The Scourge (917)

[Amaunet]

I really liked this ep...it was one of my fav's in S9...but did it remind anyone of the Mummy...with the creepy bugs in all....like when the went under that guys skin.....

[borgprincess]

I really liked this ep...it was one of my fav's in S9...but did it remind anyone of the Mummy...with the creepy bugs in all....like when the went under that guys skin.....

Ugh, I hate that special effect, it makes me cringe every time! I've seen in on heaps of episodes, but I can't get used to it...Yeah, it was a lot like 'The Mummy', wasn't it? Stargate references a lot of shows and movies, but although some people think this makes it unoriginal, I've always enjoyed the way they tweak it. Always a fun unique Stargate twist to the cliche.

I'm so glad someone provided a translation for the Mandarin speech! It was driving me nuts- I listened to the commentary in vain, hoping for a translation, and there was none, so this is great. I thought the woman was saying something like, 'Oh, is he available?' and Daniel was like, 'No, trust me, you do not want to date this guy'...the translation was more realistic though. Darn...! I thought the episode was awesome, I like the standalone ones. The Ori arc is cool, don't get me wrong, but it's nice to go back to the team against alien threat type eps now and then.

[Amaunet]

^ So true

[jenks]

I didn't see that this episode was bashing the French?

They just used the cowardly Frenchman stereotype which I found to be a little weak, not to mention the terrible accent...

[suse]

This ep (bugs aside<shudder>) was my second favorite of S9. This one (and Ethon) were (for me) head and shoulders above the rest.

The last second beam-out was kind of annoying but at that point it hadn't been overused. But at least there was some team jeapardy and some thought went into finding a solution to get the deus ex machina to kick in.

I'd rewatch it if I didn't have an aversion to bugs. And if I hadn't taped over the ep (no S9 DVDs for this girl. Nuh-UH!)

suse

[meredithchandler73]

Haven't watched this episode in a long time. I forgot how much I like it. No, it isn't a perfect ep, but so much I really enjoyed:

--Lots of the dialogue. Daniel and the Chinese ambassador speaking Chinese...and then Cam chimes in.
--Woolsey being worried about going through the stargate.
Woolsey: "And the chances of my being reassembled incorrectly..."
Carter: "Highly unlikely."
Woolsey: "But not impossible."
Carter (smiles): "That's a word I stopped using nine years ago when I joined the Stargate program."

(Actually, wasn't Carter part of the Stargate program years before the gate was even working - while at the Pentagon? I believe she has a line about that in the pilot. Eh - I won't nitpick. I really like her response to Woolsey's "impossible" line and how she delivers it.
--Couple of nice exchanges between Teal'c and Cam. Teal'c was always sure the Goa'uld would eventually be defeated and he is sure that Ori will one day be defeated as well.
Cam: "See, that's what I like about you. You're always positive. Hell, you're probably already past this bug situation and thinking about what movie you want to watch tomorrow night."
Teal'c: "I was considering Old School."
--The French ambassador has a freakout and Sam asks him to keep his voice down. He continues to freak, yelling about why they should listen to her? Carter calmy says, "Because you are alerting the bugs to our presence." And then when Woolsey tells her they are being insensitive to the delegation's needs and what could it hurt to reassure everyone that everything will be fine. Carter's response is great (I love Amanda's delivery), but the best part of it was:
"Mr. Woolsey, if I could go back in time - which, admittedly, is an opportunity that I am occasionally presented with - I would have made sure that we left the base as scheduled."
--Cam wants to help Teal'c find a his own place, but Teal'c says it won't be necessary. Cam: "Dude, what are friends for?" Teal'c: "For listening when they are told that will be unnecessary." Heehee.
--The French ambassador is doesn't want to keep walking to the research base. Cam decides to scare him by warning him about tree ferrets that can rip a man's head from his torso. I like Sam's reaction - obvioiusly trying not to laugh.
--The French ambassador keeps asking Sam if she can do it (recalibrating the transmitters at the research base) but she is ignoring him because she's working on it. Woolsey finally yells at the guy to shut up and let her work. "Thank you, Mr. Woolsey."
--Love how much of a team episode this was! Lots of conferring among the whole team about what to do next.
Daniel: "So, we still doing movie night?"
Sam: "Yeah. Why not?"
Cam: "Good. I've already picked something out."
Teal'c: "Old School."
Cam: "Starship Troopers."
Teal'c: "Is it humorous?"
Cam: "Is it ever."

