This is also (uh, to sorta get back to the point) reflected in Rodney's character in "Intruder", possibly. I'm going to have to re-watch Intruder, but I felt that all of Rodney's actions were relegated to 2 categories: telling us what the virus was doing, and being a tool. If you look through earlier episodes, Rodney is always firmly sure of what's going on- even if he's firmly sure that they're all going to die. The Daedalus, unlike Atlantis, showed him in a environment where he is out of his depth. The events happening in the computer system that he tells us about, what worked and what didn't and what random problems that sprung up, seemed more abritrary than anything. I think that's one reason why it felt off; why I felt like this Rodney wasn't the one we've seen in the Atlantis briefing room in the past- because Rodney's 'this is what's going on, you morons' was more like 'this is what's going on in the computer, oh crap, let me freak out'. And Rodney may have problems with taking action and being brave, but intellectually he's always been in control, in one way or another, even if it's just doom and gloom dramatics. This episode was a more intellectual conflict, and yet here Rodney is suddenly worried about not transporting the necessary bits? If he and Sheppard has switched places, and Sheppard had been the one to do that, the Rodney I know would have snapped at him, called him an idiot and pointed out that logically crouching down and cupping the family jewels would have done nothing if the beaming went wrong. So Rodney's helplessness, while inconsistent and frustrating, is to me just part and parcel of a shift in the dynamics and scale of the show, which I'm not too happy with.
We'll see though; it's only two episodes in, and maybe once they have a few more Atlantis-based, or off-world Team plots, it'll find it's footing and Rodney will rediscover his awesome brain.
Phew. Lots of rambling. I know it's a little incoherent, sorry.
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Re: My two cents
Date: 2005-07-25 05:17 am (UTC)This is also (uh, to sorta get back to the point) reflected in Rodney's character in "Intruder", possibly. I'm going to have to re-watch Intruder, but I felt that all of Rodney's actions were relegated to 2 categories: telling us what the virus was doing, and being a tool. If you look through earlier episodes, Rodney is always firmly sure of what's going on- even if he's firmly sure that they're all going to die. The Daedalus, unlike Atlantis, showed him in a environment where he is out of his depth. The events happening in the computer system that he tells us about, what worked and what didn't and what random problems that sprung up, seemed more abritrary than anything. I think that's one reason why it felt off; why I felt like this Rodney wasn't the one we've seen in the Atlantis briefing room in the past- because Rodney's 'this is what's going on, you morons' was more like 'this is what's going on in the computer, oh crap, let me freak out'. And Rodney may have problems with taking action and being brave, but intellectually he's always been in control, in one way or another, even if it's just doom and gloom dramatics. This episode was a more intellectual conflict, and yet here Rodney is suddenly worried about not transporting the necessary bits? If he and Sheppard has switched places, and Sheppard had been the one to do that, the Rodney I know would have snapped at him, called him an idiot and pointed out that logically crouching down and cupping the family jewels would have done nothing if the beaming went wrong. So Rodney's helplessness, while inconsistent and frustrating, is to me just part and parcel of a shift in the dynamics and scale of the show, which I'm not too happy with.
We'll see though; it's only two episodes in, and maybe once they have a few more Atlantis-based, or off-world Team plots, it'll find it's footing and Rodney will rediscover his awesome brain.
Phew. Lots of rambling. I know it's a little incoherent, sorry.