Couple things that bothered me...

[Azriel]

When Rodney was stood with his boot off and killed that Wraith, did he think to check what ammunition he had remaining in his mag? I only ask as I find it odd that during the second encounter, he managed to get off 2-3 shots before his weapon ran out of bullets.

I would've thought that given he is part of a front line team, he must have received some type of firearms or military training, yet he proceeded through enemy infested territory without ensuring that he had a full mag and knowing full well that it takes more then a couple of bullets to take a Wraith down.

Also one other thing I have never been able to get my head around, is why Atlantis military do not aim for the head when taking down Wraith, they may be tough but a shot or two to the head should be far more effective then multiple shots to the torso - I know the torso is a larger area to hit, but I find it odd that this has never been shown.

[BuggyMan]

The thing that bothered me most about this episode is that my suspense of disbelief regarding Rodney McKay was completely broken when he and Ronan dropped to the ground to avoid that swinging trap and he lifted his head after it swung back, to be pulled down by Ronan when it came around again.

The supposedly most brilliant physicist in the world (or even universe) doesn't understand how a pendulum works? And that after he was going on about how Ronan might need him in some situation?

[Yaxez]

Why would you stop for a stone in your boot when lives are at stake?

Aiming for the head seems like a smart idea, never thought of that. It's not like it's hard to hit the head.

The supposedly most brilliant physicist in the world (or even universe) doesn't understand how a pendulum works? And that after he was going on about how Ronan might need him in some situation?

It only proves that Ronan is smarter, altough he can't use his own gun properly. :|

[Corgano]

I guess the reason why they never shot the head is to keep the violence rating of the show low. And also because it is probably much easier to simulate gun wounds in an area of the body which is covered.

[Xylian]

When Rodney was stood with his boot off and killed that Wraith, did he think to check what ammunition he had remaining in his mag? I only ask as I find it odd that during the second encounter, he managed to get off 2-3 shots before his weapon ran out of bullets.

I would've thought that given he is part of a front line team, he must have received some type of firearms or military training, yet he proceeded through enemy infested territory without ensuring that he had a full mag and knowing full well that it takes more then a couple of bullets to take a Wraith down.

First off, he's Rodney McKay. It's not like he's a military officer, he's a scientist and he probably wasn't thinking straight in a situation like that.

The supposedly most brilliant physicist in the world (or even universe) doesn't understand how a pendulum works? And that after he was going on about how Ronan might need him in some situation?

Like I said before, he's Rodney McKay, he may be smart, but I don't think he's wise.

Why would you stop for a stone in your boot when lives are at stake?

And like I said before, he's Rodney McKay, it's his personality acting out. It wouldn't matter if his own life was at stake, he still would probably do it.

[hawkedup]

Re: Headshots. Watch any show on cable or network and there are never headshots. It personally gets on my nerves and is one of the many reasons I can't watch network cop dramas. If this was real life, and these people really were fighting for their lives, all you'd get are headshots after headshots. Military personnel are drilled with this motto: "Twice in the chest, once in the head." But it isn’t about that. It’s about needing an extended battle scene.

The only thing that really bothers me about SGA (and this episode is a prime example) is their total inability to utilize all the star characters.

[I_haz_a_Cookie]

I guess the reason why they never shot the head is to keep the violence rating of the show low. And also because it is probably much easier to simulate gun wounds in an area of the body which is covered.

i think this IS the only reason why they dont headshots period!

[Saif Blade]

i think this IS the only reason why they dont headshots period!

there was also a lot of running and panic in the episode so aiming for the head and getting your target is not as simple as is seems.

[Gate-builder]

First, the episode is not as exciting if all the bad guys are killed in about a second by a single bullet.

Second, the show would not appeal to as many people if it showed people getting their heads blown apart in every battle.

Of course its not realistic, if it was it would be rather disturbing and would probably make people sick. Take a look at the latest Rambo movie, its easy to understand why they don't show stuff like that every week.

[Azriel]

Xylian: - I know Rodney isn't military, but neither is Dr. Jackson and very rarely did he get caught out like that, if Keller hadn't been there he would've been killed as Ronan had his hands full. Point is, he must have received basic firearms training and checking your mag is just common sense, something I would expect from the smartest guy in two galaxies.

Corgano: - You say that, but they showed Michael holding the head of a Wraith Queen (all bloodied up) up in front hundreds of hybrids. In this episode again they showed a Wraith being decapitated (not directly but we saw the head bounce). They also showed a couple of episodes back Keller operating on McKay's head (and if memory serves it showed the whole lot).

Granted the last example doesn't apply to the whole "keeping the violence down" rule, but the first two are far worse then showing a Wraith being shot in the head. In fact, now that I think of it, I retract my earlier statement, we have seen a Wraith being shot in the head once before, I believe Lt. Ford did so in the pilot. So why we haven't seen it since puzzles me.

