Menace

DVD, Stargate SG-1 S5 (Menace)

'Hey, let's go into this abandoned tomb, or whatever it is.'
'Hey, look what we found; some kind of robot more advanced than anything we could understand.'
'Hey, I know what would be a really good idea: we could take it home with us, you know, to study it better. 'Cos it would be way too much trouble to bring the equipment here. And after all, it's only showing minimal signs of power…'

Yeah, I know the characters live in their own little world and they had no way of knowing the time they were living in was going to be cut up, boxed and referred to as an episode called 'Menace,' but really! They should have known better. And as for their briefing of the soldiers that work for the SGC, it's appalling! A guy reports finding a load of things, but he doesn't know what they are: 'I'm sure they aren't important.' How sure, soldier? Enough to stake your life on it? Why have they not let every member of staff, right down to the lady that sweeps the canteen (assuming there is one, unless they all do it on a rota basis), who, what and any other question that might be important when it comes to the Replicators? They even have the cheek to cite how experienced they are with robots and how they should be careful and not do anything rash. I despair for the Earth, sometimes.

If you can accept them taking the robot, soon to be known as Reese, home with them (and you have to, if you're going to watch the episode), then there is at least a bit of a story going on with Daniel characteristically bonding with her, reassuring her and trying to get to the bottom of what destroyed her world, versus O'Neill who wants to shoot first and ask questions later. Or in this case, ask questions first and get to know her later. Surprise, surprise, when it comes down to it, she admits it was she who was responsible for her planet's ruin because she told her 'toys' to protect her against people that didn't like her which led to them getting out of control and becoming the menace of the galaxy that even the Asgard may not be able to stop. It's not amazingly original, but it is good to have the origins of the Replicators explained.

If only Reese, the Borg Queen of the Replicators, hadn't been such an irritating little madam. Admittedly she has the mind of a child (a naughty one, unwilling to accept consequences), but I was sort of glad Jack shot her at the end because it means she's less likely to return. Not impossible, being a robot, but less likely. And it did give me a few chuckles at O'Neill's responses to the situation (early on before he went all gung-ho and military), the best being when Daniel talks about her having the mind of a child, then they all look at O'Neill in the background fiddling with a magnifying glass! The occasional wry moment and shooty ending couldn't save a predictable story. She was similar to Cassandra, in some ways, but Cassandra was never that annoying.

The episode did give Hammond a chance to run (or march quickly) around in combats with a big gun, and it further explored the 'scientist versus military' perspectives between Daniel and Jack, with him getting really upset over Reese's death, but it was too late in the episode to examine that and see where it goes, and I expect by next episode it will be forgotten and they'll be talking to each other again. It seems, no matter how pally the team gets there will always be those rifts between them, whether it's diplomacy/security or Teal'c's traditions against strict human rules, and that's a shame because it means they can never be a perfect team. It could be argued that that's what makes the dynamic so strong between the four, only it's more enjoyable when they see eye to eye. Daniel's reaction to the 'death' was a good moment in an otherwise dry episode in which we don't find out anything new, apart from where the Replicators came from and how. Felt like a filler.

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