Gatecast 298 SGA The Queen

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Jan 302016
 

The Queen

The Queen is the focal point of a Wraith Hive, the grand alliance is still struggling to deal with the emergence of Atlantis but unlike before there are Wraith who deal directly with the humans who now control the great city. In this episode the team approach a hive on a diplomatic mission, they board and are greeted by Todd and around a table filled with food (Todd at the farmer earlier). They discuss the use of the latest version of the retrovirus which could eliminate the need for Wraith to feed on humans and take sustenance from ordinary food. Todd is sceptical but agrees that it could give his hive an advantage but without the consent of the Queen who dominates the alliance nothing can be done. The only way to approach the ruling Queen with the idea of the retrovirus would be through another Queen and as Teyla has Wraith DNA it is decided that she will undergo drastic procedures to turn her into a Wraith at least in the short term.

TheQueen

After much deliberation Teyla undergoes the surgery and is transformed into a Wraith Queen. Todd teaches her some of the basics she needs to know as well as making her understand that attitude and confidence is everything when dealing with Wraith let alone another Queen. They board the Queen’s hive which then jumps into hyperspace and after some uneasy introductions Teyla is invited to discuss her purpose for the visit but Todd seizes his chance and drives a knife into her throat and as the alarms sound he jams the knife into Teyla’s hand. As the Wraith and Drones rush in Teyla plays her part shouting down descent and proclaiming that any Queen who could die so easy was not worthy of leading the alliance and now she is the Queen of this ship. The Wraith commander is not happy but accepts the new dynamic but then messages arrives telling of an incursion of one of their feeding grounds by another hive, Teyla reluctantly agrees to leave their position (knowing John and Co will have more trouble finding them) but a Queen would not ignore this incursion. Upon arrival she immediately orders an attack against the trespasser and Todd is unable to stop the wholesale slaughter of Wraith pilots and crews but even as things turn bad she is saved when the puddle jumper arrives via the Stargate and puts six drones into the opposing hive. Alas they are then captured and Teyla tells them to bide their time but is overheard by the commander who attempts to kill her, she defends herself and Todd finishes him off. She now has total control of the hive which she leaves in the capable hands of Todd with the promise to the crew that she is still their Queen and will protect them, she takes her leave with a warning to Todd that if he does anything stupid she can return and take command once again.

I think you may glean that I quite liked The Queen, it’s an excellent story giving the Wraith a lot more depth and opens up their society a little more. It also makes good use of the long term narrative of some Athosians being “tainted” by Wraith DNA and even offers the possibility that the Wraith and the humans are not as different as was indicated from the pilot of Atlantis and subsequent Wraith specific episodes. The makeup and prosthetics were stellar, the transformation of Teyla was spectacular and Rachel’s performance as she wrapped the cloak of her Wraith Queen persona around her was a sight to behold. Christopher was as ever wonderful as the uber intelligent and manipulative Todd and lets not forget Kenny either 🙂

Many thanks to Ian for joining us on the sunday afternoon to record this episode, he will return later in the season and thanks for the feedback over on google+ as well as continued support on Twitter and Facebook. This weeks promo is for the SciFi Diner podcast and next week we are taking a look at Tracker.

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Gatecast 297 SGA Whispers

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Jan 232016
 

Whispers begins with events in a small village a year before a team from Atlantis arrives, we see two locals walking in the dark mist shrouded night and come across someone sitting on the ground, they approach and a creature is revealed which lunges at them killing one almost immediately. The other man escapes buts runs into a man wearing a gas mask who proceeds to attack him. We jump to the current time frame to find John and Carson walking through the woods and meet up with a SG team commanded by Major Teldy, introduction are made and we learn that one of Michael’s labs has been discovered in the nearby caverns. They soon realise this was the site of some early genetic experiments which may have back fired and left the nearby village devoid of life, most of this is confirmed by a local man named Mirellus who speaks of Demons in the mist. They decide to spend the night in the village but Sheppard, Teldy and Captain Vega head out to the nearby settlement for some supplies where they encounter something in the mist which reaches out and grabs Vega, they find her body soon after and then double time it back and discover all the stasis pods in the lab are now open. Carson, Dr Porter and Sgt. Mehra are a little on edge after hearing the commotion and Mehra goes out to investigate, after some time Carson then leaves and when they return Dr Porter is missing.

