'Broken Ties' (503) General Discussion

[Reiko]

Keller needs to stop with the quavery voice and all of the pauses between *pause* every *pause* phrase *pause* she utters. I just want to slap her head to jog her along. Maybe she needs an inhaler?

» Isn't she always like that? Or was it worse in this episode?

[starfox]

Dude, Jason's wig. It looks SOOOOOOOOOOOOO bad.

On a more serious note, I really like the direction the characterization's taken so far this season. Woolsey is a sympathetic character - from his divorce and Yorkie to creating quarters where he's more in his element to getting trapped in the conference room - McKay has calmed down a little and appears to be fully integrated with the rest of the team in a way we haven't always seen, and Teyla's motherhood is actually being addressed. Okay, so she's got the super-humanly supportive boyfriend, but there are certainly worse ways to handle it (Actually, can Kanaan be my boyfriend? I want someone who'll stay at home with the kid while I go off and save the galaxy).

I also love the images in this episode. Tyre strung out in his lair reads like a rat curled up in his hole. And while the Wraith draining/giving certainly is a representation of forced drug dependency, it also captured the deeper feeling of violation that such dependency creates.
I also felt like there was a weirdly sexual element to the draining/giving process, but that may just be me.

One thing on which I was unclear: who cut off the Wraith's hand, Ronon or Tyre? When we saw the pledge of Ronon's loyalty, I thought he was faking it like a bad porn star, but if he was faking it, then the later scene with Sheppard in the isolation chamber doesn't make sense, nor does the extended fight with Tyre. However, I don't recall Tyre having a sword on him, so Ronon's the more logical choice. Momentary loyalty glitch brought on by having both of his commanders in conflict with each other, perhaps?
ETA: Clarified.

The extent to which Ronon was brainwashed could have been made clearer, and it would have been interesting to watch him seriously forced to hurt a member of the Atlantis team, if only for the serious emotional consequences it would have later, and also because that seems like the sort of thing you expect to see when a villain brainwashes a hero. The stakes didn't feel high enough here for me, at least not until Ronon went into withdrawal. I give Jason the "Best Portrayal of a Drug Withdrawal" award for this show.

All in all, it was an ok episode, though. I have high hopes for this season. And, in conclusion, Dude. Jason's wig.

[operagrrl]

I agree with this. Except I didn't even notice Keller. But that Wraith was such a hammy unimposing baddie. He ruined all of the Ronon + Wraith scenes for me.

Joe's hair was really excellent tonight. I will cling to that and try to ignore Jason's horrible, horrible wig (which was exceptionally obvious tonight).

I always notice Keller and her inability to project any kind of authority.

But this wraith was awful! His high, reedy voice just... was not scary. Like, at all. I'm so thrilled he was a one off.

Joe's hair was in fine form! I actually thought the dreds looked better tonight than they did in.... 5.01 or .02... I can't remember. That's not really saying much though. In any case it looks AWFUL and Jason is so cute in short hair that I wish they would work it into cannon that the dreds come off.

[KindlyKeller]

There were a lot of good things about the episode.

I like the B-plot with Teyla, and I'm glad that they addressed her mother vs. duty quandry. I also liked all of the scenes with Woolsey, though I think he's getting along with the team way too well for it only being his second episode. They've really missed an opportunity to mine something interesting conflict.

I also applaud them for doing something to try to make Ronon interesting. This was a good idea, though it didn't come off as strongly for me as it was probably supposed to. I'd have liked to see more of the actual "breaking" of him (as crude as that sounds).

Overall, not a great episode, but it had its moments.

[Shan Bruce Lee]

This one was a great episode from start to finish. The only thing I would've liked to see different is a little more fighting from Dacascos.

I was a little dissapointed that they killed his character off too but they did it in an awesome way.

Woolsey had a lot of funny scenes - especially when he got stuck in the conference room

The preview for next week's episode looks even better. I think season 5 is off to a great start and could easily be the best season yet.

[Cautious Explorer]

» Isn't she always like that? Or was it worse in this episode?

It was about the same as usual I think. Part of the problem was my rewatching The Seed just before this one aired, so I was more prone to notice it. Also, I think at one point John was trying to get some info that might help in finding Ronon, and there she went with the pause, pause, pause. I guess she was really worried about the time element.

[RodneyIsGodney]

I also thought it was funny when they showed Rodney in the bathtub at the end.

Funny? I thought he looked cute all covered in bubbles!'*squee*

[ladyjanus]

Dude, Jason's wig. It looks SOOOOOOOOOOOOO bad.

Remember some of the butt ugly muskrat pelts they put on RL in the beginning? Wigs can be fixed and made to look beter...

[Jeffala]

But, umm... can someone explain to me how they got around the fact that the whole reason Ronon was a runner was because the Wraith can't feed on him? They clearly showed life being sucked out of him.

It was never stated or implied that he was immune to feeding by the Wraith.

Next time I need to open a door, I'm going to stand there flailing my arms wildly.

Hell, I do that already.

I thought this episode was great. Here's some of the things I liked:

• Woolsey is more comfortable in a suit

Though it did look ill-fitting.

I thought Woolsey was really good and funny on this episode. I only wish that the music he was listening to at the end was the opera he sang on Star Trek Voyager. Now that would have been cool.

O, Soave Fanciulla? The one he sang with The Diva?

But that Wraith was such a hammy unimposing baddie. He ruined all of the Ronon + Wraith scenes for me.

Nerd Wraith. Not everybody can be one of the cool kids.

[Shan Bruce Lee]

One thing on which I was unclear: who cut off the Wraith's hand, Ronon or Tyre? When we saw the pledge of Ronon's loyalty, I thought he was faking it like a bad porn star, but if he was faking it, then the later scene with Sheppard in the isolation chamber doesn't make sense, nor does the extended fight with Tyre. However, I don't recall Tyre having a sword on him, so Ronon's the more logical choice. Momentary loyalty glitch brought on by having both of his commanders in conflict with each other, perhaps?

It was Tyre and he did have a sword. It's the one that Shep gave to Ronon at the end of the sp.

[Stormtrooper]

:'( Variety Hour Atlantis. No wonder Woosley fits so well. Be careful Rodney!

[Briangate78]

What a great episode. Jason Momoa really took this one by the horns. I just loved how Sheppard and co show how much they really care for Ronon. This episode showed how strong these friends have become. I loved the twist at the end when Tyre becomes like a double agent and frees Sheppard's team. The ending was truly remarkable when Ronon is recovering it really drawed out some powerful emotions. I also loved Woolsey in this episode. He really has shown a heart but still wants to play by the rules.

[diane23]

Funny? I thought he looked cute all covered in bubbles!'*squee*

He was soo cute! Bubbles everywhere. Squee!
And Ronon whumping...that was nice.

That was a good episode. And I really liked that the addressed what Teyla is going to do. I've been pretty mad about Woolsey being in charge, but I must admit, he's growing on me. This episode gave me hope. Woolsey was cracking me up! He might not be too bad after all..
Oh, and on a side note. Sheppard has some awesome moves! Pistol in each hand.. awesome.

[The6thRace]

I actually hope the whole baby thing just fades into the background now. Ahhh, sweet sweet background.

[A Wraith Named Bob]

Sheppard has some awesome moves! Pistol in each hand.. awesome.

I also think it was cool, but didn't he shoot off a few more bullets than those pistols can hold? Sorry, pet peeve of mine.

Now Rodney owning a few Wraith with a P90 down the hallway...That was cool...