Sam Carter /Jack O'Neill Ship Appreciation Thread 2.0

[Treknik]

I'd just remove that pesky little word "on"...

O.O

This nekkidness must be affecting my angst levels. The gutter is seeping into my brain >.<

Typo?

Aw man, now I'm going to have to put an M rating on my short story.

[ZaraShade]

Lastly, I LOVE that women of Stargate series of interviews, not only is amanda amazing, but the setting & atmosphere with all the other ladies was quite lovely as well. The baby part actually starts at 3:27.... of Zara's vid link.

Ooh sorry you're right. It does start there. My mistake.

Welcome!

Thanks for the vid *clicks*

Thank you.

[SaraBahama]

AT &amp; RDA Hug.jpg

...just cuz we need a little picspam love...

[SaraBahama]

AUweddingLegends2009-1.jpg

[SaraBahama]

Jack &amp; Sam 200.jpg

they are just so darned cute together...

[SamJackShipper93]

Okay. I caved. Twice. I was only supposed to read one SG-1 book a month, but I found a giftcard from Christmas I hadn't touched, and then it was just all downhill from there. And I also broke my rule of getting the books in order of publication. But of course, when we're talking about "Matter of Honor", who can blame me for jumping to "Cost of Honor"? Both are by Sally Malcolm, and both are PHENOMENALLY written.

So here's my review for "Matter of Honor":

Spoiler:

"A Matter of Honor" by Sally Malcolm is my favorite novel so far. Yes, this marked a recurrence of Jack/Ba'al "Abyss" angst, but this one was done so much better! It's set in early- to mid- season seven, and it had all my favorite parts of a story. Established and consistent characterization, subtle ship of S/J variety, and WHUMP! And it wasn't over-the-top whump! either that is nice to read but totally unrealistic. It was perfect, and the characters suffered quite realistically. Well done.

Now, for some S/J excerpts.

There's some subtle Jack jealousy right off the bat, when Sam and the planetary hottie are discussing some technology:

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

"The technology interests you?" Quadesh pressed, his strange amber eyes sliding over Carter in a way Jack tried to ignore. Carter, he knew, could take care of herself. Still..."

What I like about the style of this particular novel, as exemplified in this little gem, is that the ship is not necessarily gratuitous. It reflects the style of the show: Is Jack concerned because he's her CO, or because he has "feelings"? I know the answer, but it's kind of left up to the reader. It's not as overt as the ship moments in "Trial by Fire".

And there's the silent communication they do so well, with a sprinkle of UST:

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

"Sir?" Carter's voice startled him out of the quicksand memories. She met his gaze with a silent question. Everything okay, sir?

Avoiding her eyes, and the question, he moved to sit next to Daniel. "Like I said, this sucks."

Carter nodded dutifully, but he wasn't entirely convinced she shared his sentiment. Her attention drifted and she absently gazed up at the tops of the buildings that surrounded them. A speculative light danced through the shifting greens and blues of her eyes, lending them a luster that was-- Not something he should be noticing. He cleared his throat. "Carter?"

She blinked, startled. "Sir?"

"You're thinking."

Eyebrows rose in surprise. "Well, I-- I was just--"

"Thinking. About what?"

The distraction lasted for barely a moment, but it was enough for me to be grinning like a damn idiot. I mean, let's face it.... It's subtle (which I love) and it combines here with the silent communication that makes them such a good team. And it's got a hint of that humoring-the-technobabble thing that Jack does, except here in the field he recognizes it as the resource it is. At this point in the series, they know each other well enough to see the nuances in their behavior. "Sacrifice Moon" didn't have any of that. But this one had it in spades!

And there's the allusion to Jack strongly disliking the ranks they hold (though this could possibly be because of the fact that Sam hid something from Jack and he reacted accordingly-- i.e. not well):

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

"She'd only wanted to protect him and he'd bitten her head off like he was dealing with a raw recruit on the parade ground.

Just do your job.

Except, he knew he'd have done the same thing for her. For any of them. And so would she. Which was exactly the problem. What was okay for Daniel or Teal'c didn't wash for Colonel O'Neill or Major Carter. There had to be a distance between them, they had to be careful. They had always been so careful, especially Carter. But this...? He'd had no choice but to yank her back into line, however hypocritical he felt."

