Stargate: Atlantis (TV Series) Whispers (2008) User Reviews

The one where things turn rather creepy...

[cosmic_quest · 8/10 · 21 March 2009]

'Whispers'~ Season five, episode seven

In what has to be one of the most creepiest episodes seen in mainstream science-fiction, we see Sheppard and Beckett joining an all-female SG team to investigate a seemingly desolate planet where they believe Michael has been conducting his experiments from within an underground chamber that tunnels to an abandoned village.

This episode introduces Major Anne Teldy and her team of 'the best' (who, she tells a stunned Beckett and Sheppard, were hand-picked because she knows women are the best) and they are depicted to be interesting, well-fleshed out characters who give our two guys a run for their money. It's a shame the show ended as it did as it would have been great to see Teldy's team again. I would have loved to have seen McKay and the gung-ho Sergeant Mehra interact! Light-hearted moments aside, there are many scenes in 'Whispers' which are genuinely chilling and this is certainly one episode not aimed at young fans of the show. It is an episode that veers more towards horror than sci-fi but it's handled well and the grim atmosphere does succeed in helping the audience to empathise with the characters' terror.

Here be monsters

[owlaurence · 6/10 · 11 June 2011]

Okay, so Stargate should probably stop dabbling in horror. It really doesn't work. It's not for lack of trying, though. The settings are just right: a narrow mine shaft turned into a monster-incubator, a dark, foggy forest at night with the ruins of an abandoned cursed village. At the most predictable moment, you hear weird noises, glimpse dark furtive shapes or have a monster jump at you out of the darkness, or possibly just grab you through walls. And let's not forget that for some reason all the equipment starts malfunctioning. And the cast! Now, I personally cheer for an all-girl SG team. But someone obviously felt it would be less fun if the unfortunate explorers caught in that mess were burly guys. So it had to be a team of cute chicks with a really bad tendency to wander off on their own even though they know monsters are out there. Oh, and they are fundamentally unable to take a head count correctly.

So in case sarcasm isn't your cup of tea: it's not that the episode doesn't try. Rather, it tries too hard and ends up piling up *every* overdone cliché of the horror genre. And it doesn't help that out of the usual cast, only Sheppard makes an appearance (okay, I should probably include Carson, but seriously: where are the others?). Apart from those two major problems, this is a decent episode. The plot is credible and will actually lead to an interesting development, the characters interact rather well (apart from that incredibly stupid guy who literally has got "kill me" written on his face), and there is some amusing byplay. It's not really boring either. It's just... I guess, it's a normal episode which gives itself airs.

SG: Atlantis - The Horror Episode

[HallmarkMovieBuff · 23 October 2010]

This episode from one of the better science fiction series illustrates one reason why science fiction and horror are two entirely separate genres, and when the twain meet, the result is often either disastrous, or laughable, or both.

Science fiction historically depicts humans, usually in some situation in the future and/or in another world not of Earth, triumphing over some abnormal threat. Humans may be depicted as good or evil or having some other human characteristics, but for the most part as rational human beings, whatever the motivations for their behavior.

Horror dramas are quite frequently populated by irrational idiots who ignore sane advice.

In "Whispers," two characters, at different times, wander into the woods at night despite admonitions to stay inside. Another character shouts crazily despite being told to be quiet. Some are rescued, others meet an unspeakable fate. These are what are known as stupid human tricks. Each time a character disappears into the dangerous night, one keeps expecting the background music to launch into "The Teddy Bear's Picnic."

In science fiction, one becomes part of an alternate world and gets blissfully lost in its mystery. In horror, the viewer's only purpose is to experience the fright of being scared, hopefully as close to death as possible without crossing over. This is why science fiction and fantasy make a much better pairing than science fiction and horror, and why suspense thrillers, well-executed, come off way better than bloody horror.

Whispers military tactics review

[Lima6 · 22 June 2014]

I have seen some pretty terrible displays of military unrealism in the series, while still liking the series, but this episode had to be the worst of the bunch. I wont go into females in combat and their inability to carry anyone but another female out of danger, instead i will point out some glaring scenes of military unrealism, considering the fact that most of them are supposed to be of a military background.

At the beginning of the episode, they are in the field, and the female squad come to attention and salute sheppard, which of course is idiotic. Unless you really really dislike that officer, you never salute in the field, because you could be viewed by the enemy and you are showing them who is in charge, which means they know exactly who to kill first to disrupt the chain of command. If the show had any sort of military adviser, they would have been told that and not done anything so ridiculous.

Secondly, when sheppard and some of them go to the city and he tells the gung ho sergeant (the one with too long hair pony-tailed, and artfully applied makeup) to stay with the doctor, the sergeant decides to ignore his orders and go roaming around, then the doctor does, then the other one does too. things ensue and could have turned badly, and yet when sheppard returns he doesn't even care why it happened. Basically it was dereliction of duty or some such, and she should have gotten a verbal reprimand at the very least, and possibly something in her actual file.

Lastly, sheppard decides that they have to go hunting them through the fog that the creatures exude and what does he do? has them split up.... well lets see, how many reasons can we give for how stupid and illogical that really is? first off, in squad tactics you will have a front (point) man carefully scouting the area you are approaching, middle people check the sides, and a tail-end guy to make sure you aren't ambushed from behind, but instead he has them roaming around solo. Secondly, it is dense fog and you cant see much at all, so why else would that be a bad idea to split up? yes, because you could end up shooting each other. i just have to shake my head at the lack of realism this show does so often, and still like it for the characters, stories and special effects, but at times it is very difficult.