Series Rewatch: Rising, Parts 1 & 2

[popkin16]

 

Interested in doing a SGA rewatch? You're in luck!

Every Wednesday, a new post will go up right here on sga_squee. Fans will have one week to watch the episode and leave a comment on the post. Comments can be meta, ship related squeeing, gifs, comment fic, or anything someone wishes to put out there. We do ask that there be no bashing - about characters, about ships, etc. - lets keep this a positive experience!

If you're unable to watch the episode in the week set for it, feel free to watch (and comment) later! No post will be too old for new comments :)

We're starting from the beginning, folks. Rising, episodes 01 & 02. Lets remember why we love this show so much and share it with our fellow fans!

Comments

[rachaeljurassic]

Is this the post we post things on? Has it started? Is it this Wednesday? So many questions ;)

[popkin16]

Yes, to all of these questions. This post got put up a bit late because DW did NOT want me to upload an image and I had to figure out a work around.

[mific]

I’m sure it’s time for another rewatch - must be at least a year since my last one!

[respoftw]

Same! It's definitely past time :)

[popkin16]

Yes, join ussss. Hopefully it'll be lots of fun :D

[starwatcher]

.
The spirit is willing... let's see if time permits.
.

[popkin16]

Fingers crossed you can join us!

[hyx_sydin]

I haven't rewatched it yet, but just seeing this gif brings back all the feels of watching Atlantis rise. A shiver went down my spine, I gaped in awe and yes, there were even tears (in my eyes though, they did not run). And even though I did not understand a word of Radek's explanation in a later episode, what he said resonated with me.

I will forever be moved by that scene; like the first time the Stargate whooshes open in the 1994 film, or Destiny waking up and readying herself. It helps of course that Atlantis is just so beautiful, and we finally get to see her in all her glory.

(I hope to pop back in once I've actually watched the episode.)

[popkin16]

God, yes. I wanted to gif Atlantis rising from the ocean, but I realized it was such a long scene that I'd have to break it up into more than one gif, and I want to keep this post simple.

The theme song is what gets me. Every time I hear the SGA theme song, I get teary. When it first played in SG1, I straight out started to cry lol

(We hope to see you around again~)

[rissabby]

If you want to know what Radek said in Letters from Pegasus -- at Gateworld they have transcripts of every SGA episode with translations included.
https://www.gateworld.net/atlantis/s1/letters-from-pegasus/transcript/
Radek's part is about halfway through.

SGA is the only show that has transcripts for all their episodes. All done by volunteers.
Our fandom is astounding.

Rising with commentary

[melagan]

Yesterday, I watched rising with the commentary. Always a combination of interesting and frustrating in unequal measure.

Interesting this time because it's one of the rare times Joe Flanigan is speaking, along with Martin Wood.


Much of the commentary is about lighting and camera work but interspersed with it are comments about the set. I truly enjoyed the comments about the 'new' Stargate, the fannish speculation and curiosity about it, and how that ceased when the Atlantis Stargate was finally revealed. (Oh, early, new show, I could hug you all over again.)

Frustrating - because it's a commentary and they talk over the ongoing dialogue that I wanted to hear.

If you haven't heard the commentary to Rising, it's well worth the effort just to hear Joe and Martin talk about getting a handle on John Sheppard's character. That, and to hear Joe keep calling Hewlett 'David McKay'. Which Martin never corrects, btw.

Clearly, Rodney had already made a deep impression on the cast and crew.

Later today I'll watch the episode without the commentary. I can already tell you, 'David McKay' looks awesome in orange.

Re: Rising with commentary

[exsequar]

Ooh this is so intriguing! I haven't watched many of the episodes with commentary because sometimes I prefer my take to the creative team's. Let's just say I didn't always agree with what the writers did with the show or the characters... but I would love to hear Joe talk about John so I might have to watch this particular one. Can you say a bit about what Joe had to say about John?

Also are there any other episodes you can think off that have a commentary that's worth the time? I'd particularly love to hear Joe or David talk about their characters.

David McKay. Teehee.

Re: Rising with commentary

[popkin16]

I remember watching the commentary for the first episode and laughing when Joe called him "David McKay".

