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The Hunt [SGU 216]
“The Deerhunter.â€
There's a lot going on in this episode but one element that stood out starkly was Greer's story line. Or, to put it simply: The Deerhunter. Just as “Deliverance†has made a mark on those of my generation, the same can be said of “Deerhunterâ€.
During this whole adventure, Greer's place has been as an element that secured the success of all other attempts. He has been, for the most part, a positive force. In his own words, he moves things ever forward. No matter what has occurred, Greer has moved forward, never looking backward, and from what we've seen of his history, it's not hard to understand why he would be so driven – to move forward, to keep going, to never stay still long enough to process all that has happened as a whole.
Whether we want it or not, what's happened affects who we are and Greer is no different. All of the things he's done, all of the things he's seen and experienced, have caught up with him. Many things could have taken him to this place but it's the latest, facing death when he donated a kidney, has him come face to face not only with his own mortality but with the knowledge that other creatures have that same sense of mortality. That they could also strive not to die. In this, he also comes face to face with what makes him human, with what makes him alive.
In many ways Greer had some of the deepest emotional moments among the crew, deep in that they are something he keeps to himself and perhaps even from himself, but it changes when he looks at the creatures as something not so different from himself. While survival has him view them as food, he also sees them as alive, possibly in the way that he is alive. Park's disgust at the killing of the creatures serves as a vocal cue, but Greer's inability to shoot them speaks louder. What is more interesting is that they do, in the end, kill one of the creatures, but it is the predator that Greer resonates with, and when he asks Varro whether he has killed any of the predators, there's an air of challenge in it. If Varro had managed to kill any of the predators, would Greer have vouched for him to Young?
Park's reaction has already been mentioned and her revulsion comes from a dietary/possibly spiritual standing, in that she sees the creatures as sentient and so it's 'not cool' to kill and eat them. For Young, the issue is not about the creatures but purely a matter at how the creatures have clearly affected his crew. A temporary faltering by Greer is understandable, something that can be gotten past, but it must be gotten past, or understood. Like Greer, Young also insists upon moving forward. James allows Greer to speak about the deeper feelings and Scott allows him to expose the human need for food, for survival. The injured soldier embodies the human fear of predators, of being eaten.
As someone who has hunted all of his life, Varro and the others are indeed adept at hunting and killing for food, of tracking, and their insights prove accurate in understanding how to hunt the animals, and how the animals are hunting them. But the LA are wrong about the animals in assuming that fear and hunger are all that they know. This is sure to be a point of contention at some point between TJ and Varro, because TJ won't kill unnecessarily. In fact, Varro is alive because of this very point and in this, TJ is far closer to Young, who also won't kill where he doesn't have to.
Both TJ and Greer realize that the predators embody far more than such simple drives and in doing so, expose something of their own inner makeup. It is in choosing not to kill that the comparison to the Deerhunter comes in. Greer has killed a great deal in the past, as an expedient method of moving forward without looking too closely, of getting things done that needed done, but in making the conscious choice not to kill, something in Greer has changed. Or perhaps only revealed itself.
It is a great shame that TJ's extra backstory was cut in that it embodies the second 'hunt' of this episode. Involving TJ's relationship with her father, it would have given more depth to her relationship – both the one that's ending and the one that's newly beginning – with Young, someone that to some extent has been a sort of a father-figure for her. If this had come out in the episode, I believe it would have put the TJ/Young relationship in a new light. As TJ grows more secure in herself she would need her father figure less and in turn this would make the switch to Varro less a matter of being vulnerable after the loss of a child and more a matter of moving on to a healthier relationship.
In previous episodes, Young has shown that he has been willing to do the unconventional if it provides results and ensures the safety of those under him. But in allowing the LA, specifically Varro, to go down to the planet to hunt down the creatures and especially rescue TJ, he is letting another man, a rival, rescue her. This had to be difficult and the fact that Young made an uncharacteristic trip planetside only strengthens how hard a decision it must have been to make.
To TJ's great credit, she didn't need “rescuing†and in fact handled the situation well. When the “rescue†came, it came from Greer, not Varro, so that she will hopefully not look to Varro as her rescuer and avoid the “damsel†label. The moment when TJ, Varro and Young were all in the same room and Young turned, closed his eyes and resigned, it was a painful reminder that Young didn't just lose the 'hunt' but lost a love. Further, he set up the loss himself, if only to ensure she came back. It showed a great deal of maturity on his part, something that is necessary if everyone is to move on.
