This weeks episode of the Gatecast takes a look back at Stargate Atlantis and their five year adventure in the Pegasus galaxy. As we did in the SG1 retrospective (mainly to keep the discussion short) we compiled a few questions and then had a round table type chat, it was fun.
We did have some recording issues when we lost the primary track so the audio quality is far from perfect but listenable so we hope you enjoy our answers to the various questions, if you have alternatives then feel free to let us know. Our thanks to both Brad and Thomas for joining us for the show, rare we have guests from Australia and America on the same podcast but it worked out ok apart from said recording failure which wasn’t skype’s fault. Next week we are back to our Stargate Universe adventure with the episode Malice and are joined by Stephen so not long to go before we have covered all the live action Stargate made so far.
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We also want to thank everyone that voted in the Stargate Atlantis Favourite Episode Poll, we ended up with eighty responses and of them there were thirty eight people who left contact information and we’re included in the prize draw. If you want to know if you have won then listen to the show, I’ll be contacting the main winner and runner ups in a day or so to make delivery arrangements.
We take a look at the premiere episode of Travelers on this week podcast, one of the bonus shows and delayed a while so that with Showcase and Netflix broadcasts we shouldn’t be spoiling anything. Travelers was created by Brad Wright one of the minds behind the Stargate television franchise and the show features many familiar actors and crew who also graced Stargate with their talents.
Travelers at heart is a time travel series centered on a time of individuals who have returned into their past to prevent a disaster that has global impact, in their time the world and the human race are dying and all their technology is focused on repair the damage done even if it ultimately leads to their own deaths or more accurately their births.
While Travelers is freely available thanks to the Netflix deal (outside of Canada) it can only help but give this opening season the maximum exposure and thus provide the impetus for a second season because after watching the show I really do want to see how the events pan out, it was a pretty good season cliffhanger providing satisfying conclusions to plot elements introduced and opening up some very intriguing options if explored. This premiere episode (also named Travelers) basically introduces us to the main team as they attempt to blend into a world that is very much unlike the one they came from and trying to make no false steps as they are forced to continue the lives of the people they replace. The variety of the group and their situations maximises the story telling options and as the series continues the show just gets better and better as more complexity is added and yes as they change the past their future changes as well. I can highly recommend Travelers to any fan of science fiction and with Eric as the lead his presence really does add a level of audience awareness a lot of shows in the genre would kill for.
Our thanks to Steve for joining to discuss Travelers, at this time he also has watched the entire season and as of yet not really heard a bad thing about it. Next week we are going to doing our Stargate Atlantis retrospective complete with the results of the listener favourite episode poll and then we’re back to our coverage of Universe. We hope you tune in for that and as always we would love to hear your thoughts on anything Stargate or the podcast. Oh and apologies for the fun we’ve had with the website thanks to the hacking and the hosting issues, many a post still has broken links thanks to some hijinks with ftp stored images etc.
On this latest bonus episode Mike, Brad and Andrew take a look at the 1994 Stargate theatrical feature film. This episode is not a commentary but a general discussion talking through the plot of the movie highlight the good and bad bits with maybe a little nit-picking along the way.
I don’t think a synopsis of the movie is required but what the hell, mysterious artifact found in Egypt, taking to the states and under the control of the Air Force. Doctor Daniel Jackson is brought it as perhaps a last ditch effort to decode the hieroglyphs and he discovers the link to star constellations and formulates the devices use as a travel device on a galactic scale. Colonel O’Neill leads a team through the gate where they find a primitive human culture enslaved by Ra the Sun god who is actually an alien who stole humans to work for him and worship him. Fights break out, the military dudes engineer regime change, the people are free, Daniel gets married and stays with the inlaws.
Our thanks to Brad and Andrew for joining us for this bonus show, a little different but we think it came out ok. Next week we are going to be taking a look at the premiere of the Brad Wright scifi series Travelers so we hope you join us for that and as this is released on new years eve have a safe and happy evening and lets hope for a wonderful 2017.
