SGA "The Intruder" Thoughts

[thegrrrl2002]

First of all--GIP!! Look at the wonderful icon mmmchelle made! It makes me giggle every damn time I look at it.

This ep made me giggle too. And squee. And slap my forehead in disbelief.



Okay, first of all, the opening scene with Sheppard and Weir--Worst Exposition Scene Ever. I mean, really, could it be any clunkier? Let's spoonfeed the viewers everything thing they need to know to pick up the story from here. Man, they could have just done a voiceover and had done with it! Hell, even I know better than to start stories out like that. Bad writers! Bad!

But you know, even that didn't matter too much, because I loved this ep. Oh how I love my gay, geeky show. It was the cliche to end all cliches, it's been done a million times before, but I'm a big ole geeky dork and will never tire of it, sort of like how I'll never tire of Aliens Made Them Do It fic. It's that whole "trapped in a small space with things going very wrong" storyline that I just adore. An episode focusing on my favorite characters doing my favorite kind of geeky things. And, even more conveniently, all of the extraneous people on the ship are confined to quarters so that they don't get in the way of my favorite characters. Shameless, yet squeeful at the same time. This way I got loads of John and Rodney in almost every single scene. Not to mention Rodney's nipples. And his ass. I think they need to get separate billing. (There's going to be some serious screencapping going on of this ep, believe me).

But okay, the show. Virus in the ship's computer. Wraith virus, actually. I can buy that. It's a tired storyline, but I thought it was pretty nicely done. It was actually pretty damn creepy watching Ingraham Lindstrom die. (thank you, coreopsis) (Dr. Lindstrom, BTW, was the original name of McKay's character, wasn't it?) That scene was genuinely intense, especially since we watched Rodney witness the whole thing. His horror was palpable. The resolution to the problem --rebooting (how cute is it that Sheppard does the same thing with his laptop?), and then rebooting again, and then cussing and futzing and then rebooting again--hell, I can't help myself, it was fun to watch. No genuine tension, because obviously we are not going to lose the Daedalus, or Weir, or Sheppard, or McKay, or Caldwell.

There were lots of fun moments, too, like Sheppard getting a little freaked out about Hermiod (he's naked!) along with that whole "ten fingers and I'll check the rest later" moment. (Rodney was definitely going to help out with that part). Not to mention the slashy moments, (touchies!! They touched!! Or more like: Rodney pawed John!! OMG!). Plus they got to stare into each other's eyes in the bay, and then get shut up in an fighter together, and, if that wasn't enough fun, Rodney gets taken for a ride when Sheppard goes out to shoot down the rogue fighter. Have I mentioned how much I love this show?

By the way, what happened to Novak? Did she remain back on Atlantis?

It was frustrating, though, that the earth-based SGC part of the storyline got scant attention. Finally getting back to earth, after thinking they'd never see it again, and we don't get to see their reactions? Not to mention that the wisdom of taking all the senior staff off of Atlantis for a month is rather questionable. (Yeah, we're pretty sure the Wraith won't bother us for a while...) And the storylines from the SGC--god, Weir gets one good scene at that briefing with General Landry, and then it's back to the ole lovelife storyline, which seems to be the only kind of personal story the writers can think of for women on Stargate. It's sad, really. I hate to break this to them, but women are not defined by their romantic involvements. Really, they're not. If they wanted to tell us a little more about what kind of person Weir is, there are all kinds of ways to do it that don't involve romance. The whole thing was just painfully bad.

In sharp contrast, we get a wonderful scene with Sheppard visiting Ford's cousin, presumably breaking the news to her that Ford is MIA. JF plays this scene beautifully, you can just see the pain and the weight of his responsibility in his face. The bit about "misplaced trust" was heartbreaking. I'm glad Ford isn't being totally forgotten, and that there are lingering consequences to people's actions.

I'm still sulking that we didn't get to see Rodney enjoying the wonders of being back on Earth. But we did get to see him being smart and mostly saving the day on the Daedalus. This is classic Rodney, snarky and whiny and a little freaked out by it all. I love that it was Sheppard at the end who realized that there was one computer left for the virus to hide in (I'm not going to go into the technical silliness of all that, because, come on, this is Stargate. Of course it's technically silly!). There's always a teamwork aspect to solving problems on Atlantis, and I appreciate that, a lot.

