#sga michael

[sga-owns-my-soul]

who wrote michaels backstory. who's job was it to come up with a backstory for the wraith they were experimenting on

was it carson? was he sitting there writing notes like "progress is going well, patients name will be Michael Kenmore, maybe make him military, retrovirus seems to have run full course"

did he have to walk up to someone and say "we need a backstory for the wraith"

was it a focus group? did the senior staff get together and brainstorm?

i need answers

[autistic-crypt1d]

SGA + text posts pt 5

[stargatesg-1obsessed]

More of my favourite Stargate BTS photos! (All found on Pinterest)

Back by popular demand! (A few people)

Me and my mum have been watching SGA recently, we’re currently on season 3. So expect more SGA BTS in the next one 😄

[orion-kenobi]

I liked stargate atlantis more than sg-1 but I think sg-1 outperforms atlantis in terms of story complexity and variety of storylines. Part of this is because sg-1 is twice as long as atlantis but I also think the Jack/Daniel dynamic has a lot to do with it. Daniel is inherently going to call into question things that aren’t typically questioned in the action/military genre. Because his and Jack’s viewpoints/what they represent are so different sg-1 explores the nuances of various situations in a way atlantis doesn’t.

[autistic-danieljackson]

I have a lot of thoughts and feelings about what they did to Michael but ultimately I think it may have been the most fucked up thing Atlantis did

[spockvarietyhour]

Hmm. "The Lost Tribe"

[carsonsweebabyturtles]

A Series of Unfortunate Screen Caps (part 29)

[dailystargatebooty]

[dr-futbol-blog]

Critical Mass, Pt. 3

Around 2 hours and 40 minutes later, we find McKay at his working station on the control platform. He is engaged in compressing the data that they are scheduled to send to Earth, and if we recall what he told us in Letters from Pegasus (S01E17), he had devised an exceptionally efficient way to do that. This is to say that there is a minimum of two hours between the scenes, Sheppard and McKay going off together and finding McKay working here, now. Unbeknownst to them, an explosion is now set to go off when they dial Earth as arranged by the Goa'uld-infiltrated shadow organization called the Trust.

Weir: Are we set to dial? McKay: Almost. Just finishing data compression. Weir: Stand by. Chuck: Standing by.

McKay is working side by side with the young Canadian gate technician, and let us just point out that with his sideburns and wearing a black t-shirt here, he could well pass as the teenage son of McKay and Sheppard. The reason why we might find him wearing a t-shirt when by Weir's attire it is really not that warm at the moment may be to bridge McKay and Sheppard's previous scene (where Sheppard had his jacket and tac vest open, seemingly ready to come off) and their next scene, where we find Sheppard wearing only a black t-shirt. What we do know for certain is that Sheppard had stripped off (at least) his jacket and tac vest between the scenes.

McKay: Data compression's complete. We're good to go. Weir: Alright, then. Dial the gate. Chuck: Yes, ma'am. McKay: STOP!!

So, the thing to note here is that there is nothing on McKay's screen after he sends the compressed data off. There is nothing going on in his screen until he starts receiving a message from the Daedalus, an eleventh hour warning not to dial Earth. What is further, he does not even seem to be looking at the screen until he starts receiving the message, looking pensively down and to the side (accessing feelings and kinesthetic sensations, as it were). Let us further note that he is pressing his lips against his finger (and not the other way around because we see him move his head instead of his finger as he turns to look at his screen; if he had been pressing his finger on his lips, both would have moved as he turns).

This is the kind of auto-erotic touching that we have seen Sheppard engage in many times, usually as he has been watching McKay. This is to say that just as he had finished his task, McKay seems to have zoned out with memories of physical touch where his mouth had been involved, and he is a hair's breadth away from being too late to notice the communique. And this is an actual problem. The fact that their clandestine relationship is placing everyone on Atlantis in jeopardy is a real problem. It is a problem that keeps getting steadily worse until it blows up in their faces, but that is for a later time. This is just to point out that the seeds of the issue can already be seen here. There is a reason why the military eschews fraternization within a chain of command.