Rachel inherits the belongings including a house after the death of her aunt Rebecca. She decides to take her daughter Katherine along to allow the youngster to learn more about her family’s history. On arrival they met the local sheriff and the attorney handling the inheritance. Both seem a little disturbed that Rachel will be staying in the family home especially after a man named Simon had been dragged kicking and screaming from the house when Rebecca was found dead in her bed alongside a skeleton.
Of course it’s not going to be all wine and roses as Rachel begins to explore the mystery that was Rebecca’s life and discovers that the skeleton was around 40 years old and shows evidence of dark magic engraving on it’s bones but maybe it’s too late. Rachel having found a brooch drew blood and we see her personality change as her dreams show a young Rebecca engaged in satanic like sexual activities with we assume the man whose skeleton shared her bed for decades. The Legacy sends help in the form of Nick and back by their resources the secrets are revealed leading to a confrontation between a fully possessed Rachel who is totally off her rocker but her daughter is the rock which draws her back.
The Inheritance is a dark and very atmospheric episode of Poltergeist The Legacy, the music and cinematography at times goes far beyond what you would expect from a weekly hour long show. The funding from Showtime no doubt made the show better than it could have been if created for another channel as perhaps shown by the fourth season when Scifi took over the show. That said the episode was nicely paced, lots of mystery and suspense, great guest stars especially for Stargate fans in the form of Don S. Davis and Garry Chalk and a dark element which certainly makes the programme not for kids.
Our thanks to Thomas for joining Mike to discuss The Inheritance as Alan was overseas when the show was recorded. We’ve decided next week we are going to be releasing the discussion between Mike, Brad and Andrew on the 1994 theatrical feature and then perhaps the week after our look at the premiere of Travelers and to wrap up the bonus season our look back at Stargate Atlantis. Comments etc are most welcome and while we are having website issues hopefully they will be resolved shortly but until then merry christmas and a happy new year.
Well here we are again once more taking a look at Stargate Infinity and it’s premiere episode Decision. This time around Alan and Shayne sat down earlier this year to record a commentary intended for a april fools joke but it was better used for a christmas bonus show so sit back and enjoy.
In Stargate Infinity “Decision” we are introduced to the world which is set around 30 years after the SGC was created and became operational. The characters are totally new and the SGC seems to have expanded significantly as more vehicles are used thus the gateroom and ramp are designed for such a purpose. The story begins with the court martial of Major Gus Bonner who supposedly disobeyed orders which led to his team being killed by an alien threat. An age old sarcophagus is discovered believed to house the remains of an ancient (which turns out to be still alive) and once again Bonner is seen to be allowing the aliens to invade the SGC. The young SG team still under training battle the invading aliens and when cut off they escape through the gate and find themselves far from home, Bonner now in their eyes exonerated leads them onwards on the journey to find their way home and to solve the puzzle of the ancient creature.
Stargate Infinity lasted just a season (26 episodes) but did get a DVD release. While the voice talent for the show is impressive the show can not be considered canon and overall suffers due to poor animation and the simple fact they chose not to make the most of the existing TV series as basis for their stories. As we’ve seen with Star Wars if you allocate a reasonable budget and use the establish source material to the max you can create an entertaining show for new and existing fans, Infinity failed to do either.
Our thanks to Shayne for joining Alan for their look at SGI S1E1 “Decision” and shame on them for not doing episode two like they planned but I guess who can blame them:)
Next week we are going to be taking a look at Poltergeist The Legacy S1E18 “Inheritance” which features Stargate cast and crew in front and behind the camera, Thomas joined Mike for that show so tune in and let us know what you think. We still have the Atlantis retrospective, Travelers premiere and Stargate (movie) to look at before we return to Stargate Universe so if you have time on your hands over the holidays we’re here to help you fill it. Oh also worth noting that Travelers will be appearing on Netflix from December the 23rd.
