It would certainly appear that the inaugural season of Stargate Universe is going out with a bang. The setup from two weeks ago paid off with Kiva (Rhona Mitra) and the Lucian Alliance actually managing to dial their way on board Destiny. And that’s where the fun really begins.
Their entrance is actually the most curious part of the episode for me. Young really did have the luxury of just about the perfect location to defend. Even before the gate went hot I was wondering why the gate room wasn’t vented before anyone set foot through it. Eventually I just chalked that one up to him not knowing the situation they were coming from. He had no idea whether the first people through would be able to send word back and allow reinforcements to enter prepared. So waiting to spring the trap could make sense.
Not venting the room after the arrival was even stranger, and I would argue it had nothing to do with saving Rush. From leaving him on a planet to die, to sending him off to who knows where posing as Telford, it’s been made pretty clear that Young would be just fine with doing things Rush-free. Instead, not venting was all about saving Telford. With the brainwashing reversed Telford is again part of the team, and that affords him loyalties that Rush doesn’t have.
That brings us to the standoff, which I enjoyed quite a bit. The brief skirmish that set their positions was a little A-Team-esque in its marksmanship, but the players and the situation are interesting. Kiva, the psychotic rock, vs Young, the stubborn hard place. It really can’t end well for someone. I was intrigued by Kiva’s idea that they work together. Her amazing little lock picks suggest she has much to share with the Destiny crew. Unfortunately, that whole idea where she wants to be in control is kind of a deal breaker.
I do hold out hope though that the Destiny will at some point get in range of a gate so she can escape to an unknown world and live to ‘incur’ another day. She’s just too good a villain to have this be her one shot. And right now, it’s not looking so good for anyone on her team. Put another way, what the hell smoked the LA soldier? My best guess is that it’s Destiny protecting itself again. Is it possible that the ship is looking at the players and able to choose a side? It has been able to detect what the crew needs and stop at a planet where they can get it.The other option is that this is our first look at Franklin as the ghost in the machine.
And then there’s Eli and Chloe. I actually didn’t mind their scenes, but I’m not so great with the fact that they were in that position in the first place. Maybe I’m just valuing Eli more than Young, but with Rush possibly lost, why is he left to roam free when an attack is imminent? I would think that at that point Eli would be required to wear his crash helmet, and not allowed in the steam shower without his floaties. The fact that he wasn’t in the command room is very odd.
We’ll have to wait another week to see how it all plays out, but I suppose we can guess that Young will win. Although, I would be awfully impressed if SGU returned next season with Kiva in control of Destiny and knocking heads back at Stargate command. While that’s pretty unlikely, there are some interesting possibilities already suggested for next year. For one, Telford is now on board. More importantly, while it did blow up a planet, Rush is that much closer to actually establishing a link. At the end of the day, a solid episode. Looking forward to the big finale.
Clacked by Brett Love 
on Jun 05, 2010 @ 03:46 EST5EDT
just as long as it doesn’t become Star Trek Voyager where the two sides join forces and become one team.
As O’Neill pointed out Young is a rampaging idiot. WTF kind of military officer endangers the ship and entire crew for one person?!?! And a traitor at that? I saw this coming a mile away and it still drove me nuts. The sheer stupidity.
I agree, this is looking to be a solid finale. The Lucian Alliance was introduced in SG-1 but not utilized too much or too well, so I’m glad that they’re being used more effectively in SGU. I also felt like O’Neill, Carter, and even Daniel were integrated into the story really nicely this time. It didn’t feel forced at all (esp. in comparison to last week’s strange Daniel cameo).
The Lucian Alliance had 12 prisoners, including Tamarah Johanson, who is pregnant with her and Young’s child. That’s a pretty good reason for not storming that part of the ship, or blasting them all out of the airlock. I don’t think he was hesitating because of his feelings for Telford :)
*POST AUTHOR*
You misunderstand me ManWithSword. That’s why he isn’t doing it now. I was referring to his initial hesitation when he saw Telford/Rush first enter and held off venting the gate room, before hostages were involved.
Trained soldiers shooting with automatic weapons into a corridor and not hitting anything? You’re right. Just like the good ole Hannibal, Face, BA and Murdock.
The standoff gives the authors a lot of directions they can take the beginning of the second season. Too bad destiny’s main controls are too centralized. Otherwise the two factions could live on the huuuuuge ship side by side. A miniature version of the cold war.
