Synopsis: SG-1 takes part in the ceremony where the last Ba’al clone gets his symbiont removed. The last of the System Lords is defeated. But something is happening. First Vala disappears, then Teal’c and then more and more people. Cameron, Sam and Daniel manage to get through the Stargate home but when they arrive on Earth everything has changed. The gate is somewhere in the arctic and Earth’s history of the last 60 years seems to have changed. Another Ba’al clone has changed the past to win in the future.

My Opinion: The elements of this story aren’t new, not even to Stargate SG-1. A time travel after which the Stargate program doesn’t exist also happened in Moebius. And the way the “ripple effect” changed the future didn’t make much sense either. But I still liked this movie, it was nice to see them all again (Don S. Davis in his last appearance) and I liked how Daniel tried to speak to Daniel and how they once again joined forces with the First Prime Teal’c. Also this movie didn’t have any lengths, it felt like a slightly longer regular episode even though it was twice as long.

Synopsis: The Ori themselves are most likely dead. But their followers continue to fight. Daniel is now “sure” that they will find the “Ark of Truth” in the Ori galaxy. The Ark was build by the Ancients and is capable to show the truth about the Ori to every human being. Thus the Odyssey under the command of Mitchell is going to the Ori galaxy.

My Opinion: On the one hand this movie was very exciting on the other hand several things annoyed me. In my opinion to the tenth season I said that they’ve re-used old ideas. Now they’ve done it again and they’ve even included a huge plot hole. It is most likely that the self-destruction code only works in combination with the Asgard computer core since the program was written in there. If the Odyssey would have been destroyed there would be nothing that could stop the Replicators. And the Replicator zombie was absurd.
And Teal’c has been shot for the uncountableth time since the loss of his symbiote. An extra would lay motionless in the grass yet he travels over the mountains with an energy staff wound directly on the spine.
And the Ori ships in Earth’s solar system are graciously waiting with the attack until Daniel can convince them.

That’s it. 66 days (February 28th – May 3rd) of Stargate SG-1 are done. I hope you enjoyed to read it a little as I enjoyed to watch it again.

The End.

P.S.: Stargate: Continuum

I have bought the first nine seasons of Stargate SG-1 here in Germany. Each one had an average price of 80-90€. Back in the days that were simply the prices for season boxes, Star Trek boxes had cost a similar amount. But times change and I was no more willing to pay 77€ for the 10. season in Germany. Thus I bought the complete box in the US for 135€. And it does look nice. I will chip the first nine seasons on eBay.

Disc 1

Flesh and Blood

Synopsis: The defence of the Supergate ended in a slaughter of the defenders. The four Ori ships had no problems with breaking through. Aboard one of these ships Vala has just given birth to her daughter. But she is growing very fast and she is supposed to become the leader of all Ori troops in this galaxy.

My Opinion: The more often I encounter the story it the less interesting it gets: chosen childs. Offhand I can recall: Gabrielle’s daughter Hope (Xena: Warrior Princess), Xena’s daughter Eve/Livia (Xena: Warrior Princess) and of course Angel’s son Connor (Angel). If we add movies, we can also add Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader (Star Wars).
I was also a bit disappointed that Bra’tac has learned very few since he first encountered G_1 over eight years ago. Back then he also wanted to prepare for death after they had successfully sabotaged Apophis’s ship.

Morpheus

Synopsis: SG-1 visits one of the planets where they hope to find Merlin’s weapon. But there isn’t a single living being, not even animals. But the inhabitants of the village seem to have died peacefully in their beds.
In the meantime Vala has to undergo a psychiatric examination before she can join the Stargate program.

My Opinion: This episode was literally soporific.

The Pegasus Project

Synopsis: Daniel hopes to find more information about the location of the weapon in Atlantis. And Carter has developed a plan to render the Supergate useless with the help of a black hole in the Pegasus galaxy.

My Opinion: This episode I liked again. McKay was great and the way Daniel and Vala blew the cover of the Ancient “Morgan le Fay” was also good. While there are significant difference the Ancients and the Ori strongly reminded me of the Vorlons and the Shadows (Babylon 5) in this episode. All four are far superior to the normal Humans and within their universe they have a mutual exclusive point of view on how to interact with the Humans. Although the Ancients are the only ones of the four that don’t intervene at all (with the usual exceptions to that rule).
The “phone bill” of this episode could be interesting. Atlantis in the Pegasus galaxy calls the SGC who in turn call Teal’c at the Supergate and he relays the message through the open wormhole to the Odyssey in the Pegasus galaxy.

Insiders

Synopsis: The allegedly real Ba’al comes to Earth and offers his help to find the weapon. But for this, SG-1 would have to kill all his clones who have uprisen against him. But every clone insits on being the real Ba’al and soon the SGC is swarmed with Ba’als.

My Opinion: Oh Sam, come on! Have you learned nothing from the RepliCarter disaster? I am annoyed that this highly intelligent woman falls for such plans. Yes, granted, she was in a hostage situation but how many lives will it cost when Ba’al is successful?

Disc 2

Uninvited

Synopsis: On planets where SG teams observe the locals with the help of the Sodan cloaking device suddenly beasts appear that slaughter the people. But among these planets are also some under Ori rule, thus excluding the Priors as a cause for this. Sam and Teal’c are investigating this.
In the meantime General Landry and Cameron are stuck in Jack’s cabin in the woods because a storm has washed away the road. But this forrest also seems to harbour a dangerous creature.

My Opinion: This was well done. I liked Sam as head of the SGC. It was also believable that Cameron felt queasy around his boss. But the people should haved learned by now that it is sometimes wise to listen to Vala. What I didn’t like at all was the animation of the creatures, they looked totally fake.

200

Synopsis: Cameron is just about to go through the Stargate for the 200th time (not on the 200th mission!) when there’s a defect that disables the Stargate. While it is being repaired SG-1 is helping Martin Lloyd. He is producing a “Wormhole X-treme!” movie even though the show was cancelled after three episodes.

My Opinion: Great episode that has summarized 10 years of Stargate SG-1 in an humorous way, including making fun about some weaknesses of the show. I was greatly entertained and the references to Star Trek and Farscape were lovely.

Counterstrike

Synopsis: The Jaffa are using the weapon on Dakara to wipe out the population of planets that have fallen to the Ori. While General Landry and Bra’tac are trying to stop this mass murder, SG-1 has taken over an Ori ship – or maybe not.

My Opinion: While I don’t like the character Adria (as previously pointed out) I am glad to see Morena Baccarin (Inara in Firefly) again. That the Ori would move heaven and hell (in their case maybe only hell) to find that weapon was quite predictable. I am not really feeling sorry for the loss of Dakara. Although I feel sorry for Teal’c and Bra’tac whose dream of a united Jaffa nation has receded into the distance again.

Memento Mori

Synopsis: The waitress Val is working in a small diner. But then two men try to rob it and are stopped by her without effort. She just doesn’t know how she did it, she doesn’t even know who she is.

My Opinion: A very nice episode about Vala that had a worthy ending (the episode, not Vala). The good thing about Daniel and Vala is that the writers can make a couple out of them without worrying about Air Force rules. Now I want to know if Vala doesn’t really has that tablet.

Disc 3

Company of Thieves

Synopsis: The Odyssey has been heavily damaged by the Lucian Alliance and has been hijacked. SG-1 goes on a search for the ship but also walks into a trap. Now Cameron is the only one remaining and he has to find a way to infiltrate the Alliance in order to save the others.

My Opinion: It was cool how Cameron managed to make them fight against each other. The relationships between the Lucians were well portrayed given the nature of this organization.

The Quest

Synopsis: Vala and Daniel believe that they’ve finally found the planet where Merlin’s weapon is hidden. But when they arrive they learn that Ba’al has passed through three days ago. Additionally the warriors of the Ori arrive. The only way out is to find the way to the weapon.

My Opinion: While they’ve been in the village I didn’t suspect anything. But as soon as they left I began to mistrust that old man. I also noticed the ring he gave away, yet I couldn’t have known what it represented. The riddles were good, although I knew at once that the fire would require a “leap of faith”.

The Quest, Part 2

Synopsis: The riddles are solved, now they have to face the dragon. But the weapon isn’t there – instead they find Merlin. But Adria is closing in on them and time is running out.

My Opinion: I liked the second part, too. But we have seen people who have been in stasis for several millennia or have endured in a sarcophagus. That makes it somewhat illogical that Merlin’s stasis chamber couldn’t stop the decay, I especially liked the scene where Sam punches Ba’al, that was really cool.

Line in the Sand

Synopsis: With the help of “Arthur’s Mantle” SG-1 tries to hide an entire village from the Ori. But the field collapses and Sam gets heavily wounded. Vala is caught and meets her husband again who has become a brutal commander of the Ori forces.

My Opinion: The interesting part of the episode is the question whether the Prior took matters into his own hands when he intended to destroy the village. His impressive staff couldn’t help him to disable the device.
On the other hand that could be a standard rule: if dangerous then destroy it and find an excuse in the “Book of Origin”.

Disc 4

The Road Not Taken

Synopsis: Sam is accidentally catapulted into an alternate universe. There Atlantis has never been found, Landry is president and has declared martial law and the Ori are going to attack soon. Sam agrees to help them if she’s allowed to return home after that.

My Opinion: The very first alternate reality we’ve ever encountered (There But For the Grace of God was overrun by enemies. Yet almost always the people in these alternate realities were as noble as the ones in our world or they’ve been extremely desperate (Ripple Effect). This time we’ve actually seen a world where the people had to make hard choices but these choices changed them dramatically. That we aren’t immune to this was proven in Absolute Power, still I am glad that Sam’s back.

The Shroud

Synopsis: SG-1 captures a Prior – it’s Daniel. With the help of Merlin he was able to deceive Adria and could present to her a plan in which another plan is hidden. But for this to work SG-1 has to disable the Supergate – it all depends on whether Daniel is telling the truth.

My Opinion: This episode was well written, until the very end the question of Daniel’s allegiance had remained open. The Prior make-up did look cool on Daniel and I had fun seeing Jack again. I believe Daniel is in the lead again when it comes to the “race” against Jack on whose body had to endure more (implanted symbiote, ascended, knowledge of the Ancients loaded into the brain, rewritten DNA, …).

Bounty

Synopsis: After SG-1 has sabotaged another crop transport, Netan of the Lucian Alliance puts a price on their heads. Although they are scattered all over the USA, they all have the same problem suddenly: bounty hunters.

My Opinion: I liked this episode very much, too. Especially Vala who spiced up the class reunion considerably. And who could be surprised by the fact that she knew the bounty hunter.
What I find interesting regarding series and movies is the fact that trains and busses either don’t stop at all after they’ve ran something or someone over or they start to brake only after they’ve hit it. That leaves the question if they drive only by hearing. The bounty hunter was standing there for quite some time. I am of course aware that it is a stylistic device, but: A train that approaches a car standing on the tracks, blows a horn, runs the car over and drives away as if nothing had happened (Back to the Future III)?!

Bad Guys

Synopsis: SG-1 is arriving directly in a museum that is visited by members of the administration. They are immediately mistaken for rebels. After the shootings have stopped they find themselves in the roles of hostage-takers.

My Opinion: Daniel shouldn’t switch to taking hostages as a primary occupation that would be a very short career. Really cool was that Teal’c understood the cultural reference (“We’ve got ourselves a John McClane here.”) better than Daniel. Such kind of knowledge doesn’t find one in ancient egyptian scrolls. But I noticed that some of the team members aren’t appearing for complete episodes. First Daniel has been gone for two episodes, then Teal’c and Vala haven’t been seen in an episode and now Sam is away. On the other hand they have to create screen time for five people now.

Disc 5

Talion

Synopsis: A summit of the free Jaffa was attacked and dozens have been killed. Teal’c and Bra’tac were heavily wounded. Teal’c finds out who is behind this – a Jaffa with whom Teal’c has to settle a score anyway. But this Jaffa threatens to attack Earth unless he is being left alone.

My Opinion: I was afraid they would kill Bra’tac off, four episodes before the end of the show, he is about 143 years old after all. But the show isn’t written by Joss Whedon, thus we can assume that everyone will survive. After Bra’tac had survived I didn’t fear for Teal’c. But I didn’t like the fact that this Jaffa, who has no honour, possessed a weapon that looked a lot like a Samurai Katana.

Family Ties

Synopsis: The Tel’taks that are filled with Naqahdah and were supposed to be used in the attack on Earth are still out there. And one is already hidden on Earth. But Vala’s father knows where they are and he will reveal this information if he is granted asylum on Earth.

My Opinion: This episode implied that Qetesh possessed Vala only for a few years because the difference in age between her and her father doesn’t allow for much more (she didn’t age while Qetesh was possessing her). But I didn’t found the story that interesting. The meeting between Landry and his ex-wife on the other hand was nice.

Dominion

Synopsis: Adria is back in our galaxy and SG-1 plans to capture her. But Ba’al beats them to it and implants one of his Symbiote clones into her. Now he has access to her knowledge and he is preparing to take over the entire Ori fleet.

