Stargate Atlantis - The Complete First Season

It looks like it is not just the Milky Way galaxy where English is the universal language. It looks to be pretty common in the Pegasus galaxy as well.Stargate Command decides to send an expedition to Atlantis. This is a dicey proposition because if the expedition cannot find more of the ZPM crystals, they will not have the energy to return. It could well be a one way mission. That sets up this spin-off series with its main premise. An expedition from Earth is stranded in a high tech environment.The series needs more than that, of course and it has it. Instead of the Goa'uld, they find a new adversary even nastier. These are the Wraith, a race which feeds on the life force of humans. They are a constant threat and the danger is that they may get access to Earth's home galaxy. That would not be good.This series is not as much fun as the original Stargate. The chemistry between the main cast members is not as good as in the original. There is also something of the macabre about it all. Still, it is interesting enough and it is watchable.Episode synopses appear below:Rising Parts 1 and 2 - Daniel Jackson thinks he has finally figured out the location of the Ancient's city of Atlantis. It is in another galaxy. To get there will require using up the last ZPM crystal the earth has left. Because the potential payoff is so great, BG O'Neill is willing to take the risk and send a large group through. It is a one way trip but the hope is that power crystals will be found on the other side. They find Atlantis and it is indeed located under the sea. Their arrival, though, drains most of the power left in the local crystals and the city is in danger of imminent drowning. Now the Atlantis team must use the local gate to find another world to inhabit. The Ancients are gone. They were wiped out by a terrible enemy. Unfortunately, the planet visited by the expedition is being attacked by these new bad guys. They are called the Wraiths. These same wraiths captured a part of the expedition. Now, the SG Atlantis team needs only to learn to use the Ancient technology and rescue their compatriots from the wraiths who would eat them. Eat might not be the exact right word. They "eat" the life force, aging the victim. Even worse, they are not even the main threat.Hide and Seek - The Atlantis crew is still trying to settle in to their new city but they have some problems in that many of the gadgets need to be activated by a person with a rare gene. Dr. McKay finds a device he believes to be a personal shield and agrees to try an experimental gene therapy treatment to see if he can use the device. It works but there is a problem. He is invulnerable but nothing can get through the shield. That includes food and water and even his own hand. He cannot turn the device off. Meanwhile, some of the kids get themselves into trouble when playing hide and seek. One disappears. Not long after, people start seeing strange shadows and rumors of hauntings and general spookiness. The kid playing hide and seek has unwittingly let loose an energy being imprisoned since the time of the Ancients. Now it is feeding on the energy of the base and all are in trouble. Defeating it will take some uncharacteristic bravery on the part of McKay.Thirty Eight Minutes - The Atlantis team carries out another recon of the Wraith planet. While there, they are ambushed and barely make it back to their shuttle. The shuttle sustains some damage and Maj. Sheppard is not much better off. He has been attacked by a giant, parasitic bug which has attached itself to his neck. Nothing they can do will make it dislodge itself and it is feeding off of his life force. The shuttle team has problems too. One of the engines didn't retract all the way and, as the ship tries to transit the wormhole, it gets stuck, part in and part out. Now time is running out. The wormhole will only be stable for 38 minutes. After that point, it shuts off and kills everyone.Suspicion - Atlantis recon teams continue to encounter Wraiths on most of their missions. This happens even in the most unlikely and uninhabited places. Suspicion grows that there is a traitor or an agent among the refugees they have living with them. They are restricted in their movements and barred from use of the Stargate. Naturally, they resent this. Eventually, they move on to settle a land mass on the Atlantis planet. Still, the Wraiths seem to be getting information of the movement of the Atlantis teams. There is someone giving info to the enemy but it is not a traitor.Childhood's End - While on a