Events continue to spiral out of control but with each encounter some knowledge of these “demons” is discovered and they decide to set a trap at the village’s well using a laptop emitting a signal which will bring the demons into a killzone. John however is attacked while setting the C4 and in the commotion it blows and the team open up with their P90’s leaving all the demons dead. They all return to the lab and discover a well disguised door, they open it and find another room full of empty pods and they begin to be stalked by the remainder of Michael’s experiments but in the confined space the automatic weapons make light work of culling the demons. The episode wraps with a bookend of Carson, John and Rodney with Rodney mildly upset he knows nothing about a certain Dr Porter but at least Carson is staying in Pegasus so yay:)

Whispers is one of my favourite episodes of Stargate Atlantis, it’s incredibly atmospheric and wonderfully produced thanks to the clever idea of using a tent inside the studio which allowed them to film in simulated heavy fog/mist. That’s not all though, we finally see a bunch of female SGC members who just happen to be on the same team and each of them do credit to their rank and the SGC, granted the US military at the time was not overly keen on front line female soldiers but the need for intelligent and resourceful members of the SGC should have meant a great percentage of women serving than we were presented with over the years. Considering we only got the single episode/adventure of the team comprising of Major Teldy, Captain Vega (RIP), Sgt. Mehra and Dr Porter they left a very definite mark on the fanbase and who knows a sixth season or tv movie could have made good use of these characters.

Many thanks to Andrew for joining us again for this episode, he will return for at least two more before we movie onto Universe. Thanks to Brad for the feedback and to everyone that has kept in touch or supported the podcast on Twitter, Google+, Tumblr and Facebook. This weeks promo is for The Rusted Robot and next week we are going to be watching another excellent episode “The Queen”.

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Gatecast 296 SGA The Shrine

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Jan 162016
 

In The Shrine Rodney McKay develops a degenerative brain condition and within days his mental faculties decline with startling abruptness. Initially they believe a mission to a failed research camp which had been destroyed by a flood coupled with spending hours soaking wet and cold on top of the Stargate was the root cause but only Rodney was affected. However Jennifer with help from the Pegasus natives identifies the condition as “Second Childhood” a known condition in the Pegasus galaxy which is caused by a parasite that embeds itself in the brain and creates similar symptoms as Alzheimer’s. Jeannie is brought to Atlantis to say her goodbyes to Rodney and Ronon approaches her with his own experience of the condition which had affected his grandfather.  It seems there is a shrine that has the capability to nullify the symptoms for one day allowing the sufferer to spend quality time with their family and friends. Jeannie decides to take Rodney to this Shrine despite Jennifer’s scientific doubts but they have to get past the Wraith outpost, fortunate the Wraith are a little dumb or complacent.
The Shrine

When they enter the Shrine it’s effect is felt quickly and Rodney regains his sensors, he is alarmed at the news but Jennifer identifies the radiation source being emitted from the Ancient device in the cave. She correctly speculates that this causes the parasite to shrink (for a time) but maybe with it in a tightly controlled area of the brain the option to surgically remove it although with limited tools it will require a lot of skill and some luck.

The Shrine is considered one of the best episodes of Stargate Atlantis and a firm fan favourite, it also gains a lot of praise for David who gave us a Rodney McKay so very different than what we were accustomed too, it was also interesting to see the dynamic between Pegasus folklore and Earth scientific method clash although that was more for effect than a plot element that was going to be explored in depth. It was also great to see Kate return to the show for her final appearance as Jeannie Miller and it was heart breaking to and inspiring to see Rodney confess his feelings to Jennifer even if he needed the security blanket of a video recording to express himself.

Many thanks to Andrew who joined my early one sunday (Alan was at a convention) and he will be returning next week for the episode Whispers. This weeks podcast promo is for Tuning Into Scifi TV so click the link and pay them a visit. Thanks to everyone who took the time to listen to the bonus shows over the holidays and once again thanks to all those that voted in the poll, the Stargate box of goodies is on it’s way to Jodi in New York 🙂

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Gatecast 295 SGA Ghost In The Machine

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Dec 052015
 

avatar The team are travelling towards a space gate in orbit around a world that has potential for a new alpha site despite the flying monkeys which seemed to have given the visit a bit of excitement. As they approach the jumper starts to malfunction with energy surges and all control is lost, the jumper collides with the gate and without power is entering a decaying orbit. It’s their lucky day though, power returns and they limp back to Atlantis but they can not find anything wrong. The city itself then begins to experience power surges and all power dies except for Rodney’s laptop which begins to communicate via text and reveals that an entity calling itself Elizabeth Weir is asking for help, you know a Ghost In The Machine.

