The Ark (316)

[Biscuit]

Aw, c'mon people. How can you call an episode with that many explosions "boring"?

Me, I got a huge kick out of The Ark. It was fun! Hollowed-out moon? Explosive decompression? Perilous peril? McKay and Sheppard squabbling awesomely? Teyla actually getting some screen time? With a heaping side helping of insight into the way 10,000 years of life as a Wraith snack bar can warp a society?

What's not to like?

* McKay! Pinata! The entire Pegasus Galaxy is a big ol' pinata for McKay to crack open. A pinata stuffed with nutbar aliens and stuff that blows up as soon as you take a whack at it, but still. Good times!

* Hollowed-out moon! Mad love! I've been wishing for more episodes set in space! They've got the cool flying ships, it's a crime against sci-fi not to let them hang out in outer space at least once per season.

* Sheppard really can fly anything! Even a ship anchored to a space station stuffed inside a moon! (The aeronautical equivalent of turducken!) Me, I LIKED the fiery Ground-Control-To-Major-Tom death spiral into the atmosphere. One of those should be mandatory per season too.

* Teyla! I was so damn happy to hear a Pegasus native actually getting a chance to talk about how they endure the unendurable. You remember the people you've lost. You tell their story to everyone you meet. You carry on and you carry them with you. I love little flashes of insight like that. It was a lovely moment.

* Dex! Grarrgh, with the manly shoulder relocation! I love Dex more each episode. But I don't care if he'd dislocated both shoulders and both hips, he could still pound Sheppard to death with his forehead. Not that he would. For this season is all about the team love.

* Suicide Sammy! In fact, an entire planet of Suicide Sammies. I will never, ever get sick of story lines that feature Pegasus planets and their cunning plans to outwit the Wraith . Even though said plans never, ever seem to work out for them. (I'm looking at you, Hoff!)

Whee! What a ride! Can't wait to see what's coming next week!

[Lizabeth]

The bottom line is that Weir is in charge of Atlantis. She has to maintain the day to day operations. She can't just go off on field missions because she has other responsibilities...much like General Landry on SG:1.

Having said that...Weir does indeed go on a rare field mission in Submersion - and quickly learns that perhaps it is better to stay in the warm cozy confines of Atlantis.

yay! Weir on a mission! Hopefully this "learning" you speak of is something she later forgets. I totally understand she is the leader and can't go on missions often, but I'd like a few every season where she comes, for some reason or another. She could use her diplomatic skills sometime for trade or something. That said, I also love the episodes where the action is on Atlantis. Much more than I ever enjoyed the SGC based episodes. So throw in lots of those too!

[neoncrazy101]

i thought this was a very good filler episode. it showed a different side of people and kinda what we would of been like if the wraith were around in the 60s on earth. but man i love the comment that McKay saids about the computer freezing up "should of used a mac" haha i just start to crack up laughing at that one.

[Sweetsong]

Ok, sorry my bad.

[lord-anubis]

i dident think the eps was boreing but it was nothing great a cool ep but forget able. love that sceen when ronon poped his shoulder back in it was a bit freaky.

love that sceen at the end shepp telling tyla don't go feeling speial i would have done it for any one expet maybe makay lol

[andrewag]

This episode wasn't too bad.

I especially loved the mac comment

[Lorr]

I, being the spoiler junkie I am, read all the spoilers, opinions, etc. here and elsewhere. It's an incurable dysfunction of mine (and I will keep it, thank you). I don't find it difficult to put aside all said spoilers and opinions and watch an episode with expectations set to neutral. Well, except for the expectations that Sheppard will be drop dead gorgeous, which he always is.

I enjoyed the Ark. A lot. The team moments were lovely. More Teyla and Ronon, yea! I especially liked that Teyla got to show some of her philosphy and belief system. I love Sheppard making decisions at lightening speed and not second guessing himself. And, the expression on his face when Ronon relocates (?) his shoulder is priceless!