recon mission, the puddle jumper crashes and all electronic equipment ceases to operate. The team is then captured by a bunch of children. None of the locals is over 25 years of age. They believe that by killing themselves on their 25 birthday, the Wraiths are not attracted to their people. It is human sacrifice. The actual reason that the Wraiths do not return is more complex. There is a hidden device which messes up the electronics and keeps the Wraiths away. The device is powered by a ZPM crystal, the same type of crystal the team originally set out to find and which powers everything needed. Taking the crystal dooms the kids. Hotheads among the kids want to kill everyone just to be on the safe side. It is a nasty moral dilemma.Poisoning the Well - The Atlantis team finds a planet with a fairly high level of technology. It is still behind the Earth's but it shows some promise. The people of the planet store their knowledge in huge libraries to help them rebuild after each harvest by the Wraiths. They are on the verge of developing a vaccine that will render victims immune from the wraith feeding. With the help of the Atlantis team, they actually make a viable vaccine. When it is tested on the wraith prisoner, it does more than expected. It also poisons the Wraith. This sounds good but the Atlantis crew fears that when the Wraiths learn of this, they will wipe out the entire planet to keep the knowledge of the vaccine from spreading. The politicians are adamant, though that the populace must be inoculated. Things get ugly when those inoculated start dying also.Underground - The Atlantis team heads out on a trade mission to a planet known to Kayla as simple, Amish style farmers. These guys drive a hard bargain and Shepherd has to go back to get authorization from Dr. Weir. When he comes back, he stumbles into a great secret. These are not the simple farmers they pretend to be. They have a hidden, underground civilization secretly working on a plan to fight the Wraiths. They think they can get an edge by getting more Atlantis technology. The problems, however, are multiple. The plans count on hibernating wraiths and the locals are unaware that the sleeping Wraiths have been wakened. A bigger problem, though, is that neither side really trusts the other. The biggest problem, however, is that these people are NOT trustworthy.Home - Dr. McKay is an obnoxious and arrogant @$$ but he is a smart one. While the Atlantis team is investigating a new planet, they find a Stargate that is drawing an incredible amount of power right from the atmosphere. He thinks he can establish a wormhole back to earth with it. He is right and all of the leading characters report back to Earth to let the home folk know what is going on. They intend to return on the Prometheus but a problem develops. There is an accident on the ship and the leadership seems to be stuck on earth. The problems are worse than that, though. Each of the leadership seems to be having differing experiences that don't mesh with the others. It is quite confusing to the viewer for a while but it seems that each one is being thwarted in all attempts to get back to Atlantis base. The reason for this is simple. They are not on earth. Someone has a vested interest in keeping them from getting back.The Storm - An incredibly huge storm threatens Atlantis. This is the type that only occurs every few centuries. It is so bad that Dr. Weir decides to evacuate temporarily to another planet. Finding a planet, though, proves difficult. Most people don't like to have well armed, technologically superior people running around in large numbers. A deal is struck, though, and it looks like everyone will make it to safety. The problem is that the "hosts" betray the problem to the Genii, the planet of untrustworthy humans who wanted A Bomb technology 2 episodes ago. They put together a strike team and seize control of Atlantis while most of the people are gone. They manage to capture most of the senior officers except for Maj. Sheppard. The episode ends with a hostile and tense standoff needing to be resolved in the next episode.The Eye -Most of Atlantis has been evacuated because of a killer storm. A Genii strike force has seized the Atlantis and holds most of the command team from Atlantis hostage. Atlantis looks to be completely wiped out by the storm unless McKay and Weir, two of the hostages, can use lightning from the storm to power the city's shields. Maj. Sheppard is on the loose playing commando and trying to take back the critical functions while saving the lives of the hostages. A few people