Stargate Atlantis: Harmony
Star TrekStargate:AtlantisFireflyby Wolfen Moondaughter
Now that was fun, and too, too cute — another gem from Martin Gero! (One that proves that adding a child to the mix can enhance a story rather than kill it. I tend to greatly enjoy talking animal stories myself, another supposed storytelling no-no; maybe they’ll venture into that territory someday? Well, a girl can hope.) Didn’t really see much that I would call “poignant” between our boys (Mallozzi had said there would be), which disappoints me a little, admittedly, but they had some great conversations, with each other and with Harmony. This, I suspect, will be one of the most quoted episodes of the series, much in the sense that Star Wars (which this ep seems to pay homage to) is.
4.14: “Harmony”
John and Rodney are drinking a toast with two sisters, Flora and Mardola (ugh, what an awful name!) at a castle; apparently they’ve been trading with these women and their people for a few years now. (While I doubt that the Atlantians still need goods, considering they can get whatever they want from Earth, it only makes sense that they would want to keep trading as a measure to keep allies, plus as an excuse to keep helping these people, since apparently they have been trading the Atlantians for medical supplies.) Rodney tells them, rather awkwardly, that the trading missions to their world are his favourites. (Heh, he’s not wasting any time getting back into the water after losing Katie!) When John says that they really ought to be going, Mardola asks “So soon?” “Yeah, so soon?” Rodney echoes, sounding bummed. Flora expresses the wish that they stay; Rodney looks up with an odd expression. (I presume that he’s wondering if they mean “stay the night”, not just “stay a while longer”, and is surprised to find himself in such a scenario. Heheheh.) Smiling, John supposes they could stay a little while longer. Flora hesitantly (and oh-so-manipulatively) asks for help their other sister. (Side note: There’s a shield behind Flora with a lightning bolt, and another with an “s” on it. Harry Potter and Slytherin??) The boys are surprised, not having known about a third sister; Flora swears that she is even more beautiful than herself and Mardola. (And shouldn’t that have been a clue that something was up, the fact that the boyos have never met this other sister, despite years of trading? If she was intended to be queen and was the same age or older than her sisters, I should think they would have met her! Pretty women: John and Rodney’s Achilles’ heel. They might never see romantic interest coming, but they never see deception or outright treachery coming from that quarter, either. *Snicker*) The woman says that her sister needs guidance; “That I can do,” Rodney replies.
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The sisters hurry off to fetch their other sister. Rodney calls dibs on said third sister, pointing out that John has already has “suckered in” the other two, with his whole “cliché heroic thing”. (Love how John looks down at himself at that point, like he can see the heroic cliché — that’s priceless!) “Maybe this other sister, ah,” Rodney says, “maybe her tastes will run more to the, ah—” “Geeky?” John says, annoyed. “I was going to say ‘cerebral’,” Rodney replies, though he doesn’t deny John’s label, nor does he seem offended, “but, um … who knows, maybe we’ll hit it off!” (Awww, poor guy, Jeannie’s “You’re no John Sheppard” line and losing Katie has really done a number on his ego, it seems. He’s been drinking from his wine glass the whole time — I can’t help but wonder if it’s, ah, fortifying him, and consequently making him a bit zealous or eager. Or maybe the simple fact of the break-up is just making him desperate. Or he’s remembering how John sort of stole the girl from him in “Inferno” ….) John insists that they don’t need Rodney’s love life screwing up their trade relations. (Ouch! Not that he doesn’t have a point, but considering recent events … Of course, I think this was a “we can stick this anywhere we end up needing to” sort of episode, and I hear tell that this was originally intended to go after “Outcast”, so it’s not quite so harsh as it sounds, methinks. But it strikes me as a bit funny for him to comment at all, since he kind of encouraged Rodney to go after Allina in “The Brotherhood”. And John’s not exactly a stranger to letting his love life get tangled up with missions *cough*Chaya*cough*, so really, pot meet kettle much? Then again, maybe he’s just learning from past mistakes.) “I’ll try not to break her heart, but, ah, no promises,” Rodney replies, sounding utterly serious. (Perfect delivery, Hewlett!) He downs more of the wine (yeah, screw that courage to the sticking-place, Rodney!), then sets the glass aside the sisters arrive. Flora introduces thirteen-year-old Harmony (played by the wow-she-looks-younger-than-13 Jodelle Ferland, who also played young Adria in SG-1’s “Flesh and Blood”) to the guys, who are obviously less than thrilled at this development but make no complaint.
Flora reminds the men that the sisters’ mother passed away recently; it seems that little Harmony was chosen, during a secret ceremony as successor. (And doesn’t that just make pique my curiosity?) John congratulates harmony; she smiles delightedly. Flora goes on to say Harmony needs to go through a rite of passage before they can coronate her. Mardola, sounding aggravated, points out that the rite is supposed to be undertaken alone. Flora insists that there’s no rule written about it one way or the other; she feels that, despite Harmony’s professed confidence, the girl is too young to undertake such a journey on her own. Rodney, in the background, looks increasingly unhappy; John asks, warily, what the rite of passage entails. Mardola explains that every would-be queen must go to some temple ruins to meditate on her future as ruler, supposedly receiving wisdom for her efforts. John asks how far the journey is; Flora tells him that it’s no more than a day’s trek in the woods. Saying first that they’re honored (and sounding at least partially sincere), Rodney asks the million dollar question: why can’t they just have some of their guards accompany Harmony? Flora explains that, while having companions is not expressly forbidden, it is expected; their people may not accept Harmony if they learn that she had help. John starts to politely refuse, but Flora interrupts, suggesting that they may no longer have a trade agreement if he refuses. (Well, on the one hand, that wouldn’t be much of a loss for the Atlantians, and I would think the very hint of a threat like that would be reason enough to write them off altogether. On the other, I should hope he wouldn’t want a pampered, unworldly girl to be forced to wander through the woods alone for two days. As far as he knows, it would be nothing more than an inconvenience to them. Although, maybe he’s being cautious and already suspects that there are things they aren’t being told.) “When do we leave?” John asks, looking pained. Rodney looks pretty pained himself, in turn.
