Stargate Atlanits: Infection

By Wolfen Moondaughter

This episode painted Sheppard as a bit harsher than I was comfortable with, but it paid off in a very poignant ending. Of course, I was deliriously happy that Todd was in it, and was quite happy with his characterisation. Writer Alan McCullough also wins points for succeeding somewhat where Gero didn’t in “Brain Storm” — he made McKeller tolerable for me! Still don’t love it at all, or even like it, but it didn’t make me feel so much like I was going to lose my lunch — I’ll get to why when I reach the scene in question. Add more points for the fact that it was a team ep — one that not only fairly well involved the entire core team, but also included Lorne (Without it feeling like the more important players were sacrificed)! Even Woolsey had a good sequence. And bonus points for a lovely little McSheppy moment. Maybe it’s not an all-time fave, but it was good, and helped ease my little fan heart after last week.

5.17: “Infection”

The story hits the ground running, opening with a hive ship on the way and Rodney and Woolsey butting heads over whether to use the shields (as Rodney would have them do) or the cloak (as Woolsey commands). Rodney fears leaving them unprotected, while Woolsey argues that they don’t know where the city is. Rodney points out that there’s a good chance they do, considering how they are approaching; Woolsey insists that it’s better not to make it any easier for them to be hit. (Uh, but the shield would likely negate that problem — that’s the point of a shield after all — whereas if Rodney’s right, and they already know where you are, then you’re at a distinct disadvantage, because it’s been established that you can’t switch over quickly or easily from cloak to shield! Your answer does not adequately address for me Rodney’s very valid concern — what would you do if he’s right? You at least still would stand a good chance if you did what he suggested, even if he turned out to be wrong about the Wraith knowing where you’re at already! Besides, you could have ‘jumpers go out cloaked before you raise the shields, to stand ready to attack the hive if it tries to open fire; you could protect the city and still have the element of surprise to defend yourselves with. Also, I’m a bit annoyed at the little chiding “Rodney,” Teyla gives. Rodney was fairly civil about his concerns, and I think he had good reason to continue to try to talk Woolsey out of it — if we’re supposed to approve of his being chided, then maybe Rodney should be made to actually act like more of an arse and make actual bad judgement calls, rather than have him act as the much more rational being he’s been becoming and have him say the things that make more sense than the statements he’s arguing against. Wait, no, let’s not do that, please, not have his character step backwards. Just stop treating him like he’s still the same man he was in season one, guys, and it’ll be fine. At any rate, the argument of “shield versus cloak” becomes a moot point, anyway. I do have to wonder — if they could get another ZPM, could they create a separate cloaking device, like use the Goa’uld-style one, so they could have a cloak and a shield at the same time, one inside another? Or is there something about a shield that would null a cloak?) We see that Sheppard sits by nervously in the Ancient chair, ready to fire the drones; Woolsey orders the cloak engaged. Rodney obeys, looking uneasy; Ronon looks grim.

The Wraith hive arrives, but then it just sits there. They get a transmission, which they open on the firewalled computer. At first the transmission seems empty, until Rodney realises that it uses the same sort of encryption they use on the Daedalus. It’s a message from Todd, and it was corrupted in transit. Todd asks that they don’t open fire, says something about the treatment Keller devised and a disease, and asks for help, but everything else in between those snippets is garbled. (Poor Todd! I’m deliriously happy to see him and glad that he has gotten past the past fiasco enough to turn to the humans for help! Although, for him, it was probably a bad idea, but I keep hoping that he will pave the way for some sort of Wraith/human peace, even if it’s just with a small number of Wraith. Why? Because I like it when bad guys go good, when enemies become friends, when those painted as villains turn out to not be evil, and when opposing sides are shown getting past their prejudices. Yeah, I’m one of those nutters who was quite happy to see the Klingons and humans become allies.)

They update Sheppard, who is still in the chair. Upon learning that the Wraith want help with the gene therapy, he points out, peeved, that Todd had already had his chance to get help with that and he’d double-crossed them. (Uh, have you completely forgotten that Todd thought you’d double-crossed him and was just reacting accordingly? Not to mention you need him to do the treatment — you weren’t trying to talk him into it for his benefit so much as for your own. There had been a question as to whether he really would do it, so you should be happy that he did and take it as an act of trust — if he were intending to be your enemy, why would he still take your treatment? It gives the Wraith no tactical advantage over you, and could even have weakened them! More on this later, at the end, after the recap.) Ronon cheerfully suggests that they blow the Wraith away. Woolsey says he can’t say he disagrees, but he finds it odd that Todd would come, knowing that that would be how they would react. (Does Todd know that? You did ask him for help recently, after all, for finding Sheppard’s team! True, it could have been a trap, but it might not have. I would find Woolsey’s behavior here understandable, given that Todd threatened him several times, but seeing as he went to the Wraith for help and seemed surprised not to get it, this seems a bit odd. Or I maybe I should say it’s the behavior in between those points that was odd, his going for the help ….)

Teyla wonders why the Wraith sent a file rather than radioing directly; Rodney muses that whatever Todd wants to talk about, it seems important. Teyla suggests they try to radio back and let Todd know the file was corrupted; Rodney replies that they might as well drop the cloak then, as they can trace the radio signal then. (Have you guys moved the city since Todd was last there? ‘Cause I’m thinking it’s a pretty good bet that they already know the coordinates. In fact, Rodney, wasn’t that your argument earlier?) Rodney then gets an idea to approach the ship in a cloaked ‘jumper and radio from there. Woolsey points out that they could pinpoint the ‘jumper then. “Yes, but the ‘jumper’s a lot more manoeuverable than the city,” Rodney replies, just a tad exasperated. (*Snicker* Good lantern. Also, I bet Sheppard is relieved he won’t have to fly the city again. *Grin* Anyway, if Woolsey is really that worried, he could send more than one ‘jumper, as backup. They have what, twenty people who can fly ‘jumpers? The radio signal would only give away the location of one — the rest would still be hidden ….) Rodney adds that it’s not like they haven’t flown up to Todd in a ‘jumper before. Woolsey’s not ready to relent, asking if Rodney can maybe clean up the video so they can learn more. Rodney says that it’s already as good as they’re going to get. Woolsey gives Sheppard the go-ahead, and John eagerly heads out. (I wonder, is it that he still doesn’t feel comfortable using the drones, or that he’d rather be exploring than fighting, or that he, deep down and contrary to his evinced attitude throughout the bulk of this episode, would indeed rather give Todd a chance than kill him outright?)

