Daniel Jackson Discussion and Appreciation

[Daniel's shadow]

Well said Margaret.

No, Daniel would be the last person the take the job for the sake of power and glory.

He would only accept it if he knows that he can do the job and do it well.

He was forewarned and was shown how power can corrupt so he has learnt his lesson and leant it well from Absolute Power.

I think he will take the job if he knows that he can make a difference. It is something that he truly adheres to and certainly the source of his frustration when he was not allowed to as an ascended being.

Making gossamer threads in this lifetime is not his style. No, in his lifetime he would want to do truly what's best for the universe, saving it from itself, one step at a time. Even if it means taking up an administrative position.

[1DanielForMe]

Indeed, Daniel is not the sort who relishes being the boss, and particularly, if the position prevented him from going off-world as often, or perhaps even at all, he would most certainly take it only if he were well confident that he could ultimately make a significant impact on the welfare of mankind by doing so.

[StarDreamer]

In addition to my agreement with the above statements... I think Daniel would only go into a leadership position if he felt he had to. Like if there was a risk of some evil government overlord taking over and running SGC into the ground or something. I think he would be reluctant to be THE leader, but would know if he had to step up, and would do so.

[1DanielForMe]

Exactly! If there's one thing that will make Daniel take up a leadership position, it's his need to help others.

[Dani347]

So, a pretty solid theme ever since season 7 is the question of whether Daniel has changed too much. Is he becoming too insensitive, is he becoming too Action Jackson, is he becoming too much like Jack? So, I just want to ramble on about why I don't think Daniel has changed anymore than any person would given years and experiences in this season. Which means it'll basically be in spoilers since I'm not sure what can be out of spoilers.

Spoiler:

I've read that his impatience with Vala and his snippiness was ooc. But, while I wouldn't call Daniel overly impatient, he's never been known for an overwhelming wealth of patience either. And, he's no stranger to snippiness. Plus, lets remember that Vala was practically chained to him for all that time, going out of her way to annoy him. Daniel would have to be a saint to not get fed up with her. I think it was very in character for anyone with a beating heart. But, I love both Avalons for the (imo) completely Daniel-like way he acted in certain scenes in them. Avalon 1, I've already waxed not so poetic about the book scene, and there was the excitement about finding out about Merlin, and the long briefing and the not just cutting to the chase when Landry got impatient. And, even the way he continued to argue about using the Ancient device after Landry gave the ok (although that was part 2, right?) just seemed extremely Daniel. And, the burning scene in part 2, almost all of it, but the way he held Vala's body. And, him standing up to the Doci in Origin(?). And, certain other things with Vala. The whole failed seduction, him wanting her to admit to being a false god, and yes, his annoyance with her. Skip to Prototype, because nothing stands out to me either especially Daniel-like or non Daniel-like in the episodes in between. I've already said why I thought his attitude was so very Daniel-like. And, in the last 3 episodes, I found a lot of things that I found were so very Daniel (to my way of thinking) even if he didn't have a big part. In CD, him being the one to keep bringing up the possible negative uses of the memory device. In Ripple Effect, every scene with Janet was spot on, and I liked our Daniel's interrogation of Black Teal'c and his interest in their Bra'tac becoming the leader of the Jaffa. Because I think it would interest him. And, in Stronghold, him figuring out that brainwashing was what had happened. I don't mean he solved it, Bra'tac knew. I mean, seeing it dawn on Daniel for himself. Daniel having the papers from the hall of records, that seems very Daniel to me. I could imagine him asking Bra'tac if there were any records of the decisions that had been made in order to help out and going through them. And, again, him making the connection about the Jaffa feeling ashamed. Because you couldn't see the abc direct line of how he got to that conclusion -or i couldn't, anyway- which is how his mind works. It makes jumps from a to c. And, his happiness about the referendum being passed. Just a lot of very Daniel like stuff. Oh, also, I forget what episode, but when he aksed about Bill Lee.

Now, the only things that have seemed off to me this season was the whole 4th Horseman comedy act he and Mitchell had going. I don't care, no matter how I look at it, no matter how it's explained that it was a good tactic, it just didn't seem like something Daniel would do. Not even the Daniel, never met a Goa'uld he didn't want to bait, Jackson. The whole technique seemed off. Plus, his reaction to the idea of AU's in RE. And, if they were trying to convey that he was just tired of another one, it didn't work so well with me. I thought the rolling eyes when Sam was technobabbling was off, too, but it didn't seem confined to him, it seemed like a running gag for all them throughout the episode. And, a couple of line deliveries were off. I suppose the whole basketball thing doesn't seem extremely Daniel-like, but I can work that as him agreeing to a basketball game with Mitchell once because he's new and he still didn't have a team or anything, and maybe even a bit of a thanks for Antarctica, and finding out that it was an okay thing to do.

