Just imagine I had watched and posted this last night instead of tonight.

[timepiececlock]

Stargate: Atlantis

What a wonderful characterbuilding episode! Especially for McKay and Sheppard, but Teyla shone as well. I am kind of ambivalent about Ronan's new character info because, well, he's turning out to be exactly the kind of guy I expected him to be. In some cases I wish his character's development would be more surprising-- like D'Argo on Farscape, who is an angry long-haired TALL badass, but who also likes to play musical instruments and is an uber romantic at heart. Not that I want Ronan to be D'Argo, because I don't-- D'Argo is irreplacable (and also your daddy!)--- but I'd like that same sort of surprise from him. Something unexpected to make him more interesting.

But anyway, onto the Sheppard and McKay stuff, which was great this episode. Now, I'm not a slash fan and I don't really look at the characters through that filter, so I'm probably not going to be as gushy about this as some people on my flist. But nevertheless, I loved this.

I loved Sheppard yet again pointing out "Hey, I'm not an idiot you know just because I fly big, fast machines and carry big, scary weapons." I like that Sheppard's never bragging in the least about his intelligence and most of the time is content to let people assume what they will about him... but when directly challenged Sheppards not above showing a science snob that flying big, fast machines and carrying big, scary weapons doesn't indicate a particular lack[ing?] on his part.

I loved that he gets roped into the geek team promptly afterward, even though McKay will probably forget again by next month and relapse into assuming he's stupid.

I loved how hot Sheppard looked in this episode. Really, he looked hot. Most of the time I'm kind of "yeah sure" about his hotness-- I think he's good looking but he's not my Johnny Depp or my Gavin Rossdale or my Heath Ledger, if you follow. But tonight, fuck yeah, he was hot in this episode.

I love, writing wise, that the trick didn't work and that McKay has to earn their trust back. I love that they were all willing to trust him that much, and that Sheppard was willing to believe in him that much and with Sheppard came the rest... and that it didn't work. And more than just failing the experiment, McKay's pride almost got them killed. For Sheppard I think that stings a lot more than unfortunate science. Sheppard's not angry that it didn't work, he's angry that it didn't work and he still trusted McKay and McKay, through his arrogance, failed to be worthy of that trust.

But back to Teyla!

... That was cool. She was all politician-y and then all wing-man-y and then all knife-to-the-throat-leader-y. This just emphasizes something I've thought about for a while: I like Teyla so much more when she's not being stifled by the Atlantis crew. Not that I'd want her to leave them or anything, but that I don't think they let her character shine when she's in the group as much as they let the others shine.

Comments

[trinityofone.livejournal.com]

I wasn't as crazy about this episode as a lot of people on my friends list have been. I liked a lot of the little character moments--mostly, the two scenes about trust with John and Rodney--but overall I thought the episode suffered from being...unsubtle, I guess. I mean, did you doubt for a second that the whole thing was (almost quite literally) going to blow up in McKay's face? And he was just so arrogant and so over-the-top--and with McKay, that's a lot of arrogance you need to have going for it to seem like overkill.

But yeah, Sheppard was really hot in this episode. ;-)

[rashaka.livejournal.com]

Hmm...yes. The episode was somewhat predictable. But then I actually think most Stargate episodes are predictable, so... ::shrug:: I agree though, that more subtlety would have made it better.

I think I like it so much because episodes with character moments with Sheppard don't happen often. He's not a very expressive guy, you know? So the ones that deal with his characterization always appeal a little extra to me. The first episode of season 2 and this episode have both given us more than we typically get, so I credit them with extra love from me.

What did you think of the Teyla/Ronan subplot?

[trinityofone.livejournal.com]

episodes with character moments with Sheppard don't happen often. He's not a very expressive guy, you know?

Yeah, that's definitely true--and that's definitely been one of the things that's surprised me about SGA and Sheppard's character. Because he is such an enigma and he is so...so blank, yet he is not the blank of a person who's all surface, with nothing going on underneath, he's the blank of a well-constructed façade with stuff surging under there. I mean, I'm surprised: with what little the writers have given us, he should be bland and boring, but he's anything but. I mean, think about "Home"--that is one fucked up fantasy he (mostly) constructs for himself. Details like that make you really want to know what's going on under all that hair. I just hope the writers are actually going someplace with all these hints.

What did you think of the Teyla/Ronan subplot?

Meh. I liked Teyla a lot--that's another thing that's surprised me about SGA, how much I like Teyla--but Ronon (I am still SO confused about the spelling of that) seemed less there to me than he did last week--it was like backsliding, almost. It's funny that I feel like I got a much better indication of who he was from his interactions with the team (and the great "do you need it to be an order?" scene) than I did from his own subplot.

[rashaka.livejournal.com]

I mean, think about "Home"--that is one fucked up fantasy he (mostly) constructs for himself. Details like that make you really want to know what's going on under all that hair.

When they showed that it was a fantasy, I was suprised because he'd went that long and not shone any reaction of disbelief. He was in the party for what I guess was supposed to be several minutes at least (don't remember, maybe more), and then just casually brought it up in conversation that none of this was real cause those guys were both dead. He seems very...soldiery in the sense that you wonder if he ever really relaxes, or if his relaxation is just a facade and if ordered, he could grab a gun right now and go hunting through the city for alien wraith. He might make an unhappy face, but he could still do it.

In the first episode I was surprised when he admitted to being really worried that everyone and Elizabeth (or Elizabeth and everyone?) had died with the wraith attack before the Dedlass (sp?)
got there, because although of course it makes sense that yeah he'd be worried-- but he just doesn't usually give off that feeling. Or any feelings. He's like this easy, likeable dude you can have a beer with, but after 5 years of having beers with him you'll look across the table and realize you don't really know this guy at ALL.


I'm very meh about Ronan/Ronon's character too. He seems to be pretty uninteresting to me so far. Just doesn't grab me.

Now let's see... just for fun of speculation... if *I* were a writer and I were going to introduce a new character and make him badass, I'd pick someone who didn't look badass. Someone skinny, and small, and lithe/agile but not really built. And I'd make him shy, and awkward, and kind of a dweeb. And then I'd say he's really a genius assissin with very trained skills like aiming and trap-setting. And he might not even be really consciously aware of how dangerous he is, because most of his badassness comes from brainwashing-style training, and he just sort of does whatever comes instinctually to survive. But because he's been a runner and had to survive on his own he's skinny because he's half-starved and awkward and dorky because he's had limited interaction with anyone but the wraith for several years, and basically he's a mess, but he's really scarily good at shooting and aiming things and scarily good at movements that require great agility and dexterity. Like... like a half-starved circus contortionist who was once trained to assassinate people (as a teenager, perhaps, which he no longer is) but due to the shitty circumstances of his planet being blown up he's had to make due and as such is kind of weird and full of idiosyncratic behavior and little ticks. And he starts easily, drawing a weapon at almost anything that moves. He wouldn't *be* a circus contortionist, of course, but he'd move like one, I mean.

Hm. Rereading that, it makes him sound like River from Firefly. That wasn't really my intention-- I'm thinking awkward and weird and of normal intentillenge, not psychic or crazy or genius, and not necessarily able to beat people up like she does in the movie trailer, but, say, able to climb on their back and stab them in the neck or something.

That's how I'd have done a new guy.