The hunt for love is not only in the TJ/Varro/Young triangle, but also in the Park/Greer/Volker one and it too, sadly, ends in the loss of that love. Greer's affection for Park has largely been private, although it has been seeded throughout SGU's first season. Volker's affection on the other hand has been notably public, with Volker facing off against Simeon of all people, to defend her honour. While Greer and Volker are not related, not brothers, their most recent experiences have changed that dynamic. They now share blood, share cells and DNA, share kidneys, share sacrifice and now, share love, making this love story verge on classic themes.
In love, there are hunts gone past and having what it takes to pursue doesn’t change even when love has gone. Rush is likely aware of the Park/Greer relationship, as there isn't much he isn't aware of, and yet he presses Volker to pursue what he wants. It could simple be a matter of Rush being a mature man who has the experience of pursuing a wife and later, a lover, but I think that in telling Volker to go after Park, he is making up for his inability to declare his feelings to his wife while she was alive. Most importantly, the act shows that Rush cares. Like Young has done, Rush is now taking his people under his wing, where he had previously pushed people away.
The closest of these relationships has been with Eli and, while this isn't a blatant hunt, the hunt for a true son in Eli is clear in Rush's treatment. When Eli lies, defies, and gets around Rush, there is a moment of pure pride in Rush's expression, as though he has waited all this time for Eli to do just that very thing. To defy the rules set upon him, to do what he believed was right, to fix it when it went wrong, and to, in essence, get away with it. This is something Rush has been doing all along, perhaps all of his life, and seeing that Eli is taking up that action must have been very pleasing.
And there were stasis pods! Did I mention the stasis pods? In the past two episodes, we've seen consciousness uploaded without a body and the dangers of consciousness being downloaded back into a body via the interface chair. Neither of these has been particularly safe but with Brody's body able to safely enter and exit the stasis pods, is there a method whereby a person's body could be stored, without ageing, without damage, and also exist within the Destiny's database?
It's a terrible shame that we aren't likely to see this thread play out in what's left of the season.
Rating: 8/10
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Originally posted by teyla-nick94 View PostI liked how Rush played the role of the mentor But maybe it wasn't necessary to tell Volker that he wouldn't be a match for Park
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Originally posted by Artemis-Neith View PostI got the impression that he did it to pique Volker to take his chances. If it cames to job-questions Rush is very rude, but not necessary in this. Tho, it's the first time we saw him doing something like this.sigpic
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Originally posted by teyla-nick94 View PostHe should have done this more often. It was funny to see him teaching Brody and Eli this way .)
On the other hand, I think, it could work that way. A teaching lession which worked in the end. Better than be serious and just talk to them.
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Originally posted by Artemis-Neith View PostYes, it way veryy different from his normal behaviour. It may have to do with the writer(s) of the episode. Mallozzi loves to write funny stuff!
On the other hand, I think, it could work that way. A teaching lession which worked in the end. Better than be serious and just talk to them.
Yeah, it's a new side of Rush. Maybe that's what was left of him when he worked at the Universitysigpic
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Originally posted by teyla-nick94 View PostThanks to Mallozzi
Yeah, it's a new side of Rush. Maybe that's what was left of him when he worked at the University
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Originally posted by Artemis-Neith View PostOr, what's left of him, after another hard life lession with Mandy, dying a second time. There's for everybody so much he can stand. After that, there's a new raod to go, or to breake one last time. Could be also that.sigpic
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Originally posted by jelgate View PostHe brings a lot of these hardships on himself with his own actions
He's also not resposible for Simeon being Simeon. He's responsible that it hit Mandy to die, but if it wouldn't be Mandy it would have been just another person using the stones with Ginn.
I guess he's also not responsible that his wife died beause she got cancer.
Some of the things which happend to him, and people araound him, are on his bill, but some were just bad luck, or bad circumstances.
Rush was never the most evil person in the universe, but like everybody else on Destiny a flawed person, who did mistakes. Therefore he was never responsible for all the bad things which happend to anybody in SGU.
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