My Opinion: Aside from the fact that the show is soon over, I really believe that this was the last Ba’al clone (why else would he kill all the others?) and it was cool that they’ve made a short rift of him. I also liked it (don’t get me wrong!) that Vala was honestly hurt at the begin of the episode. That shows that she has build a real emotional bond to the team and Earth.

Unending

Synopsis: The Asgard realized that their extinction is inevitable and they decide to obliterate themselves. But before that they transfer all their knowledge and technology to the Humans. But unfortunately exactly this technology makes the Odyssey detectable. Every time they return to normal space the Ori ships appear soon after. But there isn’t enough time to disable the Asgard components until suddenly they have too much time at their hands.

My Opinion: Great closing. Honestly. While the show was cancelled only after the airing of this episode, the end is quite suitable. The last conversation between Sam and Thor was really moving and that is quite an achievement given the fact that Thor is only a puppet/animation. I also liked the years on the ship but I believe I also would have gone up the walls like Cameron. The aging masks still didn’t look real but they’ve come a long way since Jack’s aging in Brief Candle. Teal’c is now 157 and thus 14 years older than Bra’tac. I am curious if they will consider this in future movies. After all, he’s now over 50 years without symbiote.

The Season – My Opinion: Now as it is over, it could have lasted longer. Vala and Cameron made a good addition and brought fresh blood into the show, after the Anubis arc had become a bit tiresome. Luckily I still have Stargate: The Ark of Truth and Stargate: Continuum to watch. But I am still not too thrilled about Stargate: Atlantis. Still I think it was a good idea to end it at this point. In this season a number of ideas were used again and they also had several filler episodes.

The Ark of Truth

Disc 1

Avalon

Synopsis: Lt. Colonel Mitchell has taken over the command of SG-1. The problem is: There is no SG-1 anymore. Teal’c is council member on Dakara, Sam has been reassigned to Area 51 and Daniel is about to leave to Atlantis.
But then Vala Mal Doran comes to Earth and brings an enrycpted tablet, written in Ancient. It points to a secret location on Earth that is supposed to contain treasures. Vala binds Daniel to herself with a special set of “hand cuffs” and they go off on the search for Avalon, the resting place of King Arthur.

My Opinion: In an early episode of the eight season Sam asked how people like her are ever going to have a family. If she would become pregnant could she simply take maternity leave? The absence of Sam in this and the following episodes is exactly for this reason: Amanda Tapping is on maternity leave.
But the chemistry between Daniel and Vala works very well again. The attempts of Mitchell (Ben Browder, John Crichton in Farscape) “to bring the band back together” are honourable but (so far) in vain.
O’Neill was promoted to Major General and has turned the command over to Major General Landry (Beau Bridges). This marks the end of Richard Dean Anderson as regular cast.

Avalon, Part 2

Synopsis: After they’ve successfully solved the puzzles in the cave, Daniel discovers a device of the Ancient’s that stands in relation to the stones Joe Spencer and Jack have been using for years. They suspect that it is a means of communication. Since Daniel and Vala are still “bound” to each other they try it together – and land in a remote place in foreign bodies. They don’t find the Ancients there but worshippers of the Ori.
In the meantime the situation in the newly found Jaffa council develops differently than Bra’tac and Teal’c had hoped.

My Opinion: I liked the fact that they’ve established a permanent doctor again (Lexa Doig, “Rommie” in Andromeda). They haven’t had one since the death of Dr. Frasier.
But I didn’t understand how the First Prime of a backwater Goa’uld could gather that many followers. A Jaffa (it hadn’t to be the First Prime) of a System Lord would have been more believable.

Origin

Synopsis: Daniel and Vala have been brought to the “City of the Gods” by the Prior. There he meets the leader of the Priors and he learns that the Ori are Ancients, too. But the Ori believe that the mortals should worship them. Anyone who doesn’t follow the “path of enlightenment” will be destroyed. Through the arrival of Daniel and Vala the Ori have learned of our galaxy and they have sent their first Priors.

My Opinion: As if by magic a new enemy emerges that is more powerful than Anubis or the Replicators. The fact that the Ori cannot come here themselves makes this war winnable. In terms of Dragonball, we have reached the Buu Saga.

The Ties That Bind

Synopsis: Although the “hand cuffs” have been removed, Daniel and Vala still cannot part without collapsing. They try to find out why that is and how to undo it. But for this they have to “retrieve” a few items.

My Opinion: The story and the looks of this episode felt like a mixture of Farscape and Firefly. This is no critizism, since Mitchell shouldn’t be a simple copy of Jack and Vala isn’t an ordinary SG team member. I liked it a lot.

Disc 2

The Powers That Be

Synopsis: Vala returns to a planet that she has ruled as a Goa’uld and as herself. She tries to warn the people of the Ori by retaking her role as Qetesh. The plan doesn’t work out and Vala is being put on trial. But then a Prior arrives and Daniel tries to convince the people that the Ori are false gods just as the Goa’ulds have been.

My Opinion: That’s the problem when you tell people over thousands of years that there are living gods. This idea is then hard to kill, especially when you have such “convincing arguments” as the Priors have. But I liked this episode because it showed that Vala is not completely egoistic – only a great part of her. The discussion between Daniel and the Prior was also very well written.

Beachhead

Synopsis: A Prior comes to a planet of the free Jaffa but when they don’t bow to him he enables an expanding force field around the Stargate. The Ori try to establish a beachhead in our galaxy and the Prometheus is dispatched to prevent exactly that.

My Opinion: The best part was the face of the Goa’uld fatso when he was thinking about his future. The destruction of the Supergate looked really cool but I am afraid that it won’t be the last. And while I like the fact that Sam has returned, it’s sad that Vala has gone missing. She has brought a lot of pep into the show. But many people have returned and she isn’t even definitivly dead (and not even that has stopped some people).

Ex Deus Machina

Synopsis: As it turns out, Ba’al is hiding on Earth. He has been here since his defeat over Dakara and he has used the Trust organization to help him. Gerak from the Jaffa High Council has learned of this and he wants to be the one who catches him. But Ba’al has a reinsurance that could cost the lives of many people.

My Opinion: I think Cliff Simon (Ba’al) has an interesting voice. I believe we have heard it for the first time. I also liked the idea of beaming an entire building or the multiple Ba’al clones. I am quite sure we will see them again.
The sad thing about this episode is that Earth can’t find lasting and true allies. Among the Tollans and Tok’ra have never been more than one or two reliable persons. Even during the war against the Goa’ulds the alliance with the rebel Jaffa had been fragile. What did Earth do to deserve that ingratitude?

Babylon

Synopsis: The Sodan are Jaffa who have parted ways with the other Jaffa 5000 years ago. Since then they’ve never served any Goa’uld. When SG-1 wants to meet them there is a incident during which a Sodan is badly wounded and Mitchell is captured. And the Priors have found their way to this planet, too.

My Opinion: The village of the Sodans and their way of life had a japanese touch although Tony Todd isn’t the typical japanese. I have to confess I am fascinated by the Samurai culture. I am well aware of the fact that the image Hollywood shows has nothing to do with the reality in those times. Still I am a fan of the “noble warrior” image. It’s quite sad that words like “honour” have no meaning at all anymore. And I am definitively not talking about the “honour” as in “honour killings”, they have nothing to do with “honour”.
I liked the episode a lot.

Disc 3

Prototype

Synopsis: On a specially shielded planet SG-1 finds a person in stasis who has been experimented on. They take him back to Earth but then they find out, who and what and how dangerous he is. He is Anubis’s “son”.

My Opinion: The episode was ok even though they again proclaimed the urban legend that Humans use only 3% of their brain. Robert Picardo played the Woolsey very well again. I just failed to see why the writers decided to make Daniel the advocate of the “Kill him!” fraction.

The Fourth Horseman

Synopsis: Another SG team returns from a planet that has just “gone Ori”. But unknowingly they brought back the disease that the Priors spread if a planet does not bow to them.
Additionally Gerak has entered the path of enlightenment and he tries to convince the other Jaffa to do the same.

My Opinion: When I read the episode name I actually waited for the horseman to arrive. This was a result of my experience with Highlander where Methos was one of the four riders. This time they meant it symbolically (the fourth rider represents fear, sickness, downfall and death).
Again I liked the “never give up, never surrender” attitude of both Humans and the Jaffa around Teal’c. The story about Orlin was not so interesting.

The Fourth Horseman, Part 2

Synopsis: To stop the disease, SGC needs a blood sample of the Prior who has spread it. SG-1 sets up a trap for him on the planet of the Sodan.
Gut Gerak is a Prior now and by the doctrine of the Ori everyone who does not want to follow has to die. The Jaffa nation is on the brink of a cicil war.

My Opinion: I really liked the fact that the Sodan stood up to the Ori. This is what I mean with “having honour”: not simply slaughtering innocent peasants just because someone said so. I also liked the sacrifice of Gerak and that he died as a free Jaffa (Shal’kek nem’ron).
The advantage of Orlin’s presence was that it wasn’t Sam again who’s found the solution, still I didn’t care much for this part of the story.

Disc 4

Collateral Damage

Synopsis: The Galarans have developed a device that can implant memories. This could become an easy way to train new pilots in a matter of weeks. But then Mitchell is accused of murder and he can remember doing it. Due to his immunity there will be no trial but he insists on clearing his name.

My Opinion: It was nice to learn something about Cameron’s background an his life before the Antarctica battle. And they made me suspect the wrong person. But the Galarans made the wrong choice at the end of the episode. If I can avoid being punished just because I can’t remember what I did – what would stop me of doing it again and make me forget again?

Ripple Effect

Synopsis: SG-1 returns from a mission but in the debriefing they insist that Selmak is still alive. But then SG-1 returns from a mission. And another SG-1 returns from a mission. And another SG-1…

My Opinion: Great episode. I liked it a lot, especially to see some characters again (Martouf, Dr. Frasier). I also liked the Asgard, he (she?) was really funny. Too bad, they didn’t make an expanded version of the episode, with all the materials they had to cut out.

Stronghold

Synopsis: Strange things happen within the Jaffa High Council. A motion for more democracy is voted down by members who have been in favour of it just recently. Teal’c wants to get to the bottom of things and disappears.
Meanwhile an old friend of Cameron’s who should have been on the F-302 program is dying and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.

My Opinion: A very emotional episode which I also liked. Both parts of the story worked very well. I even had to admit that Ba’al may have a point when he proposed his plan to Teal’c.

Disc 5

Ethon

Synopsis: Jared Kane comes through the Stargate to aks for SG-1’s help. One year after the Rand Protectorate and the Caledonian Federation have been at war (caused by the arrival of SG-1), the Ori have given the Rands a weapon (a satellite) that could wipe out the Caledonians. Kane wants to end the hostilities that have lasted for centuries. Prometheus is dispatched to destroy the satellite.

My Opinion: I always try to find out why an episode is called the way it is called. But I didn’t find any connection and thus Wikipedia had to help out. And I was delighted to find out that they’ve once again made an effort to find an appropriate title.
The end of the episode was especially shattering because I already went into “SG-1 has saved the day” mode. But episodes like this are important to show that you simply can’t always win.

Off the Grid

Synopsis: SG-1 investigates in a case of chemically modified crop that makes people addicted to it. But then they get captured by the Lucian Alliance and the Stargate is beamed away. The new battle cruiser Odyssey saves them but more Stargates are disappearing and Ba’al seems to be the one who is responsible.

My Opinion: In my opinion the new BC-304 “Daedalus” class is not as pretty as the old Prometheus. Additionally the form reminds me of already existing ships in other Sci-Fi universes. Anyway, that’s not the point.
The way the Lucian Alliance was presented wasn’t really convincing to me. I didn’t understand how they were able to track down Ba’al and how they managed to get a hand on that many Ha’taks. It’s unlikely that the Jaffa parked them somewhere after their “god” had died.

The Scourge

Synopsis: SG-1 accompanies some members of the International Oversight Committee to the Gamma Site, on a “Sightseeing Tour” so to speak. But then some bugs escape from a lab and these bugs were made by the Priors and they spread fast – and they are flesh-eating.

My Opinion: I like Cameron a lot and they HK G36 is much for fitting for him than the FN P90. I liked the episode especially because of the symbolism at the end, when SG-1 is standing side by side defending the civilians. I also liked that Woolsey realises that some things can go wrong and that there’s nothing anyone could have done to prevent it.
But the best thing was Cameron’s line, that they would watch Starship Troopers this evening.

Disc 6

Arthur’s Mantle

Synopsis: Sam is still working on one of the devices they’ve found in “Avalon”. But then she activates it – and Cameron and she are getting “out of phase”.
Additionally the Sodan have been attacked and the SGC sends help.

My Opinion: Too bad the story of the Sodan has come to an end so soon, I liked it a lot. And even though they used the “out of phase” theme again, they’ve incorporated it very well into the story without denying that they’ve used it before.

Crusade

Synopsis: Vala is suddenly in the body of Daniel and back in our galaxy. Sam has built a device that is compatible to the destroyed communication device of the Ancients. But she is the bearer of bad news: She is pregnant and thousands and thousands of men are preparing for the holy war. And they are builing ships to come here.

My Opinion: There’s only one story where a mother has given birth to a child that has no father. Teal’c answers: Darth Vader. Cameron answers: King Arthur. Great. I liked this episode and the fact to see Michael Ironside (Captain Hudson, SeaQuest DSV) again, the role was perfect for him.