Orange fleece ♥

[exsequar]

This is a splendid idea! I am in the middle of a season 4 rewatch myself but I'm just reaching the McKay/Keller stuff (literally TWO EPISODES AGO she nearly kissed Ronon WHY DID THEY JUST DROP THAT :((( )

Ahem. So. I would love to go back to the oh-so-innocent beginning and squee over season 1 with you lovely folks. Yay!

But some clarification... does that mean we have until, like, Tuesday to watch and talk about it here? Has anyone watched yet? I'm a bit confused about the structure.

[melagan]

There is a week between each episode of the rewatch. The new post will go up on Wednesdays.

We're only in week one so there's plenty of time still to watch and comment. We've kept the structure loose since it's just not possible for everyone to watch it at the same time or even the same day.

I'm with you. Ronon/Keller worked much better. ;)

[popkin16]

You can watch it any time and comment on an older post, too. The new episode post goes up on Wednesday, but there's no reason you can't comment on this episode even if the next episode post is up.

[tolieawake]

Jumping in to say, not only do I have a strong personal bias against the over-used love triangle trope, but I just didn't understand it in SGA.
I felt that both the Rodney and Ronon storylines with Keller came out of nowhere. I just didn't feel they were done well. And despite them trying to make it one, it never really felt like a love triangle to me.
But then I'm always most critical of the shows I like the most.

Rising Pt 1

[melagan]

Rising Pt. 1

This isn't going to be a long recap, just a few notes about what caught my attention this time around.

In the opening scene, there's a quick flash of the control chair. We see Atlantis flying away and it's not until much later that we find out this how she's piloted. (I waited a looong time to see John Sheppard finally fly her.)

Elizabeth points out that not having the Ancient gene really bothers McKay. He immediately denies but you ain't fooling no one, sweetie. The look on his face when John makes the chair light up is proof of that. (It's my personal fanon that Rodney was seriously turned on by John in that chair in spite of his gene jealousy)

Rodney walking up to John isn't the first view we get of him in his orange fleece but damn, it's the finest view of his broad shoulders we get, right there. I have a thing, okay. A very sigh-worthy thing.

Later, about to embark on what could be a one-way journey, Elizabeth states that everyone going to Pegasus is a volunteer and can back out if they want.

Where does that put John? Is he really a volunteer? Elizabeth convinced O'Neill to put some amount pressure on John to get him there. Could he have just raised his hand and said, "Changed my mind. Sorry about that."

Of course, we're very glad he didn't.

There's much I love about this gate room scene from the way Elizabeth steps up to walk through the gate with Sumner, to Ford's, "Hurts like hell, sir, to the big Kawhoosh.

If I had to pick one moment though, it would be John Sheppard's smirk. The smirk that launched a thousand stories. The smirk that gave a fantastic clue to who John Sheppard is.

And then, they’re through the gate.

I won't mention here how the stairs light up for John, or how beautiful the Atlantean Stargate is. I won't even get into how amazing the city is. I will say, from the very first moment we see Rodney McKay in Atlantis, he's at John's side, never more than a few steps away.

Logically, if I were going to go into an alien city, the one person I'd stick close to is the one with the kick-ass gene that could control the whole place. Just saying.

This is where my notes ran out. We could talk about Rodney parting with his cat, John alone on a hillside flipping a coin, or the way Atlantis rises from the bottom of the ocean in a way that none of us will forget.

It was a hell of a way to begin a new series. *g*

Re: Rising Pt 1

[popkin16]

Rodney totally wants to sit in John's lap in the control chair. Maybe riding him while asking John to do something - "Think about the Milky Way galaxy and light up all locations with Ancient outposts, Major" - and it's so difficult to concentrate with Rodney rolling his hips and making those noises.

God, Rodney looked amazing in that orange fleece. THOSE SHOULDERS.

I can't see O'Neill forcing John to go if he REALLY doesn't want to. I think he talked to John only because Elizabeth asked him to. if John had said no, Jack would have dropped it. I think, anyway lol.

I love that Elizabeth asks, "Who's doing that?" As lights turn on in the gateroom, with John RIGHT IN FRONT OF HER.

I really love how close Rodney sticks to John, following him up the stairs, pausing when John does...

[starwatcher]

.
Where to start? I can't watch this episode -- any episode -- without mentally referencing what we see / learn later, and the aspects of the characters I've absorbed from all the marvelous fic.

