Recap / Stargate Atlantis S05 E10 "First Contact"

Dr. Keller: It's for your benefit too. If you don't have to rely on human feeding, the war would be over.

Todd: Perhaps. (looks away) But then what would we do? Who would we be?

"Dr. Jackson, welcome to Atlantis."

Tropes:

• Arbitrary Skepticism: Rodney dismisses Daniel's theory that Janus had a secret lab in Atlantis from the get-go, seemingly for no reason other than laziness.
  • It can also be justified in-story as Rodney's ego. After all, he's the Expedition's resident Ancient expert and if anyone would've discovered a super-secret Ancient Lab inside the City, it would've been him (especially as they've occupied Atlantis for half a decade at this point). So to have an outsider come in (let alone the Ancient expert of the entire Stargate Program) and steal his thunder really annoys Rodney.
• The Bus Came Back: In the context of Atlantis (as he'd previously crossed over again for SG-1's "The Pegasus Project"), Daniel Jackson makes his first crossover appearance since the events of the Pilot.
• Continuity Nod: To "Meridian", when Daniel's naturally a little perturbed by the prospect of radiation.
  Daniel: It's not harmful radiation, is it?
  • Daniel also mentions it's great to be back at Atlantis. His previous visit occurred in "The Pegasus Project".
• Diabolus ex Machina: Todd's knock-out sticks render the entire bridge crew of the Daedalus unconscious, similar to the device the Wraith used in "Midway" to invade Cheyenne Mountain. Unlike that device, this one is handheld, concealable on one's person, and leaves the user awake and alert, meaning it could conceivably end absolutely any confrontation with zero risk of friendly casualties.
• Hope Spot: In-universe, the Attero Device was one for Janus. Creating a device to jam the Wraith hyperdrive frequencies was an ingenious way to hit all the Hives simultaneously and cut them off from their food sources. It worked for 72 hours and it looked like the Lanteans had finally turned the tide of war back in their favor...and then everything went to hell when Janus discovered that the jamming was producing 'side effects' (read: blowing up Stargates all over Pegasus).
• Irony: As Daniel and Rodney discover, finding Janus' secret lab was ironically the easy part. Actually accessing his research is the hard part; the levels of encryption he left behind on his files is insane even by modern Tau'ri paranoia standards.
• Leitmotif: The SG-1 theme crosses over with Daniel when he beams down to Atlantis (and in the first scene of Act One).
• Lovable Coward: Rodney is well aware that he's not the type to sacrifice himself just to defy the aliens, so he might as well agree to do what they say, rather than have them kill Daniel as an example, then force him to do it anyway.
  Rodney: They're gonna kill you! We don't have a choice!
  Daniel: Yes we do.
  Rodney: Ok, so I do nothing, they come in here, they kill you. Who gets killed next, huh? Me! And to tell you the truth here, I'm quite fond of me, so we might as well do it, you know, now, while you're still alive, as opposed to ... you know, then!
• Money, Dear Boy: In-universe example when Rodney remarks none of the SGC personnel or contractors signed up for this to be famous. A snarky Daniel says they did it for the money and Rodney chuckles... only to then stop laughing and ask in all seriousness if Daniel's getting paid more than him.
• Motor Mouth: Daniel and Rodney, i.e. the respective Motor Mouths of SG-1 and Atlantis, teaming up. God have mercy on the Pegasus Galaxy.
  • Episode Writer Martin Gero actually admitted in the pre-release featurette than when "First Contact" was first approved, he (half-jokingly and half-seriously) panicked because of this very trope. Given Michael Shanks and David Hewlett's distinct performance styles, Gero was terrified the teleplay was going to have to be twice as long as a normal script to compensate for their rapid-fire dialogue delivery.
• Mundane Made Awesome: This episode features several completely unnecessary pans across the entire city with stirring theme music playing loudly in the background, which cut to Rodney and Daniel Jackson doing something mundane like looking at security recordings.
• Name McAdjective: Rodney sarcastically refers to their alien captor as "Talky McSaysALot".
• Phlebotinum Overload: The Attero Device dumps energy into subspace on the same frequency as Wraith hyperdrives, causing the hyperspace window to shred Wraith starships into their component molecules. Unfortunately, that frequency also happens to intersect with the wormhole of active Stargates, causing them to explode in minutes when the buildup of energy exceeds the ability of the Stargates to contain it.
• Really Gets Around: Janus, apparently. Ancient records mention he was well-regarded by his peers for his genius and well-known for taking many lovers. Rodney is somewhat jealous of the latter.
• Remember When You Blew Up a Sun?: Subverted, in that the moment remembered is not (treated as) a achievement per se
  Rodney: The last time I went down this road, I...I kinda destroyed a solar system.
• Sequel Episode: A loose one to Season One's "Before I Sleep", being the first episode to finally follow up on the legacy of Janus (at least in the context of Atlantis, as SG-1 had dealt with that legacy during the second half of Season Eight).
• Snark-to-Snark Combat: Daniel and Rodney.
• Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Daniel and Rodney's legacies. Unless or until the SGC Program is ever declassified, Daniel will never be publicly vindicated for the archaeological theories that got him deemed a crackpot by the academic community. Likewise, Rodney's own scientific and technological accomplishments (to say nothing of those of other SGC scientists like Carter, Bill Lee, or Zelenka) will also never receive recognition.
• Tempting Fate: When Woolsey leaves John in charge of Atlantis, guess what happens at the end of the episode.
  Woolsey: Try not to blow her up while I'm gone.
  John: No promises.
• They Called Me Mad!: When Rodney snarkily remarks he didn't think Jackson was going to find Janus' Lab, Daniel compares it to the similar mockery he received from the academic community over his archeological theories (and before ultimately proving them right in the original film).
• This Page Will Self-Destruct: The alien encounter suits self destruct when opened from outside.
• Title Drop: "I guess we just made first contact."
• Xanatos Gambit: As Daniel and Rodney speculate, the Attero Device was essentially a technological variation (at least before the flaws derailed the whole project). Once activated, the Ancients could either choose to either pick off the now-stranded Wraith Hives one by one, or alternately leave them to starve and die in the vacuum of space. Either outcome would produce an Ancient victory.

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