caught on the mainland in a puddle jumper during the storm are all the allies he has. It's a race against the clock and killer waves. It's an exciting episode.The Defiant One - An Atlantis scientist discovers something interesting at one of the Lagrange points. It is a satellite and a moon. They also hear a distress signal...a wraith distress signal. When they go to investigate, they find a wraith supply ship. They assume that after 10,000 years, there must be no survivors. They are wrong. The Wraiths are a hardy and persistent species. The Wraith survivor is also very hungry. That means a bad day for the expedition. The last news that the Wraith has heard was that the Wraiths had Atlantis under siege. Now, Maj. Sheppard tells him that the Wraith lost the war. That does not stop him from trying to steal the ship though. It's another race against time as the Wraith tries to eat everyone and escape and the Major tries to kill the wraith and hold out for the relief force.Hot Zone - After the big storm the Atlantis crew is looking the city over to ascertain damage. While a ways of from the HQ, a few of one of the survey teams starts having terrifying visions. After a few such visions, the affected person dies of a cerebral hemorrhage. When others start to be affected, a quarantine and lockdown is instituted. An Ancient virus has been accidentally released. Unfortunately, one of the party got away in his panic and has affected lots of others. Now panic is running rampant as some people are frightened of the virus and others are frightened of the visions. Now McKay, who is infected himself, must figure out a cure. He has a few hints but its going to mean some risks.Sanctuary - While on a survey in a Puddlejumper, Maj. Sheppard and his team come under fire from Wraith ships. It doesn't look like they are going to make it but, suddenly, all the Wraith ships are destroyed by some weapon from the planet below them. That sounds like technology, or at least some energy crystals, which Atlantis desperately needs. When they get to the planet surface, they find a peaceful and pastoral culture with little sophistication and no high technology. They all share a common religion, though. In an effort to learn more, Sheppard seeks out a "priestess". She is intriguing but declines to offer sanctuary. She does come back to Atlantis for a visit, however. There, she seems too perfect and too good to be true. That is because she is not what she seems. Without knowing it, the Atlantis crew has found someone for whom they have been desperately seeking. They have found her but she will not help.Before I Sleep - While exploring new parts of the city, a team stumbles onto a stasis chamber with a live but extremely old inhabitant. They believe this to be one of the Ancients. When the sleeper is revived, however, the crew of Atlantis is in for a shock. The sleeper is Dr. Weir, another version of Dr. Weir who has been asleep for 10000 years. She is in frail health and not expected to last to long but she has information to impart. In her reality, the arrival of the Atlantis crew started a fatal series of events that destroyed the city. In a last ditch effort to escape, she and a few others got aboard one of the puddlejumper ships and found themselves in a battle with the wraiths. As they desperately tried to figure out the controls, they activated one which sent them back in time 10000 years to the Ancients. There the battle with the Wraiths was raging also and all are killed but her. The Atlantians are about to evacuate to Earth and they invite her to go with them. Instead, she chooses to enter stasis so that she can replace the power crystals of the city as needed over her long sleep.The Brotherhood - It looks like the information on ZPM energy crystals brought back by the alternate Dr. Weir in the previous episode might bear some fruit. They find a planet where one of the ZPMs was venerated by an ancient religious brotherhood who regarded the Ancients as gods. The brotherhood was destroyed by a Wraith culling. Now, the Atlantis team must figure out where the brotherhood hid the ZPM. They can do it but there are a few problems. The Genii commando leader who captured Atlantis a few episodes back is aware of what they are doing and he has his own plans to capture the device. The plans do not take into consideration the wishes of the current occupants of the planet. Worst of all, a Wraith fleet is headed towards Atlantis.Letters from Pegasus - It looks like the entire Wraith fleet is on its way to wipe out Atlantis. Things are looking grim and the leadership