Missing

DVD, Stargate Atlantis S4 (Missing)

The women are doing it for themselves. And they're doing it on a picturesque wooded planet, which is always a nice setting to explore. This one came completely out of the blue. Not that I guess every episode from its title or teaser, but I had no idea what to expect and it was a pleasant surprise. For a change we have an episode squarely focused on a main character and a recurring character, and two very different women. Teyla: battle-hardened warrior woman of the woods, full of the wisdom of tracking and fighting in the wilderness. Dr. Keller: wimpy human with great compassion and medical knowledge. In her medical bay she's queen, but out in the wilds it's a different story. In fact, it's not entirely the case she's queen of Atlantis' medicine since she was pushed into it a little to take over from Dr. Beckett, and even now she questions whether she's up to his standards, albeit in the eyes of the Athosians, Teyla's people, whom they travel off-world to visit. She's timid, she's not confident, but she's become a familiar and positive addition to the series, particularly this season as she's grown into Carson's shoes. So it was a pleasure to get to know her a little better and in such different circumstances.

It starts out as being just a friendly jaunt in the woods, a chance for Teyla to catch up with her people (and a particular man among them), and for Keller to perform any necessary check-ups. But it's not long before trouble materialises - there's no one there and the place is ransacked, it's the Boloki, a savage, though primitive tribe who are seemingly to blame. There's a bit of back and forth about who really did this, whether it was The Wraith, whether the Boloki are in league with them as Wraith worshippers, or whether, perhaps, the Genii are something to do with it all, since they recover a prisoner who claims to be Genii. In the end I don't think he was, though he was apparently a worshipper and may have been responsible for the disappearance of the Athosians. It's all very murky and we never even find out what had been going on, other than the Boloki clearly being there only to do what they do, scavenge and salvage, rather than being responsible. But it doesn't really matter as it leaves you hanging, wanting to know what has become of Teyla's people, though also ending on a personal cliffhanger for her as Keller's about to alert her to some medical issue at the end, seemingly very serious… I do hope they'e not gearing up to write her out of the series. Although Teyla may be the most underused, under-explored and wasted character, this episode shows just what she's capable of.

True, the coming of Ronon did rather neuter the potential she had. Why do we need this warrior woman when there's a hulking great brute who's just as good, if not better, in a scrap, but the key to Teyla's character isn't merely her combat prowess, it's as much her personal compassion for others and a willingness to do what's necessary. Oddly, we see the situation reversed in this episode as she takes on the hardened role of the military men like Sheppard, pushing Keller further than she's comfortable with, telling her what she needs to hear in order to survive, whether that be leaving her to cross the rope bridge alone or giving her that fierce statement that she will get home again. It was inspiring to see Teyla in this light - not as comforting and helpful as we're used to, the side of her personality most commonly seen and to which I usually warm, but that survivalist who will do whatever's necessary to get them out of this deadly situation. As a tigress she's also at a slight disadvantage because she pushes back reason and diplomacy on the basis she knows enough about the Boloki to believe she knows exactly what's happened, but she's also affected by the fate of her people - it's Keller who suggests the Boloki leader is likely to be telling the truth when he reacts so angrily to the assertion his tribe are working for The Wraith. And it's Keller who stands fast about caring for the injured former prisoner, who in turn comes to rescue them from their cage.

It shows the necessity of both sides of a personality in such a situation, it's not enough to be tough and make quick decisions, but it's also not enough to talk and reason. I'm not sure we can quite take away from it that the pair together were stronger than apart, because ultimately they never find out what actually happened, so although it was well written and particularly accomplished in the directing, it could have taken things to an even higher level with just a bit more of learning for the two women. Still, it was great to see them working together, Teyla was terrific as this warrior leader, and while it's for Keller to face the challenge of this sudden turn of events, living rough and trying desperately to survive the desperate ordeal, the challenge for Teyla is equally arduous in that she, on her personal honour, is fully responsible for what happens to the young doctor and has to curb her instincts and impatience in order to do that, and that's fascinating to watch. Because you know if she wasn't burdened by having this weak woman with her she'd have found things a lot easier. As it is, she still excels for the most part, though it's through her focus being completely consumed by the fate of her people and the need to get Keller to safety that she fails to realise how much less ready Keller is to do what comes naturally to her, leading to the fall that damages the doc's ankle and makes things even more difficult. It shows Teyla isn't perfect and it is very different to see her go into survival mode when usually she's so much more sympathetic to others, but it's the pressure she's under that drives her.

A word must also be said for the superb fight scenes where she takes on multiple tribal hunters while Dr. Keller can only look on helplessly. She does behave savagely afterwards and Keller looked like she might follow suit and I couldn't help thinking of things like the Hippocratic Oath to do no harm, and that kind of medical ethics, wondering if it was being violated by Keller's attitude a little (and what is her training for such eventualities as being hunted, attacked or captured?). But it's not like she runs in with the tiny scalpel and starts slashing away (it would have seemed more worthwhile to tie it securely to a stake so as to make a spear, as if she had tried to get close, the long-handled axes and swords would have cut her down before she could do any damage!). Teyla is a whirlwind of action and ability, taking out her multiple opponents with expert acrobatics. I liked that she was overcome in the later fight by weight of numbers as otherwise it would have seemed ridiculous, but as it was she still gave almost as good as she got, never cowed by the number of opponents. All those training sessions with sticks paid off! Actually, I don't know why she didn't get a couple of sticks so she could carry out those kinds of moves as that's all we ever seem to see her do in Atlantis training…

It really is a showcase for Teyla, something she's been crying out for for a long time. It's fine to have scenes with Ronon, but he's not the only feller around and they needed to find something to do with her, so this quest to discover the whereabouts of her people could be the impetus to move up to bigger and better things, just as long as it doesn't mean writing her out, please! The look of the Boloki was effective, the filming as they and their prey were nipping through the forest was so well done, and I was glad we didn't have a B-story to keep going back to Atlantis for as the tension remained unbroken and was allowed to play out to each new revelation as the story unfolded. I also liked that McKay, though he always looks strained when running around with a gun, has got to the point where he handles it naturally now, which isn't something you could have guessed would have happened at the start of the series! There was one thing missing, especially for a female-centric episode: no Samantha Carter, where was she? Not that it hurt the episode at all, and it wouldn't have worked so well to have another voice in the mix, as Keller and Teyla together, chalk and cheese was what made it work. Hopefully they don't kill off Keller as they did Beckett, or write Teyla out because having this strong mix of characters is what the series is, or should be, about and it would be great to see a friendship develop out of this situation.

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