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It turns out that after the fall of the Asurans the last few remaining replicators were from the faction that were attempting to ascend, they found a technological solution which converted themselves into energy but unfortunately it only allowed them to remain in subspace devoid of real experience. Weir went in search of help and came across the puddle jumper and hitched a ride back to Atlantis. The Ancient technology used to create Fran is taken over by Weir and her consciousness is put into the Fran template and all seems well until the remaining Asurans arrive. Atlantis is forced to allow them to manifest and build bodies for themselves with some conditions. Of course the Asurans have their own agenda or at least one of them does and Weir is forced to choose sides and in a final farewell she leads the Asurans through the Stargate to a new world knowing it would be the end of her and her people.

Ghost in the Machine was used primarily to tie up some loose ends and it’s a pity Torri Higginson wasn’t able to return. Michelle once again did a mighty fine job probably more so than her first appearance on the show as Fran. We did get some good character stuff from Rodney and it has to be said most of the characters that had known Elizabeth were allowed some good interaction with this version and Woolsey gets another lesson into what command is all about and how honor and integrity can lead to sacrifice. Ghost In The Machine is yet another solid episode in the final season, drawing on the shows mythology and maybe be design putting a bow on those pesky loose threads and while Ghost In The Machine is certainly not an original plot it has it’s moments and overall works very well.

Many thanks to Miles, Mack, Dan and Levi for the feedback and emails, appreciated as was the five star itunes review from Melissa (host of the Upper Pylon 2 Podcast). Once again thanks to Brad for getting up early to join us for the recording of the show and as would have it a Ghost in the Machine caused the first recording session to be cancelled, we got this on the second try. This weeks promo is for the Dune Saga podcast, next week will be the first of this seasons bonus shows and I’ve not decided which so it’ll be a surprise, tune in and find out:)

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Gatecast 294 SGA The Daedalus Variations

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Nov 282015
 

avatar A starship appears in orbit above Atlantis, the early warning systems failed to detect its approach and to confuse matters they are getting the automated friend or for response indicating that the ship is the Daedalus, however they confirm that ship is days away from Earth on it’s return journey from Pegasus. The team take a jumper and they discover a carbon copy of the Daedalus however it shows signs of extensive battle damage and no one is onboard, well there are four bodies and they do look rather familiar.

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A strange energy signature is detected and McKay discovers that the ship has an additional drive system, he realises it is intended to jump the ship between alternate realities and that this Daedalus is not from their universe. Alas the drive is in a loop and when it’s energy capacitors are fully charged it automatically jumps, who knows how long they “other” team were onboard or how far away from their home they were before conditions killed them. Each reality poses it’s own problems for the ship and the team including a sun eating it’s system, aliens hell bent on destroying another Atlantis and one where there is no live at all on the planet and not Atlantis either. McKay finally figures out that while he can not stop the ship from jumping he can reverse its course and if they survive the sun going nova and the aliens once again they can leave the ship when they reach their reality and let the ship do it’s thing, of course complications arise when the landing bay and jumpers are destroyed by those pesky aliens but not to worry they have a plan.

The Daedalus Variations is a well crafted episode which makes good use of story elements introduced on Atlantis earlier and certainly in the scifi genre as a whole. There is some excellent space combat sequences, really old school dog fighting in and around the Daedalus and again all the CGI done in house both for budgetary reasons as well as showing the talents of the Stargate artists. There is not a huge amount of pressure put on the actors in terms of what the story needs from the characters but we get some good humorous moments and some cheesy ones it has to be said but overall The Daedalus Variations is a solid episode early in the final season of the show.

Thank you very much to Thomas for joining us this week for The Daedalus Variations an episode he chose and he’ll be returning in 2016, this weeks promo is for Treks In Sci-Fi and next week we are back with Ghost In The Machine and the return of a character but in another guise. As always we’d love to hear what you think and don’t forget the Stargate SG1 top ten episodes poll is still open:)

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Gatecast 293 SGA Broken Ties

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Nov 212015
 

avatar Ronon and Teyla are off world when they come across a body in the woods, as they approach hidden traps are sprung and in the chaos they are both stunned, Teyla is left and Ronon abducted by an old friend who as is the norm came back to bite him. The tracker Ronon carries is not active so the suggestion is made to contact Solen Sincha another Satedan who may have some information on Tyre the man who kidnapped Ronon. They learn that his Wraith masters have abandoned him and maybe by giving them Ronon a former runner he will regain their favour and this is exactly what is happening. Ronon is given to the Wraith who begins the torture procedure in the effort to get Ronon addicted to the surge of life energy after they kill him, they succeed and Ronon pledges his loyalty to the Wraith. Information arrives about a Wraith lab on the planet Sarif Sur so Tyre and the team mount a raid but they are captured and it seems Tyre has betrayed them but it’s a ruse and when he gets the opportunity he breaks John, Teyla and Rodney out and the battle commences. The Wraith is captured and when threatened with the explosives planted earlier he agrees to release them when Tyre says he will stay behind and hand over the detonator when the team are free, however Tyre redeems his honour by destroying the lab and saving his friend Ronon who still has a long road ahead to purge his system of the enzyme and reverse the mental conditioning.