Okay, so this one is a tad more overt. But it's appropriate, given the circumstances and the raw emotions of their situation. And of course, this is where Ba'als influence is made known, which jumpstarts Jack on the razor's edge of angst. Unfortunately, Sam catches most of the flack on this one.

And here's an example of some Sam!whump following a terrorist bomb blast, and Jack's reaction as seen through Teal'cs first-shipper gaze.

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

"The dust was falling like soft rain now, clearing his view. The sight it revealed was grisly. The Kinahhi Council lay stricken, white robes dirty and bloodied. Amid their ranks Teal'c saw two of his own; O'Neill was groggily pushing himself to his hands and knees, head swaying from side-to-side. Major Carter, who had been much closer to the blast, sprawled motionless some feet away.

He ran to her, stepping over the motionless soldier at her side, and dropped into a crouch. The blood trickling from her nose and left ear was disturbing. "Major Carter?" He shook her gently by the shoulder. "Major Carter, can you hear me?" There was no response.

Lowering his cheek to her lips he felt a faint puff of breath against his face. As he straightened he saw O'Neill, frozen halfway to his feet, staring at them with scarcely concealed panic. "She lives," Teal'c said.

O'Neill surged back into motion. "Where's Daniel?"

"In need of assistance." He gestured toward the wall.

"Get Carter home," was all the colonel said as he strode through the devastation toward his friend."

Single-minded concern for Carter, and then he asks about Daniel. Heheheheh... As much as I love Daniel, I love how this played out. And it only got better from there, but we won't get into that just now.

And there's the infirmary scene we always love:

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

"Slipping the penlight back into her pocket, Janet stepped back and cocked an eyebrow. "Okay Sam. Go get some breakfast. I want you back in two hours, though, for a follow-up CAT scan. There's no fracture, but you took a nasty blow yesterday. I just want to make sure it's not a concussion. Okay?"

Sam smiled, sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Okay. Thanks Janet."

Her feet hadn't even touched the ground before the doctor added, "And you're officially off-duty. Make sure you tell Colonel O'Neill."

"The colonel? Why?"

"Make sure you tell him," Janet insisted, waving vaguely toward the door. "He's been... hovering." The doctor lifted an eyebrow and Sam found herself studying the weave of the hospital blanket. Hovering?"

Heheheh... Hovering. Wonderful thing, that. So understated, and yet our favorite MD noticed. I also love this bit because it has Janet-freaking-Frasier. I miss her. *sigh*

And this is just the first half of the novel. The rest of it is just as juicy. I think my only complaint is the following (major spoilers ahead):

Spoiler:

The mission eventually takes them to Ba'al's abandoned fortress from "Abyss" and amid the Jack angst and residual PTSD, Sam is captured by the small contingent of Jaffa still there and they take her to be tortured in the same gravity-field Jack had been-- which I know I'm not alone in wondering how that would have played out -- and Jack conveniently rescues her (to which she shoots off a Star Wars quip that made me laugh out loud). But in the short time she was tortured, she goes more off the rails with thoughts of revenge than Jack ever did, when Jack had been there for how long? It struck me as odd, and a little out of character. But I think it might be residual resentment for what they did to Jack than what they did to her... which is a delightful thought in and of itself...

And while there's a healthy dose Jack saving Sam, Sam saves his six just as much-- and her efforts are much cooler than Jacks, IMHO. She's a regular John McClane in some parts. And let's face it, I was so impressed with this book that I went straight back to read the final installment of the story "Cost of Honor".

I couldn't get enough of the story, and that's EXACTLY what I look for in anything I read, whether it's a fanfiction or a vetted novel. If it doesn't grab my attention, then I'll never look at it again. But this one, my friends, would be a novel I recommend to any SG-1 fan. In fact, even though I haven't read the other novels besides these four, I would recommend that this is the book every shipper should have on their bookshelves. It's absolutely perfect. I can't say enough good things about it!

