Stargate Atlantis: Vegas

By Wolfen Moondaughter

I feel like I’m suffering from Bipolar Disorder when watching this Rob Cooper-penned episode: I both love and dislike aspects of it at the same time. Happily, though, while I don’t count it as an all-time fave exactly, there’s never a point where I actually hate it. But I haven’t felt this conflicted over an entire episode of something since the final episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer!

When I’d first heard of the concept, on Mallozzi’s blog, I wasn’t too thrilled — it sounded like it wasn’t much of a “sci-fy”-y sort of ep, and like it was going to be pretty much all Sheppard, two points I would not want for a nearly-last episode. Thankfully, there was more sci-fi to it than I’d expected, and Rodney, Woolsey, Zelenka (and yes, Keller) were also in it. Unfortunately, Ronon and Teyla were not in it. (Yes, I know, it’s unlikely that Ronon and Teyla would have joined the Expedition without John, but one could argue that it’s unlikely the expedition would have survived at all without him anyway, or say that the Wraith wouldn’t have gotten woken up early, so there would be little need for a war. And since Rodney says he has a team in Pegasus, I saw no reason why that team could not have included Ronon and Teyla, nor why, if it did, they wouldn’t have come along to hunt for the Wraith on Earth. I mean, if Ronon would come when Jeannie was abducted and when John needed moral support when his father died,, why wouldn’t Ronon come to track a Wraith?) Rodney wasn’t in it nearly as much as I would have liked, either — I would have much preferred Sheppard work with him on the investigation the whole time. I did appreciate their chemistry together in the scenes they did have, though. And I was thrilled to see a more serious Rodney for a change — while I appreciate it when he’s funny, it’s those serious moments (or the moments where his humour is intended, as biting sarcasm, rather than the writers using him as the brunt of a joke or as a clown) that I like best. So even if the ep as a whole isn’t quite a fave, some of my fave McSheppy interaction can be found here!

The dialogue was stilted and hokey at times, like old noir or western films (you know, “pulp” type stuff), and didn’t really reflect well on the actors’ abilities — yet it worked, at least in the context of the episode. The story was also very slow in spots, though. (Okay, I don’t have an “other side” to that.) I was happy to see Neil Jackson again, at least. He played Khalek in SG-1‘s “Prototype” and Marcus, my fave character, on Blade: The Series; this time, he was the Wraith. As glad as I was to see him, and as fantastic of a job as he did, I’m also surprised they didn’t use a Wraith we’re already familier with. I’m, also a little disappointed that John didn’t give him a name. I was happy to see Todd again, of course; it was intriguing to see him as a nutter, but I wish Rodney had been more compassionate about it ….

The directing style was fresh and new for SGA, and lent a nice movie quality to it. At the same time, though, it seemed a bit overdone, a too-obvious attempt to emulate an indy-film effect. I suspect it was strongly influenced by the likes of Tarantino (who is decidedly not on my list of fave directors) or Rodriguez (I’ve only seen previews of Grindhouse). So one side of me was a gleeful little fangirl and the other half of me was rolling my eyes.

And in the grand scheme of things, on one hand, with just two episodes left of the series, the last thing I wanted was an episode that featured none of our guys. On the other hand, SGA is the only fandom where I greatly enjoy alt-reality fanfics. If not for the cancellation, I might have been a little more welcoming of the idea — although ideally, without an unlimited supply of episodes, I would prefer to leave alt-reality in the realm of fanfic and devote as much canon story as possible to the real deal. Well, unless the alt-reality were to depict McKay and Sheppard as a couple. (*Cough*)

See what I mean about being bipolar about it? Back and forth, just can’t make up my mind ….

5.19: “Vegas”

The story opens with a crime scene in the middle of a desert; a decimated corpse has been found. (The first thing that strikes me here is the music — it’s something with a Spanish guitar, not quite like anything we’ve heard on the show before, although it bears a vague resemblance to the Renaissance-style music we hear now and again. I think it helps to smoothly slip us into this new scenario.) Detective John Sheppard arrives at the scene in an old but stylish car (which, coming down the desert road in red, reminds me somewhat of Luke Skywalker’s landspeeder). A woman reporter badgers him when he steps out of the vehicle, asking if this scene is related to a “serial killer” investigation he’s on, insisting that the public has “a right to know.” (This John immediately differs from our own in that he seems utterly unreceptive to the woman; he isn’t suckered into revealing anything in order to show off, as he would for, say, Chaya, Flora, Larrin, or that ditzy chick from “The Tower”.) John is told by a crime scene guy that the victim has no clothes or ID and wasn’t killed there; we get flashbacks of a struggle in a car. The crime-scene guy tells us that signs suggest the body was dumped from an old pick-up with a radiator leak. We see flashback verification of this. John looks at the body; we see the telltale sign of a Wraith feeding in the handprint on the mummy-like corpse’s chest, while the other guy informs us that this body looks like seven others. (And they’re considering it a murder?? What killing method do they know of that could produce such results? Incidentally, this episode seems to bear some small resemblance, at least in the concept of human-looking Wraith killing people on Earth, to the SGA novel Blood Ties — but I like this story better.) We see a flashback of the man getting sucked dry, with an internal shot of his organs shrivelling up (which makes this all feel like I’m watching House for a moment). The music gets all western-sounding, and the picture whites out. (As I said, it’s rather like an indy film, or one of those trendy crime dramas. In fact, the ep has been referred to by Mallozzi as the CSI ep; I’ve only seen bits and pieces of that show, though, so I couldn’t really compare interstitials. All I know is, for an ep inspired by that other show, not much in the way of forensics ever goes on.)