Camelot

Synopsis: The Stargate adress Daniel got out of the Ancients’s device lead directly to Camelot. There they find Merlin’s library and Daniel is hoping to find the weapon that could kill the Ori.
But then the free Jaffa discover a new Supergate and everyone is gathering their forces to stop the Ori: the Tau’ri, the Jaffa, the Tok’ra, the Asgard and even the Lucian Alliance. The great war begins.

My Opinion: “No greater sacrifice has ever been asked of a people, but I ask you now. To step forward one last time, one last battle to hold the line against the night. May god go with you all.” (President of the Earth Alliance, Babylon 5: In the Beginning) I love brilliantly portrayed battles. Pelennor. Endor. Coriana 6. Chin’toka. When so many different parties (who may even be antagonized to one another) unite I am certain no one can beat them, not even the Ori. The price may be high, but he can’t be too high if one does not want to give up the freedom of the galaxy.

The Season – My Opinion: Cameron has been very well integrated into the team. I never had the feeling to have an O’Neill copy in front of me. Sometimes he reminded me of his character John Crichton in Farscape.
While I am still not convinced of the Ori storyarc it isn’t as bad as I had feared. All things considered I liked this season and I am now beginning to regret again that there’s only one season left.

Season 10

Disc 1

New Order

Synopsis: Jack is still in stasis and SG-1 has no means of contacting the Asgard because the Stargate project is still undergoing an “evaluation process”. But Sam can convince Dr. Weir to borrow the Tel’tak that Jack had refitted. As soon as Sam and Teal’c arrive in Asgard space they meet Thor and together they encounter escape Replicators. In the meantime Dr. Weir and Daniel meet representatives of the System Lords. Ba’al has “obtained” the Kull warriors and a great many of Anubis’s Jaffa. This poses a potential threat to both the System Lords and Earth.

My Opinion: This two-parter was also presented as feature-length film on the DVD. But this episode showed one of the problems of the series: The 30 Ha’taks that attacked Earth were only a small part of Anubis’s fleet. Considering the size of our galaxy that sounds logical. But it doesn’t explain why Apophis’s position amongst the System Lords was weakened a few years ago, just because he had lost 2 ships in the attack on Earth. This is getting out of proportion and it’s getting worse in the next season and I will come back to this topic then.
(On the other hand only 39 Federation ships engaged the Borg cube at Wolf 359, but later 650 ships tried to re-take DS9 [the Klingons not included].)
After this episode the spin-off Stargate Atlantis starts and Dr. Weir becomes the project’s leader. The newly promoted Brigadier General Jack O’Neill becomes the CO of the SGC and the newly promoted Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter becomes the leader of SG-1. One also sees Replicator-Carter for the first time who is called RepliCarter by the fans.

Lockdown

Synopsis: The newly arrived russian Colonel Vaselov would like to become the fourth member of SG-1. At least he wants to go off-world as soon as possible. But then he collapses and has to be brought to the infirmary. After Daniel has shot two soldiers, Jack seals off the mountain to prevent Anubis (who is responsible for all this) from escaping.

My Opinion: A nice hide-and-seek episode but nothing more.

Zero Hour

Synopsis: In five days the president will visit the SGC but Jack’s problems are mounting: An alien plant overgrows the entire base and is hard to defeat. And Ba’al is holding SG-1 hostage and wants the System Lord Camulus who has sought asylum in the SGC.

My Opinion: I am quite sure that this was supposed to be an homage to M*A*S*H because Sgt. Walter Harriman always answered before Jack had asked his question and he had always everything prepared. That makes him similar to his namesake Cpl. Walter “Radar” O’Reilly. I thought that they matched it very well. And Jack actually reminded me of Lt. Colonel Henry Blake.
I also liked the rest of this Jack episode. Jack hasn’t changed much after all.

Disc 2

Icon

Synopsis: After a world war that was implicitly caused by SG1’s arrival on the planet, Daniel is stuck there. A religious leader has overcome his goverment and has the Stargate under his control. With the help of the soldiers of the old administration and some SG teams he tries to regain control over the situation.

My Opinion: This episode failed to give the feeling that you are in a post world war situation. This is mostly due to the fact that we didn’t see much of the planet and what we saw was undamaged.

Avatar

Synopsis: Teal’c is testing a new machine that embeddes the consciousness into a virtual reality. But the program adapts itself and makes winning harder for Teal’c – until he wins no more. Unfortunately Teal’c can only leave after a having completed the scenario. Teal’c is trapped and he could very well die in real life.

My Opinion: Great episode. The First Person Shooter feeling was much better than in the movie Doom. I really liked the scenes when they showed the surveillance monitors in which Teal’c was seen as game character. The way Teal’c ran through the corridors also looked as if he was a player avatar and not a real person. But they should have given Daniel the god mode cheat.

Affinity

Synopsis: Teal’c has moved into his first appartment outside the base. But he has problems to adapt to the lives of “normal” people. However, his neighbours like him, especially the good looking woman next door. But she has also problems of her own.

My Opinion: I also would like to have “T” as a neighbour. If I hadn’t read Erica Durance’s (Lois Lane in Smallville) name in the intro, I am not sure I would have recognized her. I had the feeling she was much more natural here, in Smallville she seems to be much more factitious and – alarmingly – old. I liked the episode, yet I found it unrealistic that Daniel has gone alone.

Covenant

Synopsis: The industrialist Alec Colson discloses that alien exists in a press conference. He even presents a living Asgard. He got this information because his company has helped to build the F-302 and has analysed a part of the Asgard DNA. But there are forces outside the SGC who also have no interest that the truth comes out.

My Opinion: I liked this episode, too. Especially Carter’s and Thor’s attempts to cover it up with the help of the hologram technology. But the end felt a bit constructed with him having to leave Earth to avoid assassination.

Disc 3

Sacrifices

Synopsis: The Hak’tyl have to abandon their base because the Goa’uld Moloc has learned of it. O’Neill grants asylum to them until they’ve found a new world. Additionally, Rya’c wants to marry one of the Hak’tyl but Teal’c is opposed to this idea. But this gets him in trouble with Ishta.

My Opinion: Very good episode about tradions and role perceptions. I liked it a lot.

Endgame

Synopsis: With the help of the Asgard beam technology the Stargate is stolen directly out of the Gate room. Shortly after this millions of Jaffa die of no obvious cause. While the SGC is trying to reclaim the Stargate, Teal’c (who is stranded at the Alpha Site) tries to find out what has caused the deaths.

My Opinion: The huge handicap of this episode was “Previously on ‘Stargate SG-1′”. They practically spelled the punch line out before they had even shown the first real scene. The secret of the death Jaffa was none to the audience and the “VX gas” was immediately classified as “harmless” in one’s mind.
I was also sad when the rebel Jaffa died, I liked the guy.

Disc 4

From disc 3 on there are only 3 episodes on each disc. Additionally there are a few episodes not in the correct order, but I will watch them chronologically.

Gemini

Synopsis: RepliCarter has come to our galaxy and is the bearer of bad news: Fifth has encoded the Replicator blocks that makes them immune to the disintegration weapon. RepliCarter wants to help Sam breaking the code, because she despises Fifth.

My Opinion: A plan within a plan within a plan. The whole SGC with Sam in the lead acted incredibly dim-witted. It was totally naïve to give a Replicator access to the weapon. Even though they couldn’t have foreseen the plan of RepliCarter, Fifth’s plan wasn’t that unforseeable. The enemy was allowed to analyze the only weapon that can defeat them. There’s no excuse for that.

Disc 3

Prometheus Unbound

Synopsis: Finally a working hyperlight drive was installed on Prometheus. General Hammond explicitly requests Daniel for this mission. They go to Atlantis, because no one has heard of Dr. Weir or her team since they’ve departed. But on the way they walk into a trap and the ship is hijacked by a Kull warrior. The crew is deported to a defective Al’kesh. Only Daniel remains aboard the Prometheus and he tries to stop the Kull warrior.

My Opinion: “The name’s Olo. Hans Olo.” (Daniel) I was practically rolling on the floor laughing. I really liked Claudia Black’s (Aeryn Sun in Farscape) first appearance on the show. And I doubt that it was a coincedence that it strongly resembled her first appearance in the Farscape pilot.
I was well entertained.

Disc 4

It’s Good To Be King

Synopsis: The war between the System Lords and Ba’al is not going well for the former. The Tok’ra have learned that the System Lord Ares wants to retreat to a planet that hasn’t been “visited” by a Goa’uld for quite some time now. This planet has one very special inhabitant: Harry Maybourne.

My Opinion: I liked this episode, too. It was practically the last Planet-of-the-Week episode with the original SG-1 team (including Jack). And Harry as king/prophet was wonderful.
The fact that one didn’t see Ares in person was also a good thing, because there is only one Ares, God of War for me and unfortunately he had been dead for three years at the time of the episode.

Full Alert

Synopsis: The former vice president Kinsey infiltrates the Trust. The SGC wants to take out this organization once and for all. But something goes wrong and Kinsey disappears without a trace. But then the Russians raise their alert status. They suspect that the White House has been infiltrated by Goa’ulds. The conflict begins to escalate.

My Opinion: The episode didn’t answer the question if the Trust has been destroyed or if an identified amount of Goa’uld is on the loose now. It was an OK episode.

Disc 6

Citizen Joe

Synopsis: The barber Joe Spencer bought a mysterious stone in a garage sale seven years ago. Since then he has the ability to peek into the life and the adventures of an Air Force Colonel called Jack O’Neill. He tells the stories of SG-1 to his customers and his family. But he loses the contact to the real life and is obsessed with writing the stories down. But then he finds out that everything is real.

My Opinion: A very good episode for Dan Castellaneta. Dan is most commonly know for his role as the voice of Homer Simpson, Abraham “Grampa” Simpson, Barney Gumble, Krusty the Clown, Willie, Joe Quimby and many others in The Simpsons. Both Richard Dean Anderson and Jack O’Neill are fans of The Simpsons.
I really liked the in-jokes. When Joe tells the story of the asteroid his customer mentions that he has seen the movie and that it will hit Paris (referring to Armageddon). In the actual episode Jack made the very same joke.
They were even self-critical when they admitted that the stories have become a bit repetitive. They also pointed to the unrealistic high number of occasions where SG-1 has saved the world (that hasn’t stopped them from making yet another two seasons though).

Disc 5

Reckoning

Synopsis: RepliCarter is broght before the remaining System Lords who mistook her for the real one. She kills them all, including Yu. After that she begins to take over the entire Goa’uld fleet. Ba’al is forced to battle against the Replicators which gives the rebel Jaffa the opportunity to take the most holy planet to every Jaffa: Dakara. But on Dakara is also a powerful weapon and everyone wants to have it: The Humans, the Replicators – and Anubis.

My Opinion: Now they want to bring it to an end. RepliCarter casually killed the System Lords T-1000 style before the intro and now overruns the remaining forces. But of course there is a super-duper-weapon that can stop her and it happens to be in the place where Teal’c is heading. That ’s a bit constructed but it’s the grand finale and thus I don’t resent it.

Reckoning, Part 2

Synopsis: On Dakara the future of the galaxy will be decided. The rebel Jaffa are holding the temple and Sam tries to activate the weapon. Then Ba’al’s fleet arrived. Although he works for Anubis he isn’t loyal to him (he is a Goa’uld after all) because his own survival depends on the failure of Anubis’s plan. But then the Replicator fleet also arrives and the war reaches its climax.

My Opinion: They dug deep into the special effects bag of tricks this time. The huge space battle above Dakara was really cool. Although they used archive footage when they opened all Stargates in the galaxy it was still awesome because the imagination has done the rest. The moment where Daniel managed to bring all the Replicators to a hold was great.

Threads

Synopsis: RepliCarter has stabbed Daniel but has been killed by the weapon on Dakara. Daniel is dead but once again he gets the opportunity to ascend. Oma Desala is offering him this again but Daniel learns through the “newspaper” that Anubis wants to destroy avery life in the galaxy and is going to attack Dakara. But Oma must not interfere and there is nothing Daniel can do. None of the ascended – except for Oma and Jim – is even willing to notice his presence.

My Opinion: When I watched the episode for the first time I didn’t realize who “Jim” really is. They killed two birds with one stone with this episode. In the normal world there was simply no way to stop Anubis, this was fairly obvious from the beginning of the season. But they managed to finish his and Oma’s story without making it unrealistic.
But the story about Carter and Jack slowly becomes a neverending story. In JAG it also took an eternity but at least they finished it in the series finale.

Disc 6

Moebius

Synopsis: Although there is a great risk involved, SG-1 (including) Jack undertakes a time travel 5000 years into the past. They want to steal a Zero Point Module from Ra. Since the Goa’uld have never found out what it is they are hoping that the theft won’t change the timeline.
Dr. Daniel Jackson is teacher for English as a second language. Dr. Samantha Carter proof-reads scientific articles. But one day they are contacted by the Air Force. During an excavation a mysterious video tape had been found.

