---Stargate Atlantis - Season 3---

Finally season three has hit my doorstep and was hastily pushed towards my DVD player. I was like an addict getting my fix. It's been MONTHS I tell you! So here for your perusal is an in depth explanation of what I've been doing with my life for the last week! I'll try not to spoil anything, but I'm not promising miracles, so beware!
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---What is Stargate Atlantis?---

Put simply, SG Atlantis is a spin off of the incredibly successful Series Stargate SG-1, which is a spin-off of the movie Stargate (confused yet?)

The movie centres around the discovery of what they call the Stargate. The Stargate is a huge ring with nine pretty little pictures on it. It works like an old telephone in that you choose your numbers (the pretty pictures), hit dial and the ring spins and what not. It then does what it says on the tin in that you walk through it (similar to a gate) and end up on another planet. A gate to the stars! Ok, so it might burn if it was the actual stars you came out on but you get the point. Also the movie suggests there is only one destination to get to with the gate.

The planet they come out on is ruled by Ra. WAIT A MINUTE! I hear you cry! Yep, Ra, the Egyptian god of something or other was actually an evil alien. After the team sent to explore through the gate decide that this guy needs to die, much hilarity ensues, boom, bang thank you mam, happy ending and the gate on their end is destroyed.

BUT WAIT!! There is more! What's the point in burying the movie in a file marked mediocre when you can milk a spin off? And to whoever thought of it, I congratulate you!

Stargate SG-1 expands on the idea that life on earth was not started here. It was, in fact, brought here by an extremely advanced alien race. This race happened to be a tad on the evil side and used humans as slaves and carriers for their young (slithery snake type things) as was touched on in the movie. How do they bring it back without ruining the movies ending? Simple! They discover that there is more than one destination. Mainly because another alien posing as a god (this time Apophis) sends his uber creepy army through to start shooting us up.

This time the military do the sensible thing and start using the gate to explore the universe and come up against some rather nasty creatures in their path. When the SG-1 team discover more about the universe we come to learn that the evil alien race didn't bring life to our galaxy, it was actually an even older, much nicer race we call the ancients. Unfortunately this race has evolved to the point of existing on a pretty omnipotent, omnipresent scale so they don't like interfering (or helping out) much. They did, however, leave behind all their cool toys. The quest to find these cool toys (mainly to help us get rid of those pesky evil doers) leads us to look for "the lost city of the ancients" which turns out to be Atlantis. Through many trials and tribulations the team finally finds the lost city and WALLA, a new spin off is born!

Atlantis, true to the myths, is a wondrous city at the bottom of a vast ocean…not true to myths, it's on another planet, in another galaxy. Some more arms and legs: the city doubles as an intergalactic space ship when you have enough power. SG Atlantis is the story of what happens on this outpost, full of new aliens to blow up (namely the wraith) and will-they-wont-they story lines.
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---The Main Characters---

---Dr Elizabeth Weir (Torri Higginson) ---
Weir has been put in charge of operations on Atlantis. She's a civilian so she gets to have a bit more of a heart than a military commander would and allows the rules to be broken a little more. She's sexy, smart and I do believe there's a little bit of a crush on Major Sheppard in there somewhere. Maybe that's just me…

More info can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Weir_%28Stargate%29
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-- -Major John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan)---
A nice bit of man candy who likes to do all the heroic stuff. If it flies, he can drive it. He has a special gene that allows him to operate Atlantian technology and is an all round good guy. Never leave a man behind and all that stuff! He is the leader of the main SG Atlantis exploration team.

More info can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Sheppard_%28Stargate%29
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--- Dr Meredith Rodney McKay (David Hewlett)---
McKay is the mandatory science expert of the show. His character first came up in SG-1 as an annoying weasel type scientist who had a crush on one of the lead women of SG-1. They have kept him pretty much the same. You do however grow to love McKay. He has a constant fear of death (which is totally justified) and a constant hunger. Seriously this guy thinks about food 24/7. He tends to bring a comical side to Atlantis with his blunt nature, sarcasm that knows no bounds and a really girly name.

