My Journey through Stargate SG1 - episode by episode.

[TryWhistlingThis]

I think what's the most interesting about this episode is the interaction between Jack and Daniel. Their opposing views on certain things really get explored in this episode and I think that's the best part about it.

I like that too but in this episode I felt that it played out much the same as they had done so in the past. Nothing in the tension between them felt new.

[jelgate]

Jack always creeps me out in this episode where he decides the Enkarians lives are more importat then the Gadmer.

[The Mighty 6 platoon]

Jack always creeps me out in this episode where he decides the Enkarians lives are more importat then the Gadmer.

I agreed with him actually. The Enkerans were there, now and alive. The Gadmeer weren't. I heard that they had originally planned a much darker ending where SG1 convinces Lotan to destroy the ship. The happy ending of being able to find the original planet felt a little too convenient to me and a bit of a cop out to the moral quandary presented in the ep.

[Petra]

I like that too but in this episode I felt that it played out much the same as they had done so in the past. Nothing in the tension between them felt new.

I think that the main difference is in the moral dilemma. In "The Other Side" it was very much a black/white issue with Daniel clearly right and Jack clearly wrong. This time the lines are blurry because *both* Jack and Daniel have valid points and reasons for making the choices they do and neither is completely right nor completely wrong.

Jack always creeps me out in this episode where he decides the Enkarians lives are more importat then the Gadmer.

I don't think he decided that the lives of Enkarans were more important; IMO he didn't give much thought to such philosophical dilemma at all. I think he chose Enkarans because in a way they were *his* people and Gadmeer weren't. He felt responsible for the Enkarans; the SGC had promised to help them and SG teams had been looking for a suitable planet for months and when it was finally found and the relocation was completed the Gadmeer showed up. It wouldn't be like Jack to leave these people behind in such situation.

[jelgate]

I agreed with him actually. The Enkerans were there, now and alive. The Gadmeer weren't. I heard that they had originally planned a much darker ending where SG1 convinces Lotan to destroy the ship. The happy ending of being able to find the original planet felt a little too convenient to me and a bit of a cop out to the moral quandary presented in the ep.

Being there first doesn't mean thier claim to live is any more important then the Gadmer. But just to play Devil's Advocate it could be argued the Enkarians were 2nd because the Gadmer ship scanned the planet before the Enkarians.

I don't think he decided that the lives of Enkarans are more important; IMO he didn't gave much thought to such philosophical dilemma at all. I think he chose Enkarans because in a way they were *his* people and Gadmeer weren't. He felt responsible for the Enkarans; the SGC had promised to help them and SG teams had been looking for a suitable planet for months and when it was finally found and the relocation was completed the Gadmeer showed up. It wouldn't be like Jack to leave these people behind in such situation.

Negliengence to me is the same as choosing one side. He didn't even consider the Gadmer position. Thier is something wrong to me not considering both sides when a race of people is considered.

[Petra]

Negliengence to me is the same as choosing one side. He didn't even consider the Gadmer position. Thier is something wrong to me not considering both sides when a race of people is considered.

Well, there's Jack for you And coincidentally the proof that he's never been a spotless hero but a fallible human who could be biased and make mistakes.

[jelgate]

Well, there's Jack for you And coincidentally the proof that he's never been a spotless hero but a fallible human who could be biased and make mistakes.

Never said he wasn't biased or never made mistakes just that his actions in that episode disturbed me

[The Mighty 6 platoon]

Never said he wasn't biased or never made mistakes just that his actions in that episode disturbed me

He chose a very natural position, especially for someone in the military. The Enkerans, as Petra points out, where his responsibility. He was responsible for their safety, and for the mess they were in. He was prepared to do what he had to in order to protect them, even if that meant he had to get his hands dirty, if it meant he could keep them safe. He'd pay for the consequences of his own actions, rather than let the Enkerans pay.

[jelgate]

He chose a very natural position, especially for someone in the military. The Enkerans, as Petra points out, where his responsibility. He was responsible for their safety, and for the mess they were in. He was prepared to do what he had to in order to protect them, even if that meant he had to get his hands dirty, if it meant he could keep them safe. He'd pay for the consequences of his own actions, rather than let the Enkerans pay.

The genocide of a one race seems a lot more then getting your hand dirty. I like a moral ambigulaity but the killing of a whole species is more then just being a little dark even for a military commandar.

[The Mighty 6 platoon]

The genocide of a one race seems a lot more then getting your hand dirty. I like a moral ambigulaity but the killing of a whole species is more then just being a little dark even for a military commandar.

But the Gadameer were already dead, as far as Jack is concerned. And even if they were still alive fully, and refused to back down, I think Jack would still seek their destruction, because the alternative is the genocide of the Enkerans. Without the Daniel solution, this would be what'd I do.

[jelgate]

But the Gadameer were already dead, as far as Jack is concerned. And even if they were still alive fully, and refused to back down, I think Jack would still seek their destruction, because the alternative is the genocide of the Enkerans. Without the Daniel solution, this would be what'd I do.

Just because we can't comprehend them because thier species was different does not mean they were. And the genocide is not the problem. The problem is he did not even consider them. He showed no lack of caring about all their death because he had no personal relation to the race. Thats wrong to me. To not even consider what thier lives mean

[TryWhistlingThis]

4.10 - Beneath the Surface

This was an interesting mix of episodes (which I believe came after when this was filmed) from other shows. Namely, Star Trek: Voyager's Workforce meets Doctor Who's Gridlock. The setup of the episode was terrific by just throwing you into the middle of it. In some ways, that aspect also reminded me of another Voyager episode, The Chute which placed two senior officers in a scenario not totally unlike the one seen in this Stargate episode.

Sometimes the pacing was a little slow but it was the type of episode where it had to be given that they were reconstructing their thoughts and trying to come to grips with their true identity. Very enjoyable though.

4 out of 5

[jelgate]

Actually this episode came a few months before Voyager did Workforce

[TryWhistlingThis]

4.11 - Point of No Return

I love it when episodes like these deviate from just the stock standard "good versus evil" type scenario and hold a mirror up to the morality and ethics of humans. I liked the parallels between the humans and the aliens here because at the end of the day they both wanted something and more or less went about it in the same way. I really don't have too much more to say, it truly was the perfect episode from a directorial, writing and performance point of view. It felt very much like an episode of The X-Files or Fringe. I'm adding this one to one to the classics collection. So far, there's only two in the entire series that has earned this grading.

Best of all, it also leaves open a few arcs to be resolved. Hopefully they'll revisit these characters at least once more in future episodes.

6 out of 5

[TryWhistlingThis]

4.12 - Tangent

This was one of the more predictable episodes of the series. I knew early on that if O'Neil and Teal'c couldn't be transported out the only other way to get them out was by means of an ejector seat. This kind of happened, it may as well have been since they ended up releasing the hatch. I was also surprised to see Daniel have such a minimalist role in the episode. While his absence is explained, you'd certainly expect him to appear as being a lot more hands on with the scenario. It reminded me of one of the weaker Season 1 episodes where everything came together conveniently in the end in under 5 minutes: Jacob beams Jackson and Carter on board in time before they are caught, the ship manages to escape the planet uncloaked, they meet in time with O'Neil and Teal'c just in the nick of time etc...

While not a failure, it seemed like one of the lazier episodes. It had a really good premise but lacked the excitement of a life and death scenario. I just saw everything coming. Also, as funny as O'Neil was, I found the repeat humour of "i'll do the math on that" getting old pretty fast.

Acceptable but not memorable.

3 out of 5