Episode 01x12 - Bloodlines
Bloodlines
Episode 1x12
Transcript: Stargate Solutions
Well, I got a bit carried away. Here's my long-winded, slightly snarky recap, under a cut for the comfort of your flist...
First, though, the very important Hair Status:
Jack - brown
Daniel - longish
Sam - short and a bit floppy, but I like this 'do
Teal'c - none
Hammond - balding
(Things in italics are ... somewhat modified. As you'll probably be able to guess!)
We open on a dream sequence -- Teal'c is having a nightmare about his own implantation and yelling something about something called "rye-ack". When he wakes we find out that it was caused by the removal of his larval Goa'uld, which Janet removed to try to use some drug to cure him of his dependence. It didn't work (but don't worry, six years down the line, it'll happen, Teal'c).
Teal'c totally LIES about what "RYAC" means when asked.
In the briefing room, Janet is very hopeful about finding out exactly how the Goa'uld in the Jaffa duplicates the human immune system to help out sick people on Earth. They think Teal'c is offering his own for further study, but no, Teal'c is offering the many hundreds of larva available on Chulak. "It is one of the few worlds in the whole galaxy where they are in such abundance."
(Note: random apostrophes are also in terrifyingly great abundance on Chulak.)
Hammond says no way. But Jack and Daniel know Something Is Wrong with Teal'c.
Jack goes in to Teal'c's room where Teal'c is meditating. Jack is ... awkward but gets the point across. Teal'c admits to being concerned about the life of his son.
Jack: "Son? Wife? Bzuh?" Then, "Teal'c, you swore you had no family on Chulak. Why did you LIE?" I think this is the first time we get Jack articulating his dislike of surprises.
Teal'c discusses how it is R'yac's Primmta that it's when a boy receives his first symbiote to become a Jaffa. (and he does say "boy") First mention of Bra'tac! And then, Teal'c says that he "will not allow his son to become a slave."
SG-1 (minus Teal'c) go to talk to Hammond: they want to back up Teal'c, grab some Goa'uld for testing, and maybe contact other Jaffa who share Teal'c's beliefs to undermine the Goa'uld, pretty please?
Hammond: "Colonel, I didn't just fall off the turnip truck. Tell me the truth, or I'll nuke Abydos forbid the mission, because it's dumbest plan I've ever heard, and trust me, son, I've heard some doozies.."
O'Neill then spills the beans to Hammond about R'yac in a scene highly reminiscent of Children of the Gods. They're interrupted by Teal'c trying to hijack the gate in his full Serpent Armor (which, sadly, though we get the Arms of Teh Hot in later seasons, we don't get much full Serpent Armor, because I kind of like it). Hammond lets them all go because he's really a big softie.
In the Suburban Forest Which Has Become Condominiums and Probably a Costco and Starbucks:
First, Teal'c LIES to the priest who's there to greet them, about the group being "special scholars to see Apophis" and that his helmet is damaged so he doesn't have to show his traitorous face. And moments later SG-1 takes off their disguises and rub off the temporary marks of Apophis they just put on. Because of course they're no longer in danger while they're on Apophis' homeworld where there might be Jaffa warriors or other people who could recognize them from their last visit not very long ago....
Teal'c finds his former house burned out and there's graffiti that calls him a shol'va. Bra'tac appears and he and Teal'c embrace. Bra'tac sneers a bit at SG-1 until Jack takes him down and then Bra'tac tricks him cuz he's a wily and tough 133 year old.
Jack sends Sam and Daniel back to the gate, and the three other warriors of great skill and cunning go off to the camps to find R'yac and Drey'auc. Bra'tac tramples very cutely all over Jack's attempts to take charge.
They find the tent (uh, curtained off area) where the ceremony is already in progress. In the tussle, the priest performing the ceremony and the larva are killed. Rey'ac doesn't look well -- MY GOD IS HE SMALL! (Ahem, sorry, forgot he was so tiny and young back then).
Drey'auc is there and they fight a bit. She's angry and bitter about his betrayal and departure. I find her much more sympathetic on this rewatch than I remember from the first time around. Teal'c calls her "woman", which is not our first indication that Jaffa culture is a bit... old-fashioned but still rather striking to me. She relents a little and tells him to carry Ry'ac to their hovel. Ryac' wakes up and is happy to see his father. Awww.
But unfortunately, with the larva dead, and no other priest willing to perform the ceremony anyway, Rya'c is gonna die. He's very sick and without the healing power of a Goa'uld, well, game over. Jack says R''yac has scarlet fever and gives him some powder from an envelope in his vest. They decide to take R'yac to the stargate and get him to some real doctors.
Meanwhile, Sam and Daniel have been following some priests (instead of going back to the gate) and they come to a conveniently untended fishtank full of Goa'uld in the middle of the Alpha Site old quarry sandy area. Sam sticks her hand in the tank and grabs one, like it's a goldfish or something, not a creature that can, y'know, leap four feet into the air, drill into your neck, and take control of your body in less time than it takes to write. And she stuffs the rubber snake into the thermos.
