Speculating on Stargate Atlantis Season 3

[katstales]

So I've been fighting a cold the past few days, one of those where the fever makes your eyes hurt too much to look at a computer screen or television.  So I fired up the DVDs I've burned of SGA season 3 up through 'Progeny' and dozed for most of the day yesterday.   So as I dozed to the comforting tones of John, Rodney, Carson, & co, I started to think about what lies ahead--especially the next episodes that lead up to the half-season cliff-hanger.

Okay, so watching/listening to the episodes that have aired so far, I was again reminded of how totally awesome this season has been so far.  Commercials/previews of "Real World" naturally led to thoughts of tonight's episode and anticipation of the appearance of RDA/Jack O'Neill.  I read enough spoilers to know even before the previews that Elizabeth's hospitalization was a hallucination/alteration of reality.  The spoilers seem to indicate that it is caused by the replicators they encountered in Progeny.  So basically, it's going to be a variation on the old "resolved by it all being a dream in the end" plot device.  Ugh.

Before I go any further, I should probably mention that I almost always find that whole "it was only a dream" plot device/resolution to be boring, trite, unimaginative, and COMPLETELY unsatisfying.  I hated it when I saw it on Dallas years ago and I can count on one hand the number of times that I've seen it done well since then.

Still, I have some hope for tonight's episode.  Because, in fact, one of those few aforementioned times was on SG-1 in the season eight opener when Fifth tried to make Sam think she'd left the SG program and moved to Montana with Pete.  So that gives me hope for tonight's episode, given that they've done a credible job with it before.  Still, I'm wary.  Why?  Because these are also the same folks who gave us the whole dream-scenario/plot device in "Forever In A Day" which is, IMHO, the absolute worst SG episode.  Ever.  Period.  But...they also gave us "Absolute Power" which is probably the best 'all-a-dream' plot I've ever seen done by anyone.  Sooo, hopeful but wary about tonight.

Now my thoughts move on to the next SGA episodes.  I have been so eagerly anticipating each and every one.  I've seen the spoilers for next week's Common Ground.  So I started thinking about how in the world they could possibly manage to credibly pull off restoring Shepard to his true age/self after the Wraith feeds on him.  I saw some speculation about it, and someone (in jest) put forth the old 'it was all a dream' scenario.  I laughed and promptly dismissed the joke (along with the possibility).  After all, they'll have just done that the week before...right?

Before we go any further, let's review the coming episodes below.

Real World--Elizabeth episode (from previews we already know that this is one of the dreaded 'all a dream' plots)
Common Ground--Shep episode (from spoilers we know that Shep is captured by the Genii and fed on by a Wraith--John's worst nightmare???)
McKay & Mrs Miller--Rodney episode (from spoilers we know that McKay goes back to Earth to enlist his sister's aid--one of Rodney's worst nightmares???)
Phantoms--team episode (spoilers say the gate-sabotage prevents team from returning to Atlantis, people around Shep are under influence of Wraith technology--worst nightmare of any one of the team)
The Return, Pt 1--team episode (spoilers say that O'Neill & Woolsey arrive to turn Atlantis over to the Asurans--entire expedition's worst nightmare)

Now it occurs to me that maybe the whole 'it was all a dream' resolution for Common Ground might not be so far-fetched as I first thought.  Then I started mulling over the spoilers for The Return.  Earth is going to willing just hand over Atlantis to the Replicators--knowing that they are Replicators??? Pardon my language here, but WTF???  Which brings me back to the prior episodes...

Every one of the episodes has a plot that can be considered someone's worst nightmare (or at least one of their worst).  Shep fed on by a Wraith and aged a good twenty years or better.  Rodney dealing with personal issues involving his sister and then bringing her to Atlantis and all the dangers therein.  The team cut off from Atlantis, under fire, and surrounded by people under the influence of Wraith tech.  And then The Return with the seemingly incomprehensible decision to turn Atlantis over to Replicators...like they'd be content to stop there and we could trust them not to invade our galaxy as well....riiiiight.  In all fairness, I suppose it is conceivable that the IOC might in its infinite short-sightedness decide to withdraw support and close down the project.  But leaving Atlantis in the hands of the Replicators???

Which all leads me to one terrifyingly, horrible, mind-blowing, OMG-say-it-ain't-so conclusion.  It's ALL a freakin' dream or hallucination!  What if they didn't really make it back to Atlantis in Progeny?  What if all those episode up to and including The Return are simply a dream/hallucination that the Replicators put into all the humans' heads...

OMFG, someone PLEASE tell me that it's all a fever-induced delusion and that my theory is NOT possible!!!  PLEASE tell me that they wouldn't do this to us and have all those episodes just be a dream/illusion/hallucination...

::headdesk::
::headdesk::
::headdesk::