SGA 4x13 Quarantine AKA BEST EPISODE EVER

[zelempa]

This is the kind of episode SGA never does and I always want them to. I'm so pleased!

For real, I would love this episode even if (a) half the scenes didn't end with never-gets-old hilarious wordless awkwardness and (b) it wasn't so very very slashy. HOW WAS IT SLASHY? JOHN AND RODNEY WERE NOT EVEN TOGETHER. I DON'T KNOW. IT JUST WAS.

Plot: Atlantis goes into quarantine lockdown, and we jump from one character interaction vignette to the next. It's just beautiful.

Rodney and Katie: Rodney goes to the botany lab to propose to Katie Brown, but the quarantine kicks in before he can get the words out. There is no radio or computer in the cultivation room--Rodney's worst nightmare! He and Katie are unable to take comfort in each other's company because Rodney is such a huge Captain Bringdown. He begins to deteriorate from fever (hypochondriacally, it turns out, but they don't know that). As he lies miserable and hopeless on the ground, Katie finds the ring, and asks why he doesn't propose now. "Well, it doesn't really matter anymore, does it?" Rodney doom-and-glooms.

Ronon and Keller: Trapped in the medbay, they get to know and like each other--and nearly kiss, providing a sweet contrast to the above (especially sweet for me since I'm way, way, way more in favor of Ronon/Keller and Rodney/Katie.)

John: Trapped in Rodney's lab, John and Teyla are the only ones with mainframe access (ha! they are the worst people for that, except maybe Ronon would be worse than Teyla, but maybe not). John discovers that the city is automatically sending out an automatic beacon to warn others of the infection, putting Atlantis in a very vulnerable position. John breaks through a window and, like a complete badass, climbs the tower to the gateroom, where he meets up with Lorne and some others. But as soon as he turns off the beacon (the plot hinges on a reason only he can turn it off which is COMPLETELY SLASHY), the computers shut down, and city's self-destruct starts. Nobody knows how long it will be; the city could blow at any moment.

Carter and Zelenka: Trapped in a transporter until Lorne and John rescue them, having worked their way into the tower with C4. But they're out of C4, and someone small needs to go through the vents to the power room to shut off the self-destruct, so Zelenka volunteers. Eventually he makes it, reboots the city, and SAVES EVERYONE. I REPEAT. ZELENKA SAVES EVERYONE.

Highlights (I HAVE PRACTICALLY TRANSCRIBED THE ENTIRE SCRIPT):

No fooling around, here: the episode opens with what cesperanza called "the slashiest scene I've ever seen."

JOHN (sitting in front of video game golf): Come on, dude, one more round.
RODNEY (preening in front of a mirror in the background): Nope. Can't.
JOHN: We don't have to do eighteen, we could do nine, easy course, par three.
RODNEY: Nope. Katie's expecting me.
JOHN: Be late. Women like it when guys are late.
RODNEY: No they don't.

Rodney asks John if he can keep a secret, and even though John immediately says "No", Rodney pulls out a ring box. He hands it to John, who examines it appraisingly.

RODNEY: I feel it's time that Katie and I moved the relationship to the next level.
JOHN (absently, still playing with the ring box like it's a toy): Second base?
RODNEY: Marriage.
JOHN (hair flying back in shock): Really!
RODNEY: Yes.
JOHN: You!
RODNEY: Yes.
JOHN: Married!
RODNEY: What, what, you don't think I'm ready, you think I'm, I'm rushing things?
JOHN: I didn't say--
RODNEY: Well, I'm not. I'm not ready to set a date or anything, but I'm--
JOHN (breathily): Is this a diamond?

Oh, John, you big gay dork. Rodney takes out his radio and prepares to go. John is still flustered.

JOHN: Well! I'll buy you a beer later, we can celebrate--
RODNEY: Yeah, or drown my sorrows should she say no.
JOHN: No, no, none of that.

For just a flash, John gives Rodney the kindest eyes I have possibly ever seen. Rodney's still hovering by John, showing no signs of moving.

JOHN: Well, go get the girl!

Rodney is more nervous than anyone has ever been when he goes to Katie's botany lab.
KATIE: You're sweating.
RODNEY: Oh, am I? Yes, I suppose I am. Uh, I guess I should just, I should just jump right into this. Y'know, rip the band-aid off, as they say. Not that, not that this is painful in any way. It's, it's quite the opposite. Actually.

JOHN (with many sidelong nervous glances at Teyla): It's just, whenever one of these things happens in the movies, the pregnant woman always goes into labor.
TEYLA: I am still a long way from my due date.
JOHN: It's the same thing in the movies, and then wham!