Regardless, McKay manages to see the message just in time and he is quick enough to react, using his voice to make everyone stop. And we may note that indeed everyone stops what they were doing immediately, probably having learned that it is important to pay heed to instruction coming from McKay. We seldom hear him bellow in such a way and from the reactions of the people, they are surprised by it as well. McKay himself is visibly shaken, seeming to realize very quickly how close they had come to absolute disaster. It is only after Chuck draws his hand away from the DHD that he can even breathe.

And so, immediate crisis averted for the moment, we join the same group as had been gathered originally -- Weir, Sheppard, McKay and Ronon -- en route to Weir's office. We may note that McKay has taken point, seeming to be in a hurry to get this meeting over with and start fixing the problem. Weir is right beside him, slightly behind, given that they are going to her office, but we may note that Sheppard has, very likely on purpose, fallen a few steps behind. And we know that this is not because of McKay since we just saw the two of them walking side by side, bumping shoulders only a while ago.

McKay: We need to disconnect the ZPM and switch to back-up naqahdah generators to prevent any possible dialling of the gate to Earth. Weir: I agree. In fact, as of this moment, all gate activity should be suspended. How many off-world teams do we have out there? McKay: Just Zelenka and his team on M7G-677.

As we see, Sheppard has only his t-shirt on. Of course it is possible that he had taken a shower following what ever activity he had been engaged with earlier that had required him to wear a tac vest, or he might have been sparring with Ronon, given that Ronon follows them into what seems to be a senior staff meeting. But look at how gingerly he sits down on the chair. The camera actually cuts away as he starts sitting down and we see only the beginning and the end of the process, but he very obviously is careful in lowering his full weight down on his ass. This is a thing that happens here, and it is far from the first time. And every time we have seen this, there has been a pocket of time and an opportunity to spend it with McKay that has preceded it. Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, the fact that it keeps happening consistently is clearly on purpose. But if you want to chalk it up to him having gotten his ass kicked by Ronon recently or something, go ahead. He had been suffering from the same ailment before they had even met Ronon, but it is at least possible.

But as soon as he has himself comfortably seated, Sheppard leans back and folds his arms across his chest, and we can tell by the end of the scene where he is twisted toward McKay that McKay is not the cause of his defensive posture here. It might be that he is going the extra mile to portray nonchalance here because what ever the two of them had been doing, they were not meant to be doing it in the middle of the day even if they had a few hours to burn.

Weir: Well, unfortunately he's gonna have to sit tight until we sort this thing out. Sheppard: Stuck with all those kids! Weir: Is the Daedalus still in range to relay a data transmission back to SGC? McKay: Yes. They are holding a position that keeps them in range of both Earth and us. Weir: OK, good. And send a message saying we received their warning and aborted the dialling.

Sheppard turns to stage whisper at McKay, and it is clear he means to say it to McKay as though the two of them were truant rascals in the principal's office. While mock-sympathetic, he actually seems to be making Zelenka into the butt of an inside joke between himself and McKay, and this suggests that Sheppard had indeed known about McKay sending him to the planet before coming to see Zelenka off, unable to resist the temptation of rubbing it in. They also return to this at the end of the episode, poking what we can only hope is good-natured fun at Zelenka being a thing that they do together. Maybe these two bullies deserve to be in the principal's office. But although Sheppard makes the comment that certainly reads disparaging of the children, as though he would not like to be caught dead with them, this is at least partially deflection on his part. He does want a family, he wants children, and he wants these things with the man sitting next to him, and it is thinking that he is denied all these thing that makes him bitter, and it is that bitterness that is at the root of his comment. This is the very definition of sour grapes.

We may also note that the tone in which Sheppard talks to McKay here is different from how he speaks to other people, and this is a private exchange between them even though they are not alone. It is a quick visit into that world of their own, and although they may not intend to do it, they do effectively shut other people out. This here is the very definition of an inside joke. It is difficult to put a finger on what makes Sheppard sound so different from his usual cadence, but there is undeniably something softer about it. Now, McKay knows that Sheppard has a tendency to wisecrack his way through difficult situations and that he understands perfectly well how serious the situation is so while he does not join in on it, he does acknowledge Sheppard's quip by looking at him, by meeting his gaze. Sheppard himself seems to keep his eyes on McKay's lap or on his hands, seeming to have to force his eyes away from there.

