I doubt there is much I can say about this episode that hasn’t been said before. Just about everyone considers it a favorite, so let’s make this an interactive post. List your favorite moment in the comment section.
If you don’t participate, Jack will lose it. “It means go crazy, nuts, insane, bonzo, no longer in possession of ones faculties, three fries short of a happy meal, WACKO.”
My Rating: 10/10
“I don’t know, Carter, you may not be dumb enough.”
How much did I like this episode? So much that I can forgive the producers for that blonde thing growing on Teal’c’s chin.
The surviving Replicator we saw at the end of “Nemesis” boarded a Russian submarine and killed the crew. Fearing an international incident, the US government picked up the abandoned sub and towed it to a harbor. Despite Jack’s advice, the military wanted to study the bugs and ordered a reconnaissance mission. The mission did not go well.
In the meantime, Thor arrived at the SGC looking for a few dumb ideas. An Asgard homeworld was about to be invaded by Replicators, and they hoped human strategy and ingenuity might be able to overcome their technological limitations. Sam was sent on the field trip.
Daniel spent most of this episode watching monitors, but he also realized the Replicators on the submarine were made out of steel. Which meant they would short circuit and corrode in the seawater. If the lone Replicator that survived the crash could be destroyed, the rest of the bugs could be eliminated with a torpedo.
Jack and Teal’c volunteered for the new mission. They managed to kill the motherbug, but the other Replicators were not happy. Trapped on the ship with no escape, Jack ordered the destruction of the sub while they was on board. The torpedoes were launched.
After learning that Thor likes the yellow ones, Sam devised a plan to save the Asgard. She convinced Thor to send his newest ship, the O’Neill, into hyperspeed and allow the Replicator controlled ships to chase it. Much to Jack’s dismay, the O’Neill was set to self-destruct. The explosion was large enough to destroy the Replicators, because they lowered their shield to follow it.
Back on Earth, Thor beamed Jack and Teal’c out of the submarine just before it went kaboom. The bugs were squashed in both galaxies, but it was just a small victory against an imposing foe. The Replicators will be back.
A couple more things:
My Rating: 10/10
“Me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me…”
I love this episode. Every time I watch it, I have a goofy smile on my face from the time Teal’c chugged his coffee to the very end. The show was so well done and so silly that I’m tempted to watch it again right now.
The most important event in this episode might have been that we saw Sam eat blue jello for the first time. Yummy. There was a lot of pie, too.
I love how Sam grew attached to Urgo. It’s so fitting with her personality. We should meet her Uncle Irving.
Here’s a partial list of my favorite Urgo-isms:
My Rating: 10/10
Apophis is amazing. The guy was promoted from assistant hell boy to leader of the most powerful fleet in the galaxy in the course of a few days. I bet his first official action was to change into a gold outfit.
It’s a shame Sokar couldn’t stick around longer. He had a lot of screen presence and was super creepy. Even his Jaffa were cool. I wonder if he was related to the veiny-headed kid from “Show and Tell.”
I thought the torture scenes were well done. The casting department did an unbelievable job picking out the young Sam, and it was neat to learn more about her background. However, Charlie looked much older than the last time we saw him. It was great to see Daniel throw a punch, and Martouf had me convinced when he told Apophis the location of the Tok’ra.
This was also a good episode for silly Jack comments. My favorite line was, “…they gave me something that reminded me of the ‘70’s.”
If I was in charge of the script, I would have been tempted to have Jack say, “Let's get the Hell out of… umm, Hell.” But I’m a sucker for bad puns.
My Rating: 10/10
Martouf always shows up with bad news. He arrived at the SGC to inform Sam that Sokar had captured her father. Jacob was sent to hell, and only Jolinar’s memories could save him.
We saw Jolinar’s previous host and Sokar for the first time in this episode. Sokar looked a cross between the guy from Hellraiser and Billy Corgan. Apparently, the devil does not own nail clippers. Jolinar was cute and one tough cookie.