To me, The Ark was a good piece of television science fiction. A lot was actually packed into the scant 43 minutes we see on screen. There were a couple of holes, to be sure. The one that bugged me at all was the lack of a visible safety harness in the shuttle. Or, did I just not see it? Anything else I can ignore by way of suspension of disbelief. (My brain loves to play tricks on itself, it's a game.) Also, this is TV, not Citizen Kane.

This will be one I will watch often, as is much of S3!

[Jeyla4ever]

I liked this episode a lot...not only was it good to see a different set and lay out but it was also an interesting idea with a nice twist to it. I loved the beginning because it was something different that I don't think SGA has done up till now...that was great....For me, the episode kept me on the edge of my seat waiting to see how it all turned out....yes the ending is predictable but it's how they get there that made the episode interesting for me...

The character moments were great...again...a lot of Rodney that could have been substituted for more Ronon and Teyla scenes....but it was compensated with some great lines for all the characters and Rodney as always with his great moments...

and yet, for me, the two characters that really stood out was John and Teyla...John clearly showed that he is the best military leader for Atlantis..who else would have the capability to do what he did, and most importantly...who else would have been willing to do it.

John wasn't keen to help out and risk his life for these people, and yet, in the end, the leader only did and ask what John did for his own and although I know that John would never risk the lives of others at the expense of one or a few, he still risked his own to save one....that was a nice little twist there or somehow a connection between John and Jamus.

I really enjoyed Teyla's role in here as well...we got to see Jamus side of this through her eyes....we got to see and feel for Jamus eventhough his actions were questionable...and her speech to him...Magnificent! and Rachel was truly amazing...

Lorne with Rodney...I really like the bantering between those two as well. John being the leader and keeping his team under control, i.e. quieting Rodney and calming Ronon..excellent...

But I think one of my favorite scenes was when John realized that he made it! His expression and his own awareness clearly shown through the wonderful action of Joe Flannigan was the cue for me to realize that John didn't plan on making it through this one....and when he told Lorne to take his time, to me that showed how John just needed that time on his own to once again deal with the idea that he almost died on this one too when only hours before he had told Ronon that he didn't want to die....and all to save Teyla...wow!

In the end, it was nice to see Weir relaxed and sitting on Teyla's bedside. It shows that these two have had more than one conversation together...for me any ways...

And lastly...the scene between John and Teyla in the infirmary was truly sweet and oh so cute... to see Teyla still able to speak in favor of Jamus's action was truly sensitive from the writers point of view to show us another side of the story... that was touching.......

beautifully done...

[Michelle05]

Only 1 night and already 7 pages? Those bits have been flowing out of Canada, eh? I very much enjoyed this ep. I wasn't bored for a second; I don't get that at all!

I think the show was greatly enhanced by excellent, moody sets and incredible visual effects, inside the hangar, during the descent, etc. I can't think of another Stargate ep that had this many effects, and they were very kewl.

Herrick was very sympathetic. Jamus or whatever was well done. I didn't see that coming, him putting Teyla inside.

I enjoyed the story and the character interactions, but I wish Rodney and John would do something besides bicker all the time. Didn't Rodney's near ascension soften them both a bit? It was great for the first 3/4 but then when John was going to go off and die, I wanted a bit more sincerity of friendship shown. Maybe it's a guy thing

Teyla got some nice time to shine and I loved Ronon's insight that the young guy was going to cause problems.

Yay Carson! But he didn't have that much to do, poor guy.

I can see how the shuttle might have survived in the pocket, but it would have been nice for Rodney to say something... The whole resolution was sort of a leap of faith anyway.

Kudos to the set and effects people especially

[GatetheWay]

Blow torches don't work in a place that isn't suppose to have oxygen so I don't see how Lorne was able to repair the door. And did anyone else spot the Snickers wrapper? I mean talk about sloppy production and post production work. It was so bloody obvious you'd think they could have caught it and painted it out or something.

