"Enemy at the Gate" starts off with immediate action and keeps this pace throughout the entire episode, but the situations and convenience with which things happen don't lend to this being anything but a mediocre Atlantis episode. It was shot poorly, it had choppy edits, and the story wasn't that good - everything seemed forced. In fact, there were such weird story points that I couldn't believe the contradictions I saw were taking place. Another weak point in this episode was the dialogue. Usually the dialogue written for this show is clean, it flows, and most importantly, it sounds natural. But here it just missed for me, and again I felt let down.“Cynthia” at SF Universe says:
Those who have watched since day one will be rewarded with a few winks to the past (including a nice nod to the late General Hammond) but you’ll still be able to enjoy it if you’re a more recent convert. My only complaint about the episode is the scope. It plays like a regular episode of the series and I was really hoping for something more grandiose.Mo Ryan at The Chicago Tribune says:
There are wormholes and crises and nuclear bombs and murderous Wraith and an appearance by Samantha Carter (the always pleasing Amanda Tapping). Teyla gets little or nothing to do, a ship's shields fail (as they so often do) and Rodney spouts technobabble. It's a compendium of elements we've seen on the show dozens of times. It's a competent end to "Atlantis," but it's not much more than that.9 p.m. Friday. SciFi.