My Opinion: Alternate-Daniel and -Sam are very well portrayed, both come across as nerdy scientists who never achieved anything important. Sam’s speach (in front of no one) about her reproductive organs was a nice reference to the pilot. Jack hasn’t changed at all and that also fits.
First you don’t know the people but once you know them you meet them everywhere. Matthew Bennett (Aaron Doral in Battlestar Galactica) was recently seen in his second appearance on SG-1 (Icon) but as a different character. Now Alessandro Juliani (Lt. Gaeta in BSG) has his second appearance, also as another character.

Moebius, Part 2

Synopsis: The Puddle Jumper that has been lost in the desert for 5000 years has been found. With the help of the retired but reactivated Colonel O’Neill it can be used again. O’Neill, Kawalsky and Sam and Daniel (who are allowed to come along) travel not into the past but to Chulak, where they encounter Teal’c – and Apophis.

My Opinion: When Alternate-Carter mentions that the time machine has to be destroyed I was reminded of Back to the Future. But Doc Brown also wanted to correct the timeline before doing so. The funny thing is that the original Daniel has now helped to drive Ra away from Earth as well as to kill Ra on Abydos. On both occassions he helped to create an uprising.
Technically speaking the four people that are sitting on Jack’s pond aren’t the same people we’ve known for the last eight years. Apart from the fishes that are now in Jack’s pond we don’t know which events we’ve witnessed have happened in this timeline. For example, the fishing trip at the end of Threads doesn’t seem to have taken place. But that’s technically speaking.
It was nonetheless a very good season finale.

The Season – My Opinion: I had the suspicion that Jack’s promotion to General hat the purpose to give Richard Dean Anderson more time off without having to invent excuses. But there is a suprising number of episodes that take place on the base and Jack is in the center of it. But they also continued the trend to concentrate on one character during an episode. But that worked very well for the season.
The final episode of the sixth season was called “Full Circle” and this season accomplished that. The System Lords are defeated, the Replicators are (currently) no thread anymore, Anubis is gone and the Jaffa are free.
In my opinion the last five episodes were the perfect ending for the series. The story has come to an end but there is still room for imagination (e.g. what will now happen with the Jaffa nation).
And that’s the reason I have a stomach ache regarding the next two seasons. While I have watched the first eight seasons more than once, I’e only watched a few episodes of the ninth and none of the tenth season. But I am aware of what will happen, I am just not sure that it will work. It’s kind of sad that a cash cow series is milked to death just to get the last gold coin out of it.

But we will see.

Stargate SG-1: Season 9

Disc 1

Fallen

Synopsis: SG-1 is still searching for the “Lost City” or – as Jonas translates it now – “City of the Lost”, a city of the Ancients that wasn’t fully completed. They try to find the city with the help of the Gate addresses Jack entered into the computer when he had the knowledge of the Ancients. But they find something different – someone, to be precise.

My Opinion: The attack on Anubis’s ship was a nice homage to the battle above Yavin in Star Wars IV, including Jack’s comment that his F-302 (it’s obviously not eXperimental anymore) should have the call sign “Red Leader”. Michael Shanks has re-joined the main cast and returns to his role as Dr. Daniel Jackson. And while I liked Jonas, Daniel is somehow better. Jack and Daniel know each other for over seven years and even in the end Jonas was still “the new guy”. The chemistry between Jack and Daniel worked instantaneously again in terms of: they like each other but are totally different.

Homecoming

Synopsis: Daniel and Jonas are still aboard Anubis’s ship which hovers now over the capitol of Kelowna. Anubis wants to have the Naqahdriah and the knowledge of how to create a stable reaction.

My Opinion: On one hand it’s understandable that Jonas returns home. Daniel is back and all three countries on his home planet know about the Stargate now. It’s a bit sad, though. But since Daniel and he had basically the same role within SG-1 it would be hard to acknowledge this fact in future scripts.

Fragile Balance

Synopsis: When Jack awakes one morning, he is a teenanger of fifteen years. No one believes that he is Colonel Jack O’Neill. After his DNA has been confirmed they try to find out what happened and how to reverse it.

My Opinion: This time I even looked on the clock. The first appearance of RDA was in the 31st minute of this 42 minute episode. On the other hand one has to get used to it since his screen time will drop considerably from the 8th season on.
But it was good to see that not all Asgard are good and perfect, that even they have black sheeps.

Orpheus

Synopsis: After T’ealc has been wounded on a mission, he begins to doubt himself. Since he has lost “Junior” and has begun to inject Tretonin he doesn’t feel as a full-fledged Jaffa anymore. But then there’s a new crisis arising, Bra’tac and Rya’c are prisoners in a work camp that one only leaves dead.

My Opinion: A very good episode to show that something has changed for Teal’c. A symbiote has been part of his body for about 90 years (Teal’c is approximately 104 years old at this time) and now this part is missing. I can imagine that this is hard to get used to. I also liked the scene where his son helped im through the crisis by letting Teal’c kill the other Jaffa with his bare hands.

Disc 2

Revisions

Synopsis: With the help of the M.A.L.P. SGC surveys a planet with a highly toxic atmosphere. But then they discover a dome under which people still live. There existance has been threatened for a while yet they know nothing about it.

My Opinion: The link device was undoubtedly stolen from Seven of Nine but I still would like to have one of those. Permanently being online *dreaming*. Apart from that the episode was ok, but not exceptional.

Lifeboat

Synopsis: SG-1 discovers a crashed spaceship on which are several hundred people being kept in stasis. But then something extraordinary happens: The consciousnesses of 12 different people are put into Daniel’s head – additionally to his own. The problem is to get them out again.

My Opinion: Once again a very good episode for Michael Shanks who could play the whole range from a small boy to the arrogant sovereign. I liked it a lot.

Enemy Mine

Synopsis: A mining expeditions finds a huge vein of Naqahdah. The problem is: The local Unas tribes see this place as holy ground. Daniel tries to negotiate but he needs help – Chaka.

My Opinion: I liked the fact that Daniel’s was right about the new Colonel. Jack would have listened to him (probably). I also liked the negotiations and the fact that the arrogance of the Humans nearly led to their undoing (similar to Spirits).

Space Race

Synopsis: Warrick, the Captain of the Sebrus, invites Sam to participate in a space race aboard his ship. But the race doesn’t go as expected.

My Opinion: A pure fun episode based on the Pod Race in Star Wars I and probably on the Star Trek: Voyager episode Drive.
I also liked the regular product placements during the comments which reminded me of “Binford”.

Disc 3

Avenger 2.0

Synopsis: Doctor Felger is afraid that he is about to be thrown out of the SGC. Thus he presents the (not yet fully developed) plan to infest the Stargate DHDs with a computer virus that would effectively render them useless. But this plan backfires on a grand scale and Ba’al takes advantage of the situation.

My Opinion: Unfortunately Coombs wasn’t present in this episode but Felger was fun to watch again. I find it interesting that they still have new ideas regarding the abilities of the Stargate and the DHD. But they always keep it simple and don’t start technobabbling. Still it gives them a means to tell interesting stories.

Birthright

Synopsis: SG-1 encounters a group of “Amazon” Jaffas who live in a secret place. From there they have to gather Goa’uld larvae on a regular basis to give it to their younger sisters. But SG-1 has a better idea.

My Opinion: Granted, I watched only half a season of Star Trek: Enterprise but I immediately liked Jolene Blalock (T’Pol in ENT) better in the role of the Jaffa leader than in her role as Vulcan. But that is also based on the fact that she could be wilder/more emotional. I also liked the conflict of whether they should use the Tretonin.

Evolution

Synopsis: A single super soldier slaughters the Jaffa of two minor Goa’ulds and kills one of the Goa’ulds. Bra’tac and Teal’c are able to stop him just to find out that it wasn’t them who stopped him. Anubis has built these warriors with technology of the Ancients. The same technology was used to build the very first sarcophagus aeons ago. Daniel tries to find this device now: The mythological “Fountain of Youth”.

My Opinion: It’s quite fascinating how single characters can defy the laws of inertia – no matter how big/fast the moving object or the explosion, they stand their ground if they want to. The introduction of the Kull warriors was nearly inevitable because even huge armies of Jaffa are no opposition to SG-1 anymore. But they didn’t make the mistake to portray the Kull warriors as invincible. Sooner or later that would lead to the need of finding a way to defeat them (keyword: the Borg). But instead they showed that there is a way to defeat them – in principle.

Evolution, Part 2

Synopsis: Through the captured Kull warrior the Tok’ra are able to find the home planet of these new super warriors. Jacob/Selmak, Teal’c and Sam travel there to stop the production of any more of these. While they’re off-world, Jack tries to free Daniel, who’s being held captive by rebels in the border region of Honduras and Nicaragua.

My Opinion: Jack didn’t have to have much luck with his comrades except for Kawalsky. That was before SG-1, of course. Back in A Matter of Time they also mentioned that he was left behind on a special op. Here they managed to portray his buddy very ambivalently. It wasn’t clear what happend back then until they revealed it.
I also liked the flight from Tartarus and the innovative way to use a ring transporter.

Disc 4

Grace

Synopsis: BC-303 (BC stands for Battle Cruiser) was finally salvaged after they transfered the hyperlight engine from an Al’kesh to it. But on the way home the Prometheus is attacked and when Sam re-awakens, she is alone on the ship.

My Opinion: Although they’ve used the known plot element that different characters portray different aspects of a person’s personality, I liked this episode. Especially because the character traits of Sam were well presented.

Fallout

Synopsis: As it turns out, the Naqahdriah on Jonas’s home planet is also not of natural origin. It was transformed out of normal Naqahdah. By detonating the Naqahdriah bomb they’ve started the transformation of Naqahdah into Naqahdriah in a very deep vein. If they can’t stop it the Naqahdriah will explode and destroy the planet.

My Opinion: Unfortunately this is the only reunion with Jonas Quinn. And while I did not watch The Core, the plots sound similar. The relation between Jonas and Kianna was interesting, especially because – as Kianna pointed out – Jonas actually never met the host, only the Goa’uld.

Chimera

Synopsis: Daniel has been dreaming of the time he met Sarah (Osiris’s host) for a couple of nights now. Sarah shows him a tablet of the Ancients and with this he might be able to find the Lost City. It is possible that his subconscious recalls knowledge from the time where he was ascended.

My Opinion: Regarding love relationships none of the four members of SG-1 had much luck. This time they made it look like another of these short romances. But luckily Pete did survive and with David DeLuise the third of the DeLuise brothers and the fourth DeLuise in total (Dom and his sons Peter, Michel and David) has made a guest appearance on the show.
It was a bit hard to believe that Sam actually told Pete what she was doing when she hasn’t even told this to her father until he became a Tok’ra. But that’s no reason to not to like the episode.

Death Knell

Synopsis: The Alpha Site has been attacked by a Kull warrior and was nearly completely destroyed. Somehow the information about this place and the weapon they’ve developed there have gotten into Anubis’s hands. The Kull warrior is in pursuit of Sam to destroy the weapon that poses a threat to him. In the meantime General Hammond tries to find out how Anubis could have known about the secret base.

My Opinion: “The Fellowship of the Ring has broken” – whoops, wrong universe. I noticed in this episode that they seem to have problems to find film locations. After the Alpha Site has become a huge crater the place looks exactly like the place where the Stargate on Chulak resides – just from another angle.
Apart from that I had the feeling that the break-up is more a disservice to the Tok’ra and the Jaffa than to the Humans, but they tried to keep it together. It was a bit sad.

Disc 5

Heroes

Synopsis: A film crew has the assignment and the approval of the president to make a documentation about the SGC. This is for the case the Stargate program becomes public knowledge. No one in the SGC is overly enthusiastic about this idea.

My Opinion: This episode’s only purpose seemed to be the introduction of the characters. Then they don’t have to do this in the second part. Since it didn’t happen much in it, let me make a statement regarding the second episode: At some point the journalist gets angry and shouts at the soldiers that he – as well as they – also serves the people. I don’t know how you feel about this but I registered a remarkable drop in the quality of journalism over the last years/decade. Many reports are mere pimped Reuters reports and most newspapers are only dictated by cost effectiveness. There is very few investigative, but instead “embedded” journalism. This “to serve the people” is a noble claim but it’s not a reality.
I can only speak for Germany, of course.

Heroes, Part 2

Synopsis: SG-13 is trapped and is rescued by several SG teams (SG-1 amongst them). During the fire fight Colonel O’Neill receives a frontal hit by a staff weapon. Other people get also wounded and killed.

My Opinion: I honestly don’t remember what I thought when I watched this for the first time. When I watched it this time, I already knew that not Jack but Dr. Frasier had been killed. But I still waited for the moment this is revealed. It was a very emotional (and therefore good) episode. But it was a bit sad that Teryl Rothery didn’t get more screen time, considering that this was her last episode.

Resurrection

Synopsis: When the NID and SG-1 blow a rouge NID operation they find a young woman. She is an engineered Human-Goa’uld-hybrid whose growth rate has been accelerated with the help of nanites. She has been created to access the knowledge of the Goa’uld, but one half of her isn’t as innocuous as it seems.

My Opinion: This episode was written by Michael Shanks, directed by Amanda Tapping and Richard Dean Anderson was once again absent. I didn’t care much for it.