We see some establishing shots of Vegas, including Planet Hollywood. (I wonder if that’s supposed to be a play on the fact that the show involves alien worlds? *Snicker*) We see the body being picked at in a darkened room by Keller. (While I was hoping not to see her, she’s well-used here — albeit less likable.) John tells her that they’ve determined, from the dental records, that the guy is some 39-year-old who went missing three days ago. He figures the death, of course, wasn’t natural causes. (Oh look, they have a Captain Obvious in this reality as well!) She comments on the cellular breakdown; he tells her that the other victims were similarly afflicted, with the same chest-wounds. (Hmm. I wonder — why there? Can a Wraith suck the life out of you elsewhere on your body? If not, why not?) Keller, sounding a little annoyed, says that she read the other reports, which were inconclusive; all she knows is that it’s not a contagion. “No chemical residue?” he asks; rolling her eyes, she tells him that he’ll get a copy of her report. He starts to leave and stops, remarking that all the previous victims had radioactive residue around the wounds. (At the time, I wonder why, as I can’t recall that being mention in regards to other Wraith feedings — happily, we do get an explanation, much later.) She rolls her eyes in frustration the moment he starts to speak, wearing a What now?? expression. “When I’m done,” she tells him with a tight smile behind her operating mask.

He asks her what her name is. (I immediately wonder if she’s lying, if she’s involved with the SGC in this reality and she actually knows exactly what’s going on. Which turns out to indeed be the case.) She pulls her mask down and introduces herself. John remarks that he doesn’t like that the lead coroner’s been replaced by someone who doesn’t look like she’s old enough to be in medical school. (*Snicker* Funny, she never really proves him wrong, at least in a way that’s acknowledged by him; I would have expected her to, considering he’s just voiced a common complaint about her in the fandom that’s plagued her since the very beginning. It’s never really been a concern of mine, though; I liked Doogie Howser, after all.) She suggests that “someone wanted some fresh eyes on the case.” He says that they should have just replaced him. She asks if he has any leads; he replies that there’s a bunch of bodies that have been dumped in the desert after the life’s been sucked out of them. Still cool as a cucumber, she asks if he really thinks that’s possible. “I don’t know where you’re from, but out here, anything’s possible,” he replies, then leaves. (Beautifully ironic line, that.)

Back at the police station, John tells someone on the phone to let him know about anyone who’s come in with symptoms related to radiation poisoning in the last month, promising that the info won’t be traced back to them.

That night, in a motel, we see a man who is very sick (sweating and looking pale after having spent a moment worshipping the porcelain god), tell someone on the phone that he was told he probably has a virus or food poisoning. (in other words, here’s a man with radiation poisoning, just like John wanted. For the time being, though, I’m baffled as to how this man relates to victims that have been fed upon, since he’s not the one doing the feeding. It does all come together, though — later.) He also complains about the accommodations someone put him in and his trip. Suddenly his nose starts bleeding — again, apparently. He tells the person he loves them and hangs up. He tries to relax in bed (don’t tilt your head back when you have a bloody nose, that’s an old wives’ tale!!), but is annoyed by the loud music coming from the room next to his. He goes next door to complain; we see that the person who answers has the feeding hand of a Wraith. (Nice horror scenario — I have to admit, I hadn’t considered the possibility of horror aspects to the tale.)

The next day, we see John in his office, studying photos of the corpses, when his boss and FBI agent Woolsey arrive. (I wonder who’s in charge of Atlantis in this reality? And, well, if Woolsey really is an agent, for that matter.) John’s got a cut under his eye; his boss asks about it. (We never do learn what it’s from; I assume a run-in with a loan shark.) John ignores the question, asking if the case has moved jurisdiction. “Not yet” his boss replies, with a hint of a sense that he’d be quite willing to move it if John doesn’t solve it soon. Woolsey adds that he can’t discuss the FBI’s interest in the case, but he’d appreciate John’s cooperation. John admits that he doesn’t actually have anything. Woolsey is surprised by this, saying that, with the victims turning up more frequently, this is “obviously a progression”. (It occurs to me here that Woolsey’s changed a lot through his association with John and the others — now we see him back to his old, dull, straight-laced self. In a way, this ep is like It’s a Wonderful Life — we get a glimpse of how people haven’t changed for the better since they didn’t come in contact with John, and vice versa.) The boss tells us how the killer used to go through the trouble of disposing the bodies, but now has taken to just dumping them on the roadside; Woolsey wonders if this is a case of the killer growing more careless or more bold. John gets a text message on his phone, which prompts him to ask the men why coroner’s report on the latest body has no mention of radioactive isotopes. (Well, okay, John didn’t know “isotopes”, Woolsey had to tell him. So much for Mensa!John.) Woolsey says that he assumes it’s because there weren’t any isotopes found. John points out that there were such on the first seven bodies, and leaves. (Is this a thing with him? Getting the last word and leaving the room?) His boss asks where he’s going; he says to go see a nurse. (I wonder if he means to imply regarding his cut? I assume he’s really going to talk to the person he’d talked to on the phone a couple of scenes ago.)