@ManWithSword
The review said, that Young hesitated when the Lucian Alliance came aboard, not when they had the 12 hostages
You’re both right. I’m not on my top game at the moment. Recovering from a chest infection and now have laryngitis including complete loss of voice from coughing so much. So in fact it was Young’s loyalty to the unbrainwaished Telford that stopped him acting as swiftly as he might have. Either that or the writers simply needed to create enough time for the Lucian Alliance to board and have a strong enough position to create an interesting standoff, even if Young’s delayed reaction seemed a bit inconsistent with his character. Perhaps there’s more to it than this. Overall, it was a great episode.
I hope you feel better soon!
Regarding the idea of venting the gate room: Why couldn’t Young vent the gate room when the Alliance, with Telford, came aboard? It was made obvious earlier when he was trying to reverse the brainwashing of Telford that he could’ve stopped and reversed the venting of atmosphere at any time. So why not vent atmosphere until everyone in the gate room was either unconscious or so disoriented as to be unable to defend themselves then storm in? Removing the atmosphere didn’t have to be complete and therefore a death sentence, but Young could have easily taken control without taking a single life.
Yup, that makes sense.
I would really like to know why they have not spent more time exploring the ship. I guess Chloe and Eli can do that. Also watching Eli huff and puff was disappointing. He should be in better shape by now.
Still a great episode.
thanks bsgfan20003. Didn’t Eli say that something had been done to the atmospheric exchange? Air wasn’t being vented out, but no fresh air was being pumped in, so eventually as the oxygen got used up, the lack of air would render people unconscious. Perhaps doing it this way was less conspicuous, and thus likely to be detected. Anyway, back to playing WoW :)
Even so, teams could be exploring in suits. There might even be gardens and rooms filled with diapers on board that they don’t know of. :)
LOL! “…rooms filled with diapers on board…” Good one. At this stage of the plot, some adult diapers would probably be useful, too.
My bet is Eli will stumble upon some medical room or device that will either heal Chloe or put her in suspended animation until they can have TJ work on her.
good point :)
Hey Brett – try as I might I cannot understand who the Alliance is. I realize I must have missed something, but if you can tell me their point, I’d appreciate it. Isn’t the crew “stuck” on board? Forget the how; why would anyone want that crazy ship?
Maybe Brett can explain it better, but I’ll give it a shot. In SG-1, after the Goa’uld were defeated, the Lucian Alliance took advantage of the power void to become … space gangsters I guess. Galactic mafia. They use scavenged/stolen Goa’uld ships and technology, and with Destiny, they’re looking to acquire more technology. Kiva’s plan originally was to dial the gate on Destiny, take the ship, and then be able to dial back to the planet she was on. But then the planet they were dialing from blew up, so now she and her people are stuck on Destiny.
Thanks Ruby! I guess watching SG1 could have helped. It felt like I was expected to know who they were. Apparently that’s true! Strange that space gangsters can dial the ship, but the military cannot. At least I understand now. Guess something like this needed to happen; it can’t be the same show week in and week out. Thanks again. :-)
*POST AUTHOR*
The reason that the Lucian Alliance could dial the gate, but the military couldn’t, is because of the power requirements required. They kind of glossed over it this time because those details were given earlier. Essentially, the Alliance had found another planet with a core made of Naquadria, like the original location of the Icarus base. That core is the only thing powerful enough to dial the 9th chevron, but it’s also terrifically unstable.
I don’t know if you’re in the US, Modwild, but I believe all ten seasons of SG1 are currently available on Hulu. The Lucian Alliance appear mostly in the last couple of seasons. I don’t remember if they appear prior to Season 9.
*POST AUTHOR*
Ruby has it right. You can read more about the history of the Lucian Alliance if you’re curious. For simplicity though, just think of them as the space mob.
As to why they would want the ship, the ancient technology has great value. Just as important, if (and right now I suppose that is a pretty big if) Kiva could gain control of the ship, it would put her in a much more powerful position. Because, as with the mob, leadership positions and status within the alliance are very fluid things. Being the only one rolling in an ancient ship is a pretty strong signal that you are not to be messed with.
And thanks to you, B! Its a strong signal unless you happen to be stuck on there. LOL
As I type this, the 70s theme from Star Wars is on my XM radio. HA!