Plus John told Rodney that he did a good job on the fighter. *g* I so love when John teases Rodney. Especially about 'taking the stick'.

Last but not least, when the team arrived back in Atlantis, I thought it was incredibly sweet how happy Teyla was to see everyone. And my, she was acting awfully protective of Weir. Are Radek and Teyla going to have to duke it out over Weir? I'm guessing Radek isn't much of a fighter. But he's wily!

So, overall: dopy plot, but I had so much fun watching John and Rodney, that it just didn't matter. Hell, I'm easy.

Comments

[spubba.livejournal.com]

The whole episode was so "bleh" to me, I'm really hoping next week will be better. You touched on all the things that I didn't like about it.

But nipples! We'll always have the nipples!

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

::watches icon::

Oh yes. The nipples. They're so fabulous, aren't they?

My squee is on overdrive, so I found the ep to be ridiculously enjoyable. Even though the backstory aspects of it, like you said, were totally neglected. It was very frustrating. I would have loved to have seen an entire ep based on their time back on earth, but that wouldn't have action, adventure, and things blowing up, oh my!

::sighs::

[thepouncer.livejournal.com]

That opening scene made me do about ten double takes because it was so clunky. Ugh. I managed to get into the sheer cliched beauty of the virus plot, though. And I think Elizabeth is better off without Simon and his awful hair. Radek is much better for her, really.

[shetiger.livejournal.com]

And I think Elizabeth is better off without Simon and his awful hair.

OMG what did they do to him? He looked awful.

Zelenka looked good, though.

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

She deserves both Teyla AND Radek.

And why was she so shocked that Simon had moved on? Didn't she tell him to back in "Letters"? I mean, I'm sure it still hurts, but should it have been such a surprise?

[sef1029.livejournal.com]

It wasn't perfect, but I felt the emotional "gotcha"...I'm now officially an SGA fan.

Hasn't anyone done the "protect the penis" icon yet? Hee!

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

I'm now officially an SGA fan.

Yay! *g*

It's impossible to resist, even with hokey storylines. Especially if you're into the whole Rodney thing. And the John thing. Or the Rodney/John thing.

I think John should have been the one protecting Rodney's ..er..assets. *g*

[coreopsis.livejournal.com]

It was actually pretty damn creepy watching Ingraham die.
Which one was that? It was Lindstrom that got sucked out the airlock, right?

Are Radek and Teyla going to have to duke it out over Weir? I'm guessing Radek isn't much of a fighter. But he's wily!
heee. Yes, and when they do, I wanna see it. *g*

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

Oh duh, thank you, it was Lindstrom. My bad.

[jenlev.livejournal.com]

i was very struck by john talking about ford. and how already caldwell seemed to be seeing them all in a different light.

thank you for you review/recap. and yeah for john asking rodney to "take the stick". bwahaha!

ps. my money's on radek. ;)

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

That bit with John about Ford was really unexpected, for me at least. Not sure why. But it was lovely.

I'm finding Caldwell's role very interesting. I like that he's not overshadowing the rest of the cast. He's sort of in the background, but yet still very *there*, with a strong presence. It will be interesting to see where they go with him.

[sp23.livejournal.com]

I just got the biggest kick that McKay even snips at an Asgard! Hee. That's my genius.

And ohmigod, Hermiod muttering so crabbily. Can we keep him, please?

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

I think Hermiod is fabulous. And I love that McKay isn't impressed by *anyone*. Or anything. *g*

[miera-c.livejournal.com]

Are Radek and Teyla going to have to duke it out over Weir?

I was thinking that myself. Then I just shook my head because clearly I've arrived at the Hopeless stage of fannishness.

[mmmchelle.livejournal.com]

No, no, that's not hopeless at all. I know because I thought the same thing. /g/ I love Teyla being protective of Elizabeth. I love it a lot, and she so wanted details about Elizabeth's personal life. I'm betting she was really happy Simon didn't come to Atlantis.

[nightsister.livejournal.com]

I hope they didn't put in that whole sequence with Simon to show that Elizabeth is now "available," although I do like the idea of Radek and Teyla fighting each other over Weir's affection attention. :)

And an Asgard on the Daedalus? Rodney's SO not impressed. ;) I love how he considers Hermiod to be just another colleague. An equal. And yet John is so uneasy about the whole "alien" thing. It just reinforces the fact that Sheppard is still very new to the Stargate world, and to me, it made me realize that we as an audience have that advantage over him, because the Asgard and the SGC are so familiar to us. It's like seeing the old through new eyes.

