Stargate Atlantis Rewatch: The Siege (Part 2)
The cavalry arrives (Photo from GateWorld.net)
The Siege Part 2
Written by Joseph Mallozzi & Paul Mullie
Directed by Martin Wood
Guest starring Clayton Landey (Colonel Dillon Everett), Paul McGillion (Dr. Beckett), David Nykl (Dr. Zelenka), Chris Britton (Prenum)
WARNING: SPOILERS ABOUND!
Summary
Two hive ships and their battle groups will be at Atlantis in a matter of hours. Will Atlantis need to be destroyed, or will the expedition somehow manage to save it?
General Impressions
Just when things seem really bleak, the cavalry arrives, led by a very strident Marine. You’d think the Atlantis leadership would be happier to see him…and his small army and their rail guns, nukes, and other weapons. I certainly was. In Weir’s place, I might have hugged him. Or the rail guns. Or both. It looked like Ford wanted to marry the rail guns. But our heroes are of the opinion that it’s too little, too late.
I think we’re set up not to like Colonel Everett at first. He bullies Sheppard, tries to shut Weir out of command meetings, and tells Tayla—Wonderwoman—to stay out of the way. Despite that, he clearly knows what he’s doing. He has a good motivation for resenting Sheppard: Colonel Sumner, whom Sheppard killed in the pilot, was a very good friend of his. However, I wouldn’t have wished him to come to understand why Sheppard shot Sumner by being fed on, himself.
The Good
Atlantis fending off waves of darts looked really cool. It reminded me of the news footage from the Gulf War, with the streams of weapons fire streaking into the night sky. The special effects here are amazing.
I also liked the “meanwhile, over in this part of the city” sweeping shots. We see Rodney, Radek and Carson in the chair room, then the camera zooms to some Marines searching for Wraith, then on and on to see what other characters are doing. It gives the impression that a lot is going on all at once without any exposition.
While Colonel Everett starts out almost in opposition to the existing Atlantis command structure, he comes around and involves all hands. He even acknowledges Weir’s skill as a negotiator when she volunteers to go convince the Genii to let them use their nuke. By the end of the episode I liked him a lot. In just one episode he gets a real, believable journey, which isn’t always easy to write.
The Bad
Who is the Genii leader we’ve never met before (and never see again)? And, seriously, is there anything Rodney and Radek can’t do?
The Awesome
Again with the awesome score and special effects. So much love for these things.
This may be my love for war movies talking, but the scenes of the city defending against waves of darts were really exciting. And the scenes where all hands wait for the next enemy attack to come are really tense, making the sudden explosion of action heart pounding. So we have Wraith on the ground, Wraith in ships blitzing the city, Batman and Robin’s miracle fix of remote controlled jumpers isn’t working as advertised, Weir can’t raise Tayla on the com, Everett is being fed on, Ford’s team is cornered, and Sheppard is about to make a suicide run. This looks like a set up for a deus ex machina, but what an awesome season ending cliff hanger.
The look between Sheppard and Weir when he decides to take the Genii nuke out in the jumper himself is gut wrenching (and major ‘ship fodder).
Rating
10 out of 10 for awesome battle scenes, lots of tension, and a great cliff hanger.
