Storytime with Rachel F Hundred

Suffers the usual fate of the middle part

The trilogy is a well-worn format in sci-fi and fantasy literature with a common issue: the second book is never as good as the first and its storyline always suffers because its primary task is to build tension for the concluding part. Stargate: Atlantis might live in the different medium of television rather than literature but its season four premiere certainly comes afoul of the middle story syndrome. On first viewing the episode is rather plotless – as adrift as the title suggests – but this is to miss the more subtle character stories that provide some excellent performances by the cast, and which weave through the set action pieces with their great special effects.

The main plot, or rather the seeming lack thereof, is jarring as the main thread of the episode is Atlantis lurching from crisis to crisis following its sudden drop from hyperspace. It’s not so much that there isn’t a plot; it’s just that it repeats three times with only the core problem changing: the power leakage, the asteroid belt, the hyperspace control array. While the intent may have been to keep the action element high, the constant lurching is unsettling; maybe that was the point – the city being lost and running out of power with imminent death for all is meant to be unsettling – but it makes uncomfortable viewing and not necessarily engaging viewing – unusually my attention wandered. However, that aside, the set action pieces are accomplished as always, with the CGI especially fantastic in the asteroid section.

First Strike was so dynamic and so dramatic that the action in Adrift, no matter what danger was proposed, always ran the risk of being anti-climatic. What Adrift does well is showcasing that the action in First Strike had real consequences for the city; that there was damage to both the infrastructure and the personnel. It is in the scenes dealing with these consequences that the true plot gems of Adrift are buried as the characters absorb and deal with their situations; Ronan’s frustration at being in the infirmary, Teyla’s quiet leadership in telling McKay ‘you would rather not try?’ as he makes another pronouncement of doom, Zelenka’s heroism in maintaining his post and finishing the job when injured, Sheppard dealing with his previously stated unwanted position leading the city. Joe Flanigan does a fabulous job of conveying a man struggling under the sheer weight of responsibility while rising to the challenge anyway. Of the usual Atlantis regulars, only McKay seems left behind in all these character moments as he is used mostly for exposition.

Indeed, McKay’s character for all its screen time seems strangely relegated to serve mostly as the robot in Lost in Space muttering ‘Danger Will Robinson! Danger!’ over and over, and what could have been a great character arc – his intense desire to keep Weir alive overriding Sheppard’s order and what Weir herself would want – is lost among the action piece of the EVA and Zelenka’s heroics, and actually isn’t explored very much at all. David Hewlett can only do so much with the scant scenes afforded him on this arc. Personally, I would have happily traded one Atlantis-in-doom scenario (and accompanying McKay pessimism) to have explored this arc more.

Weir’s fate is the sub-plot in the story and it is done slightly better than the main plot. It is also rich in character moments; Ronan’s heartfelt thank you, Teyla’s joy at Weir’s survival, Sheppard’s personal struggle with Weir’s fate, Weir’s own repulsion to her treatment, McKay’s contrition; all are brilliantly acted by the cast and there is real emotion on display. Keller’s determination to keep her patient alive is also impressive but while the doctor may say the right things and even in the right way (Jewel Staite doing an excellent job of delivering the lines with authority) visually Keller comes across as too young for her position.

In many ways this sub-plot parallels with the main: as Weir worsens, the city’s situation becomes ever more dire; in finding a solution for Weir in replicators, the ultimate solution for the city seems a daring raid on the replicator home-world to retrieve a ZPM. It’s a nice dynamic and one that works well, although tying the city’s fate even subtextually with Weir’s seems a little odd given the imminent changes.

The introduction of Samantha Carter is subdued. Given Tapping’s previous cameos on SGA a casual viewer may be forgiven for believing she was simply doing another. The scenes on the Mid-way Station are somewhat superfluous, and the unnecessary comic relief provided in the shape of Doctor Lee, an annoyance. Am I the only one who yearns for the days of SG1’s Paradise Lost when Lee was a somewhat serious scientist instead of a poor carbon-copy of Felger? Again, these scenes are so clearly ‘set-up’ for the next episode that they might well have had the words in bright flashing lights scrolling across the screen.

As a set-up, Adrift does work incredibly well. It leaves the viewer wanting and primed for the next episode. All the necessary elements to tell the next piece are in place: Weir’s condition, the city’s predicament, the suggested plan of action, Carter and the Apollo poised as cavalry. The whole serves to entice the audience and promise more.

In conclusion

In the end, Adrift serves its purpose; it builds the tension for the conclusion in the final part of the trilogy but it also suffers the usual fate of the second instalment: while it is solid, certainly enhanced by its character moments, performances and special effects amongst the rather repetitive plot; it isn’t anywhere near as good as the first. The hope though is that with this set-up, the conclusion will be incredible.