The Eye (111)

[Skie]

There's always a way with Sci - Fi!

No, not with Sci-Fi but everything is possible in wonderland. SGA missed that point and that's why in the end it went down the gutter.

Spoilers for S4:

Spoiler:

And we saw how horribly that went wrong by bringing Carson back. The explanation is just hilarious, especially with having all the memories.

[mrscopterdoc]

I'm currently watching SGA for the first time on Netflix (yay Netflix!) and I have to say that this episode (and the one before, The Storm) was a great episode. Loved how Shep was basically commandoing it the entire time. Great stuff. Looking forward to watching the rest of the series!

Commando Shep is the best!

[Lythisrose]

Commando Shep is the best!

Agreed! Terrific episode here.

[mrscopterdoc]

did I mention wet Shep??

[Lythisrose]

And here are Joe Mallozzi's comments on The Eye:
http://josephmallozzi.wordpress.com/...-win/#comments

THE EYE (111)

The big mid-season two-parter concludes in thunderous fashion. As the storm of the century rages, Atlantis is assailed from without and within. McKay struggles to save the city while Sheppard pulls out all the stops in an effort to save the lives of his people. Amid all of the surprises The Eye throws at you, the biggest shock is the body count. Sheppard kills some 60+ Genii soldiers over the course of this episode, gunning down a half-dozen and then killing 55 reinforcements by raising the Atlantis shield. One could argue that Sheppard is operating under the assumption that Kolya has executed Weir, that his actions are influenced by grief and anger, perhaps a desire for revenge. In my mind, however, Sheppard never has a choice. It’s kill or be killed. For me, far more telling is not the decision to turn on the shield and kill the reinforcements but the decision to take down Ladon without killing him. Sheppard demonstrates restraint and, in this pivotal instant, makes it clear he is not just out for revenge. He’s a man doing everything he can to rescue his friends.

A terrific character moment for McKay as well when, in the episode’s opening moments, he actually steps in front of Weir to face down a gun-toting Kolya. Rodney has come a long way since his introduction back in SG-1 and he continues to grow over the show’s five year run, but this moment is certainly one of the biggest steps in the evolution of his character.

As cool as the set looked with that driving rain battering the outskirts of the city, it was downright miserable for the cast and crew – but especially the cast. It was cold, wet, and damn hard to see and hear. And, to top it all off, in one outtake that didn’t make the gag reel, actor David Hewlett was on the receiving end of an errant punch that knocked the wind out of him. But in decidedly unMcKay-like fashion, David shrugged it off and kept right on going.

[NowIWillDestroyAbydos]

This was a pretty awesome episode.

The Visual Effects for this episode alone were amazing. Like when the wave hit the shield, I bet it looks amazing in HD.

Tomorrow, a sole Wraith hunts some of our people.

[hlndncr]

The effects in this ep were amazing. DK pointed out in the commentary that because this one came after the mid-season break the FX people weren't under the usual crunch and had a lot more time to play and it shows.

Beckett makes a lousy soldierr and I don't think I'd want him with me in a military situation; although I think he does improve with time and experience in the dangerous Pegasus galaxy. I also think Ford could use some leadership training. He certainly didn't have Beckett's respect.

As for the body count, I don't have a problem with it. Shep is a soldier and he's trained to kill when necessary and in this case the city was taken over by a hostile military force and he was left alone to not only defend the city but try and save the hostages. I do think he was angry, but not vengeful. And his actions were very cool and calculated, not at all emotional.

My favorite moment in this episode is after Shep shoots Kolya and he falls through the gate and then he goes to Weir. You see the military mask fall down as he asks Weir if she's OK. Weir is totally shaken and is looking at John like "Who are you?" I think Joe Flanigan just gives such a nuanced and honest performace as he goes from dangerous soldier to concerned friend and then back to soldier in a crisis. For me, it's a beautiful moment and really shows us the depth of Shep's character under all that devil-may-care bravado.

[Jae'a]

My LiveJournal post

Wow, Sheppard is cool!
But Sora hit Carson, grr! Go get her, Teyla!

[Krisz]

For me the most memorable bit of this episode is that moment when the huge wave hits Atlantis' shield. The moment Weir looks out to see the wave coming is like one of those dreams where you just can't move and it bears down on you. Luckily in this case the shield went up in time!

I liked how Weir played on the overwhelming need for human self preservation and fooled the Genii into thinking the city was lost and she was prepared for this as a possible scenario. Of course Kolya wasn't fooled completely, which was a good twist when he grabbed Weir and McKay to take them too.

The moment where Sheppard brought up the gate's shield as the Genii reinforcements tried to gate in was one of those hard choice moments, us or them. It was well played.

[Lieutenant Sparrow]

A good ep. Like I said on the previous ep, you really don't want to mess with the Shep. This is his turf. Shep and Kolya will end up being great rivals.

That was a big blow from Shep turning on the gate shield.

McKay was quite brave in this ep.

Didn't really like the fight between Teyla and Sora. Doesn't help that Sora's actor can't act.

And the city lives to fight another day. Lucky timing with the shield

[Matt G]

Midweek, another ep of Atlantis...

1. OK...I still knew a whole load of lines off by heart.

2. What happened to the "Hard Rain" music vid?

3. Shep took out 55 Genii but they were military, therefore fair game.

4. Didn't mind the Teyla vs Sora fight, - it was after all something the writers had clearly been setting up since the Storm.

Still one of the greats.

[jelgate]

The shortcoming I mentioned in the previous review do not exist in this episode. I love a vast majority of this episode. I kind of like seeing how Sheppherd is able to outsmart Koyla despite being outnumbered. Its interesting watching these two try to outsmart one another. I do not agree with JM about the questionable action of Sheppherd killing 60 Genii as they were attempting to go through the Atlantis Stargate The Genii were attempting to kill the Atlantis expedition. It was pure self-defense to protect the himself and the Atlantis expedition. When people complain about Keller whinning I use this episode to show Carson's whinning and he was just as bad. If I was Ford I would have stunned him. I really liked Ford was able to come to his own and help out Sheppherd. Finally, it always irrates me how Sora goes into a prision and we never hear from her again. I loved the conflict between Teyla and Sora of this episode but thier was no resolution to this arc.

[hlndncr]

Honestly, I just forgot about Sora and never really cared what happened to her. But I'm watching The Brotherhood now and they mention at that point she's still in prison on Atlantis. Then in the commentary for that episode Martin Gero says that there was a scene in Siege 2 that makes it clear Sora was part of the exchange for the nukes, but it was cut.

[jelgate]

I already know about the cut scene. Since it was cut I am still pointing out how I didn't like that it was never resolved

[hlndncr]

I already know about the cut scene. Since it was cut I am still pointing out how I didn't like that it was never resolved

Well I didn't know about it until yesterday. So I thought I would share for those who might be interested. Like I said, it never really bothered me that they didn't come back to Sora. She just wasn't an important character to me.