Okay, so what is Rush up to here? He knows Chloe is not cured of whatever is going on? He's planning to use her in some way in that control room he found? What is going on?

I wonder if Young will think to have Rush followed when he wanders off to that control room. He's already suspiscious of him.

So the Lucians are let out, abeit under guard. I loved the scene when Greer confronts the troublemaker. Greer just had this "Go ahead, make my day." look.

The scenes on Earth didn't bother me so much this time, maybe because I like Eli. I wonder how Stargate Command felt about him blabbing about the Stargate to his sick mother when he tries to tell her the truth. I kind of figured out how they'd pull it off, that they would arrange for her to visit Destiny and realize Eli was telling the truth.

Looks like Eli's Mom and Camille's girlfriend are going to become friends. Maybe they'll start a "Families of Destiny" support group.

Chloe had a major role this week, I'm sure the Chloe haters moaned with despair.

This was one of those "in between" episodes, where there really isn't much action. Still, I liked it.

This was, I believe, Robert Carlyle’s directorial debut. It certainly was for this series, at least. And considering that he was directing, he was in the episode for an impressive proportion of the time.

It’s rather convenient how Camille always manages to swap consciousnesses with a woman who’s the same size as her so that she can change into her own clothes. Does she put in a specific request each time, listing the necessary measurements? And I assume that Eli doesn’t have similar perks as he’s still in Tracy’s uniform each time he visits his mother. Even if he couldn’t wear anything too distinctively his own because he was initially masquerading as the airman, he must have some fairly ordinary clothes that wouldn’t necessary give the game away, but presumably he doesn’t change because they’d be too big on Tracy.

I don’t know whether Volker is already part of Park’s “reading club” but after his determined defence of her today, I reckon he soon will be! And according to Joseph Mallozzi’s blog, the offensive phrase that Simeon whispered to Lisa was, “Try the carrots.” (At least, that is what Robert Knepper actually said to Jennifer Spence!)

Eli’s arm-waving and facial expressions during his explanation of the stones and the consciousness transfer was very reminiscent of Daniel Jackson when he was on one of his lectures at Stargate Command or out in the field. I wonder if David deliberately channeled him or whether that’s what all geeks look like when they’re in full flow?

While writing the transcript and commenting on how I assumed that Nicholas picked up the chalk on a planetary visit and then cut it into sticks, I found myself wondering whether he ever completed the chess set he was starting to carve many episodes ago.

I would half have expected Chloe to write her solution to Nick’s equation in alien writing rather than putting letters that he can understand.

When Camille comes to talk to Eli outside the hospital, she only has to say, “Hey” to him and he realises that it’s her and not some hospital visitor who just fancied a chat. I would have expected him to at least confirm who she was before he started to talk. The other option is too awful to contemplate: that Camille did a stone swap at the same time as Eli so that he saw the body she had transferred into, and she then said, “Well, I’m off to boff my girlfriend. Good luck with your dying mother!” before bouncing out of the room.

Camille comes home from talking with Eli, and Sharon tells her that her dinner’s in the oven. Either the food’s not very warm or Camille has asbestos fingers but she doesn’t use an oven glove to take the plate out and then continues to hold it with her bare fingers as she eats.

Nicholas using Chloe for his own purposes and then blaming her for what he’s getting up to on the Bridge – while hardly surprising – is taking him down a really dark path. It’ll be intriguing to find out how – and if – he can redeem himself at all after this.

I watched the second half of Greer’s and Simeon’s corridor encounter through my fingers! BadassGreer is awesome.

Why does Chloe need to be locked in a small room? There are no consoles in her quarters – why can’t she be confined there? And even if they think she might have some secret gizmo hidden in there, move her to another bedroom and stick a guard outside. She hasn’t done anything that deserves being locked in a cell!

The Ancients must have known that there might be a possibility of being stranded on the ship for a while without the energy to dial home. So why don’t they have more advanced equipment in the Infirmary, like their version of the scanner on Atlantis? Or is the proper Infirmary in a part of the ship that hasn’t been explored yet?

David Blue broke my heart as Eli sat at his mother’s bedside trying so hard not to cry.