team decides to risk using every available amount of power they have in order to open a wormhole back to earth for a few seconds and send a message warning about the Wraiths. They are able to compress all of their data into a small burst. There is still some time left over for people to send personal messages. So it is that we have a retrospective episode with flashbacks. There is a little bit of story, however. Maj. Sheppard heads out in a puddlejumper to do a recon on the Wraith route of advance. They encounter the Wraith on a feeding expedition at a planet and it seems they have a new weapon which Sheppard goes out to investigate. That gives Kayla the opportunity to try and save a few people and thereby endanger the entire expedition when there is not enough room to take a whole planet.The Gift - As the Wraith fleet draws ever closer, the Atlantis crew continues to seek other locations to which they can evacuate. While this is going on, Tayla is experiencing terrible nightmares of the Wraiths. She has the ability to sense their presence and she believe these nightmares are somehow connected to that ability. Matters get worse when the dreams begin to star her as the wraith. This experience leads her to investigate why she has this ability that so few of her people have. She learns that it is because of a genetic experiment conducted by the Wraith long ago. She has some wraith DNA. This gives Atlantis some advantage. If she can channel this ability, she should be able to gather invaluable intelligence. Unfortunately, the link works both ways. The Wraith have a much bigger goal than Atlantis.Siege Part 1 - The episode is about contingencies as Atlantis awaits the coming of the Wraith fleet. Part of the crew keeps looking for sites on which to evacuate. Part searches for a way to destroy Atlantis to keep it from falling into the hands of the Wraith. Part tries to salvage as much information as possible. Dr. McKay, the arrogant ass, comes up with a possible solution. He thinks he can use a naquada generator to power up the old defense satellite from earlier in the season and heads out to try and power it up. Things are not going smoothly. Dr. Weir cannot decide what she wants to save. The local evacuees don't want Atlantis to be destroyed because it is an artifact of the Ancients they venerate; they don't care about earth. The Wraiths have a hidden agent aboard Atlantis and suspicion turns towards Kayla. McKay manages to get the weapon working partially but it is not as effective as would be wished. The Wraith are still closing in.Siege Part 2 - Just as Atlantis is about to be evacuated, help arrives from Earth. An arrogant marine colonel shows up with some techno toys and relieves Dr. Weir. He also manages to alienate just about everyone with whom he comes in contact. The toys brought with them are not enough to defeat the Wraith but they are enough to (probably) hold them off for a while. This is helpful because more help is on the way. The Daedelus is on its way from earth with a newly discovered ZPM crystal to power the first line defenses. It's a near run thing. The new toys work but they don't work as well as hoped. The Wraith are still closing in and they manage to land some troops on Atlantis itself. There is a possible way to hold out but it involves the cooperation of the Genii. They have never been known for their ability work and play well with others. The plan looks like it might work until power levels drop too low. The solution is a suicide mission with Maj. Sheppard as the star performer. The season ends with the outcome of the battle in doubt.

Anubis has been defeated (again), and a team of scientists flocks to the Antarctica base that was discovered in episodes of Stargate SG1. Daniel Jackson (of course Daniel would be there, since it's the archeological find of the century) and Dr. Elizabeth Weir ((seen in episodes of SG1 as a harried woman being shoved around by the odious Senator Kinsey. This Weir is played by Torri Higginson of "The Englsh Patient" fame, not the washed-out blond featured on SG1. IMHO, a great improvement. Higginson plays Dr. Weir as strong, bold, and driven)) scour the base for what they hope will be there: the Stargate coordinates for the famed lost city of the Ancients: Atlantis.Assissting the exploration team are Dr. Rodney McKay (already seen several times in SG1; no, he hasn't gotten any humbler), played by David Hewlett, who has truly brought McKay to real life instead of being a once-in-a-while guest character on SG1, and Dr. Carson Beckett, played by Paul McGillian, who's really been