Post by Ahryantah on Jul 24, 2004 9:42:04 GMT -5
Review of the Stargate Atlantis episode "Hide and Seek," first airing on Sc-Fi on June 23rd, 2004.
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The second episode of a season will set the tone of a season. The second episode of a series is more important. It will determine who among the new fans will watch the third episode. It's a given that the first episode, especially one with the budget Atlantis has, is going to be good. What determines the show is the second episode, which isn't going to have the gigantic budget and the flashy special effects, because now we've settled into the old grind, the real show without the icing. And it had better be good.
"Hide and Seek" did its job fairly well, I think. I do question the wisdom of putting this particular episode on the same night as the SG-1 episode that aired - the storyline was almost identical, to the point where even some of the same visual effects were used. The only difference was the shadow cloud on Atlantis just zapped people instead of possessing them. The thing is, I liked the Atlantis version of the story better. It was set off by more than one subplot, for one thing - McKay runs into some trouble with Ancient technology, Weir doesn't trust Teyla's people, Teyla tries to keep her scared people calm during crisis. Oh, and Sheppard watches football. Even though the shadow cloud was obviously the main plot, it was good to see some other stuff going on, too.
I found myself wondering how long Teyla's people are going to be in Atlantis. The families and kids gave the show a kind of "Deep Space Nine" feel, and it was easy to imagine them all on a space ship or something. Maybe some more shots of the ocean would be good. We get the overhead shots, but the windows Atlantis was full of last week have apparently disappeared. We're not in Cheyenne Mountain here, people. We can see the outside once in a while.
Anyway, in this episode both McKay and Sheppard were great, especially McKay. The funniest part of the show is when McKay's personal shield falls off immediately after Weir suggests he stay and trap and shadow cloud. McKay's really a coward, but he redeems himself at the end. Sheppard again showed that he was more than stock military, though Ford still has yet to display much personality of his own. He recovered awfully fast after getting zapped, though. Weir spends most of the episode standing around looking worried, but especially at the beginning she was acting like a capable leader, so that's something. Teyla is still boring, and I wish she would change her clothes.
Again, good continuity from the first episode. People are still trying to settle in and exploring new areas of the city, and all has not been fixed with the naquadah generators - there's still a concern about power, which is realistic. The transporter thing was cool. I noticed it made the same sound as the Goa'uld transport rings. It's good to know some things don't change. I wonder, though, when Weir learned to speak Ancient? Did Daniel teach her?
Anyway, good dialogue, and a better take on the storyline than SG-1. The Wraith were not present, but that's okay. I think a few exploration episodes are a good idea. I give this 8 out of 10.
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The second episode of a season will set the tone of a season. The second episode of a series is more important. It will determine who among the new fans will watch the third episode. It's a given that the first episode, especially one with the budget Atlantis has, is going to be good. What determines the show is the second episode, which isn't going to have the gigantic budget and the flashy special effects, because now we've settled into the old grind, the real show without the icing. And it had better be good.
"Hide and Seek" did its job fairly well, I think. I do question the wisdom of putting this particular episode on the same night as the SG-1 episode that aired - the storyline was almost identical, to the point where even some of the same visual effects were used. The only difference was the shadow cloud on Atlantis just zapped people instead of possessing them. The thing is, I liked the Atlantis version of the story better. It was set off by more than one subplot, for one thing - McKay runs into some trouble with Ancient technology, Weir doesn't trust Teyla's people, Teyla tries to keep her scared people calm during crisis. Oh, and Sheppard watches football. Even though the shadow cloud was obviously the main plot, it was good to see some other stuff going on, too.
I found myself wondering how long Teyla's people are going to be in Atlantis. The families and kids gave the show a kind of "Deep Space Nine" feel, and it was easy to imagine them all on a space ship or something. Maybe some more shots of the ocean would be good. We get the overhead shots, but the windows Atlantis was full of last week have apparently disappeared. We're not in Cheyenne Mountain here, people. We can see the outside once in a while.
Anyway, in this episode both McKay and Sheppard were great, especially McKay. The funniest part of the show is when McKay's personal shield falls off immediately after Weir suggests he stay and trap and shadow cloud. McKay's really a coward, but he redeems himself at the end. Sheppard again showed that he was more than stock military, though Ford still has yet to display much personality of his own. He recovered awfully fast after getting zapped, though. Weir spends most of the episode standing around looking worried, but especially at the beginning she was acting like a capable leader, so that's something. Teyla is still boring, and I wish she would change her clothes.
Again, good continuity from the first episode. People are still trying to settle in and exploring new areas of the city, and all has not been fixed with the naquadah generators - there's still a concern about power, which is realistic. The transporter thing was cool. I noticed it made the same sound as the Goa'uld transport rings. It's good to know some things don't change. I wonder, though, when Weir learned to speak Ancient? Did Daniel teach her?
Anyway, good dialogue, and a better take on the storyline than SG-1. The Wraith were not present, but that's okay. I think a few exploration episodes are a good idea. I give this 8 out of 10.