So, overall, the ways I find Daniel the same to his core character outweigh things that I find unlike him.

[Madeleine]

Sometimes the best posts are the ones destined to get the fewest repiles. I've nothing to say, Dani's already said it all.


(Although I never noticed the eye-rolling in RE )

[Dani347]

Sometimes the best posts are the ones destined to get the fewest repiles.

Okay, confession, part of me just wanted to get the Daniel thread off page 4, and I thought that was a better way than posting "bump"

eta: Probably eye-rolling was the wrong way of putting it. I don't know if he ever actually rolled his eyes, but he did seem more disinterested than I would have expected.

Question. Do you (general you) think Daniel has been wall papered in the latter half of the season? I think I'll wait until I hear reasons before giving my own impressions

[Sprinkles]

Question. Do you (general you) think Daniel has been wall papered in the latter half of the season? I think I'll wait until I hear reasons before giving my own impressions

Well he's 'there' but he's not getting to do much. He dosn't seem to have a key role to paly in any of the stories. I love seeing Daniel just being Daniel and I think he's had some nice little snippets but nothing that really involves him in the storylines...I'm starting to really miss the chemistry from Avalon, and Origin and The powers that be.

[Dani347]

Yippie! A post

Okay, a lot of people felt that Stronghold was Daniel-lite, more than it was for anyone else, which surprised me, since to me, it was Sam that disappeared for a chunk of the episode. Anyway, this is how I think he has contributed to the action of Stronghold

Spoiler:

The whole thing with Bra'tac was important to the action. It was how they found out where Teal'c was and about the brainwashing. I thought they did a nice balance of having Bra'tac be the actual "leader" on the fact finding expedition, but didn't have Daniel stand around and "look good." (When looking good is about all you can say Daniel did in an episode, it's not a good episode for him, imo) They both asked questions, which was an important thing to do -I mean, that was what they were there to do, find out info . Plus, besides translating, and finding artifacts, and occassionally getting a burst of Ancient powers, I think one of Daniel's main roles is to ask questions, not only as part of what he does, but as part of who he is. And, I really liked how the show handled the two revelations of the Jaffa being brainwashed and later when he removed his symbiote. (Or, was that a different Jaffa?) I think if they had Bra'tac tell Daniel that he had been brainwashed, spelled it out, that would have made Daniel look dumb. OTOH, if Daniel had just figured it out on his own and told Bra'tac, Daniel would have looked like the wonderkid, divulging information to doddering old Bra'tac, who couldn't figure out something about a man who he had known probably for centuries. But, they had Bra'tac realize it, and Daniel suss it out from Bra'tac's words, which didn't spell it out in detail. Same with the Jaffa removing his symbiote. And, even though the Jaffa's shame didn't come up later, I still think it was an important character moment for Bra'tac and Daniel got to share it, and convey the info to the audience, in a natural manner. Plus, the fact that Daniel made the suggestion to do the rite that the Jaffa go through. Yes, it was too late to do it for that Jaffa, but we find that other Jaffa are still brainwashed at the end, so it's likely that they'll go through it, and Daniel made the contribution. Plus, Daniel had been through the hall of records to give concrete evidence that the Jaffa wasn't behaving the way he usually would. And, when he and Bra'tac were talking to Landry, aside from just coming up with the ritual idea, both he and Bra'tac were relaying information to Landry. No just standing around. And, finally, at the end, the infamous ball bouncing scene. That was just a good character scene, showing that he was preoccupied by what was about to happen or not happen with the vote. And, the congratulations at the end. Plus, I loved that Daniel's last line was a question, bringing up the fact that there were still Jaffa who were brainwashed.

So, I honestly don't know how many scenes that translates into, but I felt that Daniel not only got to spend time with a beloved recurring character, but he got to contribute in a very Daniel like way to the story, and that the scenes with Bra'tac were important to the story. And, he had some good character moments. So, I didn't think he was missing from a large part of the episode, or that he was superflous. To me, in an epiosde that wasn't a "Daniel" episode, Stronghold was a good episode for Daniel.