Broken Ties (5)

Broken Ties is an episode which quickly brings the talents of Mark Dacascos back to Stargate, an accomplished and well trained fighter he is more than capable of holding his own acting wise and bringing a level of reality to a staged action sequence, nothing quite beats being able to use the primary actor for the majority of a stunt. While the dynamic between Ronon and Tyre was certainly the focal point and allowed Jason to dig deep into his own talents to bring to the screen another facet of Ronon we also got the dilemma Teyla was having to deal with being a new mother want to remain at her childs side but having the drive to be the guardian for all. In an episode that had some strong themes it’s surprising we got the usual amount of comedic elements scattered throughout the episode, Woolsey is the major foil for such things as his character settles into the group dynamic and if you need that extra giggle then Rodney in a bubble bath serves it’s purpose.

We want to thank Tim for joining us for this episode, he replied to a tweet on the night of recording so we invited him to join us and he said yes so everything worked out great. You can hear Tim on Partial Nerdity and Unchartered Territories two podcasts that I listen too on a weekly basis. We also would like to thank everyone that has voted in the poll which at the time I write this is 94 people, if we get over 100 giving us their Stargate SG1 top ten episodes we’ll throw in another prize for the draw with our thanks. This weeks promo is for British Invaders a podcast that looks at old UK television shows with a scifi/fantasy/genre leaning and next week we are going to be taking a look at The Daedalus Variations with Thomas, we hope you can join us for that.

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Gatecast 292 SGA The Seed

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Nov 142015
 

avatar A month after the events at Michael’s complex the new head of the expedition in Pegasus arrives via the Daedalus, Mr Richard Woolsey beams down and makes an awkward introduction, it doesn’t bode well. Dr Keller it sees is having some health issues and awakes at her desk to find her hand covered in goo but dismisses it, she is still looking into reviving Carson and when Woolsey is informed of her progress he simply states that at some point you’re going to have to gamble, her research pays off as Carson is unfrozen and the new drug injected into his system stabilizes it, things are looking up. The next morning Teyla is worried the no one has heard from Jennifer and when they access her room they find her in bed with some sort of alien growth covering part of her body. Carson tries to surgical remove it but it reacts and threatens the health of Jennifer so all they can do is attempt to divine its source as it looks like something Carson had seen Michael working with.

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Things are going from bad to worse as this organic hybrid material spreads across her bedroom and buries itself into the structure of the city tapping into local power sources to increase its growth, as it approaches one of the main ZPM power conduites the question is posed in terms of sacrificing one for the benefit of all especially after Radek is attacked by a tentacle when investigating it’s growth in a support tunnel deep within the city. Carson identifies a virus in Jennifer’s system sourced from work undertaken by Michael however it does look like it was an accidental exposure and Carson has developed a counter agent but it has to be injected directly into her flesh and to get there someone has to get past the alien growth which they now know is a baby Hive ship.

Can Jennifer be saved, who will risk the gauntlet and has this been a good first week in the job for Mr Woolsey?

The Seed is considered (or so it seemed to me) to be a victim of some great episodes around it, in many ways it has the feel of an early season episode with a gimmick of the week and ultimately no real consequence but to be fair they are allowed to not hit the proverbial home room with every episode. For fans of Carson the episode pays off, a good example of his talents and commitment to his patients and of course John and Ronon get to do the hero thing, not demanding it has to be said but well produced as is the whole episode. The commentary on the DVD/Blu-ray goes into some of the issues with so much use of visual effects and practical elements for the alien growth and is well worth a listen and despite some negative opinions it was still a fun episode.

Thanks to Brad for joining us for this episode, we had some technical issues but didn’t lose any of the recording which is always the silver lining. We got some feedback over on our Facebook page so thanks to Brad and Steve for that. This weeks promo is for Generations Geek the father/daughter all things geek and genre podcast and next week we are taking a look at the third episode of the final season “Broken Ties”.

