Quarantine
Jan. 18th, 2008 08:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
annundrielSo my last post? Yeah, that can basically be ignored now. Short version being: Worked for me.
SGA - "Quarantine"
Well. That...actually worked. I don't hate anyone! Amazing! I'm also a little jittery right now, what with the actually getting into the ep and the package of Sour Patch Kids I just ate, so we'll see if I can make about the same amount of sense I usually do. It's much harder for me to remember things when I can't go back and rewatch bits.
- Sometime ago while I was bored at the library I thought, "Hey, Zelenka and Carter should hook up and drive McKay crazy." And now Zelenka and Carter got stuck in a transporter together. Hee. I like their dynamic because they're both intelligent and they recognize that without being antagonistic toward each other. I don't want to make comparisons with McKay, but it's kind of hard. For example, here was that moment after the controls blew and the tablet got fried where Zelenka was apologizing like he expected Carter to blame him and she assured him she wasn't going to. Were it McKay, he probably would have ranted and blamed for a bit and then forgiven him and they'd have moved on. It's just a different type of relationship and it's the type of working relationship Zelenka's gotten used to.
And, anyway, I just think Zelenka and Carter are a bit adorable together. Her with her little looks and him taking a moment to stare at her breasts. Ha! Had it been McKay or Sheppard (not that I'm saying Sheppard would really check out his commanding officer), I probably would have rolled my eyes and said, "Not again!" But Zelenka never does that, so mostly it just made me laugh.
- I've been waiting for something to happen with Ronon and Keller since they hinted at the almost kiss on one of their SciFi Q&A sessions. They're cute.
Bit of an aside, I think it's interesting that I just naturally think of them as Ronon/Keller when I think pairing. I know that's because he's always referred to by his first name and she's always referred to by her last, but I still find it interesting as usually I think we tend to label men by their last names and women by their first. (And now labeling is making me think of Native Speaker and that's way too much thinking for now.)
- John showed Ronon Jaws. Heh.
- John and Teyla stuck together and actually kind of talking. It'll be interesting to see what changes after the baby is born with Teyla's team situation. After last week I think the pregnancy has become more of a reality for her.
I loved John being worried that she was going to go into labor because that's what happens in all the movies. And then their shared moment when the baby was kicking. Except then I was worried that Teyla is carrying DEMON SPAWN, but I'm sure that's just me being weird. I'm getting weird visions of The Omen SGA style.
- John knew Rodney's password because Rodney thought he wouldn't remember it. And it had 42 in it. I died. I mean, John even knows what it means. More proof that they're both big geeks. And poor Teyla was so confused.
- John, Rodney, and the ring. That's the scene that stupid Yahoo had to have up and I watched and it just worried the hell out of me. Because Rodney should not be marrying anybody. Or at least he shouldn't be marrying Katie. But without my reaction of "OMG NO," I love John in that scene. From his "second base" comment when Rodney wants to take the next step to his "no, no, none of that" when Rodney thinks he might have to drown his sorrow, his reaction just spoke all sorts of interesting volumes.
On the slash side and viewing the rest of the season as John being head over heels in love with Rodney, there's the horror that Rodney's going to become completely unavailable to him.
On the non-slash side, John's lost Carson and Elizabeth, almost lost Ronon to his Satedan buddies, found out Teyla's been lying to him, and almost lost Rodney several times. The people he considers family just keep failing him, in a way. I've been talking to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
trademybike about this the last couple of days and so far this season really has been John dealing with losing people or almost losing people. So Rodney springing this on him would just be another loss. Ronon had his people (and now maybe Keller?), Teyla's got her baby's daddy (though he's missing), and Rodney would have had Katie. Leaving John with his golf clubs.
Speaking off, I was tickled by John trying to get Rodney to be late for his date by playing virtual golf with him. Heh.
- And then there's Rodney and Katie, which turned out way better than I thought it would. I mean, it made me plenty uncomfortable while it was happening because they just do not give off comfortable vibes. (And I have to wonder who made that decision and why.) But in the end, it worked out.
After Katie found the ring, Mom pointed out that she could always say no. I hadn't really thought about it before, but of course she could refuse. Then when Rodney said he wasn't going to bother with proposing since they were all going to die anyway and Katie's face kind of fell, I felt that at that point she'd probably say no.