On this weeks bonus episode we are joined by Ian to take a look at the series premiere of Dark Matter. The show was created by Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie who in their time wrote and produced episodes of Stargate SG1, Atlantis and Universe. This Syfy funded show tells the story of the crew of a spaceship who awoke from stasis with no memory of who they are, they do retain their intelligence and muscle memory skills but the details of their identity remains clouded. The ship’s android perceives them as a threat and attacks but is shut down and security protocols purged thus allowing her to serve this crew and to freely delve into the mystery of who they are. As the crew (numbered from the order they awoke) explore the ship they learn a few things and discover some puzzling aspects of what the ship had been doing but still nothing to identify themselves. They do come across an impregnable security door and a weapons cache, advanced heavy weapons and then the first clue as the android identifies the destination the ship was initially set for. They travel to the planet and find an independent mining colony who are expecting an assault by a corporation’s alien mercenaries, they tell the crew they sent for weapons to aid in their defence and boxes begin to get ticked. The crew return to the ship and decide to provide the miners with some of the weapons but once again the android makes a break through and reveals some personnel files stored in the computer, the crew are all wanted for extreme crimes and are not here to help the miners but are the mercenaries sent to kill them!
Dark Matter premiered on June 12 2015 on both the Space channel and the Syfy channel with a thirteen episode first season, the episodes in an amusing decision had no name just numbers. The second season premiered July 1 2016 with a third season currently under production. The premiere episode is technically a two parter but aired as two separate episodes and stands alone without any issues, the cliffhanger actually works very well with the revelation of who these people are, well all apart from Five who remains a mystery. The show has an excellent ensemble cast, two familiar faces (Jodelle Ferland and Roger Cross) who had appeared in Stargate along with Melissa O’Neil, Anthony Lemke, Alex Mallari Jr. Alex Mallari Jr, Marc Bendavid and Zoie Palmer fresh from her role on Lost Girl. The series also evolved from a limited run comic book series of the same name written by Joseph and Paul and published by Dark Horse in 2012.
The premiere episode was entertaining and made the most of the mystery of the ship and the crew, the viewers were allowed to learn at the same rate as the principle characters and thus each revelation paid off to it’s fullest. The cast seem to have quickly embraced their roles although there is an awful lot of experience on screen and certainly behind the camera, these days a show needs to find traction quickly and Dark Matter certainly did that. The first season has a DVD and Blu-ray release in the stated but alas only DVD in the majority of markets and it fails to live up to the incredible standards in terms of extras we Stargate fans are used to receiving.
Our thanks to Ian who joined us to watch Dark Matter, this was his first exposure to the series and it certainly sounded like he enjoyed the show and would continue to watch. As always we are grateful to everyone that continues to listen and interact to our Stargate coverage and we know this holiday season means a drop in listeners (we too have more important things to do) but hopefully these bonus episodes will tide is all over until we return with Universe in the new year. Next week we are going to be releasing the Shayne and Alan discussion of Stargate Infinity, yes it’s not all fun and games but then again when Brad and Mike talked about Infinity it was a fun time despite the quality of the show being discussed so tune in next week, share and enjoy.
Welcome to the twenty third seasonal bonus episode of the podcast, this week we are taking a look at the Sanctuary episode “Penance” which features Michael Shanks as the major guest star and a co-starring roles for Aleks Paunovic as “The Duke”. In this episode the Sanctuary team are meeting up with a courier who is transporting a very dangerous abnormal but they are intercepted by a criminal gang led by “the duke” who has laid claim to the abnormal. During the fire fight the team are split up and the courier Jimmy played by Michael Shanks escapes with Kate who is shot as they flee the scene in a car. The two hole up in an abandoned hotel with no communications while Helen and the rest search for them and deal with the Duke as he too looks for his prize.
