'c scene. Some have complained that she calls Sheppard by his first name, and I did find it weird that she went on an away mission on her first fucking day on the job. But hey, she had some great scenes with McKay when dealing with their 'unrequited lust', she stood up to Ronon's challenge to her authority yet made good amends by Puddle Jumper bonding later on, and she even got to relive the Dr. Weir experience by reenacting some Shakespearean prose on the balcony with Sheppard there. You could tell straight from the moment she entered the SGA base that she was a fish out of water, completely feeling out of place and unsettled with her new level of command. She instantly tried to fall back on old friendships and comaraderie when it came to Sheppard and McKay in this new unfamiliar place, and I really must give Amanda Tapping full credit for conveying that newfound sense of nervousness and awe so damn well. Even after ten years of SG-1 and more, she still finds ways to surprise me. When she ups her acting game like she has, of course...

Some fans have complained though, that most characters in Reunion somewhat felt out of tune and place, although a large part of that is because this episode takes place weeks after Lifeline (which was never stated, unfortunately). Even I admit though, that McKay at the start ignoring Dr. Weir's plight in favour of his own arrogance to command, felt more out of character than humourous in my eyes. Either way though, if McKay was regressed for just one episode of the show to give us great comedy banter between him and Carter, then I am all for more unrequited moments of lust. The awkwardness they shared will get old fast, which is why the writers got it over with quick and easy, even bringing up the fact that McKay is still dating that botany bitch, Katie Brown. And you know things were alright between the both of them, when McKay was all set to defend Carter against Ronon, only for Sam to raise her hand and tell him politely that she can fend for herself. From that moment on, we had a brand new Carter and the good ol' SGA McKay. And while he still sucks at wielding a P90 or dealing with the pressure of Wraith on one side and Replicators on the other, I still gotta give my main man there props...

Damn, he's such a genius at sucking up too. A fruit-basket sampling all the gifts from the worlds of the Pegasus Galaxy was such a thoughtful gift. And the fact that Sheppard was even more of a leech of a genius, stealing Rodney's idea like a true friendly bastard, was absolutely the best damn laugh of the episode. Gotta love the rivalry between the two. While Ronon finally has found his arch-nemesis, at least McKay and Sheppard will always have each other...

It was thoughtful of the writers to keep Dr. Weir in mind, or at least have Sheppard and his pussy-whipped ways to want to mount a rescue. It all rings a lot more true than when the team just left Lt. Ford to fend for himself with barely even a mention, and it all helps to keep the John and Elizabeth 'shippers appeased. Beyond that though, Joe Flanigan really made the most of every single scene he was in this episode. Not only did he have a great (yet cool and manly) non-conversation with Ronon about his departure from the team, and not only was he sheer brilliance whenever he stole ideas from the great Rodney McKay, but he was political yet friendly (yet perhaps passively aggressive?) with Colonel Carter as well, which worked extremely well when all was said and done. And what more can I ask from the guy, when he even got to fire a ton of P90 rounds, whether successfully into the guts of poor Wraith cannon fodder, or uselessly into the invincible chest of everyone's favourite red shirt of a Replicator there?...

Really, while Reunion was a great character piece for Ronon (and arguably for McKay, Sheppard, Teyla and Carter as well), this episode also stands out because it moved along the Wraith vs Replicator story arc of the season extremely well at the same time. While it sounds overly ridiculous to me how the Wraith were able to reprogram the Replicators long ago to just sit on their asses and do nothing (I still believe the Ancients had a hand in that, but whatever...), it was nice to see the Wraith scientists so desperate for McKay's help in the Cylon Base-star or whatever bio-hallway they were in. Even without showing a true battle between the two Pegasus Galaxy behemoths, even without seeing anything more than a fist-fight between the Replicator and lowly Wraith grunts, Reunion was a great tease into the future of the fourth season of the show in terms of the galactic war arc that's brewing. I just hope that I won't be disappointed by it all like I was with the Goa'uld and Replicators back in SG-1, that's all...

And right now, I have no reason to worry. Because while this week's episode wasn't the most original or unpredictable of hours, if Reunion is any real example of the renewed quality of the overall show from here on in? Not only is there an interesting season-long story arc, not only did every single character on the cast get to develop in this one episode alone (hell, even Zelenka got to be all badass and calm when going off-world to show off his new demeanor), but we also got some kickass P90 action and bloody hell martial arts fights for the first time in a very long time...

Wouldn't it have made more sense to call this episode, "Bizarro"? Or "Dark Mirror", if we're talking about the goatee reference here?

If anything, the idea of an evil twin or double in Sci-Fi is purely cliche and has been done a thousand times before by Star Trek alone. But the thing is, Stargate Atlantis has a way of making old ideas feel fresh and new again, in my honest opinion at least. Doppelganger won't score many points with the Sci-Fi crowd when it comes to originality or unpredictability, but the overall execution of the episode was so well paced and written that I can't help but feel like the old SGA has really returned...

... well, except for those fugly ass, new uniforms of theirs, but that's a story for another day...

The concept of a crystalline entity is nothing new in Stargate lore. Hell, Colonel Carter herself referenced the first season SG-1 episode of Cold Lazarus here, not to mention her own close encounters with possession in Entity and Lockdown (and she can't have forgotten her Tokra symbiot moments either). Doppelganger was written a lot like an SG-1 episode, for better or for worse, depending on whether the writers were intending it to be a cross-galactic bridge to lure old fans over to the new season. On the one hand, I felt it was weird and awkward how it took an SG-1 technological solution to solve the SGA issue at hand. But on the other side of things, Carter really did make this standalone filler of an episode flow with the least amount of technobabble I've heard for quite a while...

Because while it can be argued that Doppelganger was nothing more than a standalone bottle episode to bide some season time, I'd prefer to point out that it was a well written and executed "bonding" episode between all the members of the cast and crew. Every single character got a moment to shine in Doppelganger, whether it was Zelenka saving the day when all "bets" were off with Rodney, or whether we're talking about Major Lorne making a reappearance sans shoes for the first time in quite a while. And to be honest, while it was unnecessary to kill off Dr. Heightmeyer, it's not like she was that useful of a character, and her sudden demise definitely lead to a lot more tension and suspense in this nightmarish sort of episode for the series. Even though I knew Rodney wasn't leaving the show, I guess Kate's death helped lead me in feeling floored and shocked and goddam confused when the same thing unexpectedly happened to McKay...

No show has ever done dreams as well as Buffy the Vampire Slayer depicted them back in its fifth season, but I've gotta say, I was quite impressed with some of the ideas and insights put forth through the dreams here in Atlantis. To sum up what apparently everyone fears, Teyla was afraid of Ronon and Sheppard misinterpreting her feelings, while Dr. Keller was fearful of freezing up at key moments and losing her patients. Ronon probably had the most interesting of dreams, terrified of being alone but even more so paranoid of being betrayed. Rodney still hasn't gotten over his fears of whales, even after episodes like Grace Under Pressure and Echoes, and apparently he too shares the same sentiments as Sheppard does about goddam evil clowns. Sheppard himself fears the worst in himself, in failing and losing all the friends he has made, and it was all completely evident in just how lost he seemed the very moment that McKay was pronounced dead...

Outside of their dreams, it's not like Teyla and Ronon contributed much to this episode. Still, the two of them were friendly with every other character in ways that they haven't been in a very long time. Teyla was being a complete bitch in treating Sheppard as if he were his evil twin after her dream, but besides that, she was warm and compassionate and even shared an embrace or two. Ronon meanwhile, was the typical guy when it came to dreams, shaking them off as complete meaningless dribble. He pretended not to care, but throughout the episode, you could see that some things definitely did shake him up at times. He was out of his element, as he normally is the guy who blasts away at the corporeal baddies, and he tried his best to hide his fears and helplessness with actual real comedy, including some awesome references to Alien...

I said that Doppelganger was a great bonding episode for the team, and that includes both Colonel Carter and Dr. Keller. Carter herself still felt very much like her SG-1 self at times, whenever she was relaxed and calm around Rodney (the only character she feels like her old self with, which I consider to be great acting), but extremely poised and stoic whenever it came to those moments of leadership she had (even when she was talking to Keller after her speech). It could be argued that Carter felt almost too much like Dr. Weir at times, as if the lines had originally been written for Elizabeth instead. While that could be true, I'd rather just argue that Elizabeth stole all of General Hammond's lines, and that Carter was channeling her old mentor instead. I prefer that explanation, and choose to ignore her bizarro, Princess Leia hairstyle as well...

This was Dr. Keller's first big episode on the small screen, and while at times it was like watching a college girl in a hot sorority house (she did seem too young and naive for her position), I've got to admit that Jewel Staite is not a bad actress. She certainly has a pretty ass and an adorable smile, but she also seemed to gel well with a lot of the other members of the team, namely Rodney and Ronon at times. Here, she was put under real pressure for the first time since Adrift, and while some of the ideas she put forth felt forced and unnatural (as if the writers wanted so hard for her to seem smart and creative), she never did feel like she was completely out of her element. I still would prefer Dr. Beckett in that infirmary, and sometimes you could feel the writers channelling the old Scottish guy with some of Dr. Keller's lines (her jokes towards Sheppard, for instance). But for the most part, I thought Jewel Staite was doing a good job under the circumstances. And the extra eye candy on the show with the loss of Dr. Weir certainly doesn't hurt things at all...

But as we all know, no matter what kind of bonding episode we get with all members of the cast and crew, Stargate Atlantis will forever be known as the McKay and Sheppard show, and for good reason. Even with the least amount of lines he's had in a while, Rodney McKay once again stole the series with almost every scene he was in. Whether he was hedging on a bet against Zelenka or going all bug-eyed when Carter ordered him back to the crystal-littered planet, this was the good ol'fashioned Rodney we were dealing with here. In every single moment he was in, whether he was sulking as hell that he was suckered into the rubber-insulated room or warning Sheppard that his dreams can be weird as fuck, I think I laughed or snickered at every single Rodney McKay line there was. Hell, even the sight of Ronon and Dr. Keller rolling their eyes at Meredith's (yes, I'll call him that here) tales of the horrors of high school had me rolling in stitches. Plus, it certainly helps that I share his fears of a) being alone in the freezing shit water and b) watching fucking Alien of all fucking films...

The true star of the episode was Joe Flanigan though. His chemistry with David Hewlett was once again amazing, whenever they complained about evil psycho clowns or the complete lack of hot girls in their dreams. But what I have to give Joe most props for, was absolutely how effortless he acted as the bad guy on the series. Just from his posture and sheer facial demeanor alone, you could instantly tell which was the cold-hearted bastard of a goatee-less villain, and which one was the casual and cool John Sheppard that we've always known. Joe didn't play the role of the bad guy as over-the-top cheesy at all, rather acting coyly and so coldly and cruelly with every facial expression he could while burying Ronon alive like he was. Just a great overall job, as it seriously felt like we were dealing with his real, evil goddam twin at times...

Not only that, but the fight sequence against the two John Sheppards was amazingly choreographed with barely a hint of green screen whatsoever. It was like a great blend of both Terminator and the Matrix. Hell, I half expected Joe Flanigan to realize it wasn't air he was breathing and then start kicking Neo ass. And the resolution of McKay being brave enough to risk his life by going back for his friend, was exactly the kind of bonding that I've felt this show has been missing for quite some time now...

Now, I could be speaking too early, considering I felt the first half of season three was solid as well until everything fell apart around the mid-season, The Return. But really, there was just something about Doppelganger that felt like the real spirit of Stargate Atlantis, and not that horrible technobabble of an evil clone we've been putting up with throughout the past two seasons combined...

The only problem with this episode? The propping up of Alien on a goddam film pedestal...

"I used to hate Stargate episodes back on SG-1 that dealt with advanced human cultures and shit like that. If anything, I thought they ruined the purity of the mythology of the series, the idea that Goa'uld had indeed kept the entire galaxy in the dark ages. And as a huge Ancient history buff myself, I didn't like how the writers were essentially deluding the premise of the SG-1 series opener with everything I knew and once loved from Star Trek...

But after the introduction of the Prometheus and F-302 on SG-1? I was mentally prepared for all the Sci-Fi space faring shit when Atlantis first premiered, even if I was never a real fan of it with the Stargate name in the first place. What I got instead though, was a wonderful surprise of a first season of SGA, one that was great because it really did rely solely on primitive like cultures and travel through the actual Stargate. The second season did jump the gun a bit with goddam technobabble and the introduction of the Daedalus as the deus ex machina of the series, but thankfully, the third and now fourth seasons of the show have been bringing Atlantis closer to its original Stargate roots. I've been pretty happy with SGA as a series with the SG name as a result...

