Stargate: Atlantis 3.10: "The Return: Part I"
Written by Martin Gero
Directed by Brad Turner
If someone had told me in the middle of this 10-episode stretch that I would be far more satisfied with the “SGA” mid-season cliffhanger than the “SG-1” installment, I would have laughed hysterically. After all, the ninth season of “SG-1” had beaten the pants off of the second season of “SGA”, and the trend had been continuing into this summer’s material. But then a funny thing happened after the slow start: “SGA” started getting good again.
I still think that the character development and exploration could be better, but this episode tossed aside the lure of huge explosions and plot twists to tell a relatively simple story: the Ancients return and want their city back. Team Atlantis is sent packing, with Woolsey (from the IOA) and General O’Neill acting as liaisons to the Ancients. Much time is spent on the impact of this decision on Team Atlantis, and each character must decide how to move on (if, indeed, they can).
In short, it takes the approach used with Weir in “The Real World” and applies similar logic to the entire crew. What happens when the mission is over? Well, typically, the team doesn’t take it very well, especially after everything they’ve seen and done. It’s not surprising that this comes on the heels of McKay’s success with the Intergalactic Gate System, and not just because it then provides an interesting consequence should Atlantis be lost. McKay is flush with success, only to find his expertise shoved off on something far less challenging.
What surprises me, especially from the perspective of the “Stargate” franchise as a whole, is the methodical exploration of each character’s psychology. While Ronon and Teyla get shorted a bit, as if they were one character all of a sudden, they respond in a fairly logical fashion. They look for the next best ally to keep fighting. Enter the Genii, paying off that relationship as reinforced in “Common Ground”.
I would get how each character responded in a manner consistent with their established personalities, and explore each nuance and relationship in context, but that would ruin the fun. The writers simply take the time needed to play out the scenario correctly. They could have jumped back and forth to the fight at Atlantis, but that wasn’t where the story was. The story was the process of loss, the difficulties of moving on, the choice to defy authority. In that final act, I couldn’t help but think of a particular scene from “Star Trek III”, a huge smile on my face.
Looking back on the first half of the season, the average for “SGA” is coming in at 7.1, which is slightly above average. What’s significant, however, is that the average would have been higher, had a couple of early season episodes been left out of the mix. “Irresistible” alone was a big hit in the negative column. If more episodes are like the run since “Progeny” come along in the second half, the series might finally overcome the sophomore slump of the second season.
(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”. Recent episodes cover the “Stargate: Atlantis”, so it might be something of interest. Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 3/4
Final Rating: 9/10
Directed by Brad Turner
If someone had told me in the middle of this 10-episode stretch that I would be far more satisfied with the “SGA” mid-season cliffhanger than the “SG-1” installment, I would have laughed hysterically. After all, the ninth season of “SG-1” had beaten the pants off of the second season of “SGA”, and the trend had been continuing into this summer’s material. But then a funny thing happened after the slow start: “SGA” started getting good again.
I still think that the character development and exploration could be better, but this episode tossed aside the lure of huge explosions and plot twists to tell a relatively simple story: the Ancients return and want their city back. Team Atlantis is sent packing, with Woolsey (from the IOA) and General O’Neill acting as liaisons to the Ancients. Much time is spent on the impact of this decision on Team Atlantis, and each character must decide how to move on (if, indeed, they can).
In short, it takes the approach used with Weir in “The Real World” and applies similar logic to the entire crew. What happens when the mission is over? Well, typically, the team doesn’t take it very well, especially after everything they’ve seen and done. It’s not surprising that this comes on the heels of McKay’s success with the Intergalactic Gate System, and not just because it then provides an interesting consequence should Atlantis be lost. McKay is flush with success, only to find his expertise shoved off on something far less challenging.
What surprises me, especially from the perspective of the “Stargate” franchise as a whole, is the methodical exploration of each character’s psychology. While Ronon and Teyla get shorted a bit, as if they were one character all of a sudden, they respond in a fairly logical fashion. They look for the next best ally to keep fighting. Enter the Genii, paying off that relationship as reinforced in “Common Ground”.
I would get how each character responded in a manner consistent with their established personalities, and explore each nuance and relationship in context, but that would ruin the fun. The writers simply take the time needed to play out the scenario correctly. They could have jumped back and forth to the fight at Atlantis, but that wasn’t where the story was. The story was the process of loss, the difficulties of moving on, the choice to defy authority. In that final act, I couldn’t help but think of a particular scene from “Star Trek III”, a huge smile on my face.
Looking back on the first half of the season, the average for “SGA” is coming in at 7.1, which is slightly above average. What’s significant, however, is that the average would have been higher, had a couple of early season episodes been left out of the mix. “Irresistible” alone was a big hit in the negative column. If more episodes are like the run since “Progeny” come along in the second half, the series might finally overcome the sophomore slump of the second season.
(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”. Recent episodes cover the “Stargate: Atlantis”, so it might be something of interest. Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 3/4
Final Rating: 9/10
posted by John Keegan | 17:13
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