#Wraith Hive Ship

[spockvarietyhour]

Stargate Atlantis "Enemy at the Gate"

[bed-wed-behead-your-fave]

A wraith hive ship from Stargate Atlantis

[lightthewaybackhome]

Underground (S1: E7)

R: Maybe we should offer a sense of humor in trade.

S: Sure. They can have yours.

R, forced laugh: Oh please, my sides. You slay me.

S: I'm thinking about it.

Roll opening credits.

"They have the spirit of explorers and the hearts of warriors." - Teyla

This is one of my favorite lines. It sums up the Atlantis team so well.

What struck me this time was how hard it would be to be in Elizabeth's position. She has to trust her people. Every mission goes great until the mission starts. They just never know what might happen when they walk through the gate, and Elizabeth has to trust the mission leaders to make wise decisions and get everyone home, even when things go sideways.

Also, the Genii kinda remind me of the Wraith, always a plan within a plan within a plan. Thankfully, Sheppard is good at chess.

[sga-mcshep-4ever]

"They're bodies, human bodies." "They have chambers like this on hive ships. I've never seen one so large before." "I don't understand." "The Wraith cocoon humans. They keep their bodies in suspended animation, so later they can… Yeah." "I think we just figured out what this ship is for." "It's a supply ship, on its way to feed the Wraith who were laying siege to Atlantis."

[dr-futbol-blog]

The Siege I, Pt. 1

The Siege is a three-part story containing the two-part finale of the first season, the resolution of which takes place in the first episode of the second season. But it's actually the second and third episodes that make a double episode where the first is really a self-contained story that is still just preparation for the culmination of the A-plot of the season. And in this episode, of course, McKay and Sheppard are once again separated because they have to come up with ever more flimsy excuses as to why the two of them need to be kept from being alone together on screen. Only this time there's a reason for it.

The episode begins, like so many do, with a meeting in the conference room. The room is filled to the brim with both scientists and military, they've brought in a screen for show-and-tell, and it seems like this is McKay's show. He is giving a presentation on their current situation to all gathered, all eyes naturally on him. Teyla is not attending the meeting and it is interesting that McKay, who was absent for the events of the latter part of the previous episode with no explanation, mentions her by name right off the bat as though he has at the very least been filled in on everything that happened when he wasn't there. In fact, he begins by referring the very last thing Teyla said when Sheppard, Weir and Beckett were present by her hospital bed, so either McKay has heard all of this from Teyla herself later on, or from one of the people that were present:

McKay: Not only has Teyla been able to ascertain that the wraith are more interested in Earth than Atlantis, which is... you know, terrifying, she realized that the hive ships will go right past the only surviving LaGrange point satellite. Zelenka: The last of what we assume were dozens of defense satellites destroyed during the Ancients' last stand with the wraith. McKay: Yes, yes, yes--the point is, we think we can use it to our advantage. Sheppard: I thought you said it was dead.

Sheppard seems to remember what McKay told him months ago. Not for the first time, not for the last time. Perhaps he just found what McKay said in The Defiant One (S01E11) important enough to file into memory. Or he just has a really good memory. Or he just really cares about things McKay says. Also, this is an inside reference. He is referring to something only the two of them would know. He is bringing up a memory shared by the two of them. His comment is also pretty pointless so it seems like it's intended purpose was just to get McKay's attention back to himself because he had wandered too far into the room and away from him for Sheppard's comfort. But let's put a pin on the first thing he says in this episode because it is relevant for the final scene.

And again we may note that Sheppard is not resting his arm on the table where it would make a barrier between himself and McKay (in fact, and this sounds really saccharine, but like a flower turning toward the sun he juts out his face toward McKay as the moves). Sheppard isn't really resting his chin on his fist, he is once more rubbing the corner of his jaw in this auto-erotic fashion. And as soon as McKay starts moving, is gaze follows him. He's not looking at Zelenka, who is talking. He is watching McKay.

Also notice how McKay is impatient with Zelenka, they've clearly been spending so much time together in the lab that he is just done and has no forbearance to listen to him even though Zelenka is just trying to explain things that McKay left unexplained to the audience at large. He does not appreciate being interrupted by what he sees as inane comments. Whereas while Sheppard's comment had no purpose other than to connect with McKay by reminding him of the thing he said back when, McKay answers him in a completely different tone, a hint of excitement in his voice. He also leaves what he says open, giving Sheppard a clear space to say something back to him, perhaps even expected and wanted to hear what Sheppard had to say about what he said (because the two of them have this on-going conversation that may jump from topic to topic but is only ever on pause), but he is again interrupted by Zelenka.

Now, where McKay was standing while giving his presentation, Sheppard had clearly chosen the spot to sit that is closest to him and from where he could not even see the screen (it's possible that the smaller screens in front of everyone is showing the same thing as the main screen but what even is the point of the big screen that being the case?). He did have a really good view of McKay's backside from that vantage point, however.

Sheppard is not in his fatigues but is wearing a black shirt, less formal than his uniform. In the previous episode, we saw him wearing the shirt when he was practicing the Athosian martial art with Teyla so it's possible that he attended this meeting straight from doing something else. All the other military personnel are in their uniforms. It's also notable that he wears this black shirt for most of the episode so either we are meant to start thinking about him as "the man in black" (having just seen the Johnny Cash poster in the previous episode) because of what he does there at the end, or there is some other reason for which he eschews wearing the full uniform at this time. Sheppard also seemed to be lost in thought when we joined the meeting, distracted or zoned out, and it wasn't until McKay had walked further away to stand in front of Zelenka that he reacts to what McKay originally said.

Zelenka also manages to keep Sheppard and McKay from devolving into discussing the topic just between themselves, also clarifying to the audience points that McKay didn't deem worth explaining:

McKay: It is, but we think we've learned enough about how it works to bring it back. Zelenka: If we are right about what is wrong with it. McKay: Yes, of course if we're right about what's wrong with it! But if we're right, and it's just out of power, the Wraith have simply been ignoring it. Zelenka: Our preliminary estimates indicate a single naqahdah generator would be enough to bring it back online.

McKay walks back toward the screen and Sheppard seems to have a hard time drawing his eyes away from him. He is also doing this nervous motion with his fist, tightening and loosening it. Ford starts talking next to him and it takes him a moment to do the polite thing and turn his head to follow the conversation happening to his side. And even when it seems like Sheppard was asking Zelenka a question (who, again, was the one doing the talking), he looks up at McKay half-way through the question indicating that it was meant for him and not Zelenka. Or, he asked Zelenka the question but actually wanted the answer from McKay. His attention is on McKay.

Zelenka: Because those systems were designed to be powered by the Zero Point Module and the satellite isn't. Sheppard: And you think it's powerful enough to take out a Wraith hive ship? McKay: According to the Ancient database, it should be able to take out all three when fully charged.

