SGA 218 "Michael"

[thegrrrl2002]

I liked this ep. A lot. It was dark, it was unsettling, and our heroes weren't very heroic at all, were they? I love the way the plot unfolded, and I wish I hadn't been spoiled for this one. Unfortunately, the summary on the main page at Gateworld gave the wraith thing away. But I'm sure I would have suspect it within the first ten minutes, though.

Kudos to Connor Trinneer for the fabulous performance. My objectivity may be clouded by the fact that I totally adore him. Trip! You're so damn cute. I loved the sparring scene between him and Teyla. Michael seemed to take great delight in actually being able to do the moves, and the little laugh when he blocked Teyla's attack was just lovely. And when he found out who he was, that was a chilling scene, especially when we hear Sheppard snarl, "we'll call you Mike".

I thought everyone was great in this. I loved Sheppard's coldness and Ronon's aggressiveness. Their "just shake the man's hand" scene was tense, I loved JF's delivery of that line. Rodney didn't have a large role in this ep, which made sense, and what little he had fit perfectly into the story. Such a terrible, terrible liar. The continuity makes me feel all tingly. And Teyla, she was fabulous. Her sympathy for Michael says a lot about her character--she was able to overcome her hatred for the Wraith in general, and was able to see and accept the human being inside of this particular one. Ronon was unable to do that, and it shows her maturity over Ronon's impulsiveness. Fitting reactions for both characters. Carson was lovely in this, too, so disturbed over what he had done.

Weir was a bit of a puzzle to me here. I wish I had seen more of what led her to the decision to test this drug on a prisoner. As for it being entirely her responsibility--doesn't she answer to someone back on Earth? Maybe the president? I would think that someone else ultimately approved this, obviously on her recommendation, but still--I dunno. It would have worked better for me if they were still entirely cut off from Earth, and a little more desperate for survival. Maybe if the Wraith threat had been a little more imminent this ep wouldn't have seemed so jarring. Although, with the Genii aware of Atlantis's continued existence, their secret isn't exactly safe anymore.

Still, I like the moral questions it raised. I wonder if any of them knew what to expect once the drug took hold--I'd like to think no one suspected that a genuine, seemingly normal young man would emerge. As for the science, hey, I can handwave with the best of them. I already buy that they walk through wormholes to visit other planets, so their wacky retro-virus biology doesn't bother me.

I'm eager to see the next two eps--I hope the dark tone continues.

Comments

[jenlev.livejournal.com]

*g* i love how they're developing the show and the characters.