Sinking slightly
Season 3 of Stargate Atlantis, seemingly following tradition, is significantly worse than season 2. The storylines have become more contrived than ever, while the characters--although mostly unchanged--are bothersome. This is the Rodney season; even though there are only two Rodney-centered episodes, he is the one who always finds the answers, even to problems that others should solve instead.
Lt. Col. John Sheppard is Jack O'Neill Jr., as he was last season; even though he professed in season 2's `Coup D'Etat' that he `coulda been Mensa', he does anything but show it, instead working with the single talent of skillful piloting. Dr. Elizabeth Weir becomes almost paranoid in certain episodes; "They're trying to undermine me, Teyla!" she insists at one point--however, one can understand why `they' would try to undermine her, since there are times when she takes action instead of talking, as well as times when she insists on talking instead of taking action! Dr. Rodney McKay is his usual sunny self, condescendingly snapping at whoever disagrees with him. Teyla becomes almost useless in this season with barely anything to say; when she does speak, she is less than convincing. Ronon--reticent as usual--is the most likeable of all the characters, being the least changed from his original self. Dr. Carson Beckett, instead of being sincere as he was last season, becomes rather weak-willed at times.
The episodes:
No Man's Land--6 of 10--We pick up where season 2's `Allies' left off, with Wraith ships heading for Earth and the team trapped aboard them. The entire situation results in a brilliantly computer-generated battle. However, Col. Steven Caldwell, commander of the Earth ship Daedalus, gives us no reasons as to why he was chosen to command the ship; his tactics are less than stellar in several parts of the episode, such as when he wastes almost every single bomb that the ship has!
Misbegotten--5 of 10--Now that the Wraith on the hive ship have been turned into humans, the team dumps them on a deserted planet. Not one of Atlantis' crowning glories; after all, they should know that the Wraith can figure things out in minutes. Dr. Beckett is strangely foolish, while the others are simply stupid. All in all, this is a terrible ending to a potentially good cliffhanger.
Irresistible--5 of 10--In an obvious Star Trek imitation, the team comes upon a man--think Harry Mudd--whose fellow villagers simply adore him, even though he's a fool. Sheppard supposedly has a cold in this episode, although he demonstrates it rarely in the form of brief coughs and sneezes. Because of the very irritating nature of the man they meet, this episode is less than it could be.
Sateda--8 of 10--A figure apparently from Ronon's past brings him to his now-dead homeworld, forcing him to play a deadly game while looking against his will into his tragic and bloodstained past. Even with the surprising lack of explanations, this episode has movie-style action that never fails to thrill. We also see a long-lost scrap of Ronon's past, giving us a peek into his character.
Progeny--6 of 10--The team dials an address--which the Ancient database specifically said not to dial--and finds an advanced civilization that is much more than it seems to be. Unfortunately, this episode isn't as good as it sounds, because of the simple fact that the advanced civilization is based on something that has already been done in Stargate SG-1. It's true that some viewers haven't seen SG-1, but nonetheless I can't enjoy episodes featuring storylines that have already been used, especially in the original Stargate show.
The Real World--7 of 10--Dr. Weir wakes up in a mental hospital and is told that her entire life is a product of her imagination. This hoary old chestnut of a story has been done in Smallville, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and even The Dead Zone! However, the treatment of this episode makes it fairly enjoyable.
Common Ground--6 of 10--Sheppard is captured by an old nemesis, and is fed upon by a Wraith bit by bit. If it weren't for the identity of the nemesis, this story would be good. Nonetheless, the person who captures Sheppard was once a very interesting character, until he was changed to be the usual villain with the usual demands. For any fans of his, this is disappointing--especially since Sheppard is captured by way of a harpoon shot into his bulletproof vest!
McKay and Mrs. Miller--5 of 10--Rodney's sister Jeannie comes to Atlantis to help the former out. This episode is bad for two simple reasons: 1) The entire episode is based on another episode that ended in disaster and 2) Jeannie is equally as annoying as Rodney in a different way. She tells all and sundry that Rodney's real first name is Meredith, making him the butt of jokes, and teases him immensely; of course, Rodney doesn't take kindly to being teased, and makes everyone else's lives miserable by being twice as surly as usual. If it weren't for that, this episode would be at least bearable but, as usual, Rodney wrecks it!
Phantoms--8 of 10--One of the better episodes--the team finds a suspended Wraith experiment, which then makes them hallucinate all sorts of things, most of which are dredged up from the backs of their minds. There are some times when even the viewer can't distinguish between fantasy and reality, which keeps one on the edge of one's seat.
