The Hive

DVD, Stargate Atlantis S2 (The Hive)

'You know Ford, I wouldn't be surprised if we run into him again,' says Sheppard at the end, after the Hive ship on which the rogue member of Atlantis was last seen aboard is utterly destroyed. I hope we do, because Ford has become a lot more compelling this season and all they had to do was shoot him full of drugs! Another character shot full of drugs is Dr. McKay, and it was a joy to see him forced into solving a problem through brawn rather than his usual brains, as he's a stone cold coward at the best of times, so for him to resort to physical violence to take out the two goons left to guard him and the 'gate dialling crystals was pretty brave. I like also that the downside of this super serum was once again shown, if we didn't already have the warped Ford as evidence, as it proves that this wonder enzyme is not something they can rely on in their fight against The Wraith - it would be too dramatically easy to shoot everyone full of this stuff every time they pop off to a new world in case they need the superior strength, speed and aggression, but what they don't need is the paranoia, unbalanced reasoning and fatal self-confidence that makes them act as if they're intoxicated. It has its limits, as even dosed-up Ford succumbs to Wraith in numbers. We also see the consequences of taking the enzyme if dosage is not kept up: the cold turkey kills Kanayo, Ford's willing accomplice and almost incapacitates the others, while also putting Rodney's survival at extreme risk, with only his stubbornness and Dr. Beckett's care to bring him through.

As ever with 'Stargate,' the story is a little too conveniently tied up: all Sheppard needs to do is plant the seeds of distrust in the Hive Queen's mind, then start shooting at the opposing Hive ship during the battle when Daedalus comes to the rescue, and they're fooled into taking each other out, but at the same time the dissension and unstable alliances that we now know abound within the patches of Wraith dominion are the ideal cracks to escape through and to widen as a tool to take them down. I didn't at first guess that the girl among the prisoners that Sheppard rescues was a plant, but I did wonder if she was actually a Wraith in disguise, after my initial thoughts that she looked like she was in similar uniform to that which The Ancients wore in 'Aurora,' so I was waiting for the twist, only it wasn't quite what I expected. Turns out Wraith don't need to wear disguises, they just get their acolytes, so-called Wraith-worshippers, to do the deed. This was the only thing that didn't ring true to what we've seen of Wraith so far, because you never get the impression they can control their ravenous hunger and desire to feed on other species long enough for them to gain followers. They're like Satanists, worshipping the very thing that wants to destroy them, which is both a pitiable horror and a note of uncertainty in our dealings with other races as now we won't know if they've allied themselves to these people-devourers. Sheppard had enough wisdom to see through Neera's advances and avoided giving away that he was from Earth, the same Earth that should be cut off from this galaxy after the 'destruction' of Atlantis.

Not that it would have mattered too greatly, as all Wraith involved in this little adventure are wiped out, along with Ford's loyal accomplice, and Neera was either going to be wiped out or would be forced to leave as I couldn't see them introducing some other woman into the mix just to make Weir jealous! I did like how concerned she was and how happy when the Stargate dials in and Sheppard appears with his team safe and sound, and I'm really liking the team dynamic that's come to some kind of fruition in the last few episodes. Add the recurring characters like Zelenka, Major Long and Colonel Caldwell, who's only too pleased to drop everything and zip back unscheduled to assist in the hunt for the team, and it's a pretty good group we have developed. Maybe Ronon and Teyla should have shown more withdrawal from the enzyme, but what's a little staggering among friends, the important detail was that Sheppard rescued them and got them away, and we know the enzyme's a no-no. There were a couple of points that set me wondering, though: where does the IDC from each person come from? Is it a code they input into the DHD of a Stargate, is it a unique radio frequency, is it that the 'gate itself can detect life signs and read identity? That last one's unlikely, but I just questioned it because otherwise where did McKay's ID come from, assuming he didn't have his equipment with him when he hurried from Ford's camp in a far from stable state of mind? The other thing is, why wouldn't they record every 'gate address that dials in, in case they need to redial it? They must not have that capability since McKay's confused mind can't recall the address, preventing a return to Ford's planet for more enzyme.

Other than such minor queries I can say it was another good, solid episode that showed the team in a good light, had enough humour (the knives that everyone carries when Sheppard's trying to come up with a way to escape the cell), but not too much, as well as pretty space and ship scenes, and a sense of development - this was no idle adventure without a result at the end: now we know about weaknesses in the structure of Wraith society, as well as what it's like to be Ford and the kind of mental picture he has. It was especially good at showing the self-delusions that he keeps having in his 'far superior' abilities, always blaming his mistakes on someone else and finding bizarre rationalisations for everything that doesn't go as it should, when it's obvious that he's not acting soberly. Really glad we didn't get a definitive death for him as I thought we would, and with Sheppard's last words it seems almost a given that he'll be back in some other form to add spice to the series. I imagine they'd bring him back at the end of the season rather than save him for later seasons, and I still see him as marked for death, but with the change in character, if they could somehow keep him like that and also reintegrate him into Atlantis, that could be great - Sheppard's authority seems to have some effect on the Hive ship, so maybe he's not past saving?

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