The Daedalus Variations
A parallel-universe Daedalus traps Sheppard's team across realities.
The fourth episode of Stargate Atlantis's fifth season, "The Daedalus Variations," debuted on August 1, 2008, on the Sci Fi Channel. Directed by Andy Mikita and penned by Alan McCullough, it is the series' 84th installment.
Quick Facts
- Series
- Stargate Atlantis
- Airdate
- 1 August 2008
- Writer
- Alan McCullough
- Director
- Andy Mikita
- Season article
- Stargate Atlantis (season 5)
Facts from the source article.
Plot
A spaceship appears over Atlantis, and John Sheppard's team discovers it is the Daedalus, though Stargate Command reports the real Daedalus is two days from Earth. Boarding the ship, they find it abandoned with battle damage. Teyla views a log from a Colonel Sobel, whom they do not know. A power spike causes the Daedalus to vanish from above Atlantis, and from the team's perspective, Atlantis disappears. Rodney McKay determines they have been propelled into a parallel universe by an "alternate reality drive," and the ship is from an alternate reality. The team finds dead versions of themselves from another universe who were trapped aboard. The ship jumps again into a reality where Atlantis is under attack by unfamiliar aliens. Sheppard intervenes, and a fighter crashes into the Daedalus before it jumps into a universe where Atlantis' sun has become a red giant. McKay increases the drive's activation rate to avoid burning up, warning the modifications are irreversible. The team contends with aliens from the crashed fighter. McKay realizes they cannot guide the drive but can reverse it to jump back through visited realities. Using maneuvering thrusters, they stabilize the ship above the red giant and survive another alien attack with help from an alternate Atlantis. After returning to their reality, they evacuate in space suits when a remaining alien detonates an explosive, breaching the hull. Lorne picks them up as the Daedalus disappears. Later, McKay works on fixing the drive despite Sheppard's admonishments.
Production
The original concept involved a room in Atlantis that shifts into alternate realities, but issues such as the possibility of no Atlantis in one reality led Robert C. Cooper to suggest using the Daedalus. The final draft was completed on February 11. A prosthetics meeting on February 12 involved this episode along with "The Seed," "Broken Ties," and "Whispers," likely concerning the unknown aliens. Their appearance was revealed in an advertisement on July 27. Alan McCullough described the episode as a "great team show" and a "visual effects spectacular." On March 10, Captain Sobol was cast; by airtime, the character was female, portrayed by Tracy Waterhouse, with the rank of Colonel and the name spelled "Sobel." Much of the episode was filmed on the Daedalus set, requiring visual effects for external shots. It was reportedly one of the most expensive VFX budgets in the series and the most expensive for the season. The star map behind the captain's chair was turned 90 degrees and changed from green to orange to differentiate the ship. McCullough stated the episode is a one-off but did not rule out a return beyond the fifth season. He originally planned a reality where the Ancients won the war against the Wraith, but this was dropped. The episode was Jason Momoa's first appearance with a custom wig; after Momoa complained about pain from having his hair sewn on, a wig was used.
Reception
"The Daedalus Variations" received a household rating of 1.3, making Stargate Atlantis the fourth most viewed series for the week on Sci Fi Channel, behind ECW on Sci Fi, Ghost Hunters International, and the season three premiere of Eureka. The episode was generally positively received. Tory Ireland Mell of IGN praised the short teaser, gripping storyline, and the introduction of the alien race, rating it 9.1 out of 10. Marx Pyle of SyFy Portal compared it to Star Trek: The Next Generation's "Q Who?" regarding the introduction of a new antagonist, calling it a "fun filler" episode and praising the scene between the two Sheppards and the space battle. However, Pyle criticized the absence of Woolsey, McKay's quick understanding of new technologies, and the amount of information given away in previews.
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