Maryann Wallace on Destiny: I did not see that coming. Even when Camille was having her “make this happen” phonecall, I thought she was insisting that a big honkin’ general – Jack, Landry or even the Air Force Chief of Staff – come and talk to Maryann.

How totally adorable was Eli’s grin as he greeted his mother on Destiny? It’s the kind of smile a young man would only give to his mother.

Why on earth would the Chair be capable of extracting or destroying alien bits from humans? Surely its programming would only stretch as far as detecting alien D.N.A. and then refusing to interface with the person sitting in it at the time. I doubt the Ancients were planning on being infested by aliens on a regular basis.

I liked this week’s end montage – no silly over-appropriate lyrics, just a really nice tune and a sense of ominous foreboding.

Nicholas using Chloe for his own purposes and then blaming her for what he’s getting up to on the Bridge – while hardly surprising – is taking him down a really dark path.

Young should have Rush watched. He clearly trusts him as far as he could throw him.

Does anyone find those recaps at the start annoying. Do we really need them? If you haven't been following this far, then you're not watching.

Plus the recaps frequently include a moment which spoilers what's about to happen - or at least means that you're not as surprised when it does happen. I fast-forward through them to try and avoid being spoiled.

Plus the recaps frequently include a moment which spoilers what's about to happen - or at least means that you're not as surprised when it does happen. I fast-forward through them to try and avoid being spoiled.

Yeah, they should scrap them. I don't need to be constantly reminded of things I already know.

Sadly it's not a new thing for Stargate. At least here the recaps don't always obviously spoiler because they include enough other clips that you can't always be certain which ones will be totally relevant to the forthcoming episode. In SG-1 they used to do "Previously on Stargate SG-1" recaps that basically said, "Hey, look, everyone! This is going to happen and these people (who you haven't seen since two seasons ago) are coming back!"

Well, Universe is not the only show guilty of this. Supernatual does it too. When it happens, I keep saying: "I know about all this, let's get on with it."

I've found the recaps annoying for a while, in part because they can serve as spoilers (although if the events are from an episode a month, or more, earlier, it's understandable why they feel the need to remind viewers). The thing which really bugs me is when they bring up stuff which isn't in the episode because then I'm expecting something which isn't there. "Wait! The recap mentioned the Penguin Goa'uld, but they didn't even mention him in the show!"

Mrs. Wallace's reaction to this soldier claiming to be Eli is what we should have been seeing with these stoned trips in the first season. Also Sharon's complaining about not seeing Camille's face or hearing her voice would have been much better had it been back in the beginning. (Guess Sharon was just a skanky ho who had a thing for a women in uniform. ;-)

Camille is improving as a character.

At the end when the camera zoomed in on Chloe's eyes, I really wanted to see an eye flash.

Wait! The recap mentioned the Penguin Goa'uld

Did he survive the events of Moebius?

<sonorous_voice>The Penguin Goa'uld can survive anything.</sonorous_voice>

Huh??

The Penguin Goa'uld is a running gag.

See here

Poor Tim, he was so innocent, and now you've corrupted him.

Good boy. *snigger*

Uh, yeah, that was bizarre.

You been here -- how long? -- and didn't realize we were all warped???

You were right, Callie, he was an innocent. Now do you really want me to drag out the nishta for your impertinence?

Well, this series is my first exposure to the Stargate franchise. Star Trek and Doctor Who I know back from front, but Stargate is new territory for me. Before this show, I only knew it through the 1994 movie that started it all.

I wasn't talking about that... I was talking about the fact that you had no clue how warped we all were here

<indignant_voice> I said you were a good boy, Scott my Lord; what more do you want?! </indignant_voice>

*sigh* (starts up the chant again)
Scott is life, Scott is happiness, Scott is almighty
Scott is life, Scott is happiness, Scott is almighty
(repeat ad nauseam) ...

ScottN - The Penguin Goa'uld is a running gag.
Running gag or desperate cry for help? ;-)

Tim - Uh, yeah, that was bizarre.
Nah, the bizarre stuff is kept here! ;-)

Hey, that's MY link!

Oh, and KAM? I'm surprised you didn't direct him to whatever is left of Phantom Returns!

I considered it, (as well as your 101 Ways To Bash In Bashir's Head thread) but thought that link would work better.

Whatever is left of Phantom Returns.