Stargate Atlantis – Remnants

Sci Fi

(Season 5, Episode 15)

Our little trip down memory lane continued this week with the return of another old foe, kind of. Also along those previously traveled roads, it was time for Woolsey’s performance review. The shoe was on the other foot this time as he was on the receiving end of all of that ‘protocol’ nonsense. And just when he had made a new lady friend, kind of. If those ‘kind of’ bits make the opening to the post confusing, that’s a good thing. Because this was an episode full of twists that had me one step behind right up to the very end.

Sci Fi

Sci Fi

Sci Fi

Let’s start with the Sakari AI, because that really made the episode. I was on the verge of having it figured out, but just never quite right. With Sheppard, I had decided during the preview for the episode that Kolya (Robert Davi) wasn’t real. I mean, it’s not like they brought in Tim Kring to write this thing, right?… With Sheppard babysitting the scientists, and the exciting plant discovery, I was going with crazy space hallucinogen from jump street. On a side note, check out Jonathon Young, on Atlantis (Parrish) and Sanctuary (Tesla) in the same night. It’s very Chuck of him.

As it became obvious that the beautiful Dr. Conrad (Anna Galvin) wasn’t real either, I jumped on board with the idea that Rodney’s mysterious radiation readings were the real culprit. Close, but I really didn’t peg it as ‘a way for two civilizations to communicate’ until Conrad came right out and said it to Woolsey. If that wasn’t bad enough, I totally missed the fake Zelenka as well. I was also wondering about the timing, but wrongly went with the idea that Zelenka was the first one visited by the AI. So, stumbling all around on my part, but in the good way. It’s always fun to be surprised.

Sci Fi

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Sci Fi

And now that we have the whole story, it actually makes a lot of sense. AI/Kolya’s explanation to Sheppard that he was the one building the hallucination told the real tale. The AI managed to figure out who it needed in order to continue the mission and came at them in the way to best get the result. Woolsey is lonely, so he sees a companion. Rodney is self obsessed, so he is lured in by being told he’s brilliant, and the prospects of a new discovery to call attention to that brilliance. Sheppard was a little different, in that the AI was looking to keep him out of the way. What better than an old foe, and a battle to protect his friends? It was very well done.

Of the three stories, Woolsey’s was my favorite. Robert Picardo won me over a while back, but this just added to it. He manages the line between the bumbling social interaction with someone he’s interested in, Conrad, and the political intrigue of battling for his job, very well. I especially liked the bit at the elevators where we once again see Woolsey struggling with doors. “You can call me… Dick.” Shen’s (Tamlyn Tomita) play for Woolsey’s job felt right, but I was expecting him to be a little quicker moving to fighting it after what we saw in “Inquisition.”

Sci Fi

Sci Fi

Sci Fi

At the end of the day, the only real negative I have for the episode has nothing to do with what we actually saw. That old episodes-’til-it’s-over counter is awfully close to sounding the alarm, which makes me anxious for something big. With so few left, each episode takes on a little more importance, and that makes a stand alone episode, even one as well crafted as this, feel a little off. That said, still a solid entry in the Atlantis story book. And remember what your grandmother told you, “There is no Chet.”

Clacked by Brett Love
on Nov 15, 2008 @ 10:13 EST5EDT