Stargate Atlantis – The Big Series Finale

(Season 5, Episode 20 – “Enemy At The Gate” – Season/Series Finale)

TV shows come and go every year. That’s just how it works. Even with that in mind, it’s been a long time since I’ve been as disappointed to see a show go as I was with Atlantis. Season five has been a fun ride, and there are certainly more tales to tell for our friends in the Pegasus galaxy. Sure, we’ll get a bit of that with the planned movie(s), but it just won’t be the same as tuning in on Friday nights to watch the next chapter.

All of that is in the rear view now, and we have a series finale to talk about. Before I sat down to watch “Enemy At The Gate,” I was thinking about what would make for a great series finale. We’ll get to that list after the jump, but the good news is that the show delivered on just about everything I was looking for to wrap things up.

So, what do you look for in a series finale? I think the stakes have to be big. A Wraith hive ship, one that’s been totally pimped even, orbiting Earth certainly qualifies. There should also be a nice collection of old friends. Here, along with the usual suspects, we found Todd (Christopher Heyerdahl), Colonel Caldwell (Mitch Pileggi), Colonel Ellis (Michael Beach), Major Marks (Martin Christopher), Walter (Gary Jones), Colonel Carter (Amanda Tapping), Dr. Beckett (Paul McGillion), Kavanaugh (Ben Cotton), and Major Davis (Colin Cunningham). That’s a pretty solid list.

Of course, being a finale, there should also be some closure. This one is complicated for Atlantis, because of the movies. We need an end to the story, but there has to be a little something to point us in that new direction. The complication was handled well. The Wraith were defeated, the good guys won, and now we have Atlantis parked off the coast of California, waiting for the movie. All things considered, it was about as good a finale as I could have hoped for.

Getting to the story, things got off to a great start when Todd popped up on the screen. That was one of those questions that needed to be answered, and I’m so happy with the answer we got. It’s good to know that Todd survived his walkabout, and will be available to cause more trouble when the movies start rolling in.  His scenes with Sheppard were great, as usual. My favorite bit of it was Sheppard’s threat. “If I find out you’re playing us … not gonna wait for authorization. There isn’t going to be any paper work. I’m just going to kill you.”

The more telling line though, might have been, “Every time we get involved with you, I feel like I’m walking around with a live grenade in my pocket.” It really sums up just what makes Todd such a great character. Over his run on the series, he’s been so many different things to the Atlantis crew that we find ourselves in the same boat as Sheppard. You really never know what he is going to do.

Of course, Todd also laid the groundwork for what was the major part of the story, the superhive. Hive SS? Hive v.2? Whatever you want to call it, it was awesome. A ‘nearly impenetrable’ ship that was worthy of being at the center of the finale. The power of the ship was driven home quickly, as the Daedulus was swatted away almost as an afterthought. As unstoppable as the ship was though, the fact that this was the finale had me feeling pretty well assured that it wasn’t long for this reality.

The other side of the finale factor coin did come into play in another part of the episode though. With the movies already planned, I really couldn’t bring myself to believe that Sheppard would actually have to go through with the suicide mission. However, I didn’t believe that everyone was safe. There have been just enough shocking deaths on the show that when Ronon died, I bought in. Big stakes, no Ronon in the movies.

We now know that, as often happens in these situations, the death didn’t stick. So, we should have the full team back together when the movie rolls around. And with any luck, we’ll get to see them doing battle from on board the General Hammond. That little bit was a nice nod to Don S. Davis, who was as much a part of the Stargate universe as anyone.

Now, it wasn’t quite perfect. I had two small complaints about the episode. First, there really was enough story here to make this a two part finale. Things did feel a bit rushed on occasion, and given what this episode means for the series, a grander scope may have been warranted. And second, that bit at the end with Banks. That just didn’t seem right. They really haven’t put in the work with a Ronon/Banks relationship to necessitate any kind of wrap up there. And really, that scene works so much better if Teyla is coming to visit and she walks him out to the big send off.

Granted, Sharon Taylor is a gorgeous girl, and I like the Banks character. But they kind of hit us with the Kennedy stick there. You remember Kennedy, from Buffy The Vampire Slayer, right? Season seven, all of a sudden she was piping up at the big group meetings, taking screen time away from Xander, Willow, and Giles, without doing anything to warrant it. I’m still grinding that axe, and will probably be just a bit cross about the Banks bit for some time to come.

Those are rather minor gripes though, in what was by all other measures a great sendoff for Atlantis. I’m really sorry to see it go, but glad to see it doing so on a high note. Thanks to everyone for playing along, here and at the other site. Let’s get together this summer and see what Stargate: Universe has to offer.

Clacked by Brett Love
on Jan 09, 2009 @ 22:02 EST5EDT