I watched the episodes themselves, and with commentary. Some things I noticed, in no particular order --

The 'saying goodbye' montage -- when we see characters we'll know much better later, during their leaving earth moments (Ford with his grandparents, Carson's mother serving his favorite (?) meal, Rodney reluctantly handing over his cat) was very effective; we get to see them as 'civilians' before they become 'expedition members'. OTOH, Elizabeth's video to her boyfriend is little better than a "Dear John" letter; surely there should have been an in-person meeting with them holding hands while smiling wistfully, or a fervent hug, or something. It makes me question the mindset of the writers. The men are shown with personal contact, but the lone woman isn't; do they think a female leader is necessarily 'cold' or uncaring?

John's famous coin-flip while sitting alone does demonstrate what we later learn -- he has no one he's close enough to, to want to say goodbye -- not even a cat. Easily overlooked on a first viewing, but stunning in retrospect as to his life-connections -- apparently few, and not deep.

John isn't wearing the ever-present black wristband on his right wrist; need to keep an eye out to see when it appears. OTOH, the fictionally-celebrated smirk is impossible to miss when Sumner orders him to remember who's in charge, and John says, "That would be Doctor Weir, then?" The smirk looks oh-so-deliberate, and as big as possible so that Sumner will be sure to see it.

Although Rodney does display his impatience with people less intelligent than he is (everyone!), he is not as cutting or as sarcastic as he is portrayed in fanfic. I wonder if authors are remembering the Rodney from the earlier SG-1 episodes, so notice the sarcasm he uses as confirmation, and overlook the softening from an earlier attitude. That's another thing to watch for later -- does he get more cutting/sarcastic as the series goes on? In the commentary, I think it was Martin who said he wanted more of the old Rodney, but David H reminded him that Rodney had been sent to Russia for two years, and surely he would have learned to be a little less obnoxious... if nothing else, to avoid the possibility of similar repercussions.

John seems to take so much of what's happening as a game for his amusement; the look on his face when he renames the 'gateship' as a 'puddlejumper' seems like he's deliberately yanking Rodney's and Ford's chain. In the commentary, Joe F said he'd never watched/read sci-fi as a genre, and this was his first time in a sci-fi show, so he didn't realize what it would look like as a finished product, and did think it was kind of silly / cheesy as they were filming. (Not his term, but I don't have time to look for the exact quote.) I wonder how much of Joe's disbelief about the seriousness of the genre led to the 'game for his amusement' attitude John seems to have.

I know I had other ideas, but I've had a full day of work in between turning off the DVD and now. I need to make notes on the next episode.

I vaguely -- very vaguely -- remember watching the pilot episodes when they first aired... but they didn't grab me. (I shake my head at the foolish younger me.) I'd catch the occasional episode, but they weren't in the category of "WILL remember to tune in, because I MUST watch!" The episode that flipped the switch was "Sunday". Despite barely knowing the characters, I cried, and felt for them, and suddenly had to know everything. Ordered the DVDs, went looking for fic and stumbled onto Lamardeuse's site, devoured every story in a chain-reading frenzy. But I had missed out on the long discussions when episodes were new, so I'm looking forward to this rewatch-with-fans.
.

[popkin16]

The goodbye montage was a really effective way of showing what was important to each person, and what they were leaving behind. I have a lot of feelings about Elizabeth's goodbye video. It's...a really awful way to do things with someone you're supposed to be in love with. This is a big moment: do it in person. At least show some respect for your partner. And then later, when she returns to Earth, she's surprised and hurt when Simon has met someone else. I, personally, would have taken her video as a breakup. It kind of killed any sympathy I had for Elizabeth in that later episode.

Rodney has definitely softened in SGA. I think that was done deliberately, to make him more palatable for viewers, but your in-universe take of Rodney having learned his lesson makes a lot of sense. I think Rodney's portrayed really well in the fanfic I've read. They've kept his core of sarcasm and arrogance but also show his softer side.

I love the idea of John taking everything as a game for his amusement. I mean, it makes sense. He's still so new to the Stargate program. John's not the type to be overtly awed, so I could see him taking everything new and crazy in with amusement to cover up any, "What the hell?" reactions.

[librarychick_94]

Okay, just finished my rewatch. So good and everyone is so young!