Also, Weir has likewise crossed her hands while leaning them on the desk and although she might be doing this to mirror Sheppard (Sheppard is not mirroring her but clearly wants to keep her at a distance) but she is effectively creating a double barrier between them. Sheppard's recent experiences have clearly not made him any more comfortable around women in positions of power.

Sheppard: Ask them if they can give us a little more than just "there's a bomb in Atlantis." Weir: Maybe the Trust thinks this is the only way to make sure the wraith don't get there. McKay: Well, it's drastic but effective. Weir: What's worse is the Trust operative who planted the bomb probably did so under orders from the Goa'uld.

This is yet another flippant remark from Sheppard and while he does have a point, it would be nice to have more information, he does not say this because it is something he actually wants McKay to relay to Earth. He is merely airing his frustration at the situation, and the face that he pulls as he mimics who ever had originated the message tells us that he is not being serious. It seems as though he just needed to engage McKay because McKay was not giving him enough attention. His tone is still soft here, and he leans into McKay's space as he talks to him. McKay, on the other hand, seems to do his best to tune Sheppard out because he has a problem to solve and a city to save, and he is not going to relax until he knows that the man sitting next to him is not in any danger. But let us just note that this is the second time in short order that Sheppard engages McKay, seemingly trying to get a response out of him.

McKay: What? Sheppard: When did the Goa'uld get involved in this? Weir: Several months ago. They successfully infiltrated the upper leadership of the Trust, gaining a stronghold on Earth accessing government agencies from many countries. Dex: What's a Goa'uld?

McKay asks her what not because he did not understand what she was telling them but in an attempt at processing what this all meant for their defenses, how much more danger they would be in if the Goa'uld were involved. McKay's own personal run-in with the Goa'uld was with the half-ascended Anubis who had tried to destroy the Earth gate using Ancient technology. It is safe to say that he is terrified of them, much more terrified than he might be if his experience had been with a less formidable Goa'uld. Although he only says the one word, Sheppard seems to be able to tell that he is deeply affected, glancing at him before speaking for the first time to Weir, only now seeming to take this meeting seriously.

Sheppard: It's a slimy, snake-like alien creature. Burrows into people's heads and takes control of their bodies. Dex: That doesn't sound pleasant. Sheppard: It isn't. I've read enough SG mission reports to know I don't want anything to do with them.

While Sheppard's knowledge of the Goa'uld is theoretical, he picks up the answer to Ronon's question possibly because he is able to see that McKay is not in a place to speak, that he is still processing the news. There are two interesting things here. For one, the way Sheppard describes the Goa'uld is not altogether different from what Cadman had done to McKay, and because he had seen how McKay was looking at her like she was a slimy snake-like alien creature, it is apt that Cadman's character is revisited in this episode. Although he is trying to help McKay get over it, he seems to understand what he had gone through, is able to sympathize with him.

Second thing is that Sheppard mentions reading SG mission reports, and he does not only glance at McKay as he says this, he full on leans his head toward him because it seems like his reading of the reports has more than a little to do with McKay. For sure, they may make riveting reading but most of it is not going to be relevant to this galaxy and Sheppard really doesn't care about the Ancients enough to want to do homework on them. No, his reading of the reports is clearly McKay-related and McKay-motivated.

As mentioned, Samantha Carter gets name-checked in this episode and features in a big way in the next episode, and Sheppard seems to have issues when it comes to her relationship with McKay. Let us also recall that we learn in McKay and Mrs Miller (S03E08) that Sheppard has in his possession a copy of the message that McKay recorded in Letters from Pegasus (S01E17), and while McKay's whole intention with the video seems to have been to run interference for Sheppard by sending the SGC (the tape was never ever going to pass security check) a message pretending to be straight, something he seems to have done in the military context for the benefit of non-straight soldiers for a long time, regardless of this, his lines about the fire still burning for Carter and implying that he thinks about her every night when he touches himself (Sheppard and McKay were clearly sleeping together at the time he recorded the message) may have rubbed Sheppard the wrong way. Clearly McKay had shared the video with him and he knew what it was for but it is because of Sheppard's own tendency to project that he takes issue with Carter.