But when the preview for Travelers first aired? I don't know, guess it sent a shiver down my spine, and not in the greatest of sense. I didn't want yet another hi-tech, Star Trek Voyager-esque human species mucking up the great bottle and bonding episodes that SGA has recently been producing. And immediately, after seeing the initial premise of the episode where John Sheppard was too fucking lazy to even cloak his Puddle Jumper on first sensor warning notice, I was certain that I would be facing and enduring yet another shit ship episode as Prometheus Unbound was back in the day...

Truth be told, Travelers in the end did not turn out to be a bad episode, and the overall premise for it did make sense. Space is vast, and the Wraith sleep for centuries at a time. It does make sense that there would be a space-faring, Firefly like race out there that survives off of vulture-like scavenges. And hell, finally we got to find the source (most likely) for that badass gun that Ronon somehow found while as a Runner. The Travelers themselves were not a bad race overall, just a bit misguided and ignorant and desperate, though the humour in this episode was sadly more laughable than anything else. If only they had Jane from Firefly on their side, and maybe some Jewel Staite (ironically, she was not in this episode), maybe I wouldn't mind watching this hour again in my bunk?...

They did have what's-her-name from the Blade TV series, and while she was real shaky in this episode at first (literally, it sounded like her throat was horse) and she still can't act worth a damn, I personally thought that she played the role of the tough bitch girl rather well, or at least like Vala 1.5 if you will. Problem is, until you put more depth into a character like that, you better hope the actress is hot as hell because the personality is just too cliche to be interesting. Whatever her name was in the episode (notice that I don't even remember already), she had a few good kicks and stumbles against the Wraith, she showed a few balls by risking the lives of her men with the radiation, and she showed some actual intelligence by taking Sheppard up on his offer for an alliance. Even so, the writers tried far too hard in their attempt to make her out to be Sheppard's Wrath of Khan of an equal, which all failed miserably from a) her horrible acting and b) the fact that it took John's own Kirking to get his fucking ass kicked in the end...

Oh, Sheppard. I know she's hot, but with a Wraith right behind you, what the fuck were you thinking?...

I hear you, Rodney. I hear you loud and clear. But the problem is, with an episode like Travelers (and Prometheus Unbound in the past), there is no team chemistry between the team, because the team is simply nowhere to be found. At least Rodney got to look a bit intelligent with the detection of the morse code, although it really led nowhere when apparently neither the Daedalus, Apollo or the fucking Odyssey with its suped up hyperdrive were anywhere to be found for the rescue. Instead, it took forever with a Puddle Jumper fleet just to get to the Aurora-class battleship that Sheppard was on. In the meantime, we got meaningless, generic comments from Ronon and Teyla how nothing would stop them from getting the Colonel back, only for the Travelers to enter hyperspace a second later and, guess what, Ronon and Teyla then could do absolutely nothing. At least Rodney got to make his little eye-rolling comments in the end, but really, what good is an episode of Atlantis anymore without the team together that makes the series great?...

The only real saving grace of Travelers was a) the kickass, one-hit kill on the dumbass Wraith Cruiser and b) the fact that Joe Flanigan this season really has come into his own. He alone made this episode bearable, or even entertaining in some regards, although I'll never get how he fixed that damn Lantian chair like he did. His best scene by far was when he bluffed the hell out of the Wraith with a worthless gun, in what amounted to a suspenseful situation that reminded me of the quality that season three of the series had last year. Besides that, he even got to throw some technobabble around, playing around with inertial dampeners and getting to kick ass with a whole assload of Ronon's gun. I can understand why he might want to Kirk it up a bit with whatever that Travelers' leader was called, considering the whiny vampire bitch from Blade has always been hot, so I'll give him some leeway for that. Afterall, if it wasn't for him and the fact that Joe Flanigan is really one of the reasons why I enjoy this series so much, I wouldn't be giving Travelers the benefit of the doubt that I am right now...

It's possible that the whole Travelers situation will turn out decent in the series for us. Now sure, the Genii never went anywhere, except to show off their constant stupidity, and we never got to make allies with Sateda and their triple barrel shotguns. But eventually and realistically, we can't just have the Daedalus and Apollo come to the rescue every episode, so it makes sense to have the Travelers around to bail and be bailed out of certain situations in the galaxy. If anything, their shield and weapon technology should help even the odds when it comes to battles against the Wraith (in terms of numbers), so like I said, I'm willing to give Atlantis the benefit of the doubt. While SG-1 was always about Ancient mythology, SGA has always just been about the technology of the Ancients, and the Travelers from what I've seen seem to fit right into that mythos. It could work, but forgive me if I'm a bit cautious just in case...

... afterall, I've been burned by too many dumbass, "smart" alien races in the past...

"Tabula Rasa. Always a fabulous sounding name. And kind of appropriate too, in more ways than one...

Once again, Stargate Atlantis has delivered a suspenseful, effective bottle episode that was more than just entertaining to watch. But still, a bottle episode is just a bottle episode in the end. Ultimately, it doesn't contribute much to the series at all...

Besides the quick update on the war between the Wraith and Replicators (the Replicator ships got their asses kicked, WTF?), there was absolutely nothing of continuity to be found in Tabula Rasa. In fact, it's a miracle that more "harmless" diseases like this one don't affect the people of Stargate every single week, considering that every fucking world in the universe would have a different set of bacteria and viruses on it. But accepting the Sci-Fi staple at face value of our immune systems being just that damn badass, the mutated disease should've at least had some effect on Teyla and Ronon, even if it was a slower and less pronounced one. But still, I enjoyed this episode for what it was worth, an hour of my life and nothing really more...

I did like the writing, the cinematography and a lot of the music choices that were made throughout the episode. The flashback sequences were greatly filmed, in the sense of just how lost and mysterious everything felt right from the opening credits. And the make-up must've been great, since even the Samantha Carter that we've known for ten years and counting looked completely different at first, not just from the long hair but from how lost and helpless she looked in her eyes. Carter didn't get to contribute much this episode, I even forget if she was the one in the trio wielding the Wraith Stunner, but even the little moments like when she forgot about her gate orders to Zelenka, seemed to execute so naturally within the flow of the show. Sam never stole the spotlight, and I guess she never really took charge either, but her presence alone was definitely a positive influence on what turned out to be a very effective standalone episode...

Like I said before though, I wish from a logical point of view that the disease had some sort of effect on Teyla and Ronon. At least headaches or something, just so that they don't feel like Superman all of a sudden. Teyla herself pissed me off to no end this episode with her continued knowledge of science and mathematics, even going so far as to know what the fuck the earth term of Pi means in the grand scheme of things. Why is it that she seems to remember everything about technobabble these days, when Ronon is now the one with a blank stare on his face? At least though, the big lug is entertaining, providing a convincing argument to the mind-wiped Sheppard about how shooting him couldn't possibly make his situation any worse. And at least Ronon has his big ass Travelers gun still, while Teyla is apparently useless without her little stick weapons. She even had trouble against the baffled Lorne with his guards, although maybe they just didn't want the pregnant actress to take a real fall or anything like that...

Still, both actors performed well within the overall flow of the episode, and the same goes for Joe Flanigan, even when completely brain-dead more than his usual self. I don't remember anything he did except point towards Ronon after he himself learned that he was Lorne's commanding officer. Either way though, after taking the spotlight and going full frontal in Travelers, it was nice to see him take a bit of a backseat here in Tabula Rasa. Sheppard still got his kicks and licks in when holding Ronon at gunpoint, and it's always good to see him somewhat pass the proverbial torch to Major Lorne, who really has been having a bad year with the mindfucks over on Atlantis (first sleep walking barefoot, and now gone crazy Commando? WTF?). The photo was a nifty idea that oddly enough worked, and it's somehow always a pleasure to see Joe Flanigan fly a Puddle Jumper, even though he can literally do it in his sleep...

Tabula Rasa belonged to the two characters of Rodney McKay and Dr. Keller (dammit, why do I keep on forgetting her first name?), although Dr. Zelenka got to get some more decent screentime in while along for the ride. Rodney was his usual self, confused as hell yet still the best comic relief that the Pegasus Galaxy has ever seen. Poor guy's only plan to escape the messhall was to charge in numbers against armed soldiers who didn't even remember who they were, but apparently it worked and he happened upon his old tablet PC anyways, so it's all good. Just the little things McKay provides to every episode, from his brilliant plan to mark the places he's been with an "X" (even if he'll forget what it means later on), to apparently being too lazy or forgetful to just press "ENTER" before making his own little music video about Teyla, I always gotta give my main man there props. And the writers almost got me there too, when it came to the whole Katie Brown situation. After Kate Heightmeyer's death, I was almost sure that Katie was a goner too, until I realized how useless of a character she is and then didn't give a shit. Shame she wasn't killed off to increase the red shirt count then, but whatever...

Jewel Staite held her own in this episode, seeming in charge of the situation, although she still somewhat struggles with the medical babble of being a doctor. Either way, she was absolutely adorable as hell with her hair all messed up like it was in the messhall, and you gotta feel bad for the poor girl as she was one of the first to get stunned when crashing the party of the door. Alas, a few of her scenes were stolen by the random doctors all around her, from that Asian woman who probably still wishes Beckett was around, to that random G4 guy in a lab-coat who once sang that Atlantis rap song, begging for a spot on the show (seriously, they actually gave him a role?... damn, what about me?). Still, how can I fault Jewel Staite when she looks just that damn cute, and plays the part of the bubbly, forgetful doctor to near perfection?...

Tabula Rasa was a decent episode, just not anything truly special. It left me in suspense, not knowing if Katie Brown would be the next to be offed, and it left me wondering what the solution to the situation would be (although the idea of a cure coming from the aroma of a goddam weed was a tad bit offbeat). It was a solid, well written bottle episode with some good character interaction, even if nobody really knew who the people they were speaking with were. And I've always got to give a few thumbs up any time that secondary characters like Zelenka and Major Lorne really get to shine. It worked wonders here, for a standalone episode at least...

Overall, it was an enjoyable experience in the same sort of mold that the first season of Stargate Atlantis often graced us with. It just wasn't the greatest or most epic of hours I've seen from the series, that's all...

"I guess it can be somewhat construed as ironic. That on Remembrance Day, lest we forget?...

... I review the one Stargate Atlantis episode of the season so far, that I wish I could fucking forget...

Suffice to say, Missing was absolutely missing almost everything I enjoy about Stargate Atlantis as a series on the whole. The team was broken up, giving the spotlight to Teyla and the newbie of Dr. Keller (goddammit, why can I still not remember her first name?). It started off on a decent note in the infirmary, with a cute little shot of lollipops and talk of how much the Athosians adored Carson Beckett, because we the audience certainly did too. And when I first saw those scenes, I was expecting another bottle episode like we've gotten the past few weeks, and I would've been fine and probably even happy with that, provided there are good team interactions and a good comical dynamic...

That's just not what we got though. I expected a team oriented, light-hearted episode taking place throughout Atlantis or some shit like that. What I got instead were more and more Vancouver forests, the kind of bullshit that I think I filmed in fucking high school in my own backyard ravine. How much did it cost to make this episode anyhew? Considering it was just the two actresses lost in the same exact spot in the forest for two fucking days, and the enemies were all just hired as hobos and rejects from the film Serenity, I can't imagine that this episode was worth anything more in the end than the goddam Blair Witch Project. Fuck, we barely even got any decent P90 fire-fight action in the end. With no fucking payoff, you better believe I'm fucking pissed off...

This was nothing more than a budget episode, not even a true bottle episode. A bottle episode would've given something for Ronon, Sheppard and McKay to do, or at least a lot more than they got to do here. Well, alright, at least John and Rodney got to play movie and actor trivia, which was sadly what I was doing in my head the whole time to deal with the boredom of this episode. Ronon meanwhile got to act completely dumbass and clueless again, and Carter was nowhere to be found. At the very least, I expected some scenes in this episode to be light-hearted and comical to provide relief to the zany, cliche, under-budget bullshit going on in the Vancouver woods on New Athos. But apparently, I thought too much of whoever the fuck wrote this shit on the Atlantis crew...

Well, I do always prefer team oriented episode, as Doppelganger probably stands as my favourite episode of the season so far. But episodes based on single characters, like Travelers for instance, can still be decent as long as they don't take themselves too seriously in the end. But what was this bullshit we got with Teyla in Missing? You'd think that the writers would delve into her backstory somewhat, talking about her Athosian roots and all that other crap that we once got with Teal'c (and we often get with Ronon in SGA). But instead, besides a little side-blurb on some Kanaan guy that apparently the writers just wrote in for the sake of Teyla's pregnancy, what did we learn from Teyla except that she was a pure bitch the whole episode through? I know she was just trying to be tough to get Dr. Keller into true survival mode, but really, abandoning her on the bridge was just dumbass. Who the fuck builds a fucking bridge with nothing but rope in the first place? The SGA team gave fucking P90 guns to people this damn primitive and lazy? WTF?...

