(Argh, Noscript killed my first comment! I hate retyping. *shakes fist at Noscript*)
Zombies! Another trope that I love to see brought into SGA stories (Sistinas by Jenn is one of my all-time favorites), and I thought it worked great, here. I liked the twist of canon events--in Atlantis, they tried to turn the Wraith human; here, they tried to make (certain) humans more Iratus-like, also with dire results. (We hear about Jennifer living in the Enclave; where is Carson? Was he a part of what happened here as he was in Atlantis?) The hints of what John went through at the hands of the military, the experimenting they did on him and others, is horrific. Tampering with bug-DNA is just risky, guys. (But it makes for a a cool story.)
It was fairly clear to me, early on, that John was impacted, and finding out how much was no surprise, really, that he'd been stuck in that mid-change state we saw him in on the show, not as bad as he eventually became, there, but familiar, because we'd seen what he'd become in the ep, could picture it. Was it his gene that prevented the full transformation? Does the gene even exist in this uni? (Does the Stargate?) It's interesting that, in this story, his change is actually beneficial to his community, in some ways, though hard on him, obviously, and heartbreaking when he comes across someone who may be more similar to him than not, and who, in Ronon's opinion, chose to die. And what about Teyla--why would John wish for her, when he's unsure of what he's sensing? What about a (presumably) unchanged Teyla would be helpful to him, there?
I like that there are a lot of unanswered questions in this story, because the world building is so good that I can still believe in it without those answers--they just make me want more. There's so many ways available to go in this uni, both going forward from here and looking back at what's happened, before. The characters, themselves, still don't know that much, in part because change came so fast, so many people died or were changed, and their focus, now, has to go toward finding ways to survive. I'd like to learn more about what's happened/is happening as the characters find out, and also see more about how it all unfolded, before this story. And how they all found each other, too, and what life in the Enclave is like, what kind of parents Rodney and Teyla will be, together, and lots more of the sweetness of John and Ronon's relationship, how good Ronon is for John and how tenderly he handles him--there's a whole story just in how they found each other and how this relationship evolved. There's tons of stuff to be explored, here, and I'd love to see it, but that doesn't mean the story isn't great, in itself--it's a terrific piece of brief, smart storytelling that gives a lot in a small space. Very cool.
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2010-05-04 09:08 pm (UTC)Zombies! Another trope that I love to see brought into SGA stories (Sistinas by Jenn is one of my all-time favorites), and I thought it worked great, here. I liked the twist of canon events--in Atlantis, they tried to turn the Wraith human; here, they tried to make (certain) humans more Iratus-like, also with dire results. (We hear about Jennifer living in the Enclave; where is Carson? Was he a part of what happened here as he was in Atlantis?) The hints of what John went through at the hands of the military, the experimenting they did on him and others, is horrific. Tampering with bug-DNA is just risky, guys. (But it makes for a a cool story.)
It was fairly clear to me, early on, that John was impacted, and finding out how much was no surprise, really, that he'd been stuck in that mid-change state we saw him in on the show, not as bad as he eventually became, there, but familiar, because we'd seen what he'd become in the ep, could picture it. Was it his gene that prevented the full transformation? Does the gene even exist in this uni? (Does the Stargate?) It's interesting that, in this story, his change is actually beneficial to his community, in some ways, though hard on him, obviously, and heartbreaking when he comes across someone who may be more similar to him than not, and who, in Ronon's opinion, chose to die. And what about Teyla--why would John wish for her, when he's unsure of what he's sensing? What about a (presumably) unchanged Teyla would be helpful to him, there?
I like that there are a lot of unanswered questions in this story, because the world building is so good that I can still believe in it without those answers--they just make me want more. There's so many ways available to go in this uni, both going forward from here and looking back at what's happened, before. The characters, themselves, still don't know that much, in part because change came so fast, so many people died or were changed, and their focus, now, has to go toward finding ways to survive. I'd like to learn more about what's happened/is happening as the characters find out, and also see more about how it all unfolded, before this story. And how they all found each other, too, and what life in the Enclave is like, what kind of parents Rodney and Teyla will be, together, and lots more of the sweetness of John and Ronon's relationship, how good Ronon is for John and how tenderly he handles him--there's a whole story just in how they found each other and how this relationship evolved. There's tons of stuff to be explored, here, and I'd love to see it, but that doesn't mean the story isn't great, in itself--it's a terrific piece of brief, smart storytelling that gives a lot in a small space. Very cool.