'The Hunt' (216) General Discussion

[MattSilver 3k]

Now, this episode is pure Mallozzi, and I have my issues with his SGU episodes, and thus, The Hunt is no exception, though I did like it still.

First off, I loved the Greer stuff - with the last three episodes combined with this one, we've got a solid character arc for him and his superman complex, and I like that he got his groove back there at the end by bagging a space deer. I liked that TJ got some more soldier-y moments too, and her telling off Reynolds for being such a defeatist was neat, and well deserving of a nervous "Yes ma'am" from the guy. Varro was good, and putting the Lucian Alliance in without shoehorning them in was good. It's good to see nearly a full season of development on that front come to this.

I dug the Volker/Park thing because it was honest and it didn't come out of nowhere - hints of it back in Malice more than anything, which I picked up on there. Shame it ended how it did but I am so unsurprised it's not funny.

Now, the issues: One is the fact we lost like five people out there in the hunt, and it didn't feel as impactful. When we lost Gorman to the water bug wind thingie a season and a half ago, it felt impactful because it affected Young despite it being an obvious redshirt situation. Every damn death similar to that has been felt so far - from Gorman in Water, Rivers in Incursion and the soldier lost in Malice. But this feels too throw-away, like an old school Stargate situation, and it didn't fit here in SGU. While the lost two Lucians were mentioned there at the end, it just felt... dismissed. Mallozzi, in other words.

Now, my other problem: The Eli/Rush thing. I loved that last week Eli was beyond pissed at him, and Rush seemed to feel it there at the end. But this week? Nope, Rush decides to be cartoon-y and trap Brody in a stasis pod to teach Eli a lesson. While I can have a good laugh at that, it didn't feel like the natural way to go on from the dark place last week left us on. Like, at all. Again, it felt dismissive and iffy for SGU, and it seems clear that the intention was to not bother with Eli having any more rebellious thoughts against Rush despite the fact he is completely right to, because oh ho ho let's all have a laugh about Brody and Eli being inferior to Rush and as such we should skirt over the serious issue with humour. Didn't sit right.

I still liked the episode, in the same way I liked Space, the Incursions, Awakening and Resurgence... But I don't love them, and I don't love this, mostly for the Eli/Rush thing. Resurgence actually made me think a bit more positively about Mallozzi's writing because of the Eli/Rush scene there, but here in The Hunt it's all humour and un-SGU-y resolution to what could've been the start of a darker path for Eli or another rival with Rush in a different way to Young.

I don't know, maybe it'll come back around in one of the last episodes, but I'm not expecting it to at all.

[m626]

Nice episode.

Volker's responses to the guy in pain (I forget his name) was too funny. At first, I thought Volker treated him that way because he felt that guy wouldn't give up his kidney and held a grudge but it became clear it was all about Lisa. Too bad he has the "shoulder to cry on" label.

[AndSoItBegins]

too bad this quality of drama was not present in season 1

Season two is definitely better (as it should be). But SGU season one was still quality drama nonetheless and gets props for the chances it took. Most importantly none of these strengthening of bonds and relationships amongst the SGU characters would come across so splendidly if it were not for the conflicts and struggles in season one. The people aboard the Destiny had to EARN each other's trust. It didn't come over night. It came across more realistically, more organically. Kudos to the writers for that. And kudos to the writers for having the majority of this second season all lined out before the first ep of season two even aired. They had a plan for how they wanted to tell this overall story. Even if it didn't work in terms of generating big ratings I don't think there is any shame in their attempt. Nor do they deserved to be constantly bombarded by Stargate franchise absolutists who hate anyone messing with the formula of their beloved mix of mindless adventure stories, inconsequential character growth and sophomoric humor that, to some of us at least, weighed down Atlantis. These same folks writing for SGU wrote for the previous series so they didn't forget anything. They simply wanted a different approach. No crime in that. If people didn't like it they had a right to not watch it. But for them to react as if SGU raped their childhoods (thanks, Aint It Cool News) and to then go on childish rampages was a bit much.

And some folks, after seeing an ep of SGU that they admit to liking, have to stop with the nonsense of saying it "finally felt like Stargate, blah, blah, blah." Not only is it tired and worn out, it’s also inaccurate. I watched enough of SG1 and SGA to know that SGU feels nothing like those series (for better or worse). SGU's approach is always more realistic and always more character oriented. Some directors who worked on the first two series have even said as much. And while enjoying the previous two series they nonetheless liked the type of approach too. It felt fresh to them and they seemed to believe the franchise was progressing forward by going in this route. I guess they overestimated their fanbase’s likelihood of enjoying that journey. Oh, well.

[Wolf O'Donnell]

One thing I like is that we get to see them actively exploring the ship. I always felt they just stopped exploring Atlantis after awhile so this was cool for me to see.

[themeatcleaver]

i too loved seeing them exploring the ship, i still want to know what was in that crate that eli opened!

i almost died laughing at that ridiculously subtle smirk that Rush had after Eli told him that he was grabbing something to eat!

[ns2]

As much as it's funny to see Brody stuck in the Pod, but Rush basically used him as a lab rat without his consent

[Kanten]

So...what about Koz? The end of the episode seemed to imply that Varro was the last of the LA group, but we haven't seen a trace of him since early in the season.

[AndSoItBegins]

I forgot to add as much as I love the science team was it really worth getting rid of TJ's flashbacks just so we could have more fun and games involving Volker, Brody, Eli, Rush, etc.? Heck, its not as if Rush doesn't get enough screen time as it is, right? A look at TJ's past and or her family was overdue IMO. Now we'll never get it.