But seriously. How much do you want to bet that the Daedalus computers are running on Windows? ;)

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

Who knows why they decided we needed that scene with Simon. I think they think it's character development.

I really loved John's reaction to Hermiod. That was a wonderful moment. And like you said, it does remind us that this is all new to John. I really wish we could have seen what it was like for them to explain the whole Stargate thing in the first place, back in "The Rising".

How much do you want to bet that the Daedalus computers are running on Windows? ;)

Probably Windows 95. *g*

[mmmchelle.livejournal.com]

I'd forgotten about Lindstrom, although at the time I turned to the spouse and said, "how many people does Rodney have to watch die? The man is going to have a break down."

The Ford stuff was really good, and JF handled the scene well. I agree with you too about Weir.

And the eyefucking in the bay made me very happy.

And John was so proud of the fact that Rodney was using the same strategy to fix the problem that John used.

They were very cute together, and now I really am going to bed.

[sherrold.livejournal.com]

How sad is it that I read that They were very cute together, and now I really am going to bed. as They were very cute together, and now they really are going to bed.

Awww, but they were cute.

[destina.livejournal.com]

Right now, I can't stop grinning about the cranky, irritable, curses-under-his-breath Asgard! I love him! *g*

It was actually pretty damn creepy watching Ingraham Lindstrom die.

Yes, indeed it was. And DH does Face of Doom very well; he really has that grief thing down. Seriously, tho, it's disconcerting, how many people he's watched die. Especially awful when they are shouting HELP ME in your face, and there's nothing to be done. Yikes.

Plus they got to stare into each other's eyes in the bay,

Erm. I almost dread to say it, but I did have a bit of an Abyss 'and then sparks flew' moment, there. That was, huh. You know. *waves hand vaguely rather than going on about it* *g*

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

Hermiod is too much fun. And I love how unimpressed Rodney is by him.

I did have a bit of an Abyss 'and then sparks flew' moment, there.

LOL! There were sparks all right. That was a fabulous moment. All their moments together were fabulous. This ep really made me happy. *g*

[kma.livejournal.com]

You forgot John telling Rodney to be quiet! When I heard that, I turned to my sorta-fannish male friend who was over to be pimped into SGA, and went - "Well, he can be quiet if his mouth is occupied!" And my friend agreed! By the end of the eppy he was starting to comment on the McSheppiness. Another innocent mind corrupted!

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

It wasn't exactly subtle, was it? *g* Definitely sparkage.

I liked John telling Rodney to be quiet, too. He did it so nicely, yet firmly. And Rodney knew he was right, even though he got sulky.

They're so damn cute together.

[clarkangel.livejournal.com]

I totally squeed about this ep. I liked the beginning. The writing of it, not so much, but I loved watching Joe and Torri. They played it well. I love his pride at his promotion *I dont' think HE ever expected to get it either. Although given what JF said in the sci fi special a few weeks ago, apparently it's more getting Lt.Col back*

I liked his remark about wondering if he'd ever get back to Earth and the it just wasn't the same for either of them. And back to the promotion thing. Weir teasing Shep and saying that remark about "the people who's opinion matter" And Shep's reaction. I think he knows she had a hand in it now and he's not gonna ask.

I loved Caldwell cause we know since he couldn't get WEir's job he NOW wants Shep's job. YET...he treated Shep the same as he did on SIEGE 3 and followed his ideas and listened to him. Very interesting set up for later. Especially since I think Shep is gonna be VERY Loyal to Weir, especially more so now, as the eps continue and Caldwell shows his true colors.

I loved The McSHEP. It was awesome. Joe and DH are just so good together. They just click on every single level. I loved the banter and them working together. I love how AGAIN this ep showed that either of them can come up with something and the other will just fall into it. For SIEGE and INTRUDER it's been really shown how John believes in Rodney. I mean REALLY set up. John comes up with these ideas that he needs Rodney to implement and he just expects Rodney to be able to do so, without question. It's very cool and this ep also showed Caldwell...again..how SGA works as a TEAM unit and how they are there for each other.

