Laura Cadman
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Lieutenant Laura Cadman is a member of the United States Marine Corps, formerly of the Atlantis Expedition.
History
Cadman was selected for the Atlantis Expedition after contact was restored following the Siege of Atlantis, chosen to serve under Colonel John Sheppard rather than Colonel Marshall Sumner. The process of selecting a second wave of Expedition members put more of a focus on United States Air Force personnel — with the Marine Corps becoming a component in the military detail rather than the majority — but also on individuals with useful ancillary skills. Cadman's experience with Explosive Ordnance Disposal made her an ideal candidate. (ATL: "The Intruder", "Critical Mass")
Shortly after arriving on Atlantis, Cadman was involved in an accident with a Wraith Dart, which resulted in her consciousness being merged into the body of Doctor Rodney McKay. While the incident was eventually resolved, it added a layer of awkwardness to her relationships with other members of the Expedition. She enjoyed a brief romantic involvement with Doctor Carson Beckett, but — perhaps because their first kiss had involved Doctor McKay's body — it did not last. (ATL: "Duet", "Epiphany", "The Return, Part 1")
Cadman had been due to rotate back to Earth after several months on Atlantis, but requested an extension. She remained with the Expedition as a specialist, even adopting scientist blue on her uniform instead of military black. Her explosives expertise proved particularly useful when The Trust managed to implant a Goa'uld in Colonel Steven Caldwell, using him to plant a bomb on Atlantis as a defensive measure against a possible Wraith attack on the Milky Way. (ATL: "Critical Mass")
After the Daedalus discovered the Ancient ship Tria in the void between the Milky Way and Pegasus Galaxy, Cadman returned home with the rest of the Atlantis Expedition. To her dismay, Cadman found herself regarded as a scientist rather than a soldier by Stargate Command, and instead of the offworld military posting that she would have preferred, she was assigned to Area 51 — something she partially blames Rodney McKay for. She began working with Captain Jennifer Hailey, who among other projects had been responsible for the development of the Mark II Naquadah Generator, and via her became involved in the project to use Naquadria to augment the shields on Earth's Battlecruisers. In that capacity, she travelled to the Beta Site in order to assist with field tests of those shield augmentations aboard the Battlecruiser being constructed there. She developed a good rapport and working relationship with one of the other members of the development team: Claire Tobias, an engineer formerly part of the NID's rogue offworld operations. While many of her peers considered Tobias a traitor, Cadman had trouble accepting that blanket assessment, conscious of how some of the Atlantis Expedition's own actions might be judged. (SGR: "The Arrow")
Behind the Scenes
Lieutenant Cadman was portrayed by Jaime Ray Newman in 2 episodes of Stargate Atlantis.
She is a prolific actor, with guest roles on Supernatural, Heroes, Leverage, Castle, and The Magicians (among many others), and prominent roles on Veronica Mars, Eastwick, Eureka, Red Widow, Mind Games, The Punisher, and more.
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