Lifeline (Stargate Atlantis)

"Lifeline"
Stargate Atlantis episode
Episode no.	Season 4 Episode 2
Directed by	Martin Wood and Andy Mikita
Written by	Carl Binder
Production code	403
Original air date	October 5, 2007
Guest appearance(s)
Torri Higginson as Elizabeth Weir David Nykl as Radek Zelenka Michael Beach as Abe Ellis Bill Dow as Bill Lee David Ogden Stiers as Oberoth Sharon Taylor as Replicator Technician
Episode chronology
← Previous "Adrift" Next → "Reunion"
List of season 4 episodes List of Stargate Atlantis episodes

"Lifeline" is the second episode of the fourth season, and the 62nd episode overall, of the science fiction television series Stargate Atlantis. The episode first aired in the United States on October 5, 2007 on the Sci Fi Channel, and subsequently aired October 16 on Sky One in the United Kingdom. It was written by executive producer Carl Binder, and directed by Martin Wood. The episode is a continuation of the previous episode, "Adrift", following Colonel Sheppard and his team as they perform a mission to steal a Zero Point Module from the Asurans. It was described by executive producer Joseph Mallozzi as a "big op eppy."

The episode was considered to be somewhat of a send off to Elizabeth Weir (played by the departing Torri Higginson). Although Wood was credited for directing, he was occupied with directing the movie Stargate: Continuum, so Andy Mikita did most of the actual directing for the episode. It received slightly lower ratings than "Adrift", but was still well received.

To ensure the mission to steal a Zero Point Module is a success, Dr. McKay (David Hewlett) proposes to use Dr. Weir (Torri Higginson) and her nanites to access the Asuran collective and guide them; should the Asurans take her over, McKay would activate a kill switch on the nanites, which would also effectively kill Weir. With their experimental jumper ready, Sheppard (Joe Flanigan) leaves Teyla (Rachel Luttrell) in command of Atlantis. The jumper's hyperdrive works and they arrive over the Asuran homeworld (M7R-227). With Weir's access, Sheppard and Ronon (Jason Momoa) easily steal the Zero Point Module. McKay then finds a code that will cause the Asurans to attack the Wraith and convinces Sheppard to upload a programme to reactivate this dormant code.

...
Wikipedia