"A Matter of Honor" and "The Cost of Honor"

Spoiler:

Yep! "A Matter of Honor" and "The Cost of Honor" are by far my favorite books. And while I definitely agree with your last point about Sam being a bit out of character, what I liked was that Sally Malcolm wasn't cautious about actually putting the characters (particularly Sam) through the wringer in her books. There's a high deal of emotion and a lot of great moments between all of the characters that would probably never have been written into the show.

I've always felt like the SG writers have always been far too cautious about putting the characters through emotional turmoil. They generally avoided it, and even in the episodes where emotions are running high, much of it is skipped over. I wish that we could have seen Sam's recovery from Jolinar or the stress of working day and night for 3 months to get Jack back from Edora or Jack's recovery from Ba'al (another reason why I loved Sally Malcolm's books). Maybe it's just because I watch a lot of other shows (for example: Bones) where there is a lot of personal character development. I just adore Stargate, but it is obvious that the show is more action driven than character driven. I wish we had had more on screen character moments instead of having to imply all that happened off-screen.

[selene0789]

"A Matter of Honor" and "The Cost of Honor"

Spoiler:

Yep! "A Matter of Honor" and "The Cost of Honor" are by far my favorite books. And while I definitely agree with your last point about Sam being a bit out of character, what I liked was that Sally Malcolm wasn't cautious about actually putting the characters (particularly Sam) through the wringer in her books. There's a high deal of emotion and a lot of great moments between all of the characters that would probably never have been written into the show.

I've always felt like the SG writers have always been far too cautious about putting the characters through emotional turmoil. They generally avoided it, and even in the episodes where emotions are running high, much of it is skipped over. I wish that we could have seen Sam's recovery from Jolinar or the stress of working day and night for 3 months to get Jack back from Edora or Jack's recovery from Ba'al (another reason why I loved Sally Malcolm's books). Maybe it's just because I watch a lot of other shows (for example: Bones) where there is a lot of personal character development. I just adore Stargate, but it is obvious that the show is more action driven than character driven. I wish we had had more on screen character moments instead of having to imply all that happened off-screen.

Slight OT:

Spoiler:

Oh geez, Bones. Talk about how NOT to handle a ship. They lost me when Booth poured his heart out and then Bones was all "I can't change, I'm an anthropologist, I'm a scientist, I can't change." Lame, and completely wrong. I was so put out that when the later development happened

Spoiler:

Pregnant? really? For those who don't watch Bones, let me put in perspective: Imagine if, during Heroes, when Sam and Jack hug, they later end up being in bed together-- fully clothed-- while they have a nice heart to heart, and then she kinda curls up next to him... And we see nothing else. Then in Lost City when Jack's being frozen, her last words to him are "I'm pregnant". Heh, YEAH. You think I'm kidding. How's that for a freaking confirmation. No on-screen kisses, no indication that they ACTUALLY had sex, and then the next season they spend all their spare time figuring out how to be parents together without being an actual couple. Oh, and they get to keep working together, regulations be damned. *sigh* end rant.

when that development happened I was like, you've got to be kidding me. Talk about toying with the shippers. This is the show I think of when we start complaining about the scenes in 200 and such, where we feel like it's wink to us without actually giving us anything, just to keep us hopeful and watching. Well, this was the exact opposite-- giving confirmation without any evidence (except a growing baby bump) of said ship, and no closure whatsoever. If it weren't for my mom watching the show while I'm in the same room writing Strangers, I wouldn't even kinda watch it. The TV wouldn't even come on during that hour on Thursday nights.

Can I just say how much I LOVE our ship? It's not my first ship (that honor goes to the GSR ship of CSI) but it is the one I enjoy the most. It's got a great following (like-minded individuals who are a pleasure to interact with) and it's least "angsty for the sake of angst"-- which is something that GSR dabbled with a bit.

But I agree, SamJackShipper93, that the show kind of lacked on the turmoil bit, but at the same time I think it saved itself from slipping in the abyss of Overdoing It. So many good shows start out as a self-contained show, where the episodes can standalone and the only real connection between the plots are the characters, but then they focus TOO much on the characters, and it seems like the only real arc are the characters' descents into angstiness. So I think I'd rather have too little than too much. Too much turns me off a show, while too little has me wishing the show had a little more time per episode to explore things. I much prefer wanting more show!

