Stargate: SG-1 10.1: "Flesh and Blood"
Written by Robert C. Cooper
Directed by Will Waring
I was slightly worried that the record-setting tenth season would start on a low note, especially since I found the next step in the plot arc somewhat easy to predict. Those who remember my review for the ninth season finale will recall that I had the purpose of Vala’s child worked out before the episode was over. The promise, I thought, was in the execution of the next season arc and how the seeming overpowering nature of the Ori fleet would be handled.
I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that the premiere dealt with everything I wanted it to address, and managed to do so without too many plot conveniences along the way. Most of those issues came up as each team member was revealed to be alive and ready for rescue. The road to rescue was sometimes fraught with peril, but it was also a foregone conclusion.
The far more interesting part of the story was the reaction to the Ori threat. I was a little worried about how Mitchell would come across, since he was the new guy last season and could have been played up again this time around to overcome the lingering resistance to his inclusion. The character felt very natural in the story, as though the writers took some time over the hiatus to pin down the character once and for all. Time will tell, of course, but it never occurred to me that O’Neill wasn’t there.
Much of the time is spent on the Ori incursion and the fall of Chulak, which throws the status quo of the Stargate universe into a very nasty direction. I would have liked to have seen the evolution of the Jaffa Nation, but in a way, this is a logical step for Adria to take. The Jaffa are a massive power in the universe at large, and eliminating or subverting that power goes a long way towards crushing resistance. And it forces the Jaffa into a position of underground resistance again, which is something they know far better than self-determination.
So the situation is getting worse in the Milky Way, with the Ori establishing a nice beachhead and the Jaffa under the gun. Earth has also lost a lot of ships, and it seems like some new solution needs to be found. (Cue Merlin’s weapon from the ninth season.) This gives those annoying nits from the Lucien Alliance a lot of room to maneuver, though I imagine that they will ultimately realize that the Ori will demand their obedience just as stridently.
One thing I find very interesting is the possibility that the Ori are not the totality of the problem. Orlin told the SGC that the Ori steal the life energy from their followers and wish to destroy the Ancients for driving them out. Adria has a very different point of view. Adria claims that the Ori are the ones being targeted because they wanted to stop the Ancients from stealing the life energies of the human beings in the Milky Way. In fact, Adria claims that human life was created to serve the Ancients in this fashion.
Clearly the Ori are wrong in what they do, but it may be that they have a valid point. What if the Ancients are just as bad as the Ori? What if defending the Ancients is the wrong move? I see shades of the Vorlons and Shadows from “Babylon 5”. When Daniel mentioned that they need to learn more about how this whole “ascension” thing works, I wondered if the solution to the Ori might ultimately be a solution to the Ancients as well. And wouldn’t that factor into “Stargate: Atlantis” in interesting ways?
Much like the ninth season in general, I found that the Ori arc has revitalized my interest in the series, which was struggling for a few seasons before changes were forced to occur. I think that the new elements give the writers a lot of ground to cover and explore, and it doesn’t have to be a retread of everything that happened during the Goa’uld arc. I like how Vala has evolved over time (Claudia was gorgeous in that outfit!), and Adria should give the Ori threat a sense of focus in terms of storytelling. All in all, I’m very pleased with how this season has started out!
(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”. Future episodes will highlight “Stargate SG-1”, so it might be something of interest . Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
Directed by Will Waring
I was slightly worried that the record-setting tenth season would start on a low note, especially since I found the next step in the plot arc somewhat easy to predict. Those who remember my review for the ninth season finale will recall that I had the purpose of Vala’s child worked out before the episode was over. The promise, I thought, was in the execution of the next season arc and how the seeming overpowering nature of the Ori fleet would be handled.
I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that the premiere dealt with everything I wanted it to address, and managed to do so without too many plot conveniences along the way. Most of those issues came up as each team member was revealed to be alive and ready for rescue. The road to rescue was sometimes fraught with peril, but it was also a foregone conclusion.
The far more interesting part of the story was the reaction to the Ori threat. I was a little worried about how Mitchell would come across, since he was the new guy last season and could have been played up again this time around to overcome the lingering resistance to his inclusion. The character felt very natural in the story, as though the writers took some time over the hiatus to pin down the character once and for all. Time will tell, of course, but it never occurred to me that O’Neill wasn’t there.
Much of the time is spent on the Ori incursion and the fall of Chulak, which throws the status quo of the Stargate universe into a very nasty direction. I would have liked to have seen the evolution of the Jaffa Nation, but in a way, this is a logical step for Adria to take. The Jaffa are a massive power in the universe at large, and eliminating or subverting that power goes a long way towards crushing resistance. And it forces the Jaffa into a position of underground resistance again, which is something they know far better than self-determination.
So the situation is getting worse in the Milky Way, with the Ori establishing a nice beachhead and the Jaffa under the gun. Earth has also lost a lot of ships, and it seems like some new solution needs to be found. (Cue Merlin’s weapon from the ninth season.) This gives those annoying nits from the Lucien Alliance a lot of room to maneuver, though I imagine that they will ultimately realize that the Ori will demand their obedience just as stridently.
One thing I find very interesting is the possibility that the Ori are not the totality of the problem. Orlin told the SGC that the Ori steal the life energy from their followers and wish to destroy the Ancients for driving them out. Adria has a very different point of view. Adria claims that the Ori are the ones being targeted because they wanted to stop the Ancients from stealing the life energies of the human beings in the Milky Way. In fact, Adria claims that human life was created to serve the Ancients in this fashion.
Clearly the Ori are wrong in what they do, but it may be that they have a valid point. What if the Ancients are just as bad as the Ori? What if defending the Ancients is the wrong move? I see shades of the Vorlons and Shadows from “Babylon 5”. When Daniel mentioned that they need to learn more about how this whole “ascension” thing works, I wondered if the solution to the Ori might ultimately be a solution to the Ancients as well. And wouldn’t that factor into “Stargate: Atlantis” in interesting ways?
Much like the ninth season in general, I found that the Ori arc has revitalized my interest in the series, which was struggling for a few seasons before changes were forced to occur. I think that the new elements give the writers a lot of ground to cover and explore, and it doesn’t have to be a retread of everything that happened during the Goa’uld arc. I like how Vala has evolved over time (Claudia was gorgeous in that outfit!), and Adria should give the Ori threat a sense of focus in terms of storytelling. All in all, I’m very pleased with how this season has started out!
(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”. Future episodes will highlight “Stargate SG-1”, so it might be something of interest . Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
posted by John Keegan | 12:52
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