Dr. Keller in the meantime, was just too cute and bubbly and overly wussy to deserve all the screentime that she got. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love Jewel Staite to death, although that has far more to do with her looks than it does with her acting so far on Atlantis. Here, she played the role of the scared and mortified doctor far too much on the deep end. I mean really, after going through shit like Tabula Rasa and stuff, did she really need to be terrified of eating a bunch of guts and shit from an animal that Teyla promised was safe? I understand that she would be hesitant to kill and take a life, but what about when it comes to just survival elsewise? Hasn't she already been in situations in Atlantis where her life was in jeopardy yet she still remained mostly calm and logical, but here in Missing her bravado and common sense was completely missing in action?...

I can understand that she would be worried about going off-world, but while Carson and Dr. Zelenka were never fans of leaving the base in the first place, they were never this panicky and never this goddam timid when they first stepped through the gate. I don't know whether it was Jewel Staite that overplayed her role or that the writers gave her absolute shit to work with, but she was far more annoying and grating to me here in Missing than she ever was cute as a fucking button. And considering how damn much I loved here in Firefly, that's saying a hell of a lot...

And WTF was with the Reaper rip-offs here with the cannibals, whatever the fuck those primitive brutes were called? Isn't it ironic, or was it simply intended, that the writers would give an enemy with this kind of tribal bullshit to a Jewel Staite episode of all characters? And wait a second, don't I recall a certain promise in Serenity, that if Kaylee made it out of there alive, that she and that doctor guy would finally get it on? And, well, considering she's now the genius doctor on the team instead of him? Doesn't that mean that now that she has survived, she's going to get in her bunk and go fuck herself? Err, yes, please?...

... because, you know, I would much prefer that over the shit we got in Missing...

Now, I guess it was only a matter of time until the writers really did throw our way a boring filler of an episode. They've done a great job with bottle and standalone episodes so far this fourth season, and it's only natural to fuck up now and again...

Well, the writers tried to hide the fact that they were low on budget. There were some new CG shots here and there, namely of Atlantis getting its ass kicked in the future vision and all. But a lot of the major moments in The Seer just felt like letdowns, considering there were just so many reused and rehashed moments littered throughout the episode. Even the big pay-off at the end, of the two Wraith Hive Ships stupidly gunning each other down, was just a copy and paste job straight out of season two's The Hive. It ruined what would've been a suspenseful moment and replaced it with the feeling of a cheap cop-out. But hopefully, whatever money that was saved here in The Seer, will be put to great use by the mid-season finale...

With that said, The Seer was definitely a decent episode, although I had hoped for more. One of SG-1 season six's best episodes, in my honest opinion at least, came from when Jonas was able to precog the future thanks to a big whopping cancer on his ass. At first, it struck me as odd that Carter didn't mention that event to Rodney here in The Seer, and then it struck me as even stranger that McKay of all people wouldn't believe in the power of advanced brain abilities (considering what he himself went through last season). Hell, it even bugged me to no end that Carter was so quick to made baseless assumptions and judgments on the vision she saw, even after the lessons she learned from Jonas that the future can be changed. How do we even know that it was the Replicators attacking Atlantis there? Why not the Travellers with their new Aurora ship, or what if they were helping somehow? But meh, after quickly getting over the fact that the writers don't want to turn this show into SG-1 redux, I more or less could enjoy this episode for what it was worth...

It was a Carter episode above all else, and I definitely have mixed feelings about her performance here. On one side of things, Amanda Tapping did a great job being in charge. Hell, she barely even flinched at the thought of a Wraith handshake, she was always willing to listen and differ to Sheppard's counsel, and she was always sure of herself whenever she had to make a tough decision. On the other hand though, this wasn't the Samantha Carter that we have become used to in the past ten years, both in a good and bad way. From what I gathered, this was more of Amanda Tapping doing her best Elizabeth Weir impression, as there was absolutely nothing done in this episode that Weir wouldn't have done in her place. If anything, the addition of Carter to Atlantis would've meant her working or supervising McKay when it came to the Replicator virus, as isn't she around Rodney's equal when it comes to this shit? As much as I love having Carter on Atlantis, I just don't get why the writers removed Weir from the equation when all they did was replace her face visually with someone else's with the same damn lines...

Even when it came to Richard Woolsey, I don't think Carter did anything differently than Weir would've done in her place. Now, on the one hand, it gets old hearing management tell Woolsey that he's a complete pompous jackass, every single time. On the other hand, Amanda Tapping has gotten good at the banter and handling the acting pressure in awkward yet comedic moments like that. If there is one benefit to having Carter on board on the show, it's that she has a much better sense of character poise and comedic timing than Torri Higginson ever managed as Elizabeth Weir. Simply put, Carter has become the new Weir of Atlantis, but Amanda Tapping is simply a better actress than Torri ever was. Harsh words perhaps, which is why I do feel I have mixed performances about The Seer here. But still, it was a strong episode for Colonel Carter, and she did prove herself to be a respectable leader once and for all...

Sheppard was the other story of this episode, although his role was a bit too subdued and serious at times for me to care. Still, it was good to see him bickering and yet connecting with that Wraith from last season all over again, especially considering I love how the writers have given this enemy a sense of levity and comic relief. John knows that he once did trust this being, but only out of necessity, and he knows he doesn't owe him a damn thing any longer. It was this internal conflict though of his, of whether to trust him again or not, that truly made this episode interesting. I would've liked to see more conversation between the two about things other than just the Replicators finally going apeshit on human asses, but no matter what, I thought it set up a great mid-season finale soon to come. Now, if only I could figure out how Sheppard would deal with the Wraith's nutritional needs, then maybe I wouldn't keep pointing out plot holes...

Poor McKay, having to deal with yet another genius Wraith capable of criticizing him to hell and back. Rodney held his own in comic relief this episode, whether it was his reluctance to walk straight into the trap he foresaw, or the fact that he was smug as hell for finding out the Wraith held back on some of the Replicator virus code. I would've preferred more banter and more screen time with Sheppard in the mix, or at least more comedy points between him and the Wraith, considering they do seem to share similar knowledge skill sets. But for what it was worth, Rodney McKay was simply Rodney McKay. He made me laugh and snicker at times with his arrogant charms and wit. And if only he could've worked together with Carter on the new virus, then I'm sure I would've enjoyed this episode a hell of a lot more...

I don't even remember what Ronon did here besides point a gun, so I'm just going to ignore that he existed. Teyla though, was really showing her pregnancy badly at the start of the episode with a huge bulge, and yet apparently nobody on the base realizes that she's carrying? Well, a story is a story, and it's strange how the writers haven't gone the B'Elanna Torres route with her and hidden her real-life pregnancy with all their might. Either way, besides the big reveal of the child she's carrying, a revelation that was handled in a completely non-suspenseful way that killed almost all sense of surprise, I don't remember what the hell Teyla did either. She's trying to find her people, big whoop. Obviously, Zor-El on Smallville stole them all as Heroes cannon-fodder...

Meanwhile, Jennifer Keller demonstrated about the same level of acting talent here as Jennifer Garner did in Elektra. Even when Davos died, the doctor barely emoted or empathized at all with the hot daughter girl who I know Elizabeth Weir would've loved to fuck. Still, at least I wasn't bored to tears during Keller's moments, simply because the material and science she got to deal with was interesting. We all figured that Davos was a near ascended being, on the same level as O'Neill in the Fifth Race or McKay was in Tao of Rodney. But to see someone with that kind of powe be so open, honest and good-hearted in a genuine way, really did seem to compliment the rosy cheek buds and innocent eyes of Dr. Keller standing over there. It was like a fairy tale kind of feeling between the two of them, just mutual respect and almost a father and daughter kind of benevolence in the end. Jewel Staite couldn't act for shit, but still, the scenes just worked because a) Davos was a nice character, and b) both Keller and Davos' daughter were cute and hot as hell. Go figure, I guess. And the two of them, please go fuck...

Because without that highlight? The Seer will not go on my list of favourite episodes of the year. But for yet another budget bottle episode, I personally enjoyed many of the acting performances and thought the hour set up the upcoming mid-season finale extremely well. For so long now, I figured the Replicators would eventually attack human populations, if that wasn't already the reason why the Wraith and perhaps Ancients shut down the nanites in the first place. The chess pieces are set on a grand stage for a real war arc here, and I'm just hoping that the writers do not disappoint. Either way, for now, I will give them the benefit of the doubt. They copped-out badly with the rehashed scenes from The Hive, but I'm just hoping that they don't do the same for the rest of the season. I am intrigued as to how events will play out, and I do want to see if and how that vision that Carter had will come to pass...

This was Samantha's best moment as leader of Atlantis. Sure, I had mixed feelings, but I shall give all the praise in the world to Amanda Tapping for truly being at the top of her game and carrying this episode full and through...

The Seer may not have been an episode that I will watch and rewatch all over again like visions of the future...

"McKay and Mrs. Miller still stands as my favourite episode from the third season of Atlantis, and one of the best episodes of Stargate of all time, in my honest opinion at least. Tough shoes to fill...

Miller's Crossing, like its predecessor, had a clever name. Unfortunately, at least partially due to my unrealistic expectations, it just wasn't the episode that I was hoping it would be. While McKay and Mrs. Miller was a touching story filled with long lost family values and personal sentiments that anyone can relate to, Miller's Crossing felt like a heartless derivative meant to capitalize on Jeanie's sudden fandom. Part of the blame goes to Henry Wallace, one of the weakest villains on the show in ages. He wasn't threatening or, on the other hand, humanly decent enough to sympathize with over his situation whatsoever, and it certainly didn't help that I was all too familiar with the actor from his Malcolm Reed lovin' days on Star Trek Enterprise...

There were some good moments in Miller's Crossing, but they were too far and between for what I would've liked. It was the little things, like McKay and his sister getting lost and then reminiscing about their days in West Edmonton Mall, that reminded me of why McKay and Mrs. Miller felt like such a fresh take on the Stargate universe. But the thing is, I can and have watched the latter episode at least a dozen times and I have yet to be bored once while doing so, simply because the acting and storyline was just so superb. Here, the writing was far too inconsistent for the episode's own good, as even the little side discussion of Katie Brown when Jeanie's life was in peril, felt tacked on and a little too forced for its own good. Not to mention the fact, that the idea that Meredith won't "find anyone better", rings a little too true for my own universe for my liking...

The thing about Miller's Crossing is, I wanted more scenes of Rodney and Jeanie. Instead, we got token shots of Vancouver (except weirdly enough, the SGA team was in Vancouver for once) and of McKay trying to be all bravado in front of Caleb. Next thing you know, Agent Barrett decides he's too badass to bring back-up to the location that the computer trojan was traced back to, and whoops, we're stuck in a situation where CSIS has to come to the rescue. The whole predicament felt rushed and forced, just to pace randomly through some Replicator storyline with medical nanites. There was supposed to be some heart involved, considering the patient's life was failing due to cancer and all that shit, yet I felt none of it in this episode. Instead, all we got was a clever little rib of how McKay broke his sister's legs for her sake, and then some sob story sent to the Wraith who never should've been on the base to begin with...

There were plenty of plot holes, such as why they couldn't have just sent Jeanie over to Atlantis instead of bringing the Wraith to earth. But what I count most important in an SGA episode, is the performance and chemistry of all the actors. It definitely hurt somewhat that Teyla was nowhere to be found on the planet, and neither was Carter or Dr. Keller (she would've been rather useful in this episode too). Ronon in the meantime, besides some random quip about looking completely out of place in a suit (as if he never wore something more formal on his own planet), was completely out of place in the storyline as well as character. What role did he have to play except sit back and read some files? This was his first on-screen appearance on the outside world of earth. Why didn't he seem to give a shit, or did the writers simply not want to give him the same sense of wonder and awe that made Jeanie such an endearing character back in McKay and Mrs. Miller?...

To quote McKay's sister, "you're no John Sheppard", and neither was Sheppard in this episode more or less. He had nothing to do but break down a few security doors for the most part, but then was given the harshest task of all, to talk Henry Wallace into suiciding himself by essentially being eaten alive. While I can see why Sheppard would do such a thing, to protect the sister of his best friend and all, it still felt somewhat out of character how willing he was to forget it all at the end. He "presented a situation", and while I can see his point of view and almost agree with it (Henry Wallace was never going to get out of jail anyways), it just felt weird how his character was not only going behind McKay's back but also doing something so morally ambiguous in the end. Sheppard is a straight-forward, military type of guy. This was the kind of talk Daniel Jackson or maybe Colonel Carter might have with a person, but Sheppard? I don't know whether this was a huge step forward for his character, or just a lapse in writer's judgment...