And the thing is, McKay was never genuinely interested in Carter like that, it was performative and his treatment of Carter resulted from from a combination of his mommy-issues and his feelings of inadequacy. But what McKay thinks about her is not relevant -- Sheppard is full on projecting here. He has kissed three women during their relationship, had actual sex with one of them, and he does not feel good about it. And possibly due to his past trauma, he does not know how to deal with these feelings except by externalizing them. We see this clearly in Inferno (S02E19). A beautiful and smart blonde expresses interest in McKay which he does not even notice because she is so far from his radar. He is literally clueless to the woman's interest in him because he does not care. And Sheppard has a full jealous melt-down, trying to seduce the woman himself not because he is attracted her but to make sure that she does not get any ideas when it comes to McKay. Normal heterosexual business between buddies and pals.

But you had better believe that Sheppard has read the mission reports where McKay was at SGC, especially if the Carter kissing him incident had come up following Sheppard's insect instincts having made him kiss Teyla, since the topic of friends kissing friends while being friends was now on the table for them to talk about. Sheppard is not just a little possessive. He is needy, and his fear of abandonment makes him cling to things with all his might. And so while Sheppard makes the effort to come across as casual here, he is nowhere near as nonchalant over the combination of McKay, SGC, the Goa'uld, and Samantha Carter as he would like to be. He may not want anything to do with the Goa'uld but he damn sure wants nothing to do with Carter either.

Weir: I want you to organise some teams to do a search of the city. Start with obvious sabotage points, power distribution centres... McKay: I'll check primary and secondary systems for any anomalous energy readings that might indicate the presence of an explosive device. Sheppard: And get Cadman to assist you, she's a bomb expert. McKay: She is? Sheppard: She's one of the best. She'll be a big help.

Although Sheppard's issues seem to be especially with McKay and blonde women, possibly because McKay himself has occasionally rubbed them in his face when he has himself felt slighted, McKay's reaction to Cadman earlier seems to have reassured Sheppard that McKay is going to be safe with her. And that is the whole point of this: to keep McKay safe. Now, because Cadman gave McKay a flirty look earlier just to mess with him, some people might interpret this as Sheppard trying to set them up, to make something happen there, to help out a friend. And that is not even in the same zip code as what is happening here because not only is Cadman supposedly dating McKay's best friend, Sheppard knows that McKay feels violated, he had told him just a few hours ago. Another thing Sheppard might be doing is to try to help McKay get over his issues with her because he does seem to be acting shifty here, it is clear that he is doing this because he has an agenda. He is trying to be smooth about it, but he does not suggest McKay take Cadman to help him because he is messing with McKay, or because he is setting him up, or because he wants the two of them to get along.

Cadman is a bomb expert. One of the best, he tells us. Surely her place is helping Sheppard find the bomb. It would make the most sense for her to be with the teams looking for the device. And this person, who is the best at finding and dismantling bombs Sheppard sets up with McKay. Their foremost expert, he takes her out of the roster to make her watch out for McKay. It is like taking the QB out of a winning team and putting him up to sell concessions. It makes no goddamn sense for Sheppard to pair them together, and the reason he does it is to keep McKay safe. Just as Weir makes sure that the two of them are separated and cannot be working together, Sheppard cannot look after McKay and can't even put Ronon on the case because Weir wants them sweeping the city, Sheppard does the next best thing. He makes sure that the one person that can recognize a bomb is going to be with McKay so that there is not even a chance of the bomb going off near McKay.

Sheppard is not setting McKay up with Cadman, he is putting Cadman on McKay duty. This is the most blatant case of Sheppard making sure McKay is safe until Michael (S02E18) when he puts an actual security detail on him. We have seen it time and time again: Sheppard does not take chances with McKay's life. There is a bomb on Atlantis and he is making sure that if it goes off, it won't be near McKay. And yes, Sheppard sounds shifty here because he is intending on doing this without McKay realizing what he is doing. And it seems as though McKay never did. Most of the audience never did. Cadman is going to be a big help, but in this situation she is a big help to Sheppard. He is making sure that he does not have to spend every moment worrying about McKay because he has put the best person to see that he will be alright. And he is trying to be so casual about it. It's not a big deal, she might be able to help you. Just let her work with you, don't worry about it. There are zero romantic undertones here between either McKay and Cadman or Sheppard and Cadman. What this is is an act of love from Sheppard to McKay. And it is so easy to miss this because Sheppard intends for McKay to not make the connection.

