“Huh? What’s wrong? Where’s the rush?”
- Release Date: 23rd November 2002
- Season 1
- Episode 11
- Director: Will Meugniot
- Writers: Nick Dubois
The team arrive on a planet and are greeted by an elderly alien on a bridge. He says that for them to pass, they have to fight him. Stacey agrees, expecting it to be easy due to how old he looks. She gets thrashed, but the elder is happy with her determination and invites them for some food. Harrison is told to stand watch (the first time they do it, and it’s a planet where the locals can probably defend themselves).
As the tradition of the Alteri is sparring, Stacey agrees to fight Lok, the elder’s grandson. He also defeats her easily. She thinks there’s some kind of secret to their powers and is determined to find out. In the training area, Lok gives her a necklace containing Mandros stones. These are said to grant the user superior strength, speed and agility, and they actually work.
They visit the temple as the Alteri pray and Stacey notices rocks forming on her hands, but decides. Draga prays with them and gets a vision of three stars, a possible clue to their homeworld. The elder shows them a chamber from before they got there, showing a large map – they just have no idea where it is. They decide to stay for a while to study it. While they’re busy, Stacey steals a Mandros stone from the altar.
Seeing Stacey training, Seattle is very concerned, especially when Stacey is very aggressive towards her, refusing to allow Ec’co to give her a medical examination. As she storms off, veins of green flow in her eyes. She reports this to Bonner, who visits Stacey. She’s feeling weak (and not wearing the stones) but just claims that she’s exhausted. Bonner points out that while the stones are harmless to the Alteri, they may be harmful to humans. He tells her to get rid of them and leaves.
Stacey puts them on, claiming she can get rid of them whenever she wants and feels great when the energy flows through her. She has a moment of realisation and throws the stones across the room. She tries to tell herself that she doesn’t need them, but ends up sobbing in the corner due to the withdrawal. She eventually gives in and puts them on. And, while the suffering stops, she’s disappointed that there’s no rush, so she heads off to find more. This is a genuinely good scene.
Bonner speaks to the elder, who says that the stones are just ceremonial and have no powers, they’re just a story to get their youth to try herder. He does point out that aliens have had reactions to them, though. Lok admits to giving her one, wanting her to succeed, when the elder tells him that his strength is his own. It turns out that the large stone statue in their temple was actually another alien, who was consumed by the Mandros stones and turned into stone.
Stacey turns feral and attacks everyone as she flees to the stargate, even going as far as throwing a rock at Draga’s head (who was unharmed). They all corner her as she dials the stargate, and eventually gets the strength to throw the stones away. She collapses, but Draga instantly heals her of her condition, and the addiction is completely gone. Bonner says that the first step and asking for help is the most important one.
This is an interesting take on drugs, as it does in in a way that isn’t about a personal high in such a clear way – it’s taking the lesson and applying it to a sci-fi setting, a much better way of dealing with it than the previous episode.