I did get Lifeboat flashbacks but not too baddly. The people's stratagy to get rid of the Wrath was actually quite brilliant even though it was so destructive, desperate, and homocidal. After that old guy explained I really felt for him wanting to save his people.

I wish the young guy who initially commited suicide could have been explored more maybe have him do the deed later so we could get to know him and his mindset better. I still don't get why he wanted to take everyone else with him when he could have just killed himself without much fuss.

I think it was a good episode though it dragged in places and I was happy to see Lorne again.

Snickers, bottled water, and clean wipes anyone?

[Sicktem]

Meh, sorta half good, but overall bad. It felt very disjointed, it didn't flow, we're thrown into this place, how'd we find it? We just are suddenly exploring random space station on rock,

They randomly go to worlds with Stargates on the orbitting them to see what they can find (who knows when you could discover the next Ancient Outpost filled with ZPMs at random). This is something we know and I don't see why they have to set it up every single episode. It was quite obvious to me that when they flew through the gate their sensors detected the hollowed out moon and they went in investigate. When they saw that it was of little interest on the surface they wanted to leave and would have if it were not for Rodney's curious nature.

power it on, people go crazy, omg we're going to fire the engines...wait, the engines are pointed at what? the space station? that makes no sense.

The engines were facing the outter door which shut off the inside of the moon from the outside. What was blown off was that and some damage was done to the compartments nearby. It's completely rational for them to come in from the door and park with the engines facing where they came from. However, they obviously weren't designed to be turned to max inside the place which is what was done.

It gets all mucked up and we lose a jumper for no good reason, why'd we have to lose the jumper?

I don't think we actually lost a jumper. That was my first reaction to seeing it get engulfed by the engine's firepower. However, we later saw it floating in away from the moon while seemingly undamaged. From that view I don't see why they couldn't have later recovered it offscreen.

And uhm MORAL ISSUE...why did nobody seem to care that they killed all their own people with nukes?!?!?! They nuked the damn planet, knowing damn well that only the people on the shuttle would have survived and nobody else. That's horrible...stand together and fight, don't just go homocidal on everyone!

They seemed to take notice of it to me (you see their heads turn and their expressions change when they're told that and they even replied in a way that made it seem they didn't believe it). However, they were obviously too busy dealing with the situation at hand to stop devote all their time to that event. Although I can see your reasoning that it would've been nice to see them react in a Daniel type way to the situation, I think it would've been out of place even for him to devote time to it in this particular situation.

Also on a personal level I don't see it that much worse than picking the best and the brightest of your people to send to another world when a hostile Alien force is on it's way to destroy most of your population (something Earth was prepared to do). The only difference was that these people didn't have a dhd and their Stargate was in space so they had to come up with a plan B. It's a horrible thing to do, don't get me wrong, but so too is living every day knowing that you are cattle that is waiting to be fed on. I can certainly see why someone in that situation would want a better life for their descendants even if it means sacrificing themselves, but the unfortunate point is that they made that decision without everyone's consent. Anyway, moral issues aside at least they have a world now where the Wraith won't think to check out. I can see this being revisited in the future as the Atlantis team encounters people who need to be relocated to a safe location.

[RDAOWNS]

I'll address this one, since it makes a good point:

Yes, it was lucky...this is a situation where all the piloting skill in the world would have been useless. If we had Sheppard do the impossible, and skillfully bring the shuttle down, I would have felt that was a cheat. Too super-hero. Sheppard was human here, surviving only because of dumb luck. And all because he refused to let Teyla go without a fight.

Anayway, this is how I saw it...and tried to write it...

Ken C

Some have already mentioned that they felt a little 'cheated' with the ending expressing how they didn't like how they were forced to believe that it was blind luck. This is perfectly understandable and here is how I believe why.

There exists almost a tacit contract between writer and audience in endings such as this in tv series (Atlantis, SG-1...) and film franchises (James Bond). When we watch a climactic scene like the ending of this episode in a different setting (one-off film or real-life experience) the reason for watching exists in an answer to the question of whether the characters will survive. However when we already know the answer, like in a franchise, the 'payoff' for this lack of emotional tension is an ingenious/harrowing escape. The focus shifts from 'Will they/won't they?' to 'How do they?'. This is why many of us watch Bond. We all know he will survive. That doesn't interest us. What does interest us is how. Each time the writers have to come up with something new.

Whilst I agree that the idea to have John survive through blind luck is original and good for character development, it can leave that slightly hollow feeling.

Maybe, the narrative, interesting and insightful though it is, just doesn't lend itself that well to an television episode which climaxes in a frenzy of action? Just throwin' it out there.

[LoveConquers]

I think I just saw another little error, LOL! Around 6:18, John is wearing some kind of wired ear piece that looks mysteriously like my cell phone headset and suddenly next shot of him around 6:30, he's magically wearing the normal ear piece they all wear. Unless that was on purpose and he switched them out for whatever reason...looks like another little goof!

Sorry, just a little something I noticed just now when rewatching.

And can someone tell me what that white cord that seems to run from the groin to the mid-chest area on the space suits is supposed to be? (I know nothing about space suits, but it just looks a bit awkward).


ETA: Oops, never mind. I see the wired ear piece is back once he's in the space suit again. Must be a part of the suit!

[Michelle05]

I forgot to mention how much I loved Rodney's Mac line! Go, David! Very apropos with today's Apply announcements. Maybe next year the team will start using iPhones.

Oh, and I saw the Snickers wrapper too. I thought maybe it was a sign Rodney and John had been inside the shuttle checking it out, which helps explain how John knew how to fly it later. If it was a mistake, wow, it was in a bunch of takes!

Oh, and the sounds effects were awesome too, as was the music.

[Atlantean Engineer]

Blow torches don't work in a place that isn't suppose to have oxygen so I don't see how Lorne was able to repair the door. And did anyone else spot the Snickers wrapper? I mean talk about sloppy production and post production work. It was so bloody obvious you'd think they could have caught it and painted it out or something.

Normal blow torches don't work without oxygen, but there are some modified ones that are used underwater and there are theoretically ways to do it in space. Those carry its own oxygen supply, or more likely uses two hypergolic chemicals to create the fire. It's almost certainly more dangerous than a normal blowtorch, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.

However, there are two big issues that stick out in my head as being so blatantly wrong. When the guy commits suicide and the air rushes out of the moon-ship, why does Ronin and Shep have so much trouble closing the hatch? Air should be rushing out of the compartment, not in, that's why the hatches opened to the inside. So, when you lose pressure, the door will automatically swing shut. The only possible explanation is that the compartment was a path for air going out of the station, but that just means the second door would have shut itself due to the pressure, and Ronin and John would've had more air left.

In addition to the obvious miraculous landing, it also seemed miraculous that somehow, the moon-ship had enough oxygen to fill the entire cavern. Air doesn't come out of nowhere. If they had pressurized tanks of air, then that might explain it, but those would have to be extremely pressurized tanks to hold enough air to fill that cavern at normal pressures. I was kindof surprised when I saw the guy standing and looking out into the cavern with no air-lock or anything. I had assumed the cavern was still vacuum.

Just too many scientific brain-farts in this one for me. It was an OK filler episode plot-wise and acting-wise, but just wasn't a good sci-fi episode to me because it wasn't believable. I can only suspend my disbelie for so many moments in one episode. A miracle (like Shep's landing) each episode is fine with me, but when you have more than two important implausible events, it gets kinda bad IMO.

And the Mac comment. Yeah it fit, but Macs crash too. I would've expected McKay to know that, then again he's Canadian, so maybe I'm expecting too much.