Don’t forget we also have the ongoing poll for your favourite ten episodes of Stargate SG1

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Gatecast 291 SGA Search And Rescue

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Nov 072015
 

avatar2In the aftermath of the explosion which brought down Michael’s complex rescue units in three jumpers arrive from Atlantis and begin to look for survivors, a number of people are trapped in the debris including Ronon, John, Evan and Rodney. John is seriously hurt with a piece of rebar through his side and Evan has a broken leg, Ronon and Rodney are bashed and bruised but are actively seeking a way out. Michael light years away gets an automated message from his complex and jumps to hyperspace intent on intercepting those that oppose him and Rodney still with some of the tech he salvaged realises a mayday had been sent and when he and Evan are rescued he informs Carter who begins the preparations to leave. The cruiser arrives in orbit and a dart does a fly by of the complex, Captain Vega shoots it down and the jumpers cloak and flee into orbit leaving John and Ronon behind, for now. Michael sends a team down in the hopes of capturing some prisoners but the Daedalus brings the fight to Michael and the two ships do battle and both are badly damaged. A stalemate exists as they don’t want to kill Teyla who is on the cruiser so they draw the darts away with a 302 attack and a cloaked jumper enters the hangar bay of the wraith ship. The team find Teyla, Rodney stays behind and delivers the baby while John and Ronon blow up the power generator for the hyperdrive and they all escape using a wraith dart, the cruiser is then destroyed and they return to Atlantis where Sam is ordered to return to Earth where she is relieved of her command.

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Search And Rescue has a lot of work to do since the season four cliffhanger left pretty much everyone in peril of death, infact more people should have died after all the complex was destroyed and the amount of rubble falling on the teams should not have left any survivors but it did and alas it was no real surprise. That said the practical set for the debris field was excellent, Captain Vega was seriously kick ass and the CGI used to bring Michael into play was absolutely beautiful. All ready there is enough good stuff in the first part of the episode to forgive them the obvious flaws in the story and thankfully the trend continues as the Daedalus and the Cruiser go head to head and finally the can shoot straight and a tried and trusted method of sneaking on a Wraith ship is employed. Having Rodney deliver the baby was a stroke of genius and again made up for the destruction of the hyperdrive power generators which should really have taken the ship with it but there were some comedic and dramatic moments leading up to their escape. The humour continues with John in the infirmary and finally the sting in the tail as Sam and the audience get the ice water thrown over them as she is replaced by Mr Woolsey!

Search And Rescue is an excellent opener for the fifth and final season of Stargate Atlantis with everything we love about the show there is spades and yet setting ever higher standards in CGI and Set design as well as cinematography and storytelling. We can only look forward to more of the same as the season goes on.

This weeks promo is for Tuning Into Scifi TV and next week we are going to be taking a look at the second episode of the season “The Seed” and Brad will be joining us for that. Thank you to Miles for the feedback from the other week and we also have our Stargate SG1 Top Ten Favourite episode poll ongoing, we hope you take part because there could be a prize at the end of it and not forgetting we all want to know what the fans of SG1 consider the best episodes. If you want to get in touch with us then there many ways, comments on the website or email work great or you can leave comments over on Facebook, Twitter or Google +, we hope you do:)

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Stargate Atlantis Season 4 Wrap Up Show

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Oct 312015
 

After we left Stargate SG1 behind it seems like only yesterday we wrapped up the third season of Atlantis but five months just flew by so here we are:)

Once again we were joined by Brad for this Stargate Atlantis Season 4 Wrap Up Show but alas scheduling and real life got in the way and Alan had to be elsewhere so just this time it’s Brad and Mike talking Atlantis and yet the raw recording was still well over three hours:) Thanks to everyone that voted in the poll, not as many as last time which surprised me given the high regard this season is held in but enough to make the poll valid and with no real surprises. We also want to thank everyone that joined us for an episode this season, gold stars to Brad, Jeff, Thomas, Andrew, Andres, Phil and Ian, look out for some of them on the fifth season episodes.

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Next week we are back to the usual format and kicking off the fifth season with the episode Search and Rescue, hope you can join us for that.

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  1. Be All My Sins Remember’d
  2. Doppelganger  &  Tabula Rasa

Total Votes 40

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Gatecast 290 SGA The Last Man

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Oct 242015
 

avatar2 John returns to Atlantis but not quite the one he intended, the sky is blood red casting ominous shadows across the city and as he walks to a balcony he sees the infinite desert shimmering under a sun very different to the one he left behind earlier that day. John calls across the cities communications channels and someone that sounds very much like Rodney replies that it worked he gets directions to the hologram room and is met be a much older Rodney who drops the bombshell that John has travelled 48,000 years into the future and may be the last human in this galaxy and maybe the universe. Rodney goes onto explain the events which occurred after John went missing including the loss of Teyla, the widespread use of the Hoffan drug and the galaxy spanning assault on the Wraith by Michael’s hybrids. Atlantis was eventually abandoned but not before Ronon died in battle and Sam with the command of her own Starship losing her command and life when taking out three hives. Jennifer passed thanks to the constant exposure to the Hoffan drug which spurred McKay to really explore the possibility of reaching across time to aid John in the hopes that information could be provided which would alter the events and save millions of lives.

