 Episode writer McCullough described the episode as a one @-@ off " wild romp " , with much use of visual effects . The episode follows John Sheppard and his team , who investigates the mysterious appearance of the Daedalus over Atlantis , where they soon find the ship is from a parallel universe and makes its way through various alternate realities with an " alternate reality drive " . Stuck on the Daedalus , the team seeks to find a way to return , while they run into contact with a newly introduced alien race and find the ship 's new drive is slowly burning out , and they could be stranded in another universe forever . 
