Okay, the title’s clickbait, but stick with me. This is a short story about watching Stargate Atlantis. When I first watched it I wanted more SG-1. What I got instead was Atlantis. At first, I hated it. But in the end, I think it taught me something more important than wormhole physics.
SG-1
Stargate SG-1 is one of the best sci-fi TV series of all time, and I don’t think I’m alone in that opinion. It’s got the adventure of Indiana Jones. It’s got the horror of classic film franchises like Alien, Predator, or The Thing. It’s got epic space battles, little grey men, false gods and monsters.
All of this is wrapped in some of the best-written stories in sci-fi. They will make you laugh, cry, and cheer on our heroes as they save the galaxy over and over. As with many others, I loved the series and have watched it through multiple times, including the two TV movies that were created to cap things off.
But this article isn’t about Stargate SG-1.
Disappointment of Atlantis
Naturally, after falling in love with SG-1, I moved on to its spinoff, Stargate Atlantis. I was hoping it would be what Deep Space Nine was to The Next Generation.
But something didn’t click. Where were the main antagonists of SG-1, the Goa’uld? Why do the characters seem so unprepared? Where are all my favourite characters? Atlantis had a different tone that I wasn’t used to. It was no SG-1.
I ended up watching it passively, rushing through it to get to the episodes that featured SG-1 characters. After my first watch through I only remembered a few moments with the characters from SG-1, and none of the overall story of Atlantis. I just didn’t enjoy it.
But this article isn’t about my first time watching Stargate Atlantis.
A Second Chance
It was around the time I decided to rewatch the Stargate franchise through again. Despite my experience with Atlantis the first time around, I still decided to include it in my rewatch.
This time I watched everything in release order. I spliced in the episodes of Atlantis with SG-1. I also, and this is the most important part, actually paid attention to the episodes as I watched them. Then something clicked. I saw Atlantis for what it was.
In SG-1 the Stargate program is run by the military. Most of the characters are well-disciplined soldiers. Even Te’alc, the alien on the team, was the highest ranking military officer before he defected. Our other main character, Daniel Jackson, while not military is an expert archeologist who eventually gets used to working with and trusting the military.
The characters are very professional, focused, and form a great team. That military discipline, comradery and teamwork is what allows them to save the galaxy multiple times.
Atlantis is different. The Atlantis expedition is civilian run. While they have expert physicists, doctors, diplomats and other specialists. All of these characters lack military discipline. Many of them have neuroses to go along with their genius, in particular Dr. McKay, who is always frustrated, angry, and a little rash.
They do have a military presence, but it ends up being run by Colonel Sheppard, a soldier inexperienced with offworld missions, with command positions, and with a track record of disobeying authority. While these characters are some of the best soldiers out there, they are not the soldiers of SG-1.
This is why I struggled to accept it. I wanted more SG-1. Instead I got Atlantis, a ragtag bunch of characters who didn’t really know what they were doing, but figured it out anyway. Atlantis was not SG-1 and that was the whole point.
On this rewatch I started to appreciate what the creators were aiming for. I finally understood it. And I enjoyed it.
One episode that stands out to me is The Shrine, where our characters are forced to watch Dr. McKay’s mind deteriorate in a way similar to someone with Alzheimer’s. This struck me on a personal level: I’ve watched someone close to me disappear in the same way, and David Hewlett nails his performance as someone knowing he’s lost something without knowing what he’s lost.
But this article isn’t actually about Stargate Atlantis at all.
Immediacy
This article is about how different an experience can be depending on how you approach it. My first time watching Atlantis I had strict expectations. When it failed to meet those expectations, I stopped paying attention.
But my second time I approached it with a more open mind. I started to see it for what it was and, while I’ll still say SG-1 is the better series, I will no longer say Atlantis is a bad series. In fact, I would say it’s actually a good series.
I think this is an approach that can be applied to many things in life. Things that actually matter. When trying new things, be aware of any unfair expectations you might have. Then be in the moment. Approach things with fewer expectations, and more attention. You might be surprised at what you discover.
That doesn’t mean you’ll always change your mind. But if you meet something unfamiliar with attention instead of judgement, you give it a fair chance. And you might find yourself pleasantly surprised.