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The Last Man is an epic season finale which deals with the manipulation of a timeline to change events which lead to what amounted to incredibly negative consequences. Rodney for all his posturing made it pretty clear the need to give Jennifer a chance of life was his driving force although you can’t really blame him for not devoting his life to a very far fetched attempt to rescue John. The episode contained some very beautiful visual effects and yet didn’t scrimp on character pieces, this is an episode that strikes a perfect balance in a series nay franchise that always set a standard.

A big thank you to Thomas for joining us for this fourth season finale and the podcast promo for a show on my ipod playlist is The Babylon Project, they are on a hiatus at the moment but will return. Next week it’s the season wrap up show along with the results for the poll, we hope you join us for that:)

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Gatecast 288 SGA The Kindred Part 1

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Oct 102015
 

avatar Teyla is having dreams of the father of her child bidding her to come and rescue him and the rest of the Athosians who went missing months before, in the dream he gives her a necklace which he bought for her on an off world market, it’s a clue to their location. Teyla along with the team visit the world and discover a stall selling jewellry and trinkets and he reveals that a trader has been bringing him good quality goods for a few weeks and he is due back soon. Meanwhile Dr Keller is investigating a disease which is spreading quickly across a number of worlds, it seems a mystery but eventually they discover it’s a variant of the Hoffan drug and they take a trip to that world in search of some clues but there was nothing to be found after the Wraith wiped the population out yet it seems someone has been there since. Teyla along with Major Lorne and his team return to the trading world and capture the rogue trader, he agrees to take them to the burial site where he has been acquiring these “goods” but on arrival a Wraith dart arrives and scoops up Teyla, it seems it was a trap to capture her all along. Once again Todd uses the Wraith tracker to arrange a meeting with John and after some friendly accusations a mutually beneficial agreement is made, Todd needs to understand the Hoffan drug and develop a cure for his hive and the team need his resources to find Teyla. It pays off when Todd informs that they chatter between Wraith worshippers indicates a member of Atlantis is being held prisoner, the location is given and the team along with the Daedalus pay it a visit. In the complex a big fire fight takes place and in orbit a Wraith cruiser jumps in, it’s Michael’s ship and a captured bad guys indicates Michael is returning with his latest prize, John tells the Daedalus to capture the cruiser but it escapes but if Teyla was onboard why did the guards fight so hard to defend this prison? The break into the final cell and well a surprise is waiting for them, it was no lie that Michael was indeed holding a member of Atlantis prisoner just not the one they expected…

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The Kindred is a two part story filmed a little earlier in the production cycle to allow Rachel to be fully involved before taking time off from the show to have her child, she is very pregnant and a lot of credit has to be given for the commitment she showed in what was an intensive episode for her character. The story itself makes full use of all the little things we know about the Wraith and Michael in particular so nothing feels out of place except perhaps for how resilient Michael is, the guy is a born survivor and no matter how hard you squish him he always springs back. I liked how Carter was very reluctant to believe Teyla and her dreams not having direct experience of the events that shaped Teyla into who she is now but surprised how on the fence her other friends were but she got what she wanted alas so did Michael. As for the surprise ending of the episode well the fact that kept that underwraps really paid off, it was a serious WTF moment and in the second part of the story it’s all going to get explained in a way that is most satisfying.

The Kindred Part 1 sets the scene as well as being a very good piece of Stargate storytelling and it’s good to seeing Rachel really getting to be center stage, more of the same next week in the second part so a lot to look forward too. This weeks promo is for the Saturday B Movie Reel and next week are going to watch The Kindred Part 2 and Brad will be joining me for that, we hope you can join us as well and let us know what you think of the episode and our show.