We see John talking to a nurse in a public area of the hospital. (Is that really a wise place to discuss the details of a murder investigation? And what’s with the other nurse, dressed in a more stereotypical uniform, wheeling the old man down the hall? We can practically see up her skirt as she walks down the dead center of the foreground, with John and his own nurse tucked away in the background! Weird approach to the scene …. The hospital itself is interesting in that there are guidelines on the floor, similar to the SGC ….) John’s nurse-friend tells him that they’d seen a patient the day before who had flu-like symptoms but whose symptoms could also be explained by radiation poisoning; by the description, it’s the guy that was at the motel. John’s nurse-friend impresses upon him that the man’s condition could be serious; he promises to track the guy down. She then flirtatiously suggests that she take care of his eye; he declines. As he walks away, she asks if he’s going to call; he says sure, somewhat dismissively; you can tell he has no intention of doing so unless he needs more help from her. (Yeah, definitely different from our John, who was whinging about Larrin not calling him just recently ….)

John visits the check-in desk of the motel the sick man is said to be staying at. He shows the clerk his badge and a crumpled sheet (illustrating how John feels about his job, methinks) with the sick man’s driver’s license on it, asking the clerk (perhaps manager?) if he knows him. The clerk says that the guy checked out the day before, then asks if the sheet is a medical report. John says no, the man insists that if the guy was sick, he needs to know so he can have the room cleaned up “properly”. (So dude, just assume the worst and do it anyway! Actually, I did time as a maid for a motel chain, and in my experience, they will indeed cut corners wherever possible, wanting the maids to clean as many rooms as they can a day, even if it means not really cleaning them. Made me never want to stay in a motel again.) John tells him to get the sheets washed and let him look at the register. A hard-rock song starts up. (I’ve been informed that it’s Marilyn Manson’s “The Beautiful People” — a nice in-joke, seeing as I recall hearing that the Wraith were, in part, inspired by the singer. Anyway, I never really listened to Manson before, but I liked this song, so maybe I need to start ….)

As we watch (and listen to the music), we see the Wraith in the motel room, transforming himself into a human with the aid of rubber prosthetics (including ears), make-up, and false teeth. (Aside from the McSheppy bits later, this is my fave scene in this ep. What fun! And an intriguing concept, putting make-up over a human who is already wearing make-up to look like a monster look human again. I especially like the bits where he puts false teeth over his false teeth and when he goes to put a “human” contact in his eye with the Wraith contact, the insinuation being that Neil Jackson’s human eye has a human-looking contact in it already. *Snicker* Anyway, the finished look is bad-ass! Point of interest: Wraith apparently have spikes on their spines and no nipples. Also, I wonder, where did he get all that stuff? Find and feed on a Hollywood make-up artist? Then again, I suppose if he went into a store that sells such things, the clerks might just think he was replenishing. Hell, in this day and age, he probably wouldn’t need to make himself look human, save for wanting to be inconspicuous. Well, less conspicuous, anyway.) As he leaves his room, we see the sick man, dead on his floor. (At the time, I wonder how did the guy check out at the desk, exactly, when he’d already “checked out” from life — again, this is cleared up later.) As the Wraith walks across the parking lot, John watches him form inside his car, suspicious.

We get night-shots of Vegas, the Wraith walking the streets and through a casino while “Sympathy for the Devil” (Rolling Stones) plays. (Daaaang, they must have paid a pretty penny for music in this ep! It’s actually the best feature of the ep to me — I love Joel Goldsmith’s work, don’t get me wrong, but I have always wished they could play more “known” content, particularly rock. There have been so many great fanvids out there that prove just how fitting some songs are for this show. They certainly made some very appropriate choices in this ep!! It somehow brings that “movie” quality to the fore. And it’s nicely complimented here by the flashy film-editing and artsy, MTV-like camera tricks.) The Wraith ends up at a poker game, where we listen to two mobsters talking. (The mobsters, as I understand it, are from the show The Sopranos: Frank Vincent and Steve Shirripa. On the one hand, spending so much time listening to them seems a waste to me, as they contribute nothing verbally here to the plot — it’s just a morbidly amusing bit of dialogue. On the other had, since we later learn that Sheppard has a gambling problem — never mind that I think Rodney should have been the one with that problem, given his penchant for gambling in the rest of the series — I guess it helps to get an idea of the brutality he has to deal with. Never mind that “Mobsters = Danger, Will Robinson!” should be a given. Still, I suppose if I were a Sopranos fan, I’d be thrilled.)

The Wraith sits quietly, moving only to bet; one of the mobsters (the one who plays Steve on his other show) keeps throwing uneasy looks at him. When the Wraith wins again, that mobster gets whiny about it, saying it’s like the man can read minds. (You know, I wonder why they don’t use that ability more often? Shouldn’t Todd have been able to read the humans minds all this while and learn what he needs to know? Or is it that he’s just been polite? And why would any Wraith ever need to torture someone for info — why can’t they just pluck the thoughts out of a human’s brain? They could still torture them for fun after ….) The man complains that the Wraith has been taking his money all night but won’t even look at him. (Well, amongst predators, looking at another predator is considered a challenge — why would you want someone so scary-looking to look at you?) The mobster’s friend tries to get the guy to just forget about it, saying the Wraith is a whacko.

