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Re-watch: Season 2 - Jacob Gets a Pet Head Snake!

solotrek

By solotrek
in Stargate SG-1 [V]

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stillshimpy

stillshimpy

Okay, well I am through to the Gamekeeper!  Right before working out, I discussed how dreary I personally found the end of BSG to be and for just a moment, I sort of dithered.  Today was 60 minutes on the elliptical day so should I watch a BSG and give it another shot, or continue with the other Vancouver show that so often keeps me company, SG1?  

 

Through the ring I went!  

 

So far I've watched In the Serpents Lair Part II , which is always a fun one.  It unfortunately has one of the Stargate writers biggest weaknesses on display though.  They loved to end seasons on a big "Will the world end?" type of cliffhanger almost by rote in Atlantis and certainly Universe, but this was one that worked just a little bit better.  Maybe because it was the first time they used it as a device and it was that little bit easier to invest in in terms of peril.  Anyway, such a fun episode and I always get a kick out of how the actor who plays Aphosis hams it up.  He's great, like some wonderful silent-movie villain.  

 

In the Line of Duty was fun too, even the introduction to the Tok'ra suggests that they were more a faction of the Goa'uld entire, rather than this small, rarefied "only from one queen" sect.  It was just more interesting, and ultimately problematic I suppose, to suggest that any of the Goa'uld might choose to be something other than bred-to-the-bone evil.  However, I can see why they didn't pursue that, because it then made slaughtering them wholesale a moral quandary.  

 

Still, a fun world-builder, that there could be "good" (I use the term very loosely) Goa'uld.  Amanda Tapping go to have some fun with it too, which was good to see.   I did like that there was a very big clue that Jolinar was telling the truth because of Cassie's continued existence.  It just seemed unlikely that the Goa'uld as we know them would hesitate for even a second to kill poor Cassie.  

 

Prisoners is a good one also.  The whole "the destroyer of worlds!" thing is actually super cool too.  I loved that they just got caught in the sort of trap that can and would happen in the whole space exploration deal....just wandering through the wrong gate onto a freaking prison colony.  

 

The Gamekeeper keeps up that "Advanced races are arrogant boogers and apparently possess no empathy" tradition.  Although, I now get a little bit of a grim chuckle out of poor Daniel's memory, just because it had to be how Daniel-the-child remembered it, vs. what really went down, because otherwise his poor parents were too stupid to live (and Daniel came by his lemming gene honestly enough) .  Just the way they stood underneath the giant rock being put in place is a bit wince-inducing and I did always put it down "This is how a little boy remembered his parents dying, not how it really could have been."  

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Idiotboy

Idiotboy

 

Anyway, such a fun episode and I always get a kick out of how the actor who plays Aphosis hams it up.

Agreed. And there's that wonderful moment when Major Samuels tries to weasel out of Stargate Command and off to the Alpha Site, and Hammond verbally body slams him with "Request de-NIED!" Just to rub it in, St. George tells Samuels that the Alpha Site is only for the best and brightest (i.e., not Samuels). It's a shame that Samuels never oozed across our screens again until Moebius. But we got two fine replacements: Colin Cunningham, always a spark of energy as Major Davis, and Tom McBeath as the inimitably devious Harry Maybourne.

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stillshimpy

stillshimpy

(edited)

I loved that moment with Samuels too, Idiotboy, particularly because of the way Don Davis played his barely concealed outrage that Samuels would even ask.  Like Samuels ought to know, "You, sir, are a weasel and a coward.  I'm not even sure you are that bright and I feel certain you actually know that, so what the hell can you possibly be thinking? We're actually considering throwing you bodily at the Goa'uld, because then at least you might be of some use.  Request denied. Unless you want to volunteer to be hurled at the enemy, shut up." 

 

So I am now through to Message in a Bottle, having watched Thor's Chariot also, but I admit, I took a pass on Need.  I think Michael Shanks wishes he could have also.  That was the episode where it became genuinely surprising that no one punched Daniel in the face on general principle.  

