SGU "Human" [season 1 episode 14]

[NecronLord]

This week's poll features an unusual source.

[Temujin]

Typing my thoughts as episode progresses:

• Finally some insight into the mysterious Dr. Rush. Disappointing that this wasn't the real Daniel Jackson, just a figment of Rush's imagination.
  
  Aw, Cute. Lil Chloe wants to be friends with Eli again.
  
  Loving Eli again: "Please don't kill me!"
  
  Shit, I was just about to say, "Too bad we won't see an alien spider". Oops, "A sizable spider"! So that's where the effects budget went for this episode.
  
  Lt. Nipples James to the rescue. I'm really liking her more and more. I hope they keep up the character development. Granted there wasn't much in this episode, but the more screen time she gets the better.
  
  When in doubt, use C4; its the duct tape of the Star Gate Universe. Of course this is one of the few times it didn't work.
  
  Stranded, well this was bound to happen sooner or later. Of course this means we'll probably see them finally get some significant control over Destiny next week (not to mention see the alien equivalent of a fucking T Rex).

I'm giving it a 4. It gave up some background on Rush, and gave little Ms. Worthless something to actually do for a change.

This week's poll features an unusual source.

I would say 3 is from SGA (4 possibly as well); where are the other ones from?

[Slybrarian]

I thought it was pretty good, if a bit slow at times. Lt. James continues to be awesome and the exchange between Scott and Young about the spider was funny. The background on Rush helped explain why he's sick a dick sometimes, although I'm not sure the timeline works out quite right. The way I understood it, he was away a lot at the SGC while his wife was dying. If that's the case, why was she still dying? You'd think that the SGC would at least offer advanced medical treatment to staff and their immediate family, just to help maintain security. "We'll use a healing device/tretonin/etc to save your wife" seems like a pretty good way to keep mouths shut.

The quotes:
1 is Senator Kinsey as he tries to flee the SGC before Anubis attacks
2 is regarding the Asurans
3 is about the Wraith
5 is about Ra finding Earth

And 4 is the Doctor, I believe, out of place and off-course as usual.

[A-Wing_Slash]

This week's poll features an unusual source.

I would say 3 is from SGA (4 possibly as well); where are the other ones from?

1 is from Kinsey, Lost City part 2. DOn't know about the others.

[CaptJodan]

Solid 3 this week. There were several instances where this episode was saved from a 2. Generally, the slow pace of the episode dragged the episode down. I don't mind watching them search the ship and find new things, or talk about repairing shit, or even finding ways to grow food.

I have less tolerance for "dream" episodes, or various walks through people's heads. It did give some insight into Rush, but I thought we could have done it far quicker. Rush didn't really do anything but mull over the problem all episode, with a little bit of his wife thrown in. I think they also would have done better to use Daniel in an actual stone-based episode instead of "dream sequence".

Young seemed a bit stupid to let his favorite computer geek go on a mission to a planet not fully checked out and cleared. Eli is Young's backup to Rush, who at the time was in the chair. Also sending someone with that team who is basically useless on top of that seemed like a stupid move on his part.

Seeing Chloe trying to do something this week was a positive. She's clearly not qualified for what she's doing, and her attempts to pretend to be knowledgeable were kind of lame, but she was trying, which is an improvement over what it's been so far.

Seeing Lt James again, once again seemingly acting competent, was nice. I think I'm starting to agree that she's not a bad addition, and should continue to play a role. Also, if I'm not mistaken, this is the first time we see Riley back from his injuries.

Edit: 5 is from the original movie.

[adam_grif]

4. Entertaining enough, got some insights into Rush, hints that we might (finally) see them getting control of the ship. It doesn't get a 5 because they dared sully the otherwise flawless track-record of C4 in the SGverse. This is blasphemy!

[Crazedwraith]

Isn't 2 from BSG?

5)Daniel Jackson, the movie.
4) O'Neill SG-1
3)An Atlantis quote. Morgan's holographic history program.
2)A Cylon (Boomer? Athena?) BSG
1) Not sure, Either Lt Colonel Samuels or Kinsey from SG-1 .

[Chris OFarrell]

Nope, 2 is from Serpants Lair when Bre'tac tells him 'human, put this on!' when they are in the Death Glider about to launch.

5 - He came to a world, rich with life, where he encountered a primitive race—humans. (Stargate Movie) Daniel
4 - Can you please stop calling me "human?" (Serpants Lair, SG1) O'Neill
3 - The enemy fed upon defenceless human worlds like a great scourge until finally only Atlantis remained. (Rising, SGA) Lantian Hologram/Council Member
2 - They see humans as the favoured siblings who receive all the parents’ love (SGA, Progeny) Weir
1 - I'm a pragmatist, Doctor. Besides, someone has to ensure the survival of the human race and the American way of life. (SG1, Lost City II) Kinsely

[Crazedwraith]

I meant the quote for the score of 2. not the second quote. I was wrong anyway it seems. I thought I might be at the time. Bleh, Asurans, Cylons. Same difference.

[Siege]

A four from me. The pacing was a bit slow but that makes sense considering it's mainly about Rush banging his head against a wall whilst his wife slips away form him. The bit where Rush says goodbye to his wife really shows what a great actor Robert Carlyle is, and boosts the episode from a solid three-plus to a four.

[NecronLord]

Humm. I liked the giant spider. Clearly these guys should do effects on The Hobbit.