Inauguration

Synopsis: Henry Hayes is the new president of the United States and Kinsey is his vice president. After being briefed on all Top Secret projects there is yet another briefing where he learns about the Stargate project. Kinsey tries to convince him to replace most of the SGC’s staff.

My Opinion: The fourth clip show of the series and another episode where no member of SG-1 had a live appearance. But I like William Devane as president although he seemed to be a bit “simple” in the beginning. But, coming to think about the actual president Bush jr., … Anyway, I liked the fact that Woolsey (Robert Picardo, The Doctor in Star Trek: Voyager) was uncongenial yet he has integrity.

Disc 6

Lost City

Synopsis: Another SG team has discovered an ancient ruin and Daniel suspects to find a library in it – similar to the one that loaded all the knowledge of the Ancients into Jack’s head. But as soon as they’ve arrived they are attacked by Anubis’s troops who also wants to obtain the knowledge. Thus Jack must once again absorb the knowledge because there’s no faster way.
But things are changing on Earth: General Hammond has to stand down and is replaced by Dr. Elizabeth Weir. And then Master Bra’tac is the bearer of bad news: Anubis is gathering his entire fleet to defeat Earth once and for all. There is only one hope left: To find the lost city: terre atlantus – Atlantis.

My Opinion: “The battle’s done and we kind of won, so we sound our victory cheer.” (Giles in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode Once More, With Feeling) A very good season finale that could have served as series finale, too. The story is very thrilling – I only noticed shortly before the end that this two-parter is edited as feature-length movie on this DVD.
I immediately had the feeling that I know the actress who played Dr. Weir. She flew the shuttle in Armageddon but I knew her as Jennifer “Pilot” Chase from Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future. I could imagine that she would have done well but the producers decided to cast Torri Higginson for Stargate Atlantis.
The battle above Antarctica was great: The BC-303 and an entire squadron of F-302’s vs. Al’keshs and Death Gliders and high above in orbit a fleet of approximately 30 Ha’taks. This is what I call a battle.

The Season – My Opinion: The season had a surprising number of episodes that concentrated on single members of SG-1 (especially Sam and Daniel) and where the members of the team are on different missions. It’s probably because the producers thought that “SG-1 goes to a planet” has become tiresome.
I wouldn’t describe this season as the peak of the series yet I would say that they’ve past their prime with this one. I will elaborate on that at the end of the eight season.

Season 8

Disc 1

Redemption

Synopsis: For three months Jonas Quinn has been on Earth and in the SGC. Now he is allowed to leave for the first time, SG-1 takes him with them to Area 51, where the X-302 has been completed. After the X-301 disaster the X-302 is completely man-made and with the help of the Naqahdriah it even has an hyperlight drive – the Death Gliders don’t have one.
But then Teal’c has to return to Chulak because his wife is dying and his son blames him for that. While he’s there someone opens the Stargate to Earth but it doesn’t close again.

My Opinion: As predicted, Anubis now turns his attention to Earth but obviously he doesn’t dare to trike openly – yet. The X-302 has its charme because she really looks like a mixture of stealth bomber and Death Glider. I also like Jack’s question if it has Phasers when Sam enumerated all the features.

Redemption, Part 2

Synopsis: A little more than 50 hours until the Stargate overloads and will blow up the state of Colorado and poison the atmosphere. The Stargate can’t be disabled and ths SGC has no way to contact the Asgard. But then Jonas has an idea and Bra’tac, Teal’c and Rya’c do their best to save Earth.

My Opinion: A good conclusion to this two-parter, especially because they didn’t find a technobabble solution to close the Gate but really had to dispose it. And the second Gate didn’t come out of nowhere thus it was no miracle solution. Ironically the now installed Gate is the original one and the blown up one is the Antarctica Gate.
BTW: This was the fourth time a Battlestar Galactica cast member made an appearance: Aaron Douglas (Chief Tyrol in BSG) played of of Anubis’s Jaffa.

Descent

Synopsis: A Ha’tak has entered orbit around Earth but it doesn’t attack. SG-1 – whose most recent addition has been Jonas Quinn – and Jacob/Selmak fly to the ship in a Tel’tak. The ship has been abandoned and it is the same ship in which Thor was held prisoner.

My Opinion: I like Jonas. He has an innocent, curious nature. He hasn’t yet seen what SG-1 has seen and one really believes that he wants to become a part of it.
A really good effect was when the ring transporter “beamed” Jonas and the water pillar.

Frozen

Synopsis: Four years after the Antarctica Gate has been discovered a young woman is found – but she is not Jaffa but instead several million years old. She is one of the Ancients but she looks like a human. That means today’s humans are only the second evolution of this form on this planet and that can’t be a coincedence.

My Opinion: I don’t know why but Ayiana always reminded me of Leeloo from The Fifth Element. We also see that Jonas has the same talent Daniel had when it comes to connecting with other beings. Apart from that the episode wasn’t that interesting.

Disc 2

Nightwalkers

Synopsis: While Jack is still with the Tok’ra , Sam gets an mysterious call from a scientist. This scientist is somehow connected to Adrian Conrad and Sam, Teal’c and Jonas drive to a small town to find out what is going on.

My Opinion: Nice The X Files episode. I especially liked the part where Sam pretended to be a Goa’uld ans slapped Jonas in the face.

Abyss

Synopsis: Jack and his symbiote have tried to free the Lo’tar (the highest rank among human slaves, in this case a woman) of Ba’al but they only partly succeed. Shortly before both get captured the symbiote leaves Jack and Jack gets captured. Then he is tortured by Ba’al who wants to find out what they were doing there. Jack’s only support is Daniel who cannot be corporeal (due to his ascension) but can be seen and talked to.

My Opinion: I have no clue what the purpose of this episode was. Ba’al tortures Jack and Daniel tries to pull him through it by talking to him. But the conversations weren’t interesting.

Shadow Play

Synopsis: The Kelownans (Jonas’s people) come to Earth and ask for help. The other two states on this planet are negiotiating a non-aggression pact and the Kelownans are afraid that they will be attacked afterwards. But Jonas’s old professor is a member of a secret organisation that tries to create an enduring peace on the planet.

My Opinion: While I liked to see Dean Stockwell (Al in Quantum Leap) again, this episode was also not that interesting.

The Other Guys

Synopsis: Three scientists, Felger, Coombs and Meyers are researching a ring transporter on a planet when they are ordered back through the Stargate by SG-1. SG-1 is attacked by an Al’kesh and gets captured. Felger decides to follow them with Coombs in tow.

My Opinion: Great episode. The both of them in these unfitting Jaffa uniforms and the ridiculously painted tattoo and the many Star Trek references (Roddenberry, Redshirts, …) – I loved to watch them. Especially because Coombs is played by John Billingsley (Dr. Phlox in Star Trek: Enterprise).

Disc 3

Allegiance

Synopsis: A Tok’ra base has been overrun by Anubis’s troops and a group of SG teams helps to evacuate. They bring the Tok’ra to the Alpha Site, a planet unknown to the Goa’uld. The Jaffa rebels also live there since they’ve been betrayed by Imhotep. But both groups don’t get along very well and it escalates when a Jaffa and a Tok’ra is killed under dubious circumstances.

My Opinion: In my opinion they portrayed the conflict well, because the basic statement is correct: While both are fighting for the same cause, they have been enemies for ages and that isn’t solved over night. The “crisis management” of Jack, Bra’tac and Jacob/Selmak was also believable.

Cure

Synopsis: SG-1 comes to a planet that technologically isn’t as far developed as Earth but they can offer something else: Tretonin. A medicine than can cure all kinds of illnesses and prevents from getting ill. The catch is that it suspends the natural immune system, that it has to be taken regularily and how it is produced.

My Opinion: What I liked here was the moral conflict. Nobody except SG-1 seems to have any problem with using a Goa’uld queen as long as it was just any queen. When it turns out to be Egeria, the mother of all Tok’ra, it becomes reprehensible. I liked it.

Prometheus

Synopsis: A reporter has learned of a secret project, code name “Prometheus”. But it isn’t what she’d thought it was, but the X-303, the first human-built mothership with hyperlight drive. But then Colonol Simmons and Adrian Conrad hijack it and only Sam and Jonas are on board to stop them.

My Opinion: I liked the cock-and-bull story Sam told the reporter of how they gained access to the alien technology and her intentional avoiding of the word “Roswell”. While I liked the episode, the threat to blow up the ship and Nevada had a flaw: The Goa’uld’s instinct of self preservation is extremely high and I would rule Simmons out as a martyr. I would have called the bluff.

Unnatural Selection

Synopsis: SG-1 is asked by Thor to fly with the X-303 (Jack wasn’t allowed to name her “Enterprise”) to the home galaxy of the Asgards and fight the Replicators once again. The Asgard had an ingenious plan but it failed miserably. Now SG-1 has to face a completely new generation of Replicators.

My Opinion: When I wrote the above summary a moment ago, I actually wrote “new generation of Cylons” – and truth be told, that wasn’t that far a mental leap. The new Replicators look like humans but they aren’t. One of the five Replicators is played by Tahmoh Penikett (Karl “Helo” Agathon in Battlestar Galactica) who has a child with a Cylon in BSG.
There are other similarities as well. While the first four are normal Replicators, Fifth (Patrick Currie) has become much more human, an attribute he shares with certain Cylon models.
I liked this episode, too.

Disc 4

Sight Unseen

Synopsis: After SG-1 has brought a device to Earth that was presumably build by the Ancients, Jonas starts to see weird insects. At first no one knows what to make of it but then others begin to see them, too. It even spreads among the normal population.

My Opinion: I liked the fact that it wasn’t something they brought back but that these creatures have always been here – we just can’t perceive them. The gas station guy was also funny and I liked the insects they’ve invented.

Smoke & Mirrors

Synopsis: Jack assassinates Senator Kinsey. At least it looks like it. While Jack is in prison, SG-1 tries to find out what really happened and they get help from the NID.

My Opinion: As I previously mentioned, nearly every storyline gets picked up again and is continued in SG-1. This time they re-used the holographic devices from Foothold. I especially liked the way Teal’c interrogated the scientist. I also thought it to be a good thing that they portreyed the NID from a different POV, that they aren’t just a heinous gang that stops at nothing.

Paradise Lost

Synopsis: In exchange for a Stargate address and a device that can open an Ancients weapons locker, Maybourne gets a presidential pardon. He also has another trump card that allows him to accompany SG-1. But he played with marked cards and he transports himself and Jack to a remote place. Unfortunately he doesn’t find what he had hoped for.

My Opinion: Finally a decent Jack episode again. I haven’t noticed it before but it struck me during this marathon: Richard Dean Anderson had astonishingly few screen time during this season. In one episode he made no appearance at all (Nightwalkers) in others he has very few scenes (especially but not exclusively in the last two episodes).
But Jack and Maybourne were once again fun to watch, both have their way to survive in the wilderness. And once again it’s Jack who is seperated from his team and has to survive on a remote planet for several weeks. He has the same talent as Daniel who falls for power.

Metamorphosis

Synopsis: The russian SG team brings a man to the SGC. He and his people are experimented on by Nirrti. SG-1 feels morally obligated to stop her but they get caught in the experiment.

My Opinion: She got what she deserved. The fact that she has been killed by her own victims bears a certain poetic justice. But I am more interested in what the writers had in mind when they mentioned that Jonas’s DNA is different. I can’t remember if this has ever been revealed.

Disc 4

Disclosure

Synopsis: The ambassadors of China, the United Kingdom and France have been invited to the Pentagon. There they learn about the Stargate program. But Senator Kinsey is also present and he wants to persuade the ambassadors to give the NID control over the Stargate program.

My Opinion: Now alle the permanent members of the UN Security Council know about the Stargate. Interesting about this episode was that no member of SG-1 (past or present) made a live appearance. Everything was presented as flashbacks. If you wanted to see a SG team, you’d have to imagine General Hammond, Major Davis, Colonel Checkov and Thor as a SG team.
But the best scene was when Thor corrects Senator Kinsey and insists that he isn’t just a Commander but the Supreme Commander of the Asgard fleet.
But you haven’t missed anything if you didn’t watch it.

Forsaken

Synopsis: SG-1 discovers a crashed spaceship and its crew, but is soon attacked by other aliens. Sam wants to repair the ship to learn more about it but the crew isn’t who they claim to be.

My Opinion: The episode wasn’t bad, especially because SG-1 has learned from past experiences not to judge too quickly, who the “good guys” and who the “bad guys” are.
But what I found more interesting was to read the name Dion Johnstone once again. Dion was the black “Jaffa” in Rules of Engagement. After that he played the Unas Chaka, the Goa’uld Na’onak (Apophis’s alter ego on the hell moon, probably to avoid the mentioning of Peter Williams’s name in the opening sequence and thus spoiling the punch line), Lt. Tyler in The Fifth Man and just recently in Metamorphosis. In this episode he played the Captain of the Sebrus. It reminds me a bit of Wayne Alexander who played Sebastian (Jack the Ripper) and Lorien as well as a Narn, a Drazi and a Drakh in Babylon 5. However, both actors wore masks in most of their roles thus avoiding to challenge the suspension of disbelief.