Gate-builder: - Showing a Wraith being shot in the head doesn't mean the head has to explode or blood go flying everywhere, I have seen films which show head shots and it looks rather tame, certainly no worse then seeing a Wraith being shot a dozen or so times in the chest. I do agree however with your first point that the battles would be pretty fast if they did head shots.

Saif Blade: - A lot of panic in THIS episode, but in every episode? I mean you can't tell me that an experienced military officer such as Sheppard is completely incapable of landing at least one head shot? I have so far yet to see as much.

[Brain_Child]

Was anybody else just a little bit astonished by Ronon's "super tracking" abilities? He was accurately deducing entire plot details just by footprints. It seemed acceptable when he reasoned 1 set of deepened footprints means someone is carrying someone else, but the stuff after that seemed a bit unrealistic. that was all that really bothered me

[Yaxez]

Was anybody else just a little bit astonished by Ronon's "super tracking" abilities? He was accurately deducing entire plot details just by footprints. It seemed acceptable when he reasoned 1 set of deepened footprints means someone is carrying someone else, but the stuff after that seemed a bit unrealistic. that was all that really bothered me

Yup, if they had toned it down a little it'd been more realistic.

[Dutch_Razor]

Re: Headshots. Watch any show on cable or network and there are never headshots. It personally gets on my nerves and is one of the many reasons I can't watch network cop dramas. If this was real life, and these people really were fighting for their lives, all you'd get are headshots after headshots. Military personnel are drilled with this motto: "Twice in the chest, once in the head." But it isn’t about that. It’s about needing an extended battle scene.

The only thing that really bothers me about SGA (and this episode is a prime example) is their total inability to utilize all the star characters.

Are you sure? Snipers are trained to go for the bodyshot since that has a higher hit ratio as opposed to bodyshots.

[Saif Blade]

Xylian: - I know Rodney isn't military, but neither is Dr. Jackson and very rarely did he get caught out like that, if Keller hadn't been there he would've been killed as Ronan had his hands full. Point is, he must have received basic firearms training and checking your mag is just common sense, something I would expect from the smartest guy in two galaxies.

Corgano: - You say that, but they showed Michael holding the head of a Wraith Queen (all bloodied up) up in front hundreds of hybrids. In this episode again they showed a Wraith being decapitated (not directly but we saw the head bounce). They also showed a couple of episodes back Keller operating on McKay's head (and if memory serves it showed the whole lot).

Granted the last example doesn't apply to the whole "keeping the violence down" rule, but the first two are far worse then showing a Wraith being shot in the head. In fact, now that I think of it, I retract my earlier statement, we have seen a Wraith being shot in the head once before, I believe Lt. Ford did so in the pilot. So why we haven't seen it since puzzles me.

Gate-builder: - Showing a Wraith being shot in the head doesn't mean the head has to explode or blood go flying everywhere, I have seen films which show head shots and it looks rather tame, certainly no worse then seeing a Wraith being shot a dozen or so times in the chest. I do agree however with your first point that the battles would be pretty fast if they did head shots.

Saif Blade: - A lot of panic in THIS episode, but in every episode? I mean you can't tell me that an experienced military officer such as Sheppard is completely incapable of landing at least one head shot? I have so far yet to see as much.

yeah but shephard wasn't in this episode buddy. they were doing a lot of running on hilly terrain, i actually thought the same thing, lets shoot them in the head but there wasn't really an opportunity in this episode. now as for other episodes yea i guess they can shoot him in the head more often, but this one not really. did u see how rodney was just swinging the gun running forward while shooting behind himself? its kinda hard to aim at the head when you're runnin like that on hilly terrain.

[jasonelmore]

When Rodney was stood with his boot off and killed that Wraith, did he think to check what ammunition he had remaining in his mag? I only ask as I find it odd that during the second encounter, he managed to get off 2-3 shots before his weapon ran out of bullets.

I would've thought that given he is part of a front line team, he must have received some type of firearms or military training, yet he proceeded through enemy infested territory without ensuring that he had a full mag and knowing full well that it takes more then a couple of bullets to take a Wraith down.

Also one other thing I have never been able to get my head around, is why Atlantis military do not aim for the head when taking down Wraith, they may be tough but a shot or two to the head should be far more effective then multiple shots to the torso - I know the torso is a larger area to hit, but I find it odd that this has never been shown.

Its all human nature.. there's noway to speculate what a person would do in real life or on the show when put in a certain situation.. i know you think he should be smart enough to check his mag for bulletts but among other things his character is a tech savy guy.. he does'nt even square up and aim when he shoots.. definately not good with a gun.. as for the pendulam remark on the other post below yours i can see where your comming from but when your scared to death and someone (Ronin) has thrown you to the ground you want to look to see what's going on.. everyone is over anyizing the episode here.. the writers of the show must be thinking (wow no matter what we do someone's going to find something wrong with how we script things)..