Stargate SG-1, Season 7, Episode 19

"Resurrection"

images used above are courtesy of Gateworld and MGM

Overall Rating:  Very Good

Commentary by:

Amanda Tapping — Director and Samantha Carter
Will Waring — Camera Operator

The commentary is very informative and interesting.   Lots of behind the scene information.   The commentary stays on point with what is on screen.

Review:  

At an abandoned industrial complex in Los Angeles, CA, there are a lot of military and civilian personnel in the vicinity.  Agent Barrett (”Smoke and Mirrors”) exits the complex as 3/4 of SG-1 pull up to the location in an SUV.  O’Neill is still recovering from injuries he received in “Heroes: Part 2” so is not present.  SG-1 wonders why they are there.  Barrett explains that the N.I.D. has been on the hunt for rogue N.I.D. sleeper cells, and Agent Barrett got wind of this place.  There are 32 casualties at the location.  SG-1 is taken to the perpetrator of the carnage — a calm but scared young woman locked in a cell made of a thick, clear material.

Barrett says they know the young woman did it because video shows her offing nearly everyone at that location.  There are also many video tapes labeled “Anna,” and are of the woman in the cage.  Anna was roaming around loose when the N.I.D. team arrived, Barrett demonstrated a lot of good sense by locking her up in the cage, one Anna says is where she was kept.  She says she has no memory of what happened.  There is only one survivor of her murder spree, a scientist named Keffler.  Then, Barrett shows SG-1 why they were called.  There’s a storeroom filled with small "a" ancient artifacts, including items related to a Goa’uld named Sekhmet.  Daniel and Teal’c stay in the room to check out the artifacts.  Carter and Barrett go to talk to Keffler.

Keffler is a smarmy one, neither intimidated by Barrett or Carter, nor being real forthcoming with information.  He knows he has the upper hand since no one else knows what happened, including Anna.  Leaving Keffler be for now, Barrett takes Carter to a lab further into the complex.  The creepy just keeps getting creepier as we see numerous clear canisters with deformed somethings in them.  Carter hacks into the nearby computer within seconds (sigh).  Barrett returns to Teal’c and Jackson to see what they’ve learned.  And that’s not much.  A lot of Sekhmet’s stuff, but nothing to explain what happened.  Daniel is given the task to get Anna to talk, because as Barrett says, Jackson has, “ … a knack for this type of thing.”  He's not wrong.  Anna is willing to speak with Daniel, although she continues to say that she doesn’t know what happened.  She only knows that Keffler made her, something made believable by what’s in the lab and Keffler’s unctuous with a side of soulless mad scientist vibe.

A young woman seemingly grown in a lab, paired with a scientist who acts like everyone else is potentially something he’ll experiment on, and a fair sprinkling of Goa’uld related artifacts is the basis for a good story.  But, wait.  There’s more.  The truth about Anna and Keffler is quite surprising, and ties into a threat that could kill millions of people.

A really good story, with a unique twist.  There are revelations that uncover an Earth bound side of things that’s not often shown.  Last seen in “Smoke and Mirrors,” the rogue N.I.D. organization is still operating, allegedly with the intent to make Earth humans safer but actually just causing problems.  I think a stargate based TV series revolving around the N.I.D. going after rogue N.I.D. operations could have worked.  Keeping elements of Stargate SG-1, while looking at things from a different, murkier aspect.

Kristen Dalton as Anna, and doing a nice job portraying Anna’s many facets.  Brad Greenquist as Dr. Keffler.  Mr. Greenquist’s talent is such that Keffler is a special kind of disturbing, while being a believable character not a broad parody.  Micheal Shanks as Daniel Jackson, Amanda Tapping as Samantha Carter, and Christopher Judge as Teal’c all provide good performances.  Bill Dow returns as Dr. Lee (”Heroes: Part 1”).

Failures:

While it’s explained how Agent Barrett and the not rogue N.I.D. arrived at the industrial complex — they intercepted a phone call from the location, why they knew that the situation was in their bailiwick before getting there is not explained.

Stargate SG-1, Season 7, Episode 18

"Heroes: Part 2"

images used above are courtesy of Gateworld and MGM

Overall Rating:  Good

Commentary by:

Andy Mikita — Director
Robert C. Cooper — Writer and Executive Producer
Andy Wilson — Director of Photography

The commentary is very informative and interesting.   Lots of behind the scene information.   The commentary stays on point with what is on screen.

Review:  

Continuing immediately after the events of “Heroes: Part 1,” SG teams are sent off world to help SG-13 with their wounded.  The documentary filming is still going on, although they are not allowed to travel through the stargate.  Back at SGC, it’s revealed that one of the regularly appearing Stargate SG-1 characters is dead, killed off world.

