Stargate Atlantis season 1
| Stargate Atlantis (season 1) | |
|---|---|
| Season 1 | |
 DVD cover | |
| No. of episodes | 20 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Sci Fi Channel |
| Original release | July 16, 2004 – January 31, 2005 |
| Season chronology | |
The first season of the television series Stargate Atlantis commenced airing on the Sci Fi Channel in the United States on July 16, 2004, concluded on The Movie Network in Canada on January 31, 2005, and contained 20 episodes. The show was a spin off of sister show, Stargate SG-1. Stargate Atlantis re-introduced supporting characters from the SG-1 universe, such as Elizabeth Weir and Rodney McKay among others. The show also included new characters such as Teyla Emmagan and John Sheppard. The first season is about a military-science expedition team discovering Atlantis and exploring the Pegasus Galaxy. However, there is no way to return home, and they inadvertently wake a hostile alien race known as the Wraith, whose primary goal is to gather a fleet to invade Atlantis and find their new "feeding ground", Earth.
The two-hour premiere "Rising", which aired on July 16, 2004, received Sci Fi Channel's highest-ever rating for a series premiere and episode ever released, it is also the most watched broadcast release ever released by the Sci Fi Channel in the United States. The average viewing rate for the first ten episodes were around 3-4 million in the United States. The series was developed by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper, who also served as executive producers. Season one regular cast members included Joe Flanigan, Torri Higginson, Rainbow Sun Francks, Rachel Luttrell, and David Hewlett.
Cast
- Joe Flanigan as Major John Sheppard
- Torri Higginson as Dr. Elizabeth Weir
- Rainbow Sun Francks as First Lieutenant Aiden Ford
- Rachel Luttrell as Teyla Emmagan
- David Hewlett as Dr. Rodney McKay
- Paul McGillion as Dr. Carson Beckett
Episodes
Episodes in bold are continuous episodes, where the story spans over 2 or more episodes.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 2 | 1 2 | "Rising" | Martin Wood | Excerpts Starring: Rainbow Sun Francks, Andee Frizzell, Dean Marshall, Dan Payne, Bro Gilbert, Peter Grasso, Robert Patrick Written by: Robert C. Cooper & Brad Wright | July 16, 2004 |
| 3 | 3 | "Hide and Seek" | David Warry-Smith | Story: Robert C. Cooper & Brad Wright Teleplay: Robert C. Cooper | July 23, 2004 |
| 4 | 4 | "Thirty-Eight Minutes" | Mario Azzopardi | Excerpts Starring: Joseph May, Boyan Vukelic Written by: Brad Wright | July 30, 2004 |
| 5 | 5 | "Suspicion" | Mario Azzopardi | Story: Kerry Glover Excerpts Starring: James Lafazanos Teleplay: Joseph Mallozzi & Paul Mullie | August 6, 2004 |
| 6 | 6 | "Childhood's End" | David Winning | Martin Gero | August 13, 2004 |
| 7 | 7 | "Poisoning the Well" | Brad Turner | Story: Mary Kaiser Excerpts Starring: Allison Hossack Teleplay: Damian Kindler | August 20, 2004 |
| 8 | 8 | "Underground" | Brad Turner | Excerpts Starring: Rainbow Sun Francks, Erin Chambers, Colm Meaney Written by: Peter DeLuise | August 27, 2004 |
| 9 | 9 | "Home" | Holly Dale | Joseph Mallozzi & Paul Mullie | September 10, 2004 |
| 10 | 10 | "The Storm" | Martin Wood | Story: Jill Blotevogel Excerpts Starring: Robert Davi, Erin Chambers, Colin Corrigan, Jason Diablo Teleplay: Martin Gero | September 17, 2004 |
| 11 | 11 | "The Eye" | Martin Wood | Excerpts Starring: Robert Davi Written by: Martin Gero | January 21, 2005 |
| 12 | 12 | "The Defiant One" | Peter DeLuise | Excerpts Starring: Paul Magel, James Lafazanos Written by: Peter DeLuise | January 28, 2005 |
| 13 | 13 | "Hot Zone" | Mario Azzopardi | Martin Gero | February 4, 2005 |
| 14 | 14 | "Sanctuary" | James Head | Alan Brennert | February 11, 2005 |
| 15 | 15 | "Before I Sleep" | Andy Mikita | Excerpts by: Robert C. Cooper & Brad Wright Written by: Carl Binder | February 18, 2005 |
| 16 | 16 | "The Brotherhood" | Martin Wood | Martin Gero | February 25, 2005 |