The Changeling

Synopsis: Teal’c has weird dreams, although he usually doesn’t dream at all. He dreams that he is a firefighter. But he has to leave soon for an important mission but these dreams prevent him from having a proper Kel’no’reem. The firefighter with the nickname “T” has weird dreams. He dreams that he belongs to a team that visits other planets. But he has to undergo an important surgery soon, he gives one of his kidneys to his stepfather Brae.

My Opinion: Great episode. To see all the guys (and gal) as firefighters was interesting. Sometimes it reminded me of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s Far Beyond the Stars. But as I said, I like out-of-character episodes. This wasn’t even a real out-of-character episode because all people behaved as they would normally do – except that they were firefighters.

Memento

Synopsis: During a training flight with the Prometheus the hyperlight drive had to be jettisoned in the orbit of a planet where it explodes. Unfortunately the planet has no Stargate and without the hyperlight drive the travel would take ages.

My Opinion: An picture that is shown on Stargate (both in SG-1 or Atlantis) is that alien cultures can be as paranoid as we are. And that this paranoia can lead to actions that make more damage than they prevent. Unfortunately politicians on our planet don’t seem to watch Sci-Fi shows. Instead they are creating more security laws and are thereby taking our freedom. Fortunately there was a politican that wasn’t short-sighted (that’s the reason why they call it “fiction”).

Disc 6

Prophecy

Synopsis: Caused by Nirrti’s experiments a tumor is growing in Jonas’s brain and it’s growing fast. But this tumor has a side effect: Jonas has flashes of future events that come true. But the tumor also endangers his life.

My Opinion: I stand corrected, they pick up the story of Jonas’s DNA again. But the episode was average. Went to a planet, helped a people, killed a Goa’uld, departured.

Full Circle

Synopsis: Daniel appears to both Skaara and Jack to warn them that Anubis will come to Abydos to find the “Eye of Ra”. This would allow him to build a powerful weapon. SG-1 wants to forstall him.

My Opinion: A good conclusion to the Abydos storyline, I especially liked the reunion of Jack and Daniel. What amazes me with these stories is where these super-weapons always come from. It’s highly unlikely that none of the other System Lords tried to find it, especially when two of the “Eyes” belonged to Ra and Osiris. Ra has been dead for a while and Osiris was out of the game for more than a millennia. Apophis who also possessed one should have been more than interested to get these, yet his former First Prime Teal’c didn’t even know they existed.
Anyway, the episode was good, particularly because they didn’t defeat Anubis in some surprising way.

The Season – My Opinion: The season was mixed. Jonas brought new life into the team and I liked him end-to-end. But there were a number of episodes I didn’t like that much and I even liked the clip show Disclosure more than (for example) Shadow Play. But they still managed to create a good enemy, after the “abdication” of Apophis.

Stargate SG-1: Season 7

Disc 1

Enemies

Synopsis: Caused by the explosion of the sun and the activated Hyperdrive SG-1s Ha’tak has been catapulted into another galaxy. But Apophis is also there with his huge motherhip. But as soon as they have arrived another ship is apporaching that attacks Apophis’s ship. It is the Replicators.

My Opinion: Nothing against a good deus ex machina now and then, but this time they’ve overdone it. First they land in a remote galaxy, then the Replicators arrive, then Teal’c has been brainwashed somehow and in the end the Replicators kindly bring SG-1 back home. Honestly! At least Apophis has breathed his last breath.

Threshold

Synopsis: Teal’c is still brainwashed. According to Bra’tac, the only way to get him out of this, is to remove the larva and bring him to the brink of death.

My Opinion: Even though the events that led to this were rubbish, this was a very good compensation. It showed us how Teal’c became the man he is and how Bra’tac tought him all this. A great character drawing.

Ascension

Synopsis: SG-1 discovers a device that could be a powerful weapon. But then Sam faints and has to be brought back to the SGC. When she is put on leave and comes home, she is awaited by a non-corporeal being. It declares that it comes from the planet Sam has just been to.

My Opinion: The most important information in this episode was the fact, that Teal’c has watched Star Wars nine times while Jack has never watched it. That aside this episode was a goof examply why in Star Trek a Prime Directive exists: Because it is not predictable, what happens if one interfers with the developement of a culture. But the extinction of that entire planet was also over the top, they simply could have taken the Stargate away.
The appearance of John de Lancie (Q in Star Trek: The Next Generation) was also nice, especially because it won’t be the last.

The Fifth Man

Synopsis: Sam, Teal’c and Daniel return to the SGC under heavy fire while Jack and Lieutenant Tyler are grounded. But the real problem is: In the SGC no one knows this “Lieutenant Tyler”. Only SG-1 can remember this man.

My Opinion: I liked this episode, too. Another fact has cought my eye here: Stargate SG-1 has found a good balance regarding the number of alien races. The universe isn’t as crowded with non-humans as the Star Trek universe. But it is also not as empty as the Battlestar Galactica universe. While most of the aliens are still humanoid they aren’t simply knobbly-nose-aliens but really alien-aliens.

Disc 2

Red Sky

Synopsis: The computer that controls the Earth gate doesn’t implement all safety precautions a normal DHD has. This allows the SGC to open a Wormhole through a remote sun and this injects heavy elements into the sun’s core. It starts with the sun going red but when the process can’t be stopped the remote planet won’t be able to support life any longer. SG-1 tries to undo their mistake.

My Opinion: A good episode about religious obsession and fatalism. I also liked how SG-1 tried everything to undo their mistake even against the resistance of the locals.

The Rite of Passage

Synopsis: Cassandra has become a teenager but suddenly her body goes haywire. She produces large fields of electricity and she can move metal objects. But she gets worse and the only remedy can be found on her home planet – Niirti experimented on the entire population.

My Opinion: I also liked this episode because it showed how much Sam as well as her stepmother Dr. Frasier care for Cassie.

Beast of Burden

Synopsis: Daniel is still watching the Unas on the home planet of the Goa’ulds, especially Chaka, the Unas that kidnapped him once. But then Chaka is kidnapped by people from another planet and put to work as a slave. Daniel tries to rescue him.

My Opinion: I like this episode very much because Daniel does anything in his might to help a non-human. This shows perfectly how Daniel perceives the world. But it also showed how problematic it is to interfere in another world’s way of living that are different to our own.

The Tomb

Synopsis: During the 37 days the russian Stargate program was active there has been an inoffical unit, too. They have gone lost on a planet and SG-1 and a russian team go after them in a joint venture.

My Opinion: In this episode the russians were portrayed as too much of a cliché. But the russian Colonel who has been introduced at the end will return and he will turn out likeable.

Disc 3

Between Two Fires

Synopsis: SG-1 attends the funeral service for Omac on Tollana. Omac died recently iof a heart attack. But a few days later the Tollans offer one of their ion cannons in exchange for a rare metal. SG-1 is both pleased and sceptical about this offer.

My Opinion: A very sad episode because you have to assume that most of the Tollans have been exterminated and that Narim is most probably dead. It happened before that entire races have been killed but that were no-names and you’ve never heard of them before nor have you seen them. This is different.
Ironically the actor who played Narim – Garwin Sanford – will reappear as the boyfriend of Dr. Weir in the Stargate Atlantis pilot.

2001

Synopsis: After a piece of paper came through the Stargate (supposedly from the future) to never to visit a certain planet, the address is locked out of the computer. But on another planet SG-1 meets this race nonetheless: The Aschen. And once again the Aschen have a lot to offer and it seems hard to resist.

My Opinion: Interesting approach to continue the story from 2010. I especially liked that they worked in the smaller storylines, like the beginning relationship between the ambassador and Sam and Kinsey’s ambitions to become president.
But it was sad that they killed off the ambassador so soon.

Desperate Measures

Synopsis: After Sam has been kidnapped by unknown forces on Earth, SG-1 tries to find out what happened and where she has gone. For this Jack has to ally himself with Maybourne once again because the trails lead to the NID, the russian Stargate program and a terminal ill selfmade millionaire.

My Opinion: Another episode I liked because they’ve managed to combine a spy story and science fiction. And that people are willing to make a pact with the devil when the death is near.

Wormhole X-treme!

Synopsis: Martin Lloyd has once again “forgotten” who and what he is. But now he is a creative consultant on the set of a series: “Wormhole X-treme!”. It’s about three humans and an android who go through an intergalactic portal and fight against aliens. But simultaneously a real spaceship is closing in on Earth that was hidden behind Mars.

My Opinion: One of the funniest episodes (and the 100th) of the entire series. Maybe only the 200th episode is even more fun. Many of the crew of SG-1 had a cameo appearance but the best were Peter DeLuise as director and his brother Michael (who also played in SeaQuest) as the actor of the Colonel. It was also brilliant to point out some typical errors in science fiction series (“If I am out of phase and can go through walls, why don’t I fall through the floor?”).

Disc 4

Proving Ground

Synopsis: Jack trains a group of young recruits (among them Hailey and Lt. Elliot). He prepares them to become members of SG teams., But then a “foothold” situation arises in the SGC and Jack has to use them to repel the alien attack.

My Opinion: A very nice training scenario, especially the last part. It was a bit unfortunate that they revealed to the audience so early that the situation in the SGC is fake. When I watched it for the first time, I didn’t recognize Grace Park (Sharon Valerii in Battlestar Galactica) but back then I didn’t even know her.

48 Hours

Synopsis: After Teal’c has killed Tanith, his Al’kesh crashes into the Stargate and the wormhole is disrupted. But this traps the fleeing Teal’c inside the Stargate’s buffer and he isn’t being re-integrated. Sam tries to get him out of there, Daniel negotiates with the Russians about the second Stargate and Jack is looking for “alternate sources of information”.

My Opinion: In principle this episode reminds me of a “typical” transporter incident in Star Trek. But that doesn’t mean that they’ve re-used a script, the characters behave as they should be and the other story elements would prevent that this script could be used in Star Trek. I really liked the negotiations with the Russians and the “That didn’t happen in the simulations.” after the borrowed DHD blew up (of course only after Teal’c’s rescue). I also liked the first appearance of Dr. McKay who behaved exactly like he will do when he becomes a main character in Stargate Atlantis.

Summit

Synopsis: Daniel infiltrates a summit of the System Lords in disguise of a human slave. Among others, Yu, Ba’al, Bastet and Kali attend this meeting. The plan was that Daniel releases a new and deadly Tok’ra virus that would kill them all. But then Osiris arrives and claims to speak in the name of Anubis who wishes to return to this council. In the meantime, Lord Zipacna attacks the Tok’ra base and he, too, acts under orders from Anubis.

My Opinion: The thrilling element of this episode was to wait for the moment Daniel and Osiris run into each other. It was cool that it only happened in the last minute and that it would turn out to be a two-parter. Fortunately the titles don’t give that info away.

Last Stand

Synopsis: The Tok’ra base is under heavy fire and many have been killed. Martoufs former symbiote Lantash had no choice but to enter Lt. Elliot. Jack, Sam, Teal’c and Elliot/Lantash have to find a way to the Stargate. Daniel has managed to deceive Osiris with the help of the same drug he used to slip into Yu’s entourage. But he had to give up the plan to kill them all because that would bring Anubis into a very powerful position. And Anubis has already threatened to ignore the Asgard treaty and to attack Earth.

My Opinion: The mind can paint the worst pictures. They didn’t show how SG-1 “successfully” returned home and it wasn’t necessary. One can imagine how the surroundings of the Stargate had to look like, after Elliot/Lantash sacrificed himself and killed thousands of Jaffa with the help of the virus. I am torn when it comes to the Jaffa. In most cases they are simply the attacker who have to be shot in self-defence. On the other hand they are presented as slaves who have no other choice but to fight for their “god” and that makes their death deplorable. There was a similar dilemma in The Matrix, where all the inhabitants were potential enemies even though they were the persons to be freed.

Disc 5

Fail Safe

Synopsis: An asteroid closes in on Earth from a strange direction and it will hit Earth. SG-1 tries to repair a crashed Tel’tak (cargo ship) and then to land on the asteroid and to blow it up with the help of a Naqahdah-enhanced nuclear bomb.

My Opinion: Great moment, when Jack comments “I’ve seen that movie!” in the beginning, obviously referring to Armageddon. They nonetheless found a good, typical Stargate solution to the problem.

The Warrior

Synopsis: On a planet that isn’t ruled by a Goa’uld is a base of Jaffa. Some of their “gods” have been killed, some Jaffa simply deserted. Their leader is K’tano, former First Prime of Imhotep, who killed his “god”. But the ways of the Jaffa and the Tau’ri are different and Jack cannot recommend an alliance as long as K’tano is in charge.

My Opinion: This episode shows, how convincing charismatic leaders can be. It also shows that they haven’t necessarily the best for their followers in mind. I also liked the Matrix-like fight sequence.

Menace

Synopsis: On a planet whose population has been wiped out, SG-1 finds a disabled android in the forum of a young woman. After she’s been reactivated they find out that she doesn’t know about her artificiality and her state of mind is that of a child. But then she builds a present and toy for Daniel that is terribly familiar to SG-1.

My Opinion: Another episode where Jack and Daniel crash into each other about the way they should handle a very dangerous situation. But I honestly didn’t know whith whom I should’ve agreed.

