That was it?
Jan. 17th, 2004 12:58 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
corilannamI've been hearing bits and pieces about the new SG-1 episode "Grace" that finally aired tonight, and I was expecting to either really love or really hate it, depending on how they did things and how it affected the little fic universe that lives in my head and my notebook.
Instead, I was just kinda "enh" about it.
Over all, really quite underwhelmed. I love Sam, I do, but she just can't seem to carry an episode on her own anymore. Avenger 2.0? Space Race? And now this lovely little gem of a Trek rip-off.
It actually felt like a Trek/X-Files crossover to me through most of it. While most of the plot and setting was very Trek, the extended Scullyesque monotone monologues and the foggy plot twists gave me a weird trip back to the bad old days of X-Files. "Captain's Log, Stardate 947830. The Truth Is Out There."
So, this was supposed to be a trip through Sam's subconscious? A very dull place, for the most part, although I did enjoy seeing how she perceives her teammates and how she perceives them as perceiving her. Or...something like that.
--Teal'c. Clearly her rock and her guardian. I loved how he called her Samantha -- twice! The Sam/Teal'c 'shipper part of me had a tiny little internal squeal at that. I wonder if he ever does call her that in reality. I tend to think he must, given her total lack of surprise at it. Interesting, considering the importance given to names in this episode.
--Daniel. Every bit her annoying little brother. The Sam/Daniel 'shipper part of me was deeply amused. He's the one who understands the scientist Sam; he understands the need to drop all other concerns and just study, something her military strictures don't often allow. He prods her not to abandon her curiosity, no matter what the circumstances, and he stimulates her creativity. This is something we've seen so often over the course of the series: Sam and Daniel are freakin' geniuses separately, but when they can brainstorm together is when they come up with their most brilliant hare-brained ideas.
--Jacob. The proud, but concernedJewish mother um, father. While Teal'c and Daniel's apparitions try to help her survive, apparently Jacob doesn't really care about that as much as he cares whether she has a boyfriend. Because after all, if she doesn't have a man, she might as well be dead anyway, right? This obviously bugged me, though at the same time I found it very interesting that in this dire situation Sam found herself so concerned with her lack of partnership, and also that her subconscious chose Jacob as the bearer of those thoughts.
--Jack. This was the part I was waiting for, as in the story I'm currently writing, I've been trying to define what I think Sam's current season feelings for Jack are. And this certainly clarified a lot. As someone who enjoys their relationship, but not the romantic parts of it, I liked that this seemed like a letting go of her unfulfillable wishes, but still with the knowledge that they will always love each other and be there for each other. I loved that the kiss that had everyone in such a tizzy for months turned out to be just a wistful flash that she rejects in the end.
--Meanwhile, back at the base.... The elevator scene was lovely, as Jack/Daniel elevator scenes always are. Jack's state of despair rang truer to me than I would have thought it would. I think he's just been through this exact same thing so many times now -- the waiting, the helplessness, the not knowing if this is finally going to be the time when he loses one of his kids for good. He's burning out on this. He'll go through all the motions of the search, but Sam's fate is out of his hands. He knows it, he hates it, he's really tired of it. Daniel and Teal'c both think they understand him, but I'm not sure they entirely do in this case.
And I got a lot of entertainment out of Jack's bedside vigil, after reading several recent list debates over the inevitable fanfiction infirmary vigils and whether they ever really happen in canon. I'm just disappointed there was no Wizard of Oz reference, when the opportunity was so obviously sitting there and begging. ("And you were there, and you were there...")
So overall, not the best episode of the season, not the worst. I managed to fit my little mental fic universe around it after a few minutes of intensive thought. Mostly, though, it just made me wish there were still a good Trek series on the air.
Instead, I was just kinda "enh" about it.
Over all, really quite underwhelmed. I love Sam, I do, but she just can't seem to carry an episode on her own anymore. Avenger 2.0? Space Race? And now this lovely little gem of a Trek rip-off.
It actually felt like a Trek/X-Files crossover to me through most of it. While most of the plot and setting was very Trek, the extended Scullyesque monotone monologues and the foggy plot twists gave me a weird trip back to the bad old days of X-Files. "Captain's Log, Stardate 947830. The Truth Is Out There."
So, this was supposed to be a trip through Sam's subconscious? A very dull place, for the most part, although I did enjoy seeing how she perceives her teammates and how she perceives them as perceiving her. Or...something like that.
--Teal'c. Clearly her rock and her guardian. I loved how he called her Samantha -- twice! The Sam/Teal'c 'shipper part of me had a tiny little internal squeal at that. I wonder if he ever does call her that in reality. I tend to think he must, given her total lack of surprise at it. Interesting, considering the importance given to names in this episode.
--Daniel. Every bit her annoying little brother. The Sam/Daniel 'shipper part of me was deeply amused. He's the one who understands the scientist Sam; he understands the need to drop all other concerns and just study, something her military strictures don't often allow. He prods her not to abandon her curiosity, no matter what the circumstances, and he stimulates her creativity. This is something we've seen so often over the course of the series: Sam and Daniel are freakin' geniuses separately, but when they can brainstorm together is when they come up with their most brilliant hare-brained ideas.
--Jacob. The proud, but concerned
--Jack. This was the part I was waiting for, as in the story I'm currently writing, I've been trying to define what I think Sam's current season feelings for Jack are. And this certainly clarified a lot. As someone who enjoys their relationship, but not the romantic parts of it, I liked that this seemed like a letting go of her unfulfillable wishes, but still with the knowledge that they will always love each other and be there for each other. I loved that the kiss that had everyone in such a tizzy for months turned out to be just a wistful flash that she rejects in the end.
--Meanwhile, back at the base.... The elevator scene was lovely, as Jack/Daniel elevator scenes always are. Jack's state of despair rang truer to me than I would have thought it would. I think he's just been through this exact same thing so many times now -- the waiting, the helplessness, the not knowing if this is finally going to be the time when he loses one of his kids for good. He's burning out on this. He'll go through all the motions of the search, but Sam's fate is out of his hands. He knows it, he hates it, he's really tired of it. Daniel and Teal'c both think they understand him, but I'm not sure they entirely do in this case.
And I got a lot of entertainment out of Jack's bedside vigil, after reading several recent list debates over the inevitable fanfiction infirmary vigils and whether they ever really happen in canon. I'm just disappointed there was no Wizard of Oz reference, when the opportunity was so obviously sitting there and begging. ("And you were there, and you were there...")
So overall, not the best episode of the season, not the worst. I managed to fit my little mental fic universe around it after a few minutes of intensive thought. Mostly, though, it just made me wish there were still a good Trek series on the air.
