Suspicion

DVD, Stargate Atlantis S1 (Suspicion)

Seems to me their logic was slim and they were reaching a bit with this one: just because the Wraith have shown up at five out of nine planetary missions, Weir and her appointed head of security, Sergeant Bates (or Sgt. Grumpy as I think of him), decide there must be a spy in the ranks. But not the human ranks, of course, it has to be the Athosians because they're outsiders. The issue of trust, who's earned it, and why, should have been explored much more deeply, but unfortunately it does feel a little lightweight. You have the new face we've never seen before in Bates, and on top of that he's never shown in a sympathetic or positive light, immediately suggesting an agenda, if not by the guy himself, by the writers. It turns out he was right, but not in the way he thought. The fact humans unleashed this vast Wraith menace on the galaxy at large, makes me think that it's highly possible the nasties could be popping up everywhere, but it is proved to be as simple as the harmless necklace Sheppard and Teyla found in the cavern during the pilot, Sheppard apparently activating its homing beacon with his Ancient genes, and Teyla unwittingly drawing the pale-faced fiends at every turn. I felt they were a little too quick to jump to conclusions on both sides: Weir sets up 'interviews' to 'get to know' each Athosian personally, with what aim, I'm not exactly sure, but presumably so she can weed out any that seem spy-like! Then on the opposite you have Sheppard, who's loyalty to Teyla makes him the Athosian advocate, and Bates was right that he was putting his personal feelings ahead of protocol.

Except it's also his personal experience and that counts for a lot. The way the Athosians become practically prisoners only emphasises their pitiful refugee position and it's sad to see them get shunted off to the first piece of land that's located on 'Atlantica' (as Ford wants to call the planet, and it certainly won't be known in future!). It's a bit too pat that Sheppard was in the mood for exploring, then just happens to find unexpected land, and that Halling and his group see it as an ideal place to start again, away from Atlantis and the out of bounds Stargate. I got the impression having the Athosians in the city was too complicated and they wanted to simplify things by booting them off, though not too far in case they do want to use them again. I wouldn't fancy their chances in the inevitable Wraith attack, away from the protection of the city, but at least they can grow a few vegetables to improve McKay's diet of choice: ration packs. I didn't get the significance of his blast to the face, or that he, Sheppard, and almost Ford, get zapped by the Wraith stun weapons. I was waiting for it to become a plot point - perhaps the gun takes over the mind and leads to spying, or leaves a residue that can be tracked. Anything that showed McKay's short-term paralysis was more than a joke at his expense. But I'm forgetting: this is 'Stargate,' and though we're missing the strong irony and chattering embarrassment/raised eyebrows of the 'SG-1' characters, which we all know and love, they're still trying to fit into that mould so of course not everything will have significance.

That said, the Wraith rifles did bring me to wonder why they use stun rather than something more powerful that would kill or maim. But that's a conceit of this type of sci-fi. Whether it's 'Star Trek' and their Phasers, or 'SG-1' and the Goauld zat guns, the ability to stun rather than take life is probably important on a couple of fronts: one, it means there's more leeway for story as you can't do much when dealing with enemies that just kill you, and two, TV still wasn't, still isn't, ready for weekly series' to have lots of people cut down, especially when these are 'family shows.' Which is fair enough, but I also thought of a particular reason the Wraith would have for adopting such a soft approach: they don't want to ruin a good meal, which is pretty sinister in its own right!

Teyla's loyalty coming under question, which to be fair doesn't really happen, at least from Weir and Sheppard's perspective, is really about her connection to her people, personified by Halling. You can tell she really trusts in Weir and the team, and believes in Atlantis, setting it up as some kind of great sign of hope for all those oppressed by the Wraith. It's a charming sentiment, though I'm not sure as yet that it's really warranted since it was the humans' fault in the first place for waking them, and they don't have full control of the city, nor the ultimate escape route of the 'gate back to Earth lined up in case the Wraith do get hold of their Ancient enemies' technology. With the Athosians no longer staying within will it even feel like a city any more, or just another military installation, albeit one controlled by a civilian at the top? One things's for certain: Teyla can fight, as she proves in her stick fighting ability against the lead Wraith they capture in their plan to lure them with the necklace. The 'Morlocks' blow themselves up, but main guy doesn't quite manage it and is left to rot in a cell back at Atlantis (how did they deactivate his suicide device after the fact?). I always Teyla'd be a warrior, but it took a while for her to show that side. Not sure on the ethics of keeping even your worst enemy locked up without food, even if he can just regenerate. Would lack of sustenance be what sends the creatures back to sleep? Hopefully we'll find out a bit more about the Wraith with one held captive. The episode was a bit plodding, but both 'SG-1' and 'Universe' took their time to get started, and the potential is still there.

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