The First Commandment

DVD, Stargate SG-1 S1 (The First Commandment)

The production values are high and we get some more info on the mythos (that the Goa'uld terraformed many of the planets leading them to look similar - a reasonable explanation for the forest locales, although they could probably do with a bit more variety sometimes). But. The episode still isn't that good, mainly because the villain isn't very believable, and not that much really happens, leaving the episode to trundle along until it ends, which isn't the best thing you would hope for. Yes, the humour's still there, and we get a nice campfire scene and all, but we're constantly reminded that this is a series from a military perspective (even if the planet should have been called 'Planet of Insubordination'!), which can be a burden to the story.

Where 'Star Trek' could branch off into various avenues, here we know it's pretty much going to be a variation on a theme time after time. Trek would use the opportunity to learn more about the characters too, rather than being a straight action/recon mission, which is why this series suffers. I did like the Biblical reference, and especially how Jack gets it wrong! Not sure how the Abraham analogy fit though... It's good to have a bit of variety, and at least we had no sign of the base, as the last episode featured it a lot. But they gotta find something more to show than the low contrast military establishment/ tree-lined woods, or things get too samey.

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