Penance is the ninth episode of the second season of Sanctuary and as you would expect when you get Michael Shanks to guest star he is going to take center stage. The episode starts off action orientated but quickly evolves into a character piece with a lot of the scenes focusing on Jimmy and Kate as they deal with her injury and discover their shared history which leads to a rather serious standoff thankfully defused by the Big guy played by Christopher Heyerdahl under a lot of prosthetics. Aleks plays the bad guy to perfection and while the joke about the golf club was probably in bad taste it was funny and his choice of artwork was an added detail to the character and story that was noticed.
Overall Penance is an entertaining episode of Sanctuary which made good use of Michael and Aleks as well as mixing location shooting and the heavy green screen sets the show was known for. Our thanks to Brad for joining Mike on the show this week as Alan was busy and next week we are going to be look at the series opener of Dark Matter for another seasonal bonus show, join us for that and if you want to leave some feedback we would love to receive it.
The question of what is the greater good is asked of many of the crew of Destiny in this episode as the ship comes across an alien derelict. Without a shuttle the decision is made to leap across the void (in the space suits) and employ a Kino as motive force and to string a connecting rope to aid the second person across. Colonel Young and Rush both volunteer and are probably both being a little paranoid but the unlikely couple do make it across safe and sound and enter the alien ship through a rupture in its hull. Rush is able to secure a compartment and bring power up and sends the Kino in search mode, they discover the alien pods they found previously on the Seed ship and unfortunately trigger an energy surge which propels the ship far away from Destiny.
Rush is extremely unwilling to reveal the secret of the bridge and his partial control of the ship so convinces Young that the only solution would be to bring Amanda Perry back on board. Ginn has been supplying Homeworld with intel so is swapped with Amanda and once she is onboard then Rush lets her onto his secret. She gains access to the bridge and is able to fly the Destiny towards the alien ship and attempts to bluff Eli and the others that she has been able to tweak the maneuvering thrusters. Eli digs deeper and sees the secret messages Rush was passing onto Amanda and tracks hers down to the bridge, no one is pleased to say the least. Young and Rush have a knock down drag out fight before clearing the air and coming towards a consensus which if they survive could allow Destiny to be unified and to pursue the great mission that Rush has been tantalised by. Young and Rush are of course rescued but Simeon who has been disturbed by how close Ginn is to the crew and learns of her visit to Earth pays Amanda a visit in her quarters with a glorious amount of foreboding…
The Great Good was an excellent episode, some of the CGI visuals where stunning more so because they were slow and deliberate allowing you to appreciate the detail the artists applied to their computer constructed models. The continued relationship between Ginn and Eli is fantastic and Amanda and Rush spark as you would expect. The highlight of the episode barring Eli getting seriously pissed when he discovers Rush’s betrayal is the dialogue heavy discussion between Young and Rush, two great actors performing with a good script and twenty six episodes of character growth behind them.
Our continued thanks to Brad for joining us this week and the featured promo was for Generations Geek. Next week since it will be December we will be dipping into this season’s bonus episodes recording over this last year. Up first will be the episode “Penance” from Sanctuary which guest starred Michael Shanks so we hope you can join us for that and of course we’d love to know what you thought of the episode.
Oh yeah, the Stargate Atlantis favourite episode poll is open for one more week, we would love to have your opinions:)
Colonel Young continues his slide into the abyss in the episode Trial And Error as we see him indulge a little too eagerly the fruits of Brody’s homebrew experiments. Young has also started having what he takes for nightmares, very vivid nightmares of the return of the aliens who we first met when they were discovered to have been tracking the Destiny for who knows how long. Each of these experiences leaves Young failing to save the ship from destruction but he is able to take some action in the real world even though he can not really explain why he is making these specific choices. Eventually he bites the bullet and goes to talk to Camille who is obviously sceptical but when Eli discovers the ship has been running battle scenarios the truth is revealed that Destiny has been interacting with the Colonel perhaps testing his command capabilities and refusing to enter FTL until it is satisfied with the results.
