Rodney gets a brain parasite that slowly shuts down his higher brain functions until he's reduced to the state of a drooling imbecile. Then he renames the network 'SyFy'.
The Rodney gets "a divine punishment perfectly suited for him" like in a Greek Tragedy. It's fascinating to see the (semi-justified) arrogant Rodney in such a compromised position. Gotta give credit to the actor, he portrayed it so well, it tugged at the heartstrings.
As someone who's lost more than one family memcer to dementia, this episode is *unbearably good*. David Hewlett is always amazing but I'd happily call his performance here his greatest ever. The pain, the cheer, the slow degradation... Someone on the writing team definitely knows the feeling of watching a loved one slowly slip away.
Rhodney is one of those characters you look back on and ask "when did I stop hating this guy." He starts smarmy, moves into comic relief smart guy, but then somehow is very relatable. For me it was when a mistake he made had Sheppard got through a time displacement portal. He didn't blame anyone. He didn't cover his ass. He tried to save his friend from dying of old age in the next few minutes, only getting angry and frustrated that the longer it took to explain to the non scientists, the worse the outcome would be. It's a devotion and caring often overlooked in people that lack more normal socialized people skills.
I gotta admit by the final two seasons the only reason I kept watching SGA was for David Hewlett and his performance, although I thought it was really very canny of them to bring on Picardo as a regular. Not just because sci-fi fans already knew him from Voyager, but also because he underwent a heel/face transformation similar to McKay while still holding on to his core characteristic as a bureaucratic politico. Shows that not all of those types are self-interested or corrupt.
Most brain surgery to take tumours out for example is done while the patient is conscious (but given pain medication of course). So the surgeons can talk to the patient and monitor if the patient is conscious and not losing faculties.
This episode hits harder now that I had to experience my grandmother having an advanced case of altzheimers (sadly she passed away recently), it was heart wrenching how she couldn't recognize her family with each passing day.
This episode highlights the two most developed characters in the franchise. They both started out as secondary antagonists that were foils for our heroes. However, the strength of these actors’ performances kept their respective characters returning, allowing them to be matured. This was, in no small part, resulting from the actors themselves. David Hewlett and Robert Picardo both took an annoying side character that we wanted to see fired into the sun and turned them into people we loved, despite their idiosyncratic nature. These men can ACT, and this episode highlights both the strengths of Hewlett and Picardo.
As memory serves (and it's been at least a decade, so I may be misremembering) Woolsey started out as an apparent catspaw of perennial bad guy Senator Kinsey, although he'd moved to a more neutral form of by-the-book bureaucrat by the end of that first appearance, playing a key role in foiling Kinsey's scheme. Point is, he moved out of the 'antagonist' role to a mere 'roadblock' pretty quickly.
If I remember correctly Woolsey complained in the beginning of season 5 that they're barely using MALPs and Shepherd gave some bullshit reason, that it's a waste of time and that they need to act fast. Which is especially ridiculous when you consider that the Pegasus galaxy has a lot of gates that are orbiting the planets.
The Rodney gets "a divine punishment perfectly suited for him" like in a Greek Tragedy. It's fascinating to see the (semi-justified) arrogant Rodney in such a compromised position. Gotta give credit to the actor, he portrayed it so well, it tugged at the heartstrings.
As someone who's lost more than one family memcer to dementia, this episode is *unbearably good*. David Hewlett is always amazing but I'd happily call his performance here his greatest ever. The pain, the cheer, the slow degradation... Someone on the writing team definitely knows the feeling of watching a loved one slowly slip away.
I think David Hewlett is the most talented actor in the franchise and this episode let him shine from start to finish.
Thanks for the review Chuck!
One of the best episodes in the series, IMHO. And lets a few actors show off a bit more range.
Rhodney is one of those characters you look back on and ask "when did I stop hating this guy." He starts smarmy, moves into comic relief smart guy, but then somehow is very relatable. For me it was when a mistake he made had Sheppard got through a time displacement portal. He didn't blame anyone. He didn't cover his ass. He tried to save his friend from dying of old age in the next few minutes, only getting angry and frustrated that the longer it took to explain to the non scientists, the worse the outcome would be. It's a devotion and caring often overlooked in people that lack more normal socialized people skills.
I gotta admit by the final two seasons the only reason I kept watching SGA was for David Hewlett and his performance, although I thought it was really very canny of them to bring on Picardo as a regular. Not just because sci-fi fans already knew him from Voyager, but also because he underwent a heel/face transformation similar to McKay while still holding on to his core characteristic as a bureaucratic politico. Shows that not all of those types are self-interested or corrupt.
Most brain surgery to take tumours out for example is done while the patient is conscious (but given pain medication of course). So the surgeons can talk to the patient and monitor if the patient is conscious and not losing faculties.
The middle part of a trilogy for the Hewlitt Staite Shippers
People 'ship the actors, too?
I like the return of "magic actually science" we got so much of in SG1. Should have had more of it in this show.
This episode hits harder now that I had to experience my grandmother having an advanced case of altzheimers (sadly she passed away recently), it was heart wrenching how she couldn't recognize her family with each passing day.
I'm so sorry for your loss. I lost two of my grandparents the same way and it's absolutely devastating.
This episode highlights the two most developed characters in the franchise. They both started out as secondary antagonists that were foils for our heroes. However, the strength of these actors’ performances kept their respective characters returning, allowing them to be matured. This was, in no small part, resulting from the actors themselves.
David Hewlett and Robert Picardo both took an annoying side character that we wanted to see fired into the sun and turned them into people we loved, despite their idiosyncratic nature. These men can ACT, and this episode highlights both the strengths of Hewlett and Picardo.
As memory serves (and it's been at least a decade, so I may be misremembering) Woolsey started out as an apparent catspaw of perennial bad guy Senator Kinsey, although he'd moved to a more neutral form of by-the-book bureaucrat by the end of that first appearance, playing a key role in foiling Kinsey's scheme.
Point is, he moved out of the 'antagonist' role to a mere 'roadblock' pretty quickly.
Perhaps sending a MALP through would have been prudent.
If I remember correctly Woolsey complained in the beginning of season 5 that they're barely using MALPs and Shepherd gave some bullshit reason, that it's a waste of time and that they need to act fast. Which is especially ridiculous when you consider that the Pegasus galaxy has a lot of gates that are orbiting the planets.
Great episode. Glad it's back. Now we just need Mr. and Mrs. Miller back.
They should have tried trepanning.Maybe the parasite would have crawled out
This was a good one.