Stargate SG-1, Season 3, Episode 8

"Demons"

images used above are courtesy of Gateworld and MGM

Overall Rating:  Poor

SG-1 investigates an off world medieval, European, Christian village.  The place is definitely not anyone’s version of a cheerful village of yore.  Small, muddy, with little beauty, and its population suffocating under the weight of desperation, and fear.  When the team enters the village, the people scatter and hide.  Near the center of the village, SG-1 finds a woman chained to a post.  She is ill, and slated to be a sacrifice because the villagers believe that demons cause disease.  Unlike today’s society, where people know that diseases are not caused by demons; diseases are sent by demons to the unworthy.  These days, we are much more enlightened, and evolved.  [insert ceremonial chanting, warding and gestures here]

The demon comes to the village, looking for sacrifices.  SG-1 recognizes the demon as being an Unas (“Thor’s Hammer”), a humanoid reptilian species thought to come from the original home planet of the Goa’uld symbiotes.  Not a minion of the Satan, just a minion of that satanic poseur wannabe, the Goa’uld Sokar (“Serpent’s Song”).  The villagers torture Teal’c to prove he is in league with demons.  They live their lives covered in fear and mud, so this makes sense to them.  SG-1 eventually battles the demon, Unas, actor in a bad costume, but no one cares because they have fallen asleep watching this episode.

The story crawls along at a slow pace, completely devoid of suspense, or intrigue.  No one shines in this episode.  The Unas’ face looks like an immobile plastic mask, a rare failure for the make-up department.  David McNally portrays Simon the soft-spoken, milquetoast zealot, with the heart of a budding psychopath, and dead eyes.  Mr. McNally previously portrayed Hanno in “Cor-Ai.”

All in all, a boring, very skippable episode.

Failures:
Goa’uld can jump hosts, literally, yet everyone runs up to an injured host, and leans closely over them.  Too bad the Goa’uld didn’t jump out, slither, and bounce on everyone leaning over the host.  That would have meant one good moment in the episode.