The Road Not Taken - Review
23/10/2008 06:35 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rachel500The Road Not Taken is the 13th episode in Season Ten of Stargate SG1.
Review
The Road Not Taken is the latest offering in the Stargate sub-genre of alternate universe tales. It’s always fascinating to explore the possibilities and this window into another universe doesn’t disappoint. While the story doesn’t quite manage to last the distance, it is elevated by a tour de force performance by Amanda Tapping that showcases her character, some great guest appearances and a lovely team moment between SG1 back in our usual Stargate universe.
An AU story is never without the issue of how the characters shift between universes safely and the first part focuses very much on answering the question ‘how did she get there?’ The mention of inter-universe bridges and Merlin’s device are all very nice nods to canon and the arc but there is a tremendous amount of exposition and explaining which is only offset by the differences between the universes; Hammond in charge of the SGC, Major Lorne as SG1 leader, Sam as a Major divorced from Rodney McKay, the other members of our SG1 team all scattered. All of this keeps the interest.
Unfortunately, if a tremendous amount of time is spent dealing with how Sam got to the other universe, hardly any is spent on how she got back beyond vague suggestions of an inter-universe bridge. The notion that they could not only do this in two weeks but that they also worked out how to send her back to the right universe stretches the suspension of disbelief to a fine thread for anyone with even a faint knowledge of physics. It feels like the writer, Alan McCullough, fudges it, sweeps it under the carpet and hopes nobody notices.
It is part of a wider problem that the ending is something of a damp squib. While it is admirable that the story attempts not to focus on the Ori attack but rather what happens after, it means there is no dramatic climax in the final act. The Ori attack itself is superbly done; there is tension as they wait for the power to increase to an acceptable level, the special effects are good as always and there is a sense of awe as Earth is phased into another dimension.
The shift to examining the political landscape is interesting enough given the various character interactions. There is a powerful scene between Sam and a defeated AU Mitchell confined to a wheelchair; here is a Mitchell who gave up and Ben Browder does a fabulous job at playing this alternative Mitchell who is at once pitiable and unattractive but has a hint of the honourable soldier we know. It’s a fine line and Browder pulls it off.
Sam’s interactions with Landry are also impressive. Its great to see the two verbally joust as Sam challenges Landry even if it is in a different universe. However, despite the opportunity to make Landry the bad guy – and Beau Bridges manages to convey some hints of a darker, power hungry character in his scenes especially when he talks of suspending elections and refusing to let Sam go home – the story fails to make that leap completely and is the poorer for it because it is the reason why there is no dramatic climax. Had Landry really been a bad guy, it might have made how Sam got back more difficult to construct but it would have added real drama to the close of the episode.
Instead, the story peters out with Sam being told by McKay his first task in his new role is to send her home. Hewlett’s performance as McKay is as enjoyable as ever. He does a great job showing an AU McKay that is annoying enough to be recognisable but not so annoying as to make the idea of our Sam working with him unthinkable. However, McKay/Carter is getting a little boring while it was a joy to see Sam/Hammond. For me, both the character and the actor set a standard as the SGC leader that has been difficult for their successors to emulate and this wonderful revisit to the character and his leadership made me miss him all the more. Davis certainly seems to relish revisiting the role, and he and Tapping work together as though he was never gone.
With Sam the primary character, Tapping does a great job of carrying the episode. She delivers an accomplished performance; Sam’s awkwardness at being recognised as a hero, her dismay on learning who her counterpart was married to, her increasing anger and her challenge to Landry, her joy at being home. Tapping makes it all look easy. Kudos has to go to the costume department for the civilian outfits; Sam looked sassy and sexy; a woman not to be messed with. The whole story delivered a Sam true to the established character, and while I have been known to complain about McCullough’s characterisation of her, here he has her spot on.
With Sam on her own for the most part, the episode ends with a wonderful team scene and a great moment as Vala hugs Sam and tells her they missed her. It is nice that the absent member Daniel is mentioned as he was in the opening. However, if the mention of Daniel was great, the non-mention of Jack in the AU is bizarre. While it would not be appropriate to shoehorn a mention of Jack into every episode, the non-mention of him in an AU story, especially in the scene where Sam is asking to speak to someone, sticks out like a sore thumb particularly for the fans who have followed SG1 since it began.
If the story had just gone that bit further with Landry, been that bit more imaginative in its finale, this could have been a second stand-out episode in a row for McCullough. However, here, Tapping’s excellent performance and the nuggets of character interaction don’t quite hide the plot issues but they do enough to make this an enjoyable hour of entertainment nevertheless.
