FAN REVIEWS: 'Water'

GateWorld · #1 October 26th, 2009, 11:21 AM

UNIVERSE SEASON ONE
WATER
EPISODE NUMBER - 106

Severe rationing can't save the Destiny's dwindling water supply, forcing Colonel Young and Lieutenant Scott to seek out drinkable water on a deadly ice planet.

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s09119 · #2 November 2nd, 2009, 05:45 PM

Well, this one's "Water" under the bridge.
By: Daniel Shea (s09119)

"Everyone is lying!"
"Yeah, grownups do that sometimes."
-Eli Wallace and Nicholas Rush, "Water"

It was inevitable that a show that has been going well for so long would eventually stumble, and, unfortunately, that stumble was "Water." While not a bad episode by any stretch of the imagination, it simply wasn't quite up to the standards set by the previous five installments. For the first true standalone thus far, this doesn't exactly set a strong precedent, but for the most part, this was an enjoyable entry into the Stargate canon, if not quite the roller coaster that we've been treated to since "Air."

Opening with a premise that has been repeated for the past few episodes, "Water" poses the final resource-based dilemma for the crew of the Destiny; even with CO2 scrubbers, a replenished power supply, and a better understanding of their role on the wayward vessel, they find themselves quite rapidly running low on clean water. Colonel Young's attempts to seal off the appropriate chambers in case of theft or sabotage have failed to stop the loss, and Dr. Rush only heightens the tension when he reveals that nearly half of their supply has vanished since arrival. This scene in particular is noteworthy because it also reveals the new reason that the crew cannot simply dial Earth with their recharged stargate—after millions of years of being in space, it is likely the craft's batteries have "lost their charge," so to speak, and the reserves are only at 40% capacity. And this far into the universe, Rush explains, there's little hope that they could manage a connection even at full power. They'll need to find another way back, because this simply won't work.

Possibly the most-shocking development thus far, however, is related to Young's next decision to try and figure out what's going on, as he has assigned Eli to use their vast supply of kinos to spy on the various crew members. So far, it's doing little but making the civilians distrustful of the soldiers, but the Colonel is adamant that they can't just do nothing. Ethical or not, they need that water if they want to have a chance at making it home, and this isn't the time for questions of morals. This is another gem of the "realism" the produces have promised the audience with Universe, and it's a welcome relief from tense days on Atlantis where the command staff would shudder at the thought of ever doubting their fellow expedition members (with the sole exception of the designated punching bag that was Kavanagh).

And here we are introduced to the episode's curiously B-plot, as both Eli and Greer are followed by, but oblivious to, a whirlwind that bears a great deal of similarity to the "dust devil" entity Lieutenant Scott was aided by on the desert planet in "Air, Part 3." Seemingly benign in its first appearance, it morphs into a vicious and merciless killing machine when provoked, unaffected by bullets and shredding a redshirt soldier with ease. Thankfully for the crew, though, its terrifying abilities are restrained to when it feels most threatened, and TJ is able to come face-to-face with the alien being without harm. It continues to display a strange mix of apparent intelligence and complete lack of any real sentience, forming a recognizable face when encountering humans, yet incapable of any tangible communication. This comes as a striking departure from the norm of the franchise, in that there have yet to be any English-speaking humanoids encountering the travelers, and it's certainly a refreshing avenue to explore.

In a sequence wonderfully reminiscent of Alien, Greer ends up hunting the entity through hallway after hallway, keeping it on the run with an improvised flamethrower. Aside from eliciting echoes of "Get out of there Dallas! You're going the wrong way!", the chase provides a chance to illustrate that TJ isn't quite the good friend of Greer she's appeared to be thus far, and still doesn't exactly trust him in sensitive matters. This becomes most-evident when she implements her plan to seal away the dust devil creature in a portable container of water, and provides some more backbone to the increasingly interesting medic:

JOHANSEN: I'm not the one who's killed any of them, Sergeant. You are.
GREER: I'll stand back; torch them if they get out.
JOHANSEN: No. I want you out of sight.
GREER: What, you don't trust me?
JOHANSEN: No. I don't.
GREER: ...alright.

