Originally posted by SamJackShipper93
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Well, I did it. I finally did it.
In my systematic rewatch of SG-1, I finally rewatched "Chimera." Man alive, that was a struggle. I know that we just hashed some of these points out, but I wanted to give my reflection on the episode since it's been years since I watched it.
Also, did you know that Ben Browder was originally offered the role of Pete, but he declined? Found that little tidbit here. I'm so curious to know what the character would have been like if he had accepted the role.
Thoughts and analysis in spoilers just because there is so much Pete.
- The humming. Ouch. Even if it's not meant to, that scene comes across as very insensitive to me.
- When they crash the retirement party, Pete says "It's nice to know people still stay together no matter what. Isn't it?" Sam doesn't answer, and as they continue to dance, she places her head by his and gets this really stressed and pained look on her face. I know that Sam feels like she needed to have a boyfriend to move on from Jack, but I do fault her a bit for continuing her relationship with Pete (during this episode and later in Season 8) when she obviously is still in love with another man. I honestly do feel bad for Pete when Sam breaks up with him in "Threads." She never, ever should have let that relationship progress so far.
- The shove-me-up-against-a-wall scene was ... so out of place for SG-1. It makes me very happy that the rest of the series wasn't concerned with who's sleeping together each week.
- The thing that really struck me was this time around was that I had less of a problem with Sam and Pete's "morning after" conversation than I did with the background check. Yeah, it was more than a little insensitive and childish that Pete left in a huff and guilted Sam by implying that a relationship may not be possible if she kept her job secret, but the background check almost ... just almost introduces Pete as a villain (seriously, listen to the music in the scene where he asks Farrity to check up on her - in any other episode, with any other character, that would have been an indication that said character's doomed to get found out and kicked to the curb by the end of the episode).
- By far, the most painful moment was Sam and Jack's discussion in her lab. Poor Jack looks so miserable, but then Sam awkwardly makes the conversation about wanting to tell him about the Stargate. Again, it came across as a really insensitive moment for Jack, and the same scene could have existed if Sam had been talking to Daniel or Teal'c instead (even though, in the episode, Daniel and Teal'c probably don't know about Pete yet).
- Sam doesn't make any sense to me when Pete shows up at the stakeout. They aren't at her house, they're at Daniel's. It should be super obvious at that point that he was following her. He distracts Sam and endangers the mission. He gets himself hurt in the process, and then, Sam actually tells him that if he survives she'll tell him everything!? What!? And the way she continues to just lay over him in the grass after Jack and Teal'c take down Osiris just felt so un-Sam-like.
- The ending awkwardly refuses to deal with any of the issues that Pete caused before. Sam never addresses the issue with Pete about why he was at the stakeout at all, and we don't know if Sam knows about the background check or the stalking. I can only choose to believe that at this point, she doesn't know about them, because I just can't accept that she would have found out and not have been really angry with Pete for doing that.
If that's the case, and Sam doesn't know, then at the end of the episode, Sam has divulged knowledge of the Stargate to a man who is hiding the lengths to which he went to find out about her and her job. Pete is hiding secrets from Sam, just like Pete's wife kept from him. Not exactly the best start to a relationship, whether you think Sam should be with Jack or not.
Now I'm going to have to go and read Rachel500's Aftershocks follow-up to "Chimera," since I think it's the best tag dealing with the issues in this episode. Waking Up
Also, it struck me that the writers missed the opportunity for a wondrously angsty/humorous/awkward moment because Jack and Pete never met onscreen.
In my systematic rewatch of SG-1, I finally rewatched "Chimera." Man alive, that was a struggle. I know that we just hashed some of these points out, but I wanted to give my reflection on the episode since it's been years since I watched it.
Also, did you know that Ben Browder was originally offered the role of Pete, but he declined? Found that little tidbit here. I'm so curious to know what the character would have been like if he had accepted the role.
Thoughts and analysis in spoilers just because there is so much Pete.
Spoiler:
- The humming. Ouch. Even if it's not meant to, that scene comes across as very insensitive to me.
- When they crash the retirement party, Pete says "It's nice to know people still stay together no matter what. Isn't it?" Sam doesn't answer, and as they continue to dance, she places her head by his and gets this really stressed and pained look on her face. I know that Sam feels like she needed to have a boyfriend to move on from Jack, but I do fault her a bit for continuing her relationship with Pete (during this episode and later in Season 8) when she obviously is still in love with another man. I honestly do feel bad for Pete when Sam breaks up with him in "Threads." She never, ever should have let that relationship progress so far.
- The shove-me-up-against-a-wall scene was ... so out of place for SG-1. It makes me very happy that the rest of the series wasn't concerned with who's sleeping together each week.
- The thing that really struck me was this time around was that I had less of a problem with Sam and Pete's "morning after" conversation than I did with the background check. Yeah, it was more than a little insensitive and childish that Pete left in a huff and guilted Sam by implying that a relationship may not be possible if she kept her job secret, but the background check almost ... just almost introduces Pete as a villain (seriously, listen to the music in the scene where he asks Farrity to check up on her - in any other episode, with any other character, that would have been an indication that said character's doomed to get found out and kicked to the curb by the end of the episode).
- By far, the most painful moment was Sam and Jack's discussion in her lab. Poor Jack looks so miserable, but then Sam awkwardly makes the conversation about wanting to tell him about the Stargate. Again, it came across as a really insensitive moment for Jack, and the same scene could have existed if Sam had been talking to Daniel or Teal'c instead (even though, in the episode, Daniel and Teal'c probably don't know about Pete yet).
- Sam doesn't make any sense to me when Pete shows up at the stakeout. They aren't at her house, they're at Daniel's. It should be super obvious at that point that he was following her. He distracts Sam and endangers the mission. He gets himself hurt in the process, and then, Sam actually tells him that if he survives she'll tell him everything!? What!? And the way she continues to just lay over him in the grass after Jack and Teal'c take down Osiris just felt so un-Sam-like.
- The ending awkwardly refuses to deal with any of the issues that Pete caused before. Sam never addresses the issue with Pete about why he was at the stakeout at all, and we don't know if Sam knows about the background check or the stalking. I can only choose to believe that at this point, she doesn't know about them, because I just can't accept that she would have found out and not have been really angry with Pete for doing that.
If that's the case, and Sam doesn't know, then at the end of the episode, Sam has divulged knowledge of the Stargate to a man who is hiding the lengths to which he went to find out about her and her job. Pete is hiding secrets from Sam, just like Pete's wife kept from him. Not exactly the best start to a relationship, whether you think Sam should be with Jack or not.
Now I'm going to have to go and read Rachel500's Aftershocks follow-up to "Chimera," since I think it's the best tag dealing with the issues in this episode. Waking Up
Also, it struck me that the writers missed the opportunity for a wondrously angsty/humorous/awkward moment because Jack and Pete never met onscreen.
I blame the writers for the whole Pete thing. And I blame Amanda a bit for not calling them on some of the stuff that they allowed to happen. She had to see what the whole thing was doing to her character. Of course, she could have called them on it and they ignored her, which seems more likely.
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