As they walk, Harmony confesses that she doesn’t get out of the castle much, but says she’s had three whole training sessions with her world’s greatest hunter — it was, she claims, all she needed, adding that she is a fast learner. (Ohmygods, she’s a mini, female Rodney!) She asks which of them is the “Superior Officer”. Rodney says they’re basically equals (which, outside of team missions or military situations, is true). John says that, technically, he’s in charge (which, in this particular situation, is also true). Harmony says that he has the qualities of an excellent leader. (Oh, she’s sooo crushing on him already!)
A little later, Rodney tries to cajole John into giving him his power-bar (sounding like he’s no older than Harmony), complaining that Flora usually feeds them but didn’t this time. (What?? She expected them to go on a days-long journey and yet gave no provisions??) He points out that John seldom eats his; John refuses. “Well, will you give it to me later, when you decide not to eat it?” (*Snort* *Dies laughing*) Harmony asks why John allows Rodney to question him “so incessantly”, asking if it wouldn’t be better just to beat him. Rodney tells her that their society doesn’t beat people; she’s perplexed by this. (Jeez, and they trade with these people??) John explains that they “don’t find beatings to be very effective in the long run — unfortunately.” (Reminds me of one of my fave shirt slogans: “The floggings will continue until moral improves!”) Harmony calls him a gentle leader, saying she admires that. (Sooo smitten.)
They stop at the location of a rope bridge (like the one in “Missing”? Oh, Rodney would have loved that!), only to discover the bridge gone. Rodney suggests John took a wrong turn (never mind the posts that clearly delineate where the bridge was); John, looking at a scroll, replies that the map is pretty straight-forward. John takes off his pack, telling them to stay put while he looks for a safe way across the river. Rodney’s not thrilled, but there’s nothing for it.
As soon as Rodney’s back is turned, Harmony goes through John’s pack, and filches the powerbar. When Rodney notices, he protests. “When I’m hungry, I eat,” she replies. He asks what’s going to happen when Sheppard finds out; she says he’s not going to. Rodney points out that he’s going to tell the man; she suggests that, as she is queen, he doesn’t want to get on her bad side. (Hoo-boy, does she need to be taken down a peg! It happens to Rodney all the time — I hope he gets a chance to do so here!) Rodney demands she hand the powerbar over. She does so — or rather, she gives him the wrapper. Of course, John walks up just then and see’s Rodney with it. (So predictable, yet still undeniably funny!) And of course Harmony denies having taken it when Rodney accuses her. John asks why McKay has the wrapper in his hand if Harmoy is the one who actually took it. “Well, because I was trying to take it back from her,” Rodney begins, fretting, “and then she wolfs it down and hands me the wrapper!” he finishes indignantly. (Ohmygods, words cannot express how much I love Hewlett’s delivery here!!) John doesn’t believe him. (Granted, Rodney’s as quick to pin the blame on others as he is to take credit even when it’s not really due him, but John’s forgetting one thing: Rodney’s a terrible liar ….) Rodney tells Harmony that she’d better come clean, calling her a brat; she starts to cry crocodile tears, holding her arms out to John, for want of a hug. John grants it, very reluctantly, telling her, “It’s okay, sometimes he makes me cry, too.” (*Dies again*) While John can’t see, she makes a throat-slitting motion at Rodney. As they depart, she asks, still sounding like she’s crying, if she can navigate; John says sure, once they get back on the path. She gives Rodney a smug look; he glares in return. (I’m reminded of the scene in Lady and the Tramp, where the Siamese cats go after the goldfish, wreck the house, and then pretend to be hurt and make it look like it was all Lady’s doing, when their mistress comes onto the scene ….)
Harmony’s not a terribly good navigator, of course, but thankfully John seems to have the map memorized. They reach a fork in the path, and turn right — and immediately hear a strange noise. Harmony tells them that it’s “The Beast”, a creature that protects the ruins. Rodney’s none to pleased to find that Flora left that part out. Harmony takes out what is essentially a Swiss army knife, telling him not to worry. John asks if “The Beast” is just a figure of speech; she assures him that it’s real, and that no one who has seen it has lived to tell the tale. Rodney looks disparagingly on her knife. She insists that it will know she is the queen, and not harm her. Rodney suggests they just forget the whole trip and tell her sisters they did it, pointing out that they would never know the truth. Harmony protests that she would know, and is aggrieved by his lack of respect for her people’s ways. (Well, I have to admire her dedication and bravado, even if the journey, as-yet, does seem unnecessary.) He presses the issue; she tells him to be quiet because his voice is hurting her ears. He protests that the beast could hurt his whole body, pointing out that this isn’t the journey they signed on for. He looks to John for back-up — and finds he isn’t there! (Ooh, creepy!) “Sheppard?” Rodney asks, looking about. Then, in a harsh whisper, “John!” (*Squeee!* First name use!)