Sentinel

Synopsis: A planet that is supposed to have a protection mechanism is attacked by the Goa’uld. Obviously the inofficial NID commando broke it when they visited the planet 2 years ago. Now they have to accompany SG-1 to fix it.

My Opinion: What I didn’t like about this episode was that they were killed in the end. That was to forseeable. And the fact that the Colonel sacrificed himself to save Jack didn’t match with the facts we learned about him in this very episode.

Disc 6

Meridian

Synopsis: SG-1 returns from a mission on which Daniel was exposed to a high and lethal dosis of radiation. He is still alive but he is going to die in a few hours time. Additionally there’s a dispute about how the accident happened and whether Daniel has caused it. The accident – they experimented on Naqahdriah (an instable isotope of Naqahdah) – has also led to the death of some Kelownian scientists.

My Opinion: A very good farewell episode for Dr. Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks wanted to leave the show). Everyone had the chance to say goodbye to him. But it was also the episode that introduced the character of Jonas Quinn (Corin Nemec, Parker Lewis in Parker Lewis Can’t Lose). I liked it.

Revelations

Synopsis: Thor’s ship has been destroyed by a Goa’uld Ha’tak. This means the Asgard can’t enforce the Protected Planets Treaty any longer – at least not as long as their main forces are engaged in the battle against the Replicators. Therefore they ask SG-1 to evacuate the Asgard Heimdall from a planet where he conducted important research.

My Opinion: Surprisingly for the first time in the show’s history this wasn’t a cliffhanger. But that could be in regard to the fact that the show was sold to another network after this season. But they still managed to open more new questions instead of answering old ones – especially the question of who and what Anubis really his and where he got the technology to defeat the Asgard. The weakness of this episode was that the Asgard allegedly had no resources at the begin of the episode but could send three O’Neill class ships in the end.

The Season – My Opinion: In this season the indirect and direct confrontations with the Goa’uld have intensified again and Anubis has managed to destroy the biggest threats to the Goa’uld: the Tollans are most likely wiped out, the Tok’ra are on the run and the Asgard are no longer superior. Now the humans are standing on their own again. I liked the season even though there were many sad episodes.

Season 6

Disc 1

Small Victories

Synopsis: Thor’s ship has been successfully destroyed during the re-entrance into the atmosphere but one of the Replicators did survive. It manages to rescue itself to a russian submarine. There it kills the entire crew and begins to replicate. In Thor’s home galaxy things aren’t good either, the Asgard have no weapon to defeat the Replicators and they close in on one of the Asgard planets.

My Opinion: It was cool how Thor tried to explain that the Asgard are to intelligent to find a primitive way to destroy the Replicators. I also liked the fact the russians actually spoke russian without being subtitled. It wasn’t necessary for the understanding to know what they said – I understood it nonetheless. (The one asks what is making that noise and the other one actually replies that it could be the bugs from the previous episode!)

The Other Side

Synopsis: It’s one of the rare moments when someone “calls” Earth and not the other way around. The people of the planet Euronda ask for help since there is a world war on their planet. If Earth gives them all the heavy water they need, they would give all their technology in exchange.

My Opinion: What bothered me about this was the initial behaviour of Jack’s. He behaved more like in Shades of Grey as I would expect of him. He only comes around when René Auberjonois’s (Odo in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) character turns against Teal’c. I didn’t like it much.

Upgrades

Synopsis: The Tok’ra Freya/Anise (Freya is the host) brings an ancient technology to Earth. But she only does it because it doesn’t work on Goa’uld/Tok’ra/Jaffa. After SG-1 (except for Teal’c) has put the armbands on many of their abilities enhance by several degrees: strength, speed, sight. Unfortunately the armbands can’t be removed and the human body isn’t able to cope with these changes over a longer period of time.

My Opinion: This episode and the behaviour of SG-1 was funny, especially the entire scene in the restaurant. But it also showed again that the team will be there for one another, no matter the price.

Crossroads

Synopsis: A friend of Teal’c’s, the high priestess Shan’auc, did manage to communicate with her Goa’uld larva. She convinced it that it should join the Tok’ra. But this must happen soon since the larva is fully grown and cannot remain in Shan’auc much longer.

My Opinion: It was somehow predictable that the Goa’uld would betray Shan’auc but I liked to see Peter Wingfield (Methos in Highlander) again. And I could understand Jack’s disappointment that they’ve fleeced by the Tok’ra again.

Disc 2

Divide and Conquer

Synopsis: After a member of an SG team has attacked a Tok’ra the latter reveal that the Goa’uld have found a way to temper with the human mind. Without the knowlegde of the victim he/she is programmed for an assassination and it is conceiled with false memories. The problem is, that a summit between the president of the Unites States and the Tok’ra high council is coming up. This is endangered by two sleepers within the SGC: Sam and Jack.

My Opinion: Althought it was sad that Martouf died, I really liked this episode, especially the solution of why Sam and Jack aren’t Zatarcs. I also liked, when Freya hit on Jack especially with her very “curve-hugging” outfit.

Window of Opportunity

Synopsis: After an ancient device has been activated on a remote planet, Jack and Teal’c are stuck in a time loop, that lasts 10 hours. Every time the loop starts again only they can remember previous iterations.

My Opinion: Also a ver good episode that I liked a lot, practically it’s a Groundhog Day episode – a fact that is mentioned by Jack at the end. I enjoyed it very much.

Watergate

Synopsis: After the Stargate can’t be opened again the SGC finds out the the Russians have resurrected the original Stargate from the bottom of the sea (where it lay since the crash of Thor’s ship). But now they’ve opened a wormhole that can’t be closed again and they need the help of SG-1.

My Opinion: What I liked about this episode is that the Russians are not portrayed as backward hillbillies. Okay, the screwed the pooch and Jack doesn’t like them per se, but Marina Sirtis (Deanna Troi in Star Trek: The Next Generation) played her role very well.

The First Ones

Synopsis: Daniel is on an excavation mission with another SG team. The planet is supposed to be the home planet of the Goa’ulds. They find skeletons and fossils of Goa’uld queens, but there are also the first hosts of the Goa’ulds: The Unas.

My Opinion: I liked this episode, too, because the Unas were portrayed as much more that the killing machines they’ve been before. Of course they are an extremly primitive race but it is possible to build a rapport to them and Daniel was the perfect person to do that. Funny was the reference to the Stargate movie where Daniel – just like this time – started an interaction with the help of army food.

Disc 3

Scorched Earth

Synopsis: The Enkarans can only live under a certain ozone layer without going blind. SG-1 has found the perfect planet for them. But shortly after they’ve settled there a huge spaceship arrives and starts a terraforming process which will make it impossible for humans to live there anymore. There’s not enough time to evacuate and thus SG-1 has to stop the spaceship.

My Opinion: I am in two minds about this. The idea was well chosen and the way Daniel convinced Lotan was really good. What bothered me though was the fact that Jack would have sacrificed Daniel. Of course he had to protect the Enkarans but I still belive that the decision should have been harder to make.

Beneath the Surface

Synopsis: The members of SG-1 work in an undergound factory – without having a memory of who they are. Only Teal’c seems to remember but he’s soon brought to the infirmary. But over time the others remember fragments of their past as well. Enough to find out what happend to them.

My Opinion: What I really liked here was the way how the members of SG-1 behaved even when they didn’t know theirself or one another. Jack and Daniel clash once again but still work together to achieve a common goal. But the best scene was when Jack remembered a bald guy with a short-sleeved shirt who is somehow important to him (an accurate description of General Hammond) – “I believe his name is Homer“.

Point of No Return

Synopsis: A man called Martin Lloyd calls the Stargate Center and wants to speak to Colonel O’Neill. He “knows” about the Roswell landing, about the Kennedy assassination and – the Stargate. SG-1 tries to find out what he knows and from where.

My Opinion: “To be paranoid doesn’t mean that you aren’t being followed.” Episodes with Martin are always fun because he is such a comical character. Ironically this is the second time in three episodes that we see an actor from the later Battlestar Galactica series. First Alessandro Juliani (Lt. Gaeta in BSG) in Scorched Earth and now Matthew Bennett (Aaron Doral in BSG).

Tangent

Synopsis: In Area 51 one of Apophis’s Death Gliders was equipped with Earth technology and redesigned to the X-301. But when Teal’c and Jack make their first testflight something goes wrong. Apophis’s retrieval program activates and both are trapped.

My Opinion: This episode was rather boring because nothing really happened.

Disc 4

The Curse

Synopsis: The artefacts that have been found during an excavation are to be brought from Egypt to America but the ship sunk. Many years later – now – the freight has been recovered and has been brought to Chicago. Among the artefacts are the urnes of Isis and Osiris. But these aren’t normal urnes and soon SGC has to deal with the possibility that a Goa’uld runs free on our planet.

My Opinion: They did a very good job in pointing to the wrong person and conceiling who the real Goa’uld is. I also liked the fact that we’ve learned more about Daniel’s life from before the Stargate.

The Serpent’s Venom

Synopsis: Apophis and Heru-ur secretly meet to negoiate an alliance. Together they are able to defeat all the other System Lords. The Tok’ra and SG-1 try to prevent that. They try to make them fight one another thus detroying both their fleets.

My Opinion: I never quite understood how the Jaffa believe – that the Goa’ulds are gods – works. The Jaffa operate a great deal of the Goa’uld technology; when a Jaffa dies the Goa’uld within him also dies and the Goa’uld fight and kill one another since aeons even without the interference of the humans. I don’t understand how someone can still believe under these circumstances but maybe I am the wrong kind of person fro this – I am ignostic. But the acting of Teal’c and his Jaffa guard was still very good.

Chain Reaction

Synopsis: After SG-1 once again nearly died on a mission General Hammond decides to retire. But Jack doesn’t believe that this is the true reason and he investigates further. In the meantime Sam and Daniel have to deal with the new General.

My Opinion: Of course the new General is an idiot – we have to want Hammond back. But I still liked how far Jack (with the help of Maybourne) went to achieve exactly this.

2010

Synopsis: It is the year 2010. 10 years ago the humans have met the Aschen. They have helped to defeat the Goa’uld and they teach the humans in many ways such as medicine and physics. Regarding the first contact Jack noted in his report “They are to good to be true” – how right he was.

My Opinion: The prevention of the extermination of mankind is a good enough reason for me to undo 10 years of history. Not like other series where it was about the convenient return of a certain starship crew. I liked it a lot.

Disc 5

Absolute Power

Synopsis: Harsesis has come to Abydos to learn more about his mother. But Oma Desala has made him forget the knowledge of the Goa’ulds. SG-1 tries anyway to access that knowlegde in the hope that Oma can make him forget again. Finally Daniel gets a glimpse of what it means to possess the entire knowledge of the Goa’uld.

My Opinion: “Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Strangely it’s always the humble Daniel who falls for the power and loses the empathy for his friends – just like it happened in Need. As a warning shot I liked this episode very much.

The Light

Synopsis: After the suicide of a SG member and Daniel’s try to do the same, SG-1 visits the planet where they suspect the cause of this. There they find an addicting source of light and now they’re stuck there.

My Opinion: Average episode, not much to say about it.

Prodigy

Synopsis: Carter is holding a lecture about wormhole physics at the US Air Force Academy while Jack and Teal’c babysit some scientists on a remote moon. A female cadet at the academy seems to be very gifted but she is also rebelious and faces expulsion. Carter shows her where she could go if she manages to finish the academy.

My Opinion: I really liked it when Cadet Hailey and Sam argued (scientifically) but one really sees that she has much to learn, especially about the responsibilites that come with having a command.
When she suggests to use the Zat’n'tkels again she refers to them as “Phaser things”.

Entity

Synopsis: When the M.A.L.P. (Mobile Analytic Laboratory Probe) scans a remote planet to analyse of whether it’s safe to go there it is drawn away from the Gate and into the air. Simultaneously a data stream reaches Earth that manifests itself as a program within the computers of the SGC.

My Opinion: For the second time an alien lifeform has taken over Major Carter’s body and for the second time the lifeform has to sacrifice itself for a higher purpose and has to give the control back to Carter. The scene I liked the most was when Amanda Tapping only could speak through an audio synthesizer and could only work with her facial expressions. I also liked the opposite approaches of the warriors Jack and Teal’c and the scientists Sam and Daniel.

Disc 6

Double Jeopardy

Synopsis: SG-1 comes to a planet where the inhabitants declare that they have visted before. Back then they helped to defeat Heru-ur’s troops. But now Cronus has come with a Ha’tak and claims the planet for himself. SG-1 gets caught and Daniel gets “killed”. Now the Team needs help from themselves.

My Opinion: The funny thing about this episode is that one can guess very early where this is going. The android doppelganger are still wearing the HK MP5 as weapons instead of the FN P90 that is been handed out in recent episodes. Additionally Carter is wondering why she’s refered to as “Major” and Jack mentions that there are “two” of them. When I first saw this episode I guessed that this is the real team and when Jack mentioned this I thought the androids had been the team that went there first.
I liked the episode even though it was sad that all the androids were destroyed. With the death of Cronus another Goa’uld got what he deserved.