given the chance to fly in this role, instead of being a bit player in small budget movies. Beckett is the chief medical officer.McKay and Beckett are sort of the 'Laurel and Hardy' of the team. They play off wonderfully to each other, creating a comic relief pair. Anyhow, in the first episode, at Antarctica base, McKay is hounding Beckett to sit in The Chair ((previously used by Jack O'Neill to release and direct the torpedo-like weapons that ultimately destroyed Anubis' fleet)). Only people who have the 'ATA' ((Ancient Technology Activation)) gene in their DNA can operate the Chair ((O'Neill was practically the first person to be discovered as having the gene)). Beckett has the gene, but he's very reluctant to use or activate Ancient technology. McKay, who'd kill have the gene, doesn't. (("Rodney, I break things like this!"))A few hairy scenes occur, then General Jack O'Neill's helicopter lands at the base, flown by one Major John Sheppard, a protege of O'Neill and brilliantly played by Joe Flanigan. At first, Sheppard is a spacey kinda guy, all grins and quips ((he's a lot more serious later)). Sheppard has no idea that the Stargate Program exists, until he's swept up and given a tour by the enthusiastic Lieutenant Aiden Ford ((Rainbow Sun Francks, and I have to wonder if his parents were hippies or just really weird/mental)). (-apologies to Rainbow if that sounded offensive; it's just that I'm extremely curious about the story behind his name).In the course of events, Sheppard sits on the edge of The Chair and the device instantly responds to him ((as opposed to Beckett, who is slow to use the gene, and the technology is slow to respond to)), proving that he has the ATA gene, and is swept up by Dr. Weir to be a part of the Atlantis team. ((O'Neill: "I thought I told you not to touch anything!")).Of course, it's Jackson that discovers the key to get to Atlantis, and the Atlantis expedition is given the green light to go. Atlantis is dark and silent ((and underwater)), as the team exits the Stargate.More hairy times, then the Athosians are found, people willing to be allies of the people from Earth. ((I'm being oblique because I don't want to spoil the action for you)).Teyla Emmagen ((played by the lovely Rachel Luttrell)), the nominal leader of the Athosians, is the one who gives the bad news to Sheppard and the others. Her galaxy is plagued by an enemy even more terrifying than the Goa'uld or the Replicators: the Wraith.This series is packed with mystery, adventure, and fast action. What I loved most about the collective DVDs is that they feature two episodes that had "cliffhanger" endings, and the second episodes to the cliffhangers are included. The episode "Thirty-eight Minutes" is poignant enough to bring tears to anyone's eyes, while "Hide and Seek" brings hilarity and bone-chilling fear.Is this series a spinoff truly worthy to have the word "Stargate" in its title?Oooooooh yeeeeeaaaaah.

Pretty decent sci-fi show. Slightly campy at times and the production values aren't always great, but the characters are interesting and the plots are usually better than they sound. The first season has a nice tension between the civilians of Atlantis, who are there to explore the alien worlds and learn the science, led by Elizabeth Weir, a very smart, competent leader who emphasizes diplomatic resolution and long-term peace, and the Marines, led by John Sheppard, also smart and competent, but more willing to use violence and brute strength. The mission is under civilian jurisdiction, so technically Elizabeth is in charge except during security threats, and she and John balance each other really well, actually, when they aren't arguing about what constitutes a security threat, and John bothers to actually follow orders. The show does a really good job with the alien bad guys, the Wraith, who are genuinely creepy and have enough presence to create a sense of mild dread even when they aren't in an episode, and the human bad guys end up being pretty worrisome themselves.The humor is pretty good, especially when it's aimed at Rodney, head scientist and the self-proclaimed 'smartest man in the universe', who can be pompous and whiny; John spends a lot of time laughing at him behind his back (and sometimes to his face), but like all the characters on this show, Rodney's a balance of flaws and heroism. The cast has pretty good chemistry overall, and the balance of humor and tension is good. There are a few kind of slow episodes, but they build to a pretty satisfying cliffhanger by the end. If you're a sci-fi fan, you should give it a shot.