Now, I think in Collateral Damage, the amountof things they showed him doing was much less than Stronghold and he didn't get a lot of scenes, but they gave the impression that Daniel wasn't just standing there. And, Ripple Effect was sort of in between. But, it did have the important scenes with Janet, as well as the interrogation scenes. But, out of the three, I'd say Stronghold was the best for him, imo.

For me, out of the second half -meaning from Fourth Horsemen2, the worst episode for Daniel was probably the one where he got the most screen time. TFH2. He got a lot of screen time, but I didn't feel that he was important -I don't think pushing the button on the device was a skill that was especially difficult or played into Daniel's skills. And, I didn't feel that it was in character for in the mock the Prior bit, although a lot of people disagree with me. Compared to that, I'd say I enjoyed Collateral Damage more, even though I'm guessing that one had the least amount of screen time.

So, sometimes he's had small amounts of screen time, and while having more in the episodes would be good, to me, he was doing things, that were in character, not only just to be in character, but either helped the plot or raised important questions in the plot

Spoiler:

the whole question of the dangers of the memory device in the first place

in a Daniel-like way. It's only been 4 episodes so far for the second half, but I think they've done okay. Could they do better? Yes. I really liked Avalon, and how much Daniel had to do. They could also do more team episodes. But, I haven't had the impression that Daniel hasn't had a purpose in the episodes so far in the second half. Again, except for 4H2. But, it's funny. It seems that most people feel Stronghold was particularly Daniel-lite. (Collateral Damage, I can see where people are coming from) Not only here but on other boards. I don't know if I've ever had the opposite opinion from so many people before.

And, I can't seem to write a short post ever

[Daniel's shadow]

Wow I love reading the new posts here.

I agree about the sentiment here about not the quantity but the quality of the scnes with Daniel. (Though I wish it could be both with smart writing).

He has always been a pivotal character and in some ways I think Cameron has still to leanr a lot from Daniel.

He is the type of character that should be utilised to advanced the plot along as to me he is one half of the brains of the outfit.

I don't want him to be a reactionary character (which is quite noticeable with Sam lately) but one with mana (status and authority) not just in his own field of expertise but also within the set up of SGC. Damn it the man has given so much of his life to the place, he deserves it.

[1DanielForMe]

I don't want him to be a reactionary character (which is quite noticeable with Sam lately) but one with mana (status and authority) not just in his own field of expertise but also within the set up of SGC. Damn it the man has given so much of his life to the place, he deserves it.

Hear hear! While we've seen some wonderful reaction scenes for Daniel lately (most recently at the end of Stronghold), the depth of him can not be fully conveyed in this way. We need to see reason, and questioning, and compassion, episodes focusing on Daniel, or at least ones where he has a better chance to shine, as it were. Dani347, I agree with you on your last little spoiler, that's a great example of what I'm talking about on the latter point. (Oh, and incidentally, thanks for starting this thread up again. )

[Dani347]

More traffic in this thread is always a good thing

Okay, for those who do feel Daniel is wallpapered, any ideas of how you would do things differently? Any contributions you think would have been perfect for him to make to an episode? Or, any stories you feel should have been part of the plots of these last episodes? How would you rectify things?

[1DanielForMe]

I would really love to see more "Daniel moments", those caring, inspirational scenes which are so purely his. The last one was in Avatar, when he gives that little pep talk to Teal'c.

[Sprinkles]

Yippie! A post

Okay, a lot of people felt that Stronghold was Daniel-lite, more than it was for anyone else, which surprised me, since to me, it was Sam that disappeared for a chunk of the episode. Anyway, this is how I think he has contributed to the action of Stronghold

Spoiler:

The whole thing with Bra'tac was important to the action. It was how they found out where Teal'c was and about the brainwashing. I thought they did a nice balance of having Bra'tac be the actual "leader" on the fact finding expedition, but didn't have Daniel stand around and "look good." (When looking good is about all you can say Daniel did in an episode, it's not a good episode for him, imo) They both asked questions, which was an important thing to do -I mean, that was what they were there to do, find out info . Plus, besides translating, and finding artifacts, and occassionally getting a burst of Ancient powers, I think one of Daniel's main roles is to ask questions, not only as part of what he does, but as part of who he is. And, I really liked how the show handled the two revelations of the Jaffa being brainwashed and later when he removed his symbiote. (Or, was that a different Jaffa?) I think if they had Bra'tac tell Daniel that he had been brainwashed, spelled it out, that would have made Daniel look dumb. OTOH, if Daniel had just figured it out on his own and told Bra'tac, Daniel would have looked like the wonderkid, divulging information to doddering old Bra'tac, who couldn't figure out something about a man who he had known probably for centuries. But, they had Bra'tac realize it, and Daniel suss it out from Bra'tac's words, which didn't spell it out in detail. Same with the Jaffa removing his symbiote. And, even though the Jaffa's shame didn't come up later, I still think it was an important character moment for Bra'tac and Daniel got to share it, and convey the info to the audience, in a natural manner. Plus, the fact that Daniel made the suggestion to do the rite that the Jaffa go through. Yes, it was too late to do it for that Jaffa, but we find that other Jaffa are still brainwashed at the end, so it's likely that they'll go through it, and Daniel made the contribution. Plus, Daniel had been through the hall of records to give concrete evidence that the Jaffa wasn't behaving the way he usually would. And, when he and Bra'tac were talking to Landry, aside from just coming up with the ritual idea, both he and Bra'tac were relaying information to Landry. No just standing around. And, finally, at the end, the infamous ball bouncing scene. That was just a good character scene, showing that he was preoccupied by what was about to happen or not happen with the vote. And, the congratulations at the end. Plus, I loved that Daniel's last line was a question, bringing up the fact that there were still Jaffa who were brainwashed.
So, I honestly don't know how many scenes that translates into, but I felt that Daniel not only got to spend time with a beloved recurring character, but he got to contribute in a very Daniel like way to the story, and that the scenes with Bra'tac were important to the story. And, he had some good character moments. So, I didn't think he was missing from a large part of the episode, or that he was superflous. To me, in an epiosde that wasn't a "Daniel" episode, Stronghold was a good episode for Daniel.

Yes this thread definatley needs more traffic

Spoiler:

Having just watched Stronghold I can agree with you that the quality of the Daniel scenes is important and I enjoyed seeing him interact with Bra'tac and providing support when investigating (sorry for briefly summising your very excellent post ). In regards to this episode I probably do have an issue with the very latter part, I do think Daniel should have accompanied Mitchell up to the ship, Daniel had after all had spent a great deal of time helping with the search for Teal'c, Daniel has experience and knows the layout of Goa'uld ships, Teal'c is one of his best friends etc it just seemed out of rhythem and a waste for him not to have some kind of resolution in regards to this storyline. I'm not saying Mitchell didn't need resolution but I don't see why Daniel couldn't have had a more direct role in the rescue and still have Mitchell having his moment with teal'c too.

Do you have any thoughts regarding how Daniel reacted in the firefight?, I'm now sure what he was doing sitting behind that rock not firing for alot of the time...

Spoiler:

Now, I think in Collateral Damage, the amountof things they showed him doing was much less than Stronghold and he didn't get a lot of scenes, but they gave the impression that Daniel wasn't just standing there. And, Ripple Effect was sort of in between. But, it did have the important scenes with Janet, as well as the interrogation scenes.

Again, your right regarding the scenes he did have...which I truley enjoyed...

Spoiler:

I have to admit that my views on Ripple Effect are coloured after reading the deleted scenes, which seemed to have been mostly Daniel scenes and things I genuinly would have loved to have seen, the mention of a Daniel happily marreied in a universe were Shar're was still alive and the Daniel/Mitchell scene especially...it makes you wonder why exactly they were excluded..surely it wouldn't have taken to much for the Shar're scene...something that was very pertanent to the Daniel story arc for three years...

Spoiler:

For me, out of the second half -meaning from Fourth Horsemen2, the worst episode for Daniel was probably the one where he got the most screen time. TFH2. He got a lot of screen time, but I didn't feel that he was important -I don't think pushing the button on the device was a skill that was especially difficult or played into Daniel's skills. And, I didn't feel that it was in character for in the mock the Prior bit, although a lot of people disagree with me.

Spoiler:

I don't have a problem with Daniel being snarky, although there was prehaps alittle to much snarky Daniel altogether over the course of the first half of the season and including The forthhorseman pt 2, I did start to miss compassionate and understanding Daniel, although he did have his reasons in these episodes.

And, I can't seem to write a short post ever

lol, your posts are great

I suppose you could answer this with Medaleine's sig 'if wishes were horses....' but all this seems to add up to alot of missed potential, am not sure but in previous seasons I think these story lines would have been resolved better for Daniel.

[Dani347]

What about the burning scene? No pep talk (kind of an awkward moment for one ) but definitely caring.