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Gatecast 285 SGA Outcast

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Sep 192015
 

avatar John receives some bad news and returns to Earth for his father’s funeral, Ronon accompanies him. At the funeral/wake they are approached by a young woman named Ava Dixon who reveals that she and her boss Dr. Richard Poole have been working with illicit materials and knowledge to produce a human form replicator which has now got loose and has a very definite military component. They arrest Poole and threaten him with the arrest and prosecution of Ava and he agrees to help, they track the replicator to a industrial facility where things don’t quite go according to plan when Poole pulls a fast one and reveals to the replicator how they tracked him, he dies for his troubles and again the replicator escapes. John talks to his ex-wife who is now working for homeland security, he asks for information on the secret project which is behind the replicators creation and along with insights gleaned from pouring over records they figure out the replicator has gone after a source of Neutronium. However in the records they also discover that Ava Dixon died a year before, the Ava they now know is also a replicator but programmed more inline with a “normal” human being, she escapes which works out ok in the end. The trap is set for the replicator and well the humans even Ronon get slapped silly but Ava turns up and the two artificial beings got hand to hand dishing out some brutal punishment, John gets an opening and jabs a device into the replicator, he is immediately beamed into low earth orbit and reenters the atmosphere burning up in the process. Ava having proven herself still can not be fully trusted so maybe or maybe not with her knowledge they incorporate her core programme into the Ancient artificial world as seen on the starship Aurora and her body is destroyed. John builds bridges with his brother and Dr Lee can go back to sunning himself on the beach.

Outcast (9)

Outcast gives us quite a bit of back story for John, it seems he comes from money and had issues with the path that was being laid out for him by his father, he rebelled by joining the military whereas his brother seems to have embraced the corporate calling and looks down on John as kind of the black sheep. We also meet John’s former wife  Nancy played by Kari Wuhrer and well it looks like it wasn’t a bad break up and we learn his commitment to his career may have played a significant part in their breakup. I’m not quite sure if we really needed another replicator episode but this was had merit because of all the character back story and of course we got some excellent stunt work and set pieces as well as a couple of new shots of a 304 in orbit.

Many thanks for the support via twitter, facebook and google+ and especially to Mack who posted some comments on recent episodes. This weeks promo is for The Rusted Robot an always entertaining look at geeky and nerdy pursuits with a sprinkling of all things robot. Next week we are going to be taking a good look at Trio and this episode was recorded many moons ago and it was the first Phil (who I used to work with) joined me on the podcast, hope you join us for that and please feel free to let us know what you think and a review/rating over on itunes or stitcher would be most welcome:)

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Gatecast 284 SGA Harmony

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Sep 122015
 

avatar2 John and Rodney visit one of the trading partners of Atlantis, the world is ruled by a monarchy and for the first time they meet the youngest sister (of three) who is due to take the crown on completion of a quest passed down from generation to generation. They agree to aid Harmony the young princess on her journey into the forest and to seek out the Ruins of Larris whose gifts will then be bestowed upon her granting her the right to rule her people, what they don’t know is that behind the scenes forces are moving to make sure their quest fails. It soon becomes apparent that Harmony is very full of herself and has took an instant shine to John but not unexpectedly becomes instant enemies with Rodney who reciprocates in kind which makes the journey interesting to say the least. While deep in the woods the party hear a strange noise, a roaring in the distance and Harmony informs them that that is the “beast” which protects the royal line and is deadly to all enemies and soon after John vanishes and Genii soldiers surround Harmony and Rodney. Rodney actually considers giving them Harmony in exchange for his life but before he can act on such a thought John opens up on the Genii and kills them. It turns out the Genii used to trade with Harmony’s people before being barred from the planet, it seems that they are actively trying to reverse that situation with a little help from with the castle and more specifically from Mardola the sister of Harmony.

Harmony (7)
The party continues and find the ruins, they stun two Genii who were in the vicinity and Rodney soon realises that this is a site of Ancient technology and that Harmony and her bloodline has the gene which activates the technology but alas the Genii have kinda broken the device. As the rest of the Genii close in again thanks to information provided by Mardola and Johns’s poor ad-libbing Rodney rushes to fix the device which he is now sure is a weapons system using miniature drone technology. The Genii arrive and a firefight breaks out, Rodney saves Harmony and pulls her to safety and while he then provides cover fire John grabs the royal pendant from Harmony’s throat and rushed to the device, it activates and dozens of small drones appear and slaughter the Genii. Harmony is delighted and impressed by Rodney her new “crush” and now John is in the doghouse but not to worry since Harmony can now activate the device and has become Queen and the trading agreements are intact.
Harmony (40)

Harmony is a fun episode which makes you wonder how dark the fourth season is going to get in the final three episodes but for now we can enjoy the banter between John and Rodney and the added firecracker that is Harmony herself. The episode was written for Jodelle and you can see how great she is when given some good writing and over the years she has more than proven herself in numerous productions including her latest role on Dark Matter which finished its first season a few weeks ago. Crystal and Alexis look spectacular in the period costumes and credit to the set designers for what is a simple but striking throne room and yeah we can’t forget the painting of the courageous Rodney:)

Many thanks to Thomas who joined for this episode and I think our discussion benefitted from a third voice in the mix, these funnier episodes really come into their own when you watch with friends. This weeks promo is for  the Treks In Scifi podcast which is one of the longest running shows I’ve listened to and next week we take a look at the Atlantis episode Outcasts, we hope you join us and don’t forget to let us know what you think.