 

Message in a Bottle is a fun one, although I think that's probably Jack at his worst, Daniel at his most naive (let's take home the thing that looks a lot like a Goa'uld grenade! Because it's a Time Capsule!).  Jack telling Teal'c to repeatedly shoot the darned thing was almost funny, just because "Uh...so...metal conducts things, you kn...Oh okay, you're writhing in pain now so presumably you do k...Uh?  You think he should shoot it again??"   

 

It also contains a funny enough footnote for the series.  Is that the last time anyone doubts Sam?  General Hammond repeatedly giving Sam crap about her suggestions and getting really irked when she was wrong and then changed her mind was sort of amusing.  

 

Thor's Chariot is just plain fun.  I particularly like the J'affa leader for Heru'ur just hamming it up on a level even Aphosis usually didn't hit . When he's yelling to all the hidden people that they will be spared if they come forth and they too can serve Heru'ur, that was one of the worst, cheesiest, broadest performances from a J'affa ever, and man is that ever saying something.   Another episode written by Katharyn Powers, of Emancipation infamy, by the way.   Thor's Chariot is a much, much superior episode.  

 

Only worth mentioning, because she also wrote the other episode I took in today, Family.  I wasn't going to watch it, because I always dislike Teal'c in this sooooooo much, but I'm trying to make myself watch some of the ones I traditionally skip and since I already took a pass on Need, I figured I'd go for it with Family.  Wow, just as bad as I remember it in terms of how Teal'c reacts like a giant infant to the poor wife, he completely abandoned, trying to move on to give their son a better life.  But worse than that, is how the story then continually shames her for that, by having her new husband's betrayal hinge on seeing her kiss Teal'c (and I'm assuming, more than that).   

 

It just seemed to be an entire episode with the B story as "Tea'c's wife is faithless harlot! Indeed she is!  Teal'c's being judgmental and hypocritical.  Now the actual story seems to be shaming her.  Oh good, now she's berating herself for how much she sucks.  Joy."  

 

Also, that poor kid who has to play Ray'ac.  A thankless role if ever there was one.  Also, Teal'c seemed weirdly out-of-character even if all of his "My son!" pride also seemed...kind of...? Fitting.  It was always a problem with Teal'c's characterization that they structured in a family that he just abandoned with nary a sign of it until they retconned his backstory to open up more story possibilities on Chulak.  

 

They kind of never stopped with that stuff, because by the time the real love of Teal'c's life (another unfortunate character retcon) showed up in the form of that priestess, it retroactively made him seem quadruple the jackass in the way he treated his wife   I know they sort of solved the Teal'c/marriage problem by just offing the character offscreen, but they really hard a hard time structuring an emotional life for Teal'c that wasn't slightly unfortunate when it came to women.  Including having him bark "Woman!" at his wife in Family. 

Edited by stillshimpy
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blueray

blueray

One thing I never got in "in the line of duty" is why Journir just tell Same the truth and allow her to take control. Then no one would have suspected anything (minus Cassy)?

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theredhead77

theredhead77

One thing I never got in "in the line of duty" is why Journir just tell Same the truth and allow her to take control. Then no one would have suspected anything (minus Cassy)?

 

That was their first encounter with the Tok'ra; up until then all those pet head snakes were evil G'ould. Would Sam have even believed Jolinar's intentions were good if she had been told the truth from the start? Even after Jolinar came clean no one in the SGC believed her.

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solotrek

solotrek

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That was their first encounter with the Tok'ra; up until then all those pet head snakes were evil G'ould. Would Sam have even believed Jolinar's intentions were good if she had been told the truth from the start? Even after Jolinar came clean no one in the SGC believed her.

 

On the flip side, there was also no reason for the Tok'ra to trust the SGC. For all Jolinar knew, the SGC might try to do shit to her/it for information. If the NID had their way, Jolinar probably would have been tortured.