Don't get me wrong though, while I am criticizing Miller's Crossing a lot and justifiably so, I actually did enjoy this episode for what it's worth. The sentimentality in it felt forced, but it was still there in spades, especially with the relief at the end with the buying of the guilt-trip Prius and all. The talk between McKay and the Wraith obviously went almost nowhere, and I didn't buy the idea that Rodney was about to sacrifice himself to save his sister (it wasn't David Hewlett's fault there really, but just lacklustre and generic writing). But for every comedic moment on the episode, whether he was chiding Henry Wallace for his rookie mistakes or being blamed for his Nancy Drew skills, I did enjoy the banter and chemistry between Meredith and his sister, even if it just wasn't as prevalent as I originally had hoped it would be...

Clever name though, I'll give the episode that. No idea what Miller's Crossing means, but I'll take it. I just wish the rest of the writing was even an ounce of the quality that it was in McKay and Mrs. Miller, that's all...

But if we ever get a sequel to round out the Miller trilogy? Now sure, it'll be tough shoes and most definitely a large cookie to fill...

This Mortal Coil had a lot of promise. And to be honest, I did enjoy this episode, just not as much as I thought. I was hoping for a big revelation in the Wraith and Replicator war, the kind of battles and epic war arc that was promised near the start of the season. What we got was yet another side diversion, this time with duplicates of the team being made, ala SG-1's Tin Man all over again. Although this time, everything was so rushed to the point where the entire team of clones decided to suicide themselves all at once, even though only Sheppard or McKay had to fly the jumper as a diversion. Obviously, we earthlings, genuine articles or repli-clones or not, have been taking a lot of life lessons or lack thereof from the goddam Asgard...

I know all the criticism being flung around at This Mortal Coil, but I actually enjoyed it more than SG-1's first season Tin Man, despite the slow paranoidal start to this episode. I have always felt that the storyline of certain Replicators wanting to ascend was stronger than any other plot arc that the show had going for the nanite beings, and it was nice to know that Niam wasn't the last of his beliefs...

It was strange how I felt Jewel Staite's best performance on the show turned out to be in the form of a Replicator instead of the doctor. When playing Dr. Keller, she's far too bubbly and cute and unprofessional for my liking most of the time, but here as the queen bitch Repli-Keller? She was surprisingly drone-like for the first parts of the episode, brilliantly so, yet rather human-like near the end when her compassion finally shined through. Yet somehow, even then, she still felt machine-oriented and coldly automated in the end, like the soul was missing from her normally glinting eyes. There was just something in her character that made her feel off and inhuman, and whether that was just the actress' bad acting, I will never know. Either way, she pulled off the job superbly with her best performance on the show yet...

Here, we also got the return of Torri Higginson as Dr. Weir, or a being that looks and acts exactly like the Dr. Weir we knew. For the actress, I've always been love her or hate her, usually from her looks for the former and acting for the latter. In This Mortal Coil, once again her performance was both hot and cold. I thought she did a very good job when expressing her fears and doubts with the real John Sheppard on New Athos. But moments like when she was so awkwardly bad on the LCD screen when first revealing herself to Atlantis, made me want to tear my eyeballs out at all the memories of how damn often the actress screwed up in the past. Regardless though, while her appearance here was more token than essential (did she really contribute to the storyline at all, except to tell us that the real Weir was supposedly dead?), I do admit that Stargate Atlantis has definitely missed her presence for the fourth season of the show. Somehow, even though I like Carter, the leadership and chemistry on the series has just not been the same without Torri at the helm. Whether I just miss her tight ass T-shirts or something more, I don't know, but it was nice to see her back for at least one last time...

The first third of the episode was a bit too slow for my liking, with each and every character discussing how the rest of the people on the base feel so distant. But at least we got a decent fight between Sheppard and Ronon, weirdly one where John was holding his own against the brute. And to be honest, Ronon and Teyla both had their best scenes in this episode that they've had for a very long time. The two of them were obviously very hurt and somewhat appalled that there really can be a perfect duplicate of them, a huge contrast compared to how John and McKay seemed so happy to have a doppelganger. The talks between both sets of Ronon and Teyla was close and personal, and while everything said was more or less generic fodder for a Tin Man episode such as this, it was still acted and executed well enough to feel real, even in a messed up, Sci-Fi situation like This Mortal Coil...

I was definitely hoping for more comic relief, but at least we got a bit of it with the two McKay's thinking brilliantly as one. The two of them might as well become a couple, sharing credit and finishing each other's sentences, oh so excited about working with a mind as insightful as their own. There wasn't any real particular great moment in their synchronized banter, but you gotta love their argument when it came to the word, "outputted". Both McKays can't be wrong, can they? Plus, hell, I say outputted all the time, so fuck you John Sheppard, fuck you...

The return of Elizabeth Weir, so to speak, was the central focus of this episode, but if there was any central character to This Mortal Coil, it was John. He definitely was wrestling and having a hard time not with being a duplicate (or not with having one that could potentially kick his ass), but rather that Elizabeth Weir was back and yet she was dead at the very same time. There was some sentimentality at the end that felt real, when John just blurted out that he was sending Weir's personal items back to earth to her family. It's good that the writers haven't forgotten how close the two characters got over the course of the series, and to be honest, the strength and benefits of that relationship have been lacking on this show since Torri Higginson's departure. As much as I never really liked her acting, I do have to admit that she brings out a lot of the best in Joe Flanigan. He definitely feels like much more of a stronger, more real character with Elizabeth around to be his moral compass. I haven't felt that in the series since Colonel Carter took the helm, but I definitely felt that sort of old school spirit here in This Mortal Coil...

Unfortunately, that doesn't change the fact that for a mid-season cliffhanger, this was a pretty weak episode. Not only was the revelation and realization of Davos' vision a complete cop-out (why did he get random visions for things that don't concern anyone? WTF?), not only were these ascension Replicators too stupid to realize that drones will not kill them, but it was strange that the only permanent continuity that this episode provided was an ugly Lite Brite Replicator tracking system and the idea that Dr. Weir may be dead. I enjoyed this episode for what it was worth, thanks to strong performances by the fake Dr. Keller, Major Lorne, Dr. Zelenka, and of course the two McKays becoming one great character. But for a mid-season finale for what should've been a big ass Replicator war arc of a year, I can't help but leave somewhat disappointed and wanting more...

After a relatively strong start, season four has definitely felt weary and mortal. Where's our sense of urgency? Where's our sense of dread? When will the writers finally cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war?...

A fifth season has already been confirmed. But if this show is to survive beyond that, to be or not to be, the writing just has to improve...

"What did I say in my last SGA review? That Atlantis sure as hell ain't Shakespeare?...

... maybe not, and Be All My Sins Remember'd proved that beyond a shadow of a doubt with its shitty ass writing...

... but still, it doesn't change the fact that this episode was a hell of a lot of fun to watch...

The problem with this episode was that it tried to be truly epic, it tried to inspire the best of Stargate. And while the CG battle over Asuras was definitely the largest scaled battle that the computer effect guys and director have ever tackled head on, I'm not even sure if it's the greatest space battle we've seen on Stargate Atlantis alone. The Siege (Part 3) will always be note-worthy simply because of the novelty effect of having the Daedalus come to the rescue for the first time, and No Man's Land will forever stand out simply because of the ingenious strategies and tactics employed against the Wraith. Even comparing to SG-1, I'm not sure if Be All My Sins Remember'd will leave a longer lasting impression on me than Camelot did when the Ori motherships first arrived in our galaxy and decimated our combined massive fleets...

And if anything, the attempt at sheer Star Wars epicness of this week's episode of Atlantis feels a lot like the Lucas prequel trilogy when compared to the original beauty of SG-1's The Lost City. The Lost City didn't just have special effects and epic Gladiator music, but rather deep character development, a sense of discovery and true magical mythology, and of course the best of Jack and Daniel banter and comedy. In the end, that was the greatest flaw of Be All My Sins Remember'd, that it simply did not have the personality or "strange" charm that a true classic like The Lost City had. I barely remember a single time that I laughed in this week's episode of Atlantis. Five years from now, will Be All My Sins even be remembered?...

Character wise, it was definitely a weak episode. The only crew member who got any development at all was Teyla when she revealed her pregnancy to Sheppard and Ronon. If anything, besides the marketed contrast in the latter two guys' reactions, the only real development from that scene was that Teyla would be missing and vacant from the series from that moment on. Meanwhile, I couldn't help but side with Sheppard in this situation. He wasn't acting jealous really, but rather concerned, and was hurt perhaps that Teyla didn't trust him enough to talk about this situation months ago. Meanwhile, Ronon was a pure pussy-whipped asshole, holding her hand in a purely platonic way as if he was a big brother, when I for one would've been a jealous, giant ass and sought out the father to go beat his ass...

Sheppard got to ask Larin of the Travelers for her phone number, and got to show off the fancy Daedalus class suped-up ships in contrast to his puny little Puddle Jumper. Besides that though, and besides bitching out at Teyla like I probably would've done, what did he accomplish but completely embarrass a Replicator Aurora-class warship with a volley of drones of his own? Meanwhile, Colonel Carter got to show she was in charge by sticking up for her people to Colonel Ellis and sharing little Cold War anecdotes with Caldwell. It was nice to get a bit of the old Carter back when it came to science, especially when she beamed in delight at McKay's little statement that "we are geniuses". I've missed that old Carter from before, but even in Be All My Sins Remember'd, there's only 42 minutes of time to show that smile. I've got a bad Ronon feeling that it'll all be gone again by next episode's time...

Besides that though, Be All My Sins Remember'd was heavy on the plotline and not so deep when it came to Shakespearean writing. McKay for instance, had a few good moments with Zelenka and Fran. In fact, I'd argue that Rodney and Fran were the best parts of the episode, as there was a certain charm and sexy goodness to creating a Friendly Replicator Android to do your bidding. If anything, the creation of a "bomb" that is self-aware was the one strong point this episode had in writing. Rodney started noticing it too near the end, that it hurts our morals to send a sentient being to its suicide. The question is though, sentience or not, does the sexy femme bot have rights? We programmed into her the desire to sacrifice her life to end the Replicators, and she was happy as a result to accomplish her task. Was any of this right then, as Rodney was perhaps originally correct, we don't feel sorry for our own bullets or smart bombs. It's just that, I can't help but sympathize with her situation a bit, naturally since Fran was HAWT...

Hell yes, I'd say hello to that cutie right back any day of the week and stick to her like glue like all those Replicators did. She just looked so damn happy and adorable to be sacrificing herself for the purpose she was created, and she did it all while looking hot with those innocent eyes and hair of hers. How the fuck could I not fall in love? If anything, it might have worked in a Pygmalion sort of sense, if Rodney and the audience had kept getting to know this "bomb" over the course of several episodes, if not a season long arc. I sure as hell wouldn't have complained, considering how much of a brunette bombshell she really was to the eyes...

If anything, that was my greatest fault with Be All My Sins Remember'd. We had huge plot points, like the Wraith sending seven ships to ally with the Daedalus and Apollo, and the Travelers promising another five or so ships of their own to help combat the Replicators over Asuras. What we had here, was a war of epic scale proportions, all dumbed down to fit within 42 minutes of screen time. Seriously, wasupwidat? This is the kind of great plotline that should have been slowly built up over the latter half of the season. I know it gets old and probably expensively high budget, to keep having scenes of the Wraith and humanity working together, with Larin constantly kicking Sheppard in the balls on her own Aurora warship. But seriously, aside from some cool CG screen-shots of a Puddle Jumper landing in a Wraith Hive Ship and of the allied fleets all jumping into hyperspace in unison, I never got that warm fuzzy feeling I get from an epic-scaled episode such as this. I really wish the writers had gone full out and extended everything, including the birth and death of Fran, into a true season-long war arc...