I loved Shep visiting Ford's cousin but dang..she heaped more guilt on the man. What up with that? Why would the trust be misplace? ::bad flashback to bitchy Teyla in Letters. I still haven't forgotten her *Too much I fear* BS towards Shep who was the ONLY person to defend/support her always:: Bah. Great scene though and JF played it so well. He's so very very expressive.

Love Hermiod snarky with Rodney.
loved John's *naked* remark.

Loved teh CHESS thing. I think There will be McShep chess playing canon in the future. LOL

I loved John teasing Rodney in the 302 but it's always affectionate and, again, he knows how to handle Rodney. AND he told him he did great. Considering Rodney just sat there and kinda did a flip out...quietly..though...I thought it was a great thing for Shep to say. They so get each other. LOL

I love Zelenka at the end. Teyla actually kind of annoyed me, not sure why.

I didn't like the Simon and Weir stuff. She told him to move on. He did. One..it made Weir look off to act like she did and Simon a dog not to mention it to her immediately. They could have skipped that and had a scene of Rodney and John at a pizza parlor. Heeee

Wonder what new items John and Rodney brought back from Earth.

Next weeks ep looks pretty good. We'll see how Jason Momoa does.

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

Yes, pretty much to everything you said. *g* Although I can understand Ford's cousin being upset enough to lash out at John--it wasn't a personal insult, just anguish and grief and I thought that all played out very nicely. Poor John is going to need a lot of comforting.

I didn't like the Simon /Weir stuff either. It was so trite. Her character deserves better storylines. After everything she's been through on Atlantis, all the decisions she's had to make, the conflicts, and losing members of her team--there's so much to explore there, and the end up with some awful crap about her love life.

I'm looking forward to next week--we finally get to see what this new character is all about.

[drlense.livejournal.com]

I think this is why Atlantis is so enjoyable to me. Of course the technical stuff is total bs. Of course the plots themselves are a little old. Still, they manage to pull it off in a totally enjoyable way, with stuff I really wanted to see. Shepperd and McKay! Together! Flying a jet!! Nipples! Oxygen masks! And I liked the flashback scenes... I think they prevented the episode from being even the littlest bit boring. Although Carson should have been wearing a tie in his. I hate when costume people substitute "trendy" for "realism".

There was some real Weir/Zelenka moments there at the end! Where she's talking about leaving old friends, or whatever, and then the camera pans to Zelenka coming in... hoo boy!!!

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

That's just it, the show is just so damn entertaining. I'm totally invested in the characters, and not just Rodney and John, either. Although that's certainly a big part of it. *g* It's just so damn much fun.

I totally agree they were hinting around with the Zelenka thing. The timing was just too convienent. ::nods::

[rangerfan1994.livejournal.com]

Rodney touched John! NO! When?
I missed it. :-( Did I look away at the wrong moment?
*wails*

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

It was when Rodney shoos John out of the way of the computer console, just before John said that rebooting is what he does when his computer is acting up:



It goes by pretty quickly. But it's a definite touch. *g*

[rivier.livejournal.com]

Heh! See, because I'm Mz Grouch this week, I saw more of the things that made me go Meh, and less of the slasj. At the same time as totally enjoying most of this ep, for mosrt of the reasons you give? I must be... cracked, or something. See, even the innuendo potential of 'taking the stick' passed me by first time! I think i need some more sleep, then to rewatch. Or have some ret-conning fic written for me, about how John's all uptight because of the Ford thing and then the promotion thing and then being stuck for three weeks on a small ship with lots of surveillance and Colonel Daddyo eyeing him all the time and no chance for covert naughty stuff in corners with Rodney who's looking unnaturally hot wince the Wraith went away...

[thegrrrl2002.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'm always full of the goofy squee. And I just love the way John just totally trusts Rodney during all of this.

There is just so much potential ficcy stuff with this ep, but of course I decide to start a post-siege fic instead. Duh. I is behind the times.

[aizjanika.livejournal.com]

I'm still sulking that we didn't get to see Rodney enjoying the wonders of being back on Earth.

That annoyed me too. Otherwise, this was a fun episode for all the reasons you said.

[tinny]

I really have nothing to add, you said it all. They were sooo cute together! *squee*

along with that whole "ten fingers and I'll check the rest later" moment

I made an icon for that (which I just posted), because I already loved that scene when I saw it in the season 2 trailer. :)