Harmony informs him that The Beast attacks silently. Rodney reminds her that she said it would know she was the queen and leave her be. “Well, it didn’t attack me,” she points out. Rodney radios John (and *squee*, he even calls him by his first name again — twice), but John doesn’t respond. (Question: how come they sometimes use the headsets on field missions, and other times use the walkie-talkies?) Harmony ruminates on the fact that The Beast is only supposed to kill enemies to the throne, saying it should have killed Rodney. “I’m not an enemy to the throne; I’m here to protect you!” Rodney protests. Just then, they hear a voice telling them not to move, followed by the sound of a gun being cocked. Rodney puts his hands up. “So far, I’m not impressed,” Harmony remarks. (Heheheheh. Reminds me a bit of Leia not being terribly impressed with the efforts of Luke and Han to rescue her, in A New Hope.)
A man (with two guys backing him up) orders Rodney to lower his weapon, then radios someone to tell them that he and his group have the girl. Rodney stares. The man orders Rodney to hand Harmony over; Rodney realises that they’re Genii, and introduces himself, pointing out that they’re allies; to his dismay, the man doesn’t seem to recognise his name or his deeds. “Just what do they teach you in Genii school??” (*Snicker*) The man tells Rodney that they have no quarrel with him; they’ll let him go if he hands Harmony over. Rodney considers it. Harmony’s jaw drops. She reminds him that he took a sacred oath to protect her. Rodney doesn’t remember any such thing. The man tells Rodney that he’s going to count to three; Rodney and Harmony stand there, looking frightened. (Well, at least Rodney’s not handing her over!). The man only gets to “one”, though, before he and his fellows are cut down by P-90 fire.
John appears; Rodney asks him where he’s been. John says that his “Spidey-sense” (heee, gotta love those comic book references!) sensed an ambush. “And you couldn’t mention it?” Rodney asks; “Not without tippin’ ‘em off, no!” John replies. (Ahhh, he knows Rodney so well. They’ve been in a similar situation before, haven’t they? John keeping Rodney in the dark because it would be more convincing? Which ep was that? Anyone? Bueller?) Rodney asks what took John so long; John explains that he had to get into a good position to get all three guys at once. (And the whole conversation is a nice way, once again, of answering the audience’s likely questions.) John asks Harmony if she’s okay. She says she’s not (although she does seem to be holding herself together pretty well, all things considered), then complains that Rodney was going to give her to the enemy, saying that she saw it in his eyes (so did I *snicker*) and calling him a coward. Rodney explains that he was just a strategy to buy time. (Much as I love the guy, I’m not sure I believe that, really, especially considering that he wasn’t sure all that Sheppard was even alive. Still, the fact that he didn’t ultimately hand her over speaks in his favour. And let me just say what a riot it is to see Rodney arguing with this girl as an equal. Then again, I suppose they are, mental age-wise.) Harmony starts to suggest that she’s going to have the guards do something to him; John interrupts, saying that there’ll be plenty of time to plan a punishment along the way. “But John,” she whines; Sheppard cuts her off with the suggestion of thumbscrews, which pleases her. (Interesting that, exactly the opposite of Rodney, John seems to get along so well with kids, yet he, too, seems to be of the same mental age — they both relate to kids very easily.) John says they need to find some cover, reminding them that the Genii had radioed for back-up.
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They find a spot. Rodney wonders why the Genii want to kill Harmony, “aside from the obvious reason.” (Um, not that they don’t, but the Genii didn’t actually say anything about killing the girl ….) Through an amusing discussion, we learn that Harmony’s people once traded with the Genii, but that they’d cheated her mother and gotten themselves banned from her land. Harmony has no intention of starting trade back up; John conjectures that there’s someone at court who is wants does want to trade with them again. Harmony protests that her sister, who is her successor, wouldn’t be any more willing to trade with the Genii. (Aaaand I immediately think of Mardola, who had wanted Harmony to go alone. So is she the successor, and Harmony just doesn’t know her so well after all, or would she need to murder Flora, too?) Rodney asks if John seriously thinks Laden would order a little girl murdered for the sake a trade agreement. (Again, Rodney, you’re the one who said they were going to kill her, and you know that they’re Genii — you do the maths….) John suggests that Laden just “told someone to fix the problem, and this is what they came up with.” (I could easily believe that, really.) John decides to go out and see how many Genii are out there; Rodney (unhappily) agrees to watch Harmony. John warns them to stay quiet. Before he can go, Harmony expresses her gratitude to John for his help; he only grunts noncommittally in response, seeming uncomfortable. (Think he realises that she’s crushing on him, or is he just uncomfortable with praise?) She smiles fondly after John as he leaves. She then glares at Rodney, asking him if the place he sleeps at night it well-guarded. He tells her that he knows what she’s trying to do, but it won’t work, so she might as well “just cool it with the Bad Seed act and go back to ignoring” him. (*Snicker* I love when he uses pop culture references with aliens, as if they should know what he’s talking about.) “Surely they can’t guard you all the time,” she suggests; despite his initial insistence to the contrary, he seems unsettled.
John overhears someone giving the Genii orders over the radio, mentioning squad placements: there’s at least four squads.