Stargate Atlantis - Saison 1 est une introduction captivante à la série dérivée de Stargate SG-1. Cette première saison plonge les téléspectateurs dans un nouveau monde fascinant rempli d'exploration, de mystère et de rencontres extraterrestres.L'intrigue de la saison 1 se déroule après les événements de Stargate SG-1, alors que l'équipe d'experts internationaux se retrouve sur la cité perdue d'Atlantis, située dans la galaxie de Pégase. Ils doivent apprendre à survivre et à explorer cet environnement inconnu tout en affrontant de redoutables ennemis, tels que les Wraiths.Les personnages de Stargate Atlantis sont bien développés et attachants. Le docteur Elizabeth Weir (interprétée par Torri Higginson) apporte une présence forte et compétente en tant que leader de l'expédition. L'équipe d'explorateurs, composée notamment du scientifique Rodney McKay (David Hewlett) et du militaire John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan), offre une dynamique intéressante et des moments d'humour.Les décors de la cité d'Atlantis sont impressionnants, créant une ambiance visuelle saisissante. Les effets spéciaux sont bien réalisés, en particulier lors des scènes de voyage par la porte des étoiles et des confrontations avec les Wraiths. L'aspect visuel de la série contribue à l'immersion dans cet univers de science-fiction.L'intrigue de la saison 1 est bien équilibrée, mêlant des épisodes indépendants à une trame narrative plus large. Chaque épisode offre son lot de découvertes, de défis et de rebondissements, maintenant l'intérêt du public tout au long de la saison.Ce coffret DVD de la saison 1 de Stargate Atlantis est un incontournable pour les fans de la franchise Stargate. En plus des épisodes captivants, il propose également des bonus exclusifs, tels que des commentaires audio des créateurs et des acteurs, permettant aux spectateurs d'approfondir leur immersion dans l'univers de la série.En conclusion, Stargate Atlantis - Saison 1 ouvre les portes d'une nouvelle aventure passionnante. Avec son mélange d'exploration, de mystère et de rencontres extraterrestres, cette première saison offre une expérience télévisuelle divertissante pour les fans de science-fiction. Ne manquez pas l'occasion de plonger dans cet univers captivant avec ce coffret DVD essentiel.

Super Serie

sehr gut.

Yes, it does tend to resolve complex and sometimes hopeless situations with almost a snap of a finger,Yes, it doesn't take itself too seriously (and that's some of its charm),yes, it has its ups and downs,yes, you may say it is more fiction science than science fiction,and yes, I STILL LOVE to watch it, with all it's well done special effects, villains, story lines, and original ideas.I won't elaborate on the content, as I believe potential buyers have already seen most of it.I'll just try to complete the missing data that doesn't seem to appear neither on the Product Details on Amazon nor on the boxset or accompanied booklet and nor in the previous reviews I've read here.I,personally, find it highly interesting, especially on heavy loaded movie magic productions, to have behind the scenes information given in the form of featurettes and commentaries.This boxset has some good ones, but I've removed one star to differentiate it from later seasons where it got better and better, culminating in season 4,where all episodes have commentaries (with subtitles !!!).In this boxset one or two episodes at most on each disc have commentaries, and they are generally very good and well presented. None of them are subtitled.These are their details:Disc 1Episodes 1&2 RisingMartin Wood (Director) & Joe Flanigan (Sheppard)Disc 2Episode 6 Childhood's EndMartin Gero (Writer), Rachel Luttrell (Teila) & Rainbow Sun Francks (Lt. Ford)With some long silences and not so well prepared, this is the least memorable commentary, but still has it's good moments.Disc 3Episodes 10+11 (The Storm + The Eye 2-parter)Martin Wood, Martin Gero & David Hewlett (Dr. McKay)Episode 12 - The Defiant OnePeter De-Luise (Writer & Director) & Dan Shea (Actor & Stunt coordinator)Disc 4Episode 13 Hot ZoneMartin Gero (Writer), Rachel Luttrell, Rainbow Sun Francks & Paul McGillion (Dr. Becket)Disc 5Episode 18 The GiftPeter De-Luise (Director) & Gary Jones (The Actor that plays the SGC "Chevron Guy" - Walter Harriman)A very joyful and wacky at times commentary with the best part IMHO is the cool story about Rainbow Sun Francks' audition (at around minute 30 of the episode).Episodes 19+20 (The Siege 1+2)Martin Wood, Martin Gero & David HewlettOverall highly recommended, but with shipping costs accumulating when ordering separate seasons consider buying the complete season 1-5 boxset.

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.