John arrives and is patted down for weapons. Steve asks if Sheppard isn’t out of his league there. “What are you, my mother?” Sheppard asks; the mobster stares at him in disbelief. (I’m uncertain as to whether this mobster knows him, or if John’s just putting on a good show. Probably the former.) John happens to spot the Wraith across the table, staring at him, and his brow furrows in puzzlement. (I assume he followed the Wraith to the game, but I could be wrong, and it’s just a coincidence that they met. At the time, I had to wonder why he was staked out there at the motel in the first place if the man he was looking for was supposedly gone, and why he would have an interest in following this guy. This is somewhat addressed later, with the radiation explanation. Anyway, is John wondering now if the Wraith somehow saw him in the motel parking lot and recognises him?)

A while later in the game, after some back and forth with cards and betting (and more flashy editing), John is trying to decide whether to meet the stakes of a hand against the Wraith. Steve insists that the Wraith has nothing, but John, looking a bit forlorn (since he was betting with his own money, it seems, and stakes were high), folds anyway. The Wraith gathers the chips, nods at Sheppard, and stands. Steve is not happy about the Wraith leaving with all that money and grabs the man’s arm. The Wraith whips him across the room, into a glass table. (That kind of stunt-work always freaks me out — I’m always thinking that the glass could have shattered in a way that could have ended with the stuntman impaled.) The Wraith steps up onto the poker table; John gets to his feet, but the Wraith knocks him aside and smacks a few other people around as he makes his way down the hall. John gets up and hurries after, pausing only to grab a gun that a guard dropped after the Wraith knocked him aside. (Ah, Cooper found a logical way around the fact that Sheppard wouldn’t be allowed in with a gun! Nice!) After a lengthy (and kind of boring, save for some stylish leaps down some stairs) chase through the building and outside, onto a rooftop, the Wraith shocks John by (quite impressively) jumping off the roof! John hurries to the edge and is shocked even more when the Wraith gets up and limps away, quickly getting less gimpy as he goes, leaving only a small puddle of blood — and a stunned John — behind. (Nice music here!)

The motel clerk lets John into the Wraith’s motel room. They find the body of the sick man from next door in there; the clerk asks if what the man had is contagious. Sheppard doesn’t answer, instead asking, “You said the guy next door checked out yesterday?” The clerk explains that he didn’t see the guy, as the man used the TV to check out. (Okay, the Hyatt I stay at once a year doesn’t have this feature, but a cheap motel does? Any excuse not to hire actual people anymore, ey? Well, it works for the plot, I guess.) John tells the man not to touch anything, and looks around with a flashlight. (Yeah, rather than turning the light on. What, in case the Wraith comes back? Wouldn’t the open door be a tip-off?) John opens a bag on the bed, and finds oodles of cash inside. The man asks what he’s found; John tells him that this is a crime scene, so get lost, and the clerk obeys. (For a minute, I’m thinking Ohmigods, John’s a crooked cop! — and, well, maybe he still is — but then I remember that he lost a lot in the poker game, so while this is a crime scene, John’s getting his money back, money he technically lost while working but might not get back otherwise.)

We see John stash the bag in his trunk. He notices a puddle of radiator fluid on the ground and (thanks to flashbacks) we know he’s thinking of the crime and his job. (I assume this is just an attack of conscience and not him making a mental leap now that the Wraith is the killer — he came there because of the crime, after all, so theoretically he should have already suspected that. besides, lots of people have radiator leaks.) A line of black SUVs pulls up, one of them containing Woolsey. Sheppard tells him that there’s another body there, saying that he was just about to call it in. Woolsey says he’d heard about what happened at the casino; John asks if he’s been following him, and Woolsey reveals, matter-of-factly, that there’s a tracking device on John’s car. Woolsey says they’d like for Sheppard to come for a drive; John reluctantly gets into Woolsey’s vehicle.

Daylight finds John waiting in a room, while Woolsey waits in the hall outside it. Rodney approaches in a suit. (Yaaaaay, finally! Also, yum! That suit suits him — and I don’t normally go for suits.) Woolsey informs Rodney that John won’t sign the confidentiality agreement; Rodney says they should tell him anyway, but Woolsey feels that they can’t trust John. Rodney points out that they need help, asking Woolsey to let him at least try. (Don’t get me wrong, I see nothing wrong with Rodney’s irascible side, but at the same time, I love seeing this calmer, more serious side, with a healthy dash of kindness and reasonableness, like we saw in “The Shrine”. I love seeing him do good things without prompting by outside stimulus, seeing him do it on his own.) Woolsey nods, and Rodney goes into the room. (And thus begins one of my fave scenes of the ep — which is on my list of fave scenes from the season, as well).

Rodney introduces himself, settling a data-pad on the table between him and John. (Nice to know some things never change.) Rodney warns John that if John doesn’t cooperate, he has the power to ruin the man’s life. (Whoa, so much for him being nice! He’s oddly reminiscent of Rodney’s early, first-season days, his manner of speech aloof and confident, but more dangerous-seeming. Kind of bad-ass, really; while I wouldn’t want our Rodney to be like that again, so cold and clinical, there is something appealing about his confidence, which actually feels deserved rather than just a mask for insecurity.) “Well, then, you don’t realise how little I have to lose,” Sheppard replies. Rodney launches into a litany of proof of just how well he knows Sheppard, through which we learn that this Sheppard: never married; only owns a car; has only a little over $2000 in the bank and is $13,000 in the hole (which makes me wonder where the money had played poker with came from — did he stop by a loan shark before coming up to the game?); also has a gambling debt to a guy named Mickey (that revelation seems to unsettle John a tad); and took four years and two tries to become a detective, and barely scrapes by now with his performance evaluations. (A very nice, very smooth way of telling us nearly all the exposition we need to know about how different this John is from our own.)