Daniel wants to kill the rest of them, and Sam says that killing them would make them just as bad as the Goa'uld. Considering she just kidnapped one for SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTATION, I'm not so sure she should be on a moral highhorse just now. Daniel blows the tank away and the Goa'uld squeal a bit piteously and flop around on the ground.
In the Suburban Forest, R'ya'c is almost dead, so Teal'c gives him Junior, willing to sacrifice his own life and his son's freedom, to keep the boy alive. *sniffle* It's quite touching (I am however the one who gets teary at the "I'm a Big Kid now" diaper commercials, so YMMV)
Meanwhile in another patch of Suburban Forest, Jaffa are chasing Sam and Daniel. Sam throws a grenade!
They meet up.
Jack: "Teal'c lost his symbiote to keep his son alive. Now he's dying."
Daniel: "Hey, we've got one! Isn't that lucky?"
So Junior Mark II enters Teal'c. A younger Junior. Sort of like how old men trade in their first wives for the younger sexier one... No wonder the Goa'uld don't want to leave once they finally have a home.
Teal'c says goodbye to R'y'a'c and Dr'ey'auc Considering events to come, she seems okay with the idea of him coming back to free the Jaffa.
Bra'tac helps them escape awesomely, and seems rather unconcerned about the consequences. SG-1 salutes him and goes home.
First appearances:
This episode introduces many things and people which will become important to the overall mythology of the series:
Bra'tac, Rya'c, Drey'auc, the term Shol'va, the Free Jaffa movement (before Bra'tac,there's no movement, only Teal'c), the idea of a drug replacing the larval Goa'uld in Jaffa.
Anything else?
QUESTIONS:
Sorry, the question list got a little out of hand too.
Discuss!
Episode 1x12
Transcript: Stargate Solutions
Well, I got a bit carried away. Here's my long-winded, slightly snarky recap, under a cut for the comfort of your flist...
First, though, the very important Hair Status:
Jack - brown
Daniel - longish
Sam - short and a bit floppy, but I like this 'do
Teal'c - none
Hammond - balding
(Things in italics are ... somewhat modified. As you'll probably be able to guess!)
We open on a dream sequence -- Teal'c is having a nightmare about his own implantation and yelling something about something called "rye-ack". When he wakes we find out that it was caused by the removal of his larval Goa'uld, which Janet removed to try to use some drug to cure him of his dependence. It didn't work (but don't worry, six years down the line, it'll happen, Teal'c).
Teal'c totally LIES about what "RYAC" means when asked.
In the briefing room, Janet is very hopeful about finding out exactly how the Goa'uld in the Jaffa duplicates the human immune system to help out sick people on Earth. They think Teal'c is offering his own for further study, but no, Teal'c is offering the many hundreds of larva available on Chulak. "It is one of the few worlds in the whole galaxy where they are in such abundance."
(Note: random apostrophes are also in terrifyingly great abundance on Chulak.)
Hammond says no way. But Jack and Daniel know Something Is Wrong with Teal'c.
Jack goes in to Teal'c's room where Teal'c is meditating. Jack is ... awkward but gets the point across. Teal'c admits to being concerned about the life of his son.
Jack: "Son? Wife? Bzuh?" Then, "Teal'c, you swore you had no family on Chulak. Why did you LIE?" I think this is the first time we get Jack articulating his dislike of surprises.
Teal'c discusses how it is R'yac's Primmta that it's when a boy receives his first symbiote to become a Jaffa. (and he does say "boy") First mention of Bra'tac! And then, Teal'c says that he "will not allow his son to become a slave."
SG-1 (minus Teal'c) go to talk to Hammond: they want to back up Teal'c, grab some Goa'uld for testing, and maybe contact other Jaffa who share Teal'c's beliefs to undermine the Goa'uld, pretty please?
Hammond: "Colonel, I didn't just fall off the turnip truck. Tell me the truth, or I'll nuke Abydos forbid the mission, because it's dumbest plan I've ever heard, and trust me, son, I've heard some doozies.."
O'Neill then spills the beans to Hammond about R'yac in a scene highly reminiscent of Children of the Gods. They're interrupted by Teal'c trying to hijack the gate in his full Serpent Armor (which, sadly, though we get the Arms of Teh Hot in later seasons, we don't get much full Serpent Armor, because I kind of like it). Hammond lets them all go because he's really a big softie.
In the Suburban Forest Which Has Become Condominiums and Probably a Costco and Starbucks:
First, Teal'c LIES to the priest who's there to greet them, about the group being "special scholars to see Apophis" and that his helmet is damaged so he doesn't have to show his traitorous face. And moments later SG-1 takes off their disguises and rub off the temporary marks of Apophis they just put on. Because of course they're no longer in danger while they're on Apophis' homeworld where there might be Jaffa warriors or other people who could recognize them from their last visit not very long ago....
Teal'c finds his former house burned out and there's graffiti that calls him a shol'va. Bra'tac appears and he and Teal'c embrace. Bra'tac sneers a bit at SG-1 until Jack takes him down and then Bra'tac tricks him cuz he's a wily and tough 133 year old.