They follow through with Rodney’s idea, John radioing, saying the didn’t receive the transmission correctly. There’s no response. John asks Rodney if they’re even getting it; Rodney starts to say (pleasantly, I should note) that there’s no reason they shouldn’t, when he’s interrupted by a beep. Checking it out, he realises that there are no life-signs. Teyla confirms it, saying that she can’t sense them — she’d thought it was the distance, but she feels this makes more sense. (Heeeeey, nice to see that she hasn’t lost the ability after all!) “This better not be a Wraith ship from another reality,” Ronon says. Rodney, a tad annoyed, points out (with very restrained snark) that they’ve been tracking the ship for days. (*Snicker* I can’t blame Ronon for worrying, though, as there are definite parallels.) Rodney goes on to remind them that the Wraith don’t show up on scans when they hibernate. (This was a good, amusing way to remind us of that, methinks.) “Hibernating? All of them?” John wonders at that; Rodney conjectures that they could have preset the ship to get there and send the transmission. Ronon asks why; Rodney says there’s only one way to find out. (Glad to see they seem to be getting along still, under the circumstance. Curious that there’s been no mention of the Keller thing between them, although I’m grateful that we didn’t see Rodney rub it in Ronon’s face.)

They radio Woolsey and ask permission to board. Woolsey fears a trap; John points out that it would be a pretty lousy one, since the city can still destroy the ship. Woolsey counters that they’d have to sacrifice Sheppard’s team to do so. “I’m flattered you think Todd would go to so much trouble to kill me,” John replies playfully. (*Snicker* Great delivery, Flanigan!) John goes on to say that he does think that blowing up hive ships is generally a good thing, but they did “come all this way … got all dressed up ….” (Heee! Another brilliant delivery!) Woolsey again relents.

They make their way through the hive, finding no sign of activity. (There’s thick fog on the ground, a sign to me that something is wrong, as Todd’s ships are usually fog-free.) Rodney wonders why he finds an empty-seeming ship creepier than an active one; and John assures him that the current state is the better one. Ronon leads them to the bridge. (I’m confuzzled for a moment as to why he knows this better than Rodney, who normally has a map.) They find the bridge, where McKay gets right to work and verifies that the Wraith are indeed hibernating in chambers on the outer edges of the ship. He also notes, puzzled, that the Wraith left nothing set to wake them, neither a handful of Wraith left awake nor something in the computer; if they don’t wake them,, the Wraith will never wake on their own. Ronon, of course, loves this idea. (Ahhh, Ronon, if you only knew about that alt-timeline scenario with you and Todd ….) Rodney gives a tiny, quick, absentminded smile. (Nice little detail! I might not be happy with the sentiment in this instance, but I can’t help but chuckle at Ronon’s predictable gleefulness at Wraith misfortune myself.) Teyla is baffled that Todd would leave himself and his crew to their mercy. (See, Sheppard? If he were so untrustworthy himself, would he trust you with his life? … Also, I’m glad to see Teyla participating so much!) Ronon suggests that Todd’s just not as smart as she gives him credit for. The power fluctuates; Rodney reports “some minor malfunctions in the ships systems.” (Knowing that the Wraith are sick, I figure this makes sense — if the ship is organic and has Wraith DNA, why shouldn’t it be able to get a Wraith disease?)

Rodney then finds the vid file that Todd had tried to send them, this version being clean; he explains that the other one was corrupted in transit. In the clean vid, Todd explains that he and his crew have fallen ill to a disease, a side effect of Keller’s treatment; he got some of the formula from the computer when he had overtaken the Daedalus. Todd admits to having been curious as to whether it would work, and reveals that, to his astonishment, it did. He holds up his hand and reveals an empty palm when his feeding hand (aka, the “handgina”) used to be. He then reveals that he ended up using the treatment on his entire crew. (So I guess this means they weren’t significantly weakened by the change in feeding style, as he’d feared?) He then reveals that the first group to receive the treatment suddenly got sick and died, with others getting sick after. As Todd speaks, everyone but Ronon (who looks satisfied, himself) looks shocked and disturbed. Todd says that he’s brought his crew there as a last resort. Ronon looks grim again (like he’s just realising he might be expected to help them). Todd says that he realises that they might be reluctant to help, but points out that his crew is their only hope of spreading the treatment. Todd seems to grow weaker as the watch, his speech halting and his head jerking.

In Woolsey’s office, John paces, saying that, now that they know what’s up, they can just shoot the hive down and move on. (The first time I saw this ep, I was shocked and dismayed at his attitude, for the reasons stated above and on which I elaborate at the end. But I have to wonder, with how hesitantly he’s speaking and the way he’s pacing, if he isn’t actually feeling some guilt here and is holding tight to notions like “Wraith are bad”, and “Todd took over the Daedalus“, because John’s desperate to protect his people? That he’s actually not so callous, and is simply trying not to think of Todd as the ally he once was so that it’s easier to just kill him and thereby eliminate the possibility that Todd may betray them again down the line? Well, maybe not, maybe I’m reaching, but I’d like to hope so, would like to think better of John ….) Woolsey points out that the treatment did work as they’d expected, did rid the Wraith of the feeding hand, and the IOA, who are strongly dedicated to this course of action, won’t want to lose the opportunity; they need to get every scrap of medical data that they can, even if it means reviving some of the Wraith.

Teyla and Ronon are also there. (I think it’s interesting how the scene opened with it seeming like it was just John and Woolsey, the two leaders one-on-one. Where is Rodney, though, I wonder?) Ronon asks what more they need to know about the treatment other than that it kills Wraith. They discuss using it as a weapon, with Sheppard reminding them that the issue is delivering it, as they’d discovered with Beckett’s retrovirus. Teyla muses that even if they could do that, it’s unlikely that they could kill them all that way. Ronon, of course, has no problem with that. (*Snicker*) Teyla goes on to suggest that if they can get it to work correctly, they might convince them all to take the treatment willingly and eliminate the need to feed. (Bravo, Teyla! It’s nice to see someone who wishes to make an attempt at peace before resorting to genocide! Still, I cannot fault Ronon for his feelings, given how the Wraith wiped out his planet — and seemingly took pleasure in the act beyond survival — and how he was used as a plaything by them.) Woolsey tells them that he wants them to go back up there, with Keller this time, as well as Lorne’s team and an extra unit of marines. John figures Woolsey still worries that it’s a trap; Woolsey says he’s just learned to use caution when dealing with Todd. (Wise of him, even if I do still trust Todd. Never hurts to be cautious! … Nit-pick: why does it so often sound like people are saying “Loren” instead of “Lorne”? What’s with the extra syllable? *Scratches head* Makes me want to ask all the actors to say “love-lorn” and see if it comes out sounding like “love-loren” ….)