Failures:

A regular character is gone, from what I understand in order to see how the other characters deal with loss.  Thing is, there have been SGC characters killed off on Stargate SG-1 before.  And, the surviving characters had to deal with those losses.  Sometimes, background characters, starting within the first few minutes of Stargate SG-1’s initial episode, “Children of the Gods.”  “Meridian” was meant to be, and treated like, Daniel Jackson’s swan song.  O’Neill was ready to let an entire planet’s population starve because some SG personnel were killed in “Red Sky.”  We've seen Stargate SG-1 characters sacrifice, and grieve for lives lost, before.  Nothing was added to Stargate SG-1 by the events of “Heroes: Parts 1 and 2.”  I rate this episode as good based solely on the actors performances, the effects, and the sets.

Stargate SG-1, Season 7, Episode 17

"Heroes: Part 1"

images used above are courtesy of Gateworld and MGM

Overall Rating:  Good

Commentary by:

Andy Mikita — Director
Andy Wilson — Director of Photography

The commentary is very informative and interesting.   Lots of behind the scene information.   The commentary stays on point with what is on screen.

Review:  

A documentary about the stargate program is commissioned by the President of the United States of America.   A film crew is allowed in SGC to get their story.  The reaction by SGC staff to being interviewed is a mixed bag, with some taking the requirement to participate better than others.  Meanwhile, off world, an SG team comes under attack by Jaffa forces.

Failures:

I have a difficult time not mentally tuning out during this episode, despite excellent performances by the regular cast and guest stars.  Primarily due to my lack of interest in watching stargate personnel being interviewed, even by the admittedly charismatic Emmett Bregman as portrayed by the talented Saul Rubinek, a favorite actor of mine.  As far as the story, I’m never sold on the premise of a civilian as part of a documentary team and being allowed so much access to SGC and its past missions.

Stargate SG-1, Season 7, Episode 16

"Death Knell"

images used above are courtesy of Gateworld and MGM

Overall Rating:  Excellent

Commentary by:

Amanda Tapping — Samatha Carter
Peter DeLuise — Director

The commentary is very informative and interesting.   Lots of behind the scene information.   The commentary stays on point with what is on screen.

Review:  

In “Allegiance,” SGC had an off world site named Alpha site.  The site’s location was secret, an emergency locale in case something like the events in “There But For the Grace of God” happened, and because having a buffer between Earth and whatever SG teams find off world is long overdue good sense.  “The Warrior” lead to many Free Jaffa moving to the Alpha site.  Then, in “Allegiance,” an off world attack lead to many Tok’ra also moving to the Alpha site.  The secret Alpha site is no longer secret after Anubis used a mind probe on Jonas Quinn (”Fallen”.)  Since then, SGC set up another Alpha site at a new secret location.

Jacob/Selmak (”Evolution: Part 2”) and Sam are at the new Alpha site, working on a prototype weapon to defeat Kull warriors, the beings formerly known as Super Soldiers (”Evolution: Part 2”).  I called them Bibs (beings in black), Carter called them Super Soldiers, and Anubis calls them Kull warriors.  Since Anubis created them, he gets final say on their name.  Suddenly, the Alpha site is under attack, and an evacuation is ordered.

Twenty minutes later, back at SGC, General Hammond briefs Daniel, Teal’c and O’Neill about the attack on the Alpha site.  It was perpetrated by Goa’uld ships.  Many folks successfully evacuated from the Alpha site to the Beta site, but around 90 of them are still missing.  A MALP is being prepped to send to the Alpha site.  O’Neill says what they all are likely wondering: how did the attacking Goa’uld ships find the Alpha site.  The MALP shows that the Alpha site stargate is now lying on its side, and buried under debris that the stargate wormhole’s ka-whoosh partially removed.  General Hammond gives a go to check out the Alpha site for survivors.  It appears that the Alpha site’s desolation came from the site’s self-destruct protocol, not from an enemy attack.  A piece of Kull warrior armor is found in the rubble.  A few surviving SG team members, Free Jaffa, and Tok’ra are found, as is a badly injured Jacob/Selmak.  Sam Carter is missing.

O’Neill, Teal’c, and some fresh SG teams continue to search the Alpha site for survivors.  Daniel remains at SGC with Jacob/Selmak, as General Hammond investigates how Anubis found the Alpha site by questioning surviving SG members, Free Jaffa, and Tok’ra.  

Back at SGC, Jacob/Selmak relates as much as he knows about what happened.  Not only does he confirm that the Alpha site was attacked by Kull warriors, but that Sam and Jacob/Selmak were specifically targeted — as the ones working on the prototype weapon to use against Kull warriors.  Sam had the prototype weapon’s power unit, while Jacob/Selmak has the weapon itself.  As far as Jacob/Selmak knows she is on the run somewhere in hills surrounding the Alpha site.

