Aftermath

 DVD, Stargate Universe S2 (Aftermath)

A lot happens, none of it very positive. The most exciting thing is that Dr. Rush has finally cracked the code and unlocked the control room from where the ship can be taken in hand. And now he decides when it stops and when it goes. But of course he doesn't share this with anyone, other than figments of his imagination, or figments of the ship trying to communicate (if so, doing a very bad job!), in the form of his dead wife, Gloria, and the missing Dr. Franklin. Young has lost a lot of trust among people and Rush is no exception, but it's a little suspicious that he keeps getting involved in ship operations despite not being around most of the time, so you'd think someone would twig. But not yet. Anyway, Rush isn't happy with Young, nor is Camille who wants the remaining Lucian Alliance prisoners to be treated fairly, Telford goes over Young's head to contact the SGC and gives him an ultimatum on which of them must be kept aboard, but Young doesn't exactly make friends with the leader, Varo, and to top it all, he tops Riley. Good, kind, gentle Riley. Okay, it's not quite that simple, the shuttle is sent down to a planet when they're desperate for supplies, but crash-lands, trapping Riley in rubble, he can't be moved, they've presumably got no way to do transfusions regardless of all the advanced technology on the ship - Rush might have helped by preventing the ship's departure and searching the database for medical assistance, but he's intent on keeping his control a secret, so from Young's perspective it seems they have limited time and he can't leave his man to die alone.

It was a horrible situation, but it's still more horrible that Riley is suffocated in that 'compassionate' way, even if it was at his request, Young helping him by euthanising him! I agree it didn't look good, but while there's life there's hope, the least they should have done would be to get him out of there, even if they have to shoot him full of painkillers, just to try and save him back on the ship, and if he bleeds out at least they did everything possible (get some docs from Earth to take a look, TJ's only a medic after all!), but no one thinks there's any hope so they just give up. It was a dispiriting end to a rather negative episode in which not only does Rush keep his secret, the Alliance members cause a riot in their cell and no one is happy. There was one nice little moment when TJ and Riley discuss whether they believe in God and an afterlife, but it's so sad they're completely without knowledge, it's all about feelings and other people's impressions, they don't have any personal experience to fall back on, so it's an even lonelier death than it might have been. At least TJ has some small hope in the belief her baby was somehow saved and lives still on the planet they left behind, but even that is a slim hope. It doesn't look good on the military that they're willing to strand a load of prisoners on a planet that doesn't seem too great for life, even though it was a tough situation, but surely there was room for rehabilitation? Again, it's a hopeless worldview and a very unheroic and uncharitably harsh choice.

We do at least get a little backstory on the Alliance from that girl (Koz?), who at least seems to be genuinely interested in contributing to their microcosm of a society - she claims to have been a farmer forced into joining on pain of her family's death, that the Alliance is made up of  warlords, and their reason for putting so much effort into trying to take over Destiny was because there's some legend tied up with it that it will take them to immeasurable, Godlike powers somehow. In the meantime Rush also has come to believe that it's name, Destiny, was for a reason, that the Ancients were supposed to come there, but for what purpose, and whether the series got to answering such questions before its untimely demise, I don't remember, though judging from the fact it's taken them until Season 2 just to find the central control room, I have a feeling not! What are they going to do now without a shuttle, wasn't that the last one they had? It's not been the greatest start with these first couple of episodes, but hopefully we'll get back to that sense of camaraderie and mutual trust and exploration that made the last few episodes of Season 1 hang together so nicely. And will Young ever stop doing things that he's going to find it hard to forgive himself for?

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