On the hive ship, Lorne reports to John that he’s got men scouting the perimeter who will check in every hour. There’s a power fluctuation. John radios Rodney who tiredly but patiently explains what he’s apparently already explained: that “some of the ship’s systems are acting up a little.” John tells him sternly to get it fixed. (What, do you think he’s just been sitting on his arse this whole time? Yeah, sometimes John ticks me off a little in how he deals with Rodney too, which should be apparent from other editions of this column — mostly in that he’s simply too impatient and sometimes asks the impossible, though, rather than the sort of personality-change-requesting that Keller kept badgering him with in the last ep. In fact, I guess I have to thank Keller, because it occurs to me now that when John yells at Rodney to hurry up or do the impossible, it’s because he’s so very confident in Rodney’s genius! So there is actually a positive side to his occasionally seeming unreasonable! Then again, it could be argued that Keller’s nagging proves she believes in him too, but only in the sense that he can “be a better person” by her definition, which frankly doesn’t take much faith in regards to anyone, for one thing. For another, she’s expecting him to be the guy she saw when a parasite was blocking his memories of past traumas, memories that he now has again and surely should be expected to have an effect on his personality now. And she still showed almost no confidence in his skills, despite all the proof she’s had of such. John, on the other hand, would simply have expected Rodney to save the day, end of story, and wouldn’t have given a whit about the abilities of the other scientists, methinks. So thank you, Keller, for making me love McShep more than ever! *Smile*) Rodney (in quite reasonable tones, rather than snapping as he might have a few years ago — and no, we’re not going to credit Keller with that, because I have made similar observations of his behavior before they started dating) asks John to give him a few minutes.

A marine hears something and investigates. He radios Lorne, reporting that he sees a wall melting — really, the membranes that comprise it are disintegrating/tearing open. It stops; he investigates and is attacked by a scary-looking Wraith who drags him away, leaving Lorne’s radio calls unanswered. (While it’s still not exactly what I’d call horror, it’s somehow creepier to me than “Whispers” was at least, although I can’t pinpoint why ….)

Rodney checks on Keller, and finds her a bit down in the mouth. (I like that he picks up on it right away. And yay, his concern and consideration of her all feels natural, rather than practiced!! I mean, he doesn’t seem like he’s consciously trying to be nice as, he often was with Katie and sometimes has been with Keller in the past, especially last ep. And he’s doing it on his own; she’s not reminding him to be nice/considerate. This is what I would call positive character growth. If this is how McKeller had been all along, like I said at the beginning of the review, while I might not necessarily have liked it — particularly if it still lacked actual chemistry and her body language still suggested she wasn’t interested despite her words — I would likely have found it to be more tolerable, at least, as I do here. And less saccharine.)

Keller tells him that the treatment worked in all the ways it was supposed to, as predicted by the simulations, but it had the unforeseen side-effect of creating a virulent, cancer-like disease while simultaneously weakening their immune system, killing them. (So is it the disease that weakened their immune system or did the disease develop separately from this factor? Basically, did the treatment weaken then in the first place, the way Todd feared it would? If you get rid of the cancer-virus problem, will they be fine, or will their immune system still be weak? Is this the Wraith version of AIDs?) She’s not sure if she can fix the problem, and feels overwhelmed, talking about how Rodney and John and the rest of them are used to making decisions that affect the whole universe, but she’s not. (I have to admit, while I’ve seen a number of people complain about her whinging here, I actually think it’s kind of understandable for her to be feeling this way and to be confiding in him like this — it’s why they do make good friends. Even so, I would have expected this sort of lack of confidence to have taken place more in her earlier days, before she’d been through quite so much, so this does also seem a bit of a step backward for her character. Then again, her experiment having failed so spectacularly might be considered cause enough for that step to have been taken.) Rodney waves it off, gently teasing, saying that one gets used to it, adding that it helps to have a massive ego. (Score one for Rodney! I was just thinking that his ego has helped him get through similar crises and therefore has a beneficial side! *Grin*) He then speaks encouragingly to her, expressing a genuine belief in her and giving her a neck rub. (See how nice encouragement is, Keller? Just because someone is arrogant and/or egotistical doesn’t mean they don’t need words of encouragement too — in fact, sometimes it means they need it even more. So here’s to hoping you learn to show Rodney the same support he’s showing you now but which you seemed incapable of showing him last ep! Yes, I do indeed love this scene despite it being a McKeller moment …)

The gun of the marine who was attacked, Williams, is found, unfired. John radios McKay, asking if he uploaded the ship’s schematics into the LSD; Rodney confirms that he did. John and Lorne go looking about, Lorne’s LSD in-hand. Teyla and Ronon do the same, Teyla using an LSD as well, despite lacking the ancient gene. (Mallozzi suggests that it’s probably not that hard to modify the LSD so that it can be used by non-gene-bears. I can accept that, but suggest that it should actually be mentioned in the show so that it doesn’t look like the crew forgot about that. *Snicker*) Lorne notes, perplexed, that the dead end that he and John have just encountered was supposed to have been an open corridor. John, a bit irritated, radios Rodney to tell him that the schematic “is a piece of crap.” Rodney says he doesn’t know what to tell him, as he’d pulled the schematic up from the ship’s own database. Teyla radios, reporting that she and Ronon have found Lt Williams, dead. Ronon chimes in that the man looks like something tried to eat him — with teeth, not Wraith-style feeding. John tells them to radio someone to pick up the body while he and Lorne try to figure out who did it. Lorne then notes another life-sign on the LSD, somewhere nearby, and John tells Teyla and Ronon to come to their position. Lorne and John keep going, and follow the life-sign to a chamber. At first it seems empty, but a scary-looking Wraith jumps out from behind one of the mist-screens, attacking John. Lorne starts shooting it off of Sheppard; John scrambles to his feet and fires a pistol into it as well. Teyla and Ronon arrive just after. Lorne asks what the thing was; John says that it’s a Wraith soldier without the mask (he’s seen one in “Spoils of War”, if I recall). Lorne muses that he didn’t think they took the masks off; John points out that without a feeding hand, it has to, in order to eat.

