Stargate Atlantis charged out of the gate (pun intended) with some great characters, and among them strong women leaders in Teyla Emmagan, Elizabeth Weir, and later Samantha Carter. Teyla was the Atlantis expedition’s first and closest ally in the Pegasus Galaxy. Following a Wraith attack that left her people displaced, Teyla joined John Sheppard’s team.

For the role of the Athosian queen — originally called “Mikala” in early drafts of the pilot — the studio found actress Rachel Luttrell. Born in Tanzania to a mother from Tanzania and a father from Louisiana, Rachel moved to Canada with her family at the age of five. She studied music and ballet, including training at The Russian Academy of Classical Ballet and The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. After taking up acting she appeared in shows such as Charmed, Touched By an Angel, and ER.

Let’s count down our five favorite Stargate Atlantis episodes that are centered on Teyla. Check out our picks below, then post your five favorites!

Number 5: “The Kindred, Part 1”

Kicking off the 4-part climax to Teyla’s Season Four story arc, in this episode she experiences vivid dreams of her lost love, a fellow Athosian named Kanaan (Patrick Sabongui). He and the rest of the Athosians have vanished from their new homeworld, and Teyla does not know if they are alive or dead. But Kanaan also has “the Gift” (Wraith DNA that allows him to tap into the Wraith’s telepathic network), and Teyla is convinced that he is actually trying to contact her in order to help her find him.

Alas, it’s all a setup. This episode shows Teyla’s strength and determination, her fierce loyalty to her people … and ultimately her vulnerability, as she is lured into a trap by the hybrid Wraith Michael (Connor Trinneer). It is he who took the Athosians captive (to experiment on them, of course), and who used Kanaan’s voice and Teyla’s feelings for him to lure her away from Atlantis.

Number 4: “Critical Mass”

Rachel gets to show off her phenomenal singing talent in Atlantis‘s second-season episode “Critical Mass,” in which Teyla sings a funeral dirge for Charin (Brenda McDonald). The Athosian elder knew Teyla from childhood and was like a grandmother to her, and her passing represents a further break between Teyla and the people she had chosen to leave in order to better defend them from the Wraith (“Suspicion”). Although Atlantis is facing a crisis in the form of a bomb that a spy has hidden in the city, Teyla insists on completing the Ring Ceremony before she leaves.

Titled “Beyond the Night,” the song is a stand-out moment for Rachel and for Teyla, and a high point in the series’ outstanding music. Composer Joel Goldsmith brought Rachel to California to record the song, but reportedly had to have her re-do the performance because it was too well polished!

Number 3: “Missing”

With the Athosians resettled to a new homeworld to call their own, Teyla prepares for a much-needed visit — including a “date” with Kanaan. But when she and Dr. Keller arrive on New Athos they find the village empty. They attempt to ascertain what has happened to her people, but soon come under attack from the Bola Kai — a tribe of fierce warriors.

This episode also introduced a major story arc for Teyla’s character: her pregnancy, made necessary by Rachel’s real-life pregnancy. The story would run all the way through the birth of Teyla’s son Torren in the Season Five premiere.

“Missing” did a lot to introduce fans to the new character of Jennifer Keller, so it’s easy to overlook the fact that this was also a huge episode for Teyla. She has continually lived with a sense of guilt over leaving her people, something which is greatly accentuated when they are attacked and taken captive by an unknown enemy during her absence. This episode also shows her coolness under extraordinary pressure, her sensitive side when speaking of Kanaan, and (surprisingly) her utter ruthlessness when going hand-to-hand with a pack of vicious killers.

Number 2: “The Queen”

Thanks to her latent Wraith DNA, Teyla is the perfect candidate to execute a plan concocted by Todd (Christopher Heyerdahl), the uneasy Wraith ally of Atlantis. The team proposes that Todd begin a drug trial using Michael’s research to free the Wraith from their biological need to feed on humans. He agrees to present the idea to the Queen who rules his own particular alliance of hives … only Todd himself can’t make the proposal. He needs Teyla to pretend to be the Queen of his own ship.

Teyla is surgically altered to appear as a Wraith, setting up an entertaining scene of Todd playing “My Fair Lady” to try and help her learn to act the part. But once they board the flagship of the “Primary” Todd quickly dispatches the other Queen and installs Teyla in her place.

For a woman who has feared and hated the Wraith all her life, becoming one of them is a startling turn for Teyla’s character. The “face of the enemy” concept works perfectly here, as Teyla not only helps the plan to succeed, but really gets into character, threatening Todd that she will return as the Queen of his alliance if he steps out of line. And in a twisted moment, the newly empowered Queen Teyla orders wave after wave of Wraith to their death by employing an aggressive battle strategy.

Number 1: “The Gift”

One of the first episodes to focus on Teyla’s character remains one of the best. This late Season One episode is a haunting study of her past and her identity. Teyla turns to base psychologist Kate Heightmeyer (Claire Rankin) after she has disturbing dreams of being attacked by a Wraith … then of being a Wraith herself. This leads her to the discovery that she possesses Wraith DNA, due to secret experiments performed on her ancestors generations ago. She has always been able to sense when the Wraith are nearby — but now she learns that she can also telepathically connect to their shared hive mind.

That’s cool, and would prove strategically valuable in numerous future episodes like “Submersion” and “Spoils of War.” But as we see in this episode, it’s also extremely risky. A Wraith’s mind is so powerful that, if Teyla is discovered, her worst enemy can quickly turn the tables and take control of her body.

It’s a shame that these abilities and the enduring impact of this discovery on Teyla’s self-understanding were not explored more in the series. But “The Gift” helped to flesh out Teyla’s character, giving the show’s writers much more to explore for the rest of the series.

Let’s hear your picks for your favorite Teyla episodes! Leave us your Top 5 in the comments below.