Harmony glares at Rodney; he tells her, in a no-nonsense, angry parent-voice, to stop it. She informs him that she’s memorizing his face to give the bounty hunters as accurate a description as possible. (Although Rodney is essentially Luke — he whines a lot — their exchanges thus far remind me of Han and Leia’s arguing in The Empire Strikes Back, which suggests that her attitude towards him may change by the end — that’s how these sorts of scenarios tend to go, right? Save for the fact that there’s not actually a romance in play here, anyway. Although … were she an adult, I can’t help but think that, in keeping with his hopes expressed earlier, when the third sister was still an unknown quantity, Harmony would be nearly as good of a good match for McKay as Sheppard or Sam — better than Katie Brown, for sure!) He starts yelling at her again, in hushed tones, only for John to arrive and, irritated, reminds them that he’d told them to keep quiet.
Harmony asks how many Genii are out there. John says that, if he had to guess, he’d say all of them. “So … a lot of them?” Rodney asks, eyes wide. “Yes, Rodney, a lot,” John replies, exasperated. (Well, I can’t blame Rodney for the question, even if his wording was bad — “all” would denote the whole Genii population, which seems ridiculous. And it would mean that Laden was in on it. So is “all” thirty? A hundred?) Harmony laments that this will make the pilgrimage harder; John says he was thinking the same thing. (The unspoken part of that reply being that he’s thinking they should therefore quit). Harmony remarks on how alike they are; John makes another non-committal noise and adds an unenthusiastic “yeah”. He goes on to say that they’ll head back to the settlement after nightfall. Harmony protests; if she doesn’t complete the journey before sundown the following day, she forfeits the throne. (And really, I wouldn’t doubt her about her people not making an exception — they had to be subversive about her having chaperones, after all, because her people wouldn’t accept her as queen otherwise, even with no stated rule forbidding such a circumstance! Not that I’m disagreeing with his decision, though ….) He argues with her over it, to the point where she even indirectly threatens him, but he does better standing up to her than Rodney did (or so he thinks).
That night, at the castle, Mardola lets a man into her chambers. He gives her a walkie-talkie. Through their conversation, we learn that she’s paying him and his men to “take care” of Harmony; she apologises for the complication of John and Rodney, promising him triple the pay for having to kill them all
In the woods, John and Rodney talk while Harmony (seems to) sleep (I don’t buy it for a minute). Rodney tells John that he’s been doing a little thinking. “Oh you have, have you?” John replies. (*Snicker* I guess John’s still irritated over how the day went.) Rodney suggests that they stun Harmony with the Wraith stunner, to make taking her back easier. John seriously considers it for a moment but says no, they can’t do that to a kid. Rodney protests that their journey is too dangerous to risk her throwing one of her fits along the way. Sheppard assures him that he’s talked to her about it, and that she understands the situation. Rodney counters that she’s “thirteen and unreasonable, among many other awful attributes!” “You know, they say you dislike the things in others that you in fact dislike about yourself,” John remarks. (Normally, I couldn’t disagree more, but in this case, coincidentally, it happens to be true that what Rodney hates about Harmony is similar to what others hate about him. Of course, I can easily believe that Rodney can hate those attributes in others and still have no problem with them in himself, heheheh.) Rodney protests that he and Harmony are nothing alike, saying she’s “a stuck-up know-it-all brat.” He stops cold, realising that that’s what John’s accusing him of being. “Oh, ha-ha-hah,” he says, unamused. (Reminds me a little of the scene at the end of “BAMSR”, where he realises the insinuation John is making when the colonel says he thinks that Ellis is a good judge of character.) John decides that they should get moving — only to discover that Harmony is gone!
When next we see the boys, Rodney complains that they’ve been searching for an hour and run across Genii twice while looking for Harmony. John tells him to stop complaining; Rodney apologises, adding that he’s hungry, and being hungry makes him cranky. (Interesting that he doesn’t bring up the hypoglycaemia, which would indeed explain the crankiness — perhaps he’s come to realise that John doesn’t respond well to him mentioning it.) “You get cranky, you’re gonna get hit,” John warns (reflecting another Gero-written episode, “Adrift”, where John threatens to hit Rodney for dumbing down an explanation too much). Rather than getting upset, Rodney simply says, with a touch of chagrin, “Okay, okay.” John then says that he wishes Ronon were there. “You know you said that out loud, right? I mean, I’m right here,” Rodney replies, sounding a little hurt but not angry. (Awwww!) John says “It’s nothing personal, but he’s a better tracker than both of us combined.” “Huh. That’s true,” Rodney agrees. (Wow, look at how well, relatively speaking, Rodney’s behaving! In fact, he’s been shockingly amiable towards John the whole trip so far! That’s some wonderful character growth between them!) Rodney then says that he’s hallucinating smells, listing off an assortment of “fresh-cooked” foods. “Chicken,” John says. “Yeah, sure, the more the merrier,” Rodney says. (*Snicker*) John elaborates — he can smell chicken. Rodney perks up. “The nose that knows,” he says, pointing to his nose and telling John to follow him. (Never mind that John smelled it too, ey? … I love this whole scene — I wish there had been more buddy-buddy, relaxed, conversational stuff like this, and that it could have gotten a bit more meaningful, but I’m still grateful to have gotten this much.)