Later, on the bridge, Rodney is less than pleased with the revelation that there are Wraith running about learning how to use their teeth. Keller berates herself for having taken the only feeding method they ever knew. (As if it makes a difference either way? It seems John is reading my mind ….) John points out that it wasn’t like the Wraith didn’t already eat people; they just have a new way of doing it. John asks how they got out of their pods; Rodney figures the power fluctuations must have done it, with some sort of safety protocol opening a pod if the power in that area goes out. Keller asks if he’s stabilised it, so that the other pods are fine; he hesitantly and embarrassedly says that they might be fine, admitting that he never figured out what was actually wrong with the power. (Oh, Rodney, and you left the work to check on Keller? Okay, I don’t blame anyone if they’re annoyed with you for that. So here’s yet another way her character is used in a way that makes you act stupidly. *Sigh* In this instance, it’s not Keller herself that draws my ire but rather how she’s being used, by the writers, as a plot device — any girlfriend of McKay’s could have been used similarly detrimentally with his character, having him shirk his work to see the girl. I’d like to think he wouldn’t do that, though.) Teyla asks if there’s some way to tell if other pods are compromised. Rodney replies, exasperated, “Well, I don’t know! Maybe? Might as well go down and look!” (I kind of had the impression that Teyla was asking if you could determine it by looking at the computer, Rodney dear. Granted, the system, wiggy as it’s acting, might give a false negative, though, so it probably would be best to look in person anyway.) Sheppard says he has a better idea: they should leave. Keller protests that she hasn’t finished her work, suggesting that the IOA won’t be happy if she doesn’t. (I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt and say she has guts and dedication, a strong sense of duty/responsibility, rather than wonder if she’s putting the easing of her guilt over what has happened over the safety of her comrades.) “The IOA can sue me,” Sheppard replies, leading them out.

As they go, Ronon remarks that the way looks different. (Ah, so this is why they had Ronon lead the way earlier: to establish that he has just cause to notice something different about the route!) Sheppard says that he’s probably just imagining it, until they come to a dead end. Sheppard calls McKay up to the front. He’s as shocked as they are at the development. He looks to his datapad for another route out; finding one, Sheppard has him lead the way. When they get to a door, though, they find a big, gaping, melt-y chasm beyond it. (One that suggests to me that the ‘jumper should be much smaller in relation to the hive out in space.) Rodney, pale and wide-eyed, says that this is the only way to the dart bay, the only way out.

They return to the bridge, where, at Sheppard’s behest, Rodney offers an explanation for all that’s been happening, first putting forth the observation that the glitches that have been occurring have been happening in all the systems, not just power. He points out how the ship is organic, and that it can repair itself inside just as they know it does outside. Teyla picks up his meaning quickly, suggesting that he’s saying that the ship is repairing itself incorrectly. Rodney says that it’s not actually repairing so much as reconfiguring itself, pointing out the evidence of walls melting and corridors being dead ends when they shouldn’t be. Sheppard tells Rodney to contact Atlantis and send for more ‘jumpers and some combat engineers. (Hey, cool, nice to see them get mentioned again after “Search and Rescue”!) Rodney reveals that communications are now down; John says the man’s name in exasperation, giving him a despairing look. Rodney, also exasperated (but staying civil), points out that the problems are random; he doesn’t know what’s causing them or how to fix them, so they’re stuck for the time being. Rodney does have an idea, though, which he reluctantly reveals: they could wake Todd up. Ronon does not like the idea, reminding him of how the last Wraith to come out of a pod ate someone. Rodney explains that it was a warrior drone, which they’ve long-suspected needs a commander to control it; he figures it’s natural for it to revert to an animal state now, but that such shouldn’t happen with Todd, theoretically. Keller reminds him that Todd is sick and she hasn’t yet found the cure, saying, “I mean, we take him out, and he might not last long!” Sheppard says that’s the one part of the plan he likes. (*Sigh* Yeah, just see the end of the article for my thoughts on John’s attitude.) A beep signals navigation having trouble; Rodney tells them they have to make a decision soon, because he’s not going to be able to stay ahead of these problems for much longer. (Funny, I didn’t think you were managing to stay ahead of them now.)

As they stand before Todd’s pod, Ronon asks Sheppard if he’s sure about doing this; John doesn’t answer, just raises his weapon and readies himself while Teyla activates the process to let Todd out. The membrane on the pod parts, tendrils removing themselves from Todd. Todd notes Sheppard’s presence; John asks him, almost sounding genuinely friendly, how he’s feeling. Todd admits that he didn’t think Sheppard would come; “What are friends for,” Ronon deadpans, an eager, evil light in his eyes. Teyla tells Todd about the ship malfunctioning, saying that they need him to fix it. “You woke me for this Todd asks, peeved. John confirms it, saying that Todd has work to do. (I really feel for poor Todd here, sick and being held at gunpoint on his own ship by his former allies after being made sick by a treatment they offered in the first place, only to be forced to fix his ship for their benefit even as he’s dying, with no promise of aid. Not that I entirely blame our heroes — not when their alternative is to die themselves and their alliance has become so strained. They wouldn’t be in this situation if they hadn’t been called by Todd — just like Todd wouldn’t be in this situation if he hadn’t accepted their offer ….)

On the bridge, we see Todd at work. Rodney says that he’s already tried something Todd is doing now, earning a growl from the Wraith; Rodney backs off, complaining that someone woke up on the wrong side of the pod. (*Snicker*) Todd growls that what’s happening makes no sense, saying that the systems are being erratic; Rodney protests that he’s been saying as much. Todd asks, angrily, what they’ve done to the systems; Rodney says nothing, the systems been like that since they came aboard. Todd looks deeply worried as he says that nothing is working as it should; he starts to say it’s as if … Sheppard prompts him, and he says “It’s not possible.” Ronon asks what. (My, is that just a tiny spark of the friendliness he showed Todd in the alternate timeline? Must be my imagination ….) Todd says he thinks he knows what the problem is. (Well, could you drag it out any longer?? Enough with the dramatic tension already — there’s been a lot of prolonged moments in this ep thus far, and it’s starting to look like the script was a bit short or something ….)