More info can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney_McKay
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---Teyla Emmagan (Rachel Luttrel)---
Teyla has been adopted by Atlantis as a member of its main team. She is alien purley because she is not from earth and has a bit of a mental connection with the evil alien dudes. . She not only kicks ass, she takes names and addresses so she can continue to kick ass whenever she pleases. Oh and she has a very calm soppy side to her too. She's really just a human from a different planet.

More info can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teyla_Emmagan
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---Ronon Dex (Jason Momoa)---
Brought to the team in season 2, this guy is nothing short of amazing. He has been used as a cat and mouse game by the Wraith. They implanted him with a tracking device and set him loose so they could hunt him. Lucky for him, he managed to out-run them for years before bumping into the SG Atlantis team who were out on a mission. The years spent running and the total annihilation of his home world have turned him into a fighting machine who wants nothing more than to smear the blood of the wraith on anything that is to hand. A hunk and a half who screams like a girl (no really, its quite funny).

More info can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronon_Dex
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---Dr Carson Beckett (Paul McGillion)---
This guy is a doctor who deals with humans. As you may expect he is very compassionate and well liked. He doesn't get in on the action much, but is always there to help. He's Scottish and has an accent I didn't believe existed until I bumped into a fellow Scot who had the same dulcet tones. I nearly died of laughter.

More info can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carson_Beckett
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---Episo de Listing---
---Disc One---

---1. No Mans Land (comes with commentary)---

Season two closed on a cliff hanger. A new, even more evil alien race has just managed to fool the Atlantis team into giving them the location of earth. Or as they call it, "A new feeding ground". Nice, no?

To top it off Sheppard's fighter plane can't be found after a rather explosive battle and McKay and Ronon are trapped aboard a Wraith Ship (A Hive).

We soon learn that Sheppard has managed to latch his plane onto the side of the Hive and is waiting for a moment to strike. In the meantime, Dr Weir has asked the commander of their warship to try and intercept the Hive before it reaches earth.

Once they all have their orders, Weir is dragged back to earth to face interrogation as to how the Wraith managed to fool everyone.

Personally, I loved this episode, mainly due to the fact it finally took me down off those hooks season 2 left me on. There are a lot of great performances in this episode, especially from Torri Higginson (Dr Weir) as her character has to deal with a tonne of pressure from all sides.
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---2. Misbegotten (comes with commentary)---

The Atlantis team have a ship full of Wraiths which they have turned into humans. They now need to decide what to do with them all. As a temporary measure they are quarantined on a remote planet and told that they have a deadly disease which the Atlantis team are tying to cure.

After the untimely demise of one of the Wraith-humans the team begin to suspect that those in quarantine know more than they are letting on.

Meanwhile in the city of Atlantis its self, Government official Richard Woolsey (your typical snivelling git) is nosing around and evaluating the pros and cons of letting Dr Weir stay in charge.

This episode is one of the less action packed ones but is still brilliantly thought out and crucial to the plot of the show. Thumbs up for Misbegotten!
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---3. Irresistible (comes with commentary)---

The team have found a small town on another planet and decide to investigate. They soon meet with the most popular man in town, Lucius Lavin. Finding Lavin incredibly irritating, they leave Dr Beckett behind to have a look at the wonderful medicines he claims to have.

Before long Beckett has a change of heart and decides to bring Lavin back to Atlantis.

After a short stay in Atlantis, Lavin has manipulated nearly everyone into loving him which leaves those who are immune to his charm in a rather dangerous situation.

This episode is either comedy gold, or the most annoying episode ever. Lavin (played by Richard Kind whom I find equally as nauseating) is the most cringe worthy character Atlantis has seen but seeing everyone fall in love with him is quite hilarious. Yet another thumbs up for Atlantis!
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---4. Sateda (comes with commentary)---

Ronon Dex has a bad feeling. The team is exploring a planet that looks strangely familiar. When they come across a village he knows why. He has been here before.

When the villagers recognise him as the one who brought the Wraith to destroy them, they capture him and trade him back to the Wraith.

As the Atlantis team try to determine his whereabouts, the Wraith take him back to his desiccated home world and, tracker installed, let him loose for one final chase.

This is possibly one of my favourite episodes of this season. Before now, Ronon was a pretty bare character. This episode focuses on his past through a series of bone chilling memories, building the man into a substantial person. Through his memories we are told his story and see exactly how much the Wraith have taken from him.
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---DISC TWO---
---5. Progeny (comes with commentary)---

After sending their scouting robot through the gate, The Atlantis team believe they have stumbled upon a city occupied by the Ancients (the ones who built Atlantis).

When they meet with the leader of this city, it is evident he wants nothing to do with them and does not want to help them fight the Wraith. The team decide to end their stay short due to the unhelpful attitude of the cities inhabitants but are stopped from leaving at the last minute.

They soon find out a disturbing secret about this city: it is built by replicators, an evil race of micro-machines who can take any form they wish.

One of the replicators, Niam, helps the team escape the planet but the other machines manage to reset his programming, leaving only his original command. Kill.

Having seen similar episodes on SG-1 I wasn't too impressed with this episode. It practically recycled one of the main story lines used in SG-1. It has, however, managed to change it sufficiently to get away with it and I ended up enjoying it and the way it sets up possibilities for future plot lines.
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---6. The Real World---

Dr Weir awakens in a sterile mental hospital room. She looks out the window. She is on Earth. Upon asking how she got back to Earth she is informed that she has never left.

As Dr Weir tries to convince everyone she was part of a top secret mission to another galaxy, she slowly starts to come to terms with what she is being told. She has never left Earth. The last two years of her life have been the result of a psychotic episode.

Amid her battle to find out what is real, she continues having what she believes to be psychotic episodes where she hears voices calling her name and sees people coming out of the walls.

This episode is some great writing. Higginson gives another amazing performance as a very confused Dr Weir, providing some very heart tugging moments and, with her disturbing visions, definitely one of the more creepy episodes of this season.
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---7. Common Ground (comes with commentary)---

We open on the team running to the gate under fire. McKay manages to dial the gate just on time to get everyone home safe. Unfortunately for Major Sheppard, he is grabbed by a harpoon weapon just as he is about to step through, leaving him the captive of The Genii.

The Genii are a people in constant war with themselves and they have popped up throughout the previous seasons, forming new alliances and creating new enemies.

Sheppard finds himself in a cell, waiting to be used as a bargaining tool by the Genii. However, he is not the only prisoner. They have a Wraith on hand to suck his life out if their needs are not met.

The prisoners come to accept that the only way out is to help each other. What ensues is an amazing experience, teaching them both a lot they did not know about each other.

This is the first episode in which the Wraith have ever been viewed as anything other than a monster. We find out some interesting things about the way they work and I actually found myself liking the Wraith in question. This episode adds whole new layers to the monster that is the Wraith and paves the way for some fantastic story telling.
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---8. McKay & Mrs Miller (comes with commentary)---

Mrs Miller is playing with her daughter when suddenly an idea hits her. She grabs the finger paints and starts to create an incredibly complex mathematical theory which she then decides to send to the Military.

After reading over her theory, they send the best of the best, Samantha Carter, to ask her to join the Atlantis mission. When she refuses, Carter knows there is only one person who may be able to convince her otherwise. Enter Dr McKay. Mrs Millers Brother.

Rather than try to talk her round to joining up to the as of yet unexplained expedition, McKay chooses instead to beam her aboard a War Ship waiting in orbit. Needless to say, this convinces her to come along for the ride.

While using Mrs Millers maths to try and create a new power source, they accidentally rip a hole in an alternate universe, ending up in two Dr McKay's' and a whole lot of destruction awaiting.

Despite the apparently serious nature of "McKay And Mrs Miller", it's a very funny episode to watch. McKay And Carter (a main character in SG-1 who McKay fancies the pants off of and occasionally pops up in Atlantis) have some amazing chemistry, adding to the already hilarious brother/sister conflicts (Mrs Miller is played by Hewlett's sister!!) Another great episode!
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---DISC THREE---
---9. Phantoms (comes with commentary)---

Major Sheppard's team are sent to look for another team who have not reported back. They were sent to investigate a strange energy reading coming from somewhere on an uninhabited planet.

When Sheppard's team arrive they discover the bodies of a group of Genii and it looks like they all killed each other. Not long after they find the team they were looking for. Dead.

McKay leads the team to the source of the energy spike to find a Wraith device. McKay soon discovers this device is used to mess with your thoughts. As he struggles to turn the machine off, the Atlantis team start going slowly insane, seeing enemies in place of their friends.

It is a race against time for McKay to disable the device before the team murder each other in cold blood.

Although the episode isn't tied into any of the main plots, it serves as a great burst of action and some exceptional performances from the whole team.
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---10. The Return- Part 1 (comes with commentary)---

At long last the brilliant minds in Atlantis have made a way to get to earth in around 30 minutes (as opposed to 3 weeks spent in hyperspace) While they are testing their new toy, they bump into a ship full of Ancients who are surprised to learn their city has been saved from the depths.

It comes as a bit of a shock that instead of gratitude, The Ancients ask the cities new dwellers to leave. They allow two people to stay behind to keep diplomatic relations going, which is just as well since the two people left behind are the ones that sent an S.O.S to Stargate operations on earth when the city is taken by force by the replicators.

Instead of allowing the Military to Nuke Atlantis in a bid to stop the replicators getting to earth, The now disbanded team decide to directly disobey orders and hi-jack a ship. They are determined to save the city.

This one leaves you wanting more as it ends just as the team enter the gate to get to Atlantis.
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---11. The Return- Part 2 (comes with commentary)---

Thankfully, we own the box set, so the wait isn't too long. The action continues as the team arrive in Atlantis.

After a failed attempt by McKay to upload a virus to The replicators, the evil machines soon find the two stray humans left behind and imprison them, all the while repairing the damage they have done to the city when they attacked.

It seems the only option left is to disable the cities shields to allow the warship about to arrive above the planet to beam down a nuke.

Full of twists and turns, this one will keep you on your toes as the city draws ever nearer to destruction. The only downside is that this is episode 11 of a 20 episode box set. Pretty much taken as given that they will somehow save the city.
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---12. Echoes (comes with commentary)---

When people start seeing the ghosts of some very distraught ancients, it's a pretty good sign that something is wrong.

Teyla thinks the ghosts are trying to warn the cities new inhabitants of impending doom.

At the same time the ghosts appear, McKay spots a whale like creature near the city which he believes is the animal that saved him a year or so ago by circling his sinking vessel to draw attention to it.

When the cities scanners pick up more of these creatures heading towards the city, they all assume they are the danger the ghosts are so worried about. The visions get worse as thousands of these creatures approach the city and the physical side effects of the creatures start showing when people start to die.

As the team race against the clock to find out why the creatures are suddenly descending on the city, they realise the creatures are not the danger at all. There is, in fact, a much bigger threat on the horizon!

This one moved a little slow to start with, but once it began picking up the pace, it soon held my attention as the team face a new way to become extinct.
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---DISC FOUR---
---13. Irresponsible (comes with commentary)---

The team are sent to investigate a village that supposedly has someone with super human abilities protecting it.

Imagine my frustration when it turns out to be none other than Lucius Lavin, back with a whole new bag of tricks.

This time people like him because he actually protects the village by sneakily using an ancient personal force field device. When they villagers start to treat him like everyone else again, he decides it is time to remind them of how great he is, so he sets up a raid on the village so he can play the hero again.

Unfortunately, this doesn't go quite to plan when the Genii show up looking for the Atlantis team…and this time, there will be fatalities.

Yet another fantastic episode concluding a 3 season long battle between The Genii Rebels and the SG Atlantis team, explosions and trickery everywhere, and Lavin even gets the kicking he's been so desperately needing.
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---14. Tao of Rodney (comes with commentary)---

McKay never really learns to stop pushing buttons when he doesn't know what they do. Thankfully this results in him getting blasted by a huge energy beam from a rather dilapidated machine the Ancients left in the city.

When McKay starts developing powers such as telekinesis it becomes evident that the purpose of this machine was to help people Ascend to a higher plane of existence.

Not surprisingly, there is a reason the project was abandoned by the Ancients. As much as it made peoples minds evolve to the point of near omnipotence, it also tended to make them die when they reached that point.

What ensues is an episode where McKay has to come to terms with his impending death which makes him see things in a different light.

This very emotional episode climaxes with McKay on his death bed as he thinks of a last ditch attempt to save his own life.
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---15. The Game (comes with commentary)---

Calling all Sims fans!!

McKay is called upon to explain why his face appears on the flag of a newly discovered nation on an as of yet unexplored planet.

Instantly McKay and Sheppard look guilty and confess that they have been playing what they had assumed was a game. In true Sims style, you can choose what your people look like, what they do, how they interact with the world around them. Little did they know it was actually a social experiment abandoned by the fleeing Ancients that controlled real time worlds!

When they meet the inhabitants they have been playing God to, it is evident that something must be done quickly to stop the two bordering nations destroying each other all because McKay and Sheppard were playing too competitively.

I couldn't get enough of this episode mainly because of the sheer geek content of it. Sims + Atlantis = Geek. It was also a very well written episode and contained an actress I love from another series I adore (dead like me)
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---16. The Ark (comes with commentary)---

Our story begins on an abandoned space station hollowed into a small moon of a planet bearing the scars of a nuclear winter. McKay and Sheppard are lumbered with heavy space suits, scouting around for any signs of life.

Once they have got the artificial atmosphere turned on, the space station jumps to life and suddenly a man appears unconscious in another part of the station, beamed out of a Wraith-like device.

When Heric awakens, he informs the team that the space station was built to store thousands of people from the planet below so as to out run the Wraith. The people of the planet below modified Wraith technology to store their people. There should have, however, been two devices on the ship.

The team retrieve another person from the device who explains that the second device couldn't reach the station on time and so was destroyed with the planet.

Heric's family were to be stored on the other device, which drives him to commit suicide. In doing so, he blasts the moon out of orbit and sends it slowly drifting towards the planet with the Atlantis team now trapped aboard

The team now must find a way to save the device full of those left of the planet below and themselves before the moon crashes down to the ground.

Suspense filled from start to finish, another big thumbs up to Atlantis.
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---DISC FIVE---
---17. Sunday (comes with commentary)---

Finally someone has decided that the people in Atlantis should get a day off.

And what an eventful day it turned out to be. We start off with an explosion from an unknown source, Teyla is badly injured and a good few people have died.

Jump back in time, we are at the start of the day. Dr Weir is in her office and being propositioned for a date. By the end of today we will know more about all the characters and one of them will be dead.

The whole episode jumps around to different points in the day, following the day off of the main characters on the base. Its astounding to watch but quite hard to explain just how complex this episode is. It is beautifully crafted and is the most emotionally taxing of the season. It certainly had me in tears when the episode closes with one of the main characters talking to the ghost of the friend he has lost.

Five stars on every scale possible for this episode!
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---18. Submersion (comes with commentary)---

How many people can you fit into a tiny jumper ship? You're about to find out!

The team are all underwater searching for a drilling station the ancients left down there. The aim is to drill into the earths crust and use the heat energy to power everything that needs powering. Simple? Of course not.

As soon as Teyla arrives on the drilling station she senses the presence of a Wraith. The Wraith in question is fantastically powerful and takes control of Teyla's mind, willing her to mess around with the controls, trapping everyone thousands of feet underwater.

Soon as the team realise what has happened they start searching for the Wraith. Only by chance do they disable her long enough to restrain her and interrogate.

After a session or two of mind probing by Teyla, they find out the Queen has a ship near by…which she has set to self destruct.

The team must battle to find a way to her ship before it blows, opening up the planets crust and unleashing a tremendous explosion of molten rock that could destroy the planet.
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---19. Vengeance (comes with commentary)---

Michael, the first Wraith to be turned into a human, an abandoned experiment that went totally wrong, is back. And he is not happy.

Since being turned into a half breed of human and Wraith he is no longer accepted by either races as their own. Outcast and completely miffed, he has been working in secret, creating a new enemy.

Using the same techniques the Atlantis team used to turn him human, he has been modifying a blood sucking bug, turning them into a dangerous and formidable creature, akin to something out of "Alien"

It seems the writers realised how similar these things looked as the film was mentioned a few times throughout the heavily creepy episode.

This, I believe, is the only episode that has made me jump out of my seat, so kudos to the writers on that one. This also paves the way for a new story line in the next season (although having not seen it yet, that's just speculation on my part)
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---20. The First Strike (comes with commentary)---

The finale of season three is here. As usual, the writers go all out on this one to make it a fast paced, exciting, visually stunning masterpiece. I'd say they managed it too!

The Apollo is earths newest warship and its captain has been sent to nuke a planet teeming with replicator activity. Dr Weir has her reservations and rather worryingly, soon after the planet is bombed, something shows up in orbit above Atlantis.

A message is received and on the other end: The Replicators. This time they will not be taken lightly. They launch an attack on Atlantis that results in them submerging the city in the hopes this will save them.

When they realise they will still be destroyed unless they take further action, this results in them making a last ditch attempt to fly the city out of harms way using the last of the power they have.

This season leaves us hanging, with three of the main characters badly injured and the entire city lost in space with no power and only a days' worth of oxygen left.

Another amazing season from the Atlantis team that certainly leaves you needing to watch season 4!
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---The Extras---
---Over View---

As always, the box set is fully loaded with extras to keep you going long after the episodes have been devoured.

You can choose to watch all bar one episode with commentaries from the directors, producers and VFX guys. Personally I dislike commentaries. I wasn't too impressed that the cast haven't been given the chance to do a commentary and the other extras give the producers and effects guys plenty time to talk already! If you like to hear people talk about the episode as its going on, then this will be for you. Other than that there's not much more I can think of to say about commentaries.

A small warning: if you don't want to spoil the episodes for yourself, make sure you watch the extras AFTER you watch the season as some of the extras talk about episodes that are a disc or two ahead.

A more comprehensive look at the extras follow.
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---DISC ONE---

Commentary on "No Man's Land" by Producer/Writer Martin Gero & Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood

Commentary on "Misbegotten" by Executive Producer Paul Mullie & Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood

Commentary on "Irresistible" by Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood & Director of Photography Michael Blundell

Commentary on "Sateda" by Executive Producer, Writer and Director Robert C. Cooper & Director of Photography Brenton Spencer
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---Ark Of Truth Promo---

This is listed as an "extra" but you could easily miss it. It is more of an advert at the very start of the box set that you are likely to skip over. You cannot access this extra through any menu.

The "Ark Of Truth" is a made for TV movie, carrying on from the hugely successful Stargate SG-1 seasons. Its out in America already and is coming soon over here. The promo it's self is a little bit of a let down as, rather than giving a peek at the movie, it is made up from clips of the last couple of seasons of SG-1. It still got me overly excited about the movie, but that may just be due to my love of all things Stargate.
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---Mission Directive: Sateda. Featuring Robert C Cooper---

Carrying on the theme from previous box sets, we are given some "Mission Directives" which is basically a "Making Of" style mini documentary for certain episodes.

Split into sections, this mission directive starts with Cooper (A director) giving us a run down of what this episode was about and why he wrote it. All the while we are kept entertained by behind the scenes clips as you would expect from any decent "making of".

Cooper then explains all about the locations used in this episodes, again with some on set snippets of interview from himself and peeks at the sets without any people to distract our prying eyes

He then discusses the role of Ronon and the excitement of the actor at being allowed to expand his character and letting us know some extra information on how he coped with the filming of this episode.

Overall a very interesting look into this episode with some comical moments, stunts and extra Atlantis love thrown in for our enjoyment!
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---Inside The Stargate Atlantis Visual FX Department---

This extra gets off to a stunning start, showing us some of the more visually astounding moments of the season and then comparing them to the initial building blocks of the computerised animations…and that's just the titles!

Featuring interviews with a lot of people from the FX departments, this is a great watch. It seems everyone on set has a great sense of humour and very unique point of view on how things work.

I enjoyed this one a lot as you get to see how all the amazing scenes are built right from the incredibly basic drawings and animations, right up to what is eventually used in the show its self. Another brilliant thing to see is the actors before any of the effects are layered on top. That tends to make me laugh a lot.

Definitely one to watch!
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---Exclusive Still Photo Gallery and Production Design Gallery---

This extra pretty much does what it says on the tin, it's a nice little gallery of clips from the episodes and drawings of the initial designs for props and sets. I prefer the "Production design" section due to it having some stunning hand drawn art work in there.

Fun to look at, but you can't use any of the photos on your desktop or the likes which, I feel, would have made it that little bit

There is a gallery on every disc full of photos, I'll list it as an extra on every disc for continuity sakes, but don't expect me to explain it more than once!
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---DISC TWO---

Commentary on "Progeny" by Director Andy Mikita & VFX Supervisor Mark Savela

Commentary on "Common Ground" By Director William Waring & Director of Photography by Brenton Spencer

Commentary on "McKay & Mrs. Miller" by Producer/Writer Martin Garo & Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood
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---Mission Directive: "Progeny" Featuring Andy Makita---

Another mission directive, this time led by Andy Makita (another director)

Again he starts off by telling us the thinking behind the episode, leading on to show us sets, stunts and interviews on this particular episode.

More behind the scenes clips and views without people getting in the way, and some surprisingly simple effects make this keep this interesting.

Some more brilliant moments and tid-bits about how the show works are revealed. There might not be much else to say about the make up of the mission directives, but this by no means makes it any less enjoyable to watch!
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---Profile On: Rachel Luttrell---

Now these are the extras that I absolutely adore! Focusing on the cast of the show, they include interviews with the member in question and everyone else.

For me, it makes the show that little bit more likeable. These profiles are usually full of hilarious moments showing the actors goofing around with each other and showing the brilliant dynamic on set.

They also finish off with a question and answer round with questions from fans thrown at the actors.

There tends to only be one, sometimes two profiles per box set, which is suspect, is a sneaky marketing ploy to get you to invest in the future box sets.
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---Exclusive Still Photo Gallery and Production Design Gallery---
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---DISC THREE---

Commentary on "Phantoms" by Co-Executive Producer Carl Binder & Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood

Commentary on "The Return, Part I" by Producer/Writer Martin Gero & Executive Producer Paul Mullie

Commentary on "The Return, Part II" by Producer/Writer Martin Gero & Executive Producer Paul Mullie

Commentary on "Echoes" by Director William Waring & Director of Photography Brenton Spencer
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---Mission Directive: "Phantoms" Featuring Martin Wood---

The "Phantoms" mission directive is headed up by Martin Wood, on of my favourite directors on the show. Every extra I've seen him in is laced with humour partly because he has such a unique way of describing things.

This Directive a few more fun looks behind the scenes and is one of the funnier mission directives, mainly due to the interaction between Wood and the cast. Another thumbs up for the extras!
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---General O'Neill Goes to Atlantis---

O'Neill (played by Richard Dean Anderson) is one of the main characters from SG-1, making occasional appearances in Atlantis. In the episode "the return" parts 1 and 2 he is one of the two people allowed by the Atlantians to stay behind.

This extra focuses on his appearance in the show which will please a lot of the fans of the show who are also SG-1 fans. In fact I think that's the only reason this extra is here. Purely for the die hard fans.

Now I am a huge fan and don't get me wrong, I liked the extra, but the fact I recognised the extra was just a way of saying "hey, we got Anderson on Atlantis! We rule" made me get a little bored.
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---Exclusive Still Photo Gallery and Production Design Gallery---
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---DISC FOUR---

Commentary on "Irresponsible" by Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood & Director of Photography Michael Blundell

Commentary on "Tao of Rodney" by Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood & Director of Photography Michael Blundell

Commentary on "The Game" by Director William Waring & Director of Photography Brenton Spencer

Commentary on "The Ark" by Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood & VFX Supervisor Mark Savela
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--- Mission Directive: "The Game" Featuring William Waring ---

William Waring (director) takes this directive, leading us through an explanation of the episode and what the writers wanted from it.

Another good look into what goes on behind the scenes. This one is not as involved with the cast as the others and instead focuses on the more technical side of the episode. There is however a hilarious moment with the cast who were quite clearly bored. Despite this, not my favourite extra but still good to watch.
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---Masters of the Alien---

This is a look into the Make-up artists on the show. I always enjoy these extras as you get to see the people in incredibly monstrous make up goofing around totally out of character. The Wraith are my favourite mainly because you never see them smile in the show, so even a smiling Wraith can reduce me to giggles.

In this feature you get to see the technique they use for the make-up and a few of the masks and models they use which is really fun to watch. Its also quite amazing to see how incredibly hot the guys who play the ugly as sin bad guys. Lets just say there's a Wraith I'm going to marry.
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---Exclusive Still Photo Gallery and Production Design Gallery---
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---DISC FIVE---

Commentary on "Sunday" by Producer/Writer Martin Gero & Director William Waring

Commentary on "Submersion" by Director Brenton Spencer & VFX Supervisor Mark Savela

Commentary on "Vengeance" by Director Andy Mikita & Creature Effects Designer Todd Masters

Commentary on "First Strike" by Producer/Writer Martin Gero, Director/Supervising Producer Martin Wood & VFX Supervisor Mark Savela
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---Mission Directive: "First Strike" Featuring Martin Wood---

Wood takes this mission and my what a mission it is. One of the more visually stunning episodes of the season, its great to see more about how it works.

The humour makes this extra very watchable. Throw in the extra looks at the visual effects and we have one of the better mission directives on the box set.

Another enjoyable experience.
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---Stargate Atlantis: A Look Back on Season 3 With Martin Gero---

That's it! No more goodies for you! So its time to have a quick (around 20 minutes) look back over the season and a glance at what is to come, led by Martin Gero (Writer/ Producer)

He talks about how the series has progressed over the years and the challenges of keeping the show up to date and fresh.

A large part of this looks into the all important episode "Sunday" and interviews with the actors lets us see just how the whole cast is like a family.

A nice little way to finish off the season and the box set wrapping everything up perfectly.
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---Exclusive Still Photo Gallery and Production Design Gallery---
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---The Box And Aesthetics---

I'm a little bit annoyed with the season three box to be perfectly honest. Season 1 and 2 came in identical boxes to continue a nice little theme on my shelf. This one, however, comes in a cardboard sleeve, in one of those video shaped cases. Also the graphics on the front are ruined very slightly by the decision to write "THE COMPLETE THIRD SEASON" along the top of the front with a gold band behind it. I don't see what the point in that was when it clearly states "Season Three" under the main Atlantis header.

As you may have guessed I don't like the box much. Another of my slight annoyances is that the bit that holds disc one also doubles up as the bit that stores the pamphlet that tells you what is on each disc. This means you need to take the pamphlet out any time you want to put the disc in / out of the box set.

The discs themselves are nicely done, each with a different scene from the episodes they contain. They all have a little golden circle that tells you what disc you are dealing with. A rather pedantic observation of mines is that the golden disc is on the right hand side on four of the discs and on the left on one of them. That bugs me a little. Yes, I know, I'm nuts.

On the whole, the box doesn't look too shabby and actually looks a bit more grown up than the other two. My only annoyance is with the fact the collection doesn't look the same now.
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---The Menus---

They have kept the same style of menus as the previous box sets and tweaked it a little. I liked the old style so I was happy to see it return.

One thing they have greatly improved is the main menu. On the previous two seasons you had the option to play everything or choose an episode which then led