The Return, Part I--6 of 10--The Daedalus finds an Ancient ship traveling as fast as it can towards Atlantis, and helps the crew get back to the city. There, the Ancients proclaim that anyone and everyone living there are not needed whatsoever and should leave, as fast as possible. Of course, this results in retrospectives for the main characters and annoyance for the audience--basically, the Ancients think that, just because they have more control over the city, they can kick out the humans there. The only satisfying part of this episode is when the Ancients get their just desserts.
The Return, Part II--6 of 10--Now that enemies have taken over the city, Sheppard and friends must take it back. Yet another episode where they have to clean up the Ancients' mess! The plans they make to take back Atlantis are not half bad, but one can't help but think of what would've happened if the Ancients hadn't come around in the first place...
Echoes--4 of 10--Teyla sees strange figures wandering the halls and must find out who and what they are. This episode has the potential to be an intriguing mystery, but one thing puts a damper on it--everyone believes that the Ancients are trying to warn them of something! The Ancients have never warned anyone of anything, but according to our friends in the city, they have suddenly begun to worry for humans and are now wandering around purposefully, speaking a foreign language. It's very implausible that everyone would believe such a thing, given the attitude of Ancients in the past.
Irresponsible--4 of 10--The team runs across Lucius (Harry Mudd II from `Irresistible'), and finds that he's gotten himself into more trouble. If I were to choose between the two episodes, I would without doubt choose the first one--Irresponsible is terrible. The enemy who appears is amazingly dislikeable, even more so than his other appearance in `Common Ground', and Lucius is a pale, annoying version of Harry Mudd.
Tao of Rodney--8 of 10--Rodney is changed by a device and becomes almost Ascended, with incredible mind powers. If the main character of this episode were Teyla, Ronon, or even Sheppard, this episode would get a 10--the storyline is extremely interesting and has several touching moments. However, we all know by now that whatever happens to make Rodney a better person will never work, and so we watch this episode knowing that he'll be back to his usual self in the next one.
The Game--3 of 10--The team finds two villages that are part of an Ancient experiment, in which the people change their lives based on instructions from a console that is controlled by someone on Atlantis. It turns out that Sheppard and Rodney have each been `governing' one of the villages. This episode has extraordinary potential, but falls flat on its face. The leaders of the villages have horribly enhanced versions of Sheppard and Rodney's weak points; Dr. Weir suddenly becomes silent at the time when she is most needed; and, to make things even worse, the episode is resolved in a totally inexplicable manner! By far, the most awful of all season 3 episodes.
The Ark--4 of 10--The team finds an entire civilization locked within a stasis device, where they will rest, safe from the Wraith, until brought back into reality. Unfortunately, the people who are accidentally `resurrected' are the worst examples of the civilization--one is depressed and gets the team into almost irreversible trouble, whereas the other spends his time talking ceaselessly of the `ten thousand souls' that are in the device. Another episode with potential that was not utilized...
Sunday--6 of 10--Two scientists are infected with exploding tumors (thanks to yet another botched Ancient device) and in a race against time, Dr. Beckett must help them; every Atlantis fan already knows that this is Beckett's last and worst episode. The very event that dooms him is something that, with proper actions, he could have avoided! Naturally, the Ancients caused the problems here, as usual. Beckett's search for someone to go fishing with him, though, is an entertaining little piece that becomes bittersweet in the end.
Submersion--4 of 10--An underwater drilling platform is discovered near Atlantis and, while exploring it, the team is attacked by a Wraith queen. This is, quite frankly, a ludicrous episode--the queen, although not having fed for centuries, manages to swim near the seafloor under enormous water pressures. In the meantime, Teyla feebly lets herself fall into a very bad situation, unlike the warrior woman she's supposed to be. Those two points make the episode extremely weak.
Vengeance--4 of 10--Michael returns, this time experimenting with humans and Iratus bugs (the genesis of the Wraith). Since Michael is unsurprisingly a very gifted scientist, we in the audience can see it all coming. The people that he chooses for his experiment decided, for no apparent reason, to build their small and simple settlement upon a vast network of creepy abandoned tunnels. To top it all off, Sheppard has a chance to capture Michael and instead passes right by him. The only remotely good part of this episode is Ronon, who--when Sheppard tells him not to kill Michael--retorts by saying something to the effect of "No! He's caused enough trouble already, and I'm going to kill him this time."
First Strike--5 of 10--The enemies from `Progeny' return, with a weapon designed to destroy Atlantis. This episode is crammed full of mistakes--Dr. Weir insists on using diplomacy when it's obvious that it won't work; the Apollo, a new Earth ship, arrives with a mission that does nothing but inflame the situation; Atlantis does quite a few things in an effort to escape from its pursuer, all of which simply serve to make things harder; etc. etc. I, for one, have no idea how anything will be resolved in the beginning of season 4.
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