We get a cutscene to outside, then back inside, where Keller asks, disbelieving, “The disease is in the ship? (I’m surprised this didn’t occur to them earlier, given what happened with Keller in “The Seed” — I suspected it pretty much right away, and yet we the audience were not privy to anything more than our heroes were. Also, I would think Keller, more than anyone, would be able to accept the idea, almost having become a Wraith ship herself — unless she remembers nothing of the experience?) Todd reveals that the ship and the Wraith exchange fluids while the Wraith hibernate; this revelation grosses out John a bit, as he looks at the ship around him with new eyes. (Is it really so different from, say, a dialysis? A blood transfusion? Or the exchange between a human child and its mother?) “Great, so we’re flyin’ around in a giant tumor,” John gripes. (*Snicker*) “With no way off,” Ronon adds. Todd goes on to say that more and more systems will be affected as time goes on, including life-support and hull integrity. Teyla asks if they can land it. (Great question — yay for Teyla!) Todd replies that it’s tricky even in the best of circumstances, so he wouldn’t recommend it now. Ronon asks what they should do, then; Todd says they must cure the disease. Keller points out that it could take months to even figure out what’s wrong; Todd estimates they have four days before the ship is unlivable. “Well, you better get to work,” John tells him. Todd, letting out a frustrated sigh, turns to a terminal.

We see John and the others hurry onto the bridge, John asking Rodney how things are coming. (Ah, I guess they were in the lab where Keller had been working earlier in that last scene.) Rodney says, a bit darkly, that aside from the fact that each time he fixes something, something else breaks, things are fine. Sheppard asks if they can expect more power fluctuations; Rodney figures so, and that they will get worse. Sheppard and Ronon worry about more Wraith getting out, John saying they can’t afford the risk anymore. Rodney reveals that he’s found the safety protocol he’d mentioned earlier; he can’t override it entirely, but he can alter it. One possibility, he offers grimly (and I’m pleased that he is grim about it), is to make it so that pods won’t release the Wraith when the power goes out (gee, that sounds like a pretty thorough override to me), but that it would mean the Wraith would then suffocate. “Great! They’re Wraith!” Ronon chirps. Rodney questions that, pointing out that they no longer feed. (Rodney! I’m so proud of you for making that leap of compassion!) “Tell that to Lt Williams,” Lorne replies. Teyla points out that if so much of Todd’s crew ends up dead, Todd will demand to know why. Sheppard replies that they can just say it was a malfunction, and gives Rodney the order to do it. (And while I’m a little uneasy with his lack of compassion here, in a way it would be a malfunction — Rodney’s override would only take effect if a pod were to lose power, right? If only they could make it so that only drones-pods would be like that, since they would have to kill any escaping drones in self-defense anyway, but commanders might be reasoned with. Ooh, I hope Kenny’s not on board!!)

Working with Keller, Todd suffers a moment of pain; she asks him if he’s all right, and he says through grit teeth that it will pass. She apologises, saying how she never meant for this, was only trying to do something that she thought would help everyone. (I like her for this.) Todd laughs, amused by the idea of a human apologising to a Wrath. She says that’s because he doesn’t understand compassion. (If she were talking about any other Wraith we’ve seen, I might agree, but he has shown himself, to me, to be both friendly and honourable; I can’t see the concept of compassion being beyond totally him.) She supposes Wraith view it as a weakness; “Isn’t it?” he asks with a wry smile. She insists that it’s not; he says he doesn’t think that Sheppard would agree. (Oh, poor Todd! I just want to hug him right now! Oh wait, I can! *Glee*) She tells him Sheppard’s a soldier; she’s a doctor. “His job is to take lives, and yours is to save them,” Todd says in amused understanding. She says no, Sheppard’s job is to save lives as well; he just as a different set of tools. (Well, then are you saying that Sheppard would agree with you that compassion is not a weakness then? Because I thought your point when you said he’s a soldier and you’re a doctor was to explain why he wouldn’t agree with you, as Todd figured. It hasn’t happened in a while, but this is one of those instances where the conversation seems to have lost track of itself.) Todd gives a small nod and another little grunt of amusement.

On the bridge, Rodney announces that he’s finished designing a programme that will override that safety protocol, and asks if John is sure he wants him to do it. John is. They watch the monitor, and a spot amongst the schematics of the chambers is highlighted. Rodney says that one of the smaller chambers of pods isn’t accepting the new command. There’s only a couple dozen or so pods there; John decides to used C-4 to deal with them. As he, Teyla, Ronon, and Lorne make their way to it, Teyla gives warning; they turn to fire on a Wraith drone behind them. (Huh. I would have thought she could sense them more easily than that. Maybe the treatment has changed them enough to make it harder for her to do so?) As they reach another room, Lorne notes more power fluctuations. A worried John then radios Rodney, revealing that the reason the chamber wouldn’t accept the command was because all the pods were already empty. (Awww, the way he says “All of them …” when Rodney asked how many were open is so adorable!)

A bit later, John having gathered the extra marines, he tells them all that they’re to split into teams, divide the decks, and start sweeping, ordering them to shoot at anything that moves. Ronon looks pleased. They walk around for a while and hunt, taking out a few Wraith as they go.

Todd notes, intrigued, that Keller used Iratus DNA in the treatment. She explains that she was hoping it would keep them from losing their abilities. “Got the idea from Michael, if you can believe that,” she reveals. (Uh, yeah, since he’s the one who came up with the idea of getting rid of the need to feed in the first place — did we actually need that reminder?) Todd announces that he has an idea. Keller radios Sheppard a cutscene later, calling him to the lab; he asks irritably if it can wait, as he’s busy, buts he says it can’t. He tells the marine with him to go meet with Teyla, Ronon, and Ramirez, and leaves for the lab. (There doesn’t seem to be any particular reason for that moment — we don’t really know this guy or Ramirez, and it never really comes up again, even if we do see them more. Curious.)

When he gets there, he learns that Todd has come up with a way to not cure the disease but rather undo it. He tells of an old and dangerous practice in which a terminally ill Wraith might restore himself to perfect health by letting an Iratus bug queen feed on him. (I love how he says “bug” — he seems to love human words.) The problem is that the treatment is almost always fatal to the Wraith who tries it. (Would this give him back his feeding hand, I wonder? Or simply erase the cancer?) Seeming to have difficulty with his speech now, Todd says he only suggests it now because his people seem beyond hope otherwise. He says that there’s a planet three days away that has what they need; Sheppard heatedly points out that the ship can barely stay in orbit as it is, much less travel in hyperspace. Todd says confidently that he can manage it. (I don’t blame Sheppard for being reluctant — Todd has nothing left to lose so can take any risk but Sheppard ’s people might still have a better chance.) Todd points out that this is the only way to save his crew, but John insists that they aren’t leaving, and will find a solution right there. As Sheppard turns to leave, Todd asks him to at least do him “the courtesy of being honest.” Todd believes John’s refusal stems not from fear of hyperspace travel on a damaged ship, but rather from the fact that he doesn’t want the Wraith’s lives, including Todd’s own, to be saved. John admits candidly that the thought had crossed his mind. (*Sigh* Well, at least he’s honest?)