Nope, 2 is from Serpants Lair when Bre'tac tells him 'human, put this on!' when they are in the Death Glider about to launch.

5 - He came to a world, rich with life, where he encountered a primitive race—humans. (Stargate Movie) Daniel
4 - Can you please stop calling me "human?" (Serpants Lair, SG1) O'Neill
3 - The enemy fed upon defenceless human worlds like a great scourge until finally only Atlantis remained. (Rising, SGA) Lantian Hologram/Council Member
2 - They see humans as the favoured siblings who receive all the parents’ love (SGA, Progeny) Weir
1 - I'm a pragmatist, Doctor. Besides, someone has to ensure the survival of the human race and the American way of life. (SG1, Lost City II) Kinsely

You win a cookie. Unusual because I don't think I've done one from the movie before. The Council Member's given the name Melia in Before I Sleep, though I don't know if that's said on screen.

[JME2]

I liked this episode. Not a knockout, but a good one.

It was good to see Michael Shanks again, even if it wasn't the real Daniel Jackson; Daniel was and will always be my favorite character in the franchise. I liked Daniel acknowledging Sha're's death and the visual throwback to SG1's "Reckoning", when Rush is seeing the Ancient data. The flashback's are also interesting because of another revelation: The SGC learned of the existence of the Icarus planet via a source within the Lucian Alliance. Methinks their source turned double agent and led Nevan or whoever leading the Alliance know about the SGC's pet project. We'll know for sure by the end of the season.

4/5

[Covenant]

I've given this show several 1's and 2's so far and have been a vocal critic of the writing, the pacing, and the unusual themes they've brought into it. Not surprisingly I gave this one a 5 because it's had, I've felt, probably the strongest visual and audio themes so far (I loved the mournful, intellectual violining and the numbers on everything) as well as an elegant plot turn (I thought it was a flashback to Rush being an assward, then we see he's actually pulling a T'lc from the episode Avatar) with an over-arching excellent bout of very subdued writing and very honest acting from the cast.

Chloe and Eli are useless and useful at the same time, Eli's "I'm a wuss and useless" plot arc given a little bit more roundness by his freakout in the tunnel and his notable lack of rock-hauling, which plays with Rush's feelings of powerlessness at the sight of his wife's death (in his past) and his inability to solve the problem of the code in the present. You see how Rush is driven to a monomaniacal degree and Eli has brains and intuitive luck on his side, and how even that one Salieri moment to Rush was crushing.

I liked the door motif, it's been done before but it was done real nice and calmly here. The moment of faith in the Church was, I felt, somber and personal in a way none of them have really felt so far. James was good, and I like seeing her in command roles, Young was his same firm self but seemed less vindictive, Scott didn't act poorly at all and I like the small window into Greer.

All in all, the slow pacing didn't bother me, and from beginning to end I enjoyed it. If they continue to make episodes like this, with an introspective quiet tension to them, I'll definitely be happy in the future. This sets the bar for future SGU episodes the same way 33 did for nBSG. It's too bad this has come so 'late' in the show's production, for me at least, but it really felt like an entirely separate show from some of the forced-tension fake-drama episodes we'd seen before.

[Covenant]

I actually went and looked it up and I can't find who wrote this one--it was done by a Freelancer and they never mention the name of the writer from what I can see. I'm not surprised, it seemed markedly different in tone from all the rest of them so far and it was just superb. Hopefully next week's not back to Ship of Wangst.

[PREDATOR490]

4

Felt a little slow but a good amount of the entire series has felt that way so nothing really new there.

Typical comedy from Eli and I thought the overall cast managed a decent job of carrying themselves. Not too happy with Michael Shanks being in this one, ok fine its Jackson but its just a hollow shell of Rush's perception of him. The dream sequence stuff went on for too long but I personnally hate these kind of stories where its all an illusion where its going to have little bearing on reality. The look into Rush's lifestory was interesting but I'm more interested in seeing the present over the past.

Naturally, Eli and co. are going to get back so I presume they are either going to figure out how to redial the gate or bring Destiny around to pick them up. I'm guessing the former as getting control of Destiny at this point seems unlikely to me. If they gained flight control, I would expect them to drive back to the planet with the obelisk and study it / milk the place dry of food etc.
Their goal is to get home, not to go exploring the universe with problem-of-the-week. Naturally, not going to happen so either they will be able to dial gates more reasonably or stall the Destiny timer. At least I HOPE they intend to get rid of that insanely stupid countdown mechanic because it grew exceedingly old in SG-1 and was dropped.

[Old Plympto]

I actually went and looked it up and I can't find who wrote this one--it was done by a Freelancer and they never mention the name of the writer from what I can see. I'm not surprised, it seemed markedly different in tone from all the rest of them so far and it was just superb. Hopefully next week's not back to Ship of Wangst.

Looks like the writer's Jeff Vlaming, whose name I remembered from the X-Files and currently one of the producers of Fringe. Picking out stories by writers from a different pool makes a whole lot of difference, it seems.

[JME2]

At least I HOPE they intend to get rid of that insanely stupid countdown mechanic because it grew exceedingly old in SG-1 and was dropped.

I suspect that it will be dropped it they can gain control of the ship's navigational systems.

I forgot to add, I liked that the ATA gene, or at least Ancient genetics, turned out to be the key to the lockout codes all along.