Jack sends Sam and Daniel back to the gate, and the three other warriors of great skill and cunning go off to the camps to find R'yac and Drey'auc. Bra'tac tramples very cutely all over Jack's attempts to take charge.
They find the tent (uh, curtained off area) where the ceremony is already in progress. In the tussle, the priest performing the ceremony and the larva are killed. Rey'ac doesn't look well -- MY GOD IS HE SMALL! (Ahem, sorry, forgot he was so tiny and young back then).
Drey'auc is there and they fight a bit. She's angry and bitter about his betrayal and departure. I find her much more sympathetic on this rewatch than I remember from the first time around. Teal'c calls her "woman", which is not our first indication that Jaffa culture is a bit... old-fashioned but still rather striking to me. She relents a little and tells him to carry Ry'ac to their hovel. Ryac' wakes up and is happy to see his father. Awww.
But unfortunately, with the larva dead, and no other priest willing to perform the ceremony anyway, Rya'c is gonna die. He's very sick and without the healing power of a Goa'uld, well, game over. Jack says R''yac has scarlet fever and gives him some powder from an envelope in his vest. They decide to take R'yac to the stargate and get him to some real doctors.
Meanwhile, Sam and Daniel have been following some priests (instead of going back to the gate) and they come to a conveniently untended fishtank full of Goa'uld in the middle of the Alpha Site old quarry sandy area. Sam sticks her hand in the tank and grabs one, like it's a goldfish or something, not a creature that can, y'know, leap four feet into the air, drill into your neck, and take control of your body in less time than it takes to write. And she stuffs the rubber snake into the thermos.
Daniel wants to kill the rest of them, and Sam says that killing them would make them just as bad as the Goa'uld. Considering she just kidnapped one for SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTATION, I'm not so sure she should be on a moral highhorse just now. Daniel blows the tank away and the Goa'uld squeal a bit piteously and flop around on the ground.
In the Suburban Forest, R'ya'c is almost dead, so Teal'c gives him Junior, willing to sacrifice his own life and his son's freedom, to keep the boy alive. *sniffle* It's quite touching (I am however the one who gets teary at the "I'm a Big Kid now" diaper commercials, so YMMV)
Meanwhile in another patch of Suburban Forest, Jaffa are chasing Sam and Daniel. Sam throws a grenade!
They meet up.
Jack: "Teal'c lost his symbiote to keep his son alive. Now he's dying."
Daniel: "Hey, we've got one! Isn't that lucky?"
So Junior Mark II enters Teal'c. A younger Junior. Sort of like how old men trade in their first wives for the younger sexier one... No wonder the Goa'uld don't want to leave once they finally have a home.
Teal'c says goodbye to R'y'a'c and Dr'ey'auc Considering events to come, she seems okay with the idea of him coming back to free the Jaffa.
Bra'tac helps them escape awesomely, and seems rather unconcerned about the consequences. SG-1 salutes him and goes home.
First appearances:
This episode introduces many things and people which will become important to the overall mythology of the series:
Bra'tac, Rya'c, Drey'auc, the term Shol'va, the Free Jaffa movement (before Bra'tac,there's no movement, only Teal'c), the idea of a drug replacing the larval Goa'uld in Jaffa.
Anything else?
QUESTIONS:
- Note the inconsistency between this and later Jaffa episodes regarding Jaffa biology. So, are Jaffa born or made? Teal'c believes that if he stops the implantation, Rya'c will be free. "Birthright" states that without that larva, the young Jaffa girls will die. Who's right? Can they both be right? Or, as we have (and will) see -- is Teal'c really a lot more ignorant of the Goa'uld than he seems?
- Given the above, Teal'c's comment about "a boy's primmta" and that Drey'auc doesn't offer her own to save her son, it seems probable that only Jaffa males were intended originally to carry the larva. But with the benefit of future knowledge, should we take Drey'auc's lack of offer a character choice?
- So, Daniel. Killing all the symbiotes was very dramatic. Is there any moral dilemma in what he did? Is it murder or mere pest control?
- Is Chulak really a place where symbiotes are in rare abundance, or was Teal'c lying/exaggerating to get SG-1 to go on the mission?
- Speaking of lying, Teal'c lies a bit in this episode - he's rather fortunate in this first season that Jack trusts him in spite of all of it. Or is Earth the one who's lucky? If Teal'c had been playing a deep game of his own, would the SGC have fallen for it?
- How does Jack know what scarlet fever looks like? And just what was that powder he gave to Rya'c?
- In later canon, didn't "Primmta" become the name for the larval Goa'uld in the pouch, not the ceremony? Or did I manage to make that up in my own fanon?
- Should Teal'c and Rya'c have traded symbiotes afterward, so Rya'c had the younger one and Teal'c kept the old one?
- And the biggest mystery to me: why do Jaffa names need the apostrophe?!?!
Sorry, the question list got a little out of hand too.
Discuss!