Trial And Error is an interesting episode as it pretty much breaks Young who has been on the edge since first arriving on Destiny. His relationship with his wife and TJ plus the rigors of commanding the military and civilian crew plus day to day gate operations have all taken their toll. The death of Riley in hindsight was the breaking point where he started to use alcohol as a crutch and it’s only been getting worse. The battle scenarios and neural interaction certainly add a layer of complexity and capability to Destiny and opens up a whole world of scifi story lines if the writers so chose to use them given the show would still be around in a few years. Of course the kicker was that when Young finally realised how far he had allowed himself to fall and at least started to correct the matter the pay off of Destiny finally engaging the FTL was undermined by Rush and his antics on the bridge with the “Franklin” persona. Oh well, maybe we’ll learn more of what Destiny is capable of when it isn’t being manipulated by Rush for his own ends.
Overall the episode was entertaining, the groundhog day approach is certainly not unique in scifi but it worked well and the cost of the rather spectacular explosions covered by multiple use. It was also gratifying to see Eli and Ginn simply sparkle with chemistry, it’s been said that she is perhaps a cold blooded opportunist but I want to believe she saw something in Eli that appealed and this was her chance to embrace a new path for herself free from the shadow of the Alliance. It was also without doubt delightful to see Greer playing the role of wingman or say big brother and taking such joy in the act, it confirms that he isn’t the hard nose he makes out to be but retains a very healthy scepticism on those who have yet to prove themselves.
Our thanks to Brad for joining us this week and to Mack for the feedback. This weeks podcast promo was for Nutty Bites and next week we are going to be taking a look at the episode The Greater Good, we hope you can join us for that and if possible let us know what you thought of the episode and this second season of Universe so far, not many episodes left.
Oh yeah, the Stargate Atlantis favourite episode poll is still open, would love to have your contribution:)
Cloverdale the home town of Scott and Chloe (also the location of many a Canadian tv series such as Smallville) plays host to their wedding after Scott on leave from the military returns home. Eli is the designated camera man for the wedding and all the preparations and Greer is the best man, oh lets not forget that Everett is Scott’s father not just the normal father figure. A lot is going on in the opening scenes of the episode but things come to an abrupt focus when we see the crew of the Destiny on an alien world battling some sort of native life form and Scott in critical condition. The episode then proceeds to tell the story of the events on the alien world as Scott lives an alternate life in Cloverdale surrounded by his friends and family played by crew of the Destiny. We see these people showing traits that is not the norm or others with attitudes highlighted, it may be that Scott is interacting with the people with character traits he believes them to have which may explain Volker being a little more fluffy than usual, Brody the source of things booze and in an interesting choice Vanessa as the love lorn ex who would still swallow her pride and offer herself body and soul on the eve of Scott’s wedding.
Cloverdale works in many ways, some of the location work is excellent especially the simple colour timing tweaks which turned a normal piece of woodland into a very alien world. Of course the Cloverdale location shooting was spot on and some of the in jokes worked very well including a very well crafted stunt which Brian was allowed to at least partially perform, check out the DVD extras for a full behind the scenes look. The standout character of the episode was perhaps Greer who was the life and soul of the wedding party and the true warrior as he fought off the alien planets aka Triffids. Rush was a close second thanks to a stellar performance as the registrar and both Brian and Elyse delivered solid performances.
The episode viewer ratings wise is pretty average and I wouldn’t disagree but there are some good scenes and performances and serves a purpose as a standalone episode allowing for a breather for this seasons main story arc. Our thanks to Steve (once again) for joining us for the podcast and to Brad for the feedback, apologises for the shorter show which was the result of the second episode with corrupted audio recordings. Next week should be back to normal as the flaw in the recording software has been worked around, touch wood. This weeks podcast promo is for the Babylon Project Podcast which discusses an episode per show of the great Babylon 5 scifi series, next week we will be taking a look at Trial And Error with out guest Thomas, we hope you join us for that and let us know what you think of it and all things Stargate.