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theredhead77

theredhead77

On the flip side, there was also no reason for the Tok'ra to trust the SGC. For all Jolinar knew, the SGC might try to do shit to her/it for information. If the NID had their way, Jolinar probably would have been tortured.

The NID would torture their Nana's if they thought she had intel.

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DittyDotDot

DittyDotDot

(edited)

So, I'm about mid-S2 now and it really struck me that the writers really figured out how to write to the actors' strengths starting in S2. The humor, especially, seems to be finding it's target quite nicely now. And, it seems they've stopped trying to recreate history every episode and nattering at the natives so much, which is a welcome change of pace.  

Quick rundown of things that stuck out:

  • The Serpent's Lair was fun. I loved Bra'tac and O'Neill's back and forth throughout the episode. And, of course Daniel dies and gets brought back to life. I've already lost count of the deaths of Daniel at this point! But, "Space Monkey" made me smile ever so much. That was such a nice moment. Oh, and, I loved Hammond dressing down Samuels. What an asshat!
  • In The Line Of Duty: Amanda Tapping was brilliant throughout the episode. Nice introduction to the Tok'ra and also interesting to see different factions exist within the Goua'ld. Loved that Cassandra immediately figured out it wasn't Carter, though. 
  • Prisoners is one I remember very clearly, for some reason, but really didn't hold my interest this time. It's disturbing to think this "destroyer of worlds" is out there with so much more knowledge now, but I find it hard to believe they just let her loose on the base like that and gave her access to the computers. I mean, does Teal'c even have this much freedom yet?
  • Gamekeeper is another one I have a very clear memory of and didn't do much for me this go-around. Although, that wig they put on Christopher Judge had me howling...too funny! Daniel's memory of his parents dying was heartbreaking, but also kinda goofy to me since those set pieces were obviously Styrofoam and wouldn't kill a fly. Okay, maybe they could kill a fly, but I'm highly doubtful they even bruised those actors. ;)
  • Need is one I almost skipped, but I'm kinda glad I didn't. Yes, it's goofy, but also, I found it somewhat compelling too. I'm nothing if not wishy-washy, I guess.
  • Thor's Chariot, all I remembered about it from the first time was them meeting Thor and the puzzle they had to solve, but didn't remember why they went to the planet or anything else. Weird how that works. Anyway, enjoyed Teal'c and Jack fighting with the Vikings.
  • Message in a Bottle is a stand-out for me. RDA was most excellent throughout the episode, as was Christopher Judge. I really enjoyed this one immensely, but seriously, Daniel throws out the idea it's a time capsule and they all just go, "Sound reasonable to me, let's take it back home to study it rather than have a few folks come over here and study it." Whoever directed this episode did a fantastic job of it, if you ask me.
  • Less said about Family, the better. I already ranted about Teal'c and his family in the S1 thread and the same pretty much applies to that one. Although, one should mention how wonderful it was to see Bra'tac again. 
  • Secrets kinda came out of the blue to me. I'm sure I never saw this one because I remember being surprised by Sam's dad suddenly showing up later in the season. Now I see it wasn't quite as sudden as I remembered. I really enjoyed Teal'c and Daniel working together, but not sure how I feel about the baby part of it? I can't decide if it actually makes sense or not.
  • The Tok'ra episodes didn't do too much for me. I kinda thought they could've been easily condensed into one. Lots of posturing and yammering I just couldn't get into. But, this is an episode where I just love General Hammond to pieces.

So that's where I'm up to. Really looking forward to meeting the Asgard again, I know that one's coming up and, as I recall, RDA puts out a very wonderful performance of not being able to talk for most of the episode and Daniel having to try and translate his expressions that's stuck with me all these years. The other episode I think is in S2 I remember quite a bit is the one with the Native Americans. We'll see if I find it to be a "goofy" one this time around or not. 