"Atlantis! And we can go there"

"That was a waste of a perfectly good explanation."

"Then you don't even know about the Stargate?" "The what?"

Orange fleece!

The lights coming on after John comes through the Stargate and the stairs lighting up under John's feet!!!

The shots of Atlantis rising from the ocean are awesome and gorgeous!

"... hundreds of permutations."

John and Elizabeth's first fight.

Overly dramatic goth wannabes.

"Come with me, Major"

"Doctor, this is why you brought me here."

"Its a ship. That goes through the gate!"

"All of them..."


Yay for rewatching!

[popkin16]

That always strikes me when I'm watching the first season, too! Everyone is so young, damn. And they have no idea what's ahead of them, who they'll be in a couple years (lookin' at you, Rodney).

"That was a waste of a perfectly good explanation."
Jack, I love you <3

"... hundreds of permutations."
Rodney: Oh my god, smart and hot.

"Come with me, Major"
...For some illicit closet sex.

Rising episode tag, McShep, pre-slash

[popkin16]

Rodney wandered over to Sheppard when he sees the man standing alone on a balcony, seemingly oblivious to the party going on around him. He’s feeling pleasantly buzzed on the alcohol provided by the Asogians - Asposians? The very nice, native people currently mingling with Atlantis personnel. His stomach is full and the last traces of terror are disappearing under the relaxing influence of alcohol.

“Hey,” he greeted, leaning against the railing a couple feet away from Sheppard. The man tilted his head in acknowledgement but didn’t verbally respond. The silence between them is comfortable, at least from Rodney’s perspective, though Sheppard seemed immune to the party spirit.

“Good job, with the daring rescue and everything,” Rodney said finally. “We’ve got allies now, which is always nice to have, cut off as we are from any supply of cheetos and coffee. Oh god, and chocolate.” Rodney is momentarily diverted as he mourns the loss of a steady supply of the good stuff. He brought his own private stash, but who knows how long that will last? Who knows how long they’ll be out here on their own?

Loud laughter catches his attention, and he turned to find the native leader woman talking to Doctor Weir, an alarmingly tall man at her side. He watched them a moment before his gaze slid back to Sheppard, who was watching them as well.

“Also, you have an in with that woman,” Rodney said, somewhat enviously. “She’s seriously hot.”

“I didn’t do it to get an in,” Sheppard said finally, once again staring out over the ocean.

“So? Doesn’t change the outcome. You’re a hero to them!”

Sheppard turned to glare at him, jaw clenched tight. “I am not a hero,” he ground out. Rodney stepped back, out of punching range. He’s not sure how this conversation went sideways on him. Isn’t the height of conversation for military man their many sexual conquests? Then again, this guy seemed to have a modicum of intelligence under that crazy hair. Perhaps he’s more different than the average military man in more ways than one.

“Fine,” Rodney responded finally. He brightened a moment later. “Hey, you’re coming by the lab tomorrow, right? We have a ton of technology to go through. The first step is clearing out the bits of technology they left lying around. We could use you.”

“Can’t, I’m busy tomorrow,” Sheppard said, almost too quiet for Rodney to hear.

“The day after,” Rodney pushed. “Come by then! There will still be plenty of -”

“I can’t,” Sheppard snapped, pushing up off the railing, turning on Rodney angrily. “I’m in charge now, McKay. I’m not your light switch, I’m not your dogsbody, I’ve got my own responsibilities to take care of.” He seemed to choke for a moment, overcome by some emotion Rodney can’t name. He rubbed his face roughly with one hand and turned his back on Rodney.

Rodney doesn’t know what to say to this. He knew Sumner hadn’t made it back. He hadn’t known the man well enough to mourn him, hadn’t considered the effect on the military this would have. It never occurred to him to wonder what this would do to Sheppard, who had led the rescue. Rodney idly played with the plastic cup in his hands, twisting it around. Some of the alcohol sloshes over the rim, and he absently licks it off his hand.

“You could still come by,” he offers softly. “Everyone needs a break. It could be...fun.”

Sheppard sighed wearily. “Yeah, maybe. We’ll see.”

Rodney lifted his chin. “If you don’t come by, I’ll just track you down.”

Sheppard snorted. “You do that, McKay.”

