I totally get what you mean about certain premises not working - I read another story yesterday where the premise just kicked me right out at the start. For Something More, though, it worked for me because the reason for John's departure wasn't revealed until *very* late in the game. If the story had begun with John moping about being forced to choose personal honor over his career, it would have been a harder sell for me.

And although I mention Caldwell in my review, wasn't the shadowy power struggle thing happening more back on Earth? I think I may have conflated the conspiracy and Caldwell by mistake - with the Colonel I was referring more to the changes he made in Atlantis procedures in the story, the ones that took scientists off the exploration teams and sequestered them in their labs. I *don't* think his reasons for doing so were (or would be) malicious, but they flow into my vision of him as very by-the-book and rules oriented.

Caldwell is set up as an antagonist on the show, someone for Our Heroes to clash with while still being on the same side. I can understand where his thinking and attitude comes from, but I'm so invested with the S1 crew that I can't really *empathize* with him on the show. I know that carries over to fanfiction as well.