ebonlock | (no subject)

So previously my favorite episode in the series had always been "The Tao of Rodney", it was a beautiful character piece that gave the one character in the series most in need of a cosmic bitch-slapping just what he needed to start to become a better person. Yeah there was the requisite sci-fi element with the Ancient tech, but ultimately the show slowed down, took its time, and let a character (and those around him) develop. You knew he was never going to be quite the same again and that, as far as I'm concerned, is the very essence of a good story.

Mind you I have nothing against big alien battles and exploding things, but I need a bit more than that to stay hooked on a show. More often than not SGA has spent far too much time and energy doing the big splashy stuff in a weird attempt to keep the lowest common denominator of the fandom tuning in. I can shrug those episodes off at worst, or find something to really enjoy about them if there's at least a lovely little character moment or two. Indeed I adored "Ghost in the Machine" mostly because of the opening sequence and the banter between the team. Ok, also the amazing Woolsey stuff, and yeah favorite SGA commander EVAH! No question about that.

So I've established what I like in an episode, this is why "The Shrine" has become my new favorite episode.

Setting aside the title, which, is about the laziest excuse for one I've ever seen. I mean seriously, my teenage niece could come up with a better title, and this was an episode that deserved something brilliant rather than descriptive. But yeah, we're setting that aside.

The narrative format was brilliant right off the bat. We're introduced to Rodney's plight not in a linear manner, but through a series of video taped recordings showing his slow descent into mental oblivion. Jeannie, his adorable sister, basically arrives on Atlantis just in time to say goodbye to her dying brother and his story is revealed to her (and us) through the video recordings and the memories of the other characters.

Now see this is another level of the brilliance, that a story one would've thought would center around Rodney (after all, he's the victim of the hideous brain parasite) in actuality it isn't really about him at all. Unlike "The Tao of Rodney", McKay isn't the central focus, rather it's the ripple effect his illness has on everyone around him. After a certain point he's incapable of understanding his own plight (though the moment when he's still there enough to comprehend that he should no longer be referred to as "doctor" because "doctors are smart" is just devastatingly brutal) and it's the reactions of his friends and family that move the story along.

I loved Ronon's steadfast loyalty and his insistence that they take Rodney to the shrine he'd taken his grandfather to so he could "die with dignity". I loved that he was the one to comfort Jeannie and to go to her when his suggestions hit a brick wall with everyone else. I enjoyed Teyla going into comforting mom mode with Rodney, keeping an arm around him, her voice soft and encouraging, it just read right. I loved that Jennifer was actually considering what Rodney himself would want and trying to stick to her guns even if it meant shooting down everyone else's hope. She showed herself to be a fierce opponent, a driven doctor, and a committed friend. Also the fact that she was a complete girl about the video recording where he admitted his feelings for her made me absolutely adore her. That read as genuine (hell I defy any female reading this to deny that she hasn't at least once kept an email, a phone message, whatever from a significant other to watch/listen to over and over again), and the episode kind of made me a little more comfortable with the inevitable Rodney/Jennifer hook up.

However, it was John that blew me away entirely. I mean in Tao he'd been so standoffish, so unwilling to help at first that he'd kind of annoyed me a little. He'd practically had to be dragged into assisting Rodney and he'd remained at a distance throughout. Yeah the bedroom scene was nice at the end, but there was still this stiff, uncomfortable feel to it. Now compare and contrast that to the bedroom scene in this one. Rodney runs through the halls in the middle of the night terrified and who does he go to? John, of course. Sheppard bolts out of bed (and dude, panda pj's, OMG) and is immediately there, holding his friend, comforting him, reassuring him until he calms down. Rodney's abandonment issues are laid bare, after which he apologizes profusely and is embarrassed as hell. John handles the situation with surprising consideration and empathy, taking his best friend out on the pier for beers. It's an incredibly moving sequence that, again, reads utterly true because both characters maintain the smartass banter that's been a fundamental element of their relationship from the beginning. Indeed Rodney's, "You're a good friend, Arthur." and John's spittake may go down as my all-time favorite moment in the entire series.

But beyond that when Rodney is at his lowest point and John enters the infirmary he lights up like a little kid on Christmas. Yeah we're meant to believe he's all in love with Jennifer (and anyone shocked by that revelation please raise your hand), but he doesn't grin like that when she's around. I'm not sure if it was an intentional nod to the slash fans out there, but it certainly came off as one.

I'm really glad we got a little Woolsey mixed in as well, and it was an utterly touching and humanizing moment as he related his own dad's demise from Alzheimer's. I'm seriously not sure I can possibly love this character more.

Each and every character got a moment to show how the events were effecting them, to be changed by his plight on a profound level. And frankly the changes in John were the most moving to me, his emotional development in the span of a single episode (set over the course of a few weeks) was more than we'd previously seen in several years. I am, in short, in awe.

As for Rodney, well hat's off to David for some fine acting choices in this one. I especially liked the subtle work he did while recovering in the infirmary after the initial illness. Rodney's personality and mind were already being effected and it was perfectly easy to see why the other characters would've easily overlooked the signs until it was too late. When he wakes up and is utterly laid back about the situation and even joking around. Of course the viewer's red flags are waving wildly, Rodney's never so relaxed and charming. It's one of the things I like most about the character, he's all sharp edges and sharper words. And the scene where he openly flirts with Jennifer and offers her his fruit cup actually made me gasp aloud. Rodney never willingly shares his food, it's just not done.

The video recordings that demonstrate Rodney's deterioration are brief and all the more heartbreaking because of it. His nearly silent mouthing of what bits he can remember of Pi actually caused me to physically ache for him. To see him bereft of everything is just devastating, and to understand that it came about under the most mundane of circumstances made it even more real and painful.

I will say that the end of the episode left a bit to be desired. It was a little too neat and tidy for my taste, and I have this silly, vain hope that some sorts of physical damage to the characters might actually last more than 40 minutes or so. Indeed it would make me really, really happy if someone got hurt and stayed hurt for a few episodes, but I know that's asking a lot. Still, aside from that the rest of the episode more than made up for it.

Excellent, excellent episode and one that was well worth waiting the last four seasons for. More like this, please?