Anyone else have thoughts? It's still kinda on topic, since much of what I'd like to see more of is either Sam or Jack or the two of them together.

[Wild Flower]

I get what you mean Selene, I love and hate the ship. If there had been definite confirmation at the end of the series I don't think I would ever have got into fanfic and consequently, I would never have met all you lovely people! But it would have been awesome just to have had one little kiss or scene where we knew for sure.

[fems]

I sincerely agree about Bones:

Spoiler:

They lost the spark between Booth and Bones around the time he left for Afghanistan (I think it was?) and then he came back with a new girlfriend and Bones started acting... not jealous per se but weird. Then out of the blue she's pregnant - as if Angela's pregnancy wasn't enough already - and now they're a "couple" trying to find a house (they just did in last week's ep) together and raise their daughter, but the chemistry is gone. And in a pathetic attempt to keep the ship on topic they'll have lame lines about "wanting sexual intercourse" (yes, that's how Bones puts it), Booth making breakfast naked (not that we get to see it) and other stupid stuff but for me the ship has sailed quite a long time ago. At least in the beginning of the show there was a bit of UST, now it's just MST and even the cases have gotten lamer or maybe it's just because the focus is too much on the characters and their personal lives now that I can't appreciate them enough. It's almost as if they went from cool new show in the beginning to let's loosen up to get more ratings and go Castle-style.

So far Sam/Jack is really my only ship and Stargate SG-1 is also the only fandom of which I read and write fics. I've been thinking about trying my hand at Sanctuary for the last year or so, but while the notes are in my fanfic folder with all my other future fic ideas (and possible crossovers) I still have too much inspiration for Sam/Jack. And right now I'm also kinda waiting to see if there's going to be a renewal for Sanctuary because I think I prefer writing for canceled shows, just 'cause at least then I have all the canonical information Plus I don't have a particular ship in Sanctuary, I kind of like Magnus/Druitt (past and present UST) and the UST between Magnus/Tesla but I'm not into the other pairings and am not sure if I would actually write romance fics or just more episode-kinda fics for it.

Last week I kinda ventured out into L&O: SVU because I came across an okay S/J fic writer who had lots of fics for it and while they mostly focused on Benson/Stabler I did like some of it but couldn't be bothered by finding good fics after going through several pages on FFnet.

I also watch plenty of other shows but am not really invested in most of the ship, not in the way I like Sam/Jack. The way TPTB handled the ship was really very well done in my opinion as it wasn't forced on you (per se, perhaps with the exception of season 8) but still present if you wanted to ship them. The lack of confirmation sucks on one hand but seeing how so many shows have really screwed up their shipping, I don't really mind. And on the other hand there's still plenty of room for fic writers to play with.

[Kunoichi]

Thanks Kunoichi -much obliged. I wasn't quibbling with your rant...you made good points.

You're welcome! I know you weren't quibbling - I just needed to get everything of my chest, because it's depressing and annoying me a little at the moment. Stuff that didn't register as problematic on the first few viewings of episodes is starting to grate with having watched all seasons (and Atlantis)! And I know it gets worse with the lack of resolution to the S&J story whilst other ships get mega screen time - ARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!

[Nolamom]

Can I just say how much I LOVE our ship? It's not my first ship (that honor goes to the GSR ship of CSI) but it is the one I enjoy the most.

Okay, quick poll folks - what is your first ship?

In thinking about it for just half a sec, I'd probably say Scarecrow and Mrs. King. And there was proper resolution!

[Kunoichi]

Edit: Post thief strikes again!

[Lilac736]

Okay, quick poll folks - what is your first ship?

In thinking about it for just half a sec, I'd probably say Scarecrow and Mrs. King. And there was proper resolution!

My first ship?! Remington Steele and Laura Holt.

[kusanagi]

Okay, quick poll folks - what is your first ship?

In thinking about it for just half a sec, I'd probably say Scarecrow and Mrs. King. And there was proper resolution!

Dempsey & Makepeace long, long time ago

[SamJackShipper93]

Okay, quick poll folks - what is your first ship?

In thinking about it for just half a sec, I'd probably say Scarecrow and Mrs. King. And there was proper resolution!

Samantha Carter and Jack O'Neill!