Stargate Atlantis - Seasons 1-5 - Complete - Region 2 DVD

Stargate Atlantis’s origins inevitably lie in SG-1, specifically the ongoing storyline in the original show to find Atlantis. And thus, from a story-telling perspective, some of the groundwork was already done. Still, it takes a little while for the show to find its stride, although it’s soon helped by the appearance of some familiar faces from the earlier show.

Yet from the midst of a base in Atlantis, the show soon warms to its task. It’s a dangerous place to be, courtesy of the fractions within the crew, and also the constant, and at times devastating, alien threat. Furthermore, there are plenty of fine ideas, and many examples of sharp writing, at the heart of Stargate Atlantis, and particularly as the show hits its later seasons, there are an increasingly number of terrific and very memorable moments.

The boxset delivers five seasons of the show, and eventually starts taking the whole Stargate franchise off in a different direction to usual. And that’s a good thing. For once it discovers its identity and place in the world, Stargate Atlantis is a quietly impressive science fiction series, with some genuinely engrossing episodes. Warmly recommended. --Jon Foster