Another thing....did anyone outside of perhaps Scott not realize that Greer and Park were kinda intimate? Because if so it was a bit inappropriate for Chloe to be trying to play matchmaker with Volker and Park. It is ironic Chloe giving Volker the type of advice that no one gave Eli regarding her.

[KEK]

I think their discovery probably sets something up for later. I don't think they'd have just randomly stuck that in there.

[Space Gate12]

I want to see what's in those boxes Eli was looking in.

[Detox]

See, I've always had a problem with these kinds of episodes.

They seemed so intent on saving two people, but in the process, about 5-6 others were killed, and no one seems to care at all.

Marsden is killed off with no fanfare at all, and saved is a nameless marine who I doubt we'll ever hear from again.

[LeonK]

Another time I'm in the minority, it appears.

While I liked this episode better than last week's episode, this ep. still fell short for me.

Why wouldn't Eli's first thought be that Rush might be screwing around with him from the control room? He knows he didn't push a button, and yet bam the door closes. Then a little later Rush conveniently calls asking what they're up to....uh....hello, giant lightbulb should ahve went off over Eli's head. While the premise is sort of amusing(Rush playing a mean joke) the fact that Eli couldn't pick up on the obviousness of it annoyed me. Further, as someone mentioned, Rush is supposedly saying people should be cautious, but then uses a guy as a lab rat without so much as a second thought? Yeah, ok.

Also really disliked that they just passed over the room with the crates. Destiny exploration has been severely lacking, imo, the entire length of the show, and so to finally see some was nice, only to have a room full of who knows what fall by the wayside yet again. Sorry, but I don't buy that at all. Finding out there's another corridor around the bend of the hallway isn't more valuable than finding out what's in the umpteen boxes in the room you already discovered. You assess what you have in the room you've found, then move on.

The Hunt also dragged a bit for me, and I felt if they were just going to off a bunch of people they could have done it sooner and spent more screen time on other things. And how is making fire a sign of intelligence to the creatures, but people walking around with clothing, flashlights, and weapons that go boom not?

Oh, and what makes Rush such a playboy-know-it-all compared to Volker? Would have made more sense if that speech came from someone else, who is far better looking and far more likely to be a ladies man.

Meh, anyhow, I know it's easier to complain than to praise, so I'll just reiterate that I liked the episode more than last week's, but there were still enough things that bugged me that overall it fell short of what I'd call a "good" episode.

[MattSilver 3k]

See, I've always had a problem with these kinds of episodes.

They seemed so intent on saving two people, but in the process, about 5-6 others were killed, and no one seems to care at all.

Marsden is killed off with no fanfare at all, and saved is a nameless marine who I doubt we'll ever hear from again.

This. So much.

While the premise is sort of amusing(Rush playing a mean joke) the fact that Eli couldn't pick up on the obviousness of it annoyed me.

This.

Oh so much that.

[Dakota Bob]

I admit, it is quite enjoyable to watch Rush trolling Eli and Brody from the bridge

[Flibby]

Why wouldn't Eli's first thought be that Rush might be screwing around with him from the control room? He knows he didn't push a button, and yet bam the door closes. Then a little later Rush conveniently calls asking what they're up to....uh....hello, giant lightbulb should ahve went off over Eli's head. While the premise is sort of amusing(Rush playing a mean joke) the fact that Eli couldn't pick up on the obviousness of it annoyed me. Further, as someone mentioned, Rush is supposedly saying people should be cautious, but then uses a guy as a lab rat without so much as a second thought? Yeah, ok.

I imagine that he decided he wanted to go mess with the stasis stuff out of spite for Rush, so when his spiteful decision bit him in the ass, his first thought was like "oh crap what have I done?" not reasoning that perhaps he's being messed with, even though he has no reason to think that Rush knows he's there. Also, I got the impression that it was a little while after Rush activated the stasis chamber that he radioed him, rather than right away.

Also really disliked that they just passed over the room with the crates. Destiny exploration has been severely lacking, imo, the entire length of the show, and so to finally see some was nice, only to have a room full of who knows what fall by the wayside yet again. Sorry, but I don't buy that at all. Finding out there's another corridor around the bend of the hallway isn't more valuable than finding out what's in the umpteen boxes in the room you already discovered. You assess what you have in the room you've found, then move on.

The impression that I got, which seems to me to be what they intended, is that the stuff in that boring storage room was just more boring machinery that they've seen plenty of for the past 6 or so months since they came onboard. Why would they be interested in looking through boring boxes, when there's a big, shiny room of excitement around the corner, especially given the point of that plot?

The Hunt also dragged a bit for me, and I felt if they were just going to off a bunch of people they could have done it sooner and spent more screen time on other things. And how is making fire a sign of intelligence to the creatures, but people walking around with clothing, flashlights, and weapons that go boom not?

I felt that that plot flowed correctly. I believe that they viewed fire as a sign of intelligence because it was something they are familiar with, rather than scary boom-sticks.

Oh, and what makes Rush such a playboy-know-it-all compared to Volker? Would have made more sense if that speech came from someone else, who is far better looking and far more likely to be a ladies man.

Well, he's pretty old, so I imagine he knows quite a bit about a lot of things other than science. Also, he was married. Also, he seemed to speak from experience, despite his condescending tone.