Critical Myth Article: Stargate SG-1: Looking Back on Season 10
When it comes to “Stargate SG-1”, there is the inevitable comparison to the history of “The X-Files”. Speaking of each series alone, there is a distinct pattern that was followed, even if it was completely unintentional. While there’s a lot of dispute in each fandom regarding how that pattern was received, there are particular similarities that are brought to mind by the final seasons of each series.
Many fans consider the first five seasons of “The X-Files” to be the classic incarnation of that series, where the conventions and most creative aspects of the concept were explored. The first five seasons of “SG-1” were aired on Showtime, and are considered by many to be the “classic SG-1”, by which all subsequent seasons are measured.
“The X-Files” suffered an annual concern regarding cancellation and involvement of the primary cast members during its middle period, ending with the seventh season with an episode that brought the series full circle. After the fifth season, “SG-1” shifted to production under the Sci-Fi Channel, which coincided with cast changes and similar issues regarding cancellation. This period lasted until the end of the eighth season, when the plot threads of the “classic SG-1” were effective wrapped up in a manner that (you guessed it) brought the series full circle. Fans have long debated the quality of the material during these similar periods of each show.
The eighth season of “The X-Files” marked the departure of David Duchovny, forcing the introduction of a new main character, John Doggett. This decision split the fandom into three distinct camps: those fully embracing the change, those strongly against the change, and those willing to see how it was handled. The result was a great deal of bad feeling.
Similarly, in the ninth season of “SG-1”, the departure of Richard Dean Anderson forced the introduction of a new main character, Cameron Mitchell. The response was nearly identical. As with “The X-Files”, the writers had a choice to make: commit to the changes and focus on those supporting the move, or attempt to appease those wishing for things to be as they were.
In the case of “The X-Files”, the writers struggled with the possibility of losing fans. While the “new direction” initially introduced some additional elements of the massive series mythology, those concepts were never fully developed. Instead, the writers tried to continue with the existing elements, and the series ended with little sense of resolution or direction. In particular, the writers failed develop Doggett as fully as they could have, especially in the final season, when the character should have been in the spotlight, if the producers wanted the series to survive in its new incarnation.
“SG-1” has fared somewhat better, though some of the criticisms remain. The ninth season introduced the Ori, an enemy very different from the System Lords of the Goa’uld but connected to elements of the Ancients, a race that had been important over the course of the series as a whole. By embracing the concept of the Ori as a new threat worthy of development, the writers avoided the appearance of stringing out more of the same, now-repetitive material. The ninth season attained a Critical Myth average rating of 7.3, or slightly above average.
Coming into the tenth season, there was every reason to think that this creative resurgence would allow the writers to explore the ideas introduced with the Ori more fully. The first half of the season seemed to be moving with the same urgency as the ninth season. When it came time for the landmark “200” to air, the news came down: the series would be cancelled at the end of the season.
This presented a complication for the audience. Most of the season had been filmed already, with the material chosen with a longer series lifespan in mind. Unfortunately, this meant that the second half of the series was heavily laden with “character-based” episodes. Many of these episodes were mediocre and unsatisfying, and as the season progressed, it was hard for the audience to rationalize why so much of the remaining time was spent on stand-alone material instead of resolving the new Ori arc.
This was further complicated by the approval of two direct-to-DVD films, which would extend the story beyond the actual end of the series. The producers decided to relocate the resolution of the Ori arc from the series finale to the first film (“The Ark of Truth”), leaving the series proper with a massive lack of resolution. Looking back at the final season, there was very little progress in Mitchell’s character development, and with the films likely to be more plot-driven, the opportunities that did exist felt wasted.
Turning back to the comparison with “The X-Files”, the irony is that the series tried to end on a definitive conclusion, and the result was a disaster. Because so much of the final season was spent trying to make everyone happy, there was little direction and the finale was an exposition-laden attempt to gloss over inconsistencies. At least part of this attempt was driven by the unlikelihood of any further chance to provide a more organic conclusion (despite the amount of time granted the production to craft a conclusion to the series).
In contrast, the final season of “SG-1” is not, in essence, the end of the series. The endpoint has yet to be determined. As such, the season (and the series) could not end in any definitive manner. Instead, after a string of stand-alone episodes that left the audience frustrated, the series ended with an installment that brought the series to nothing more than a momentary rest.
So “SG-1” ends as a series but doesn’t have an ending; the season is therefore incomplete. While the resulting frustration is mitigated by the knowledge that the story will eventually come to a conclusion, the fact remains that the coherence of the season was affected. The result was a Critical Myth average rating of 6.9, effectively average. Looking back at the quality of the series since its departure from Showtime, this is in keeping with that trend. That said, it’s unfortunate that the series couldn’t end on a stronger note.
John Keegan
Reprinted with permission
Original source: c. Critical Myth, 2007
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