Stargate SG-1: Season 05 (2001–02)

SG-1: Season 05 (2001–02)

Dirs. Various | 22 episodes, approx 44 minutes each.

I was planning to write more about Teal'c of Chulak (Christopher Judge) than I have previously, but he doesn't get very much to do in Season 05, so it'll be more general praise.

It's fair to say that without the former First Prime of Goa'uld System Lord Apophis the SG-1 team simply wouldn't exist as they do – they'd have died on Abydos (in the Pilot episode).

The team owe Teal'c their lives, and he in turn owes them for giving him the means to follow his heart. In the eyes of most other Jaffa he's a traitor, but to all who oppose the Goa'uld he's a pillar of strength and proof that their enforced thrall can be broken. In short, he's an inspiration.

And like Colonel Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) he can be extremely funny, but in a very different way. It's a dry wit, enhanced by his being a man of few words who sometimes 'helpfully' states the obvious for his teammates.

It's logical when profiling Teal'c to also mention Bra'tac (Tony Amendola), his long-time mentor and friend. Although a fulltime member of SG-1, Teal'c's personal goal is freedom for his people, which is something that Bra'tac shares. The two men sometimes appear together in flashbacks to a time before the younger man's liberation - in fact, the early teachings of the older Jaffa were instrumental in helping awaken Teal'c from his enslavement to Apophis (Peter Williams).

- "The [alien artefact of the week] was indeed a device of great power." -

I should probably get to writing about the actual Season 05. Overall, it's pretty weak compared to the four that preceded it. It continues to reference past events, but there's little advancement. And while there are a few important story arc episodes, there are none that I'd pick out as being independently great and worthy of special mention. The arc episodes are as follows:

Ep. 01 + 02. Enemies + Threshold continue the story of S4's final episode (Exodus).

Ep. 09. Between Two Fires features a race first seen in S1, and again in S3. 

Eps. 15 + 16. Summit + Last Stand concern the power vacuum that was left after the show's previous most troublesome System Lord was destroyed. What happens herein has many ripples.

Ep. 19. Menace isn't as successful with integrating pathos as it was probably supposed to be, but is an important step in at least one ongoing arc.

Ep. 21. Meridian is notable for two reasons. The first is the introduction of a character that will play a more significant role in the next season. The second... is too much spoiler to even hint at.

Ep. 22. Revelations. A previously mentioned but unseen System Lord is revealed.

In closing, I nominate Ep. 14. Wormhole X-Treme! as one of the worst episodes in the entire series thus far. It's another of those overused devices that many long-running sci-fi and horror shows attempt, rarely with any success. It's an idea that should probably stay in fan-fic.