Todd insists that his and his hive’s welfare are Sheppard’s responsibility, pointing out with growing anger that they wouldn’t be in this mess if they hadn’t agreed to Keller’s treatment. John points out that he might have been more charitable if Todd hadn’t tried to kill half his people last they’d met. (Don’t worry, I discuss this later; suffice to say, I understand where John’s coming from, but I also wish I could point some things out to him about Todd’s point of view in that scenario. Especially since Keller has more reason to be upset, having been directly threatened, but she still wanted to help Todd and was apologetic.) Todd, roaring, comes at John with his former feeding-hand raised, ready to use it. John is unflinching; the marines draw on Todd. Todd halts, realising with horror that his weapon is gone, glancing at his now-empty palm. He looks John in the eye and, anger drained and seeming shaken, insists that Sheppard owes him this. John replies that he doesn’t owe Todd anything. (And that’s the moment where I’m floored by John’s seeming lack of compassion or sense of responsibility, even as I still bear in mind why he sees Todd as having betrayed him. More later.) John orders Todd taken away. Todd looks stunned as he is led away. “Well, I guess I can’t count on his help anymore,” Keller says wryly. (Okay, um, what happened to her guilt over what happened to Todd’s people? Suddenly she’s with John, feeling Todd’s not worth saving? Was her apology just an act to get Todd to work? Was she really only interested in getting a weapon for the IOA, then, and not in rectifying the situation she created? What happened to the compassion she was espousing? She didn’t even try to talk John into cutting the dying man a break, or chastise him even for a moment for not having that so-precious compassion himself!) Rodney radios John to the bridge and Keller gets back to work.

John hears a rumbling sound when he gets back to the bridge; Rodney explains that, despite Todd’s estimates, the big chasm they came across before is getting worse, threatening hull integrity, but even worse, there’s a stress line across the ship that threatens to split the ship apart. (I notice at this point that poor John has three nasty scratches along his right face and neck.) John radios an order to everyone to fall back immediately, explaining, when Teyla protests that their work is not done, that the ship’s breaking apart. They do as ordered. As they go, a marine near Ronon is attacked, and Ronon himself is tackled a moment later. Teyla and another marine arrive a moment later, shooting them Wraith. Ronon assures her that he’s all right, but does moan and groan a bit all the same. (I like it when he’s not so stoic, when he shows he feels pain, even if he lives with it without actually complaining about it.)

When they catch up with Lorne, they find him unsuccessfully trying to open a door. Teyla radios Rodney, asking if he can override it, but he can’t get the controls to respond. He keeps trying, moving from console to console, saying to give him a minute; she points out, calmly, that they may not have one. As if to prove her point, another batch of Wraith approach them, and they open fire. John, meanwhile, tries to open the door from the other side. There’s a creaking and shaking in the bridge; staring at the screens in horror, Rodney yells that they need to get out of there now. Between John, Ronon, and a marine, they finally get the door open and hurry through, escaping.

We see the ship rip apart. Rodney frantically radios, “Sheppard, come in, please!” John breathlessly informs him that they’re all right and, upon Rodney’s further questioning, that the bulkhead is holding “— for now.” (*Squeeeeeee*!! Such a tiny moment, I know, but I am pleased nonetheless. I mean, Rodney could have just put out a general call, or contacted Teyla, seeing as she was the last person he was actually speaking to, but no, it was Sheppard that he called out for, despite the fact that the man had just been with him! *Glee* The only thing that would have made it even better would have been for him to call him “John”. *Evil grin*) Rodney informs John that he was able to seal the sections before they depressurised, and starts to impress upon him the import of them getting back to the bridge, but suddenly the power goes out for a moment, an alarm sounding. Rodney panics, telling John that the ship’s having torn itself apart has changed their trajectory; now they’re heading for the planet! And we see just what he means with an outside view …. (Hey, that’s a curious thing — I realise it has the stress fracture, but what caused it to rip apart in the first place, rather than just sitting there? Gravity from the planet? Internal pressures?)

They hurry to the bridge, where an understandably cranky Rodney waits. John asks in a frightened voice (awwww) if they’re going to burn up; Rodney heatedly informs him that no, reentry will even slow them down, but not enough to keep them from crashing. (I don’t get the sense that Rodney is blaming John or anything. Some people get scared when imminent danger arrives, and others get pissed — I think it’s interesting to see who became what!) Ronon asks, reasonable and worried, if Rodney can get them over the water; Rodney insists that they’re be vaporised on impact no matter where they land. John says they have to do something; “Like what?” Rodney asks, exasperated. John snaps at him to think. (Believe it or not, I don’t blame John for that; they’re all in panic mode. And, well, in this case it really does seem to get results ….) After a second’s hesitation, Rodney indeed gets into think-mode, starting up technobabble as he reasons aloud about the forward thrusters, how they should be unaffected by the malfunctions but lack power because of the conduits that were destroyed when the ship was; he’ll need to reroute power, but if he can, it might slow their descent. (Ha! I bet Keller couldn’t get that kind of results form him! Well, okay, I don’t know, maybe she could, but I’ll enjoy the possibility that she can’t, since there’s no evidence to the contrary — it’s obvious that he came up with the solution in “Brain Storm” before she yelled, after all ….) Sheppard is pleased. Then Rodney reveals that he has no idea how to do it; even if the systems weren’t messed up, it would take hours. (Well, at least he came up with the idea!) Sheppard tells him to keep working and hurries off; Ronon asks where he’s going, and he replies over his shoulder, “To get some help!”

Sheppard goes to see Todd, explaining that they’re headed for the planet. Todd’s not particularly receptive to their plight, snarling that death will be a welcome reprieve. (See, now, if you had been nicer about it all, John, you might be having an easier time now.) Sheppard says he didn’t think Todd was such a quitter (a nod to Rodney’s own argument in “Miller’s Crossing”, perhaps?), then promises to take Todd to the planet with the Iratus bug if he helps them. Todd is skeptical; John says he gives his word. Todd gets to his feet and asks, “And my crew?” Looking a bit uneasy (maybe even guilty — I hope so). John informs him that they’re dead. After a low growl from Todd (during which he probably thinks John murdered them all), John explains about the ship having been sheared in two. Todd snarls that if John had let him take the ship to the planet, none of this would have happened; John calmly says that Todd knows they wouldn’t have made it. (I do have to agree with John there. It is interesting to see Todd lose his head like this, even more than he did in “The Queen”!) While Todd glares, a snarl on his lips, John goes on to say that he understands that Todd is pissed off about his crew (and he really does!), they’re all about to join them if they can’t slow down, and asks if Todd’s going to help them out. Todd raises his chin, a snarl still on his lips.