[Stef]

Here is Daniel and Shen's conversation in the gateroom:

SHEN
Your Mandarin is very good.
DANIEL
Not as good as your English.
SHEN
As it should be.
(referring to Mitchell)
What do you think about him?
DANIEL
We're still observing him.
[She laughs out loud. He smiles at her.]
MITCHELL
Yeah, that's very funny.
(to Daniel)
Get lost.
[Daniel and Shen looked at Mitchell, shocked, while Teal'c and Carter look amazed that he has said anything in Mandarin.]

I actually just watched this episode for the first time the other night (I had skipped over it somehow). While it's not going to be one of my favorites, it was still a pretty good episode. I really enjoyed the Teal'c/Mitchell interactions and I thought Sam was appealing (something I didn't find to be true of a lot of season 9). But I especially loved the little bit mentioned above ....although it's made all the more funny when I actually know what they're saying. Thanks for posting that. I think I had the same reaction as Teal'c and Carter "did he just say something in Mandarin?" It would have been cool if they had explored that more....obviously there's more to Cam than meets the eye.

-Stef

[angelfire east]

SHEN: [Chinese] Your Chinese is supposed to be quite good.

JACKSON: [Chinese] Not as good as your English.

SHEN: [Chinese] of course. What about him? *looks at Mitchell, who looks back*

JACKSON: *glances at Mitchell* [Chinese] We are still teaching him. *both laugh*

MITCHELL: *Teal'c and Carter look confused* Yeah…that's very funny. *looks at Jackson* [Chinese] Go to hell *whose grin quickly fades to shock*

- from http://www.moon-catchin.net/gatenoise/index.htm

I read that a long time ago and that's what I think it means, it makes more sense to me. But that's just me

[placid]

nit (or alienbug) picks:
at the beginning of the show, the bugs are sluggish under light, yet the team survived the night in the cave no prob, and were predominantly attacked during the day. The noise the bugs made in the lab was kinda over-the-top squishy.

Why were the bugs not more persistent in trying to get at them in the cave? It seemed like the team really backed themselves into a... cave, easy pickings.

The bugs supposedly adapted to eating meat because they weren't getting plants.. well, they were still getting plants, as evidenced by the fact that they refused to eat when the scientist dropped some in their tank. If (oh what an if) he hadn't fed them meatloaf... that would've been the end of them? or would they adapt to eating glass and plastic? As has been mentioned, their digestive system would have to be exponentially over-efficient to produce that many bugs from such a small piece of meat.

When the bugs devoured the first soldier outside the base, they consumed his clothes?

One bug bit the soldier that Mitchell and Teal'c later found - why only one?
Where were the rest?

And the fact that beaming off the planet was a no-go just got completely ignored at the end after it was bought to our attention not once but twice?

Was the stargate destroyed in the self-destruct? That would've been a more plausible means of escape then a last minute beam away...

Story had potential but the bugs ate too many holes in it.

[jckfan55]

I figured the Stargate was buried in the rubble from the explosion.

[Dumper]

Well that's two episodes in a row that SG-1 have been beamed up by the Odyssey in the nick of time. It's also been used plenty of times in the past, and while i did enjoy this episode i just wished they could of thought up another way of beating the bugs. It takes the danger away from episodes if a ship can always come along and beam them up when they are in trouble.

[captain jake]

I figured the Stargate was buried in the rubble from the explosion.

It Probably was... Whats your point?

Well that's two episodes in a row that SG-1 have been beamed up by the Odyssey in the nick of time. It's also been used plenty of times in the past, and while i did enjoy this episode i just wished they could of thought up another way of beating the bugs. It takes the danger away from episodes if a ship can always come along and beam them up when they are in trouble.

I agree Beaming has affected both SG-1 and Atlantis, whenever there is a problem without a solution. All they have to do is insert one line of dialogue, "We increased the hyperdrive engines too 142%". And all of a sudden they are flying off into the sunset. But certain allowances have to be given, it is after all SciFi.

[rushy]

Why did the Goa'uld Kneel before your god thing had to be replaced with Hallowed are the Ori?

[mrscopterdoc]

Woolsey is SUCH a jerk in this episode!! And then he gets better.....

Talk about timing....

[Pharaoh Atem]

bugs ........ very scary ep