FAN REVIEWS: Tao of Rodney

[GateWorld]

ATLANTIS SEASON THREE TAO OF RODNEY EPISODE NUMBER - 314 After an Ancient device gives Rodney superhuman powers, his enhanced brilliance is checked only by his impending death -- unless he can learn how to ascend. VISIT THE EPISODE GUIDE > SPOILERS! PHOTOS! AND MORE!

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[Rachel500]

Every so often Stargate doesn’t just have one of its characters taking the lead within a story, but it focuses the entire story to the actual examination of that character – what makes them tick, how they think, their relationships with others; the Tao of Rodney is the latest in that repertoire as McKay is put in the spotlight. What results is a tight character study that is both touching and humorous, excellently performed by the cast and polished to a high quality by the overall production. Yet in amongst a great deal of sweetness is one odd sour moment.

This sour note is struck by an early cafeteria scene where McKay sat on a table across the cafeteria and overhears the rest of his team discussing his weight and eating habits. It makes it feel like McKay is an outsider to the team. It’s such an unnecessary moment as the objective of the scene – to demonstrate McKay is beginning to develop abilities – could have been achieved in any number of ways that didn’t exclude McKay from the team in this way. Luckily, the rest of the episode more than makes up for this one frankly bizarre moment.

The team dynamic is much better represented in the death-bed scene as they all congregate around him to say goodbye and much of the touching scenes between McKay and his team-mates come in the third and final acts when McKay attempts to ‘release his burden’; his heartfelt apology to Zelenka, his healing of Ronon’s Wraith-runner scars, his memorial tea with Teyla, the book he has written in defence of Weir’s leadership, imparting his last wishes to Sheppard, and the death-bed thank you to Beckett; all are deeply touching and give a window on how McKay feels about each individual. The music underscoring the scenes tugs at the right emotional heart-strings; every cast member excels but David Hewlett is superb.

Hewlett turns in a wonderfully moving performance as he deconstructs McKay in front of us; peeling off layer by layer to reveal the core of the man McKay wants to be and who he truly is underneath the outer shell of scientist. He portrays a sensitive McKay who loves and cares for the people around him even though he usually has a hard time expressing that; who admires and respects Ronan and Zelenka, who appreciates Beckett. It is a great achievement not least because Hewlett provides a remarkable contrast to his portrayal of McKay the Superhero in the first half of the episode. ÜberMcKay is annoying, arrogant, dismissive and intolerant of those around him and Hewlett easily conveys it with subtle smirks, gestures and quick-fire dialogue (especially in the scene where he mind-reads his fate from Weir and Sheppard without them saying a word). Within the story the turnaround of the character is aptly portrayed through McKay’s relationship with Ronan.

The first half, as Ronan is assigned to watch over McKay, their banter over the idea of Batman and Ronan, and Ronan’s half-serious plea to Weir of ‘Can I shoot him now?’ gently paints a picture of two very different men merely tolerating each other. Yet in the second half, McKay’s approach to Ronan before he heals him and the actual act of healing reveals how much McKay cares for Ronan just as Ronan carrying an unconscious McKay onto the device platform reveals how much the Satedan cares for McKay. When Ronan hugs him and welcomes his ‘buddy’ back at the end, it is believable and touching. The pairing of McKay and Ronan is great and provides a change of the usual dynamic of Sheppard and McKay.

Not that the Sheppard/McKay dynamic is missing; their scenes of meditation are laugh-out-loud funny as Sheppard is ordered to help McKay ascend thanks to his experience with the Ancients in Epiphany. While the scenes are great and the reason given, they do highlight the shocking under-usage of Teyla who should have been the natural choice to assist McKay with meditation and finding an inner peace. At least McKay also gets time with Weir as she tries to help him with Ascension and coming to terms with his fate. Higginson turns in another good performance demonstrating a compassionate Weir whose leadership and friendship shines in how she gets McKay focused. The end scene with McKay teasing Weir over telling him they loved him, heading out for an afternoon snack together and bantering about Sheppard is very sweet.

Although much of the story revolves around McKay and character interaction, it does provide some good moments of action; the opening scene of McKay getting zapped by the machine, Zelenka’s injury and McKay’s healing of him, McKay’s own rescue by the team to the end. This latter scene is highly dramatic and tense thanks to the urgency imbued by the shot of the team running down the corridors with McKay on the medical bed, the darkened lab and not least the superb music. The special effects of the device reactivating help to bring the scene to a great climax. Indeed the special effects throughout are great whether the subtle slide of the notepad into McKay’s hand, Beckett’s levitation, the healing of Zelenka or the device. All add a quality polish to a quality episode.

There is little to quibble about in the Tao of Rodney; the story is well-planned, well-constructed and beautifully contrasts every facet of McKay and every relationship. Damian Kindler deserves praise for the script but with every part of the episode shining from performances, make-up and special effects, Martin Wood also deserves recognition for pulling it altogether as director. However, the main honours should go to Hewlett for a masterful performance in a fabulous episode that showcases what SGA can achieve when it focuses on a character-driven story. More of the same for the other characters, please.

[entil2001]

If there’s one complaint that seems to rise above the rest, when it comes to “Stargate: Atlantis”, it’s the lack of balance in character exploration. One might argue that the writers rarely get character development right, since there seems to be little change over time, but they do write episodes that focus on certain characters. More often than not, such episodes focus on either Sheppard or McKay.

Both complaints come together in this particular episode. First and foremost, Rodney McKay is the focus of this episode and there’s not a shred of doubt about it. The title makes that plainly obvious. And what happens in this episode will probably mean nothing in the end, despite the fact that the circumstances could and should result in a massive shift in Rodney’s personality.

These issues become a point of contention because it didn’t have to be that way. Many fans remember how the first season was constructed and note the delicate balance: plot and character arcs, consistent world-building, and a true sense of isolation. Taken in context with the sagging creativity on “SG-1” in the same time period, and it gave many fans hope that the series would revive the best aspects of the franchise. Since then, expectations have cooled, because the producers have fallen into predictable patterns and the series has been struggling against that tide.

This is pertinent to this episode because many fans will ask a pointed question: does anything in this episode really matter? If this were a series like “Babylon 5” or “Lost”, Rodney’s experience would likely result in a massive change in the character’s progression. More than that, there would be a clear path for the character leading to this moment of personal revelation.

Instead, one is left to wonder if all of Rodney’s soul-searching (as good and necessary as it is) will stick, or if he’ll go back to being the snarky, arrogant genius that he’s been since the inception. Just as Sheppard’s experience with the Ancients is ignored until it’s convenient for this particular plot thread, I expect McKay’s epiphany to be handled sporadically at best.

I could be wrong, but when it comes to a character as iconic as Rodney, whose personality quirks are practically his entire reason to exist, change is incredibly rare. There’s simply too much to lose. And for me, that renders so much of the meaningful work in this episode moot. That’s a shame, because this is one of the better character pieces for the franchise in quite some time. The episode itself is a great use of a familiar plot device, but I’m concerned that it will lose something in the long view.