We see Teyla standing at the controls, reporting that they’re in the atmosphere and saying that she can’t control it. Todd stalks in, snarling at her and Rodney, who is beside her, to move aside. As he takes his place at the controls and starts pressing buttons, Ronon asks John if this is a good idea; John points out they’re in a freefall, asking what Todd could do. (Yeah, not really a time to be picky, I’m thinkin’.) Todd says he can reroute the power to the thrusters, but it will take a few moments. (Moments! As opposed to hours! Amazing! Rodney must be mad with jealousy ….) Rodney tells him uneasily to just take his time. (Not sure if he means that a bit sarcastically, since they don’t have any time, or in a sense of let’s give the angry scary guy who is our last chance anything he wants and mollify him.) Teyla, at a screen, says that they’ll impact in fifteen seconds. (Heeey, cool to see her putting her expertise to use!) “Not if I can help it,” Todd says, determined. He then growls that he’s firing the thrusters. (Poor Rodney, getting shown up — I’m glad he was gracious about it. Considering it’s Todd’s ship and Wraith tech, it only makes sense that Todd would be more capable with it. And of course Todd needed to save them so that Sheppard would have a reason to turn around with his attitude, even if it annoys me that he needed to turn around. Again, we have a secondary character being used to show up the leads or make them look bad/illogical/slightly out-of-character, all in the supposed name of character development. *sigh* Well, since I do love Todd, I can’t deny being pleased at seeing him save them, especially with him being sick while doing it — I enjoy the hurt/comfort aspect and the angst, even if the situation seems a bit inappropriate to me from a writing standpoint.)

Teyla announces that they’re at forty-thousand feet and still going too fast. Rodney says to Todd that it’s not enough; Todd growls that instead of criticising, maybe Rodney can get him more power. (*Snicker* Cue Tim Allen’s “more power!” grunt.) Rodney scrambles to obey, assuring him hat he’s on it. Teyla gives another update: twenty-thousand feet and still too fast. Sheppard suggests a trick to Todd to level them out so they can glide across the water. Todd glares; Sheppard says to trust him, as he’s done this before. (Wouldn’t the difference in the way a hive ship flies versus Atlantis make a difference in the landing, though?) Todd curls his lip. Teyla announces “Ten-thousand feet!” Rodney says they’re using all the power there is now. Todd raises his face skyward and closes his eyes, snarling lowly. (I would have thought he was using a mental component to fly the ship, like John with the ‘jumper, but such is not the case, Mallozzi tells us — it’s all manual.) There’s a long, tense moment of flying. Teyla announces they’re at two-thousand feet; Rodney warns that they’re about to lose inertial dampeners. More tense flying moment, watching all their faces. (Hey, there’s Keller! I wondered where she was! Does she have a clue what’s going on? She looks braced, like she knows, but poor thing if she doesn’t really!) The ship skids into the water, causing a giant wave. In Atlantis, Amelia reports the landing to a sick-looking Woolsey, who tells her to relay the coordinates to the rescue-jumpers.

Later, we see Woolsey reading in his office; John comes in a bit stiff-legged, reporting when asked that his team is recovering, the ship having taken quite a jolt when it hit the water. Woolsey informs him that the hive was filing with water when the rescue team managed to get it open, and sank moments after they were extracted. Sheppard says that he wishes he’d been awake to see it. He then notes a viewscreen where Todd sits in a medical bed in an isolation room, his back to the camera. (Thank Gaia it’s not a cell!) John asks Woolsey, a bit uncomfortably, how Todd’s doing. Woolsey replies that he’s not responding to any treatment. John looks unhappy at this. Woolsey goes on to say that he’s been considering a request of John’s; John perks up anxiously. Woolsey asks in curiously confused tones if it isn’t true that John had wanted to shoot Todd’s ship down when it first arrived. “Mmm, sound’s vaguely familiar,” John admits. “And now you want me to go against protocol and let him go ….” Woolsey continues, still perplexed. (Protocol? You sought aide from Todd after “the betrayal”! Is it protocol to seek aid from someone you would imprison, given the chance? I thought the IOA still saw him as a potential ally? What changed for the worse from the beginning of this ep? It’s not like Todd sicced the ill wraith on them!) John points out that Todd saved their lives; Woolsey points out that Todd’s why they were in danger in the first place. (So if a clear ally asked your crew for help, and they got in danger trying to aid them, you would incarcerate the ally?)

Woolsey goes on to add that Todd is “an incredible security risk.” (At first I protest that he isn’t any more of one now than he was before the incident on the Daedalus, but then again, they’d had no chance to catch him after his perceived betrayal, so I guess I could see why they’d be reluctant to have him run loose now. Even if they had still tried to work with him after. Speaking of which, I wonder if the illness is actually why Todd didn’t answer that request for help? Also, I wonder if some of Woolsey’s reluctance to let Todd go stems from anger at Todd’s having threatened him on the Daedalus. I could understand it if that’s what is really driving him here,) John points out that Todd will probably die anyway. Woolsey asks what will happen if he lives; John replies that Todd will remember what they did for him (just hope he doesn’t remember why he got into that position in the first place and hold an overriding grudge for that) and that he’s been their best ally against the rest of their Wraith. (I’m thrilled you finally remember that!! Now if only you would see saving Todd as your people taking responsibility for their own plan ….) He points out that if they ever get the treatment to work, they’ll need Todd’s help to deploy it. (I assume you mean working correctly? Because if you still plan to weaponise it, no, you don’t need Todd — he wouldn’t help you do that anyway.) Woolsey points out that a decision like this is the kin that could cost him his job (and we know, from very recently, just how important this job is). John shrugs, saying “Aren’t they all?” (*Snicker* not very sensitive of him, but he has a point.)

We see Sheppard standing by the ‘Gate, which is active. (I thought ‘Gates didn’t stay active long without something going through them?) Todd is lead to it with guns at his back. When he reaches Sheppard, he says he appreciates John letting him go. John tells him a deal’s a deal. Todd says, with a small, enigmatic smile that he will remember this. John gives him an equally enigmatic look. Todd then gives John a small, amused nod, and walks through the ‘Gate. John stares thoughtfully at the ‘Gate as it closes. (Despite my frustrations with the lead-up, part of me still appreciates the drama of that lead-up all the same, and I love this ending!! I also feel so bad for poor Todd, on the verge of death, about to face a painful cure that may lead to an awful death anyway, and having basically lost everything!)