Still, while I can complain about the writing all I want, it doesn't change the fact that this episode completely 'pwned' my ass in terms of excitement and visuals, all thanks to the new Asgard 'pwning' plasma weapons onboard the Daedalus and Apollo. It wasn't even a ten second contest, having the two of them gang up on a single Aurora-class warship, what was supposedly the mainstay of the Ancient fleet back during the Wraith wars. Seeing the Daedalus-class ships absolutely kick ass during the final battle while barely receiving a scratch but for buckling shields, I wouldn't be surprised if the upgraded Odyssey or whatever could take on three or four fully-armed Aurora-class warships at once. To be honest, I never thought the writers would give humanity this sort of power, as now we have beaming transporter technology, the most advanced hyperdrives left in existence, the best maneuverability of any capital ship, shields that can take a whacking from two or three Ori motherships at once, and now weapons that goddam cut through Ancient shields as if they weren't even there. While I lament the fact the writers have written themselves into a Deus Ex Machina corner of invincibility here (hell, could Atlantis with 3 ZPM's even stand up to a small fleet of our ships?), it doesn't change the fact that I'm ranting about this tech crap while salivating at the same damn time...

The battle above Asuras was beautiful, reminding me of the only good CG sequences from Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. I don't get how the Replicators faired so damn badly though, losing four or five or their most powerful warships while taking out only one Hive Ship and one puny Traveler ship in the process, especially considering how powerful we've seen Ancient drones previously made out to be (hell, Sheppard proved it again here by tearing an Aurora in half with a single shot). But besides completely embarrassing the Replicators (and hence Ancient technology) by showing an Aurora to be barely a match for a single Wraith Hive Ship, I still can't get over how beautiful this battle was to watch if you just sat back and enjoyed the ride. Now, I have no idea how a fleet of F-302's with missiles could penetrate or even weaken an Ancient ship shield like they did, but the glorious explosions that happened afterwards were worth the price of admission alone...

If anything, what I'm worried about now is, where the fuck do the writers go from here? Not just in terms of technology, where thanks to the Asgard at the end of SG-1, humanity now has the fastest and most deadly ships in the known fucking universe, but also in terms of the season long war arc. We got a brief glimpse of Dr. Weir in Replicator form (most likely) at the end as a teaser, but I know the actress won't be back until next season at the earliest, so what will the writers do now to keep us in suspense? The first half of season four was flawed but interesting thanks to the constant fear and backdrop of the uber-powerful Replicators wrecking havoc on the entire Pegasus Galaxy. But just like with the Goa'uld, the old-spider Replicators and with the goddam Ori as well, the writers have done it again here and had humanity completely obliterate what was supposed to be an all-powerful enemy in just 42 fucking minutes. What the fuck are the writers going to do now? Do we really expect viewers to once again perceive the Wraith as a threat, especially when it would take an entire fleet of Hives to stand a chance against a single Daedalus-class battlecruiser now? WTF?...

Ha, if anything, I almost feel bad for the Ancients. They've been made out to be so damn fucking stupid in all their war time decisions in the past, and even made a return last season only to be wiped out in ten seconds flat by their goddam overconfidence. Now, we've proven that human-engineered Asgard technology is powerful enough to cut through Ancient ships and shields like butter, while our own defenses can easily counter the uber-drones from The Lost City as if they were nothing. If we were the ones fighting the war against the Wraith 10000 years ago, our superior tactics would've easily been a match for the numbers of the Wraith. Atlantis (and to some extent, the final years of SG-1) have made a total mockery of the race that was supposedly so intelligent that they ascended to a higher plain of existence. If the behaviour of the Replicators, who emulate the Ancients as best they can, are any indication of what it takes to ascend? Then fuck me, whining and ranting and complaining on my download site should be enough to take it to Adria and fuck her sideways one of these days. Oh, if only...

Anyhew, I've gotten a bit off track here I guess, and it takes a fun, techie episode like this to get my tangents truly going. Still, considering the title reads as Be All My Sins Remember'd, I must admit that I was hoping for so much more from this episode than just a large, CG fire-fight in space. I was impressed with Fran and the cool idea of having an uber-Gozilla, Cloverfield of a Replicator blob en masse, but nifty plot points and Asgard beam weapons are just not enough to keep me coming back for more...

To make a truly epic episode, the truth of it is that the best of Stargate needs both hope and heart. It needs comedy and banter and all that shit that truly made classics like The Fifth Race and The Lost City into some of the best television experiences I've ever seen. Despite the Shakespearean title, Be All Sins Remember'd will not be remembered in the same kind of light as those two grand titles still are...

Doesn't mean I didn't have a hell of a lot of fun watching this episode though. Hell fucking yes...

I was definitely impressed with the special effects and technobabble of Be All My Sins Remember'd last week, but I was left wanting more when it came to comedy and actual character development. While I would've much preferred for a true two-parter like The Lost City where the comic relief and banter was spread throughout the whole of two hours, I must admit that the writers did impress me with this week's episode of Spoils of War. I was afraid that SGA had forgotten all about the actual characters driving the show, but it seems my fears were far too premature...

Just all the little moments in this episode, from Ronon dragging Rodney's ass out of the locker room so Teyla and Sheppard could have some private time, to poor McKay getting picked first for the first time in his life when it came to the Wraith Queen's tummy ache, Spoils of War really did have a true return to that campy, team-oriented feel that Stargate Atlantis used to have back in its early glory days. While the complete absence of both the Daedalus and Apollo just one week removed from the Battle of Asuras definitely reeked of the writers trying to crawl themselves out from their ever Deus Ex Machina, I still enjoyed this episode for what it was worth. It was a great companion to Be All My Sins Remember'd, with a hell of a lot more humour to tip the scales of balance back in favour of the characters, which I always do prefer in the end...

Last week, Teyla was mostly ignored, possibly because the actress was definitely showing a bulge by that point. This week though, I was surprised that not only did the episode focus around her, but made her character feel a whole lot more human and vulnerable in the process. The scenes of trying to control the mind of the Wraith Queen were exceptionally well done, reminding me of the best of worlds when it came to the Born Queen in Star Trek. The eerie sensation of having that pale green-lighted Queen watching over your shoulder, trying to distract you long enough to turn your unborn child to the dark side of the force, was surprisingly well done for what seemed at first to be just yet another hokey-sounding telepathic soiree. Not only that, but the scene caught me completely off guard, as even I exclaimed "WTF?" when the Wraith Queen apparently didn't find McKay to be even a morsel-enough of a meal...

But definitely the strongest scenes throughout the entire episode belonged to Teyla as she was simply conversing with Sheppard and others about her new pregnant condition. While the moment with Major Lorne felt a bit too 'shipperish for my tastes (although it was understandable, considering we all suck up to first time pregnant women like that), what rang true the most for me this episode was her external struggle with Colonel Sheppard and her internal struggle to realize her own limitations. Last week, Sheppard came off as a complete ass for sounding so offended as soon as she explained her pregnancy. This week though, you really could see why John reacted the way he did, simply because he has so much concern for Teyla's feelings when it comes to her unborn child, the maternal instincts that even she did not know she had. If anything, while Ronon was just a whipped boy in contrast, it was like Sheppard was the one who knew more about Teyla and what she would try to do, even in her current state, more than anyone else. And he knew he had to stop her, no matter how cold it may have made him seem at the time...

This was probably Joe Flanigan's strongest performance since Doppelganger, even if he wasn't the star attraction this time around. His connection with Teyla was some of the best chemistry he's had with the actress in years, and he even got the chance to stand (or kneel) against a Wraith Queen to show off his ever-growing tolerance for anal mind probing. Meanwhile, you could really tell from every single facial expression that he had, that John really was in command of the team. He had that sort of aura of respect around him, regardless of whether he was tipping Major Lorne and co to give him some private time, or counseling Teyla one on one on the balcony steps. In fact, I'd even argue for the first time in ages, Sheppard did seem wise beyond his years. Back in the glory days of SG-1, Colonel O'Neil always had that same feeling to him, even though he shrouded it with self-deprecation and pretense stupidity most of the time. And, well, there are certain times when Joe Flanigan seems to epitomize that same kind of great leadership amongst the cast and crew...

Ronon as usual was a pussy-whipped ass, bending over backwards for Teyla like you would expect a big brother in love with his hot sister to. Well, at least he got to kick some ass and chew bubble gum as well, tearing the Wraith a new one with his patented Travelers gun. Besides that, I don't really remember what he did. He seemed agitated at times, does that count? Jason Mamoa doesn't really get the chance to shine in episodes such as this, but I'm sure he'll have an episode or two dedicated to his efforts somewhere down the road like he has had every half of a season...

Meanwhile, if there was any real reason to truly enjoy Spoils of War, it was Rodney McKay and his chemistry with "Todd" the Wraith. McKay alone is always great, whether he's absolutely clueless about when to make a discrete exit or whether he's reliving bad dodgeballs days in the high school gym. But if anything, David Hewlett can also make the most boring technobabble into the most interesting of scenes. Whenever he was talking with Todd about the history of the war with the Ancients, both actors just seem so genuinely interested in the discussion that you can't help but experience the same. And hell, who here wouldn't empathize with poor Rodney McKay when he was picked first as a full course meal? Rodney didn't provide nearly the level of comic relief as I had hoped he would in Be All My Sins Remember'd, but he sure as hell made up for his previous lack of presence back then in the here and now...

As for what we learned in this episode, obviously we now know that Wraith Hive Ships make great bunker busting bombs. Besides that though, we finally get a bit of much-needed backstory on how the Wraith managed to defeat the Ancients, by using the latter's overconfidence to steal power and technology to turn the tide of war. Sounds a lot like how earth managed to defeat the Goa'uld in the past to be honest, although I don't get how massive cloning facilities could really explain how the Wraith managed to build so many warships in so little time (unless the Ancients were too dumbass to guard their Stargates with force fields from ground troops, even during the middle of a war). If anything, Spoils of War was far from a perfect episode, but at least it certainly cast a far more realistic light on how the Wraith did manage to defeat the Ancients in the past. Now, how the hell a Wraith Hive ship could ever possibly take on a Replicator-enhanced Aurora-class warship, we will never know. But at least, the CG sight of a Wraith Hive Ship dive-bombing a planet's surface, helped me forget about that little former detail from last week's episode for just one day...

Now sure, Spoils of War had its share of flaws. It just didn't feel epic enough when compared to last week's episode, and I wish Rodney and Ronon had more chances to shine. But at the same time, the episode really did manage to steal the spotlight with a great opening intro, followed by a superbly directed, claustrophobic sort of atmosphere. Plus, Teyla had perhaps her best character performance in years on the show...

If only the entire season had this kind of quality, season four would be right up there amongst the very best of Stargate...

And with Todd the Wraith still out there, as the villain that Michael should have been? Well, then maybe there still is a chance for a great second half to Stargate Atlantis season four...

"Forgive me for the late review, but my opinions on last week's episode have kind of been under quarantine...

I've been busy lately, and perhaps that affected how I felt about Quarantine on a whole. It was definitely a decent episode with a good enough premise, forcing characters to bond thanks to being locked in separate rooms with little to no chance of escape. Of course, it really made no logical sense why Atlantis would create interference fields to prevent even basic radios from communicating with one another, but hey, guess even Rodney McKay makes a few mistakes from time to time. The premise of the episode felt a bit forced, with the absurd notion that a simple ionic storm that has no effect on our own technology would make the so-called, uber-sophisticated computers of Atlantis go completely haywire. But like I said, Quarantine was a neat little bottle of a budget episode, and it certainly did its job in spades and pairs...

Well, out of all things, I really detested the forced Dr. Keller and Ronon pairing here. Now, I know that Ronon seems to have a thing for nurses (he's not the only one), and Dr. Keller is definitely the cutest of doctors. But really, I can't see how the two ever got together except of course by following their eyes (and lower eye, I suppose), as the both of them have zero chemistry as far as I could discern. Hell, with people potentially dying all around her, the adorable Keller's speech about somehow missing dances and shit like that when young (as if a girl who looks like her would ever be able to avoid men in any profession), was the most grating piece of inappropriate writing I've heard off of Smallville...

Now sure, there were a few light moments in their conversations, specifically the mention of the movie Jaws in relation to their failed oxygen tank experiment here, and seeing Jewel Staite close up on screen always puts a smile on my face. But for the most part I just rolled my eyes at every scene that Jennifer and Ronon were on screen together. Why the hell did the writers get rid of Dr. Carson Beckett again? Sure, his chemistry would have been even more forced with Ronon when push comes to shove, but at least it would've appeased some Stargate fans and 'slashers out there...

Rodney meanwhile was unfortunately put into a situation where he was useless, for better and for worse. On the one hand, it was good to see him panic like the good ol' days when he always thought he was helpless. With no computer at his disposal, he let his imagination and paranoia get the best of him, and went back to his old skool, germ-fearing ways. In a sense, we got to see a side of Rodney that we haven't seen in a long time, and it was a little strange to have such a reversion in his character, especially considering I really did miss his chemistry and banter with the rest of the cast and crew here in Quarantine...

