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Sci-Fi Showdown – Week 5

Welcome back to Khyron’s Sci-Fi Showdown. It’s been a close competition so far, with the venerable Stargate Sg-1 keeping pace with heavy-weight newcomer Battlestar Galactica. Meanwhile, Stargate Atlantis is staying solid, trying to find a niche in the high-quality realm of Scifi Friday.

Will Sg-1 oust last season’s champion? Or will Battlestar begin to pull away from the pack and once again sweep the Showdown?

Let’s find out.

Stargate Sg-1 – Ep. Ethon

Last season was hard for Stargate Sg-1. It was a time for transition. With long time cast member Richard Dean Anderson leaving and nearly all major plot lines resolved, Sg-1 needed something to spice it up. Adding Ben Browder as the leading role was a good move. Having Claudia Black guest star…well, not so much. But all of this is starting to change, and I can definitely see a positive trend back towards the glory days of what made Stargate Sg-1 so truly great.

In episode 9.15, Ethon, old acquaintances are reintroduced from a past episode about a planet with two warring nations (very Cold War-esque). The Ori, it seems, have given one side the plans to build a powerful satellite weapon in return for their loyalty and worship. Now Cameron Mitchell (Ben Browder) and team must venture to the planet and destroy the satellite with the Prometheus. Meanwhile, Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks) attempts to resolve the matter diplomatically. But how deep to the loyalties to the Ori go? And just how well is the satellite defended?

If I were to sum up Ethon in one word, I would choose “solid.” This is, coincidentally, the same word I would choose to sum up just about every episode this season. It was good, solid entertainment in full Sg-1 swing.

For one thing, I always like it when science fiction shows bring up past episodes. For loyal fans, it creates a nice sense of continuity and helps give the fictional world a more believable and dynamic atmosphere. Plus, the special effects were nicely executed.

Much of Ethon takes place aboard the Earth warship Prometheus. Eerily reminiscent of Star Trek (down to the ‘red alert’ claxon sound effect), whenever the ship would get hit by incoming fire, the actors would have to move around with the shaking camera to simulate turbulence. But hey, the effect works. No need to fix that what is not broken.

Guest staring as the character Jared Kane was Mathew Bennett. Scifi Friday fans will remember him most as Doral, one of the 12 Cylon human-replicators prominent in the mini series and season 1 of Battlestar Galactica. ‘Twas a bit distracting, but Bennett’s a good actor, and worked well in the part.

Stargate Atlantis – Ep. The Tower

I really like Stargate Atlantis. I can’t stress that enough. In its short 2.5 season run, I’ve grown quite attached to its cast of central characters. As far as successors to Sg-1 go, I think they could have done a lot worse than Atlantis. In fact, I think it works very well as both a continuation of the Stargate mythos and as a stand-alone entity of science fiction television.

In episode 2.15, The Tower, John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan) and team travel to a planet (that looks very much like Canada) with a village of agrarian peasants. That pretty much describes the beginning of most Stargate episodes, but this time something is a bit different. The villagers are protected by a ‘tower’ controlled by a noble ruling class—a tower of Ancient design. Can the Atlantis team work out a deal for much needed ‘drone’ projectiles? Or will they become trapped in the planet’s class struggle?

Despite what I wrote above about how much I like about Stargate Atlantis, when you try to compare it to its older brother Sg-1 or the movie-quality Battlestar Galactica, it begins to lose some of its sheen.

The Tower was a good episode by Stargate standards; as good as any other Atlantis episode so far. It had moments of comedy, action, and story telling that make Stargate(s) good shows, but it was just nothing special. Whereas Battlestar Galactica is capable of knocking my socks off and leaving a lasting impression (I still can’t get over Boomer shooting Adama), Atlantis is shallower. This shouldn’t be read as poorer as far as entertainment goes, but in the terms of this showdown to rank the ‘best’ among them, it’s a serious handicap for Atlantis.

Not every show can be explosive with countless layers of character and plot development, nor should they be, but I think Battlestar has set a new standard for what sci-fi can be—a standard that I feel has yet to be matched.

But enough about Battlestar Galactica. The Tower featured a great supporting cast, an interesting plot, and Ronon (Jason Momoa) took a chump down with a knife, which is always a plus.

Battlestar Galactica – Ep. Scar

If you haven’t noticed already, I like Battlestar Galactica…a lot. That said, comparatively, season two has yet to really match the level of the first. A few episodes have been kind of sketchy (Black Market had some problems), but the show just doesn’t seem to have to same balls-to the-walls impact as it once did.

Does that mean it’s starting to slip? Frak no.

In episode 2.15, Scar, an ace Cylon raider, nicknamed ‘Scar’ by the pilots of the Galactica, is harassing the fleet's mining operation and killing rookie pilots. Galactica’s two aces, Starbuck (Katee Sackhoff) and Kat (Luciana Carro), make a heated bet as to which one will shoot down Scar. Starbuck, plagued by memories of love left behind on Cylon occupied Caprica, is beginning to lose her edge and hit the bottle. Will Starbuck risk it all to retain her status of prestige as Galactica’s Top Gun? Or will the up and coming (if not terribly arrogant) Kat take the prize?

Scar serves as a reminder as to why Battlestar Galactica is the best show on television. Its action packed when need be, heartfelt when appropriate, and is just so professionally directed, produced, written, and acted that it creates a final product that transcends mere television.

These are big shoes to fill, but I dare anyone—sci-fi fan, or otherwise—to watch any episode of Battlestar Galactica and not find something to like.

Scar was a Starbuck-centric episode, really getting into the mind of the character Kara Thrace. Katee is a great actress, and simply steps up and dominates every scene. Special props need to go to Luciana Carro, though, as a fictional character’s arrogance hasn’t aggravated me like this in some time. Kudos for making Kat such a…well…bitch.

Winner: Battlestar Galactica (Scar)

A touching character drama with a twist of Man v. Robot space dogfighting. A winning combination for Battlestar Galactica.

Memorable Scene: There were a lot of options for this one, but I have to go with the final scene of Scar. It features Starbuck (Katee Sackhoff) sparring with Helo (Tahmoh Penikett) in the Galactica's gym. It ends in an anticlimax with the two friends embraced playfully (yet lovingly) on the floor. How touching.

Standings:

Stargate SG-1: 2
Stargate Atlantis: 0
Battlestar Galactica: 3

Stay tuned for next week's Showdown.

~Khyron, 2006