While Tamara and co. deal with that issue, of course, Young and Scott depart through the stargate to a new planet within range, which Eli appropriately nicknames "Hoth," as its frigid and ice-covered landscape seems like something straight out of Star Wars. Using Eli's ingenious hoversled, itself thrown together with a stretcher and kinos, the two highest-ranking personnel head off into the toxic atmosphere to harvest as much ice as they can. And although the special effects in "Water" are possibly the best so far (the shots of the Destiny entering and exiting hyperspace here are jawdroppingly cool), the entire world can't help but feel like a recoloring of the one from the pilot episode, as the plot is simply that identical. There is no new spin on the harvesting of a vital resource, minus the humorous and well-played banter between the two military men, and the injection of the dust devil at the very end only serves to complete the utter lack of originality with the A-plot. The strength of Louis Ferreira's acting skills were enough to salvage the affair (apparently, Young has done this sort of thing five, ten, or a dozen times), but Brian J. Smith's real uselessness in the situation was a drain on its enjoyability. Note to the writers; put our main cast members in more interesting places than between two slabs of ice we know will eventually come free.

At the end of the day, the most-intriguing element of "Water" really had nothing to do with said compound, and was instead the growing dynamic between Rush and Eli, which alternates between "tough love father"-son and "wise teacher"-student by the day. While Rush wisely decides to keep the existence of a possibly malevolent entity on the ship on a need-to-know basis, allowing Young and Scott to work at peak efficiency, Eli stubbornly complains that all this lying won't do anyone any good. Even when it's clear that acting-commander TJ is in agreement, he blurts out the truth when it's proven unnecessary, if not a hindrance, earning admonishment from Rush that sometimes you must do what is prudent even when it may not seem like it's right. This theme carries on to the larger plot when Young, determined not to leave Scott behind, elects to abandon the water salvage mission to ensure the fledgling lieutenant's life. For the ship's resident Machiavellian, this is a travesty, but for Young, it is the only way life can be out here when all else is lost to them.

And lastly, there is one last dangling plot thread to address, which has possibly become the most-controversial of all; the blossoming relationship between Matthew Scott and Chloe Armstrong. Early in the episode, Vanessa James, affectionately regarded by the fandom as the "woman with big breasts," happens upon the two kissing in the latter's quarters, and matter-of-factly asked why the former's radio is off. Annoyed, James delivers the message that Colonel Young needs to see him, and with the parting shot that he apparently couldn't find a broom closet to do the deed in, departs. Later on, however, she proves that, even as a secondary character, she has quite a personality to her, and breaks protocol to let Chloe know when Scott is trapped offworld. Showing compassion as the spurned lover is always difficult, yet she makes a pointed effort to help the late senator's daughter, perhaps realizing that she was never anything of real value to Scott and feeling, deep down, some measure of sympathy for this new, naive young woman he has found to entertain him.

So what will the verdict be? It's difficult to say; on the one hand, "Water" offered a slew of character moments that greatly enhance our pathos for the crew, both main and secondary, and the special effects keep on getting better and better. On the other hand, however, the primary plot was far below the quality of the rest of the first half of the season, and the secondary one, while workable, also felt somewhat redundant. In short, this felt more like "Air, Part 3 + Ice" than anything else, but thankfully, the skills of the cast made enough of a difference to keep it from completely catching frostbite.

"Water": **1/2

Rachel500 · #3 November 3rd, 2009, 05:13 PM

Universe returns to more familiar Stargate territory with the storyline focusing on a classic theme of interesting alien encounters and off-world trouble. The quality of the overall production continues to excel especially in allowing seeds sown in earlier episodes to blossom to fruition. Unfortunately, the story in Water does not match the overall excellence, providing some good ‘moments’ but missing the opportunity to shine.