On the other hand though, we got some much needed progress and revelation in terms of his relationship (and now lack thereof) with Katie Brown. I guess I know moreso now from first hand knowledge, that you'd think that if you really do care about a girl, you'd do your best not just to protect them but to also make them happy, through the best and the worst. Rodney tried to be thoughtful with the ever expensive, 1/8th of a carat of a diamond ring and all, but when push came to shove, he thought of himself far more than he ever was concerned with Katie. The two of them had to break up sometime, and while I would've preferred to see Rodney more in his usual comedic element, I thought that Quarantine did a good job of showing us more of his personal side that we used to know...

There isn't much to report about Colonel Carter being stuck in a transporter elevator with Zelenka, except that a) I still think the writers are wasting away Amanda Tapping's potential, and b) Radek sure as hell got a good, close look at the Colonel's bosoms. He also got an electric shock in return thanks to karma, but of course also later saved the day with what I can only assume were Die Hard references in the tiny ventilation shafts. Sure, it was nice to see both characters as Atlantis sometimes does get a bit dry with just the usual four and Dr. Keller filling up most of the episodes, but there just wasn't much chemistry between Carter and the Czech doctor. Short story short, they got stuck in an elevator, and they never even started to make out with one another as if the world (or this planet) was going to end. You'd think a self-destruct alarm would do it, but it seems Carter is saving herself for the now-single Dr. Rodney McKay elsewhere instead...

Finally, we got Teyla and Sheppard spending some quality time with one another, discussing how in the blue hell she actually blew up like a balloon over just one week's television time. For the most part, if any pairing in this episode felt the most right, it was between Sheppard and Teyla, as even John's talk with her over his cop friend back on earth felt like it had meaning and friendship behind it all. Being pregnant, Teyla obviously can't do nearly as much with the team on the show as she would have before. But the actress still can really affect things on the series, through her actions and her words, now even moreso than she could before by even the simplest of scenes. Here, I thought her strongest moment (since, well, last week actually...) came right after Spiderman Sheppard left to climb the control tower. She stepped outside herself, thought long and hard about whether to take the risk to do something similiar and head for help, but then stepped back inside out of fear of harming her child. Even without saying a single word, I thought Rachel as an actress had one of her most memorable scenes of the entire season so far...

Joe Flanigan however, was the real star of the show. The best parts of the episode all came from him, whether he was virtually swinging away at computerized golf, giving Major Lorne the stare for a complete lack of C4 preparedness, or eyeing whatever her name is that was hot as hell behind the Atlantis control room console. The one true laugh that I got out of this episode all came from Sheppard of course indirectly invoking Rodney, or actually his password at least. The look on Teyla's face when she was told the all-encompassing meaning of the number "42" was simply goddam classic, and really stands as a clear reason why I normally do love innocent little bottle episodes like Quarantine, if only I weren't so worried and hurried and busy around this time of my life...

Quarantine definitely did have its moments, namely Rodney and his ego coming into play, relativistically speaking of course...

But compared to earlier bottle episodes like Doppelganger? Yes, I admit, I was left a tad bit disappointed...

... enough so that I'm not sure if I will give this episode a second chance to shine...

The entire plot of Harmony almost felt like it was based on a bet. Somebody at the office probably came up with the idea for that ridiculous painting of McKay as the hero and Sheppard cowering behind Adria Jr, and then somebody bet him that he couldn't whip up a story that made actual sense for it. And, well, a paper-thin script later, here we have Harmony, casting the wannabe Kristen Kreuk as the 13-year old diva of a princess. And while the plot was cliche and predictable as hell, with really the only true saving grace being the ridiculous painting at the end, sadly I still found myself quite entertained...

There was no Ronon in this episode for whatever reason, there was no Colonel Carter (not like we see her anyhew), Teyla was off strutting off her legs while pregnant once more, and Dr. Keller thankfully was just a pretty memory and not an nauseating voice. Harmony was all about Colonel Sheppard and Rodney McKay, bonding together once more, this time with a snot-nosed, know-it-all brat in the mix to remind everyone just why Meredith should be king. There was really nothing note-worthy in Harmony, but the banter and quips between Sheppard and McKay have always been the true basis for every single success that SGA has had as a series, in my honest opinion at least. So it's no wonder that I still found myself enjoying Harmony for what it was worth...

We didn't learn much about Sheppard except that, as McKay quite frankly points out, it does seem that every alien woman falls for him, and his dating tastes in return are a lot less mature than a 13-year old girl. McKay got to experience what it's like to have a cocky, arrogant bitch around him 24/7, and Sheppard definitely did enjoy the reversal there of roles. Besides that, is there anything to say about Harmony? The whole plot of Genii mercenaries going after the princess was just a bothersome farce to give the writers an excuse at a) a true bottle episode filmed by probably high school students in the Vancouver forests, and b) a reason to show off that badass painting of McKay and his underlings at the fin of an end. Then again, like I said before, that painting alone was damn good justification enough for this episode to exist...

Scientific and mythos wise, there were both bad and good sides to Harmony. The thing is, Rodney's statement that this planet was a testing ground for the first Lantian drones was very odd, considering we've seen drones installed at the 30 million year old Antarctic outpost in SG-1. Then again, it is also true that drones have never been spotted anywhere else in the Milky Way Galaxy that we know of, so it is possible that they were retrofitted on the Ancient Earth outpost after the Lantians arrived back from the Pegasus Galaxy. Either way though, it was damn cool to see all those mini-drones buzzing around the Genii, swatting their regicidal asses down like flies. If the Ancients had perfected these things as infantry weapons (which I'm sure they didn't, considering the Asurans never used them), then I honestly cannot see how they lost the war with the Wraith. Then again, we've seen the almighty Aurora-class warships get shredded by even the pathetic weapons of the goddam Travelers, so the writers seem to love making the Ancients look like goddam wusses and idiots in the end...

What I did enjoy mythological wise from Harmony, was that it felt very much like a budget episode from season one in terms of using actual goddam mythology. This planet that Sheppard and Rodney were on, had created their entire monarchy and society based on Ancient technological ruins and the use of the Ancient gene. While the writers had flirted with this idea back in season two's Tower, I felt that Harmony was done a hell of a lot better and made a lot more sense. I loved SG-1 simply because of the huge contrast between young and advanced civilizations, and how technology can easily be perceived as magical. That feeling has been lost on SGA for quite a while now, but it was a nice touch for its return here in Harmony. Last week, I was pissed off as hell that Teyla was able to understand Rodney's computer programs and shit about ionic storms more than even Sheppard did. At least this week, the writers made sense in having Harmony refuse to believe that the gods and beast of the ruins were actually a goddam machine...

Of course, as badass as all the mini-drones were, the true star attraction of the episode was none other than the painting. And son of a goddam bitch, does this mean that Rodney now has his face immortalized on two separate fucking primitive planets? Lucky son of a bitch...

"Lately, Stargate Atlantis has been having a lot of generic and meaningless titles for their episodes, Shakespeare non-withstanding...

For this week though, Outcast for me seems to ring true somehow. If only because the one true weakness of the show as of late, has been the simple fact that the core team element that has always defined Stargate as a series, has been completely missing in action for the past two weeks...

Most of the time, I abhor episodes like Outcast for destroying the team dynamic and relegating the show to just one or two principle characters. Here, we had Rodney McKay with essentially just a throw-away scene, preventing this episode from having any of the traditional comedy and banter that made Atlantis into the hit that it is. Teyla was off having her fling of an affair with Lt. Ford in the meanwhile, and what the fuck was up with the writers and their ten second use of Amanda Tapping? Please tell me that this does not count as one of her thirteen episodes on the goddam season. WTF?...

I do feel that after Be All My Sins Remember'd, after the Replicator war storyline was all wrapped up with a pretty little bow in just one television hour, that Stargate Atlantis as a series has been floating around and struggling for a new identity and focus. There is no real big bad on the show now that the Wraith and Replicators have essentially both been dealt death blows to due to our technological advancements and universally-best tactics. There is no real impending threat on the show, which is why the last few weeks of Atlantis have felt barren and almost too low-budget-concerned to be considered amongst even the decent episodes of the first half of season four...

I sound really harsh here, and in many ways I am, considering I didn't like what the writers did here in Outcast when it came to Ronon and Sheppard either. Ronon had barely anything to do but flex his muscles and stupidly try to take on a Replicator with his bare hands. Obviously, he failed miserably, and thanks to his smugness earlier on in the episode, didn't even manage to get a single good shot on the target. It was great and all that Ronon just showed up by Sheppard's side and went with him to John's father's funeral, no questions asked. But one tiny spur of the moment comaraderie does not make for a great character episode. And I'm saying this not just for Ronon, but for Sheppard as well...

Joe Flanigan did put up a decent performance here in Outcast, but without any real humour or comic relief aside from maybe Dr. Lee at times, Outcast did feel like a flat episode despite the insight into John's personal life. We got a brother here with a passing resemblance at best, when really would it have killed the producers to try to sway Matthew Fox into taking a vacation from Hawaii for one day of the week? We got no real emotional resonance from neither his interactions with his brother nor how he dealt with the death of his father. It was interesting to see that Sheppard came from a rich family where "Stanford instead of Harvard" was seen as teenage rebellion, but it was also a character development that I think a lot of us viewers saw coming a long time ago from way back in his early MENSA days. John has always been the type to run away from serious commitments, until he met his new family and friends at Stargate Atlantis that is. It was supposed to be a touching moment when he met with his brother at the end to deal with issues, just like Jacob Carter did with his son back in SG-1, but there just wasn't enough character background in the past about Sheppard and his family for a guy like me to care...

Surprisingly though, I did find some of his scenes with Nancy, his ex-wife, to be meaningful in the end. It's always great to see Kari Wuhrer back, whether she's bending over backwards to try to keep Sliders on the air or bending her top down in whatever ways she can imagine in Red Alert 2. I was shocked that she put in a decent performance here, and still looked nice to boot. Her conversation with Sheppard first on the park bench and later continued in the car actually had some meaning to it, about what it feels like to keep secrets from those you care most about. John was never really the type to give a damn in the past, but he certainly did seem like he was affected by his secrecy now. And I don't know why, but I thought the whole discussion was really well executed, about how quickly walls were put up over what John Sheppard does in the military. Maybe I've just had a Kari Wuhrer crush all my life, but she and Joe Flanigan certainly did have quite a bit of chemistry for an ex-husband and wife...

And believe me, there were many positives to talk about in Outcast. For one, Dr. Lee made a return as an intelligent scientist, not as an idiot (although I'm still awaiting the day that we see Felger and Phlox back in action). Second, although his role was written as if it was meant for Agent Barrett, it was good to see Sergeant Bates back. It's embarrassing that he got his ass kicked and name taken by some sixty year old fatass, but hey, maybe that's why he was honourably discharged from the military in the first place...

And yes, I did like the Replicator storyline for what it was worth. The sound and visual effects of shotguns ripping the poor Replicator man to shreds was actually very cool, especially during this age of the Rivernator and my renewed interest in Terminator. Hell, Dr. Lee even made a passing mention to the T-1000, and the music playing during the chase scenes here in Outcast definitely pointed out that the writers had T2 and stuff in mind when they wrote this character. It was a great idea to beam the poor bastard up into low earth orbit to take him out, although I would've preferred a slow melting death in a pool of molten steel of course. I for one found the battle scenes to be exciting in Outcast, but I just wish there was more substance to speak of in the rest of the episode to balance things out...

Actually, if there was any real balance to this episode, what struck a chord in me was just how human-like Ava Dixon really was. Isn't it strange that nobody ever mentioned that humanity may have created the perfect artificial being in Ava Dixon? She was far more convincing in her human personality than any Replicator ever made before by the Ancients or Asgard, and she even had the cutest of moles on her face to accentuate her human nature. She was completely sentient, yet she chose to put the good of humanity and faith in friendships with her peers over her own self-preservation. She wasn't just a machine with a proper personality, but also perfectly emulated a good human being. Not only that, but hot damn, how the fuck did the fat bastard program in such good fashion sense into a robot as well? If she knew both science and martial arts, is it possible she was also programmed with the knowledge of the karma sutra as well? Because, err... the perfect woman?... maybe...

I did like the Replicator-side of the story here in Outcast. But I guess it's also sad in a sense, that I preferred the personalities and backgrounds of artificial beings here more than I did the actual stars of the show in this episode...

"Trio's temporary name during early scripting was "Three's Company", apparently...

... or Dr. Keller threesomes, not like I'd complain much about the latter if it were so...