Sam picks up Radek's console and is puzzled at his desktop background.
ZELENKA: Oh, sorry. That's one of my pigeons. I raise them, as a hobby. Back home.
I claimed he had newts! I was close!

Teyla expresses concerns about going back into action after the baby is born, and John agrees that it's hard, but is in favor of her coming back to the team.
JOHN: Look. You have to understand. Your child has a family here. In case anything ever happens.
Awwwwwwww John. :)

Ronon tears his stitches trying to force the door open.
KELLER: Honestly, I don't think I've ever met anyone with such reckless aggression!
RONON: (beams)
KELLER: That's not a compliment.

RONON: I'm not very good at sitting and waiting.
KELLER: No kidding. Well, maybe we could pass the time by getting to know each other better.
RONON: ...What did you have in mind?
KELLER: --Oh, I mean, I didn't. You know, I meant just, like, talk. I didn't mean... Yeah! So, anyway, let's talk.
RONON: (stares silently)

Rodney describes his own negativity as "a necessary burden I bear."
KATIE: A mindset like that and a person would live in a constant state of worry and fear.
RODNEY (in despair): You forgot despair.

ZELENKA: You know, I'm a little bit puzzled as to why Rodney hasn't solved this problem yet. He's been a little off his game lately.

JOHN (spotting Rodney's abandoned radio): He's in the botany lab! He went to pick up Katie for a lunch date. Have you been in there? There's no computer, no radio...
TEYLA (worried): If he's in there...
JOHN (finishing her sentence): ...he's gonna be freaking.
HA! That is so not what Teyla was going to say!

AUAUAUAUAHHHHGGGHHHL.
TEYLA: Can anyone do it [fix the city]?
JOHN: They'd have to know Rodney's password.
Teyla frowns. I think, If only John and Rodney really were boyfriends, John would know it!

JOHN: ...Fortunately... I do.

And the fun never stops:
TEYLA: He told you his password?
JOHN: He didn't think I'd remember it. (typing) 1-6-4-3-1-8-7-9-1-9-6-8-4-2. See? Do'en't take a genius.
TEYLA (alarmed): It doesn't...?
JOHN: 1643, the year Isaac Newton was born, 1879, the year Einstein was born, 1968...
TEYLA: The year Rodney was born.
JOHN: Never underestimate the size of that man's ego.
TEYLA: Weren't there other numbers?
JOHN: Forty-two.
TELYA: What's that?
JOHN: The ultimate answer to the great question of life, the universe, and everything.
TEYLA: (looks away, bemused)

Zelenka totally checks out Carter's rack.

KATIE: The Rodney Anavelosa? It's really flourished here. I've been kind of doting on it, giving it a little extra TLC, and it just gets bigger, and bigger...
RODNEY: (coughs uncontrollably)

Keller's upset because she can't get to the fever victims, but Ronon tells her it's not her fault. He says she reminds him of someone he used to know. We find out it's "the woman [he] cared about," who died in the seige on Sateda because she stayed behind to help the others. OH RIGHT! Dude!!! (!!) We totally knew that about her, that she worked in a hospital, and I didn't make the connection to his crush on Keller AT ALL. Dude. Keller turns the tables, telling him it's not his fault.

CARTER (thinking about sending messages): I could really use one of your pigeons right about now.
ZELENKA (alarmed): They're not for eating.

Keller and Ronon MacGuyver and extremely complicated door-opening method involving oxygen tanks. IT DOESN'T WORK. I repeat, screen time was given to preparing a cool, ridiculous plan which was a "a one-in-a-million shot", and it DIDN'T WORK. I cannot express how great I find this.

Zelenka mutters in Czech the ENTIRE TIME he is in the vent.

Ronon tells Keller he used to think she was weak and didn't belong. Keller says "Story of my life," and tells a cry-for-me-for-I-am-Rodney-or-Blair story about how she went to college young and didn't fit in socially. But Ronon respects her since she blew up that tank. They ever so slightly shift closer so that Keller rests her head on Ronon's shoulder. It's both awkward and adorable. They are moments from kissing when the doors finally open.

Post-disaster, Keller joins John, Teyla, Ronon and Zelenka in the mess, and she and Ronon exchange cute looks. Sam comes up and thanks Zelenka for saving EVERYONE. John's comment? "McKay would love this."

Rodney tells Katie he's realized he's not ready for marriage. DODGED A BULLET THERE. YEESH.

In conclusion: yayayayayayay.

• Rodney should learn from this, though I'm not sure he has, that it's not enough to like and admire your partner in life; it has to be someone with whom you make a good team.
  