McKay is looking hella good up there in his tight T-shirt showing off his biceps, though. Can't really blame the man for wanting to keep his eyes on this. Even Doctor Beefcake in the background is watching McKay. Whether it is because it seems like they finally have something to combat the wraith with, but McKay also sounds rather pleased as he is talking about the satellite to Sheppard. And so, in spite of Zelenka's valiant efforts, it does not take long at all for McKay and Sheppard to fall into their bubble and start talking to just each other even with the whole host of people present around them like they just suddenly shut all of them out. And even though they do this frequently, usually it is in smaller, more intimate meetings among people they both know very well. Here they are, doing the same song and dance, surrounded by all manner of people:

McKay: Keep in mind that the Ancient technology was far superior -- they only lost the war because they were vastly outnumbered. Sheppard: Well, we're vastly outnumbered!

Now, the episode seems to call back to The Defiant One in more ways than just the Ancient defensive satellite introduced in it now being one of the main features. While Sheppard was teaching McKay how to fly a jumper, "this baby," McKay made a reference to 'space pilot parlance'. Here, he makes a similar reference: "In military parlance, surprise… is an element on our side."

It's cute in that he is so obviously trying to impress Sheppard finishing his presentation with this saying but he realizes half-way through that he messed it up. What he says makes perfect sense but it is obviously not a known saying. Given that McKay has been thinking about leadership lately, it is of course possible that he has tried to brush up on military parlance and tactics, and we certainly see him improve in the use of weapons and to try to e.g., learn the tactical hand-signs--try being the operative word.

Now, the US Army Field Manual (which someone must have had with them) does refer to surprise, "Surprise can decisively shift the balance of combat power." McKay could be trying to refer to this. He might be referring to Sun Tzu's Art of War where he wrote: "Surprise will lead to victory. Those who are skilled in producing surprises will win." But most of all, what he says sounds a lot like what the character Zapp Branigan, the dashing captain that is a parody of James T. Kirk from the show Futurama (a "sister show" or companion series to The Simpsons, which was frequently referenced in SG-1) says: "The key to victory is the element of surprise." The line was used in the episode War is the H Word, which is a parody of several war in space stories and hence would be a fitting reference.

Regardless, McKay is embarrassed by botching up the quote. We don't see Sheppard's reaction to this, albeit he undoubtedly had one, where Weir decides to save him by sticking to business:

Weir: What do you need? McKay: The satellite's fifteen hours away by Puddle Jumper. I recommend that we put together a small crew--say myself, Grodin and a pilot. Sheppard: I'll go. Weir: No, Miller can handle it. Major, I need you to keep searching for alternate Alpha sites, just in case this fails.

Sheppard feigns a sigh like he's begrudgingly willing to go on this mission, twist his arm if you must, which might have had a better effect if he hadn't started talking before McKay had even finished saying he needed a pilot. McKay had also just pointed out that the trip takes 15 hours by puddle jumper so it appears as though he did not find the previous 15 hours he spent with McKay going both ways tedious. Sheppard really wanted to go and as Weir tells him no, he looks really upset about this. His face falls immediately. His first expression was feigned, the second one is visceral.

Clearly, he has decided that starting a civil strife in the middle of war preparations is a counter-productive thing to do and hence he defers to Weir's leadership when it really should be the other way around at this point. So he accepts her decision but you can see it on his face that letting McKay go on this quest alone bothers him. Make no mistake, he wanted to go with him. He did not volunteer because he has nothing better to do or because he's hankering for some action or because he might as well go.

There's an actual shadow that passes over him as he's having to think this over.

Weir also reminds him that this mission McKay is taking on is far from safe and Sheppard is clearly having thoughts relating to this. And notice that he does not respond to Weir. He doesn't say anything to Weir "expressing her need" which seemed to be like an order but still not an actual order. He's not acknowledging it, not even with an expression. He looks away from her. He seems to be seriously thinking over whether he actually will go along with this and whether he wants to be taking any orders from her at all at this point. Sure, finding another Alpha Site is important but for him everything that isn't McKay is a side quest.

Now, when people start filing out of the room, Sheppard hangs back. He draws the corners of his mouth back but it is not a smile so much as a grimace; he seems to be gritting his teeth, still unsure of what he should do here.* Weir also stays back to say some private words to McKay when everyone else has gone, and Sheppard waits for even her to leave before he gets up to go. He clearly waited to have a private moment with McKay, brief and stolen though it is. He also walks really close to him as he passes.

Weir: Well, Rodney, I don't mean to put any undue pressure, but at this moment, that satellite is the only thing standing between the Wraith and Atlantis. Sheppard: No undue pressure...

While all he does is repeat Weir's words to McKay, they still say so much more. He is not saying it to be flippant, he actually means the words that Weir just used as a platitude. The sarcastic tone he uses communicates that the two of them are a team that just got screwed by her. He reminds McKay that he really wanted to be there for him, to go there with him. That he knows there is much too much put on McKay's shoulders and he had wanted to carry some of it for him but now won't be able. That they both have heavy responsibilities but they are ultimately doing all of this for each other.

McKay files out of the room seeming to follow Sheppard. He is also not happy to be leaving without him. He just told all of them that they have so little time that they need to make every moment count but he didn't know that this, and what ever took place once they left the meeting room, would be all the time he has with Sheppard. They don't meet again for the rest of the episode.

Continued in Pt. 2

-* This could also be an expression of of pain as we have seen him display signs of something smarting him on two other occasions when he has had to get up from a seating position (Before I Sleep, The Brotherhood). The reason why this might be I leave for your imagination but I'll also draw attention to Sheppard's body-language with regards to McKay's line about "really slamming into it" in The Gift. Something like this could well be the natural result of one being well-endowed and the other in a perpetual state of hurry, but there may also be a number of reasons why he needs it to hurt, even beyond "you torture yourself every day, John." It makes you feel alive, tests the limits of pleasure, allows you to remember and carry the memory of them in your body through the lingering ache.

[sga-owns-my-soul]

Fic Idea Adoption!

i have way too many ideas for fics and i know i won't ever get around to writing them all so i'm putting some ideas up for adoption!! i may or may not write these eventually, but they're too good of ideas to leave sitting in my notes app forever, so i'm releasing them to the void! anyone and everyone is welcome to use them, and feel free to be as ambiguous with the prompts as you want! no particular order but nsfw ideas are at the bottom for anyone who wants to avoid them!

(if you do use any of these, i would love to read the fic!! you definitely do not have to but please feel free to send me anything you write off this list!!)