Trio was perhaps one of the most boring episodes of Stargate I have seen, whether we're dealing with Atlantis or Carter back on SG-1. One of the greatest episodes of the entire series was the first season Solitudes, when it was just Sam and Jack stuck in Antarctica together. The banter there was great, with plenty of references to MacGyver for those who know what goes on behind the scenes. Where the fuck was the clever comedy and writing in this episode?...

The first half hour was simply atrocious, and there's nothing really good that came from it. The best jokes the writers could come up with reminded me of lame high school level writing, whether it was McKay punking out a bunch of wannabe kids or dreaming of Dr. Keller stripping down to her underwear. Well, alright, maybe I was dreaming of the latter as well, but what about all the other weird, awkward moments like Jennifer asking Carter to pick between Brad Pitt and Clooney? I know Jewel Staite is a total gal-pal in real life and all, but didn't they state on the show that her character missed out on so many social events and never had a socialite of a lifestyle? Wasn't this all said in Quarantine, an episode even referenced here in Trio, yet she was obviously so much of a typical girlfriend here even compared to Carter, who despite her military background has actually had her girly moments in the past?...

And WTF is with Jennifer Keller's attempts at being the Atlantis village bicycle? First she whines her way into getting Ronon, and now she "friendly flirts" with McKay over a beer game? First of all, if she missed out on so many social events, how the fuck did she know of the beer game. And second, why the fuck is she flirting with McKay? I know perhaps they're just friends, but I also know from my own first hand experience, geeks like me fall in love with the first girl who bats their eyes at them. Shouldn't she know this with Rodney, if she fucking knows enough to score at the beer game? What the fuck is she doing, hitting on every man in the base, not like I would complain if I was there? Does she fall for every man that gets locked in a room with her, and has a name that starts with the letter "R"? WTF?...

Well, Jewel Staite definitely has the sexy looks of a sorority girl. Why not let her character have the slutty personality of one too? WTF?...

Surprisingly though, this episode did improve slightly when Samantha Carter was essentially out of the picture, and it was just between McKay and Keller after the Colonel broke her leg. Before that point, all we got were boring scenes of McKay failing miserably at grappling hooks and Carter falling not once, not twice, but three times before finally she suffered the requisite heroine injury. Now, I love Amanda Tapping from all her days on SG-1, but aside from her introduction to Atlantis, she's really been off and distant this season. This could've been a wonderful opportunity to have great comedic banter back and forth with David Hewlett, yet we got none of that old skool Grace Under Pressure we saw before, even though that episode was specifically referenced here in this episode. WTF?...

I dunno, maybe I just thought Jewel Staite looked cute as hell with dirt and grime all over her face, but she was really the only true saving grace of this episode. She was a lot more brave and a lot more thoughtful here than she was in either Missing or Quarantine, and she does have a lot more chemistry with Rodney than she ever did with Ronon. It's just weird though, why she would be hitting on McKay here like she was. Some would argue that asking about Katie Brown was more about comforting the scientist as a friend than anything else. But really, the way that Jewel Staite does all her talking with certain men with her eyes? Sounds to me like she just realized her competition was officially gone, and there's no need to just have fucking regular whore sex with Ronon any longer. WTF?...

Now, I'm not saying that Trio didn't have anything but horrible plot and personality ideas in it or anything. Compared to the rest of the season, especially against the Replicators where earth has become officially the most advanced race in the known fucking universe, it was a nice change of pace at times to revert back to makeshift cannons and rappelling down chasms. Some of the ideas in this episode was decent, like stacking crates (even if they were visibly far too rickety to last) or creating beer bridges out of old wood planks. There was definitely some creativity in this episode, but there just wasn't the chemistry between the actors like you'd hope there would be. Just like in Quarantine, where forcing multiple actors together just didn't mesh well, it didn't work well here in Trio either. Hell, the best joke of the episode was probably how Carter was complaining about being stuck in a transporter with Zelenka. Ironic then, that this episode would mock the lack of chemistry between those two actors, while failing to establish any good comedy between the three of them here...

If Trio was a replacement for a budget clip-show episode? Then sure, I'll let it pass. But it's disappointing how since Spoils of War, not only has every episode of Atlantis more or less separated the team into distinct partitions?...

... but every show has pretty much felt creatively bankrupt, with the only saving grace being some pretty female eye candy on the side...

Hey, if Dr. Keller really does want to get drunk from college beer before feeling the wonders of a good bike ride, then I suppose I'm game...

Now sure, he had a token spot early on in the season. But really, Teal'c of all people in Atlantis? Does that make any sense at all?...

Well, both to my surprise and to my own expectations, Christopher Judge's first true trip to Atlantis paid dividends out in fold. Ronon has always felt like too much of a Teal'c clone for my tastes at times, so of course the inevitable debates sprang up over who was the superior fighter in the thick and thin of it all. Naturally then, it was requisite for this episode to feature a "friendly" bout between the both of them. Nobody won the joust however, and too bad we didn't see the full extent of their one hour blood bath either. Either way though? At least one thing was proven to be certain. We now all know that the Teal'c of yesteryear back when he was young with a symbiot would've wiped the floor clean with this emo-ranting Ronon. Confident in that, I really did realize how much I've missed SG-1...

It was good to see Walter and the SGC again. Some things there seem to have changed, as I'm not sure if any of the old sets were disassembled and put back together for this episode or anything, but something sure felt empty in the hallways. It could be that SG-1 was simply nowhere to be found, with Teal'c the only member of the team on the base or anything. Still, how the fuck can I really complain about an episode full of Teal'c and Ronon tag-teaming against endless hordes of Wraith? If anything, this could've been the source material for a very excellent Stargate first person shooter. Now sure, I'll never understand how the Wraith thought that attacking earth itself was a brilliant idea when they haven't even had any success against Atlantis, and considering they now think we're more advanced than even the Replicators. And sure, I'll never get why the hell Teal'c preferred Ronon's energy weapon over the Zat blasts that were rapidly taking out Wraith grunts left and right, but whatever. At least both of them realized that having G36 assault rifles at their disposal certainly has its advantages over either alien weapon at times...

Ronon had his strongest episode of the season since very early on, and I'm not just talking about the strength he showed by kicking a Wraith's ass with a lead pipe. You could tell he was conflicted, seeing a rival of equal power and all showing up right at his doorstep, feeling a bit of hurt in his pride that the SGA had so little faith in him. Of course, I didn't really give a shit about his hidden emo desires or anything. All I did care about, was that he and Teal'c absolutely tore a slew of literal holes in every damn Wraith they met. It was perhaps a little too easy how Ronon got away with passing his IOU exam, but what can you expect after he saved the entire base from being nuked? Midway was certainly a solid episode about bonding between two big-brawned staples of the series. If anything though, despite the show being only one hour, it felt strangely realistic and comforting to see the trust form and develop between Ronon and Teal'c as they gutted away at countless Wraith...

This was the first time Teal'c ever faced the Wraith, right? He sure took them on with character poise and one-eyed ease, which is what I've always loved about the actor. I've missed Christopher Judge, even if he barely had any lines when he was on SG-1. Weirdly enough, here in Midway, he probably said more than he ever did in the whole of the tenth season of SG-1. Not only that, but he finally realized that his catchphrase was, "indeed"? Did he learn nothing after being stuck on an empty ship for fifty damn years, WTF? And poor bastard, after losing fifty-some years of his life to getting his ass kicked by lowly Cam on the Odyssey, Teal'c got a few more years sucked right out of him here by the Wraith. Still, while I do wish the skunk look in his hair has got to go, it was definitely good to see the big fella kicking ass and taking names all over again. He wasn't much of a "teacher" to Ronon as the episode would've led you to believe, but they certainly did feel like kindred comrades in combative arms. And considering I find Midway to be one of the best damn action episodes that Atlantis has ever done, that certainly is a good way for Teal'c to go out if this indeed is the last time we do get to see him...

Actually, what I liked most about Teal'c's visit to Atlantis was that he brought out some of the best in Samantha Carter for the first time since her arrival on the base. Amanda Tapping just hasn't been the same this season, as the writers have shoe-horned her into the corner of taking all of Dr. Weir's old roles and lines. Here though, you could tell that some of her old SG-1 self was back, even if it mostly consisted of just a smile and a head quibble when talking about how she liked it on the base. At the same time, it was sad that while Teal'c claimed that the entire expedition had taken respectfully to her command, the only real commanding she's done in this episode was to break up the fight we wanted to see between Ronon and Teal'c. Oh well, guess you can't win them all, as the writers just don't know what to do with Carter in a commander sort of role. Still, it was nice to see her give a friendly hug to her old friend, and it definitely was a nice gesture for Teal'c to do her such favour in the first place. I don't know, it all just gave me a brisk bask in that old SG-1 glow, that's all...

The rest of the episode outside of the Teal'c and Ronon interactions was decent, but nothing really to write home about. Colonel Sheppard and Dr. McKay only had token scenes of wiping out Wraith on the Midway station and sucking the air out of Todd's former lieutenant. There really wasn't much to report there, except McKay and his arrogance over his unhackable macro code seemed eerily like he was following in the same mistakes that the overconfident Lantians always did. It was nice to see Dr. Lee and Kavanaugh back, although the poor third pillar of the doctor by their side, we just knew he was a red skirt waiting to happen. And yeah, I guess the scenes on Midway station were a decent filler to sub in some extra time between Teal'c and Ronon action sequences, but none of it felt nearly as exciting as seeing Teal'c rip apart a Wraith neck with his bare hands. I mean really, what else can compare?...

Now, what I want to know is why the fuck the writers decided to blow up the Midway station, and from Dr. Kavanaugh's stupidity no less? I know Teal'c was back and all, but did this episode really have to be written like one of those old SG-1 ones where every time we develop some new technology, something goes wrong and we lose it all? McKay really was overconfident in his coding skills here, especially considering Todd proved himself to be just as competent if not moreso with his coding against the Replicators. It was understandable that the Midway station itself did not have an iris or force field over the Stargates, considering the macro forwards you between so many gates with really no chance to safely input a real GDO code. But c'mon already, why the hell does did McKay and Carter think it was a brilliant idea to lead the macro straight back to earth? Why not send the people from Midway station to the Beta or Gamma sites first, where a proper GDO can be used? Is earth suddenly replacing the Ancients in the universe with all their infinite stupidity? WTF?...

Meh, does it really matter though? We got a kickass episode out of it all, as Midway stands as not only a great action hour but one of the best episodes of the season to date. It was a welcome breath of fresh air after so many horrible second half season shows, and I for one would love a goddam sequel next year. And hell, if the writers never do finish off the Teal'c and Ronon one-on-one fight like we fanboys so often dream, then there's gonna be hell to pay. Or you know, I'd pay to see that fight, give or take a Sheppard style bet...

When I first heard of the synopsis of Midway, I was afraid that it would turn out to be a complete cop-out of trying to raise Atlantis' ratings by bringing in a familiar face. What we got though, was a great episode that reminded me not just of how The Pegasus Project was a great example of how a crossover episode should work...

"Yeah, I know. I've been so damn invisible online as of late. It's not like Atlantis has been bad or anything, I've just been lazy...

Okay, I stand corrected a bit. Midway was a good Atlantis episode, but The Kindred only made my positive side thanks to one man and one man alone...

It was no secret that Dr. Carson Beckett was returning for a guest role in the fourth season of Atlantis. Hell, didn't the writers and producers even put the man in the promos for the season or some shit like that? What was disappointing though, was that we did not get the real McCoy. This Carson Beckett was a clone, albeit with every single one of the original's memories since Trip Tucker stole his DNA. In a sense, the episode felt like a bit of a cop-out then, as alternate universe and different timeline characters always give me a sense of a cheap ratings grab by the big wigs, especially after they made such a huge mistake in killing off Beckett in the first place. On the other hand, it was just so good to see the Scottish doctor all over again, so much so that all can be easily forgiven. He and McKay easily were the heart and soul of this Atlantis team, and the series has just not been the same without them. Not until The Kindred at least, where even despite the lame ass excuse of a plotline to give Teyla some maternal shore leave, I still ended up having a soft spot for this show...

Alright, I'll admit that Teyla wasn't bad in this episode, showing a ton of concern for her child exactly like a mother should do. What I didn't like though, was all of her incessant whining and ranting and bitching over at Kanaan. I mean seriously, the guy has probably superhearing now, does he really need to listen to all this hormonal shit? First of all, why the fuck did Teyla fall for this loser in the first place? Not only does he look like a poor man's Ba'al, but he didn't even seem to have a personality before he was turned into a hybrid. I know that after Rachel's child is born in real life and after her character is 'rescued' from her maternity leave, she'll stick on the team in a vengeance sort of quest to get back her son and the father of her child. Meh, I can see it all coming, although I hesitate to do such because it normally ends up so generically cliche on Sci-Fi. Still, I'll give her credit where she does deserve it. She had some touching scenes when reunited with her leftover Athosians, and her disgust for Michael whenever the two of them met, certainly did remind me of my own so-called relationships from the past...