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They find a cave with a light down it, Rodney crowing that they don’t need Ronon with him around. “Mmm-hmm,” John says, humouring him. (In the cave, the find Harmony, cooking a “loden bird”. Dismayed, she asks how they found her; John kicks dirt of her fire, saying that they smelled the food, insinuating that she could have drawn the enemy to her as well. He tells her that they ran into the Genii; oblivious to the fact that she’s being lectured, she agrees that it’s dangerous outside, adding that that’s why she made camp in the cave. Rodney is impressed with her resourcefulness, in spite of himself. (Though she’s continuously displayed some misinformed and superstitious notions of reality thus far, it seems she wasn’t entirely bragging about her ability to learn or the effectiveness of her survival lessons. I dare say Rodney wouldn’t fare half so well!)
She notes that John is mad at her; John grunts an affirmative, nodding. Interesting how much John’s relied on simple sounds, instead of words, in this ep. If he’s not careful, he could be mistaken for Cro-Magnon Jack, from the SG-1 ep “The Broca Divide”! *Wink*) “Our first fight,” she remarks, adding that she supposed it had to happen someday, but that they’ll laugh about it one day. John throws Rodney an unreadable look. (Does he get that she’s sizing him up for marriage, or is he just wondering what she’s going on about?) “I’m sure we will,” he agrees. He then says that they need to get moving. “After we’ve eaten the loden bird,” Rodney adds. John gives him a pained look. (He probably feels like he’s stuck with two kids.) “… Or not,” Rodney says. (*Snicker* See, he’s learning! Although, I don’t see why they can’t just eat on the go.) They hear a strange sound, which, Rodney remarks, sounds like it’s coming from nearby; he asks if Harmony’s sure that they aren’t in The Beast’s cave. She calls him ignorant (apparently the fact that he’s from another world is no excuse for not being an expert in her planet’s fauna), explaining that The Beast doesn’t live in caves. She suggests that they hide out there a while longer; John reluctantly agrees that they’ll wait there a half hour. “Great! I’m hungry!” she says happily, taking down the spit with the bird, Rodney rubbing his hands together in anticipation. (I half expect her to say that it’s hers and Rodney can’t have any, but if she does, we don’t see that.)
Later, Harmony comes to squat beside John at the cave’s entrance, offering him the bird’s heart, claiming that it brings luck. (Awww, she’s offering her heart! *Snicker*) He politely refuses. She asks if he’s still mad; he says he’s over it. She’s glad; she doesn’t like when he’s mad. “Well, then, don’t give me reason to be mad,” he tells her. (Note that this conversation seems reminiscent of ones John’s had with Rodney ….) He chats with her a while. We learn that she’ll be 14 in five “lunar cycles”. (I still can’t believe she’s that old, but it seems Ferland really is, or close to it!) They talk about her pending queenship, with John telling her that she needs to put the needs of her people before her own. “Some of the time, yes,” she supposes. “Pretty much all of the time,” he replies. He advises her to remember that her people give her her power, and they can take it away if she’s mean. She remarks that he knows much about leadership. “Well, hard-earned lessons along the way,” he replies. (This scene is a great reminder of how heavily his role weighs upon him, how he kind of got thrown into it with Sumner’s death, yet he accepts his responsibilities to the point where he will buck authority for the good of those below him. He lives the advice he’s giving her.) She uses the conversation to segue into the notion that he would make a good King to rule beside her. (*Snicker* Love his expression when she says it! Of course, if her society is anything like our own medieval ones, she actually has every reason to think it a plausible proposition. *Shudder*)
He tries to put her off gently, but they hear The Beast again. (It sounds kind of electronic. Does this make anyone else think of the monster in Lost, the black smoke that sounds like chains? Not a criticism, just an observation.) Then they hear men screaming, too. Rodney runs up to the mouth of the cave, asking, panicked, what that sound was. John says that The Beast has attacked the Genii, then tells Harmony to stay with McKay while he checks the situation out. Rodney protests having to be the babysitter again. John asks if he wants to check out The Beast, then. “No … no, I’m good here,” Rodney replies. (*Snicker* Okay, so maybe he still has some growing to do. Thing is, I’m not sure if the growing would entail him taking orders without a fuss — which he’s been getting better at — or him saying that he would check out The Beast ….) Rodney takes John’s place at Harmony’s side. (Hmm, is that intended to be foreshadowing?)
Mardola and her associate, Toran, have a bit of a tiff over the walkie-talkies, with her being impatient for the work to be done, lest her sister return to the village — at which point, all hope of restoring trade relations with the Genii will be lost. The man points out, with the barest of patience, the hindrances there have been to the search, explaining that they’re now also looking for two men that he’s lost contact with. (Have to admire his loyalty to his men, I suppose ….)
