Stargate Atlantis - Season 1 [2004] - DVD (Joe Flanigan, Torri Higginson, Rachel Luttrell, David Hewlett, Rainbow Sun Francks - Dir: Mario Azzopardi)

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Customer Reviews of Stargate Atlantis - Season 1 [2004]

shay
Wales
29th February 2008

Is Joe Flanigan cute or what?
I love this adventure, pure escapism. I'm a fan of Stargate and when this spin off came out I was a bit worried but I got hooked from the first episode and still am!!! in fact I would even go as far as to say I like it better. And what about John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan) cor! could watch him all day!! But on a more serious note, I hope this lasts as long as SG1 and carries on being as good. The stories are great and every episode transports you to another place. Keep it up!!!

Dan the china man
Leeds, UK
21st February 2008

unsure if the stargate atlantis universe is for you?
This is the question I kept asking myself after I had finished all the great sci-fi tv could get my hands on. I never did get a grasp of stargate Sg1 as i always thought it lacked the brains compared to the star trek universe or the drama/acting found in the phenomenal Battlestar Galatica remake. But though these faults are found in the sister show to stargate sg1, it makes up for it with its unquestionable charm. The character development is done brilliantly that you'll fall in love before the season is far from over. The humour is particularly funny if you find yourself a sci-fi nerd but for those that aren't, Rodney-( the funniest and best character)jokes become alot easier to understand in season 2.
What also makes this a fantastic tv show is the main baddy, which the series takes no time to introduce, and they say you will be terrified and believe me, you will be. The wraths are merciless but have a brain to match and the acting played by their part is enough to make them as interesting as the main actors.
So if you're stuck their wondering if stargate atlantis is really worth the investment, trust me if you're a fan of witty, action packed tv, with of course the odd moments of genius, you'll want to pick this one up right away.

ea_solinas
MD USA
30th December 2007

Into the Pegasus galaxy
One of the big arcs of the "Stargate SG-1" series was finding the Lost City of the Ancients, also known as Atlantis.

It also turned into fertile fodder for a spinoff series (come on, you KNEW they had to make one eventually), known as "Stargate: Atlantis." The first season has its duds and awkward moments -- much like its parent series -- but it proves to be a solid introduction to likable new heroes, a legendary city, and a new race of alien parasites.

At the Antarctic base, Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks) has finally figured out the location of Atlantis -- in the Pegasus galaxy. General Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) gives the go-ahead for an exploratory unit to go to Atlantis -- even though they don't have the power to return back to the Milky Way, and will be stranded there.

So Dr. Elizabeth Weir (Torri Higginson) leads an international group of scientists and military to another galaxy, and arrive in the sunken Ancient city of Atlantis. Unfortunately, after ten millennia Atlantis is running out of power, and soon the whole place will flood. The military unit, including Major John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan), goes scouting for a planet to evacuate to, and encounter the friendly natives.

Meanwhile, the irritable scientist Rodney McKay (David Hewlett) tries to somehow salvage the city -- only to have it rise from the ocean floor. But then the SG teams accidentally wake an ancient enemy -- the parasitic, vampiric Wraith, who destroyed the Ancients long ago. Cut off from Earth, the expedition settles into the Ancient city and tries to make the best of their situation.

Unfortunately, the Pegasus galaxy has plenty of its own dangers -- an energy-sucking "shadow," possible spies, life-sucking bugs, a destructive nanovirus, a mysterious goddess, suicidal kids, cannibal Wraith, and an Amishlike people who turn out to be ruthless soldiers. And the Wraith are closing in on Atlantis, intent on getting to Earth -- forcing Weir and Sheppard to arm the city for what may be its final stand.

"Stargate: Atlantis" has an easier introduction than most series, even spinoffs. The whole idea was introduced over a few seasons of "Stargate SG-1," and two of the characters (Weir and McKay) were also recurring characters. And thank God, there is no endless whining about how they may never see Earth again, as many series would do -- the Atlantis personnel just forge ahead, and deal with it.

It does have some flaws, mostly the same ones that "SG-1" had in ITS first season -- a few duds ("The romancing of the alien priestess? It's very 1967 of you"), and many others that are good sci-fi watchin', but not great. It takes a little time for the series to get comfortable, but by the last four or five episodes, it really takes off.