I could be wrong, but this end felt kind of final to me. Like the mention of feelings and rain checks were just them going through the motions and maybe Rodney didn't realize it, but Katie did. Especially after her goodbye.
- I was so very happy that Rodney was finally his snappy self around Katie once the city locked down.
- For once I welcomed the lack of Rodney. Well, not lack really, but there was less of him than I expected. Which is kind of a good thing, considering the bad things that could have happened had he been there more. As it was, I did spend time watching through my fingers anytime he mentioned questions or cheering up or boxes or rings. But it worked out.
Also, I thought his "illness" was interesting and a combination of nerves, hypochondria, and being completely cut off from any place he could do any good and anyone that could help.
- When Rodney said awesome, I couldn't help but wonder if Hewlett hated that.
- The phallic cactus and Katie's talk of it getting bigger and bigger with some TLC was both oh so bad and really funny. Rodney's reaction was great.
- Zelenka's pigeons! And Carter knowing about homing pigeons. I know I said it already, but I like them.
- John asking Lorne for C4 and his reaction when Lorne only had a little. What, is Lorne supposed to be wandering Atlantis with twenty pounds of C4 strapped to him?
- John scaling the walls and being all "Batman did it all the time."
- I liked Chuck and the other technician lady helping out.
- Zelenka saved the day! Carter never doubted him. Rodney said it was a team effort.
- ETA: I thought about this while it was happening and then it completely slipped my mind, but I thought it was kind of interesting how they paralleled Rodney/Katie with Ronon/Keller. Just as Ronon/Keller was getting started, Rodney/Katie was ending.
And it really was a team effort. Everyone did their jobs and worked together, even if John did cause the self-destruct to go off. It was nice seeing them do things seamlessly and no one was even to blame for the problem.
So, yeah. Turns out I enjoyed it. Kind of a lot. Could be the relief talking though.
SGA - "Quarantine"
Well. That...actually worked. I don't hate anyone! Amazing! I'm also a little jittery right now, what with the actually getting into the ep and the package of Sour Patch Kids I just ate, so we'll see if I can make about the same amount of sense I usually do. It's much harder for me to remember things when I can't go back and rewatch bits.
- Sometime ago while I was bored at the library I thought, "Hey, Zelenka and Carter should hook up and drive McKay crazy." And now Zelenka and Carter got stuck in a transporter together. Hee. I like their dynamic because they're both intelligent and they recognize that without being antagonistic toward each other. I don't want to make comparisons with McKay, but it's kind of hard. For example, here was that moment after the controls blew and the tablet got fried where Zelenka was apologizing like he expected Carter to blame him and she assured him she wasn't going to. Were it McKay, he probably would have ranted and blamed for a bit and then forgiven him and they'd have moved on. It's just a different type of relationship and it's the type of working relationship Zelenka's gotten used to.
And, anyway, I just think Zelenka and Carter are a bit adorable together. Her with her little looks and him taking a moment to stare at her breasts. Ha! Had it been McKay or Sheppard (not that I'm saying Sheppard would really check out his commanding officer), I probably would have rolled my eyes and said, "Not again!" But Zelenka never does that, so mostly it just made me laugh.
- I've been waiting for something to happen with Ronon and Keller since they hinted at the almost kiss on one of their SciFi Q&A sessions. They're cute.
Bit of an aside, I think it's interesting that I just naturally think of them as Ronon/Keller when I think pairing. I know that's because he's always referred to by his first name and she's always referred to by her last, but I still find it interesting as usually I think we tend to label men by their last names and women by their first. (And now labeling is making me think of Native Speaker and that's way too much thinking for now.)
- John showed Ronon Jaws. Heh.
- John and Teyla stuck together and actually kind of talking. It'll be interesting to see what changes after the baby is born with Teyla's team situation. After last week I think the pregnancy has become more of a reality for her.
I loved John being worried that she was going to go into labor because that's what happens in all the movies. And then their shared moment when the baby was kicking. Except then I was worried that Teyla is carrying DEMON SPAWN, but I'm sure that's just me being weird. I'm getting weird visions of The Omen SGA style.
- John knew Rodney's password because Rodney thought he wouldn't remember it. And it had 42 in it. I died. I mean, John even knows what it means. More proof that they're both big geeks. And poor Teyla was so confused.