-john takes rodney to earths moon

-john and rodney find the ancient equivalent of speed. they do Everything

-au where ronon gets earth to repeal dadt bc john tells him it's why he can't be with rodney and ronon goes I Must Fix This (he enlists teyla and lorne and maybe cadman)

-rodney asks ronon to go with john to earth (outcast coda)

-rodney goes on bill nye saves the world after stargate declassification

-evans biggest fear is having to shoot john (and maybe getting a promotion bc of it?) and john finds out

-rodney’s ‘torture too hideous and intimate to recount’ is him being tortured, just for them to realize that torturing his team is a better way to break him

-teyla living out ‘the chosen one’ trope

-what happens to sora after the eye

-au where meredith(female!rodney) comes to atlantis instead of rod and not only is rodney horribly disturbed, he’s furious (and strangely confused) as to why everyone apparently likes him more as a woman

-todd is weirdly obsessed with this strange human he meets, and is determined to get closer to him

-the team is most excited about catching up with todd when they get the confirmation atlantis is going back to pegasus

-everyone complains about rodney’s moods bc no one can complain about the infinitely worse in every way sheppard bad moods, that make everyone on the base wish they were on a hive ship being eaten by two wraith at once

-au where ronon ends up on athos at the same time the wraith come and he sneaks through the gate with the intention of just sneaking away on the next planet but whoops it’s atlantis (ronon pov)

-rodney keeps a memorial for every single scientist lost in his lab and radek shows it to new scientists who start complaining about rodney not caring and risking their lives

-reaper au where’s he’s fed the fuck up with these two stupid men who never actually die when they’re supposed to and it’s more annoying than anything now bc he still needs to show up

-au carson comes to atlantis and is HORRIFIED by becketts retrovirus research and the hoffan drug bc “does the hippocratic oath mean NOTHING here???”

-au where rodney can’t admit to himself what john means to him, until something happens that brings all the alternate rodney’s that have lost their johns to atlantis, and they all fall apart when they see john alive, and john and rodney have to have a Conversation (mcshep? maybe ambiguous? idk yet)

-rodney sees john as three separate entities: the Colonel, who is Professional Important Official Man; sheppard, who is his friend/team lead that he hangs out with and goes on missions with; and john, who he’s always seeming to have very intimate moments with that make him question a lot of how he feels

-early days in the city, elizabeth is sick of the marines shitting on the scientists for not being tough and the scientists for shitting on the marines for not being smart so she makes them try to solve a fake crisis from the other side and everyone is like aww shit this is harder than it looks

-that thing where tough men pretend they don’t care much about someone but then the person gets hurt and Tough Guy go a little feral and then holds them close and whisper pet names (sweetheart, baby, darling, etc) but it’s john and/or ronon after rodney gets injured

-the more important something is to john, the harder it is for him to talk about it, and rodney starts to realize how hard it is for john to talk about what rodney means to him

-a bunch of au sheppards get brought to atlantis and one on them is terrified of flying

-rodney has always said biology was beneath him, but then ford almost died, and was… different, from the wraith. and rodney knew he had to find a way to help ford, maybe find a way to fix his mental problems while keeping the physical benefits. rodney and carson find a way to save ford and sheppard is so thankful he kisses them both

nsfw ideas:

-ronon suggests some planets for trading when they get low on supplies that have an interesting trade system. it seems too good to be true and they wonder why telya hasn't taken them until they find out that they trade goods for sex

-au where john is hired as a spy for atlantis and he seduces people in pegasus to get intel for the city

-sometimes rodney just grabs john (by the hair, throat, back of the neck, chin, etc) and asks who he belongs to and john instantly melts

-rodney decides to be a tease on a mission and teyla and ronon think mckay is just really pissing sheppard off when he pulls mckay away for “privacy” but really he’s just super horny and wants to fuck (or, teyla and ronon don’t realize that their fighting is foreplay)

[adriankyte-writes]

Share your head-canon time!!

Allright SGA fans and fanfic writers.

Wraith in zero G combat...GO!

K, so wraith live on spaceships. Born and die, only hit planets to cull or hibernate. The rest of the time they are in space. We know their ships have gravity, but what happens if it is damaged and they lose gravity? They fight a lot, both against humans and against each other, so zero g combat is a thing yes? I don't remember a single episode of Atlantis where the wraith were in zero gravity. (Logistically the hair probably would have been a nightmare.

Personally, I think that since they are space dwelling they have adapted to incorporate zero g into their combat style. When boarding they intentionally sabotage gravity generators (yes this will be in a fic with more details...eventually.) Because they have a hive mind they are able to communicate where they want to move and basically swarm through the corridors of a ship kind of like a school of fish. The ones closest to the walls brace on the wall and the others basically springboard off of them and spread the momentum propelling the group through the air.

What are your thoughts? Tangentially do wraith do spacewalks? You would think so, but we've never seen anything that looks like a space suit, so how does that work.

I'm tagging folks just for fun, no pressure to answer.

@bagheerita @chaniis-atlantis @chaos-monkeyy @idkaguyorsomething @sgatazmy @all-mighty-yaoiyuri @aintgonnatakethis @annwayne @darklysnarky

[existence-is-useless]

I abandoned and deleted my fanfic where the the Jaffa nation are requested to help with the Wraith and, thanks to updating the hyper-drive engines, a fleet of Jaffa ships wage war on the Wraith. There would be scenes of Jaffa helping, what they assumed would be weak humans but, seeing their strength of will, even after most of their people were wiped out and being forced to flee their planet, they still resist the Wraith.

But the Jaffa realize just how strong the human spirit is, and the people of Pegasus began to have hope that just maybe the Wraith could be stopped. But things get worse when the Genii, who made a deal with the Travellers to help fix their ships, end up betraying them and stealing their ships. Their full plan is truly revealed. The reason they were building nukes and had so many spies over the galaxy, and built their cities underground, wasn't because they wanted to blow up Wraith ships. Their true plan was to send the nukes to every known planet, which their spies would be able to learn all of them. Then they would fake it to make it look like their world was also bombed. With the complete extinction of every world (or so they thought but nobody knew about the space gates until the Atlantis Expedition showed up) the Wraith would have starved to extinction.

Now that they have the Traveller ships, they can implement their plans as well as launch attacks on planets with space gates. So the Jaffa now have to face a war on two fronts, stopping the Wraith and the Genii. With the possibility of extinction, the Wraith would be more open to Dr. Keller's attempt to stop the Wraiths need to feed on humans and instead survive on regular food, but that gets problematic when a Goa'uld takes possession of a Wraith queen and, with her increased mental abilities, takes over a Jaffa ship as well as several Wraith hive ships. Which starts a three-way civil war with the new Wraith, who's trying to create peace with the humans and the Jaffa, the old fashioned Wraith who are doing everything they can to take control of a Jaffa ship that could fly them to the milky way, and the new Goa'uld, who wants to bring their race back into true power using the Wraith as their new hosts.

All of which resulted in a massive space battle over a planet with Wraith, Jaffa, Genii, and Goa'uld, all fighting each other for the fate of the universe hanging in the balance.