John rolls his eyes. Rodney asks if he’s getting it all. (You forgot that he likes Ferris wheels and anything that flies or goes 200 miles per hour.) John remarks, cheekily, that he also likes spearmint gum; Rodney tosses a pack on the table. (Beautiful. That’s my fave moment of the scene. How can I not love the idea that Rodney knows John so very well, without even having met him before? … Aaaand now I have Savage Garden’s “I Knew I Loved You” playing in my head. Too perfect.) “I was joking,” Sheppard insists. “No you weren’t,” Rodney tells him, very serious, coming around the table to stand before John. Now we learn, via Rodney’s recitation, that an incident similar to the one our John went through in Afghanistan happened to this on — only this time when he disobeyed orders, he was trying to save a medic and, getting shot down behind enemy lines, ended up costing soldiers and civilians alike their lives in his effort. This John was dishonourably discharged. (Wow, Rodney looks pretty disgusted there. Kind of surprising, considering John was trying to save someone.) Rodney goes on to say that John avoided going to jail and the records were sealed “for various political reasons.” Rodney says that, while John may have learned to live with himself, other might not if they knew. Sheppard says he doesn’t care; after a pause, Rodney says quietly that that’s too bad and moves to leave.

Rodney pauses at the door, as John helps himself to the gum, and, turning, says thoughtfully (wistfully, even) that he once met another version of John, a very different one. (This is probably a good time to mention that this Rodney is not the Rod from “McKay and Mrs Miller”, as some have assumed. This is just another Rodney altogether, and this man is his Sheppard — remember that Rod, who was noticeably warmer, had a John who was a member of Mensa and already on his team. Also, the John this Rodney is talking about having met is not our John, it’s one we’ve never met. This has all been confirmed by Mallozzi.) “What?” John asks, looking very wary (in an uh-oh, maybe this guy is cuckoo sort of way). Rodney says cryptically that nothing is what it seems; John says this doesn’t surprise him. Rodney, approaching and laying the tablet down on the table again, sits down. He tells John that they aren’t bad, they’re just trying to keep the planet safe. John says, sneering a little, that he doubts it. (And after Rodney’s little opening number, I can’t blame him — although I think now that Rodney was just putting on an act to try to convince John to cooperate. Or maybe he was acting that way because he’s found this John disappointing compared to the other, and is a bit bitter about it. Probably a bit of both ….) Rodney supposes out loud that John won’t believe him at first, then goes on another litany, this time about the Stargate program and the wonders they have seen — including alternate realities. John looks warily at him all the while. “Space aliens?” he says with a disbelieving smile of amusement when the litany is done. Rodney just stares back calmly. John realises the man is serious; his smile falls. (I love how they communicate without words! Heeee!)

We see the Wraith sitting in an old RV, hands over his eyes as he remembers a battle in the space above Earth, one between Wraith darts and F-302s. A hive is destroyed, and this Wraith’s dart falls to Earth. (I kind of feel sorry for him ….)

Rodney shows John the Ancient Chair, which has been moved from Antarctica. (He doesn’t have John sit in it, though — curious. Wouldn’t that be the surest way to prove it all to him?) He explains about “Zed”PMS (and, amusingly, apologises for his Canadian pronunciation) and the ATA gene, and hints about the drones. He says it allowed them to defeat a hive ship in orbit around Earth three months past. (Wait, there was a battle in space above Earth and yet no civilians noticed? What, were they above Siberia?) John asks if there are more. “What, Chairs?” Rodney asks. (*Snicker*) John clarifies that he means the aliens; Rodney says there are lots more, but that they’re in another galaxy for the moment and don’t know where Earth is. He walks away, but John stands there, staring at the Chair, looking scared, before Rodney pauses and urges him to come along. (Of course Rodney calls him “Detective” here the way he calls John “Colonel” in our universe.)

Next, Rodney shows John a hanger full of broken darts, explaining about the Wraith and saying that the person dumping the bodies in the desert is one. (I realise that we need to see John make the progression of coming to believe al this stuff, but is it really necessary to tell us all this when we know it already?) “I suppose it all sounds like science fiction to you,” Rodney remarks. “I’m not really a fan,” John replies. (*Snicker* This is already a funny moment as it is, but what makes it funnier is the fact that Flanigan himself said as much in an interview once, that he’s not really into science fiction!) As they go onward through the halls of some complex (Area 51?), Rodney explains that while his team is normally in Pegasus, they’ve been called back to Earth because of their Wraith expertise. He remarks that the one John’s encountered has done a great job of blending in; John asks what they normally look like, and Rodney shows him Todd, locked in a glass cage. (Did they borrow it from Siegfried and Roy? …. It strikes me that Angel has taken better advantage of Vegas as a setting ….)

