Rewatch: The Lost Boys

[twinsarein.livejournal.com]

Teyla got a tip about a ZPM and she and Sheppard, McKay and Ronon are about to meet her contact in a forest. Suddenly the team gets stunned and is gated to another planet by a group of men. When they awake they meet Ford. He's been busy and has set up his own army of men enhanced by the Wraith enzyme. They even have living Wraith in the compound to harvest the enzyme. Ford still wants to convince Sheppard the enzyme is the solution in beating the Wraith. He forces McKay, Ronon and Teyla to take the enzyme so Sheppard can notice the effects. Then Sheppard, Ronon and Teyla are taken on a mission to raid a Genii warehouse. One of the team members, Kanayo, tells they are gathering supplies for a plan of Ford.  [Poll #1805468]

Comments

[melagan.livejournal.com]

I love this episode.

[omg-wtf-yeah.livejournal.com]

Ditto. This is one of my all-time favorites. Wish I was at home so I could be watching it!

Comment Prologue (also needing to be excused)

[helenkacan.livejournal.com]

Ack. Can't rewatch tonight. Am totally zonked from cleaning and decorating.

But - eeeek - audio commentary is with Marin Gero ("I wrote it"), David Hewlett ("I acted in it") and Joe Flanigan ("I saved it"). Oh, why do the actors have to torture us so?

Anyway, enjoy the rewatch. I'll enjoy reading the comments and will add my own ::hand-waves a nebulous incoherent date:: who-knows-when.

[twinsarein.livejournal.com]

Team Atlantis is exploring another planet, and Rodney is complaining a lot. Yumping yimminy, he is not happy to be on this mission. I have to admit to being all wrapped up int he team's byplay around how complaining, so I actually jumped when people jumped out and started shooting at them.

It's hard to say what kind of episode I love best, but I do have a soft spot for scenes with a lot of dialogue, because it is almost always fast paced, often snarky, and frequently funny.

I also have to admit, that in my rush to get the post made around holiday preparations, I didn't actually read the summary, so when our team is next seen with canvas bags over their faces, surrounded by silent, intimidating men, I was a little concerned.

Then, out comes Ford, and I get even more concerned. *g* Ford is just a little cuckoo. It was interesting to find out what happened to him after the Wraith dart picked him up the last time we saw him.

[twinsarein.livejournal.com]

I'd forgotten that this was a two-parter. I was so caught up in the tension, that I didn't ever realize how much time had passed. So when John's on his knees with a Wraith in front of him, I almost groaned when the text came up, saying 'To be continued.' *sigh*

It was a great episode, though. An interesting look at what Ford's been doing with his pathology. It's like he fixated on this one thing - a need to prove himself to his teammates - right from the beginning, and he's just fallen deeper and deeper into it. So much so, that he's drawing others into it, and drugging those he's trying to convince he's sane and better than ever.

Moments of particular interest to me, are the rebel scientist who reveals that the Wraith are not a united foe to Rodney. This is the first time it's been suggested that there are different factions, and that they are limiting communication to each other. Also - John 'talking' to R2. Hee! So awesome.

Comment 1A

[helenkacan.livejournal.com]

I tried to see if I could watch the entire episode first and then post a few comments. But I'm worried that I'll forgot some of my reactions. So, I'm at the 14-minute mark (where I'd normally be if I were watching and writing almost simultaneously).

Quibble. Doesn't it feel strange for the team to be ambushed so easily? Yes, I know Rodney is bitching up a storm, but wouldn't Ronon at least be on his toes as they continue to walk, friendly world or not? So, IMO, team capture was just too convenient.

The way Aiden Ford's character is presented in this episode seems like the starkest and manipulative reminder of the Just Say No campaign against the use of illegal drugs, showing how drugs can turn good individuals into unstable, violent and unpredictable – not to mention morally changed – people. There's no shades of grey; nope, it's all right or wrong and TPTB are hitting us over the head with wrong-wrong-wrong.