[goodwhump-temp]

John Sheppard Whump - SG: Atlantis

1x01 Rising - Almost shot out of the sky, angry, scared/confused 1x02 Hide and Seek - Tazed, choked 1x04 38 Minutes - (Wraith bug attached to him) knocked unconscious/jolted, intense pain from multiple attempts to remove it, heart stops 1x08 Underground - Kidnapped by Chief O'brien (🤓) 1x10 The Storm - Alone, worries for friends 1x12 Defiant One - Stuck with McKay + nerd, shot, runs into forcefield (knocked down forcefully) 1x13 Hot Zone - Sacrifices self, caught in explosion 1x14 Sanctuary - Held psychologically captive, angry 1x19 The Siege pt. 2 - Shocked unconscious, almost killed by wraith, passes out, sacrificing himself ---------------------------------------------

2x01 The Siege - Fails to save a friend, guilted 2x02 the intruder - Piloting ship taken over by wraith virus, guilt/depressed about Ford 2x03 Runner - Shot/captured by Ronon, shot in the hand, increased guilt about Ford 2x05 Condemned - Jumper shot down, captured, hurts his knee (by being dumb) 2x08 Conversion - Infected with wraith retro-virus, slowly turns into a bug, shot by Ronon 2x09 Aurora - "Captured," shocked by force field multiple times 2x10 The Lost Boys - Kidnapped/stunned unconscious, threatened by the Lost Boys, poisoned, knocked down by an aggressive-drugged Ronon, guilted, Kidnapped/stunned unconscious AGAIN, weak/sore, taken by the Wraith and painfully 'willed'/torture 2x11 The Hive - Stunned unconscious, painfully willed by the queen, guilted 2x12 Epiphany - Stuck in a place where time moves faster/ages quicker/alone (6 months), evolves into bearded John, seriously injured by monster (unconscious + seriously bleeding) multiple times 2x16 Long Goodbye - Possessed by a bitter old man, shot in the shoulder, shocked unconscious and captured, painful convulsions, weak 2x17 Coup D'etat - Genii trap, collapses, captured/tied up ---------------------------------------------

3x01 No Mans Land - Captured, tired 3x03 Irresistible - The only one who isn't in love with Lucius, shot unconscious (sleeping so peacefully wtf), imprisoned 3x04 Sateda - Tranquillized unconscious, captured (+ nice talk with Tayla :)) 3x05 Progeny - Fingers in the brain torture 3x06 Real World - Angst for Weir 3x07 Common Ground - Captured by Kolya, life sucked out of him, exhausted 3x09 Phantoms - Trapped on a planet, Afghanistan PTSD, guilt about the death of another friend, apologizes a million times for literally shooting everybody 3x12 Echoes - Ears bleeding, tortured/hospitalized with equally deaf McKay 3x13 Irresponsible - Western duel against Kolya (gigachad) 3x16 Ark - Almost sucked out into space, collapses from lack O2, sacrifices himself, crashes the ship, exhausted 3x17 Sunday - Beat up by Ronon during training 3x18 Submersion - Freaked out, painfully controlled/willed by wraith lady, exhausted/sore 3x19 Vengeance - Gets in a banter fight with Michael face to face, gets smacked around by a huge bug ---------------------------------------------

4x01 Adrift pt.2 - Emotional about Weir 4x04 Doppleganger - Infected and knocked down by crystal, exhausted, in everybody's nightmares (effects relationships), really beaten up/thrown by himself, dangerously high heart rate 4x05 Travelers - Captured, beaten, threatened, shocked unconscious 4x06 Tabula Rasa - Infected, loss of memory/clueless, shocked unconscious & tied up, exhausted 4x10 This Mortal Coil - Bleeding, Ronon caused injury, captured, acts dead 4x11 Be All My Sins Remember'd - Shocked unconscious, captured 4x12 Spoils of War - Shocked unconscious, painfully willed by Wraith queen (another nice talk with Teyla) 4x15 Outcast - Dad died, emotional, choked unconscious, weak 4x20 The Last Man - Trapped in the future, walking through a rough sandstorm, collapse, weak, trapped in a building collapse ---------------------------------------------

5x01 Search and Rescue - Trapped under rubble, chunk of concrete stabbed in the abdomen, denies surgery, in pain the whole episode 5x02 Seed - Injected with experimental drug with high risk, convulsing, in serious pain, flatlines, crashes into the city, stabbed in the stomach by tentacles 5x03 Broken Ties - Punched unconscious by Ronon, captured, 5x05 Ghost in the Machine - Thrown across the room and wall, weak 5x06 The Shrine - Emotional about McKay 5x08 The Queen - Captured 5x10 First Contact - Stargate explosion 5x11 The Lost Tribe - Caught in Stargate explosion, weak, glass shards in the back 5x13 Inquisition - Knocked out 5x14 The Prodigal - Hanging off a building, badly beaten up by Michael 5x15 Remnants - Abducted, knocked unconscious, beaten, arm chopped off 5x19 Vegas - Dies (Alternate reality)

[autistic-crypt1d]

My favorite SGA episodes:

S1 E10 & 11 - The Storm & The Eye

Bro this episode is so cool I cannot even begin to describe it anyway other than AJSNDJSKSKFJ. First of all THE DRAMA, I mean, the way they set the scenery up for these episodes is so good. The coming storm, the wind picking up, the crashing waves, empty city. The bacon conversation between the 2 guards right before the Genii come in is hilarious and I love it. The fact that Sheppard is left as the sole person who can retake Atlantis and save Rodney and Elizabeth is so intense. The way Rodney and him work so seamlessly even while entirely separated is just beautiful, I mean, he immediately knows he somehow has to warn Sheppard of what they're after. The way he slickly leans on the intercom knowing Sheppard will take care of it, AHHH. Not only is every single scene of Sheppard running around sabotaging shit and taking out the Genii who come after him absolutely enthralling, but the emotion he displays when Kolya tells him he's killed Elizabeth, the rage. I cannot get over him yelling over the walkie, completely ignoring the torrential amounts of rain and wind bombarding him. He is a badass and everyone knows it.

I'm just constantly in love with the moments where we're shown just how brave and selfless Rodney is capable of being, how he really is inside. I mean, dude stands between Kolya with his gun, a man he knows will kill, and Elizabeth, AHHH. Not to mention, he's always hilarious even in these situations I mean, "Oh would you look at this?! That is just never gonna be useful again!" (And Sheppard knowing that he was absolutely gonna whine about that). Rodney is a drama queen through and through but I love him.

I also thoroughly love the fact that Rodney put up that danger sign and Sheppard is just like "yup, that'll work".

Rodney's arrogance in the face of danger is always so entertaining, but what I love more is how his team members are always the ones trying desperately to get the person like 2 seconds away form murdering him, not to. Like the way Elizabeth, this tiny woman, grabs onto Kolya as he's about to throw McKay off the platform while he's continuing to sass him is so funny. Then it's immediately wholesome as she runs over to him after he's released.

Teyla, Carson (poor Carson), and Ford all meet up with Sheppard just in time for the last grounding rod to be separated and everyone on Atlantis realizing there's only one place to go and everyone, both sides are going to be there, THE INTENSITY DUDE.

I'm not a fan of Sora, but I have to say, the hallway scene when she confronts Teyla, WOW. I mean the intensity of emotion she displays, the blind anger??? That combined with the fact that Teyla doesn't blink an eye once. She knows she can take her down if she has to, but she doesn't and that is what is so badass. Her priority getting Carson to safety, she has nothing to prove to Sora.

And finally, the gate scene where the Genii evacuate and only Kolya is left standing in front of the portal, Dr. Weir held as a human shield. Kolya makes one fatal mistake, thinking that John Sheppard would miss. He takes him out (temporarily unfortunately), releasing Elizabeth, Teyla and Carson get to safety, and Rodney fuckin McKay saves the day in spectacular fashion as always. A beautiful, absolutely thrilling set of episodes.