Now for a more in-depth rumination on John’s behavior. I can fathom why John would have reason to be angry with Todd: he’s fiercely protective of his people, and Todd threatened them. I even feel like I should be more understanding of/sympathetic to John’s willingness to let Todd die after the Daedalus fiasco. But John hadn’t really seemed angry at the time, in “The Lost Tribe”, so it seems odd to me for him to be quite so pissy now. Especially given that he knows it was a misunderstanding — doesn’t he? That Todd only did what he did because he thought the humans had betrayed him first, and that he kept going as he did because he was desperate to save his entire race from the Attero device? Aren’t the facts that a) he only used his weapon when his own people were seemingly attacked and b) he went through with Keller’s treatment both suggestive of that assumption? I thought John believed that Todd wouldn’t have even endangered the Daedalus unnecessarily — it seems obvious to me that Todd would probably have returned the ship and its crew safe and sound if not for Ronon’s having sabotaged it and forced him to try to destroy the ship in order to destroy the device. Didn’t Woolsey even suggest that himself, essentially? Also, I seem to recall John having considered truly betraying Todd before, in “The Kindred”. And I can easily see John doing the same thing in Todd’s shoes, so it seems a bit … well, hypocritical of him to hold the actions Todd committed in order to save his own people against him, under those circumstances. It would have been different if Todd had betrayed them without having believed that the humans did it first.

Now, I have complained before, with other episodes, that John seemed a bit more hostile than Todd was due, so I guess it’s not really a new thing in this one, even if it does seem more prevalent. And I will admit that the harshness in this ep didn’t seem quite soooo harsh after subsequent viewings. But so many pro-Todd’s-and-his-faction’s-death remarks was unsettling, especially given that Tela and Rodney themselves both seemed ill at ease regarding it themselves. I feel like John had conveniently forgotten here all of the times Todd has been helpful and didn’t need to be, all the times when he’s acted in good faith. I mean, John seemed to think Todd was trustworthy in “Be All My Sins Remember’d”, “Spoils of War”, “The Kindred, Part One”, and “The Queen” (even if he was understandably wary), after all. In “The Queen”, he even said that he felt that, with Todd now in control of the alliance, they were in a better position than they were before. Hell, in “First Contact”, John seemed eager to go on the mission to meet Todd, and not in a paranoid, “he’s dangerous” sort of way — he kept talking up his rapport with Todd rather than a perceived danger in meeting with the guy, and didn’t suggest that Woolsey would be safer staying home himself or anything. So that’s not consistently hateful in regards to Todd, I don’t feel, despite Mallozzi assuring us on his blog that John was. In fact, he seems to flop around a lot, trusting him one moment and being nasty the next, even before the so-called betrayal.

And considering how Todd has pulled through on his side of the bargain again and again, and how he restored Sheppard’s life to him when he had no reason other than to repay a debt of honour, and saved Rodney’s sister with no promises of being fed or released, I should think that would earn him more compassion from Sheppard. Especially since it’s clear now that he had had every intention of going through with the treatment, risking his people and himself for the human plan that he’d agreed to! I can’t fathom John not thinking they owe him for that, much less why John was upset that he’d done it! (Unless he was upset because it meant that there was a reason not to kill him, proof that the betrayal was not a given but rather a defensive reaction?) If the incident with the Daedalus hadn’t happed, and Keller had been able to administer the treatment and this still happened, would he still have refused to help Todd when it failed? Or would he have taken responsibility (not blame, no, I wouldn’t call for that, as the Wraith knew there was a risk and no one guessed this outcome) for the ill done, however unintentionally, to an ally who was acting in good faith and injured while doing so?

So is it just that Todd took over the Daedalus and threatened its crew, despite the extenuating circumstances, the obvious misunderstanding? Despite the fact that they have threatened Todd time and time again, even chaining him up, before that point, even though they were supposed to have a truce? Can John say he would have acted any differently in the same situation? Is John holding a grudge because Todd almost killed Rodney in “Lost Tribe”, even though he didn’t know it? Or because Todd didn’t answer Woolsey’s call for assistance later, when they were on trial? When an enemy, especially one who was an ally, is powerless before you, an enemy that has shown an effort to aide you when it wasn’t required, spared you when they had no cause to, and has only threatened you to save lives, begs for help over a situation that you created and it would cost you nothing to help them, it seems rather heartless to refuse aid.

Mallozzi points out that protagonists won’t always do the virtuous thing, though; that’s a concept that I can better get behind as a reason for having John act that way. Still, there is such a thing, I feel, as taking that too far; I can’t help but wonder if such is the case here, as I have seen a number of people react the same way, feeling that John was a bit over-the-top in his animosity. Mallozzi had said that Sheppard’s attitude to the Wraith was consistent, but before he’d said that, I had suspected that John’s harshness was a plot device to make John’s turnaround at the end more pronounced. If such had actually been the case, I’d say it’s a bit contrived, but I can’t complain at all about the end result — that ending was nearly as good as something McSheppy in the tugging the heartstrings department, thanks to Flanigan’s wonderfully expressive face. But if such isn’t the case … that’s actually more disappointing. And I find it a bit odd that Mallozzi has also said that they didn’t have Sheppard turn out to be the father of Teyla’s baby in part because it would suggest an impropriety that would do a disservice to the character. But isn’t having him be so lacking in compassion and so bloodthirsty, so willing to kill an ally despite extenuating circumstances, also a disservice to the character? Especially considering that he had gotten in trouble for balking at the rules before; his having a moment of weakness and getting together with Teyla, a woman he cares deeply for, would not have seemed out of character nor particularly heinous to me — not like some of his behavior here. (Then again, I have some issues with anti-fraternisation rules. *Cough*)

But like I said, John redeems himself in my eyes at the end. I hope his seeming compassion sticks for when we next see Todd, that John doesn’t backslide and act all hostile right out of the ‘Gate. Let’s hope this lesson, that not all Wraith are inherently evil and can ever be honourable, stays learned this time.

See you next week, for my review of “Identity”. Or maybe the week after. (Hey, it’s a busy season.) Oh, and don’t forget my “Goodbye to the ‘Gate Party”, January 9th at 11:10 EST, at “The ‘Gate Room”, my virtual chatroom!

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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 an artist, too, having done spot illustrations for Dragonlance, among other things. In her spare time, she’s a rabid fanficcer/fanartist. See more of her work at her site, Wolfen’s Webworld.