| 17 | 17 | "Letters from Pegasus" | Mario Azzopardi | Excerpts by: Jill Blotevogel, Robert C. Cooper, Peter DeLuise, Martin Gero, Kerry Glover, Mary Kaiser, Damian Kindler, Joseph Mallozzi, Paul Mullie, Brad Wright Written by: Carl Binder | March 4, 2005 |
| 18 | 18 | "The Gift" | Peter DeLuise | Story: Robert C. Cooper & Martin Gero Teleplay: Robert C. Cooper | March 11, 2005 |
| 19 | 19 | "The Siege" | Martin Wood | Martin Gero | March 18, 2005 |
| 20 | 20 | "The Siege Part II" | Martin Wood | Joseph Mallozzi & Paul Mullie | March 25, 2005 |
Production
For "Rising", the Pemberton Glacier in British Columbia doubled for Antarctica during the opening flying sequence.[1] Simon, Elizabeth's fiancé in "Rising" and "Home", was played by Garwin Sanford, who had previously played Narim on Stargate SG-1. Mario Azzopardi makes his return to the Stargate franchise in "Thirty-Eight Minutes". He had the distinctive honor of directing the pilot episode of Stargate SG-1, "Children of the Gods." This is his first time directing an episode of the franchise since the Season 1 Episode "Cor-Ai." Mario Azzopardi (as of December 2006) has only directed Season 1 Episodes of both SG-1 and Atlantis. "Thirty-Eight Minutes" is the only episode in both SG-1 and Atlantis to actually occur in real-time; between the opening of the Stargate and the resolution, 38 minutes of screentime do occur. Courtenay J. Stevens, who appears in "Childhood's End", had originally played the role of Lieutenant Elliot in Stargate SG-1, appearing in the Season 5 episodes "Proving Ground", "Summit" and "Last Stand". Writer Martin Gero compared Ares in "Childhood's End" to a villain in The Incredibles. In the scene of the final confrontation with Major John Sheppard, he began "monologuing," which is a key feature of villains in the film.[2] The dog that appeared in Dr. Weir's illusion in "Home" is actually owned by actress Torri Higginson who plays her.[3]
Michael Puttonen, who played Smeadon in "The Storm", first appeared in the second season of Stargate SG-1 as Simian, the blind prisoner in the episode "Prisoners." "The Defiant One" was filmed at the Richmond sand dunes.[4] Richard Ian Cox, who appeared in "The Defiant One", previously appeared in the season 3 Stargate SG-1 episode "New Ground" as Nyan. "Letters from Pegasus" is the first clip show episode of Stargate Atlantis. The title of this episode was inspired by the 1987 PBS TV documentary Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam.[5] This was Samantha Carter's first appearance on Stargate Atlantis. At the end of the episode, she and Sergeant Harriman were briefly shown at Stargate Command (SGC) when they received the data burst from Atlantis. A deleted scene from Part two of "The Siege" showed Sora being returned to the Genii as part of their deal for the nuclear weapons, but this was cut due to time constraints; so it is unclear if the event occurred or if Sora may still be being held.[6]
Release and reception
"Rising" was the strongest episode to date gaining a 3.2 on the Nielsen ratings. "The Brotherhood" received ratings of 2.3 when it initially aired on Sci Fi. The worst rated episode in the season was "Home", which received an 1.7 rating.[7] John Sinnott from DVDTalk called season one a "very good spinoff," certifying it "highly recommended."[8] Dan Heaton from Digitally Obsessed was positive to the first season, and said the pilot started "in fashion."[9] Reviewer Dan Phelps from DVDFanatic gave the series "thumbs up" and gave the series an A-.[10]
