Excluding Lt. Scott’s encounter with the alien entity on the desert planet, this was also the first time the crew of the Destiny had to deal with an alien life form.
While it was interesting to see the sand alien again, the minute that it is introduced it is pretty clear that the alien is responsible for Destiny‘s current water issues. Sure, Spencer was also hoarding some food and water. But the alien was clearly drawn to it in “Air, Part 3,” making it pretty obvious that it was responsible. It was also frustrating that the Destiny crew was not given a way to interact with the creature instead of the “shoot first, ask questions” later mentality.
When the rest of the crew finally found out about the entity, it almost felt as if these people should have been more fearful of what was happening. A lot of the crew are just scientists and some had never even gone through the Stargate before, leaving the situation not very believable. There could have easily been some fear or chaos written into some of these characters, but instead it seemed like they care more about the supposed reign the military has over them than the threat of an alien life form on the ship.
Although some parts of this episode were lacking, it was made up for by character depth for T.J. and Greer. They are both people who are tough and not to be messed with in a tight situation. T.J. is put into a command situation and, while she doesn’t necessarily know what she’s doing, she learns to adapt. It was also nice to see that while Greer might be a loose cannon, he can follow orders … when he wants to.
During the water mission, Eli gets a true taste of how Rush and the military truly work sometimes — and that it’s not always honest. That was an interesting piece of writing, as this really seemed to get under Eli’s skin. It seemed he was the only character this week who got nervous about the entity, or got angry with the way Rush and the military were dealing with the situation by lying to Colonel Young.
It will be interesting to see how Eli reacts now that he’s seen Rush’s true colors. It really seems like he is getting the most character development as Eli gets better and better each week. It’s hard to find someone who doesn’t like him right now.
Overall, “Water” was one of those 50/50 episodes with a good A-story and a sub-par B-story. While not as predictable as “Light,” some parts of this episode were just painstakingly obvious, like Spencer stealing the water or the “sand alien” being responsible for the massive water shortage. In the end, “Water” ended up being more of a character driven episode more than anything else, as we got to know a lot more about the key members of Destiny‘s crew.
Episode reviews represent the opinion of the author, and not that of GateWorld or its owner.
Stargate's VFX supervisor James Tichenor talks about recreating the Stargate's signature puddle effects from the…
Five Stargate ship models are available now, with the next three announced and more to…
BlueBrixx's new LEGO-compatible Stargate construction sets are here. So how are they?
"T.J." actress Alaina Huffman reveals the other role she auditioned for, and why she fought…
Actor David Nykl looks back on Stargate Atlantis, being part of the fan community, and…
EXCLUSIVE: A classic Atlantis ship is now in the works from Master Replicas – one…
View Comments
And tonight on Sex and the Stargate...
Warning major spoilers....
Another week and another pointless drivel filled episode of Universe. I gave this episode a 2 because we actually saw an alien and they went through the Stargate. Now onto the episode itself. The major plot twist of this story, if you could call it that, is that Scott and Col. Young go to an ice planet to find water and ...wait for it...wait for it...that's right folks Scott falls through the ice and gets stuck. Whew I really didnt see that coming. And the Col. takes 10-15 min. meandering and pontificating. Within the first minute I was asking myself why didnt he just tie the other end of the rope to the hover device and pull Scott out. It took the Col. a good 10 minutes. But then again how would they get some excellent drama. And oh by the way the Col. did not really manage to get Scott out, there are another series of tremors, which it seems dislodge the material trapping Scott.(unless I missed something, but it seemed like one min he was stuck and after the tremors he was free) So another lucky break saves the day. At least this time it was not the ship. But wow did that create some real tension and excitement or what, I mean on SG-1 and SGA they only had to save entire civilizations in the nick of time. But man this was just soo much better!!!
Coming to the alien on the ship, I realized immediately they were going to send it through the Stargate. However, I must confess I did not realize they were going to lure it using water in order to do it. However, the plot was extremely similar to SGA episode Hide and Seek. However, SGA hide and seek actually had some sci fi in it. They discovered the transportation devices, they discovered the ascension plans of the ancients, and there was some good sci fi lingo. Here zilch, nada, nothing.
Chloe seems to be around just to complain and you know create DRAMA. And yeah, again Scott decides he is above the rules and can simply switch off communication. Wow he really has the quality of leadership in him, doesnt he?? And the great Dr. Rush seems to think that the best way to deal with any problem is to simply leave someone behind, I mean why should we even try to help someone in danger, when it is so much easier to let them die right????
