Redemption

DVD, Stargate SG-1 (Redemption)

A cliffhanger ending can be both a blessing and a curse. It gives the end of the season a dramatic sweep without a conclusion, and it hands the writers a challenge to take those cliffhanging pieces and make them into something good for the season opener. The downside? Coming up with that good thing that starts a season in a way that enthrals and hooks the viewer. Because of the nature of Season 5's ending finishing with a certain amount of closure, they didn't have the heavy Sword of Damocles hanging overhead, but instead had a slightly different challenge: to come up with something new without those threads hanging over from last season, being something of a restart of the series in terms of the cast. They always had threads to pull on with so many stories, characters and planets having become part of the mythology, and that was their partial downfall with this opening to Season 6. They had too much to choose from, and instead of concentrating on a character piece for Teal'c, a setup for Jonas, a crucial scientific problem for Carter, or a piece of new tech for O'Neill to try out, they throw it all in, with extra characters too!

The best of the bunch are Teal'c's battles, both emotional and physical, with his son, Rya'c. He's summoned to a Jaffa camp by Bra'tac, with the terrible news of his wife's decline, and then the devastating reality that she's dead, and finally the triple whammy of his volatile son taking out all his grief and confusion in himself (following the takeover of his mind by Apophis), on his Father. Master Bra'tac proves most wise in the advice he gives: basically to talk to his son and tell him he doesn't doubt him, and their reconciliation is a warm scene, lit beautifully in darkness. As has been the case with recent episodes, last season for example, the series looks better than ever; crisp, bright, full of contrast, and taking advantage of the widescreen ratio - even the CGI is less easy to spot these days (though the Goa'uld ship was given away by its shadow; the X-302 by its slight blurriness, and I suspect the savages running down the dunes in the opening moments were increased by duplication, but in a good way). Clearly the technology had improved by the time this was made (2002).

Technology has also progressed in the fictional world, with a successor to the X-302 (the fighter based on Goa'uld tech that almost got Jack and Teal'c killed back in Season 4, 'Tangent'), though the main benefit of it being able to enter hyperspace and travel to other planets hasn't been ironed out yet (the closest we get to the 'Star Trek' implications is O'Neill's joke, asking if it had phasers!). This advancement angers the Russian Colonel Chekov, (yes, he's here, too), who's outraged that 'gate related technology has been kept from the Russians. That story doesn't come to a head (mind you, this is a two-parter), nor does the X-302, which has to return to base, but you get the feeling that all these bits are spoiling the real story, which is the personal trial of Teal'c dealing with his wife's death, and his son's reaction. One of the best parts of that is Rya'c striking down his Father with a staff weapon, repeatedly beating him in a severe show of lack of respect (but then Teal'c has been something of an absent Father). Rya'c has certainly aged since we last saw him. Then he still seemed boyish, now he's a proper teen, bad temper and everything!

The familial disputes and thoughts about the wider mission of the Jaffa movement to free their enslavement was of much more value than the other, multiple plots, designed to give everyone a bone to play with. And that's the reason for all these things happening in one episode, I think: to reintroduce every main character again, since that's what's expected. One character that walks difficult ground is the newest member of… I was about to put SG-1, but he's being artificially kept away from that spot so far. Everyone knew he was the replacement for Daniel Jackson, so why not get straight into giving him the post and let him prove himself in that way. Instead, we learn he's been on the base for about three months, has learned just about everything Daniel committed to paper, and lots of other things besides, while still having that thing Teal'c used to show a lot more: misunderstanding of human culture and customs. So far he hasn't been well sold, filling that role Teal'c used to fill, wandering around the base like a third glove, trying too hard to be amiable, likeable and having a point. Which so far, he doesn't.

I remember quite liking the guy when I originally watched the season, but even I could see they were tiptoeing around the issue of this character replacing a much-loved, founding member of the series. I can also see why people would complain if it went straight into Jonas on the team without any training or earning the place. But that's a problem: you can see it coming a mile off that his assistance will save the day, thus proving himself in the other team members' eyes, and making him an invaluable part of SG-1. That hasn't exactly happened yet because of the second part still to come, but he's generally made himself a minor annoyance, simply by being so unassuming and friendly. It's bad to say it, but if he'd had more of an attitude and forced people to confront him maybe it would have worked better, but the whole point he behaves in the way he does is because that's his character and what makes him unique, so it's all mixed impressions so far. It even sets things up in an overblown way by pointing out that SG-1 have gone through nine other people trying to find someone suitable, but that makes the SGC look bad because there are many teams, so any volunteer should be fitted into a team smartly, unless it's because the loss of Daniel has made the other members less accepting, but that would be unprofessional and hasn't been the suggestion of why no one worked out.

As expected, there are touches of humour that keep things light a lot of the time, and even when the Stargate is mysteriously under attack (before they know it's Anubis), the danger level isn't projected very strongly at all. The Anubis hologram at the end is rather melodramatic, as O'Neill scoffs, but it rounded out a mildly unsatisfying whole. A lot of blame can be handed to the decision to make it a two-part story, but that shouldn't stop an opener from being a slam-bam enjoyment-fest. There is joy to be had simply in seeing the characters again, and the absence of Daniel isn't keenly felt - it's almost like the departure rocked the real production of the series so they were throwing all these things in to compensate for feeling unbalanced. On top of the Jaffa side of things with Bra'tac, Rya'c, etc, and Anubis representing the baddies, we also have Dr. McKay turning up without much prompting, Siler gets his cameo, and the Russian Colonel is much in evidence (calling for a Russian member of the team, which actually isn't a bad idea until you consider 'The Tomb'!).

"How do I know what colour to wear?" asks Jonas. "We call each other every morning," responds Carter. That's about the funniest line, but I was also interested in the details about four-person SG teams - no one ever said they had to be made up of four, that's just the way it happened. The base is the same old concrete walls and hazard tape, but I can't remember if they had those flat screen monitors last season. I say flat, but they're still pretty chunky by today's standards, and you can always date a series by its computers! Something that has changed is the titles sequence which now features closeup footage of the Stargate in motion, which is fine. I like watching the series, I like seeing the people, and it's not that this was a boring story, it's that it wasn't a story, but an anthology of bits of other stories. Maybe watching both parts together would improve the experience, but regardless of the good stuff, there's too much filling in this sandwich even for Teal'c to munch on.

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