John asks why the Wraith kill; Rodney explains that, to the Wraith, humans are just cattle. Todd starts to mumble odd things; Rodney remarks that Todd thinks himself something of a poet, though he’s not a good one. (Interesting; I wonder if our Todd is so artistically inclined. I also wonder how this reality managed to snag him; was he not a prisoner of the Genii? Did he escape without John’s help? Did they trade for him? For that matter, did the Genii not try to take the city over? Or did someone else save it from them?) Rodney adds that Todd is also suffering from starvation. (Rodney’s lack of compassion is unsettling to me.) Todd rambles, but, looking at Sheppard, finishes his mutterings with something that could be profound: “Oh, keep dreaming. There must be some other reason for your existence.” John asks if they get anything from Todd; Rodney says no, though they’ve tried everything. Todd spouts more potential poetry, ending with an offer to tell John his future — revealing that he knows John’s name. (I like the idea that they have a connection, even here, and that Todd does, in his strange way, seem to be trying to warn the humans that the enemy they seek is in the desert.) At John’s shock that Todd knows his name, Rodney explains that Wraith can get in one’s head.

They go to a sunlight hallway. Rodney asks John if he’s okay. (Awwww!) John nods and asks if people will ever know the truth. Rodney says it’s not his decision, but he thinks people would prefer to live in happy delusions, oblivious to truth. Keller walks by; Rodney greets her, and she returns the greeting with as smile, though without stopping. He watches her go. (I have to admit, the moment is kind of cute, that aloof-yet-knowing greeting somehow having more chemistry to it than their warmer relationship in our own reality. Well, maybe it’s just that it’s kind of funny. Hewlett is wearing his wedding ring in this ep, having gotten married just before filming; was he asked to leave the ring on as a joke? Are Rodney and Keller married? Or is Rodney maybe having an affair with her? There’s a vibe in the glance they share that could easily suggest an illicit, secret affair ….) Sheppard shows signs of recognising Keller. (Or maybe he’s just having as hard of a time believing in McKeller here as ours does in our own reality. *Snicker*) As they move on, John, still stunned at seeing Keller, says that the other victims had had radioactive residue on them; Rodney says that all of them did. (Ah, including the one that Keller said didn’t have it, then. What was the point of that, when John already knew about it on the others?) Rodney admits that, once they confirmed their suspicions, they were going to cover it all up, but John had to go and track down their target before they had the chance. John explains that, when dealing with serial-killer cases, you’re supposed to look for victims that got away. Rodney realises that that’s why John traced a man with radiation sickness to his motel — he figures the man must have gotten it from being in proximity to the Wraith, adding, with some astonishment, that they didn’t think to look for bystanders. John asks if he means the man got sick from exposure to the alien; Rodney says no, although they do believe the Wraith is transferring the radiation to its victims. (Ahhh, it all makes sense now — the Wraith is using some radioactive material which has been stashed in his motel, making his neighbor sick! That’s why no one got sick just from sitting next to the Wraith at the card game.) Rodney adds that they haven’t been able to scan for the source of the radioactivity. They believe that this Wraith, who has been eating far more than a Wraith needs to despite the risk of exposure, has been doing so to heal from its own exposure to the radiation.

Rodney further explains that they don’t know the nature of the source of the radiation, what it’s being used for, only that the Wraith had managed to also salvage parts from his dart to build some sort of device. They figure that a Wraith is a smart creature that would have no problem hiding among men. They think he needs more materials for what he’s making and figure that he needs unmarked currency to get it — that’s why they haven’t been able to trace him that way. John figures there has to be a better way to get money than betting on poker. Rodney counters that it would be too risky to rob a bank, and anyway, the Wraith are smart and love games. (Hence the Runners!)

They’ve come within earshot of a meeting of some kind, where Zelenka is talking about what to do if it turns out that the thing the Wraith is making is a bomb. Rodney strides into the area, proclaiming that it’s not a bomb; Zelenka says calmly that they need to be prepared for every eventuality. Sounding much more now like the McKay we’re used to, Rodney asks what the point would be of over-cooking half the country; Zelenka answers “Revenge!” Rodney thinks it far more likely that the Wraith is intending to send up a signal flare for the rest of his people. Excusing himself, Zelenka pulls Rodney aside and quietly points out that a Wraith communicator wouldn’t take that much power; Rodney argues that it would if the Wraith were wanting to send a signal to Pegasus, so that he would have a hope of being rescued in his lifetime. (Of course we’re never told why the other Wraith wouldn’t know the location of Earth when this group did.) Zelenka says, thoughtfully, that such “would require a massive boost.” Rodney agrees, pointing out that it would take more power than the Wraith actually even has. (Wow, Zelenka’s not coming off as too bright here! Well, at least he knows his place, so to speak, as a secondary character: he’s there to make Rodney — and John — shine.) Zelenka realises that it would take more power than even a ZPM, saying that such would be uncontrollable; Rodney points out that he never said it wouldn’t be dangerous, adding that it could cause any number of anomalies. (Although, wouldn’t that kill any chance of the Wraith being rescued at all if the signal killed him? So I guess the whole “in his lifetime” thing doesn’t matter so much.) Zelenka asks if he means something like “the rift” — Rodney testily asks him to stop bringing that up, especially in front of other people. (Ahhhh, so this Rodney did the whole matter-bridge thing too, like in “McKay and Mrs Miller”!) Zelenka calls him a child. (Why? It sounds like Zelenka is being the childish, petty one, embarrassing Rodney when Rodney was right about everything! Radek’s being as bad as Keller in “Brain Storm” here, albeit in a somewhat differing way ….) “And yet I am still smarter than you!” Rodney snaps. (*Snicker* The more things are different, it seems the more they are the same, eh? I love how John watches the whole exchange with a scowling, worried expression — is he losing confidence in this outfit? Is he not liking how Zelenka’s treating his new friend? …) Rodney leaves, telling everyone that everything’s under control.