Weir: Good. Ask Colonel Caldwell to return to Atlantis to assist with the investigation. McKay: Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa. If the Daedalus returns here, then you're effectively cutting off our communication with Earth. Weir: Yes, I understand that, but if the person who planted the bomb is on board, we're gonna need to question them here -- have them reveal the location of the bomb and how to dismantle it. Alright, let's get moving.

Here, we may note that Sheppard has his whole body twisted toward McKay. And not just a little, he has twisted himself into a pretzel again just to have his body facing him. We see that he has drawn back the shoulder that is between himself and McKay because as we have seen so many times before, Sheppard does not like to have even his own body parts come between him and the actual centre of his world. What is more, the both of them seem to have the same thought here, their reaction to what Weir says is basically the same. McKay looks heavenward and Sheppard rubs his temple, both expressions of exasperation. Their shared thought seems to be in response to Weir wanting to bring the crew of the Daedalus back for questioning but what ever they thought about it, neither argues her call because this is her rodeo and she had clearly made up her mind. But it's obvious that what ever objections they had, they thought of them at the same time, they shared the sentiment.

Also, we might note here at the end that while McKay has no trouble getting up off of the chair, just like he had done going down, Sheppard has to use both hands to support his weight as he gets up. He is clearly sore. This is an acting choice.

Continued in Pt. 4

[cinerins]

Michael really is a prime example of an Atlantis episode that is so good and so, SO bad.

The core concept of his character and initial framing of the episode from his perspective are honestly brilliant, but the entire rest of it is... well. Calling it frustrating would be putting it mildly.

I suppose what bothers me the most is how much potential his character arc could've had, if they had done literally anything else with him. Plus, the fact he was honestly the one in the right and while they acknowledged what our guys did was incredibly messed up, it still ended up framing Michael as the monster.

(I could well make another whole post about the writers' arguably weird handling of the Wraith as these people, who are all somehow inherently "evil" and the fumbling of the few examples proving the contrary...)

Best chance to turn the situation around, would've been to keep the truce with him during No Man's Land — as an outcast, he very easily could've made a compelling not-quite-ally*. Instead, they chose to make it all worse, by subjecting him to the retro-virus again. Having learned absolutely nothing.

*a role that would somewhat fall to "Todd" (Though I can't say I'm too happy with some of the choices for his character, either.)

[kpetova]

[autistic-crypt1d]

SGA + text posts pt 4

[stargatesg-1obsessed]

A few of my fav Stargate BTS photos! (All found on Pinterest)

Will do more if requested!

@ten-cent-sleuth

[incoming-wormhole]

If Candy Crush had been around when the Atlantis expedition was going on, the team never would've had the time to do half their war crimes

[orion-kenobi]

can we talk about the absolutely amazing job stargate sg1 does with jack and daniel’s dynamic? they’re so different and yet so similar. their perspectives and moralities are completely different, but i think they have the same flaws: they both believe their perspectives are correct, and they both let their emotions get the best of them. because of that they’re capable of being so mean to each other. and i love the fact that their morals are the source of most of their conflicts, because i don’t think i’ve ever seen a show where two characters major difference is because of their morality. and it makes the audience think, because in most situations where they disagree neither of their approaches are really wrong.

[autistic-danieljackson]

But seriously they essentially kidnapped Michael, told him everything he was was "wrong" and they could "fix" him, gave him an experimental drug that not only wiped out his memory but everything that he was, and then created an elaborate lie and still treated him like a prisoner/the enemy. Then when he reverted back, he was no longer welcome among humans but couldn't fit in among the wraith either. But he still trusted Atlantis and helped them! And to repay him, they did it all over again!!