Pathogen is a rather disturbing title for an episode more so for scifi but in this case it bodes extra specially for whatever is growing within Chloe and in part for Eli’s mother who is suffering from the accidental contraction of HIV. Maryanne Wallace is of course only aware of her son working with the US military at some undisclosed location but with no direct contact she is depressed and no longer taking her medication. In short she has given up ever seeing Eli again and without him she sees little to live for when everyday is a fight with the disease she carries in her blood. Chloe is becoming more and more suspect and in the eyes of many untrustworthy but as it happens Rush finds a way to not only use her to advance his agenda but hide the fact he is able to manipulate the Destiny at least upto a point.
Eli is allowed to visit Earth to try to form a bond with his mother but obviously without giving the game away and even when he does blurb she doesn’t buy the uber scifi narrative this strange guy is dishing out. Meanwhile Camille who is acting as intermediary is also taking the opportunity to visit Sharon who it’s obvious is having serious issues herself, a manic personality and increased alcohol consumption. When Eli finally reaches out to Camille she acts and forces the IOA and Homeworld into allowing a visit to Destiny by Maryanne and in that sequence is dare anyone not to get teary eyed as she finally sees her son in the flesh and wanders around the Destiny and absorbs every moment with her child. Eli for his part is back to the little boy hanging on to his mother’s dress for dear life and this simple act by Camille solves at least this problem. Perhaps the unexpected bonus was that Sharon meets up with Maryanne later which gives both of them a confident and anchor to share their troubles which also shows that at least Camille while being stubborn and opinionated at terms at least is not corrupt, she couldn’t give herself the privilege of have Sharon visit her but for another who needed it then she the power she had.
Pathogen also gave us some very good moments with Simeon as his presences becomes more intense and we get both Greer and Varro making moves to contain the threat but unfortunately nothing much is being done but we can’t help but feel it should be obvious that Simeon is faraway from being the cooperative soldier that his fellow alliance members are. I said in the podcast I wasn’t sure if I really liked this episode, there was some very good scenes and situations but there wasn’t that clear cut “great episode” feeling about it, perhaps as mentioned it was meant to put the viewer on edge and if so Robert as a first time director did it proud.
If you have listened to this episode of the podcast then you know we had some technical issues, most of my dialogue has to be replaced and alas it wasn’t always done well. Unfortunately next weeks episode will suffer from the same fate but then we found the problem and resolved it so bare with us. Our thanks to Brad for the feedback and to Steve for giving us his time for the show, always appreciated. This weeks promo is for British Invaders and next week we are going to be taking a look at Cloverdale, hope you join us.
Oh don’t forget to vote in our Stargate Atlantis favourite episode poll.
In the third episode of the season called Awakening we see the Destiny approaches the mysterious object detected earlier, the ship approaches swiftly which provokes Young to order the deployment of the main gun but before they can fire the thrusters engage slowing Destiny and docks the two ships. A team board the vessel through the airlocks which prove to be compatible, no surprise really as the design of the ship certainly echoes Destiny herself. As the team search the ship the control is activated and we see that there is something alive on board, shortly after Volker alone on the bridge is surprised by an alien who promptly collapses. TJ is sent over to provide aid and when the alien awakes they try to communicate and offer it food with little success. However Rush and Park discover that the Ancient built stargate seeding ship has almost a full energy storage cell which can be tapped to provide the Destiny with enough power to dial Earth. Everyone is excited but as they prepare to dial the energy feed reverses and the seed ship begins to draw power from Destiny.
