A bacterial disease has spread all over Atlantis, of which amnesia is its most damaging symptom. Most of Atlantis’s personnel is infected, suffering from memory loss; and if a cure is not found in time, then it will kill hundreds of people. An amnesiac Rodney McKay gets a message from himself, with one objective: find a woman named “Teyla.”
The narrative structure of “Tabula Rasa” is nonlinear. Split between two storylines, flashing back and forth between the events of “Yesterday” and “Today” (as they will be named in this review). “Today” is the A-plot that serves to hook the audience in with a fast-paced straightforward narrative, while the flashbacks to “Yesterday” mainly serve to supplement “Today”, but also function as a linear story of its own.
When arranged chronologically, these two storylines could flow very seamlessly; but when arranged in this order, the story is successfully made more unpredictable and compelling. Suspense and mystery are both storylines’ main selling points; both storylines keep the audience guessing as to what is going on, as for most of the episode the viewer is left in the dark just as much as the characters are.
In “Today”, many of the disease’s long-term effects are shown in full-force—and it’s eating the people of Atlantis alive. Rodney McKay is a fish out of water for this, and he has to pick up the pieces and figure out what the heck is going on. This is a Rodney who’s been mostly depowered by his own amnesia, but manages to work his way around it. He’s still resourceful. He makes for a great audience surrogate, as the ramifications of the outbreak are presented through his point of view.
Many other Atlantis personnel are shown to be acting similarly in the present-day, when the disease is at its peak. Dr. Zelenka is one of the most notable examples of this; this guy is in freakout mode, after all. With Major Lorne and his team in charge of patrolling the city, it’s no wonder he’s frightened for his life. Speaking of which, Lorne and his men form the antagonistic faction; they’re in charge of the city now, but only because they’re armed. Though their behavior is more aggro, it’s made very clear they are victims of the disease just as much as anyone else in the city. This element humanizes Lorne and his team really well—they’ve lost all sense of their true selves, albeit shown differently than the other personnel.
As stated earlier, “Yesterday” mostly complements the main storyline of “Today” but nonetheless has fascinating elements that stand out on their own. In the flashbacks, Teyla and Ronon are revealed as immune to the disease, and as such have a very a casual attitude towards it as if it is very familiar to them. Still, the fact that they take the disease seriously, with a lot of concern for everyone else’s safety, shows just how much the whole Atlantis expedition values the importance of teamwork. Also, the alien bacterium slowly reveals itself as the episode progresses. Early symptoms are minor while later symptoms are detrimental, gradually and cleverly revealed alongside its level of contagion. This plausibility makes the bacterium shockingly believable enough to feel like a real disease.
“Tabula Rasa” is an excellent episode of Stargate Atlantis, especially coming from its post-classic seasons. Its storyline relies heavily on suspense, which is kept at a constant high. So many questions will race through the viewers’ minds. What caused the outbreak? How did everyone get to where they are now? How will the outbreak get resolved? And where’s Teyla? It is an episode that will keep the viewer guessing right up to the end.
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