“You’re a doctor, right?” Harmony asks, quickly accusing him of being a liar, then, when he explains that he’s not a medical doctor. He starts to protest, but quickly changes tack, asking her what she wants. (Good boy, don’t bother arguing with a child ….) She asks him what love feels like. “Ooooh boy,” he says. (Love the look of suffering on his face!) She says she thinks she’s in love with John. “Yeah, well, it wouldn’t be the first time and it won’t be the last,” he says dryly. (Poor Rodney, always the crush-er, never the crush-ee!) When she asks what he means, he elaborates, bitterly, that a lot of women fall for John. (I love how, whether Gero intended it or not, this could be seen in such a McSheppy context!) She insists that no woman loves him like she does. He points out, almost kindly, that Johns a bit old for her. She says she hadn’t considered it; he tells her that John will, so she shouldn’t get her hopes up. “You’re not going to try to influence him, are you?” she asks a bit testily. “I won’t need to; trust me,” he replies. (Because he’s all yours already, ‘ey, Rodney? *Evil grin* I know, I know, that’s not what he means. But it’s interesting that she thinks Rodney could hold that sort of sway over John.) She notes that he doesn’t like her very much; he denies it, but can’t actually bring himself to say that he likes her, either; he settles for saying, “I don’t not like you.” She asks what that means. “It means that you have a very annoying attitude, but I’m willing to cut you some slack because you’re still just a child,” he explains crankily. She asks if that means that, if she were grown up, her attitude would be less excusable. (I wonder if she overheard the earlier conversation between Rodney and John ….) He starts to agree: then, catching on to her angle, Rodney insists that he doesn’t have an attitude problem. “And I don’t not like you,” she replies. Thrown, he says that’s sweet of her to say. She asks him to promise he won’t come between her and John. Clearly knowing that won’t be an issue, he promises, sounding a bit sad for her. (Or, McSheppily-speaking, perhaps sad for himself, heheheh.) He adds ruefully that she’s a lot more mature than the women John usually falls for. (That’s a funny line, and somewhat poignant given how sincere and defeated he sounds, even if I can’t thing of anyone John’s shown an interest in who would make him say that. Except maybe that other princess, from “The Tower”.) She politely thanks him, then and heads into the cave.
Kneeling over two dead Genii, John radios Rodney with what he’s found, saying that the men have multiple puncture wounds that he can’t identify. He hurries off as he hears the other Genii arriving, and eavesdrops on their conversation. The Genii don’t know what The Beast is, but now John knows for sure that they plan to kill him and Rodney along with Harmony.
John gets back to the cave. Rodney asks what took him so long, adding “I thought for sure we’d lost you!” (*Squeeeeee!*) John explains that he’d had to wait for the Genii to leave before he could move. He says The Beast is lethal; “I could have told you that!” Harmony says. (Yeah, so could Rodney — you already told him that the Genii were dead, John. Well, we did just come back form a commercial break — I guess that was a recap.) He also tells Rodney that the Genii have “shoot to kill orders” for them all. (That too.)
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Harmony realises that they’re not going towards the ruins; John confirms that they’re going back to the village. She protests that they’ve almost reached her goal, though, adding that it’s nearly daybreak. John points out that it being nearly daybreak is bad — they won’t have cover for long. (I admire his stamina — he seems wide awake, despite not having slept all night!) She refuses to turn back after having come so far. “You know, I still have the unner-stay,” Rodney says, thumbing towards his pack and the Wraith stunner. (*Dies yet again*) John tells Harmony that the best thing she can do is “go that way”; he points towards the village. They hear The Beast in that direction. “Hating to agree with the child, but ah ….” Rodney begins. John snags the map from Harmony, who insists that The Beast will avoid the ruins. Rodney asks John how far away they are; John answers a half hour. “So what do you say?” Rodney asks, sounding hopeful. (Love that he’s deferring to John again, and not arguing, despite having a clear opinion of his own on the matter.) John agrees that they should go there.
Daybreak finds them at the ruins. They discover that a couple of Genii are already there, and hide behind a big log. Harmony almost blows their cover, peeved that the Genii should disturb a sacred place. John stops her; while occupied with her, Rodney draws the stunner. When John sees it, he gets a wary look on his face and says that he’ll do it. McKay insist that he’s got it, then spends quite a while lining up the shot. John grabs the gun and immediately shoots, hitting a Genii. (*Snicker*) Harmony tries to go again, but John pulls her down once more. We see the other Genii investigate his fallen friend; John takes him out, too. “Now we can go, “John tells her; she hangs back this time as John and Rodney hurry down the hill. (Making sure there’s not a third Genii?) Finally, she smiles and follows.
At the bottom of the short hill is a pair of short pillars, covered in vegetation; one of them is pedestal with some sort of interface, the other has a drawer open with control crystal-discs. The pillars make up an Ancient device; Rodney remarks that it’s familiar, somehow. Harmony is in awe as she approaches the interface; Rodney moves out of the way, rolling his eyes a bit. (Well, at least he didn’t give her grief and did move out of the way without even being asked!) Harmony puts her hand on the interface and holds a pendant in her hand. She frowns, worried; her pendant is supposed to glow and it’s not. Eyes wide, Rodney quickly determines that the pendant is Ancient tech. Harmony explains that only the rightful queen can bring the pendant to the ruins, where it’s supposed to give her special powers. (Ahhh, so that the ceremony for determining who should be queen probably showed that Harmony has the strongest ATA gene of all her sisters!) John complains that her sisters never told them anything about it; Harmony say’s it’s a secret. Rodney realises what the place is and why he recognises it: it’s a testing ground, which they’ve actually been looking for, for a couple of years. “Share with the class,” John says, patiently. (*Snicker*) Rodney says that the interface is for controlling The Beast, which, if he’s right — “And you know you can take that to the bank!” (*Snicker*) — is actually comprised of minidrones. He says, sounding delighted, that this planet must have been where the Ancients first developed drone tech. (And aren’t you glad you came now, Rodney?) John realises that the drones must be what made the Genii look like “Swiss cheese”; Rodney adds that the sound they heard was “more like an electrical swarm than a [...] growl!” (I love when they go back and forth like this, figuring out things together!) Rodney goes on to say that the pendant is a pass-key — you need the ATA gene and the pendant in order to control the drones. He moves Harmony’s hand off the device; she jerks her hand out of his grasp, glaring. He says that he device is in “auto-protect” mode, explaining that this is why the drones went after the Genii and not the three of them — they all have the gene and the Genii do not. (Wow, sucks to be a non-gene-carrier living on that world! Well, I guess Harmony’s ancestors figured that legends of The Beast would keep non-carriers away. Although, if it’s only supposed to kill traitors to the crown, there has to have been a few of them who thought they would be safe, wandered that way, and were killed anyway ….) John asks why it’s not working; Rodney figures the Genii messed with it, and takes a look.