S1 E19 & 20 / S2 E1 - Siege pt. 1, 2 & 3

Part one is heartbreaking, I mean we start off so hopeful with the discovery of the satellite. They've done the recon, they know what's coming and when and the satellite is in the perfect position and best of all, the wraith think it's still broken. Everything is coming together, right up until the point Peter gets stuck on the station, there's no time left and they all know it. Even in the way they say they'll see eachother afterwards, they know that's not true. Peter knows he is about to die and he goes to work anyway and he takes out a hive ship. This is a moment of pure joy and hope for everyone, they actually destroyed a hive ship. There's hope again, hope that they can actually win this fight, but it's short lived. The satellite malfunctions, the circuits overloaded and it can't fire again. Rodney tries to come back for him but it's too late, the hive ships know that he's there. It was always going to be too late but that doesn't ease the devastation of watching the satellite be destroyed. It doesn't ease the loss of their friend. Rodney relays this information to Atlantis and the loss of the satellite is devastating, but finding out Peter was aboard, that is what killed their hope. Not to mention that while all of this is happening, back on Atlantis Bates has been attacked and people suspect Teyla due to an earlier altercation. We find out that there's a Wraith in the city and he's been there since the dart incident episodes ago doing god knows what. They're about to be in an all out war and the enemy is already inside. The interrogation provides nothing, as we know of wraith, they fear nothing. Never in the history of this show do we see a wraith beg for their life, no, they smile. They smile because they have no doubt in their minds they will be avenged, that the people who killed them will be fed upon by their brethren soon enough.

Part 2 is in one word, intense. The hive ships are still on the way, slower, but none the less inevitable. They've lost their only weapon against the incoming armada and they're faced with the reality they have to evacuate the only place capable of returning them to the milkyway, and destroy centuries of data. Then, just as they're dialing the alpha site, they get an incoming wormhole. Earth has sent help. The colonel guy bugs the shit out of me but the plan is good. The daedalus is on it's way with a new ZPM, 4 days, that's how long they have to hold out. The way Sheppard stands up for Weir to the Colonel is beautiful, they have their moments butting heads but he respects her and he'll be damned if she gets cut out of this. Now, with military and volunteering personnel recalled back to Atlantis the preparation begins, the city and its citizens being decked out in artillery. Hope is once again starting to appear, but no one is sure how this will turn out, they know what's coming for them but every single person is ready to try. 4 days alone against the armada. They've deployed the mines and initialized the chair but my god does it ever go wrong. They find out there are only a few dozen drones left, presumably depleted from the original war on atlantis, and now the mines are in danger. The Wraith have sent asteroids hurtling towards the atmosphere, taking all of them out in one fail swoop. Not only have they lost their first line of defense, but the radiation is blocking their sensors, they're blind. Now if only someone suggested they keep some of the mines (oh wait SHEPPARD DID). Now it's revealed that Colonel Sumner was a friend of Colonel Everett's and he is pissed at Sheppard. We know, and Sheppard knows that he did the best he could that day. Killing Sumner was the most merciful thing he could've done in that's situation and as much as I dislike Everett, the way he finds out how true that is, is awful. The moment of truth arrives, a wave of darts in inbound and the great city of Atlantis goes dark. The only light being that of the moon and artillery from both sides. Amidst it all McKay and Sheppard are together as always, trying to get the chair online as darts make runs at the city. For the first time Everett starts to get a glimpse at what he's up against as an entire group of his soldiers are taken by a wraith beam, no way to fight back, just gone. The first wave of darts is defeated, they've survived the night but it is far from over. The hive ships are still on their way and there are wraith in the city. Both Athosian and Expedition members alike begin searching the city while Rodney and Zelenka attempt to retrofit the puddle jumpers to be driven by the chair. The only way for this plan to succeed is for Elizabeth to broker a deal with the Genii for a Nuke. She of course succeeds because she's a badass, and another plan is officially on its way, BUT, another problem, the devices are incomplete. The next wave of darts is here and the jumpers aren't ready. "So long Rodney" you could write this off as Rodney being the person who happened to be in the room when he decided to man the jumper manually, but I think we all know that's not the case. He's run off in silence without so much of a word to anyone more times than I can count, but Rodney, he has to say goodbye, even if it's a crappy one. Now we see Colonel Everett backed into the corner, alone with a Wraith. He shoots, but it doesn't stop, it keeps walking towards him and you can see the look on his face change as he fires round after round into it. He knows he's about to die, and he's terrified because he knows how it's going to happen. More and more wraith are entering the city in numbers they can't hope to defend against. "You let Sheppard fly that jumper?" God he is so heart broken in this moment, he never had the chance to stop him but Elizabeth, she had the opportunity and she didn't. I don't think he ever could've truly forgiven her for that if he'd died.

Part 3 is the culmination of everything so far, the wraith are not just at the doorstep they are inside the home, they have surrounded the house and there is nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. Everything they have tried has only prolonged their deaths and Sheppard is on his way to take a hive ship out with him. At the last second he's saved by the Daedalus, but Ford is not so lucky. His squad is cornered by wraith and with his final breath, one of the soldiers let's go of a grenade. Ford and the wraith that had latched on to feed are sent hurtling over the railing into the ocean below. The daedalus brings a moment of relief to the expedition as it prepares to join the fight. They take on the final hive ship as darts continue to bombard the city, this fight isn't over yet. We find out that Everett has been saved by one of his downed squad members, but he is not unscathed. The daedalus takes put the final hive ship with a beamed nuke, but they're not done yet. The darts get in formation and take a ballistic approach towards the city in a last ditch effort. Rodney and Teyla manage to get the ZPM safely to the gate room only for McKay to forget how they work and almost get them killed. Once all is said and done Atlantis survives another day and all that's left is to clear out the rest if the wraith in the city. Now is when we find out just how bad Everett's status is. He's aged significantly, leaving him bedbound and ill. His new understanding of what happened to Colonel Sumner leads him to apologize to Sheppard for his accusations. There is no break as we find the condition of Ford, a wraith attached to his chest, both having been floating in the cold ocean for hours. This has been days of constant activity and it's still not over. The cruisers that fled brought reinforcements, 12 hive ships headed straight for Atlantis and they'll be there in a little over a day. Sheppard decides they should go on the offensive, attack them before they get there and they do. They manage to nuke 2 ships but then we see a perfect example of the level of intelligence the wraith possess. They manage to enact counter measures in a matter of minutes to prevent them from beaming the nukes aboard. The daedalus has no choice, they have to retreat. Ford... his storyline makes me so sad, especially in this episode. The character we love so dearly, this boy who has seen war and conflict and violence and is still so full of joy and love loses himself before our very eyes. Before the eyes of his friends and there's nothing they can do to stop it. He attacks his friends, his fellow soldiers and he can't stop. He's lost all control over himself and it's heartbreaking. Amidst all of that, the hive ships have arrived and they've gathered in formation over Atlantis and have begun to fire. This is a horrifying glimpse into what the war 10,000 years ago must have been like. The amount of firepower being exerted on the shields will deplete the ZPM within days, the ancients had 3 but that's not much more time. Sheppard comes up with the idea to cloak the city and Rodney executes it perfectly, faking their deaths to the wraith and all others. Truly, truly an incredible series of episodes.