Sam is alive, though badly injured, and being hunted by a Kull warrior.  At SGC, General Hammond is hunting down how the Alpha site’s location was revealed to Anubis.  Hammond’s inquiries brings many things to light, including the Free Jaffa and Tok’ra’s simmering resentment and anger towards each other, and towards SGC.  An allegiance between the three groups  based on a common enemy — the Goa’uld — is a lot shakier than believed.  The Alpha site attack may destroy the tenuous alliance of the SGC Taur’i, the Tok’ra, and the Free Jaffa.  Meanwhile, Sam, and the best hope for defeating Anubis’ Kull warriors, are being relentlessly tracked down off world.

This is an outstanding episode.  The bare bones of the story seems sparse, however it reveals much of what has been going on between the three allied groups.  There wasn't a behind the scenes happily ever after.  Whether at the SGC, or on the Alpha site planet, the story forges on with a steady pace, building towards a potentially grim end.  The effects are wonderful.  Costuming and make-up are excellent.  Amanda Tapping is fantastic as Carter desperately tries to stay a step ahead of the Kull warrior.  Don S. Davis’s portrayal of General Hammond is perfect, balancing the determination to uncover the facts, while not taking any nonsense from anyone.  Carmen  Argenziano is again great as he flips between being Jacob and being Selmak.  Sebastian Spence as Dalek, exhibiting that Tok’ra snideness and arrogance oh, so well.  Mark Gibbon as M’zel, a Free Jaffa.  I love me some Teal’c and Bra’tac, still it is nice to see other faces as part of the Free Jaffa movement.  Mr. Gibbon does a splendid job.  The rest of the cast does a very job, too.  Dan Payne returns as the Kull warrior, again demonstrating the skill to act through layers of costuming.

Failures:

None.

Stargate SG-1, Season 7, Episode 15

"Chimera"

images used above are courtesy of Gateworld and MGM

Overall Rating:  Very Good

Commentary by:

Will Waring — Director
Peter F. Woeste — Director of Photography
Damian Kindler — Writer

The commentary is informative and interesting.   It starts after the “previously on” segment.  The commentary stays on point with what is on screen.

Review:  

The episode opens with Daniel in a sunny apartment stuffed chock-a-block full of small “a” ancient artifacts.  Dr. Sarah Gardener is also there.  Hold on a minute.  The Goa’uld Osiris infested Sarah in “The Curse.”  Oh, wait.  Now we see Daniel asleep in his home during the night, with something that looks like the memory recall device Anubis used on Jonas Quinn in “Homecoming” stuck on his head, and Osiris is sitting nearby.  A Goa'uld specifically targeting Daniel, rather than, you know, devastating Earth.  Something nefarious is afoot.

In the next scene, we learn that Sam has a boyfriend.  His name is Pete Shanahan and he is a police detective.  Pete does not know about the stargate program.  The two enjoy their time together.  The next night, Daniel continues having happy (”G” rated happy) dreams about Sarah, not knowing that for some reason Osiris is involved in his having these specific dreams.

Pete is not buying Sam’s excuses about her work.  He exhibits some very creepy stalker behavior by using his connections in the police department to check Carter’s background.  Ew.  Sam, unaware of Pete’s “worthy of a restraining order and a face full of pepper spray” goings on, is concerned with how to balance being close to someone while having to lie about her job.  Meanwhile, it turns out that Osiris is manipulating Daniel’s mind in order to get information about the Ancient’s Lost City (”Fallen”).

Osiris goes off script with Sarah's behavior, and Daniel becomes suspicious.  He begins to think something else is happening, not just memory bits from his time as an Ascended being worked out while he sleeps.  Daniel has been talking about his dreams with his SG-1 teammates.  Teal’c mentions that the Goa’uld have technology that will explore a person’s memory.  Well, yes.  Osiris is on team Anubis, and as mentioned, there's what happened to Quinn in “Homecoming.”  They figure Osiris is on Earth.

Pete continues creeping on Sam, including secretly following her.  SGC sets a trap for Osiris.

Anna-Louise Plowman returns as Dr. Sarah Gardener/Osiris (”Revelations”).  Ms. Plowman's portrayal of Osiris is a favorite of mine, as she captures the arrogance and ruthlessness of an ex-System Lord Goa’uld in a delightful mix.  David DeLuise (brother of Peter DeLuise who directed a number of Stargate SG-1 episodes) as Pete Shanahan.  Both actors do a fine job, as does the regular cast.

Failures:

Sam Carter continues to get done wrong by writers when it comes to romance.  At least this time it isn’t a “love at first sight” alien.  But, it is someone who is comfortable exhibiting some very sketchy, and likely illegal, behavior towards her.  I think Sam could do, and deserves, better.

Daniel doubts his dreams because Sarah is nice about a situation in a dream that made her angry in real life.  Since he still thinks it’s all a dream, why would that make him so suspicious?