The story is solid, but it isn’t a stand-out. It is difficult to separate the main plot and sub-plot as both strands of the story – the discovery of alien bugs on the Destiny and the off-world mission seem to be given equal weight. Part of the issue is neither strand provides a big enough scenario to really capture the audience, to build tension and create drama. Despite the attack on the hapless Gorman, the bugs are positioned as friendly unless provoked so while the chase and resolution is somewhat interesting, it never feels like the entire crew is in danger of being eaten alive. Equally, while Scott falls into the precipice, there is never truly a moment where it feels as though he was in real danger of dying.

The rest of the problem is the pacing; there is an inordinate amount of time for the set-up particularly on the Destiny where there is lots of discussion on what to do. While it’s nice to see the crew interact and undoubtedly some of it was needed for exposition, it meant that the tension is really diluted. On the planet, Scott’s situation seems to happen rather late into proceedings and given the action thereafter is restricted to Young attempting to pull him up on his own, and is broken up by Chloe being told of the situation and her reaction, again, the result is no tension. The story does attempt to construct tension – through Greer’s reaction when the bugs try to get out of the locked room, and through Scott losing consciousness towards the end due to his suit being damaged – it just isn’t enough.

That isn’t to say that there aren’t any good points in the story: both Eli’s board and Greer’s flamethrower are great inventions; Greer’s politeness to Chloe in the face of other opposition to the search is a nice dynamic; Rush telling Eli some home truths provides a great moment of tension between the two; Eli’s pop culture references that go over everyone else’s heads; loved Young’s rejoinder to Scott on the ‘That’s just as stupid, sir’ reminding the lieutenant of who was in charge. There are indeed some lovely character moments.

What it does well too is provide TJ with some much needed screen time. Alaina Huffman delivers a measured performance; providing glimpses of TJ’s insecurity in command by delivering some lines with what is clearly false bravado and serving up expressions of uncertainty at times. Yet nicely the story and Huffman both serve up a TJ who ultimately is seen to step up to the plate and she saves the day by getting the bugs into the container and so off the ship. It’s nice to see one of the female characters highlighted as the hero after such a focus on the male cast in episodes to date. Minor female characters also get screen time with Park being the one in charge of the suits and Lieutenant James finding out about Scott’s new love interest.

The latter is also a nice nod back to James’s own hook-up with Scott in the premiere episode. The broom closet line was funny and added some much needed humour. Spencer’s hording of food and water is also revealed while the alien bugs originate from the planet visited in Air. Overall it’s nice to see this greater focus on continuity – to see that events of one episode will have an impact in another. It is also good to see continuing themes of Rush’s and Young’s power play, and the tension between the military and civilian camps: it’s good to see that everyone isn’t just getting along a la Trek's Voyager. All of this adds realism and believability to Universe.

The overall production quality also continues to excel at giving this realism. The special effects deserve a mention in Water. The swarm of alien bugs is very well done and looks real. The moments where it forms faces are excellent. The ice planet is stunningly beautiful and fantastically lit to make the most of the environment – it looks alien and cold. There are some moments where the ice on the sled does look a little false but overall another good job.

The acting also continues to be of an incredibly high calibre. Robert Carlyle looks is his element as Rush; changing from almost ubiquitous servility in trying to keep Young focused on the ice, to almost relaxed amusement at helping TJ with the bug situation, to mercurial temper in reaming Eli out for speaking out of turn. His performance continues to delight as does Louis Ferreira’s. Ferreira and Brian J Smith did a great job despite the handicap of the suits. Indeed all the cast, both main and recurring, continue to put in good, solid performances although I hope Chloe, and by extension Elyse Levesque (who proved her acting ability in Air Part II), gets something more substantial to do than simply be Scott’s girl in the future.

In conclusion, Water is a solid outing for Universe with high production values and its usual polished quality. But while the story kept the overall arc moving along and neatly revisits some earlier plot elements, it really needed a big injection of tension and drama, through better pacing and greater danger within the scenarios created, to make it stand-out.