"Rising" was nominated for a Leo Award in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Production Design".[11] "Childhood's End" was one of only two Stargate franchise episodes (with "Poisoning the Well") directed by Sci-Fi veteran David Winning. It won three international awards for directing; New York, Chicago and Houston.[12] For "Poisoning The Well", Paul McGillion and David Nykl were nominated for a Leo Award in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Supporting Performance by a Male", and Allison Hossack was nominated for a Leo Award in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Supporting Performance by a Female".[11][13] "The Storm" was nominated for a Leo Award in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Overall Sound". "The Eye" was nominated for a Gemini Award in the category "Best Visual Effects", was nominated for a Leo Award in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Picture Editing", and won a Leo Award in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Visual Effects".[11][14] For "The Defiant One", director Peter DeLuise was nominated for a Leo Award in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Direction" and in the category "Dramatic Series: Best Screenwriting".[11] "Before I Sleep" was nominated for a Gemini Award in the category "Best Achievement in Make-Up". For "The Brotherhood", writer Martin Gero was nominated for a Gemini Award in the category "Best Writing in a Dramatic Series".[14]
Cultural references
"The Defiant One" is the first time Rodney McKay refers to John Sheppard as "Captain Kirk" which is a recurring joke in the series. It refers to Sheppard's protective nature to the puddle jumpers and his tendency to pick up alien women.[15] In the continuing list of references in Stargate to The Wizard of Oz, McKay mentions in "Sanctuary" to "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain", a reference to the Emerald Wizard of the story. He also compares Sheppard's actions with Chaya to Captain Kirk, continuing the links between Stargate and Star Trek.[16]
References
- ^ Gosling, Sharon (2005). "Rising (I)". Stargate Atlantis: The Official Companion Season 1. London: Titan Books. p. 26. ISBN 1-84576-116-2.
- ^ Gero, Martin, Luttrell, Rachell and Sun Francks, Rainbow (2005). Audio Commentary for "Childhood's End" (DVD). MGM Home Entertainment.
- ^ "SFX profile: Torri Higginson". SFX magazine # 128. Future Publishing. 2005-03-16. p. 36.
- ^ "Stargate Atlantis: Season One, Part II". TV Zone Special #61. Visual Imagination. 2005. p. 83.
- ^ "Stargate Atlantis: Season One, Part II". TV Zone Special #61. Visual Imagination. 2005. p. 86.
- ^ Gero, Martin, Wood, Martin, Flanigan, Joe and Hewlett, David (2005). Audio Commentaries for "The Siege, Part 1 and 2" (DVD). MGM Home Entertainment.
- ^ "Season One Ratings". GateWorld. Retrieved 2009-04-26.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ John Sinnott (November 16, 2005). "Stargate Atlantis - The Complete First Season". DVDTalk. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Dan Heaton (November 15, 2005). "Stargate Atlantis: The Complete First Season". Digitally Obsessed. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Dan Phelps (November 15, 2005). "DVD Review: "Stargate Atlantis - The Complete First Season"". DVDFanatic. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ a b c d Darren Sumner (May 30, 2005). "Stargate takes home three Leo Awards". GateWorld. Retrieved 8 April 2009.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Groundstar Entertainment Presents David Winning - Filmmaker - Director". Groundstar. Retrieved April 9, 2009.
- ^ "Leo Awards 2005 winners". Leoawards.com. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ a b Darren Sumner (October 13, 2005). "Stargate earns six Gemini nods". GateWorld. Retrieved April 8, 2009.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Peter DeLuise (director & writer). "The Defiant One". Stargate Atlantis. Season 1. Episode 12. The Movie Network.
{{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|episodelink=(help); Unknown parameter|serieslink=ignored (|series-link=suggested) (help) - ^ James Head (director); Alan Brennert (writer). "Sanctuary". Stargate Atlantis. Season 1. Episode 14. The Movie Network.
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External links
- Season 1 on GateWorld
- Season 1 on IMDb
- Season 1 on TV.com
- Atlantis Season 1 on Stargate Wiki