Of course, as if it weren't bad enough for Aiden to have a ::coughs:: drug problem, he's recruiting others to be just like him. I don't know whether that's a result of the drugs or just the fact that he was way too young IMO to be the second-in-command to John on the mission. Especially now, when he's hopped up on enzyme, he's still trying to prove himself to John, to Elizabeth. It certainly lends itself to the notion that everybody chosen for the Atlantis team was possibly a misfit of one kind or another. [And I'll still harp on the stupidity of having an expedition where there are only two officers: a Colonel and a Lieutenant. Surely, TPTB should have included a couple more who could then have been killed off as redshirts when the Wraith were awakened. Just sayin'.]

When Liz (mom) is talking with Evan (baby bro) about John's overdue team, it's really cute.

[Okay, let's try to go for another 14 minutes.]
So, this batch of Aiden's friends has Genii spies who aren't welcome with their own kind, 'cuz they betrayed them. Interesting to know. Is that supposed to be a commentary on the lack of integrity of all Genii? Meanwhile, back at kidnapping HQ, awwww, look at Rodney making a new friend, Jace. Well a cute young blond geek. With a lab full of stuff from all over. I found the wee bit of fooling around with the Wraith backstory to be actually good. They're splintering. They've blocked communications between Hives because of Teyla's (and who knows how many others') special ability to mind read them. And there's not enough of a food source to sustain more than one Hive at a time, apparently.

Then we have Ronon get into a silent staring contest with Aiden. Once again, I'm creeped out by Aiden's irrational reliance on the enzyme, as if it will always be available.

When Kanayo and the others attack their targets and John points out that one of Kanayo's guys got hit – and then is dead – I believe that Kanayo's more pragmatic but cold response (there's risk in everything) is in direct contrast to how John feels about losing anyone under his command. Yup, another moral lesson. Also, Teyla does mention that even using the enzyme cannot protect someone from being killed. Yay, Teyla, for stating the obvious.

Oh, lookee here. A case full of C4 that Aiden's planning to use to destroy a Hive ship. Eeek! That's the plan? And then the entire team hears of it. I love Rodney's rant against the plan. I thought the downed Dart looked really fake up close. For something that is partially organic, it just looked like a hunk of plastic to me. Did anybody else get that impression?

Oh, poor Rodney. His widdle head is all addled, because he's a "drug addict" now.

Ugh. I really hated seeing Teyla and Ronon being forcibly injected with more enzyme and becoming increasingly stronger – yes – but also more out of control.

Comment 1B

[helenkacan.livejournal.com]

[I've hit the 28 minute mark.] This is unexpected: Aiden's calling John "Sir" and saying he wants to go home, meaning Earth I guess. But he can't just yet; he needs to prove that his plan will work first. The music is the kind that Joel usually uses for softer, more emotionally revealing moments.

And now I'm feeling quite uncomfortable seeing Ronon and Teyla as opponents, looking out for #1. Even worse, Ronon of all people is now an advocate for using the enzyme.

Then we get the mutual double cross between Aiden and John.

Oh, my, a super-creepy moment for John in the Dart followed by a super-geeky R2 reference. Yay. Not that the Dart is listening to John's request. Bad Dart.

Uh-oh, we've just lost Jace, the cute blond geek. And he was the closest thing to a nice guy. Mind you, this is the first we've seen of Aiden's normal human instinct kicking in to go after him.

Back at kidnapping HQ, Rodney's starting to get belligerent. David H does that SO well.

Who's not doing so well is the strike team, especially when they're all captured. Eeeek.

Even worse is John being taken away from the cell. What was really unusual for me is the totally different music Joel wrote for this bit ... really outer spacey and alien, right when John is turning around on that little platform until he turns around one time too many and is confronted by a white-haired Queen. And down he goes on his knees. Poor John. How ever will be get out of this one? Stay tuned for the next episode. Same bat-time, same bat-channel. Nyahaha. [Yes, I get carried away.]

Quickie afterthought: Um, doesn't it seem weird that Aiden would avoid dosing Jace completely (as it seemed to me, because he was the most rational and geek-normal acting to me) but alter Rodney's ability to think? PTB, did you goof? Or just try to show that Aiden wouldn't trust Rodney unless he really got addicted?