And it has plenty of sci-fi staples -- ugly nasty aliens, tightly wound scientists, little tubular ships, explosions, moral quandaries and a bit of classic-style horror. But it doesn't lose its laid-back style (Rodney massaging his feet during a conference), or its human side -- for example, one episode has everyone recording touching messages to send back to Earth.

And the dialogue is pretty great, with lots of one-liners and snappy exchanges. Most are from Rodney ("This device must be using an older version of Windows"), and Sheppard ("I am your death. That is all you need to know." "I prefer 'Steve'"). But there's humor from everyone ("Find another problem with it! Tell him that the power-loop interface isn't jiving with your walkabout!").

The cast is a bit uneven -- Higginson is given too little to do, and Rainbow Sun Francks just never works. But Flanigan has a nice O'Neillian sarcastic snap, Hewlett is hilarious as the mildly antisocial, ever-exasperated scientist, and Paul McGillion is simply adorable as a cuddly Scottish doctor. And while Rachel Luttrell starts off as just the token native love interest, she evolves nicely at the end of the season.

"Stargate Atlantis" has its shaky moments, and the actors were still getting a grip on their roles. But it's a solid first for a solid sci-fi series, gating out into a new galaxy.

Janie231
England
15th September 2007

Excellent spin off
I shared some of the previous reviewers' reservations about a spin off - SG-1 was a bit of a legend after all. No need to worry because Atlantis started strongly and has gone from strength to strength. The characterisations are strong, the plots have the wide arcs we've come to expect from this franchise and the individual episodes also stand in their own right. Yes, some of the episodes are stronger than others - show me a TV series that doesn't have variations. Also, while there may seem to be initial 'similarities' with characters from SG-1, give it a couple of episodes and these disappear, to be replaced with individuals who gel together as a team extremely well and offer something distinctly different to the O'Neill/Carter/Jackson/Teal'c quartet - a difference that is very refreshing.
The quality of the visual effects are outstanding for a TV series (much, much better than SG-1) and the pilot in particular is superb. Other highlights are the mid-season two-parter The Storm/The Eye and the several other episodes that deal with the Genii. The Wraith are a much scarier nemesis than the Goauld could ever be and the whole series has a much more apocalyptic feel about it, a sense of jeopardy - which makes for much more involving TV.
Stand-out characters are Joe Flanigan (Major Sheppard) and David Hewlett(Dr Rodney McKay) although it's a bit unfair to single these two out as the cast is an ensemble and all give fine performances. On a personal level I 'like' the Atlantis characters far more than I 'liked' the SG-1 ones - which is a testament to both the quality of the acting and the writing as well.
Overall, an excellent series that can be watched by anyone who loves Sci-Fi as well as people who just enjoy an exciting story with cool baddies and some very, very funny one-liners. Slight warning here that some very young children may find the Wraith a bit much.

The Voice in the Wilderness
UK
5th April 2007

Formulaic, Cliched and Oh So Desperately Rubbish.
Stargate Atlantis is nothing more than a multi-million dollar, cash-in clone of the original series, desperate to keep the franchise going and claim hundreds of millions of dollars in syndication fees and merchandising. And so with no creative vision actually driving the series, it gives us the same basic storylines, the same basic characters, the same basic plots and the same basic problems, only in a different galaxy.

The special effects might be more spectacular, but as a general rule, the more time that a programme spends on its CGI, the less time it will actually spend on writing a decent script. And as a result, you can usually guess what's going to happen in the first 5 minutes of the programme.

As I watched the series, I could actually imagine large gaps in the script that were covered with a label saying "Place Cliched Ending Here" or "Add stupid Startrek Reference Here."

And as for the 'Cut and Paste' characters, The Major in this series is just a younger, sexier version of O'Neil. The 'Teal'c' character this time is an attractive woman so that there can be some cliched 'will they, won't they?' romantic rubbish. Dr Elizabeth Wier is Dr Jackson, and Dr Mckay is still the same irritating prat that he was in SG1.

"Stargate Atlantis" is to "Stargate SG1" what "Voyager" was to "The Next Generation," a pointless, cliched, 'cut and paste' cash-in, desperately trying to capture the popularity of the previous series, but failing miserably.

"The Enterprise travelled through space and had lots of adventures. The Voyager travelled through space and had lots of adventures...in a diferent part of the galaxy."

SG Atlantis does have its moments though. Two of the episodes for example are very good indeed. But on the whole, you'd probably just be better off ignoring the whole thing.