Edited by DittyDotDot
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kassygreene

kassygreene

There are three or four odd episodes in terms of Jack's presence around this time, as his partner was about to give birth (in LA) so they kept writing Jack-light episodes in anticipation of him dropping everything and heading south.  In later years, as they started shooting two or more episodes at once, some over a period of months, they were better able to work the schedule around for everyone.

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DittyDotDot

DittyDotDot

OMG, I had totally forgotten about 1969! What a fun episode! And this from someone who usually doesn't care much for time travel episodes. From their little chat about not paying attention when Carter is talking science to Teal'c calmly shooting that missile while everyone else was panicking and hiding to a totally awesome young Hammond...all of it really charmed me! And just when you thought they'd gotten home and the episode was over, it turned out they were thrust into the future and Cassandra comes to save them. Really well-done episode. 

The episode did make me a little sad though. The episode highlighted so well how much I love General Hammond and how much I loved seeing William Davis show up on so many shows shot in Canada...and then I remembered William Davis is no longer with us. To cheer myself up, I decided to watch the episode again, though. 

Anyhoo, real life has been kicking my ass lately so I've really slowed down on the watching, but to back up a bit:

  • Spirits surprised me. I braced myself to see it as one of their "goofy" ones, but I think they actually found a nice line to walk with it even if it was still somewhat preachy.
  • The Fifth Race did not disappoint. It was mostly as I remembered, but still captivated me from start to finish. Loved it.
  • The Serpents Song also surprised me in that I remembered it being at least a season later for some reason and I didn't remember they sent Apophis back through the stargate in the end. For some reason, I thought he was truly dead at the end of the episode, but maybe that's why I thought it was later in the run?
  • One False Step came out of left field for me. I'm certain I've never seen the episode before because I think the little white men would've been memorable.

The rest of them haven't really stuck out one way or another. The back half of S2 seems to be kinda unforgettable, overall. It's interesting how much genre TV has changed over the years though. Now it's all about having an overriding arc for the season and such and my rewatch reminded me of how that wasn't the case back in the day.  

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LadyAmalthea

LadyAmalthea

So season 2 is when the show really started to hit it's stride, expanding the mythology of the show with the Asgard and Tok'ra, less terrible episodes although keeping a good amount of camp.

Best episodes: In the Line of Duty, Thor's Chariot, The Fifth Race, Serpent's Song, Holiday, 1969, although there's still some misses - Need, A Matter of Time, Out of Mind.

Dropped plot threads:

  • The aliens from Spirits, although I guess it's implied they bury the gate so they can't be contacted again - Earth screws up again (happened a lot this season)
  • The Reeto - name checked a few times but then never mentioned again
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marina to

marina to

On 8/14/2017 at 10:31 PM, LadyAmalthea said:

So season 2 is when the show really started to hit it's stride, expanding the mythology of the show with the Asgard and Tok'ra, less terrible episodes although keeping a good amount of camp.

Best episodes: In the Line of Duty, Thor's Chariot, The Fifth Race, Serpent's Song, Holiday, 1969, although there's still some misses - Need, A Matter of Time, Out of Mind.

Dropped plot threads:

  • The aliens from Spirits, although I guess it's implied they bury the gate so they can't be contacted again - Earth screws up again (happened a lot this season)
  • The Reeto - name checked a few times but then never mentioned again

Need is revered in Daniel fan circles. Just do a search for toes.

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LadyAmalthea

LadyAmalthea

Need is one of those episodes where I feel kind of embarrassed for everyone involved.  I remember it being well regarded for the Jack/Daniel hug at the end but it never really worked for me.  

I did kind of like that Sam was the one to remind Daniel that he was already married - it's unclear whether they picked the conversation about Sha're being a "gift" back up at some stage.  

Which reminds me that I really liked Sam's skepticism in the first two seasons - most notably in Thor's Hammer and again here in Spirits. 

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