John notes Harmony is still trying to make the pendant glow, and explains that the machine is broken. She refuses to believe that machines have anything to do with it, insisting that it’s all about her worthiness to be queen in the eyes of the gods. John shoots Rodney a look; Rodney conjectures that rules were set up because the pendant needed to be recharged periodically, and that the pendant allows them to use ancient tech back at the castle. John tries to reassure Harmony again, but she thinks she’s failed. She turns and sits; we see Rodney, behind her, shooting her sympathetic looks as he works. (Awwww!)
John wakes up the Genii they stunned, asking them what they did; apparently one of them just haphazardly rearranged the crystals. John asks Rodney if he can make it work; Rodney says he needs to come back with a jumper and a small team. (That has me puzzled — would they have a method of fixing it faster than just trail and error rearranging of the crystals? What would he need the jumper and extra people for?) John tries to talk Harmony into returning to the village, refusing to believe that it’s not simply a mater of concentration, insisting that she won’t get a second chance. The Genii’s radio crackles to life with a voice asking for Heiron. John takes the radio from him. Rodney points out that, if they don’t respond, the other Genii will come to investigate. John tries to pretend to be Heiron (in a cute homage to the scene in A New Hope where Han tries to pretend to be a Stormtrooper and bluff someone on the other end of an intercom). Heiron starts yelling. John blasts the Genii, then says “Gottagobye!” into the radio, shutting it off. (*Dies* John, you’re such a dork sometimes — it’s adorable!) John tells Rodney he has to hurry and fix the minidrone controls. Rodney asks why they can’t just run for it. (Hey, he gets to play exposition-prompter for once!) John points out that they are Genii out there in all directions, boxing them in.
We see a number of Genii hurrying through the woods. Back at the ruins, Rodney complains about the fact that he’s stuck out in the open, fixing the device, while John and Harmony are hiding behind thick rock. John tells Rodney that he’s welcome to get some cover too — after he finishes the repairs. (Typical John lighting a fire under Rodney to get him to work faster talk. I think, if it weren’t for Harmony, though, John would be out there in the open with Rodney.) Indignant, Rodney asks John is he has any idea how many possible crystal combinations there are. “More than seven?” John asks, wincing. (Well, at least he’s showing a bit of sympathy and understands that Rodney’s task isn’t simple.) “Try seven thousand,” Rodney replies as he works. (Loudly. Is he trying to draw the enemy??) “Well, that’s less than infinite …” John quips half-heartedly. John warns Harmony that the guns are very loud, telling her that she’ll need to stay put and cover her ears. She asks if he shouldn’t give her a gun instead. Testy, he reiterates his command. We hear the device activate. “Sonofabitch, I think I got it!” Rodney cheers. (Heh, I don’t recall ever hearing that phrase used in a positive context before. Interesting.) Harmony races down from her shelter to the device; John snaps that he told her to stay put, moving to follow. The Genii open fire.
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Rodney ducks and runs, knocking Harmony to the ground and scrambling over her to retrieve his fallen gun. (Truthfully, when I watches this the first time, I thought he purposefully knocked into her, but after seeing the later a later scene and then, rewatching this one, I have to concede that, at the very least, it can be viewed either way, purposeful or accident. In fact, as much as I love the boyo … now? I have to lean towards him just tripping and falling.) Rodney looks at Harmony for a long moment (deciding whether to help her or help John, maybe?) before hurrying her off to safety, John holding off the Genii. Toran points out that they are outgunned with limited ammo, adding that if they “make this hard”, he’ll make their deaths “as slow and as painful as possible,” but if they give up the girl, then they can go free. Harmony yells that her companions would rather die than cooperate, adding that, when her sisters find out what the Genii tried to do, they’ll be finished. Toran asks her how she thinks they knew how to find her. Harmony says that he lies, going on with her threats; John cuts her off, telling her to let him and Rodney handle things. Toran gives them a minute to decide. Harmony insists what was said of her sisters can’t be true; John says it doesn’t matter. Stricken, she asks how he can say that. (And their “relationship” is slowly going down the tubes, heheheh.) He ignores the question, asking Rodney if the device was fixed. Through the course of their conversation, we learn that, thanks to the gunfire, there’s only about a fifty-fifty chance it still works. Harmony insists John give her cover while she gets to the device and uses The Beast to smite her enemies. John points out that she’s never actually used it before; of course, she believes that her status and queen is all she needs. He insists that it’s more complicated.