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Gatecast 283 SGA Quarantine

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Sep 052015
 

avatar2 A biohazard warning is triggered in the city which seals every room to counter the contagion leaving a number of people trapped together and things continue to go spectacularly wrong as the day progresses leaving Radek to save the day. Yeah Quarantine doesn’t sound overly impressive but this episode is all about the characters and relationships built amongst the people of Atlantis. We do get some physical exploits from John and as mentioned Radek but these are just the icing on the cake of what turns out to be a very strong episode probably designed to save some money using the standard sets and main cast with one of two guest actors.

Quarantine (14)
Short and sweet this week as I’m pretty much rushed for time but this was one episode that deserved some extra time devoted to it, it is perhaps one of the more understated episodes of the series especially coming towards the end of the fourth season when we’ve got a good idea of how the main characters think and would react to various situations. While we know what’s on the way it was a shame to see the ties being cut between Rodney and Katie, they were a good couple although I suspect she was enabling him more than allowing him to grow, good for him in some ways but also has it’s downside if he is to become more than he is at the moment.

Thanks to everyone for listening to the podcast and feel free to get in touch and let us know what you think.

This weeks podcast promo is for Generations Geek a father/daughter show looking at tv, book and movies that are of interest to you and me and next week we are going to be joined by Thomas for the episode Harmony, we had a good time watching that.

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Gatecast 281 SGA Be All My Sins Remember’d

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Aug 222015
 

avatarThere is a tragic loss when an Atlantis team and the remaining population of a world are wiped out by an Asuran warship but hope is at hand as the Apollo and the Daedalus arrive in Pegasus newly equipped with the Asgard beam weapons in the hopes that combined with the intelligence provided from the tracking module taken from the Asuran breakaway group they can fight back. The plan is to inflict serious damage on the Asuran ships currently wiping out the human populations of planets within the galaxy and ultimately drive the Asurans back to their homeworld and once again to reach a stalemate. Rodney looks to pimp his own plan for an enhanced virus to nullify the Asurans but he is getting nowhere and so the secondary plan of brute force is given the green light and once the battle is joined the human ships rack up an impressive number of kills. Faced with defeat in large scale operations the Asurans regroup in their home system which forces the humans ships to knowingly enter into a killing zone but Rodney has finally had a breakthrough. He has created his own crippled replicator and once embedded into the replicator city it can trigger a subroutine in its coding which forces the bonds between the nanite building blocks to shrink drawing them ever closer together and to lose their ability to act, eventually they will be a mindless blob of material which can then be wiped out by a synchronised explosion of ZPM modules. To aid in this plan Todd offers support from the Wraith and Larrin brings some of her fleet into the battle, together they engage the Asuran fleet in their own system with the intent to buy time for FRAN (Rodney’s pet replicator) to do her thing. It’s all going to plan but then the power grid fails making the ZPM option moot, Sam correctly surmises that the planet being rich in neutronium (Material replicators use to build themselves) and being highly unstable it could also act as a catalyst and as the replicator blob compresses and sinks ever further into the planet a chain reaction is triggered and with moments to spare the fleet jump out as the planet is destroyed.

Sins (46)

All My Sins Remember’d was a very expensive piece of television at least in terms of the budget for the Stargate live action shows and you can see where the money was spent, credit though to the producers as while they spent a lot on visual effects they also secured the return of some of the recurring actors who only bring status to Stargate. You can not really beat Mitch or Michael in command of a F304 when going into battle this time alongside seven Hives and ships from the Traveller fleet. The pretty pictures aside we got a kick ass story following on from the mid-season finale “This Mortal Coil” and it also wrapped up the Asuran arc within the Atlantis storyline, some fans of the series would not be disappointed to see them go if I was being honest.

Ultimately this episode and it’s first part of you paired them directly together are a highlight of the season, well written with lots of action, some humour and good character pieces sprinkled in within the booms which added greatly to the overall feel good factor of the episode, a credit to everyone involved.

Many thanks to first time guest Andres who joined us on fairly short notice, it was a pleasure to have yet another new voice and nationality on the show. This weeks promo is for Tuning Into SciFi TV and next week we are going to watching episode twelve of this fourth season “Spoils of War” in which the Wraith have a surprise or two for Atlantis, Todd the scamp. We hope you can join us for that and as always we’d like to know what you think about Stargate and our show and of course a rating or review on itunes or Stitcher would be most welcome.

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