• Rodney should learn from this, though I'm not sure he has, that he needs someone who makes him feel that one or two minutes more on the self-destruct timer would not be a complete waste.
  
• Contrast between Rodney's negativity in these two situations (paraphrased):
  RODNEY: We're all going to die!
  KATIE: I, uh, um, oh, well.
  
  RODNEY: She's going to say no!
  JOHN (firmly): None of that.
  
  INTENTIONAL?

Comments

[bluflamingo.livejournal.com]

I love that the two big set piece rescue moves (Ronon and Keller and the oxygen, and John climbing up the tower) both did very little to help the situation, and in John's case made it worse. Somehow, that's so much better than cheesy save the day style stuff (plus, it got us Zelenka saving the day, which was very cool).

Also - how is it that an episode in which they spend about 2.5 seconds together can be so incredibly slashy, at least from John's point of view? Seriously, writers, you could have the first openly gay couple on a sci-fi show (I think) - make some tv history!

[zelempa.livejournal.com]

John made it worse, but I guess him being up there also let to him rescuing Zelenka, which led to things getting fixed. Still, yeah, I kept being afraid they'd derail the episode into plottiness, because that's what they always do (I was all set for Sunday to be a nice little character show, for example, but it devolved into plotapalooza), but no disappointments whatsoever here.

John's love for Rodney in this episode is truly amazing. His reactions in the ring conversation, his heartbreaking worry when he sees the radio, his first thought being, not "Rodney can't save us!" but "Rodney must be freaking!", THE PASSWORD OMG (which he totally committed to memory first and THEN figured out); even in his approximately one line in his final scene he's just like "Hey guys! Let's talk about McKay!"

As for Rodney, as much as he likes Katie and thinks she's a good person, by the end of the episode, he seems to be realizing that, for a marriage to work, you and your partner have to make a good team. Seriously, if there WERE going to make John/Rodney canon-- there could not be a better set-up.

[laurie-ky.livejournal.com]

I love John and Rodney, but I adore Zelenka. And did you notice he hurt his wrist when he fell out of the chute. I picture Major Lorne checking it for him.
And John - climbing the tower -- yikes. And Katie -- I figured she was visualizing Rodney as her husband as he fell apart at her feet, and realizing Rodney would be the worst husband evah!
Laurie

Oops! misspelled my cutie's name. Bad me. Fixed now.

[zelempa.livejournal.com]

The thing is, YES, Rodney would be a terrible husband--FOR HER. And she would be just as bad for him; she obviously can't handle him when he's at his worst. (We all know someone who caaaaaan...)

[sasha-feather.livejournal.com]

I adore that you transcribed so much of this ep! And I adored this ep!

You're very right about the plotiness vs. character thing. Recent plotty eps have SO not done it for me. They have so much going for them with the great characters and setting; they don't need to try so hard for plot.

My whole (SGA filtered) friends-list seems to love this episode. There was one or two people who were negative, and I think ignored them because obviously we aren't watching for the same things.

[erda-3.livejournal.com]

They seemed to contrast scenes emphasizing how well John knows Rodney with ones showing how Katie does not know how to motivate him. I mean, after all her attempts to encourage him, he lays down on the floor and gives up.

And Ronon and keller bonding by working together in a crisis, what a concept!

Didn't really understand "McKay would love this." Love what? Zelenka getting recognition from Carter? Ronon being adorable with Keller? Being with John??

I was all worried for nothing. I love minimalist plots.

[sasha-feather.livejournal.com]

Any of those are possible, but I definitely took it as Zelenka getting credit and glory for saving the city-- John knows that would drive Rodney nuts.

[kimberlyfdr.livejournal.com]

For all your Quarantine needs, my weekly review is up. (http://kimberlyfdr.livejournal.com/305412.html) The password thing was definitely my favorite of the night.

SGA 4x13 Quarantine - AKA BEST EPISODE EVER

[maxinemayer.livejournal.com]

Well, I've been reading "Quarantine" postings and comments for hours now, and I must say, zelempa, yours are the ones I agree with the most! This was such a wonderful wonderful episode! I loved it! Thanks for sharing.
Love, max

[sasha-feather.livejournal.com]

I know I was not spoiled for this ep, and yet... somehow I already knew about the pigeons. Which means I read it in a fic somewhere, or else I'm experiencing a weird false memory (a la the Matrix). Or maybe it was mentioned somewhere in an earlier ep?

[zelempa.livejournal.com]

Actually, I think it was mentioned in previous episode, but I'd forgotten about it. Echoes?