- John, Rodney, and the ring. That's the scene that stupid Yahoo had to have up and I watched and it just worried the hell out of me. Because Rodney should not be marrying anybody. Or at least he shouldn't be marrying Katie. But without my reaction of "OMG NO," I love John in that scene. From his "second base" comment when Rodney wants to take the next step to his "no, no, none of that" when Rodney thinks he might have to drown his sorrow, his reaction just spoke all sorts of interesting volumes.
On the slash side and viewing the rest of the season as John being head over heels in love with Rodney, there's the horror that Rodney's going to become completely unavailable to him.
On the non-slash side, John's lost Carson and Elizabeth, almost lost Ronon to his Satedan buddies, found out Teyla's been lying to him, and almost lost Rodney several times. The people he considers family just keep failing him, in a way. I've been talking to
trademybike about this the last couple of days and so far this season really has been John dealing with losing people or almost losing people. So Rodney springing this on him would just be another loss. Ronon had his people (and now maybe Keller?), Teyla's got her baby's daddy (though he's missing), and Rodney would have had Katie. Leaving John with his golf clubs.Speaking off, I was tickled by John trying to get Rodney to be late for his date by playing virtual golf with him. Heh.
- And then there's Rodney and Katie, which turned out way better than I thought it would. I mean, it made me plenty uncomfortable while it was happening because they just do not give off comfortable vibes. (And I have to wonder who made that decision and why.) But in the end, it worked out.
After Katie found the ring, Mom pointed out that she could always say no. I hadn't really thought about it before, but of course she could refuse. Then when Rodney said he wasn't going to bother with proposing since they were all going to die anyway and Katie's face kind of fell, I felt that at that point she'd probably say no.
I could be wrong, but this end felt kind of final to me. Like the mention of feelings and rain checks were just them going through the motions and maybe Rodney didn't realize it, but Katie did. Especially after her goodbye.
- I was so very happy that Rodney was finally his snappy self around Katie once the city locked down.
- For once I welcomed the lack of Rodney. Well, not lack really, but there was less of him than I expected. Which is kind of a good thing, considering the bad things that could have happened had he been there more. As it was, I did spend time watching through my fingers anytime he mentioned questions or cheering up or boxes or rings. But it worked out.
Also, I thought his "illness" was interesting and a combination of nerves, hypochondria, and being completely cut off from any place he could do any good and anyone that could help.
- When Rodney said awesome, I couldn't help but wonder if Hewlett hated that.
- The phallic cactus and Katie's talk of it getting bigger and bigger with some TLC was both oh so bad and really funny. Rodney's reaction was great.
- Zelenka's pigeons! And Carter knowing about homing pigeons. I know I said it already, but I like them.
- John asking Lorne for C4 and his reaction when Lorne only had a little. What, is Lorne supposed to be wandering Atlantis with twenty pounds of C4 strapped to him?
- John scaling the walls and being all "Batman did it all the time."
- I liked Chuck and the other technician lady helping out.
- Zelenka saved the day! Carter never doubted him. Rodney said it was a team effort.
- ETA: I thought about this while it was happening and then it completely slipped my mind, but I thought it was kind of interesting how they paralleled Rodney/Katie with Ronon/Keller. Just as Ronon/Keller was getting started, Rodney/Katie was ending.
And it really was a team effort. Everyone did their jobs and worked together, even if John did cause the self-destruct to go off. It was nice seeing them do things seamlessly and no one was even to blame for the problem.
So, yeah. Turns out I enjoyed it. Kind of a lot. Could be the relief talking though.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-19 05:52 pm (UTC)I like that Katie sort of grew a backbone. Not that she didn't have one before, but it was kind of unnerving that she was the girl that was just sort of "Oh okay" about everything. I guess this ties back to the man vs. woman writers and I think a woman writer might make Katie a little more strong. I dunno. But yeah, there was some definite finality with that last scene and I'm wondering what type of mention of the situation will play out in future episodes, especially if "Katie isn't going to last the rest of the season." I feel like she really became someone because she realized, or maybe I realized for her and just reading into the actions too much, but she realizes that yea, she can say no, she doesn't HAVE to be with Rodney. Atlantis can be a lonely place, but that doesn't mean you have to marry the first person you date there just because it seems like the thing to do.