Outside, Rodney thanks John for his cooperation, handing him a business card and saying for the man to call him if he thinks of anything else. (Heee, Rodney gave him his phone number! *McShep squee!* This entire sequence is another fave ….) John asks why the Wraith has stopped hiding bodies if he’s not done yet; Rodney doesn’t know, suggesting that maybe the Wraith is being overconfident about not being caught. John taps the card against his fingers, thinking, then admits to Rodney that the Wraith left money behind. (Yay! Rodney brings out the best in him! *Squee!*) Rodney asks how much; John tells him a few thousand. Rodney gives a soft laugh and a nod, saying with a smile that it’s not enough to worry about, he guesses. (He’s letting John keep the money! *Squee!*) John, a bit flummoxed, asks if that’s it, if he’s just letting him go. Rather than replying, Rodney, after a pause, says, somewhat questioningly, “That field medic – the one you defied orders to go back and try and rescue. You knew her personally …. You were … involved ….” (I’ve seen a lot of people saying that a sex is never given for the medic, with the implication that John had had a gay relationship and that’s why he was dishonourably discharged. Sorry, my fellow McSheppers, no such luck. Although, with John’s seeming aversion to women in this ep, I have to admit that I wonder if the line originally didn’t have a gender-pronoun. Ah well, I guess the assumption is supposed to be that John loved this woman so very much that he never loved again and wasn’t interested in loving again, to play up the loneliness angle. Anyway, despite that little tidbit with Keller, I like to tell myself that Rodney is interested in John here, in that way — maybe he got smitten with the other John and wanted to find his own! *Snicker*) John remarks that Rodney knows everything. (*Squee!*) Rodney muses sympathetically (which makes me suspect all the more that he was just putting on an act when he seemed so disgusted by what John had done) that it was a hard choice and John couldn’t have known things would go so wrong, saying that things don’t always go as planned. After a long pause (where I think the chemistry just speaks like crazy between them), he then assures John that they know where to find him. (Heh, he means that even more literally than people usually mean it, seeing as they have a tracking device on the car — it’s a nice bit of foreshadowing, as is the bit about things not always going according to plan.)

As John starts to leave, Rodney calls out to him, stalling him, and approaches. He asks if John remembers his saying that he’d met an alternate version of him, then tells how they’d accidentally opened a rift in space/time, where they met a team similar to their own, just with John in charge. (Wait, they crossed the bridge? Okay, that’s different ….) He goes on to say what a hero that John was. This John remarks that it doesn’t sound much like him; Rodney protests that he doesn’t think there really is much difference between the two men. He muses how amazing it is that “one incident” can drastically alter the course of a life. Then he says that he would like to believe that this John has “the same strength of character”, and that’s why he told the man the truth. (Rodney McKay will always believe in John Sheppard! *Squee!!!*) Rodney turns and walks away. John, looking a little chocked up at that, calls out, “Whaddya want me to say?” “For now? Nothing,” Rodney calls back over his shoulder. (Cryptic much? I suppose he just wants John to consider joining his team, but doesn’t want to say as much for fear of scaring the man off. I do like the implication that Rodney expects there to be a “later” between them.)

We see John cleaning out his office, rolling up the same Johnny Cash poster our Sheppard has in his room in Atlantis. His boss comes in, asking what’s going on. Looking at the gun and badge on his desk, John holds out the box of his belongings. His boss takes it; John grabs the poster off the top and walks out. A Johnny Cash song, “Solitary Man”, starts up as the scene blurs out. (Best. Quitting scene. Ever!)

We see John driving down a desert highway, listening to that song. As he drives, he thinks back on all the things Rodney and Todd have told him, and all the things he’s seen. He remembers then seeing the Wraith walk past not just the pickup truck he suspected was used for dropping off the bodies, but an old silver-bullet RV. He slams on the brakes and makes a u-turn, dust stirring up behind his car. (And again, I’m reminded of the landspeeder scene in Star Wars: A New Hope. Anyway, yay for John proving that Rodney’s faith in him is justified after all!)

We see Rodney talking to Woolsey, with Radek contributing, about how, when they try to scan for the source of the isotopes that were on the bodies, they just pick up huge swatches of radiation from all the nuclear testing that was done in the desert. Radek suggests the Wraith has given up and has just gone into hiding. “Oh yes, he probably got a job as a Klingon at Star Trek: The Experience,” Rodney scoffs. Woolsey informs them, with a bow of his head, that the attraction was shut down. (Heeeeee! Great nod to Picardo’s other role, on Star Trek: Voyager!) Radek is bummed; he’d wanted to see that. (So did I! Now I’m bummed too!) Walter walks up, telling Rodney that he has a call on the line from John Sheppard. Rodney hurries over to a land line, an eager light in his eye as he answers (*squee*). On the other end, John reveals that he’s found the Wraith; Rodney informs his companions that John thinks he’s found their target, then asks John how he did. John explains that he remembered seeing an old trailer at the motel; we can see it in the distance out his car window, with the pick-up attached. John also remembered their saying that the Wraith needed power, so he followed some remote power lines out into the desert (so that’s how he found the TV in it’s new locale). Rodney informs Walter that the Wraith is going to tap into the gird; Woolsey adds that they should have Sheppard’s coordinates.

