I think we might be seeing different things in characters, yes. To me, Rodney is a complicated character, and I enjoy all his facets - but one of the first things I glommed onto was his ability. I've always had a thing for geniuses, especially snarky ones, so the idea that he could do science better than anyone else - that people put up with him, despite how he could be a jerk - because he was so brilliant, intrigued me. And I also liked him because he was funny - I fell for Rodney, in one of the few scenes in "Rising" that he's actually himself and not Dr. Ingram - when they're new to Atlantis and discover the ZPM problem, and he starts muttering, "Using power, using power..."
(I should explain that I had seen Rodney in SG-1 and was one of the few people who actually enjoyed him there...!) Then in "Hide & Seek" he showed different sides - playful with Sheppard in the beginning, hypochondriac and cowardly (and funny) in the middle, brave at the end. And then in "38 Minutes" he proves his ability - I see "Hide & Seek" and "38 Minutes" as equally important to establishing what Rodney's character is to me.
...Ummm. I don't think I actually have a point here, except that I like talking about Rodney. Where was I? Oh yes! One of the things I liked about Rodney from the beginning was the conflict inherent in his relationships - that people often didn't like him initially, didn't even like working with him, but they respected him for his ability. They put up with him because he's the only man for the job. (And a lot of Rodney's inner issues stem from this; his ego is so out of control because he believes his genius the only thing worthwhile about him. He has to be the best, because otherwise people have no reason to put up with him at all.)
In this, Keller is pretty much the opposite of Rodney - she's unsure of her abilities, and she's not afraid of admitting to Elizabeth that she doesn't think she's up to the challenge. While when it comes to anything related to his science, Rodney never says he can't do something; he always says, it can't be done (even if often it can.)
That isn't really a criticism of Keller's character, just an observation (it's probably one reason I haven't attached to Keller as much; I also have a thing for out-of-control egos. Keller's too well-adjusted for me to really get into her!)
I also mention in a comment above...I wonder if one of the reasons I'm reacting so badly to Keller is that she's undermining my fundamental concept of Atlantis. I have an internalized fanon of Atlantis as this highly competitive, elite place, home to brilliant misfits, gifted screwballs who are so personally flawed that they can't fit in anywhere else. Keller is nowhere near competitive enough to have made it to "my" Atlantis, and is neither gifted nor flawed enough to really bond with the team. Her relatively ordinary presence ruffles my feathers, because it's contradictory to my idea of the show.
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(I should explain that I had seen Rodney in SG-1 and was one of the few people who actually enjoyed him there...!) Then in "Hide & Seek" he showed different sides - playful with Sheppard in the beginning, hypochondriac and cowardly (and funny) in the middle, brave at the end. And then in "38 Minutes" he proves his ability - I see "Hide & Seek" and "38 Minutes" as equally important to establishing what Rodney's character is to me.
...Ummm. I don't think I actually have a point here, except that I like talking about Rodney. Where was I? Oh yes! One of the things I liked about Rodney from the beginning was the conflict inherent in his relationships - that people often didn't like him initially, didn't even like working with him, but they respected him for his ability. They put up with him because he's the only man for the job. (And a lot of Rodney's inner issues stem from this; his ego is so out of control because he believes his genius the only thing worthwhile about him. He has to be the best, because otherwise people have no reason to put up with him at all.)
In this, Keller is pretty much the opposite of Rodney - she's unsure of her abilities, and she's not afraid of admitting to Elizabeth that she doesn't think she's up to the challenge. While when it comes to anything related to his science, Rodney never says he can't do something; he always says, it can't be done (even if often it can.)
That isn't really a criticism of Keller's character, just an observation (it's probably one reason I haven't attached to Keller as much; I also have a thing for out-of-control egos. Keller's too well-adjusted for me to really get into her!)
I also mention in a comment above...I wonder if one of the reasons I'm reacting so badly to Keller is that she's undermining my fundamental concept of Atlantis. I have an internalized fanon of Atlantis as this highly competitive, elite place, home to brilliant misfits, gifted screwballs who are so personally flawed that they can't fit in anywhere else. Keller is nowhere near competitive enough to have made it to "my" Atlantis, and is neither gifted nor flawed enough to really bond with the team. Her relatively ordinary presence ruffles my feathers, because it's contradictory to my idea of the show.