Ronon Dex
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| Stargate character | |
|---|---|
 Ronon Dex, former Satedan soldier and Runner |
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| Ronon Dex | |
| Race | Human: Satedan |
| Gender | Male |
| Rank | Specialist |
| Birthplace | Sateda |
| Portrayer | Jason Momoa |
| First episode | "Runner" |
Ronon Dex (played by Jason Momoa) is a fictional character in the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis. He is a Satedan from the Pegasus Galaxy who had been a Runner for the past seven years.
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[edit] Biography
Prior to his capture by the Wraith, he had been a member of the Satedan military, holding the rank of Specialist. He first encountered humans from Earth in 2005 when he captured Lt. Colonel John Sheppard and Teyla Emmagan. He made a deal with them: if their doctor could remove the tracking device in his back, he'd help them capture Lt. Ford.
Dr. Beckett managed to extract the device, but a Wraith attack prevented the capture of Ford. He returned with them to Atlantis. When they sent a MALP to the gate address he gave them, he discovered that his civilization had been completely destroyed.[1]
Sheppard offered Ronon a place on his team after he proved his worth against the Marines and Teyla in hand-to-hand combat and passed the shooting range tests without any signs of hesitation or inexperience with various firearms presented to him.[2]
He has a unique weapon, an energy pistol. The device emits great red bursts of energy, and has two settings, stun and kill. It resembles a revolver, with a power cell where the ammunition cylinder would be located. Ronon is fond of gunplay, spinning the pistol around rapidly. In addition, he carries a sword. The origin of his energy pistol has never been explained, as his homeworld seems to lack the technology to create such an advanced weapon. He most often uses his gun, but does wield his sword to great effect. He also has a number of knives for use in emergencies, most of them hidden about his person (The specific number of hidden knives has never been revealed, and his seemingly unlimited supply has been used as a source of slight comic relief).
Initially, Ronon appears primal and animalistic, likely due to having been hunted for 7 years that were almost completely void of human contact. However, in later episodes, his character is shown as very laid back, except when confronted by an enemy. The only times that Ronon has shown irrational, violent, and impulsive behavior is when confronted by the Wraith, or when he or a teammate is threatened. His gruff look and seemingly always scowling face tends to intimidate others.
Later, Ronon found out that he wasn't the only surviving member of his people. About 300 more Satedans managed to make it to the shelters west of the capital, and later moved to other planets like Belkan and Manaria. He also learned that Kell, his Task Master during his military training, was among the survivors. Soon after, when Kell came to Belkan to trade, Ronon shot him on sight. In his own words, "Kell commanded several infantry divisions on Sateda. When the Wraith came, he ordered thousands to their death just to save himself. He was... he was a traitor and a coward. My only regret is that his death was quick.[3]
Ronon is known to always have a serious face and to always be on edge. However, under the influence of Lucius' drug, Ronon laughs when Lucius tells a story.[4]. However, he has once been shown to have amiable capacities when he gave Rodney a hug after he survived near-Ascension after healing him of his scars from days as a Runner.
Eventually, the Wraith who originally turned Ronon into a Runner recaptured him, with the help of villagers who were led to believe that the Wraith would no longer cull them in return for Ronon. Instead of killing him, the Wraith implanted a new tracking device and resumed the hunt on the ruins of Sateda. While evading his enemy, Ronon had numerous flashbacks to the final days of his people's civilization while it was under attack by the Wraith. Here, it was revealed that he was as good as married to a woman named Melena, who he tried to get through the Stargate before the Wraith attacked. Her refusal to leave the Satedans who would be unable to evacuate forced him to remain behind and fight the Wraith. Unfortunately, his efforts were in vain, as the Wraith defeated Satedan forces and Melena was killed before Ronon's eyes in an explosion.[5]
The Wraith commander's decision to let Ronon live and continue the hunt would soon prove to be a fateful one, as the enraged Satedan continuously killed Wraith after Wraith on his own using traps that he'd laid. After tracking Ronon to the remains of the hospital where Ronon watched Melena die, Sheppard and Teyla, with the help of Dr. Rodney McKay, see that Ronon has been been injured. They help him fight off more of the Wraith that are hunting him, with Ronon leading the charge. Eventually, the entire Wraith hunting party composed of at least twenty-five individuals is wiped out.
Sheppard orders Ronon to retreat to the waiting Puddle Jumper, where McKay is waiting for them. Ronon refuses and insists upon getting revenge on the Wraith commander that not only helped destroy his homeworld, but forced him to become a Runner not once, but twice. His wish is granted when the Wraith commander goes down to the planet's surface to fight Ronon one on one. Ronon is almost defeated until the timely intervention of Dr. Carson Beckett and a drone weapon.[5]
Just recently, in the episode Sunday, Ronon shows a little character development. This episode marks the first time he refers to Sheppard by his first name, John. It also marks the first time he visits Earth (helping escort Beckett's body after his death), though the visit is offscreen. His opinions of Earth have not yet been mentioned.
[edit] Trivia
- Jason Momoa has revealed that the tattoo on Ronon's neck indicates his Satedan military rank.
- Jason Momoa, along with some of his fellow cast members, have said that they think of Ronon as the Atlantis version of Chewbacca([1]).
- Jason was on Baywatch: Hawaii.
- Ronon Dex's name is a homonym with Ronin (in so much that the name and title are seemingly pronounced identically by the characters on Stargate Atlantis). This is significant because Ronon's apparent loner attitude and pistol swinging habits are similar in many ways to Clint Eastwoods characterization of The Man With No Name in Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy western films. Comparisons are often made to Leone's westerns and Akira Kurosawa's Samurai films, especially that of Yojimbo and A Fist Full of Dollars (The producers of Yojimbo successfully sued the production of A Fistful of Dollars for copyright infringement). The character of The Man With No Name was based, or so it seems, on Sanjuro from Yojimbo who bore the title of Ronin.
[edit] Mistakes
- In the season 3 episode Sateda, during a flashback to his life prior to becoming a Runner, Ronon refers to the Stargate as "the gate". However, when Ronon first met John Sheppard and Teyla Emmagan, he said he only knew of it as the Ring of the Ancestors.
[edit] References
- ^ "Runner". Stargate Atlantis.
- ^ "Duet". Stargate Atlantis.
- ^ "Trinity". Stargate Atlantis.
- ^ "Irresistible". Stargate Atlantis.
- ^ a b "Sateda". Stargate Atlantis.
[edit] External links
- Ronon Dex. Stargate Atlantis official site. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (© 2006). Retrieved on September 2, 2006.
- Dex, Ronon. The Stargate Omnipedia: Characters. GateWorld. Retrieved on May 15, 2006.
- Jason Momoa at the Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on 2006-09-02.
| Regular characters on Stargate Atlantis | Edit |
| Carson Beckett | Ronon Dex | Teyla Emmagan | Aiden Ford | Rodney McKay | John Sheppard | Elizabeth Weir |
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| Topics in Stargate | ||
| Story of Stargate | Stargate, Stargate SG-1 (episodes), Stargate Atlantis (episodes), Stargate Infinity (episodes), Stargate Universe Stargate: The Ark of Truth, Stargate: Continuum, Comics, Literature |
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| Stargate Universe | Alien Races, Planets, Technology, Characters, The SGC, SG-1, SG Team, Atlantis, The Stargate, Ascension | |
| Factions in Stargate | Tau'ri, Jaffa Resistance, Tok'ra, Asgard, Ancients Goa'uld, Jaffa, System Lords, Replicators, Ori, Asuran, Wraith, Lucian Alliance, The Trust, NID, IOA |
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