We see the Wraith working in his trailer, surrounded by typically icky-looking wraith tech. Rodney tells John to listen to him, saying, rather anxiously (*squee* he’s always worrying about Sheppard, poor guy) that he knows what he said before, but John must not engage the Wraith. He realises then, horrified (*squee*), that the line has gone dead; John realises it too. (Probably from something the Wraith’s been doing in his RV.) We see some fighter planes; Walter tells us that they’re three minutes out from their target. We see the Wraith putz around more with his device. We see John drive up closer to the RV; the twangy western music starts up again.

The Wraith notices Sheppard’s approach and gets out a rifle; John gets a pistol out of his glove box. (Nice parallel!) He approaches the RV on foot. The Wraith takes a shot through his window; after a shocked pause, John hightail it back to his car, leaping behind it. A shootout begins (with some rock music), with John’s car taking quite a beating. The Wraith comes out firing with a pair of automatics, one after the other, while John scrambles to replace the clip on his pistol. He fires a few shots into the Wraith, but it doesn’t even slow the guy; then he’s hit himself, in the chest. (NOOOOO!) The wraith circles around to confront John, dropping his guns and flexing his feeding hand. They stare each other down — until the Wraith hears the planes approach and hurries back into his RV. The Wraith turns on the device; we see a pulse go out from his vehicle. Walter informs his people that there are power outages being reported all over.

Radek reports that they’re getting sent new data from the Daedalus; Rodney gets it, saying that they’ve picked up a “massive subspace event, ten times the power of an active Stargate and getting stronger.” He reveals that it’s a transmission coded in Wraith, and he’s working on it. (Well-behaved boy that he is, he doesn’t say “I told you so.”) Walter revels that the target has been acquired; Woolsey gives the order to take it out. (So is Woolsey in charge in place of Landry here? Is he actually in charge of Atlantis? What is he doing Earthside, then?) The planes destroy the RV with the Wraith inside; John is shielded by his car. Rodney determines that the transmission contained the location of Earth, but that the signal won’t reach Pegasus. (Well, maybe not now, and not for a very long time, but won’t it get there eventually? Don’t all such signals just keep going?) Radek says he’s seen a certain energy signature he’s seeing now before; voice cracking slightly and looking horrified, Rodney says he knows. He tells Woolsey that it looks like the device tore a small hole in space/time; Woolsey asks if he thinks that it was intentional, and Rodney says it couldn’t have been, as most of the energy that was supposed to carry the signal to Pegasus went into the rift instead, going to other realities. Woolsey says he only cares about their own reality at the moment. (Hmm. Bad attitude, as our own guys have learned to their peril, but I can’t blame him for feeling that way.) Rodney remarks that, if not for John Sheppard, the signal would have been sent out sooner and made it to Pegasus, saying the man saved their asses. Radek points out that the signal was stronger in any other reality exposed to the rift. Rodney says those other realities could be in a lot of trouble, giving Woolsey a defiant look.

In the desert, the RV lies in shattered pieces. John stumbles away from his car and falls to the ground, rolling over. We hear “Solitary Man” again as he lies there, a despairing look in his eyes, blood trailing from his ears, his shirt half-covered blood. (I wonder what Cash — or songwriter Neil Diamond — would think of the use of the song here, and of the character of John Sheppard ….)

I’m not a big fan of character death in stories — I have never once read a story where there was no character death and said “Gee, that would have been a much better story if someone had died!” I don’t need that kind of reality in my fiction — I see enough of it on the news, thanks. But at the same time, I cannot deny the appropriateness of the scene, having this John go out a hero but still alone, as he’d lived his life. It’s poignant. Some might argue hat it’s nice to see John get a noble death without actually dying, but really, didn’t we get to know this man? Shouldn’t we still be sad that he’d dead, regardless of the continued existence of our own? Wasn’t that Rodney’s train of thought about the other realities, that just because it’s not their own reality doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter? Of course, we can tell ourselves that this John was saved — in fact, I was wondering why the hell the planes didn’t land (hello, big open desert) and check on him, but given the nature of his life and the song playing over his last scene, I doubt it. Well, since we didn’t get actual confirmation, I’ll choose to believe that he was saved. ‘Cause I’m a happy-endings kind of girl.

I just hope that a happy ending is what we get tonight, with he final episode ….

See you (hopefully) next week, for my review of “Enemy at the ‘Gate”! And provided I manage to get this posted in time and you read it before then, don’t forget my “Goodbye to the ‘Gate Party” tonight, January 9th at 11:10 EST, at “The ‘Gate Room”, my virtual chatroom! Feel free to use this room any other time as well!

And now, as a parting gift to my fellow Anti-MeKellers, I offer a link to an interview that basically explains, in a nutshell from Hewlett’s own mouth, why McKeller does not work for us: the actors themselves seem to have been baffled by the notion when the produced informed them that they were to be in a relationship, and they see each other as being like siblings, so the kissing was weird for them! That suggests that we’ve been dead-on when we’ve been saying that watching them is like watching siblings kissing, why the chemistry just didn’t work for us ….

Never miss an update. Subscribe to Pink Raygun by Email or subscribe via RSS

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.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Here’s what we know about the Stargate Atlantis series finale – VIDEO

Related Stuff: