'Tabula Rasa' (406) General Discussion

[GateLadyM]

I've been disappointed this season, but this episode was the first real bright spot for me. Teyla was especially good, and loved the scenes between her and McKay. Ronon, Lorne, Zelenka, I love 'em all!

Shep badly needs a haircut, I'm tired of the shaggy stuff. I'd really like to see him at least look like a CO.

Keller needs to go. Total snoozefest. Beckett would have been so much better in this episode, fretting about his inability to help his patients. Could have been some great Carson/Rodney stuff too, but alas, we get put to sleep again by Dr. Lam, um I meant Dr. Keller.

Carter isn't hitting on all cylinders either. Why did they get rid of Weir again? Oh yeah, because she didn't do anything. Well, I don't see Carter contributing much either.

I did find this episode to be very good overall, and even liked the Rodney/Katie stuff. It isn't an in-your-face-every-week ship, so I can deal with it, and its nice to see Rodney actually happy now and then.

Hoping the future brings more episodes like this one, and less like Travelers. Ugh.

[vaberella]

Question, why do people think Teyla was so fantastic here?

This is compared to the way she was in other episodes? I mean she was similar to the way she was in Suspicion, The Eye, Misbegotten and Aurora as well as a few other eps. There was nothing spectacular here, except for the fact she was of a focused interest for Rodney. Other than that she was basically the same old, same old----nothing truly dynamic here except that she was entertaining. I'm just a little puzzled because she had even less lines than in other eps in the season, excluding Adrift and Lifeline.

This is not to marginalize the character this season (since it's way too early), but compared---people are acting like Teyla is all new and giving me the impression that they see these aspects of Teyla in TR have NEVER been touched on or seen in other seasonal eps; which is wholly untrue.

She was good, but she was just that, good. Nothing specky.

Oh in regards to Katie----I can't tolerate her and Rodney but my angst over them didn't take away from the show. She just sounded like Snow White (who I abhor as a character for young girls to like) and she slept through the rest so she didn't get too me as much as she could have.

[AGateFan]

I dont know for sure but I thought the same thing. She seemed like she excelled in this ep but at the same time she was barely in the ep.

Maybe it was her lines to the others were more "direct" and "strong" somehow. Maybe it was the uber cool fight scene (cooler then any of the previous fights). Maybe it was her being more fully dressed so it was easier not to simply discard her character as the shows eye candy (like putting Troy in uniform on TNG...same character but she seemed "cooler" once in uniform)....maybe the writers treated her more like a real character.

Its hard to say though because Teyla has always been strong\diplomatic. She has always done a good job encouraging and focusing Rodney. And she has always kicked butt. Somehow though in this ep, she seemed more "direct" and "mature" in all of that....... I cant make sense of it because its not really logical more of just a feeling.

[Briangate78]

Question, why do people think Teyla was so fantastic here?

This is compared to the way she was in other episodes? I mean she was similar to the way she was in Suspicion, The Eye, Misbegotten and Aurora as well as a few other eps. There was nothing spectacular here, except for the fact she was of a focused interest for Rodney. Other than that she was basically the same old, same old----nothing truly dynamic here except that she was entertaining. I'm just a little puzzled because she had even less lines than in other eps in the season, excluding Adrift and Lifeline.

This is not to marginalize the character this season (since it's way too early), but compared---people are acting like Teyla is all new and giving me the impression that they see these aspects of Teyla in TR have NEVER been touched on or seen in other seasonal eps; which is wholly untrue.

She was good, but she was just that, good. Nothing specky.

You want more Teyla? Wait till the next two eps!

[vaberella]

Meh. 2 ½ out of 5. Most boring episode of the season so far. Why are people finding it oh so original? It's been done a million times before and much better. Lame writing, Alan McCullough.

If we screen it down to a flashback ep which has totally been done before, especially in SGA; then I'd have to disagree with you...since episodes like Submersion, The Return II, and Sunday weren't as well executed as this one. They all had something missing and not as interesting maneuvered from past to present with lighting affect to give you this surreal reality.

Check out the filming, they filmed them differently. We had a nice light normal filming when we see the past, and then we have this rough darker filming in context of the present. Gives you the feeling that world of SGA has taken a "not quite right" turn of events towards in the present. It's that juxtaposition and maybe the concepts from Doppelganger (if you notice, almost similar feel in Doppelganger as in the present of TR) are converging on some level. Very very very entertaining when you take these things into consideration.

Why does Keller speak in a monotone? Is it an affection of the actress or is the doctor really a robot?

I thought Keller moved out of that in this episode. I can totally tell you I felt what you mean when I as looking at Adrift, it just wasn't flying. But then I figured it was part of the character role, she may feel but she tries to be the nuetral unfeeling doctor in the midst of so much emotionally moving characters. She clearly has relationships and likes and dislikes, but to keep some sort of order on herself and her emotions and to block the others hysteria's she builds up this wall. It's realistic in part of her when you look at it that way. Not that it's the right way, but it's my use of logical perception.

Katie is so dull. And we have to put up with more of her this season? Whole episodes of her whining and fluttering her eyelids delicately while Rodney tries to work out if he still likes women? That's gonna suck big time. WE GET IT, PTB, YOU WANT TO ROMANCE IN THE SHOW. ENOUGH NOW. LOOK AT HOW WELL YOU HANDLED JACK AND CARTER *yawn*

She is dull, but I didn't think it took away from the show since she slept through a lot of it.

Teyla continues to kick ass. She made the entire episode.

You know, she didn't do that for me. She's my fave femme, but I saw nothing so specky as I saw in Reunion or Doppelganger, in this paticular ep. Meh, whatever.

You want more Teyla? Wait till the next two eps!

Actually I'm fully aware when Teyla shows up and the stories behind her. So no need to keep me up to date. All I was saying was that I saw nothing spectacularly original in Teyla in this ep that alot of the talk was about Teyla---and this is when I compare it to the Teyla I've been seeing for the last 3 seasons.

I just noticed that people make it out as though she's a new character. It's understood, almost, because of her lack of respresentation in the seasons. But the eps in the last seasons where we see Teyla, we've seen the same actions and reactions.

Spoiler:

This wasn't as sensational for me as I see the majority of people make it out to be. I mean it's almost like, but not as bad, as Travelers was for John. It gave nothing, in my opinion took away, but it's aspects we've seen before which doesn't impress me for character development.


Curently and I'm sure until next weeks Missing, Teyla is still not very three-dimensional. John luckily had Adrift and I loved him Reunion, so I had a nice dose of development for his character. This is despite the fact I felt the writers totally backpedaled in Travelers.

[CalmStorm]

Dr. Keller seemed to have a personality change overnight. She went from appearing completely nervous about doing her job and speaking up, to maintaining a calm, cool and collected self as if she had been there and done that for a long time. This is the first episode where she did not seem nervous, confused, or overwhelmed.

I'm not sure about the Katie Brown / McKay relationship. It just doesn't seem to click.

Loved Teyla in this episode and Ronon as well. They both had more substance than usual in this one.

I like Carter, but the role she is playing is almost an exact copy of Weir. I can see Weir clearly in all of the scenes that now have Carter in her place. As such, even being a fan of Tapping and the character she portrays, I am severely disappointed in the casting change.

As always, I was thrilled to see Lorne again, and he had a rather meaty roll as well and we're beginning to see more of his personality come through.

In all, my favorite scenes in this episode were:
-Teyla encouraging McKay at the computer
-When Shep escaped and Ronon was trying to convince him he was a friend.

[Pegasus_SGA]

So how many people thought they had killed Katie in the end there? hehe.
This episode had a very "Sunday" feel, in the fact that it utilized all the flash backs, one minute it's present day, the next it's 10 hour earlier.

I wonder if the writers felt the episode would not be interesting enough if it had been told straightforward, and thus needed to do all the bouncing around. I thought it was a great episode, just hope this back and forth doesn't become common place.

I agree it did have a touch of Sunday feel, for me though it didn't feel as disjointed as Sunday, and the fact we had hints at the bottom helped. After watching it a second time, I think I prefered how they did this time thing in this rather than how it was done in Sunday. I'm not a fan of jumping through time (and yet, I love time travel eps! Go figure. ) Probably because I get so confused going back and forth in time. My brain can't cope with anything but the pretteh though.

Excellent episode, this season is really shaping up IMO. I felt doing it with flashbacks made it more suspensfull than if it was straight forward. It would have moved too slowly that way. I do see the point of the ending being rushed, but I disagree. Rodney finished the program to send the cure through the vents all they needed to do was make the cure airborne, so it made sense. I'd rather have 38 minutes of finding out what's going on than the last 8 minutes of making a cure and sending it through the vents. Great team interaction throughout the ep, Carter had quite a bit of screen time and loved seeing her all disheveled. Keller is really shaping up and I really hope we get to keep her. This was a great ep and I am really loving this season so far. Also I'm really glad they didn't kill Katie and I love the two of them together.

I had to giggle at the only thing he had to finish was by pressing the 'enter' key. I would have liked to have seen the venting the stuff and how long it took and what they did etc, and wondered who did the mixing of the meds brought back from the planet. Was it Ronon and Teyla or both, did they show Doc K what she needed to do, that sort of thing, but once I saw the infirmary scene... *sniff* and felt the team luff, I kinda forgot all that!! What can I say, i'm exceptionally shallow when it comes to whump and team luff. not to mention seeing Shep in scrubs with chest peekage turns my brain into mush... So how did the ep ed then?

SGA is having a lot more heartfeld moments, and that is really great to add to the character's chemistry.

Oh I agree, their seemed to be lots of scenes with them all working together, mixed pairings (which is great to see) and shows that they can mix the team up, but still have it feel like a team ep. I loved that they all worked together and started trusting each other even when they had not reason to.

Talking of trust. What I loved about this is the fact that initially there was quite a lot of mistrust between the scientist and the soldiers. I love that the ep delved into their fears and insecurities and that they couldn't trust anyone at all. Loved Zelenka and his pipe. And oh my the Ronon/Shep scene was just fabulous, especially Ronon shooting shep again and saying, "That just never gets old!" And then pulling him up by his hair! Hehehe. I got a feeling that Ronon has never forgiven Shep for shooting him in TLG. So now it's payback whenever he can.

I agree and I'm personally glad they didn't kill Katie off or I'd be pissed. As to the quote I 100% agree I loved that scene!

I don't know how I feel about Katie to be honest. She's ok, very sweet, and she certainly knows how to twist Rodney round her little finger!! Women and their feminine wiles!

Why did I get the impression that the plant was just like Rodney, ie, Katie found it hidden in the bushes, lol. Or maybe that was just my interpretaion, and not to mention the prickles. I thought it was really sweet of him to go with her, even though he hates being with sick people! It must be love. I think Katie actually knows rodney quite well, and it's nice to see that she calms him down a bit. Whether I like the whole couple thing? Not sure yet. It's ok now and again when it suits its purpose.

Well I have to say it I really love/like this episode. 10/10

Everybody had something to do, and they did it well, I like the time shifting and Mckey did so good (this is the second episode I love his acting) that last scene was so good and touching, for a minute there I thought not that Katie? would die, but that she would woke up and she couldn't remember who Mckey was, I was surprise the writers didn't kill her or gave Mckay more angst.

Love Carter/Mckay scaping she was holding Mckay's hand leading him to safety so funny.

Ronon and Sheppard in the main land really good.

And Teyla protecting Mckay and taking care of them was so good also.

Have to say SGA is winning me over.


Mckay:When I said I was finish I guess I wasn't Kidding
Carter: Now what?
Teyla: Now we just have to hope that Col. Sheppard and Ronon completed their side of the mission
Carter,Selenka,Mckay: (Looking at Teyla) Who?


Quote of the episode

Lorne: This is our commanding officer
Sheppard:That's right..I'm your comanding officer...so you should do what I say
Lorne: Yes sir..what are your orders
Sheppard: Do what he says (turning and looking at Ronon)

Great post. I loved that line.

I think you hit the nail on the head here, in that everyoe had stuff to do, the whole ep felt quite even in terms of character interactions and good stuff for all. And Teyla had lots to do and lots to say! Woohooooooo! I loved her interaction with rodney, and we haven't had much of the two of them having screen time. So for me that was a big bonus. I loved that she kept a calm head, was reasurring and very leaderlike.

That was funny! My favorite line was when Rodney bet Shep that he would be the one to lose his memory first. The way Shep said "Rodney!" Those silly boys!

Wilson3Girl

*snort* that was so great!

I really enjoyed this episode!

I loved the story, loved the way the episode was filmed and enjoyed the performances.

AM really won we over with his script, and considering this was his first SGA script, I was mightily impressed.

I loved the regular cast here.

Shep was fantastic. Loved his scenes with Ronon. ADORED the infirmary scene. I barely was conscious for that! I liked that he showed his smarts in escaping from Ronon, and catching him off guard, and liked that he thought to have Lorne carry the photo.

I agree, I loved how they filmed this, it does seem as if they have a different style this year, but I really like it. AM did a really good job on the script. I always liked AM's work on SG1, so I wondered if he could bring that over to SGA and he certainly did. I keep coming back to things feeling different in S4 and this time was no exception. But I say it in a good way, the style, the direction, trying out new techniques etc. I really do feel as if this season is shaping up very well.

*luffed the Infirmary scenes* I admit, my toes curled, and I got very excited and have watched that bit a few times now. Just for the team luff of course, not for the scrubs, or for the chest peekage... hehehe. Thank you Mr M for giving us sheppy whump and a infirmary scene with team bonding. *hugs*

Katie? Hmmm, she's sweet and cute, but too sugary for me sometimes. Too cutesy and just...nice. I did think her and Rodney's scenes were sweet, but I've got to be honest, I don't do ship and though the caring was good, I don't want to see too much of that again. I hope they break up soon. Sorry

She is very girly girl, the complete opposite to McKay, but you know what they say, opposites attract.

*cough*

Sorry Linz i'm going to have to disagree with you. I know for a fact you're a secret shipper, so don't even try to pull the wool over our eyes that you're not a shipper, because I know better.

So overall, a great episode. Not my favourite one so far, that's DG, but it's up there with Travelers for my number 2. I think TR had a better story than Travelers, but I just really enjoyed it last week, so...well, I just love the variety of episodes we're getting this season. I gave this 9/10

I agree, we've had some great stories this year and the variety of it has actually meant that I just can't compare each of the stories with each other, because they're all different. And there are elements within each of them that I've adored. So for me, this was another great ep.

[dana_carter_sgx]

But my favorite amnesiac by far was Radek....
I thought it was interesting that he, out of them all, had managed to get himself armed and was 'at large' playing commando.
Makes me wonder at his life before Atlantis. Some fan fic writers have given Radek a military background or a past where mistrusting and evading sodiers were a part of everyday life.
Teyla told Rodney that because he was a scientist deep down he would remember science more than anything else.
Perhaps in Radek's past he was a soldier...?
Something to think about, eh?

Yes, for me is too a very interesting question.
In fact, it makes a lot of sense, because between all the relevant characters on the show, Zelenka is the only one I can think of that his place of birth would be relevant when making the character's background.
For the little I know about the history of his country, it makes perfect sense that he has a military background, or if not, that he had worked for the military as scientist... or both or them, in a quite dark time. Yes, it would be really interesting to know something about Radek's past, probably one of the most interesting among the SGA characters

[Linzi]

Question, why do people think Teyla was so fantastic here?

This is compared to the way she was in other episodes? I mean she was similar to the way she was in Suspicion, The Eye, Misbegotten and Aurora as well as a few other eps. There was nothing spectacular here, except for the fact she was of a focused interest for Rodney. Other than that she was basically the same old, same old----nothing truly dynamic here except that she was entertaining. I'm just a little puzzled because she had even less lines than in other eps in the season, excluding Adrift and Lifeline.

This is not to marginalize the character this season (since it's way too early), but compared---people are acting like Teyla is all new and giving me the impression that they see these aspects of Teyla in TR have NEVER been touched on or seen in other seasonal eps; which is wholly untrue.

She was good, but she was just that, good. Nothing specky.

Oh in regards to Katie----I can't tolerate her and Rodney but my angst over them didn't take away from the show. She just sounded like Snow White (who I abhor as a character for young girls to like) and she slept through the rest so she didn't get too me as much as she could have.

Why did I like Teyla here?

Good question.

I just felt she showed she was tech smart here, which isn't something I've seen too much of before, not that she isn't smart in other ways, but I mean educated in technology. I was impressed with the way she told Rodney about the aerosolising (is that a word? ) of the cure for the bacteria. She was gentle and firm with Rodney and so patient. So, I just thought she was really nice here. And I haven't seen her quite like that with him before. She basically kept him focused.

I also liked her caring for Sheppard in his infirmary scene, and loved the way she said she wouldn't be insulted if he forgot her birthday. I love to see Teyla smile, and thus loved that bit. So, she just, for me, was appealing in these scenes. I don't know why they stand out for me, but they do.

[Briangate78]

Who wrote this ep? Oh, it's Alan McCullough. Funny, I thought his stuff on SG1 was kinda eh, but this ep was wonderful. And he's slated for 2 more SGA eps, so I'm expecting great things from him. No pressure.

It looks like he wrote "The Seer" "Spoils of War" "Outcast", and The Kindred". So should be interesting how these eps are going to be.

So we got 4 more eps from this writer. I am also looking forward to Martin Gero's episodes.

[Linzi]

Sorry Linz i'm going to have to disagree with you. I know for a fact you're a secret shipper, so don't even try to pull the wool over our eyes that you're not a shipper, because I know better.

Shhhhh! You've already outed me publically. Have you no shame?

I agree, we've had some great stories this year and the variety of it has actually meant that I just can't compare each of the stories with each other, because they're all different. And there are elements within each of them that I've adored. So for me, this was another great ep.

I agree!

[WingedPegasus]

Question, why do people think Teyla was so fantastic here?

This is compared to the way she was in other episodes? I mean she was similar to the way she was in Suspicion, The Eye, Misbegotten and Aurora as well as a few other eps. There was nothing spectacular here, except for the fact she was of a focused interest for Rodney. Other than that she was basically the same old, same old----nothing truly dynamic here except that she was entertaining. I'm just a little puzzled because she had even less lines than in other eps in the season, excluding Adrift and Lifeline.

This is not to marginalize the character this season (since it's way too early), but compared---people are acting like Teyla is all new and giving me the impression that they see these aspects of Teyla in TR have NEVER been touched on or seen in other seasonal eps; which is wholly untrue.

She was good, but she was just that, good. Nothing specky.

Oh in regards to Katie----I can't tolerate her and Rodney but my angst over them didn't take away from the show. She just sounded like Snow White (who I abhor as a character for young girls to like) and she slept through the rest so she didn't get too me as much as she could have.

Maybe people are just finally noticing her.

[vaberella]

I dont know for sure but I thought the same thing. She seemed like she excelled in this ep but at the same time she was barely in the ep.

Maybe it was her lines to the others were more "direct" and "strong" somehow. Maybe it was the uber cool fight scene (cooler then any of the previous fights). Maybe it was her being more fully dressed so it was easier not to simply discard her character as the shows eye candy (like putting Troy in uniform on TNG...same character but she seemed "cooler" once in uniform)....maybe the writers treated her more like a real character.

Its hard to say though because Teyla has always been strong\diplomatic. She has always done a good job encouraging and focusing Rodney. And she has always kicked butt. Somehow though in this ep, she seemed more "direct" and "mature" in all of that....... I cant make sense of it because its not really logical more of just a feeling.

You're statement in bold is my point. Even her lines have always been "direct" and "strong". I'm starting to think that it's because the writers made her a focus for McKay and then everyone is like, "she's great" and "wow, she was amazing". There wasn't much of anything from the norm for her, besides the fact that we know McKay sees her as of vital importance for the SGA Ex's survival.

The way the writers did this is almost like a subliminal message---if this was the case, I'm sorry I took it out of the bag. In most seasons we don't see the other characters making Teyla of serious importance. We see John because he's always in our face as he's lead. We see Rodney because he's second lead, basically, and he's loud, obnoxious and rude he's unmissable (why I love him). We see Ronon because he's the uber hot, "I'll kill you if you don't make a move" kind of character so he's unmistakable. Now Teyla is not invisible...but the underlining impression is always there that she's not, quite there for many people.

Now I've always noticed the girl and thought she was wicked, and I think most people have, they just disregard her importance. In this instance, the writers make her the importance even though she's relegated to much of her role in other eps. So by adding her picture, and making her of the most importance to McKay (the most unforgetabble guy there) and then making her of importance for so many others---then she becomes a focal player for the viewers. She's not forgettable because people are wanting to know several things for the first 35-45 minutes.

1) "Where is Teyla?"
2) "Why is Teyla so important?"
3) "Why does McKay need Teyla so much and as such where is Ronon/John?"



Again, this is just a theory on the perception of the viewers in regards to Teyla..but not set in stone since many people have other views. I just get the feeling this might be it.

And I'm not complaining that Teyla doesn't have screen time, hailing off the rooftops on how great she is, when there wasn't anything defining to make her great or different from other eps she's been in. Not even saying you can't hail she was wonderful and great (since she was, but just as her character has always been). I'm just noticing a lot of respect, when this could have been done for Teyla in the last three seasons in various eps, but it wasn't the case. Well whatever, thanks for the input.

**On another note, I'm totally disregarding the clothing comment, since you basically disregarded in your later statements since you were able to pick up aspects of her character in other seasons despite her attire. ~sigh~

Maybe people are just finally noticing her.

That's just sad on so many bloody levels.

[Skydiver]

for me, teyla finally had something to do beyond following everyone else around.

[Mandysg1]

I really enjoyed this episode I thought it had a Hitchcockian feel to it, with the suspense of what everyone with amnesia was feeling. I liked how everyone was true to their nature, even if they couldn't remember who they were. Shining moments for everyone, and I enjoyed the changing of the pairings; Shep with Ronan and Teyla with Rodney.

A truely well written and directed episode