Then he grows thoughtful, asking if anyone with the gene can use the pedestal. Rodney confirms it, adding that they need the pendant. He looks down at the girl as he speaks, realizing what John’s suggesting. “Fifty-fifty, huh?” John asks. “A hundred percent chance they’ll kill us if we talk about it for much longer,” Rodney replies dryly. (*Snicker*) John asks if Rodney has a full mag in his gun; “Locked-and-loaded,” Rodney confirms. (I like how he seems a bit more confident, and isn’t all whiny; he’s still obviously not thrilled to be there, but he’s keeping a more level head than he once would have.) John asks if Rodney’s ready; Rodney gives a reluctant affirmative. Harmony, oblivious to John’s plan, confirms that she is, too. John counts to three, then snags her pendant before running off, Rodney giving him cover. John gets to the pedestal and activates the drones, which swarm around. Toran asks what his men are waiting for, telling them to fire; the swarm converges on him. While he dies, his men flee for their lives. (So tell me — are the minidrones related somehow to the electronic glow-y bug-things from SG-1’s “Prodigy” or SGA’s “The Defiant One?”) Rodney hurries down, asking if John’s all right. (*Squee!*) John confirms that he is, and ask the same. “Suresure,” Rodney says, looking around (either to make sure the Genii are gone or to see the drones — maybe a bit of both).
Harmony says, “That was the bravest thing I’ve ever seen!” She’s looking at Rodney (yes, it was obvious that this would happen, but it’s still cute and funny — I would have been disappointed if it hadn’t, I think). John, thinking she’s still smitten with him, says nonchalantly that she’ll meet other men who are just as brave as he is when she’s older. She snags her pendent back angrily, saying “Not you, usurper! You’re lucky I like you, or I’d have you hung for treason!” She turns to Rodney, saying that he saved her by shielding her with his body. John turns away, disgusted. Rodney, with his typically blunt honesty (it’s not a scientific achievement, so I guess he doesn’t care so much about getting glory) and a touch of befuddlement, explains that he simply tripped. Ignoring his statement, she adds that he drew her to safety after. He thinks about that, trying to recall just what happened. She insists, “You don’t don’t not like me!—” He has to think on that one. “—You like me!” He gets a panicked look in his eyes, denying it, looking to Sheppard for help. John just gives him a considering head-cock in return. Harmony continues to fawn, saying what a service he’s done for her people and calling him a hero. “Well, I don’t know about hero,” he says with semi-false modesty, “Exceptionally courageous, perhaps,” he adds, turning to John. She says he’s modest, too. (I say semi-false because I think he’s just seeing it all as a statement of fact, not intentionally being modest — or consciously immodest. He’s believing his own spin.) Disgusted again, John says that they’d better leave before the Genii return. Harmony says she doubts it, explaining that the Genii were probably very impressed with what John did. “I, however, was not,” she adds testily. She lays her hand on the pedestal; the pendant lights up, and she declares that the gods have deemed her worthy. Now they can leave. (Drat, McKay never did get to put her in her place!)
Back at the castle, Flora and Harmony, looking angry, barge into Mardola’s room; she recovers quickly from the shock of seeing her sister alive. Her room is it searched; Flora’s room, we’re told, was searched already. They explain that Harmony was attacked by Genii; Mardola remarks, cattily, that it was a lucky thing that John Sheppard was there. (Hey, no mention of Rodney? *Snicker*) Flora asks how the Genii could have known where the ruins were. She feigns ignorance — and the walkie-talkie is places before he just then. Realising the gig is up, Mardola tells Harmony that she’s too young to be Queen. (So the answer is to have her killed?) Harmony counters that, by the time Mardola gets out of prison, Mardola will be too old to remember that fact.
We see John and Rodney standing before the steps of the queen’s dais, surrounded by her court. (And I’m reminded very much of the final scene of A New Hope, where Luke and Han receive medals from Leia. Heeee!) Harmony tells them that the service they have provided can never be repaid. (Hey wait, didn’t Flora say that Harmony’s people may not be happy to learn that she had help on her pilgrimage, and deny her queenship?? Well, I suppose the proof that the Genii interfered was enough to mollify them into believing it was justified.)”Well, we didn’t do it for compensation, Your Highnessness,” John says. (Highnessness? *Snicker*) “Kiss-ass,” Rodney says. (Heh, I think you’re mistaking John for yourself, there, boyo.) Harmony has commissioned a painting of their victory, in gratitude: it depicts Rodney in front, doing a sort of Rambo impersonation with his P-90; her in the middle, with the drones swirling around her; and John cowering behind her. (*Dies* Ohmygods, that was the longest set-up ever, but the punchline was soooo worth it! Poor John, though. *Snicker*) Rodney says that’s pretty much how he remembered it. John looks (quite understandably) crestfallen.
Ferland does a fantastic job with her delivery throughout the episode, managing to convey realistic emotion while using the typically proper dialect of medieval settings (with a lack of contractions and the like, similar to Teyla’s dialogue); so often, that sort of speech can sound stiff and hokey. Really, the actress cast in that role had a queen’s power to make a break the episode; thankfully, the girl chosen, like her character, made it!
See you next week, for “Outcast”! (Does anyone else keep wanting to spell that “Outkast”?)
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Wolfen Moondaughter is on the editorial board for the comics industry webzine Sequential Tart for which she has written since late 2001. She’s also written for Newtype USA, contributed to Andy Mangel’s book Animation on DVD, self-published a novel (Memory of the Brightwing). Writing as “Anastasia Witchhazel”, her fantasy short story, “Chase”, is the title story in a homoerotic anthology from Wapshott Press. She’s an artist, too, having done spot illustrations for Dragonlance, a few panels for Barb Lien-Cooper’s webcomic series Gun Street Girl, and private commissions. In her spare time, she’s a fanficcer/fanartist. See more of her work at her site, Wolfen’s Webworld.
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