"Awakening" is the "maybe we'll get home episode," and, of course, they don't get home. The rest of the episode, however, is very interesting. Freaky looking aliens show up on the sister ship, and unlike the previous Stargates, these aliens can't speak English, creating a language barrier. We never know their true intentions, but Telford will probably be getting more than his fill or them, seeing as he's stuck with them for the time being.
The idea that there are other alien explorers out there, not overly powerful or overly intelligent but formidable adversaries nonetheless, is a topic that, in my mind, has the most potential. But the writers need to circle back and bring them back to relevancy. I mean, what happen to those blue aliens?
Rush isn't a character worth caring about anymore. He's flat out bonkers, and that's all there is to him. He's willing to sacrifice crew members just so he can have more time to study. Are we supposed to see him as a conflicted individual when he acts like a selfish prick, sighs, and puts his head down? I sure don't.
It's cool that the Lucian Alliance is a big part of the show, tying into SG-1, but how did the Lucian Alliance get so powerful? (Asgard beams slice through Goa'uld ships like butter and that's all the Lucian Alliance has.) And that's beside the point. Lines are thrown around about Earth being threatened, but no one seems to care. The focus of the show is on Destiny and its crew, not on Earth. Without fully explaining the situation in the Milky Way or, gasp, showing us a bit of Earth, the gravity of necessity of the Lucian Alliance members onboard escapes me. The only valid reason for keeping them is that it's morally right to keep them alive and that they could be useful as extra hands.
The episode ends with yet another musical montage. Lots of shows use them--and to great effect--but every single one of Stargate Universe's is flat for me. I have zero interest in the characters, so I don't care what they're doing, especially if everyone has the same expression every time. By now, we get the point that they're not happy about their current situation.
Score: 8.3/10
