Carson and Michael rewritten

[korilian]

We asked for him and we got him, but what exactly does the giant rewrite of SGA's history mean?


For Michael?

I was never particularly interested in bringing Carson back from the death. He wasn't a character I loved in any great way after season 1. I'm not saying I hated him, but I think I actually like Keller better, even if she does get more episode's to herself then I find strictly necessary (as well as ruining my treasured delusions about Rodney and Sheppard Tragic, Epic, TWU LUV).

But they've gone and brought him back and I even found the way they did it marginally clever. With the whole clone saga they've instantly rewritten their past. The Atlantis team crossed a very dubious line when they destroyed the camp with changed Wraith, not to mention Michael, who was their ally. The existence of the Carson Clone proves that Michael wasn't nearly as innocent as he was pretending to be. It suggest that he might have already had some of the plans he later implemented.
It not only washes some off the blood of Atlantis' hands. It makes Michael less of a victim and more like Todd. An unwilling ally, happy to use the humans and always looking out for number one.

So does he still get to play the victim? Atlantis experimented on him. His Hive rejected him (and presumably he, like Todd was a very old and high ranking Wraith) and then Atlantis betrayed him again. Kidnapping Carson proves he'd already anticipated that. We used to assume that Atlantis backstabbing him the second time was the thing that triggered his decent into a monster. I'd say now that it wasn't Atlantis at all! He was after all, a monster before Atlantis ever got to him. (by our standards,not his obviously)

Atlantis betrayal couldn't have hit him that hard, because he never trusted the Atlanteans to begin with. How could he when he couldn't even trust his own people. Their rejection should (and probably did) have far more impact then that of his enemies. I also wonder how Michael would have reacted if the Atlanteans had tested the retrovirus on another Wraith. I doubt he would have shown any empathy (because he hasn't shown empathy for anyone but himself). He probably would have thought of the experiments as an abomination, because it was something that might be used against him, but wouldn't have had any sympathy for the victim. He might have even acknowledged that the enemy had a reason to try and stop them at any cost (except for the fact that, again, he was the enemy they were trying to stop). 

In fact the only reason he has to hold such a strong grudge against Atlantis at all is that; A) They didn't use some other Wraith. They used him, so it's personal and B) they made it even more personal by pretending he was one of their own people. Making the betrayal again more hurtful then if they'd been straight with him from the start. And because it's personal Michael gets to make his vengeance personal as well. Not just using any random people, but allies and friends of the Atlanteans. Was that strategically wise? Of course not. By targeting random people the Atlanteans were far less likely to catch onto his trail.

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And what does it mean for Carson?

Carson has also been rewritten, except so far the writers don't seem to be aware of that. The kids were begging to get the good doctor back so they got him. And hey, he got all the memories of the original Carson yo, so let's just slide him back into place... Right... but er... what about all that time he spend in captivity? Shouldn't that affect him a little bit more? Make him a very different person even?

In fact there have already been signs that he is, indeed a different person. Clone Carson seems far more gungho then original Carson ever was. Especially when it comes to Micheal's experiments he has been showing poor judgment. Going after Micheal alone. And again in Whispers, even leaving that other doctor alone so he could get involved. He's not the same doctor Beckett. He was a POW for over a year and it obviously affected him. It would be nice if they would acknowledged that a little more and showed us what it really means. Instead they've given us Carson Beckett, back on Atlantis for two weeks so he could play in an ep only to bugger off back to Earth right after. And I don't mind. That behavior in itself could be taken as characterization, except they're not doing anything with it. They're just writing him in to please the fans, as it suits them.

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And on one last nag. Just how much time passed between The shrine and Whispers? It's been half a year since Carson was last on Atlantis, but how long has it been since Rodney declared his love on camera? (so close after the shrine they could have easily pretended Carson  took a tour on the Deadalus to check in on his friend btw. It would have solved my continuity issues). And how long from there to Lost Tribe for that matter? Can't have been very long if nothing has come of it yet, especially if Keller is interested in someone else then Ronon, like she claimed.

Does Rodney not remember what he said? They should already be past that whole awkward, 'Gosh, I sure do hope he likes me' phase! I mean, sheesh! No wonder Ronon thought he still had a shot!