Telford and Eli are unable to prevent the energy drain and everyone but Telford leave the seed ship, Rush on the bridge of Destiny makes the call and disconnects the two ships leaving Telford stranded and alarmingly surrounded by a number of the aliens…
Awakening was an interesting episode both in terms of adding to the Lucian Alliance complication but solidifying Ginn and Varro and the dark presence of Simeon. We get another clear indication that when the proverbial hits the fan and the crew learn that Rush has control of the ship he may not survive the experience. Riley died because of Rush and his distrust and paranoia and now Telford has been abandoned to his fate although it has to be said it was a moving conversation between the two Colonels. It was great to see the Seed ship and the bay full of gates ready for deployment and quite funny how Rush reacted but of course he has bigger fish to fry whereas Scott and Greer were like kids in a candy store:)
A decent episode which actually works better as a jumping off point for storylines to come but with plenty of drama, humour and some great character pieces which raises the episode above average. Our thanks this week to Thomas for joining us on the show and he will be back shortly including at least one of the seasonal bonus shows. No direct feedback this week but we do want to hear from you about anything Stargate and Gatecast so drop us a line or chat over social media. This weeks promo is for Treks In Scifi and next week we are going to be watching the excellent “Pathogen”.
Well the titles says it all, in the aftermath of the defeated assault by the Lucian Alliance the crew have to come to terms with the loss of some of their comrades and the unexpected visitors locked up in a store room. Some members of the alliance forces are co-operating by explaining the reasoning behind their attack on Destiny while others are still looking to cause trouble. All ready there are rumblings of discontent amongst the expedition members over the resources being used on the captives but the IOA and others want to interrogate them as trouble seems to be brewing back in the Milky Way.
Rush has eventually determined the location of the ship’s bridge and in typical fashion doesn’t tell anyone else, he is confronted by a representation of his wife and Franklin who may be hallucinations or avatars of the ship’s AI but either way Rush is making decisions with little thought of the people involved. He brings the ship out of FTL near a planet with a locked off gate and proclaims it safe to visit via the shuttle even though there is extremely high turbulence in the atmosphere. Of course the shuttle crashes and Riley is critically injured and trapped in the wreckage, the gate as well is missing but turns up buried under what was perhaps a landslide and they are unable to return to the ship before the Destiny jumps away.
Rush is confident that when the Destiny re-enters normal space the planet’s gate will still be in range and meanwhile they continue to dig the gate out eventually relying on explosives to clear the bulk of the debris. Once uncovered the Destiny does indeed dial the planet and the team are rescued and Young informed of Riley. He visits Riley and the two men share a moment and Riley makes it clear he knows he will die where he lies and makes it clear he does not want anyone to risk themselves by staying behind and asks Young to help him die. The silence passes by and as the unspoken words pass between them the Colonel suffocates Riley and then slowly exists the ship and announces the passing of the young officer.
On board Destiny the Colonel gets a list via Telford of the members of the alliance the IOA and Homeworld want to continue to talk too, the rest of the alliance members are gated to the planet where it has to be said they will probably die. The Destiny jumps away now minus the last remaining shuttle which could be a problem since they have come in very useful so far.
Our thanks to Thomas for joining us for this episode, we recorded two episodes that evening so next week he will be back. Brad sent us in some audio feedback via email which we will spread out across the relevant episodes, gratitude for taking the time. This weeks promo was for Flash Pulp from Skinner Co and next week as mentioned Thomas will be back for the episode Awakening so join us for that and if you have any comments/feedback we would love to hear from you.
The second season of Stargate Universe begins with the episode Intervention. In terms of the show it is technically the final part of a three part story which encompasses the finale of the first season and the beginning of the second. Most of the expedition have been stranded on an alien world and after a power struggle amongst the alliance a number of the invaders are also marooned including Varro.The remaining Lucian Alliance still retain partial control after the ship was saved by Greer and Scott by adjusting the shields on the outer hull. Rush now begins to reduce the energy to the shields which will eventually allow the radiation to kill the crew or at least those who are not in a more secure location which is where Rush and company are going to hole up, as he says to Dannic those that are not safe are a necessary sacrifice. Dannic refuses to give up but is then killed by one of his own who then turns over control of the ship to Rush and they then gate back to the planet to retrieve the stranded people. Young returns to discover that TJ has lost the baby.