Yes, you dont even have to say it, I am an SGA fan still unable to get over its cancellation. But here is my question, how could someone who thinks that SGA season 4 and season 5 were weak think that Scott getting stuck in ice is an interesting or strong plot. I mean really what else happened in this episode. And as I already stated the remaining plot was a rip off of SGA Hide and Seek. And for those who say it allowed for character development of the Col. Really???What about all the episodes which showed Sheppard trying to get Ford back? Or what about the 5th season opener in which he goes back for Teyla despite being injured because he doesnt want to lose her, like he lost Ford. But hey those episodes were not filled with 10 min of melodrama.
@krdstargate: Sooo.... you liked it then?
I'd have to say I agree a lot with what krdstargate says above... SGU's episodes move at the speed of molasses. And having invested in 15 previous seasons of SG1 and SGA, I just can't help but wonder what the producers were thinking choosing to go down this road with the new series. Was their special FX budget trimmed down to nothing? There is one set -- the ship -- where the characters spend 90% of their time whining about being stuck in space -- and they must really be alone in this part of space, since no one in a million years has happened to notice a city-size spaceship floating on by, which after 6 or 7 episodes, has been the only thing to happen in outerspace. Please - we need a hostile alien race or some other compelling reason for these people to somehow join together and start wanting to survive. No threat = no drama, despite the Melrose-style drama the Chloe character seems to create ep to ep. The one positive -- no planets which are covered in forests; although I'd gladly take that back in exchange for some tension, high-stakes action, and a little light-hearted exchange between characters that are engaging. I'll keep watching, being the Gate-junkie I am, but it doesn't always pay to reinvent the wheel -- sometimes things work best the way they were.
GateWhirled- "@krdstargate: Sooo…. you liked it then?"
you betchaa!!!!:)
Character development, character development, character development... Chant it like a mantra!
Atlantis was phenominal. It was just plain stupid to cancell it. Why not incorporate Atlantis into Universe somehow if you wont bring back ATLANTIS.
ATLANTIS rocks ! Universe is a nowhere near as good.
ticked off. Kim May in Ontario
Seriously people, I just don't get your wacky obsession with hating SGU. Where was the drama in SGA? Excepting when an actor wanted to leave the show it was obvious that no one ever in any risk of dying, the characters in the show were perfect except for carefully defined "flaws" that were there for comedic effect. You had 15 seasons of that, and you still want more? SGU isn't about action, killing stuff, blowing up huge honking ships, shooting thousands of aliens,etc, it's about putting people where they shouldn't be and then watching what happens. Stuff like that shouldn't be moving at the speed of light.
As for "Sex and the Stargate" Seriously? You've got to be kidding. This is the real world. I'm probably more religious than 90% of the people here, and I can deal with it, why is there this childish "Iwww!!!! Look what she's doing!!!!!"? I certainly don't agree morally that the characters are doing it, but that doesn't change the fact that it's realistic.
You people just don't get it- It's not about what you see, but *why* you see what you do.
Atlantis was a great show, but it saturated the genre. It's time for something new, and SGU is doing a pretty good job at delivering that, as long as they don't go overboard, and are given a chance I think they'll continue to get much better at doing so as well.
@krdstargate Yeah SGA was a good show. when the writers can't write stories for a character they create, they just kill the off or get rid of them. They did it to Ford, Weir, etc. So many times the writers pull **** out of nowhere to get the plot moving. At least, in SGU they don't makeup words like "Wormhole Drive" to cut corners. This cast has great chemistry in it's first episodes than SGA had in it's 5 seasons.
The more I watch this show, the more I dislike it. The slow pace, the whiny scientists, the 90210'esqe "character development". I honestly find myself rooting for Rush now, as he's the only one who seems to get what's going on and how to prioritize things. Eli's "character development" consists of him basically needing a kick to head and being told to grow up. And the whiny scientists, complaining about the searches: "We have rights." Seriously? These people had been living on a military base for months before getting to the ship, and they are surprised at how things are being run? I get that their whiny-ness is supposed to how normal folks relate to them, but it's still annoying as hell. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I enjoyed SG1 and SGA because it was about the best and brightest being the best and brightest. If I wanted to watch ill-prepared people dealing with situations that are way over their head, I'd go to the mall and watch all of the glass-eyed mouth-breathers feeble attempts at interaction...
I've promised myself to give this show a full season before making a final decision of Yay or Nay, and I want the franchise to succeed, but I think in the TPTB's attempts to reach a larger audience, they are forgetting their core audience that kept them in business for all of these years, which provided them the opportunity to do this show. Don't bite the hand that feeds you guys. I'm rooting for you.
@altairantares well said.