S2 E13 - Critical Mass

A Goa'uld infiltrates Atlantis planting a bomb somewhere in the city (or at least they think so). This episode gets so wild, interrogations, suspicion, fear, a race against the clock and the entire episode is just so enthralling. Plus we get a hint of how the Goa'uld fear the possibility of wraith getting to the milkyway (I'm going to do a post about the stack up between Wraith and Goa'uld in a fight here if you're curious as to my thoughts on that)

They manage to relay the message to the Daedalus and then to Atlantis in time but "there's a bomb in Atlantis that'll be triggered by dialing Earth" is not super helpful.

They remove the ZPM but once the virus program realizes the gate is no longer an option if forces their hand by calling the wraith. If they don't connect it again, the wraith will destroy them, if they do, the program will overload the ZPM and destroy them. The hunt for the spy in their ranks is so intense, Kavanagh is almost tortured, the city is about to be destroyed. This all culminates to them finally finding the spy, but it's not a human spy, there's a Goa'uld inside Caldwell! Ronon has to absolutely wail on him, then he gets tazed by Sheppard until the symbiote is hurt enough for Caldwell to break through and give them the code. It's so intense and I love it.

S3 E4 - Sateda

Now this episode is amazing, it's a combination of heartwrenching and completely badass. The team comes across a village Ronon stumbled across during his years as a Runner and as a result it was culled. The villagers recognize him and they're captured (Rodney escaping with an arrow in his ass). Ronon manages to bargain for Sheppard and Teyla's freedom, but they're unable to return fast enough to prevent the wraith from capturing him and wiping out the village.

The wraith makes Ronon a runner once again, but they take out the gate. They won't let him leave alive this time. Now Ronon is faced not only with the threat of basically endless waves of wraith coming to kill him, but also the memories of his home world where they've dropped him. For the first time we see glimpses of what Sateda used to be like, what his life here was like. It's such a heartwrenching experience to see him fighting for his life while remembering the destruction of his previous life at the hands of the very wraith who did it. I mean god, watching him come across the bodies of his fellow soldiers and be forced to strip them of their armour and weapons just to survive...

We never find out much about the other runners aside from Kiryk, but even then we don't find out much. I find it hard to imagine a runner surviving longer than Ronon had honestly, and I believe that's why the wraith that made him one wants him so badly. It's a point if pride at this point, he's evaded them for years slaughtering the wraith who've come after him.

Seeing Ronon try and fail to convince his wife to leave is devastating. She couldn't bear to leave the people who needed her behind even knowing none of them would survive. To make matters worse, we see him watch her die right in front of his eyes. The scenes where he's taking out the shrapnel and remembering her death brings me to tears every time.

The way Ronon immediately slumps down onto the ground once he realizes Sheppard and the team have come for him is just so AHH!

S4 E17 - Midway

This episode is so damn good, first off I mean, we get the absolute treat that is Teal'c and I'm THRILLED. Not to mention we get to see him AND Ronon together and that is just a trip. Teal'c matches his energy and holds his ground and I love him. Ronon is very off putting to pretty much anyone whose not his team or someone he isn't comfy with yet. This is very apparent many times and his meeting Teal'c is no exception. He's immediately threatening and guarded, but does this throw Teal'c off? Hell no!

These two have clashed the entire time so far and now it's time to go back to Earth. There's of course the 24 hour hold on the midway station, nothing too crazy right? WRONG, the wraith show up! Now all that's standing between Earth and a wraith take over is Ronon and Teal'c. These two are undeniable badasses and forces of nature and we get to see that front and center here and I love it. I mean, these two entirely on their own, take out all the wraith that stormed the SGC. That's a lot of wraith!! Not to mention they're awesome as hell while doing it. I just love this episode a lot and I love Teal'c and Ronon a lot. Also, the least irritaing/infuriating episode with Kavanagh in it.

S5 E10 & 11 - First Contact & The Lost Tribe

I love this episode so much. Right off the bat we get Daniel again. Love that mf. There are also 2 intense ass plotlines happening simultaneously here with Daniel and Rodney being kidnapped by rogue Asguard (like, holy shit), and then the activation of the Attero device causing Todd to panic and take over the Daedalus leaving Keller and Ronon to try and take it back!

Ok so we've got Daniel and Rodney discovering the ancient lab, being the hilarious duo that they are. Everything is fine until this strange ship shows up. Not only is this a ship that they've never seen before, but it completely bypasses Atlantis's shields. Then we see 3 suited up aliens leap from the ship onto the tower. Fall damage? Never heard of it. These things completely ignore the strike team Sheppard and Teyla lead, taking some sort of device straight through the floors of the tower while getting shot at. They head straight for Daniel and Rodney and there is no hesitation and no stopping them. One of them sacrifices itself to shield the other 2 while they get away with Rodney, Daniel, and the device and it's over before they even know what's happened.

Now we get Keller and Ronon alone on the Daedalus as Todd has knocked out the bridge crew. It's up to them now to regain control as wraith beam aboard.

Part 2 starts off wild with the Daedalus taken over and the stargate exploding in the control room with Sheppard and Radek inside. Now both groups have realized what this device is doing and are trying to fix it before millions die, problem is, Todd wants to destroy the facility with Daniel and Rodney still inside so Sheppard and Zelenka along with the Traveler ship are trying to beat them there! Meanwhile Daniel is discovering that they're being held captive by Asgard. This is mindblowing because so far we've seen zero evidence of them in the Pegasus galaxy and now we find out that they've been hiding out here for a long ass time. We also find out that they have been conducting experiments on humans like Loki did and have sorta stabilized their cloning defects.

The fact that they came to the Pegasus Galaxy and took advantage of the war in order to hide and experiment and did nothing to help the Ancients win makes me so mad. What if they could've won with their help?

My god the tension at the end portion of this episode is wild!!! The Daedalus has been retaken but it's on a collision course with the facility, Sheppard and the Traveler ship arrived but their drive is burned out, the Asgard have left the facility, but they took the control device with them leaving Daniel and Rodney with no way to shut it down. Rodney of course figures out another way, but that means going inside the chamber that is currently full of volatile lighting.

They of course succeed and in such a fantastical way with the Traveler ship opening a hyperspace window to travel through the planet with the Daedalus and Daniel almost dying while they shut off the device.

Overall, I love these episodes so much, the intensity, the sass between Daniel and Rodney, it's so good.