The secondary or maybe primary storyline in Intervention is centered on TJ who is unconscious in the med bay after being shot and losing her child. She awakes in a cabin and is greeted by Dr Cane who tells her she has been brought to the world they visited earlier in recognition of her sacrifice by returning to Destiny. Her daughter is alive and well and she is told that her child “Carmen” will be allowed to stay but TJ had to return to Destiny. She finally wakes up and indeed she is on Destiny and yes her child died due to the trauma of the bullet wound but something calls to her and she struggles to the main viewing port and sees the same nebula that was revealed to her on the planet…
Intervention is an excellent episode to begin the second season of Stargate Universe, we get some action and full introduction to a few new players in this part of the story such as Ginn and Simeon. Varro continues to be the sensible and intelligent alliance member and one who Young could probably work with but that’s some way away, at this point keeping them confined is the only safe option barring abandoning them on a planet just as they were.
The mystery of TJ and her child will remain just that for quite a while but the writing provides the viewer to follow the more scientific or mystical path as they so choose which gives plenty of options further down the line as the season develops. Overall we got a very good episode, great effects and character interaction, new characters making their mark and opportunities for the writers to expand in many directions and maintain the mystery that is Destiny.
We want to thank Steve for joining us this week and he will be back for the episode Pathogen in a few weeks. Our thanks to Mack for the feedback over on our Google+ page and our continued gratitude for all the interactions over social media. This weeks podcast promo is for The Batcave Podcast which is coming up to wrapping up the their coverage of the Adam West and Burt Ward classic series so get in there while you can. Next week we are going to be taking a look at the episode Aftermath with our guest Thomas so please have a listen and let us know what you think 🙂
The Lucian Alliance and crew of the Destiny face off in Incursion Part 2, both sides have control of specific areas of the ship and both need/want what the other has. Young and Kiva agree on an exchange of medical and food for civilian hostages. Young is prepared to risk casualties by double crossing Kiva but the power issues intervene blowing the plan apart before it is enacted resulting in a half hearted exchange at best. Kiva then agrees to deal with Camille and a deal is done but alas the body of an executed Cpl Rivers is thrown in underlining how ruthless Kiva can be. Eli and Chloe continue to explore the ship and eventually find an active panel, he contacts the main control center using ancient which Rush recognises.
Destiny thanks to the need to come out of FTL to allow gate access is in the vicinity of a pulsar whose regular output of gamma rays and other exotics is preventing the ship from generating the threshold of energy required to jump away, shields are taking preference. They decide to prioritise shields near the pulsar leaving the ship unprotected elsewhere which will mean less energy required and thus used for the jump engines. The shields however will need manually adjusting on the hull, Scott and Greer are tasked with the job. However to make it happen Young has to give control of the ship to Kiva but is hoping thanks to Telford the transfer can be reversed before any serious consequences.
Incursion Part 2 is a very fitting season finale making the most of the set up in the first half of this series of episodes and delivering action and oodles of suspense and drama. We lose crew and of course the cliffhanger leaves many of the main characters in jeopardy, in fact if contracts hadn’t been sorted before this aired many of the actors could be seriously worried.
There was as you would expect some truly beautiful CGI shots and the stunt work was exceptional no doubt thanks in part to Mike Dopud who started his career as a stuntman, the fight in med bay was intense and brutal and the consequences heart wrenching and maybe the nastiest cliffhanger of them all. Lets not forget Eli and Chloe, a wonderful scene between the two of them which relied on a year’s worth of interaction and emotional ups and downs, credit to both David and Elyse. The final scene was beyond intense and the flickering light and fade to black highly effective in terms of building expectation but going hand in hand with the threat the ship faces from the pulsar. To sum up this was a pretty good episode:)
We would like to thank Brad for joining us once again this week even when these two episodes were recording on the same night. Brad will return for some bonus content later in the year and for a few episodes of the second season of Universe. This week podcast promo was for the Scifi Diner a long running show full of news, reviews and features hosted by Scott, Miles and M. Next week we’ll be taking a look at the season two premiere of Universe with the episode Intervention, join us and let us know what you think.