Exodus

Synopsis: With the Ha’tak SG-1 “aquired” from Cronus they fly to the planet of the Tok’ra. The latter want to relocate their Stargate to a planet unknown to the System Lords. But there Tanith – the Goa’uld who deceived Shan’auc – must not go. But then Apophis closes in with a fleet and the Tok’ra develop a very risky plan.

My Opinion: The idea to turn a sun into a supernova with the help of a Stargate is an “interesting” plan that is hard to top.
But what attrackted my attention in this episode, was something different: It’s usual with series that at the beginning of the season some innovations are introduced that were invented by the writers during the break. In Stargate SG-1 this often happens within the last episodes although it wasn’t really necessary. For example, the Zats have been introduced in the last episode of the first season, not at the begin of the second. But they didn’t really need them back then. The Al’kesh – a Goa’uld bomber – was introduced in this episode although there could have been other ways to continue the plot.
The Ha’tak and the memory retrieval device have been introduced in a season finale but they were necessary for the plot, i.e. the plot was based upon them.

The Season – My Opinion: Surprisingly there were few direct confrontations with the Goa’uld in this season. Many episodes were playing on Earth or were related to it and the others were Planet-of-the-Week episodes. If one considers that Apophis has the control over Sokar’s fleet and is supposedly very powerful, he kept quite still. On the other hand the writer can’t find endless ways to let them both clash and SG-1 win. But I liked the Earth episodes and the PotW were mostly ok.

Stargate SG-1: Season 5

Disc 1

Into the Fire

Synopsis: Hathor has set up a quite good copy of the SGC. She wants that one of the three (Jack, Sam & Daniel) becomes a host to a Goa’uld. And General Hammond has no authority to send reinforcements to free SG-1.

My Opinion: This was a far better continuation than the first part could promise. As far as I know it was for the first time that we’ve seen a Gao’uld Death Glider (although a dated model) flying through a Stargate and it looked really cool. I also liked the fact that Teal’c tried to convince his brothers and sisters to join his path.

Seth

Synopsis: The biblical figure Seth is also a Goa’uld but he has disappeared for thousands of years. He is on the run from both the System Lords and the Tok’ra. As it turns out, Seth keeps himself hidden on Earth and is a leader of a cult. There have been “Cults of Seth” before and they always ended in the collective suicide of the worshippers.

My Opinion: I like the idea that a Goa’uld could be a cult leader and is using Goa’uld technology for this. But this episode had many logic holes and I don’t like them. For one, how Seth is able to build new ring transporters on Earth. Or where he got himself a personal forcefield, a technology that was new to Teal’c in the first season. Even the ear device with the electrical shock was implausible because it couldn’t possibly be as strong as a Zat Gun.
Interesting is the fact that the humans have increased their Goa’uld killing rate, first Hathor and now Seth.

Fair Game

Synopsis: Sam gets promoted to Major but in the moment Jack wants to congratulate her he gets beamed up to an Asgard mothership. Thor is in the orbit of Earth and he brings a warning: The Goa’uld see the Tau’ri now as a serious threat, after they rid themselves from three System Lords (Ra, Apophis & Hathor).
The Asgards plan to include Earth into the Protected Planets Treaty and for this three System Lords come to the SGC: Cronus, Nirrti and Yu.

My Opinion: One should neither poker with Jack nor with Thor. I again liked the fact that they took elements from former episodes and continued them: The protected planets from Thor’s Hammer, Nirrti from Singularity and the Re’tu from Show and Tell. Ironically the Re’tu will be mentioned again but we’ve never seen them again since Show and Tell.

Legacy

Synopsis: SG-1 finds nine death Goa’uld from the “minor league” but they can’t explain how they died. But then Daniel starts to hallicinate and hears voices. He has to go to a mental facility.

My Opinion: Again a great acting of Michael Shanks. I loved the trip to the nuthouse.

Disc 2

Learning Curve

Synopsis: On a planet that seems to be a descendant culture of the Aztecs, SG-1 meets children that are very eager to learn. A girl at eleven years explains to Sam how the Naqahdah reactor works that she has designed. Another boy wants to learn everything about the culture and the battle tactics of the Goa’uld from Teal’c. But the future of these children is rather gloomy.

My Opinion: In my opinion “Clash of Cultures” is the right term here. The Orbanians are no “bad guys”, they have just another way of living than we do. I still liked the fact that Jack followed his heart again.

Point of View

Synopsis: After Earth has been overrun by the Goa’uld, Sam and Major Kawalski have to escape through the dimension mirror – into our world – and they ask for asylum. Suddenly there are two Sams and that leads to unexpected side-effects.

My Opinion: Jack & Sam. I like it when they hint to that possibility during the run of the series but never actually realize it due to the rules set by the US military. The toying with alternate realities is always interesting, as it is this time. I also liked that they kept Teal’c’s face in the shadows to not to spoil the gag. BTW: The beards of Apophis and Teal’c were a reference of the producers to Spock’s beard in the mirror universe.

Deadman Switch

Synopsis: SG-1 is caught by a bounty hunter who wants to trade them to the System Lord Sokar. But he offers them a deal: If they help him to catch the Goa’uld Kel’tar they are free to go. But Kel’tar isn’t who he seems to be.

My Opinion: Sam J. Jones (Flash Gordon, The Highwayman) may not be a good actor but I like him anyway. He has a dry from of humour that I like.
When the transport ship (Tel’tak) decloaked I felt strongly reminded of the first time a holodeck door opened in the middle of a landscape. I still like this effect very much.

Demons

Synopsis: In a village that seems to be based on a middle ages christian society is a woman that is to be sacrificed to a demon. She is supsected to be possessed but is just ill. SG-1 prevents the sacrifice but subsequently gets into trouble. The word demon is not randomly chosen this time: The Demon is an Unas in service of Sokar.

My Opinion: I am very bad at recognizing faces, if I haven’t seen someone several times I don’t recognize him/her. But in the moment I saw Simon I knew it’s the same actor as the prosecutor in Cor-ai and I was right: both were played by David McNally.
As for the episode: I didn’t like it that much because I didn’t like the explanation of how a middle ages christian society can be found on another planet.

Disc 3

Rules of Engagement

Synopsis: SG-1 meets an unidentified SG team that is under heavy fire by Jaffa. But the moment they want to help them they get shot by the “SG team”. As it turns out are both “SG team” and “Jaffa” humans on a training mission under the order of Apophis. No one there knows that Apophis is dead and SG-1 has to explain that their mission is no more.

My Opinion: These soldiers (who are no Jaffa) strongly reminded me of the “Volkssturm“, being the last resort of Apophis. I was glad that SG-1 could show them the futility of their mission without causing too many casualties.

Forever in a Day

Synopsis: Some of the Abydosians – including Daniel’s father-in-law – have been captured by Amonet who has also retaken her and Apophis’s child. When SG-1 attempts to free the Abydosians, Teal’c is forced to kill Amonet/Sha’re who in turn was trying to kill Daniel. But Sha’re manages to send one last message to her husband.

My Opinion: This was a very good ending to the Amonet/Sha’re storyline. They gave her a worthy exit that remended me positively of Angel’s You’re Welcome. And now Daniel has a new mission: to find the child of Apophis and Amonet, the child that has all the knowledge of the Goa’ulds.

Past and Present

Synopsis: SG-1 comes to a planet that has neither elders nor children. And all the other people have lost all their memories one year ago. Hints indicate that this could be the work of Linea, the Destroyer of Worlds (Prisoners), who SG-1 has inadvertently freed. It’s also not impossible that she is still on the planet.

My Opinion: Another good episode. Can a person have a change of heart? Hasn’t Teal’c already proven that it’s possible? I liked it.

Jolinar’s Memories

Synopsis: Jacob/Selmak has been captured. He is held prisoner by Sokar – who imposes the devil instead of a god – on a moon (Ne’tu) that literally has been turned into hell. Sokar plans a massive assault on the System Lords and Jacob/Selmak has inside knowledge. The problem is: There is only one person who has ever managed to esape from Ne’tu: Jolinar of Malkshur.

My Opinion: These Goa’ulds just don’t know when they are supposed to have died. Apophis is back! Actually I like it, Apophis is a worthy opponent and his new mask looks “good”. A very thrilling cliffhanger. Can’t wait to see the conclusion.

Disc 4

The Devil You Know

Synopsis: SG-1 is in hell. Their plan to escape didn’t work after Apophis had unexpectedly risen from the dead. And he needs a dead pledge to prevent Sokar from executing him. But the Tok’ra have also a plan B: They intend to blow up Ne’tu.

My Opinion: Cool continuation. Apophis managed to save his skin again. I also liked the hallucination sequences due to the “Blood of Sokar”.

Foothold

Synopsis: After SG-1 returns from a mission something strange happens: Teal’c awakes in the infirmary and overhears a conversation between General Hammond and an unknown alien. There are two possibilities: Either the base has been overtaken or they have been exposed to a dangerous chemical that causes hallucinations.

My Opinion: When I watched the episode for the first time, until a certain point it was unclear to me which one is the truth, especially with the argument between Jack and Maybourne. What I like about such disguise devices is that they can actually change the size and form of a person.

Pretense

Synopsis: Klorel crashes with a Death Glider on the Tollan homeworld. For a short moment, Skaara is in control of his body and he asks the Tollans for help. They agree to hear both sides.

My Opinion: A great episode. I love episodes with court hearings, especially when you could agree with both sides. I also liked the split where Daniel argues with logic and Jack with his heart. I thought this episode stands in one row with Star Trek TNG’s The Measure of a Man. Regrettably we haven’t seen Omac (Enigma) again.

Urgo

Synopsis: SG-1 can’t remember being on a planet for 15 hours. But then they find a microscopic device implanted into their brains. It generates an audio-visual hologram that only SG-1 can see and hear: Urgo.

My Opinion: Dom DeLuise (Cannonball Run, father of Peter DeLuise) is too funny as Urgo. I had a really good laugh, it was a great fun episode.

Disc 5

A Hundred Days

Synopsis: Every year the planet Edora crosses a meteorite belt. Every 150 years the planet comes too close and the meteorites impact on the planet causing chaos and destruction. Now this year has come again and SG-1 tries to evacuate the small population. But then a meteorite hit buries the Stargate and Jack is stuck on the planet.

My Opinion: While I liked the episode I would have liked it more when Jack’s conflict had been larger. The end should have been longer and Jack Jack shouldn’t have decided that quickly. After all, we know he likes a quiet life and he lives one on Earth.

Shades of Grey

Synopsis: After Jack has stolen a device from the Tollans that can disable Goa’uld weapons, General Hammond sends him into retirement. But he doesn’t stay retired for very long, because suddenly Maybourne visits him and makes an unrefuseable offer.

My Opinion: The infiltration of an organization is a difficult process. Jack’s change of heart never felt real and Maybourne was very naïve He swallowed the bait too quickly, especially when he should know Jack and his moral standards. It would have been better to make a non-SG-1 episode from the POV of an unknown person and letting him be the bait.

New Ground

Synopsis: Two scientists excavate a weird ring and they have no idea what it is. But then the rings starts to glow and it opens a portal – through that SG-1 comes. Unfortunately would the existance of the Stargate prove that the people of an enemy continent are right about the origins of the people of this planet.But both continents wage war because of this “difference of opinion”.

My Opinion: A very good episode about dogmas and those who can’t let go of them.

Maternal Instinct

Synopsis: Apophis devastates the planet Chulak because he want revenge and he is on the search for his and Amonet’s child – the Harsesis that has all the knowledge of the Goa’ulds. But Harsesis is hidden on Kheb, a planet the System Lords know nothing about. But with hints from both Jaffa history and Earth mythology SG-1 manages to find Kheb – and Harsesis.

My Opinion: “Don’t believe that you can light the candle. Believe that Oma Desala can light the candle.” It took Daniel a while to understand that. The episode was ok but I didn’t care much for the Harsesis arc in general.

Disc 6

Crystal Skull

Synopsis: SG-1 discovers a crystal skull within a huge pyramid. Such a skull has been found on Earth by Nick Ballard – Daniel’s grandfather. But then the skull emits an energy field and Daniel is shifted out of phase. Nobody can see or hear him anymore. SG-1 needs the help of Nick to find out what happened to Daniel.

My Opinion: One can really imagine that Nick could be Daniel’s grandpa. I think they did a great job with the conversations between Daniel and Nick, before Daniel realizes that Nick can actually see and hear him. They work as monologue as well as as dialogue. (Loads of “as” here!)

Nemesis

Synopsis: Thor’s ship, the Beliskner, has been taken over by the Replicators. The Replicators are the enemies from Thor’s galaxy, of whom he has reported earlier. They are a mechanical lifeform which primary objective is to reproduce. For that they literally eat Thor’s ship. The Replicators have brought the Beliskner to Earth and they plan to land. SG-1 has to prevent that.

My Opinion: Spectacular crash. If humans are good at one thing, then it is to destroy things. I liked it a lot.

The Season – My Opinion: The storyline that began it all has come to an end: Sha’re is dead and Skaara is free again. Only Apophis is still terrorizing the neighbourhood. There have been weaker episodes again, but as I said before I don’t believe in a perfect season. But the season had a lot of interesting episodes, especially some that started new storylines.

Season 4