“I will, don’t think I won’t!” Rodney snapped his fingers and pointed at Sheppard. “Don’t think your promotion gets you out of light switch duty completely. You’re stuck with me, Sheppard.”

“Disturbing,” Sheppard observed, but his lips are curling into a small smile as he says it. The tension in the air has relaxed again, making Rodney feel a bit giddy. “I suppose I can make some time in my busy schedule for you to yell at me to poke at things.”

“See that you do,” Rodney said in his best snotty tone, then ruined it by laughing. It’s been a long, fraught day, and he’s a little drunk. He wonders how to get to his room from here, thinks about locating his laptop to find a map of the city. Where had he left it again?

“How much have you had to drink?” Sheppard asked, looking at Rodney’s nearly empty cup.

“Lots,” Rodney said confidingly. “It’s good stuff.”

“I’m sure it is. But I think it’s time for all good little scientists to get some sleep.”

“Condescending,” Rodney noted, pointing at Sheppard again.

“Yup,” Sheppard agreed, directing Rodney toward the nearby doors.

Re: Rising episode tag, McShep, pre-slash

[respoftw]

So perfectly in character! I love that you touched on Rodney having to realise that John isn't there as his (ahem) plaything anymore. I really wish the show had dwelt more on the struggle John would have absolutely had to go through once he was thrust into leadership.

[respoftw]

Ah, Rising. I remember when I first watched it the thing I was most excited about was the Scottish accent I heard! The very second Carson spoke I shot to attention. It's so rare to hear a Scottish accent on US TV shows andit always makes me smile.

(The first time I saw Paul McGillion talking in his own accent was incredibly surreal, I still think he sounds weird (but weirdly, also like a million times hotter?))

But, to echo some other comments, they're just all so young! Joe especially looks like he's twelve, lol. And, can we all thank the lord that they replaced that first Teyla wig quickly??

One last thing: when exactly did they decide to do away with the whole 'Wraith make you see things that aren't there' thing? Ah, SG writers, retconning their own ideas again.

[popkin16]

I love that it was Carson's accent that did it for you XD It really is weird hearing Paul speak; I don't think I'll ever get used to it.

I remember reading somewhere that the wraith's ability to make people see things that aren't there can be explained because all the wraith are awake, but there's not enough food to go around, so they're weaker. Someone pointed out that the wraith get easier to kill with weapons as the series progresses too, and suggested that might contribute.

Rising Pt 2

[melagan]

Let's begin with -

720 gate addresses and oh my, didn't that put a sparkle in Rodney's eye when he found out Major Sheppard was smart.

I love to pieces that it's Rodney that shows the Jumpers to John. He didn't go to Elizabeth and brag about his idea first, and he didn't send John off with the scientists that first discovered them. No, this is a moment he wanted to share with John.

And then the little ship lights up for John in welcome, just like Atlantis. Oh my heart. While we're on the subject, John and Ford in the jumper as she grants John's wishes is priceless. The display, the life signs detector, everything but the turkey sandwich…. Ford, for all he's young must have seen a number of interesting things at the SGC because he just rolls with it.

The Wraith are creepy and scary. For me, the Keeper, for all of her alien elegance is the creepiest one, hands down. And I'm including all five seasons. *shudder*

Poor, brave Sumner. I quite liked him by the time it was almost too late to matter. We know he gave the nod to John to kill him. The Keeper was going to do that anyway, so I have to believe he knew he was close to giving up the coordinates to Earth. *shudders again*

And now they have friends in the galaxy. John's painfully reluctant to touch foreheads with Teyla which turns out to be oddly endearing. Oh Flanigan, I love your acting choices so hard. ♥

It's not much longer before our team comes together. Wheee!

Re: Rising Pt 2

[tolieawake]

Oh yes, absolutely!

I mean, Rodney's got this good looking guy who turns all the alien tech (and human people) on. And then John proves he can Math!! Oh, the heart-eyes!

And for all Rodney's brains and snark, he's also a total geek. Of course he has to show John the ships as well, personally.
1, it is soooo super cool and he needs to show this guy who he's beginning to think he can totally geek out with
2, he wants John to pay attention to him. It's hard to flirt with the Major when the city keeps rolling over for him

[tolieawake]

I love this so much that I barely know where to start.

