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frith_in_thornsWe have watched several episodes since I last posted, but I have had no or barely functional internet with which to share the results. I'll attempt to catch up.
(Seriously, the last time I had both my proper computer and a reliable non-shit internet connection was early December. This is getting beyond ridiculous and is why I'm so behind with everything DW-related.)
1x05 Suspicion and 1x08 Underground
I'm grouping these two episodes together because they're such thematic opposites. I didn't really think much of Suspicion when I first watched it, but on rewatch it's actually a episode with everyone trying their hardest to make, accept and live with very difficult decisions. Whereas Underground is full of everyone being awful.
With Suspicion, I especially loved the great character development for both Elizabeth and Teyla. They're both leaders trying to do the right thing by their people in difficult circumstances, and they recognise and respect that in each other. I liked how this episode had a lot of mirrored reactions from characters reacting with outrage when given a decision, and then accepting it and presenting it down the chain with a united front. Darlings! It was also nice how there actually wasn't a bad guy, for once.
However, in Underground... well. I mean, Ellie and I were just laughing by the end at how everyone constantly made bad decisions. Starting with John being terrible at negotiating. I'm amazed Elizabeth didn't rein him in and go do it herself... actually, that would probably have been a better idea. Then John and Rodney go trespassing, and Teyla stops to try and rescue already-doomed cocooned captives during a STEALTH mission. Like, based on evidence, we totally agreed that the Genii have no reason at all to trust any of Our Heroes!
Fave moment of the episode: when Sora and whats-his-face are called by Chief Genii to bring Teyla and Ford into the secret bunker, and they tell them to follow, and the next shot is the four of them entering the secret bunker room but Sora and whats-his-face are now wearing their uniforms. Like, did they just get Teyla and Ford to wait in a little alcove while they changed?
I did mention to Ellie how we never again see the Genii being all secretive and pretending to be "simple farmers" to anyone else in Pegasus. Ellie suggests that the Genii tried, but only the Athosians actually believed them. Everyone else saw right through it immediately.
1x10 The Storm and 1x11 The Eye
BEST EPISODES. These continue to be some of my very favourite ones of SGA. Ellie was duly impressed too!
Elizabeth should really have learned from last time and got anyone but John to do negotiations, though. He's terrible at it. No wonder their "allies" decided to call Kolya instead. On that note, wtf was Kolya's introduction scene? Secret underground gym training wow.
Rodney is a DARLING. Who was TORTURED. Aaaaand then later that's treated as a joke by the writers in their longrunning belief that Rodney being injured is funny. (I feel strongly this is one of the reasons he's very woobified in lots of fic, out of defensive feelings against the writers. God knows that's my reaction.) No really, I assume the last scene is supposed to be a lighthearted way to wrap up the story, but it's SO dissonant. Thank god for fic tags.
(I've found myself writing one for this episode. A new one for this episode, I should say. With like 500% less melodrama than my writing suffered from five years ago when I was last writing for this fandom, thankfully.)
Speaking of differences from five years ago, I've managed to identify why I had a knee-jerk dislike of John back then. His sarcasm didn't ping me as banter right then, but as being cutting/nasty under the plausible deniability of "but I was only joking!" Fic made me like him, but I assumed that it was because fanon John was different to canon John. And now I can look back on that and go no, that was just me reading him like that because he was doing similar mannerisms to people in my life who were doing that nasty toxic thing. And it's actually not an accurate interpretation of John's character. I'm really happy about this realisation, I have to say :) It's making SGA way more enjoyable for me!
Anyway, back to ep. Ellie spent loads of it doing loud dreamy sighing over Sora, and was really disgruntled when I had to tell her that we never see her again. Ever.
Conclusions: everyone is cute babies who also make terrible decisions.
(Seriously, the last time I had both my proper computer and a reliable non-shit internet connection was early December. This is getting beyond ridiculous and is why I'm so behind with everything DW-related.)
1x05 Suspicion and 1x08 Underground
I'm grouping these two episodes together because they're such thematic opposites. I didn't really think much of Suspicion when I first watched it, but on rewatch it's actually a episode with everyone trying their hardest to make, accept and live with very difficult decisions. Whereas Underground is full of everyone being awful.
With Suspicion, I especially loved the great character development for both Elizabeth and Teyla. They're both leaders trying to do the right thing by their people in difficult circumstances, and they recognise and respect that in each other. I liked how this episode had a lot of mirrored reactions from characters reacting with outrage when given a decision, and then accepting it and presenting it down the chain with a united front. Darlings! It was also nice how there actually wasn't a bad guy, for once.
However, in Underground... well. I mean, Ellie and I were just laughing by the end at how everyone constantly made bad decisions. Starting with John being terrible at negotiating. I'm amazed Elizabeth didn't rein him in and go do it herself... actually, that would probably have been a better idea. Then John and Rodney go trespassing, and Teyla stops to try and rescue already-doomed cocooned captives during a STEALTH mission. Like, based on evidence, we totally agreed that the Genii have no reason at all to trust any of Our Heroes!
Fave moment of the episode: when Sora and whats-his-face are called by Chief Genii to bring Teyla and Ford into the secret bunker, and they tell them to follow, and the next shot is the four of them entering the secret bunker room but Sora and whats-his-face are now wearing their uniforms. Like, did they just get Teyla and Ford to wait in a little alcove while they changed?
I did mention to Ellie how we never again see the Genii being all secretive and pretending to be "simple farmers" to anyone else in Pegasus. Ellie suggests that the Genii tried, but only the Athosians actually believed them. Everyone else saw right through it immediately.
1x10 The Storm and 1x11 The Eye
BEST EPISODES. These continue to be some of my very favourite ones of SGA. Ellie was duly impressed too!
Elizabeth should really have learned from last time and got anyone but John to do negotiations, though. He's terrible at it. No wonder their "allies" decided to call Kolya instead. On that note, wtf was Kolya's introduction scene? Secret underground gym training wow.
Rodney is a DARLING. Who was TORTURED. Aaaaand then later that's treated as a joke by the writers in their longrunning belief that Rodney being injured is funny. (I feel strongly this is one of the reasons he's very woobified in lots of fic, out of defensive feelings against the writers. God knows that's my reaction.) No really, I assume the last scene is supposed to be a lighthearted way to wrap up the story, but it's SO dissonant. Thank god for fic tags.
(I've found myself writing one for this episode. A new one for this episode, I should say. With like 500% less melodrama than my writing suffered from five years ago when I was last writing for this fandom, thankfully.)
Speaking of differences from five years ago, I've managed to identify why I had a knee-jerk dislike of John back then. His sarcasm didn't ping me as banter right then, but as being cutting/nasty under the plausible deniability of "but I was only joking!" Fic made me like him, but I assumed that it was because fanon John was different to canon John. And now I can look back on that and go no, that was just me reading him like that because he was doing similar mannerisms to people in my life who were doing that nasty toxic thing. And it's actually not an accurate interpretation of John's character. I'm really happy about this realisation, I have to say :) It's making SGA way more enjoyable for me!
Anyway, back to ep. Ellie spent loads of it doing loud dreamy sighing over Sora, and was really disgruntled when I had to tell her that we never see her again. Ever.
Conclusions: everyone is cute babies who also make terrible decisions.