Review
The Road Not Taken is the latest offering in the Stargate sub-genre of alternate universe tales. It’s always fascinating to explore the possibilities and this window into another universe doesn’t disappoint. While the story doesn’t quite manage to last the distance, it is elevated by a tour de force performance by Amanda Tapping that showcases her character, some great guest appearances and a lovely team moment between SG1 back in our usual Stargate universe.
An AU story is never without the issue of how the characters shift between universes safely and the first part focuses very much on answering the question ‘how did she get there?’ The mention of inter-universe bridges and Merlin’s device are all very nice nods to canon and the arc but there is a tremendous amount of exposition and explaining which is only offset by the differences between the universes; Hammond in charge of the SGC, Major Lorne as SG1 leader, Sam as a Major divorced from Rodney McKay, the other members of our SG1 team all scattered. All of this keeps the interest.
Unfortunately, if a tremendous amount of time is spent dealing with how Sam got to the other universe, hardly any is spent on how she got back beyond vague suggestions of an inter-universe bridge. The notion that they could not only do this in two weeks but that they also worked out how to send her back to the right universe stretches the suspension of disbelief to a fine thread for anyone with even a faint knowledge of physics. It feels like the writer, Alan McCullough, fudges it, sweeps it under the carpet and hopes nobody notices.
It is part of a wider problem that the ending is something of a damp squib. While it is admirable that the story attempts not to focus on the Ori attack but rather what happens after, it means there is no dramatic climax in the final act. The Ori attack itself is superbly done; there is tension as they wait for the power to increase to an acceptable level, the special effects are good as always and there is a sense of awe as Earth is phased into another dimension.
The shift to examining the political landscape is interesting enough given the various character interactions. There is a powerful scene between Sam and a defeated AU Mitchell confined to a wheelchair; here is a Mitchell who gave up and Ben Browder does a fabulous job at playing this alternative Mitchell who is at once pitiable and unattractive but has a hint of the honourable soldier we know. It’s a fine line and Browder pulls it off.
Sam’s interactions with Landry are also impressive. Its great to see the two verbally joust as Sam challenges Landry even if it is in a different universe. However, despite the opportunity to make Landry the bad guy – and Beau Bridges manages to convey some hints of a darker, power hungry character in his scenes especially when he talks of suspending elections and refusing to let Sam go home – the story fails to make that leap completely and is the poorer for it because it is the reason why there is no dramatic climax. Had Landry really been a bad guy, it might have made how Sam got back more difficult to construct but it would have added real drama to the close of the episode.
Instead, the story peters out with Sam being told by McKay his first task in his new role is to send her home. Hewlett’s performance as McKay is as enjoyable as ever. He does a great job showing an AU McKay that is annoying enough to be recognisable but not so annoying as to make the idea of our Sam working with him unthinkable. However, McKay/Carter is getting a little boring while it was a joy to see Sam/Hammond. For me, both the character and the actor set a standard as the SGC leader that has been difficult for their successors to emulate and this wonderful revisit to the character and his leadership made me miss him all the more. Davis certainly seems to relish revisiting the role, and he and Tapping work together as though he was never gone.
With Sam the primary character, Tapping does a great job of carrying the episode. She delivers an accomplished performance; Sam’s awkwardness at being recognised as a hero, her dismay on learning who her counterpart was married to, her increasing anger and her challenge to Landry, her joy at being home. Tapping makes it all look easy. Kudos has to go to the costume department for the civilian outfits; Sam looked sassy and sexy; a woman not to be messed with. The whole story delivered a Sam true to the established character, and while I have been known to complain about McCullough’s characterisation of her, here he has her spot on.
With Sam on her own for the most part, the episode ends with a wonderful team scene and a great moment as Vala hugs Sam and tells her they missed her. It is nice that the absent member Daniel is mentioned as he was in the opening. However, if the mention of Daniel was great, the non-mention of Jack in the AU is bizarre. While it would not be appropriate to shoehorn a mention of Jack into every episode, the non-mention of him in an AU story, especially in the scene where Sam is asking to speak to someone, sticks out like a sore thumb particularly for the fans who have followed SG1 since it began.
If the story had just gone that bit further with Landry, been that bit more imaginative in its finale, this could have been a second stand-out episode in a row for McCullough. However, here, Tapping’s excellent performance and the nuggets of character interaction don’t quite hide the plot issues but they do enough to make this an enjoyable hour of entertainment nevertheless.