Sheppard didn't show much emotion in these two episodes and neither did Ronon, considering all that was going on around them. Nobody really seemed to give a true shit that Teyla was captured, rather preferring to mince words with Todd the Wraith over whether it was time to finally kill him or not. When it came to Dr. Beckett and all though, considering he was a clone, I can understand their reluctance to trust him and all. While Amanda Tapping did seem a bit too cold and distant in this episode for my liking, it did make sense that out of all characters, Sam would be the most objective about the situation, especially considering she never knew the real Dr. Beckett. Meanwhile, Sheppard was seeing it all from a tactical point of view until the very bitter end when he had to say goodbye to his old friend. And while after Midway, I was hoping for so much more from Ronon, at least the break-away hug he gave to the Scottish doctor was true props in a personal way...

The first part of Kindred was an episode that belonged to Teyla aboard Michael's ship more than anything else. It also was a boring episode, filled with her whining and yammering how she knew Kanaan was communicating with her over thousands of light-years, when really everyone knew it was Michael or some other Wraith from the getgo. What was even more disappointing, was that there was no real payoff for this kind of slow ass set-up of an episode. The Daedalus proved to be as incompetent as an Ori Ship in eliminating or disabling a target, sadly losing a bout to a Wraith cruiser of all pathetic warships. Meanwhile, what was the point of making all these Wraith and human hybrids if the writers are just going to skip the "big bad.. at first" syndrome effect, and make these villains fall for the same kind of nail clipper shit as a modern Jaffa would? I certainly hope Sheppard and co were battling human mercenaries more than anything else, because if they were hybrids, didn't these poor Athosian losers go down in a single hit or some shit like that? WTF?...

From the villain side of things, Michael did end up saving this episode, just like Michael Rosenbaum does on Smallville almost every single fucking week. Whether the half-Wraith was smelling Teyla's hair or laying the smackdown on Kanaan for losing his balls and wanting to free Teyla, Connor Trinneer proves that he is a great actor who really stands out on this show. On the other hand though, I think this episode also proved that it would've been so much more interesting to have had Michael as an ally of the SGA rather than the big bad. Todd with his sense of irony and humour definitely stole the spotlight with the few scenes he had, and I can't help but feel bad for Connor a bit that this kind of role could've easily been his. Still, why mince words when Michael even got to show off his awesome cockiness by standing up the cloned Doctor Beckett? Connor Trinneer provided a wealth of good scenes for a villain, and even though I feel he would've been better as a partial good guy in the end, I don't really have much to complain about. It's always good to see him back, provided we're not talking about the shitty ass episode Vengeance at least...

But the true star of the show was Dr. Beckett, as it's amazing just how much warmth and humanity he brings to the series by just his accent alone. It was strange having him have so many scenes next to Dr. Keller in The Kindred, considering the actor was just so much more emotional and so much more real feeling than Jennifer ever has felt. Then again, I can see just why the producers wanted Jewel Staite on the show, as any man with eyes would. Still, the series just has not been the same since Dr. Beckett stopped complaining about patients or refusing to listen to McKay's advice. It was all the little things that the good doc brought to the fold that have felt so lacking ever since he left. Hell, just the look on his poor face when he realized that not only was his real counterpart blown up in an explosion, but that Dr. Weir had died as well? It was heart-breaking, as the way the actor sold that moment simply felt so damn real. If anything, his slow walk and farewells on the way to the stasis chamber, could very well be the most poignant single scene in the entire fourth season of the show...

And it's not just Carson alone that makes this series feel so much more worth the wait. Beckett also brings out the best in Rodney McKay, as you can just tell how the both of them have bonded as true friends, both as characters and off the set. Rodney was just so broken up whenever he had a heart to heart talk with his old peer, as you could literally see the man's eyes sweltering as he revealed the truth that the SGA was not looking for Carson all along. McKay did and said everything in his power to protect his friend, as he simply did not care if Beckett was a clone or not, he just wanted the best and only true friend he's ever had in his life come back to him. I don't know if Rodney even had a single humourous line in all of The Kindred, but did it really matter when his entire performance was so damn emotional? He had the least amount of lines to say in the farewell speeches to Beckett at the end, simply because he refused to believe that this was truly the end. You could see the pain in his eyes, of not just losing his best friend once but twice. That alone redefines the meaning of "The Kindred" to me, more than Michael and Teyla and that shitty ass Ba'al wannabe ever could off to the side...

I do hope this isn't the last of Dr. Carson Beckett that we see, as all the scenes between him and Dr. Keller proved without a shadow of a doubt that while she's certainly easier on the eyes, Dr. Beckett really was the heart and soul of this goddam series. There's just something about his charm and innocence that simply cannot be replaced, and I really do hope the writers have realized what kind of huge mistake they made in killing him off for whatever reasons they may have had. The Kindred, like many second and third season episodes, was a total piece of shit when objectively evaluated from a plot and story arc point of view. But just like back in the good ol' days when I loved even most of the shittiest ass episodes, Dr. Carson Beckett and Dr. Rodney McKay made every hour feel like it had some sort of importance...

Sorry to steal a line from the latest shitty ass episode of Lost from this past week, but...

"The Last Man turned out to be the last episode of Stargate Atlantis for the season...

When I first heard the premise of Colonel John Sheppard being sent back to the future some 48 000 years without the use of a DeLorean, I had a bad feeling that the writers would jump the holographic shark and just have fun killing off all the characters. While the latter did come true, I was pleasantly surprised that the episode made a lot of sense in the context we were given. There were definitely epic and heroic moments littered throughout the hour, with Colonel Carter and Ronon providing key sacrifices, although the episode never does explain how Michael was able to manufacture or conquer so many damn Wraith Hive ships in so little time. But whatever, small details...

The Last Man painted an interesting landscape of a future for the SGA mission, in which it seems earth really has fucked over the Pegasus Galaxy as if it were its own private Middle East. I mean, I can understand why the SGC would do whatever it takes to make the Milky Way Galaxy as safe for us as possible, considering we were under constant threat and direct peril from enemies all around us. But the Wraith in the Pegasus Galaxy would probably never reach earth in a dozen lifetimes, and even if they did, they'd be a minimal threat to our Ancient defenses and Asgard technology of even the present, as long as they don't come in overwhelming numbers that is...

But alas, we royally did fuck up the Pegasus galaxy's balance, simply because we assumed that saving the people from being feasted upon by the Wraith was the right thing to do. What has happened since then? We woke up all the Wraith, causing a civil war with horrible collateral damage. We turned the Asuran Replicators off of auto-pilot, enough so that they started massacring all human life in the entire galaxy. And now thanks to Dr. Beckett's humanitarian efforts in re-humanizing the Wraith, we produced the new dictator known as Michael who apparently kicks us out of the promised land of Atlantis in the next 25 or so years. Wow, did that "expedition" to the Pegasus Galaxy sure turn out wrong...

But meh, whatever, I don't watch Stargate Atlantis for its political parallels. I watch it for good comedy, good characterization, and lots of lots of big ass explosions. The key to The Last Man was that we had here John Sheppard with Rodney McKay, albeit a much older version of the latter, proving once again just where the heart and soul of this series really lies. Whether the Rodney hologram was calling his creator the "great" McKay, or bitching that for some odd reason, Lantian solar panels (unless earth brought them along) can barely power a few little golf carts, how the fuck couldn't I have found The Last Man to be the last great episode of the season? And c'mon, you gotta admit, getting sent forty eight thousand years into the future in a blink of an eye is pretty "cool" if you think about, cooler than dating a supermodel in both mine and McKay's eyes, apparently...

The strength of this episode was entirely in David Hewlett's and Joe Flanigan's fate, and they certainly made the most of it. This was one of Sheppard's best episodes since at least Doppelganger, especially with his reactions to all the demises of his trusted friends. And like always, his banter with McKay has always been the highlight of the show. I got quite a few unexpected chuckles from this episode, whether they were debating over the badassness of sand storms, or Rodney putting Sheppard down as a "young man". David Hewlett himself had a gut-wrenching look on his face the entire time through, first appearing so damn relieved to see that Sheppard was indeed alive, and then so heart-broken when he had to reveal all the horrible news that had transpired. I don't know, I guess what made The Last Man such a memorable episode for me, was simply that I could really relate to everything that both Sheppard and McKay seemed to have felt the entire hour through...

It was an episode full of decent guest spots, with Zelenka having a token, one-second role and Teyla providing a lovely dead body in the middle of a room. Connor Trinneer once again proved to be a damn good villain, although lifting the head of a Wraith Queen over his own was a bit too much. The key introduction though was that of Richard Woolsey as the new leader of the Atlantis expedition. I'm personally interested in seeing where the writers take this next season, especially after having squandered Amanda Tapping's talents for the past year. But the problem is, how the fuck can I ever take Robert Picardo serious looking like that? Why the hell did they get rid of his suit and everything, when now he looks like the Emergency Medical Hologram for the goddam base...

"Please state the nature of your Pegasus Emergency." Did his Voyager self suddenly switch roles with Dr. McKay here or some shit like that? Because somehow, I can picture Woolsey just reiterating that line over and over again, as soon as the SGA team figures out how to unleash the Borg on the poor hapless Pegasus populations too...

Amanda Tapping wasn't exactly wasted in The Last Man, but she could've had a better role as The Last Woman on the Phoenix ship. To be honest, hit and run strategies when you have such overpowered weapons are not a bad idea (so, about five beam hits take out an Ori mothership, two or three are needed for a shitty ass Asuran Aurora warship, and now just three shots are enough for an entire Wraith Hive ship? WTF?), but why the hell would she ever try to get to the ambush planet before the Wraith did? It's not like the Wraith have no shields in hyperdrive to take advantage of, so why not appear somewhere else in the damn system first, away from any potential threats, just in case? WTF?...

Bizarro tactics aside though, it was sort of emotional to see everyone's favourite Colonel Carter literally go down in a blaze of flaming Phoenix glory there. Like I said, she's been wasted as leader of the Atlantis expedition, but she's always been a true hero at heart. Seeing her sacrifice herself like she did, was definitely Amanda Tapping's finest moment on all of Stargate Atlantis. Sad to think though, that it may be one of her last...

Ronon's demise was a bit unpredictable, in the sense that he went down hand in hand, fighting side by side a Wraith of all beings. But apparently, he can relate to Todd as much as he ever could with Teal'c, as the "indeed" moment between the two of them seemed to indicate. If anything, not only did Ronon's death have a very impactful and badass atmosphere to it all, but it also gave hope that maybe relations between the Wraith and humanity can be salvaged if only a suitable, alternative food source could be found for them. The Wraith are noble to those who they deem equals, and Todd definitely seems to have respect for Ronon and the SGA team and vice versa...

Earth ruined the balance of power in the Pegasus Galaxy and have been trying to fix the problem as if they were still dealing with the Goa'uld. As in, pure evil beings akin to a "thousand Hitlers", as Daniel Jackson once put it. But the Wraith are not exactly evil per say, but rather slaves to their own pride, honour and hunger. Sadly, making them become Michael's hybrids would solve all these issues if only Michael wasn't a complete asshole in taking over the galaxy and wiping out the weak with eugenics. Oh well, guess you can't win them all...

And I don't think we completely won out with The Last Man either. As much as I loved every single moment of Rodney telling Sheppard about his glory days with Dr. Keller, or having John get back at his "glitch" by claiming the old McKay had no hair to speak of, the episode was still tainted with a forced cliffhanger near the end. Why did the writers have to ruin the scope and bleak atmosphere of the hour, with such a lame finish with a building collapsing on top of the crew? Sure, now we may question whether Major Lorne will ever become the general he was in the previous timeline, but do we honestly think anything truly wrong would have happened to the rest of the cast and crew? Except that Teyla will now have to play dead in another unsterilized room, but that's about the only real difference I think...

Even so, even after leaving such a bad final taste in my mouth, I still felt that The Last Man was a great episode to finish off the season with, even though it had the last plotline synopsis that I'd ever consider to be good...

Rodney McKay and John Sheppard truly are the stars and spotlights of the show. Whether the two of them are bantering in their 30's, bitching at one another in their 40's, or bickering like an old couple twenty five years down the road, I'd watch this series just for them...

As long as those two are still on the show, or at least live on as snarky, sarcastic, emergency Pegasus holograms?...

Then I'll say, we'd still at least have twenty five more good years of Stargate Atlantis to go...