The dreaded “To Be Continued” popped on the screen moments after Apophis killed Bynarr and revealed himself. In the comments from “Serpent’s Song,” Aabye compared Apophis to a bad houseguest. And just like a bad houseguest, he keeps showing up when you think he’s gone. This time, he was wearing a Phantom of the Opera mask.
Was anyone else grossed out by the yellow, gooey stuff leaking from Bynarr’s eye? Yuck.
My Rating: 10/10
This episode is one of my perennial favorites. There was practically no action in it, but the plot was compelling, dramatic, humorous, and uplifting. I always felt like this episode defined the ultimate story arc for the series. It made the show about something grander than just blowing up evil spacemen and gave the audience hope for the future. Yes, I’m gushing.
Jack managed to get his head stuck in an Ancient Repository of Knowledge. After he passed out and was transported back to Earth, he seemed to be his normal, grumpy self. However, he slowly started to use alien words within his normal speech. He then reprogrammed the base’s computer system to add a set of new stargate addresses and built what appeared to be a humming nightlight.
Jack had little control over his actions, and he eventually lost the ability to communicate. As the computer automatically started to dial an eight-symbol address, Jack hooked his nightlight into the base’s electric system. The extra power allowed him to travel to a different galaxy for help.
Jack made contact with the Asgard, who removed the overwhelming information from his head. They explained that humans had great potential and were impressed that Jack could subconsciously control the Ancient database. They even suggested that humans could one day join the Asgard, the Nox, the Ancients, and the Furlings as the fifth race.
The little moments were great in this episode, too. Teal’c learned about boxing while Jack danced around in a codpiece. Daniel and Jack had one of their silly “No, I didn’t/ Yes, you did” moments, but you also saw how much Daniel cared for and trusted Jack. And I loved the little shoulder shrug Jack gave Sam when his plans fixed the DHD.
My Rating: 10/10
“Carter, if someone comes in here, you bite them in the hand.”
Things weren’t looking good when we last saw SG-1. Luckily, Bra’tac showed up. Sure, he thumped Jack in the face and kept calling him “human,” but he freed the team from certain death.
Apophis stalled his attack while waiting for Klorel to heal. This gave Samuels time to implement his brilliant plan that would surely work. Of course, the plan failed. I honestly thought General Hammond was going to kidney punch Samuels each time they were on screen together.
So it was up to SG-1 to save the world. Daniel got shot in the process and was left for dead. The rest of the team managed to blow up both of Apophis’s ships at the same time while sneaking away in death gliders.
Daniel took a quick nap in a sarcophagus and made a last second exit through the ship’s stargate. While their fate wasn’t shown, Apophis and Klorel also attempted to escape. Did they make it out? I guess we’ll find out later.
My Rating: 10/10
“This is meaning of life stuff.”
Wow, everything about this episode was so good. There was a great team dynamic, the story about Ernest was intriguing, the element room was beautiful, and there were a number of touching and humorous moments woven into the story. Hell, Sam even looked a little bit cuter than she normally does. I loved this episode.
It starts with Daniel watching experiments the government did on the gate in 1945. To his surprise, they managed to activate and send a scientist through the gate fifty years ago. He decides to ask Katherine why she didn’t tell him about this before.
Katherine didn’t know the 1945 experiments had succeeded or that her fiancé, Ernest Littlefield, was the one who went through the gate. She was told Ernest died in an accident and the program was shut down. With the old film footage, the team is able to determine where Ernest went. Then they convinced General Hammond to let Katherine accompany them on the mission.
The emotions were just right throughout this episode. Katherine was excited about seeing Ernest again, but her excitement was tempered by the somber reality of his disappearance. The interactions between Jack and Daniel were great examples of each character’s best attributes. Jack was a pragmatist and thought about the team’s safety, while Daniel was captivated by the possibilities of their discovery. Poor Ernest could hardly believe his visitors were real and saved Daniel from making his mistake. Sam and Teal’c were involved in some comical moments that nicely counterbalanced the poignant story.
Yes, this was classic Stargate SG-1.
My Rating: 10/10