I'm really liking all the time John and Teyla have had together, mostly because I want both of them to realize they're both right. But in that fashion, Teyla did realize last episode how fragile her baby is, and thus, she must be fragile too because she is carrying him. But on that note, as soon as she mentioned the reason she needed to talk to him was because of her being taken off the missions, I immediately thought - is Uncle Lorne the one who's gonna be babysitting when she goes out with the team after the birth? I don't see Teyla leaving that kid's side, ever. But the moment of the baby kicking and the look on John's face once she says he's kicking... so sweet. I'm glad they've gotten back to a comfortable place.
I loved Carter and Zelenka for the same reasons you did in that they were intellectual equals. When Zelenka apologized to Carter about messing things up, I had a dumb moment of "Why is he apologizing?" then sorta smacked my forehead with a "Rodney" answer. I loved the commentary John had at the end about Zelenka and how he looked like "a hamster in one of those little..." I kept [and always have, really] squeeing over the fact that he's just so small and cute. And I couldn't help but LOL when he fell through the vent into the power room. I absolutely loved when Carter said "We could really use one of your pigeons right now" and he quickly throws in "Oh, they're not meant for eating!" and her trying to explain and him just coming up with every innocent excuse possible as to why a pigeon would be useless there. The look on Sam's face = A+.
The whole Ronon/Keller thing. So many things about it made me do stupid flails. Like when Ronon asks what she had in mind for "getting to know each other" and she just sort of looks him up and down and gets all embarrassed-12-year-old-girl on him. And I liked that of all the characters, they were the two you really saw a different side of. You learned the most about Keller, you see the sweet side of Ronon, especially talking about his late lady friend. I've heard a spoiler regarding them, so I'm wondering if that'll pan out for sure or otherwise regarding the "relationship." This episode was seriously all about looks, because John eying Ronon after he gets the words caught in his throat at seeing Keller and then him getting all "What?" and serious. Just wonderful.
Okay, I'm done babbling.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-19 08:37 pm (UTC)I think this was what I was trying to get at last night in my e-mail and just couldn't quite find it. It might not even be a man vs. woman thing, but I think that with the heavy male writing influence on the show we get a lot of female characters that are more fantasy like than real and believable. I mean, much as I love Carter, she is a little bit of a Mary Sue with her brains and her beauty and her ability to kick ass. So all the women end up being more caricatures than characters, if that makes sense.
Atlantis can be a lonely place, but that doesn't mean you have to marry the first person you date there just because it seems like the thing to do.
I like this interpretation of the scene a lot, but I'm not sure I can quite see it that way. Maybe if I watch it again...I think my only problem with it is that I still can't quite read Katie (because she's such a blank) and so I can't really figure out what she might be thinking. All I know is that when she said "goodbye," she meant it.
Teyla's kid will have so many uncles and aunts. Biggest family ever. And I can see them all totally spoiling him.
I really do love Zelenka. And I love that he's tiny. I laughed pretty hard at him falling out of the vent like Alice down the rabbit hole. And I love when he has whole chunks of dialogue in Czech.
I'm sure after that last scene in the mess John is going to find Rodney and distract him with gossip about Ronon and Keller.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-19 05:56 pm (UTC)I really hate Katie Brown. I hate how they introduced her. 'Oh Rodney has a girl stuck in his head so we must use it to the best of our abilities by making Rodney struggle to relate to women...Voila... Katie Brown!'
Out of all the characters who could have had a relationship they team Rodney up with a botanist! (Rodney who thinks any other science except astrophysics is NOT science and Rodney who can't relate to anyone.) I think it's one of the worst ideas they have come up with so far.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-19 08:24 pm (UTC)I mean, think about the big Rodney episodes. "Tao of Rodney" he thought he was either going to die or ascend and who was around his bedside? His team, Weir, and Beckett. Not a single mention of Katie. Whenever she should have been involved, at least by mention, in order for us to believe that there was something really there, she's absent. So, yeah, I don't know what they were thinking.
Like, really. What has been the point of her? Make Rodney realize he has "shortcomings"? No, not really. He's already been doing that since, oh, season one.
And, yeah, the botanist thing. That has always made me scratch my head. Out of all the types of people they could have made Rodney interested in, they give him a girlfriend who works in the "soft" sciences? All I can think is maybe they were trying to find someone who balances Rodney out by being completely opposite of him.
Except Rodney's already got a balance in John. Had he and John been stuck in a room together, John would have poked and proded him until quit giving up and got up off the floor. Also, randomly, if I were Katie I would have at least, I dunno, sat on the floor with him.
Heh. That got a little ranty. Whoops.