The cast and production team of Stargate Atlantis are currently filming their mid-season two-parter for Season Three. This article includes a recap of the storylines and tidbits for the first eleven episodes of the season.
3.01 No Man’s Land and 3.02 The Misbegotten
Written by Martin Gero, “No Man’s Land” picks up where “Allies” leaves off and delves into the Wraith’s civil war and their vie for access to the feeding grounds in the Milky Way Galaxy. How close will the Wraith get to Earth? This episode marks the return of Connor Trinneer as Michael Kenmore, the Wraith which the Atlantis Expedition Team converted into a human through the use of Dr. Beckett’s retrovirus (2.18 “Michael”). Trinneer also appears in the second episode, “The Misbegotten”, written by Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie. Because Michael didn’t revert completely to his Wraith form, he is neither fully Wraith nor fully human and has no place in either society.
3.03 Sateda
Said to be one of the most exciting action-packed episodes of the show thus far is Robert C. Cooper’s “Sateda”. This episode explores Ronon Dex’s background as a Runner and how his past affected the various worlds wherein he took shelter. Several of the production staff who have blogged about this episode can’t stop talking about its energy level and of Cooper’s superb directorial achievements.
3.04 Irresistible
Richard Kind guest stars as an alien man who proves to have a strange effect on others, making him “irresistable” to Sheppard’s team and others of Atlantis. It’s supposed to be the season’s most entertaining episode, written by Carl Binder and Brad Wright.
3.05 Progeny
As it turns out, the Replicators have cousins in the Pegasus Galaxy in the form of the Asurans — human form Replicants who took on the image of their creators, the Ancients. When the Atlantian Ancients discovered that their experiment in nanotechnological warfare (1.13 “Hot Zone”) had gone wrong, they tried to destroy it. They weren’t successful, and now, after thousands of years of evolution, some the Asurans wish to accomplish the ultimate goal of their creators — ascension. None of them know how, but they think they can find the answer by searching the minds of the Atlantis crew. Some of the Asurans, however, wish only to seek revenge on those who tried to destroy them 10,000 years ago. Written by Carl Binder, this is the first of two episodes which focus on Atlantis‘s new enemy.
3.06 The Real World
In a false reality created by the Asurans, Dr. Elizabeth Weir must endeavor to keep her sanity as everyone around her tells her that the Atlantis Expedition is only a figment of her imagination. Richard Dean Anderson reprises his role as Jack O’Neill, but is he really there? This is the second episode of the Asuran story arc written by Carl Binder.
3.07 Common Ground
Sheppard must face an old nemesis, Acastus Kolya of the Genii. Robert Davi reprises his role as one of the most intense characters ever introduced on the show. “Common Ground” is written by new staff writer Ken Cuperus.
3.08 McKay and Mrs. Miller
Viewers finally get to meet McKay’s sister, Jeanie, played by Kate Hewlett, David Hewlett’s real-life sister. This story, written by Martin Gero, explores the relationship between the siblings and delves into the possibilities of roads not taken.
3.09 (untitled Character Backstories story)
This episode remains a bit of a mystery. Martin Gero, in an interview with GateWorld, said that it had character backstories and is written by Carl Binder. It is possible that this episode will also address one of the issues brought forth by executive producer Robert C. Cooper — the lack of character moments in Atlantis as compared to the same time in Stargate SG-1‘s history.
3.10/3.11 The Return
“The Return” is the mid-season two-parter penned by Martin Gero and marks the return of two pivotal characters to the Stargate universe, as well as the return of the Asurans. Robert Picardo returns as Richard Woolsey and Richard Dean Anderson returns as Gen. Jack O’Neill (the final two of the three episodes he will appear in this season). The Asurans have captured Atlantis, the place of their creation, and now the Team must get it back.
Second Half: TBD
According to Martin Gero, 15 of the season’s 20 episodes have been planned (as of late March when the interview was conducted). Of these 15 episodes, only four contain plots concerning the Wraith.
Gero calls the third season a “make or break” season, challenging the creative team to develop a rich universe filled with interesting, believable, and lovable characters experiencing extraordinary adventures together with the same lasting quality as has been so aptly demonstrated by Stargate SG-1, one of American sci-fi’s most successful TV shows of all time.
Spoilers are subject to change as the episodes are still in production.