I'm a late-comer to the fandom (only watched SGA this year), but one of the most interesting things I found in watching Rising was the difference between the DVD and 'TV' versions I watched.

Let me explain. I started watching SGA through 'Stan' (which is like an Australian version of Netflix - which we also have, but which is limited in what is available).
In the version on Stan - that 'goodbye montage' - doesn't exist.
So the first time I watched Rising, I didn't get to see Rodney's cat or John flipping a coin or any of that.

I fell in love with SGA rather quickly, and went out and bought all the DVDs so I could watch the Extras.

But the bit that struck me the most in re-watching Rising, was that Goodbye montage. Which I adored, and made them all so much more human and gave them some backstory. (though like others I thought Elizabeth's video goodbye was weird).


Okay, other things I LOVE in these... to name just a few:

- John ignores Jack's instructions when out-flying the drone. He trusts himself enough to fly without a backseat driver. It also shows his abilities.

- orange fleece. Enough said.

- John's face when the control chair lights up under him

- the way Rodney lights up along with the control chair

- Daniel's excitement and enthusiasm

- The Smirk (TM)

- that long scene where John is walking through the corridors of the mountain and we see all these people who are going on the expedition and are from different countries. I loved the way this set up that it was a truly international expedition, and the feel that it gave to the whole series as a result

- they are under water

- the way Atlantis lights up for John

- the way Rodney sticks with John

- that sequence where the city rises... I will never forget or get over that. It's beautiful.

- John figuring out how to make the Jumper invisible... and Rodney's face when he makes it reappear

- how much the Jumper's love John

- Ford's enthusiasm

- Sumner dies. This may sound really mean, but I was glad he didn't survive. Not because I wanted him to die, but because I thought he was a terribly poor choice for the military commander of a civilian expedition. Maybe that's because I'm not military, but his dismissal of Weir, his disrespect for the Athosians, and his contempt for John, all made me seriously dislike him.
I'm not saying he wasn't a good soldier, but I don't think he was the right person to be in that position.
(but that's one of the things I notice a lot in the writing of military on TV... the characters are either insubordinate and personable, or straight-laced and incapable of empathy or speaking to civilians (which is a bit of hyperbole, but I'm more than happy to discuss).


- the Athosians coming to the city



And so, so, so much more!

[popkin16]

Ooo, it's interesting that they cut the goodbye montage. I wonder why?

I love that appreciation for Rodney's orange fleece is universal *grins*

I also loved getting to see the international aspect of the expedition. Ford going, "Does anybody speak what these guys are speaking?" was hilarious and says so much with so little. Though I do wonder about the state of DADT, given it's an international expedition. Would they have kept it, or tried to change some rules to make sure every soldier is on the same page? Or maybe the soldiers from other countries had to agree to conform to American military rules...

[selenic76]

I so meant to comment on this sooner! But I'm so happy to see how many comments there are over here, yay! \o/

It was so wonderful seeing these episodes with people at squee :) I remember only vaguely seeing them the first time, but I can still recall the excitement of a new Stargate series ^_^ I had some of SG-1 one and loved it, and the legend of Atlantis was of course intriguing and I was looking forward to seeing how they handled it.

While it took me a second start to get into shipping, seeing Rising for the first time was more than enough to hook me into this series. It was actually probably due to moments I wouldn't expect it to be, like Elizabeth saying 'We go through together' to Sumner, meeting Teyla who was just awesome from the start, John's hard choice of having to shoot Sumner, and others. But also the feels for this whole group of crazy and awesome people going somewhere they might not return, and how brave they were :)

[popkin16]

It was actually probably due to moments I wouldn't expect it to be, like Elizabeth saying 'We go through together' to Sumner, meeting Teyla who was just awesome from the start, John's hard choice of having to shoot Sumner, and others. But also the feels for this whole group of crazy and awesome people going somewhere they might not return, and how brave they were :)
I think the reason SGA was so beloved - and endured so well - is because people genuinely love the characters, and the very premise of the show lends itself to lots of possibilities. I love Elizabeth making sure Sumner acknowledges that she's in charge, and Teyla was badass right from the beginning. One of my favorite things in fic is when people write the "first wave" of Lanteans being a super tight knit group. Because they WERE on their own, and they had to have forged strong bonds under fire.