Atlantis: S02E07: "A fate worse than death"

Rating: 6

In A Nutshell

Just as we'd all managed to rid ourselves of painful memories of this show, it is back like a scab that won't heal. Hopefully you won't have remembered anything about the previous episodes, all those months ago. I'd forgotten thankfully. Anyhow, Jason is to wed Ariadne, so to stop that happening, Pasiphae kidnaps The Oracle and, to avoid being condemned by the Gods for murdering her, she gets Medusa to unwittingly do the deed, in return for a cure. Amazingly Pasiphae wasn't lying on that deal. So, the Oracle is stoned, literally, but Ariadne is determine to go ahead with the marriage, so the now revealed tratorious High Priest concocts an elaborate charade in which Jason is arrested of The Oracle's murder and sentenced to death.

What I liked

The bromance between Jason, Pythagoras and Hercules is easily the best character driven aspect of this show. Quite possibly the only thing the producers have got right.

Nice to see Medusa, even if she spent all her scenes sobbing and waffling.

A main character is killed off! Un-bel-iev-able. Certainly this is a darker season two. Well, more like Season One with a shadow over it.

What I Didn't Like

So, the High Priest is the traitor. As if that wasn't obvious. There are only a handful of central characters. It was never going to be someone we've only seen once. The only other obvious possibility was so made out to be against Jason's marriage that you knew it couldn't be him.

That's one heck of a ceremony for the blood offering; yawn.

Medusa and Hercules lovey dovey is as cringeworthy as Anakin Skywalker and Padme in the Star Wars films. Ugh.

Cliffhanger has us biting our nails that Jason is to be put to the death; cause that's so likely isn't it ...

Huh?

That walk through the forest to Pasiphae's hideout was so umm simple second time around, right? They made a whole episode out of that walk last time. Still, at least we were saved from that experience again.

Does Pasiphae's hideout have a map or signposts within it? The ease at which they hobble about through the facility and locate the only cell with the door ajar was like bloodhounds sensing the scent.

Hercules says he's searched the whole temple and not found Medusa and Pythagoras and Jason just accept that. That's some feat for Hercules to have searched such a big temple in a few minutes. They believed him?

And Finally

Well, there's no doubt that season two is made of more solid intriguing stuff than the first dull bland season, but even so, this rarely approaches even being classed as "good". This however was acceptable stuff for a saturday night, just. No doubt the gap since the last episode in the schedule has helped us all forgive the show a little more.

"A fate worse than death"; watching this show feels quite like that.

Rating: 6 out of 10 (A decent "return" for the show which has the creativity of a 5 year old and the intrigue of a dog that can't smell)