S5 E14 - The Prodigal

This episode is so intense and just awesome in general. Atlantis is under siege from Michael and his hybrids, Teyla and her baby have been taken captive, and everyone but Ronon and some gate room personnel are trapped outside this stun bubble thing. Sheppard, Rodney, and Zelenka immediately get to work and as soon as Ronon is awake he starts formulating a plan. The fight scene between Ronon and Michael is amazing as always, not to mention him yelling for Teyla to run and being the reason she's able to get her and her baby to safety before he gets hurled over the railing. That man can take a beating god damn. Sheppard and Rodney quickly get to work trying to shut down the stun bubble but Michael starts the self destruct timer, expediting their timeline. Teyla's escape is fantastic I mean the stress you can see on her face is so amazing, she's a fighter and always has been but she has to get her baby out of there, she has to leave Ronon to fight Michael by himself and it's killing her. Once they finally do shut it down (avoiding Sheppard's suicide run), they can finally storm the gate room. Michael makes a run for it but Sheppard is so not letting that happen, the jumper bay doors are closed, the gate room is retaken, there's nowhere for him to run anymore. They end up on this balcony and it's one of my favorite fight scenes of all time, the moonlight, the height, the batman like scenery, fists flying, it's so intense. We've been waiting for this moment for so long, the final confrontation and BOOM, Teyla enters. Her face is stoic, she is determined and no one will stop her, he will not get away this time. She lands every hit with no mercy and when he finally topples over the edge, gripping on only by his fingertips, she kicks him off. It's so intense and such a fitting end to his storyline in my opinion, for it to end in Atlantis where it started and to be ended by Teyla.

S5 E20 - Enemy at the Gate

Ah the finale of Stargate Atlantis. I'm really sad the show ended prematurely but this episode is still amazing. Not only has a hive ship started to successfully integrate a ZPM into it (a feat which if fully completed, would make it virtually impenetrable), but because of their new advanced sensors they've also picked up the signal with Earth's location from the alternate reality. Now there's an incredibly advanced hive ship on it's way to Atlantis and 2 ships have already failed to stop it. It's up to Atlantis to save Earth and the Milly way now. Sheppard is sent to Earth ahead to operate the chair in case they don't make it in time but that communique also contained the location of the chair and they immediately destroy it. Earth is defenseless so Sheppard takes a suicide run at the hive (again), only to be saved by Rodney, Teyla, Ronon, and Lorne gating aboard from a stalled Atlantis. They all make it out alive (although Ronon did briefly die and I cried), thanks to the spectacular arrival of Atlantis via the wormhole drive. They buy enough time in a fantastical battle above Earth for them to escape and the hive is destroyed. The scene of Atlantis on Earth is so beautiful and the whole main cast on the balcony, just fantastic.

If you can't tell, I love this show so much and if for some reason you're seeing this and haven't watched it yet, please do, it's amazing.

[aintgonnatakethis]

wip excerpt time

Thank you for tagging me, @wolgerrswraith!

Only did a little writing in this morning's session, but hopefully I can get some more done tonight.

Sheppard cracked an eye open, immediately wishing he hadn't when it became clear he was on a Wraith hive and the wet, spongy substance below him was the insides of the ship. Not in the manner of the feeding pods - there were no restraints for example - but he was lying in a large depression in the floor, the sides curling gently downwards to cradle him in burnt-soggy warmth. This was a weird sort of cell. He'd have to be sure to make a quip about what they'd done with the place.

Tagging: @wyked-ao3 @lancedoncrimsonwings @thestalwartheart @generic-whumperz @words-after-midnight

[spockvarietyhour]

Wraith Battle over Earth, "Enemy at the Gate"

[batsyforyou]

John Sheppard Platonic Cuddles 

Similar to how he let that wraith worshiper cuddle into his side on the wraith hive ship (Lost Boys was the ep. I think)

He’d let a friend cuddle into his side 

Like a side hug situation because those are for friends and it requires less intimacy 

Unless your Teyla/Elizabeth you just get awkward hug 101 

You should only expect to receive a cuddle/hug from this man when you are either 

A. injured and possibly dying (Most common hug available) 

B. Grieving a loved one and crying 

C. He lets you hug him when he is feeling down in private only. Either in his quarters or on the catwalk he runs with Ronon. You have a 50/50 chance of "why are you hugging me" or "another awkward hug 101"

He doesn’t really trust others easily but he loves his friends like they are his family because to him they are.

More Stargate Atlantis

[wintergirl83]

Watching Stargate Atlantis for the second time and having watched SG-1 for the first time previous to this I have issues with some of the Atlantis Characters.

Weir was part of Stargate Command for a short time but supposedly read all the mission reports (she mentions this numerous times). And I’m sure McKay read his fair share including anything Carter wrote, but knows very little of the Stargate and Ancients. Had he even been through the gate before this?

So why in Sanctuary Elizabeth didn’t understand what happened when the Ancient ascended and went through the Stargate I don’t know. She’d have known all about what happened to Daniel.

And in Before I Sleep Weir and McKay don’t know about time travel being possible when Weir at least would’ve known about SG-1 travelling back to to the 60s and again when they went back to Ancient Egypt. McKay would’ve read Carter’s work on this at least.

Sheppard’s team seem to go into situations haphazardly to say the least. Every episode I’m watching I’m thinking how SG-1 would’ve handled it. O’Neill would’ve blown that wraith hive ship to pieces at the start of the series but not before Carter and the Asgard created a virus to destroy all wraith ships in the process.

And in Home didn’t anyone think it weird that Stargate Command said the Asgard were just developing a ship that could travel that far to check on them? The Asgard and Stargate Command had that technology for years before that. That whole storyline about not being able to get back is crazy when the Asgard and Stargate Command have ships with hyperdrives.

Sheppard seems to be a character that’s thrown in at the deep end being the only Major and the only highest ranking officer after the first couple of episodes. He flew O’Neill into Antarctica right at the start and didn’t even know about the Stargate. Any Major going into that situation should’ve at least read mission reports and gone with SG-1 on a few trips through the Stargate. Why only send one Colonel and one Major to Atlantis? Carter as Captain knew more than he did.

My thoughts for now at least…

[sga-mcshep-4ever]

"Major, I thought you might like to see this." "A lot of the information we downloaded from the data storage device was encrypted, so we're still working on that." "Yeah, I didn't think it would be easy." "But we were able to ascertain the existence of twenty-one Wraith Hive ships just in our quadrant of the Pegasus Galaxy alone." "Twenty-one?" "And there are indications of far more elsewhere in Pegasus." "Well, how many more?" "Well, there's no way of knowing for sure. Perhaps 60 or more." "That's a lot of ships." "Some of them already appear to be on the move." "Toward us?" "That's the part we're still working on."

[dr-futbol-blog]

The Defiant One, Pt. 3

They reach the crashed hive ship. The whole way, they walk in two pairs. McKay does not leave Sheppard's side. And it's not (certainly not predominately) because he's looking for protection from Sheppard, it's just that it's where he wants to be. Walking and standing next to the Major.

If in the several previous episodes Sheppard was the one drawn to McKay, now it is very clearly Rodney that is being drawn to him. And once more they are creating their own insulated universe even when they are with other people.

Sheppard still seems to explain to McKay why to do things, he's not giving commands or orders. But McKay obliges him easily even when he doesn't personally see the usefulness of something. And Sheppard is still teaching him about military protocol, especially about it being better to be safe than sorry.

He can't hide that he's actually excited to be on this mission with Rodney as he turns to him and says: "Good! Let's go take a look."

