Inferno (Stargate Atlantis)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Stargate Atlantis episode | |
|---|---|
| “Inferno” | |
 |
|
| Episode no. | Season 2 Episode 19 |
| Guest star(s) | Kevin McNulty as Chancellor Lycus Brandy Ledford as Norina David Nykl as Dr. Zelenka Mitch Pileggi as Colonel Steven Caldwell Trevor Devall as Hermiod (voice) Patrick Gallagher as Vonos |
| Writer(s) | Carl Binder |
| Director | Peter DeLuise |
| Production no. | 219 |
| Original airdate | January 23, 2006 |
| Episode chronology | |
| ← Previous | Next → |
| "Michael" | "Allies (Part 1)" |
"Inferno" is an episode of the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Atlantis is contacted by a planet that claims to have Ancient technology and is in need of their help to fix it. When Sheppard and his team arrive on the planet they find that there is actually an Ancient outpost which is protected by an Atlantis size shield, but that the inhabitants have apparently run into a problem operating it.
The problem, however, turns out to be much bigger than merely powering the shield. As it turns out, the outpost has long-range Ancient sensors just as Atlantis does, and after detecting the increased Wraith activity a year ago, the people in the outpost began running the shield continuously. The problem was, however, that the shield was powered by a massive geothermal core and never designed to be used permanently.
As McKay discovers, what the people thought to be a simple geothermal pocket was in fact a Supervolcano, and what they thought was a large valley, turned out to be the caldera of this volcano. Because of this revelation, Rodney determines that the extended use of the shield over the last year, and the resulting drain on the geothermal energy of this volcano, has critically accelerated the eruption which would normally not have occurred for up to 100,000 years.
McKay is now in a hurry: he not only has to fix the shield generator but also an Ancient warship that is docked in an underground bay, which is of the same class as the Aurora (see "Aurora"). After this discovery Weir decides to visit the planet and offer the people to evacuate to Atlantis, but the chancellor of the planet is skeptical. However, he agrees when the earthquakes become more frequent and the ground rips open.
While transferring the first wave of refugees, a lava pocket opens up directly under the Stargate, burying it under molten rock. Because of this, Atlantis contacts the Daedalus, which is just returning from Earth, and re-routes it to this planet. The Daedalus, however, cannot evacuate everyone at once, and must make four trips. Rodney feels this will take too long and while the Daedalus evacuates the most important people he decides to try to repair the engines of the Ancient ship and simply fly off of the planet. Unfortunately, some of the natives grow impatient, and take their chances seeking refuge in the wilderness because they don't believe that the eruption of the volcano will destroy the entire continent. Teyla and Ronon try to evacuate the last of the natives, but the tunnel leading to the Ancient ship is blocked. Fortunately, they are beamed up to the Daedalus before the poisonous gas released by the volcanic activity can kill them.
Meanwhile in Atlantis the expedition team learns from Dr. Zelenka that a Wraith Hive-Ship is on its way towards the city, increasing the pressure on McKay to successfully repair the Ancient ship. However, they know that even with their resources they might not be able to defeat the enemy ship.
In the end, however, Rodney is unable to make the repairs in time and has found that a river of lava has overrun the bay doors, making it impossible to fly out anyway. Instead, he manages to power the ship's shields for four seconds, and re-routes power to the hyperdrive engines. These four seconds will give Rodney enough time so that the explosion of the volcano will thrust the ship, which Sheppard named the Orion, high enough to engage the hyperdrive for a microsecond, propelling them into orbit, and saving everyone on board. Upon returning to Atlantis, Rodney and a team of scientists begin working on the Orion in hopes of fully repairing it.
[edit] Notes
- There is no mention of the natives who initially leave the group in an attempt to outrun the eruption. It is probably safe to assume that they were either beamed up by the Daedalus or killed in the eruption.
- When trying to decide on a name for the Ancient warship, Sheppard rejects the idea of calling it the Enterprise. The name was previously suggested for the Prometheus by Jack O'Neill in the SG-1 episode "Unnatural Selection".
- The Ancient warship on Taranis is named the Hypopheralcus after an Ancient general. Despite his deep respect for the Ancients, Sheppard wastes no time changing the ship's name to the Orion.
- This was the last season 2 episode to be filmed. [1]
- Brandy Ledford (Norina) previously played the Tok'ra Zaren in SG-1's "Endgame".
- Kevin McNulty (Chancellor Lycus) previously played Dr Warner, one of the doctors at the SGC, in several episodes of Stargate SG-1. Coincidentally, he also played Joe Foster in the TV film Supervolcano, which dealt with a supervolcano on Earth.
- The planet where the episode is set is named after the Celtic Thunder God, Taranis
[edit] References
- ^ Gosling, Sharon [July 2006]. “Wrapping season two”, Stargate Atlantis: The Official Companion Season 2. London: Titan Books, 150. ISBN 1-84576-163-4.
[edit] External links
- Official Stargate Atlantis site. MGM. Visited June 8, 2006.
- Transcript from GateWorld. Transcribed by Callie Sullivan. Visited May 14, 2006.
- Summary from GateWorld. Visited May 14, 2006.
- Gatenoise from Moon-catchin'. Visited June 23, 2006.