The whole time Sheppard really seems to be talking only to McKay, not to all three of them. He doesn't really even react to the others or their comments. And he smiles to Rodney for the second time in very short order, and very obviously to Rodney alone.

They are like two giddy school boys on an adventure.

Entering the hive, they have perfect trust in each other. McKay trusts that Sheppard is going to keep him safe and Sheppard trusts that McKay will be able to warn him of potential dangers.

Rodney gets a little too close to him switching open his flash light, and Sheppard first makes to pull away but then pushes himself back toward him (he actually reacts to McKay drawing in a breath, before he's even had time to move, that's how attuned he is to McKay's physical presence). He both wants to keep the distance and he wants to get close. Outside, Dr. Gaul tells Dr. Abrams something that Sheppard might as well have just been telling himself: "Look, I know how you feel, but how many opportunities like this are we gonna get?"

The two pairs are contrasted. Abrams and Gaul have to verbally have a conversation that Sheppard and McKay don't even need to have, because they're automatically on the same page about this.

Also, where previously, before the Genii siege, we saw Sheppard constantly looking at McKay, here it's McKay that keeps looking at and to Sheppard. He's looking for confirmation, he's looking for reassurance, he's looking for guidance. Sheppard doesn't really look at McKay except to answer his half verbalized question ("It is..?") with a look. This shows us, again, how by now they know each other so well that they don't need actual words to communicate, they can have entire conversations just through looks and expressions. At this time, Sheppard doesn't look at McKay. In fact, there are a few times he seems to catch himself and tries to purposefully not look at the other man. But, like back in the jumper, they end up working terribly, terribly close:

They figure out that the hive was a wraith supply ship, coming across where a storage of human bodies used to be. It's interesting how Sheppard tells Abrams and Gaul what to do ("Gaul, Abrams, check it out, but be careful"; it's also pretty obvious that everything so far that he didn't precede with their actual names he has been saying to Rodney alone). He does not tell McKay what to do but instead, just assumes that the other man is going to accompany him to the ship's bridge, again using 'we' pronouns ("Maybe we can get some useful intel"; "We'll stay in radio contact"). He's speaking for the both of them but at no point does he tell McKay what to do. They're just... working as one.

Sheppard literally only gives McKay this quick look which is enough for McKay to understand his whole plan:

In fact, these kind of really quick glances seem to be the only ones he's able to give McKay at this time. Like if he does it real fast, it doesn't count.

It's notable that he clearly wants to keep McKay near him when splitting them up some other way would have made more sense as Gaul and Abrams have zero field experience, and McKay was just taking samples so leaving him to take samples e.g., with Abrams would have been the reasonable thing to do. But he's not being reasonable -- given the events of the past few episodes, he's not letting McKay out of his sight when there's potential danger. Not until there's actual danger, and it becomes better to leave him in a safe place.

It's also telling how, now that they're in a real situation, Dr. Gaul seems to be freaking out, doesn't want to be left behind by the Major, barely containing his "girlish fear" where McKay genuinely does not seem to fear anything, at least as long as Sheppard is with him. He tells Gaul "What's the problem? They're all dead." It just does not occur to him to fear anything, not when Sheppard is there. He runs after Sheppard having rubbed this in Gaul's face a little, but the skip in his step tells us that he's not doing it because he's feeling fear with Sheppard having gone ahead, but because he just wants to be with Sheppard that much. He wants to catch up.

But on the other side of the coin, Sheppard actually turns and walks backwards like his body just decided that a few yards was further than it wanted to be from McKay:

With no evidence to the contrary, I'm going to go on a limb and assume that this is the first time they have been alone together since before the Genii siege (let's just count the moment they had in Rodney's lab as a private moment, even though Weir was there; they definitely both seemed to forget she was there for a moment).

They immediately fall into rhythm: McKay is able to explain the science to Sheppard but Sheppard is quick in thinking things that McKay does not think to think. Working together, it takes them like five seconds to come to the conclusion that they might actually have a live wraith in the hive with them. They complement each other.

They started finishing each other's sentences back in Underground (S01E07). But now it's like, they don't even have to use whole sentences. They understand each other from half a word, never mind they seem to be able to do without words altogether. Twice now in this episode, Sheppard has only said McKay's name, and he perfectly understood his meaning. Given that in the episode, we have been told about the difficulty of radio communication three times by this point, it's really rather telling. They are communicating on so many different levels.

There is a marked difference in how they are alone together. McKay is talking in an excited, animated way where Sheppard lets his guard down, asking McKay really rather poignant questions rather than pretending he has all the answers or that he's in control. There is not a hint of any kind of bickering or bantering going on, they are both just so nakedly themselves.

There's a contrast in how Sheppard is being extra military with Dr. Gaul, I guess because the way he treated McKay earlier annoyed him. He's using military parlance ("Get a DV and a rough head count"; "Let's fall back to our point of ingress"). He has never done this with Rodney and actually seems to not even want him to do that. We see later, a bunch of times, McKay wanting to learn military slang and hand signs and Sheppard just... isn't having it.

It's not like knowing these things wouldn't be useful on missions. It's not like he shouldn't be teaching them to Rodney himself. He just... likes Rodney the way he is and doesn't want to see him becoming someone else. And probably also doesn't like to be reminded that McKay is technically (Cf. Harmony, S04E14) serving under him which, in Sheppard's mind, puts him in the danger zone.

The heroes that they are, they run toward danger together. Abrams, unfortunately, is the first to go. Before they go after Gaul, captured by the wraith, two things happen. Sheppard makes sure that McKay has extra protection (and, well, weapons are phallic symbols, so there's that; they're handling a weapon together):

And he alleviates the guilt McKay is feeling, believing it's his fault Abrams died:

McKay: I swear there was nothing alive when I scanned for life-signs. Sheppard: They don't show up as life-signs when they're hibernating. OK, let's go! [= it wasn't your fault, we couldn't have known]

Sheppard is teaching McKay pretty much all throughout this episode. It's starts with the flying lesson, ends with the shooting lesson, but there are small lessons scattered throughout. They run across some wraith weapons and while neither of them know what they are, precisely, he's teaching McKay strategy:

McKay: What's that? Sheppard: I don't know, but I don't have the ordnance I should have. It takes a lot to kill these guys -- I'll take any edge I can get.

Rodney McKay is an exceptionally intelligent individual. This is a source of pride for him to the point of arrogance. And yet he's not just willing to learn from Sheppard, he is eager. Just like Sheppard has been willing and eager to learn from McKay, as we saw in the previous episode where he displayed an understanding of engineering that could have resulted only from keenly observing the other man work. And no matter how tense the situation gets, Sheppard doesn't stop teaching him things that he hopes will serve to protect McKay, to keep him alive:

Sheppard: OK. Stay behind me. Shoot only when I tell you to shoot.

As it turns out, the fact that they stopped for this particular lesson cost Dr. Gaul several decades of his life-force. They find him cocooned by the wraith. This is when the weight of the events of the past few episodes suddenly come crashing down on the shoulders of John Sheppard.

Continued in Pt. 4