Redial the Gate: Prodigy

[fignewton]

Remember that poll I had up last week about watching Prodigy?

The last choice on the poll was this: I don't care if you watch it or not, but SG-1 is LOVE!

I was SO RIGHT.

Just... 42 minutes of NEW show. That is pure GLEE, people.

I was grinning at vintage Jack in the teaser with Generals Hammond and Ryan. "Sir. Sirs." "Your Air Force. The Air Force. I love the Air Force." And I love that it's the real Chief of Staff.

Eeee! Show!

Sam: "...No offense, Professor."

Abyssis, I take it all back. A transcript doesn't do Hailey justice. I was waiting for the arrogance and you know what? It wasn't there. And SAM, Sam I love you! Such delicious intellectual honesty, after the professor dismisses Hailey and she walks away - Sam looks again at the board and openly admits her mistake. Take THAT all you silly Sam-haters who think Sam refuses to ever admit to being less than perfect!

Major Griff, nicely recovered from being shot in The First Ones! I love continuity with other SG teams. And yay that he gets out before getting whumped again. Also, that smirk at Jack as he passes the buck on the annoying scientists is priceless. :)

Now, see, this is where what I call Mary Sueishness comes in: "Her SAT scores were through the roof, even higher than yours." That's classic Mary Sue there: being better (or should that be "bet-ter"?) than the main character. "Her physical skills are terrific, despite her size..." And so on, and so on. Seeing those lines in a transcript without the scene in front of you... Yeah.

BILL LEE IN A BASEBALL CAP!!!!!! Ahem. Scuse me. :)

Still getting Mary Sue vibes from the little scene between Sam and Hailey. (Although am vastly amused at what we know and she doesn't re matter and wormholes, heh.) Ah, well. Pressing on, pressing on...

Okay, you know how much you missed watching new Stargate when you find yourself giggling at a single "Indeed" from Teal'c!

"Actually, it's a P-90." Oh, Jack. ::loves him:: Talk about smirks!

Teal'c is too awesome for words! Pointing out his age along with his and Jack's experience. And how gleeful am I that Teal'c once again knows more pop culture than I do? "Thank you, Rocko." Gracious nod from Teal'c. Someone care to explain this to me?

Okay, scene with Hailey and Sam in Kerrigan's office. Good for Hailey for breaking the guy's nose :) but I'd be happier if we'd know what punishment Hailey got - as it stands, it feels like not only doesn't she get expelled, but she gets rewarded with a trip through the Gate. OTOH, yay for Sam telling her she's not always going to be the best at everything - I needed that, heh.

Don't get me wrong. I agree with what a lot of you said back on the poll entry (which I never dreamed would explode like that!). Hailey is what Sam used to be - bright and frustrated and longing for a challenge. And I do find myself liking her. But what I call Mary Sueism (not the anti-woman thing, but the guest star being so wonderful thing) still seems pretty prominent.

The gas giant in the moon's sky is stunning. I love the simple shorthand for OTHER PLANET.

Bill Lee is so much fun! I love that he is utter scientist and still follows protocol - the way he takes the time to yell into the radio to tell Jack what's happening.

Random challenged me to consider where Daniel would fit into the episode. The moment when the scientists see the lightning swarm and Hamilton walks forward - that was it for me. I so wanted Daniel to try to talk to them right then! "Hello, we're peaceful... scientists from the planet Earth!" :)

So, we jump to Hailey in the SGC. Okay, she's passed security, she's signed the non-disclosure form, Sam only told her that she's going to see "deep space telemetry" (and I love the expression on her face when she says that, heh) - but... I'm sorry, Hailey fans. It feels wrong. I know the secret of the Stargate is a huge joke in later seasons (in S9-10, they're not even trying any more), but at this point, the only non-SGC member who has ever walked through the Gate is Jacob Carter, on his way to become a host for Selmac. A cadet? This is the biggest Mary Sue moment for me, and it really does break my threshold of disbelief. YMMV, of course. I do like what many people pointed out: that Sam is acting as mentor here, for a girl she sees as being where she once was. But I just can't buy it.

Best line ever: "...an officer worthy of serving under your command." Oh, I love that. Hammond. Yes, Sam, that is perfect.

I have a special fondness for shots through the event horizon at what's past it. Love that Sam's technobabble isn't babble to Hailey!

Aw, such a nice little friendship scene with Jack and Sam at the Gate! And I liked Hailey here, yes.

Eee! Swarms attack! And yes, right after they trapped one and released it. Again, Bill tries to radio Jack. Did I mention I love Bill Lee? :) Neat intelligence pointer, how they slap the radio right out of Bill's hand.

"So, I'm guessing you're not...

"Human."

::squishes Teal'c for that half-smile::

Okay, so retreat into the hut. Zats. Electrocute the walls. Am I the only one who was thinking giant bug zapper?

Also, I was utterly fangirling Teal'c for saying the full word: "zatnikatel." I think my Teal'c love has grown irrational of late. I don't actually see a problem with this. :)

To me, it said so much about the team of SG-1 that Sam automatically knew that if anyone was going to make the run, it would be Jack. All three of them accepted it as a given. Yes.

Okay, I forgive Hailey for almost everything for this line alone: "We hold them off with those phaser things." :)

Sigh. Then she ruins it with this: "You're not right. I am." Ergh.

And here again is a place where Daniel is missed, because he should have been bolstering Sam's argument here about lifeforms and intelligence and the SGC vs. the natives - Sam with scientific proof, Daniel with humanistic (if you'll pardon the pun) theories.

Oh, Sam, I love the way you spelled it out for Hailey on the choices Jack makes. That is leadership - not just from Jack, but from Sam too. Excellent.

"Carter, if he so much as brings a file folder, shoot him!"

"Yes, sir."

::grins::

"Are you ready, O'Neill?"

"No. ...Give me a warning."

~click~ "I am going to shoot you."

I LOVE TEAL'C SO MUCH.

And then this had me laughing out loud: "I was thinking more along the lines of 'on three.' One..." ~zap~

Why oh why did Jack do things so slowly and deliberately? Why not zat the swarm and dial out as fast as possible? And then he drops the zat! But Teal'c, of course, is so fantastically awesome that he risks himself and strides out there, unzatted, to save Jack. ::nods::

"I'll never complain about mosquitoes again." No crack from Teal'c after their fishing expedition in The Curse? :)

And Bill stops to thank Jack. Y'know, I adore Bill Lee, and I never saw this ep before. Why doesn't everyone else love him to the nth power after this?

Bottom line: No, this is never going to be a favorite of mine. Yes, I still see Mary Sue aspects to Hailey, but it's not half as bad as the transcript led me to expect. Yes, I did find her (mostly) likable, and I look forward to seeing her again in Proving Ground to see if my opinion of her will change in that ep too. Yes, Teal'c is awesome. :D Yes, Jack is too. Yes, so is Sam. Yes, Bill Lee is great. Yes, Daniel could have fit into this, and I'm sorry he wasn't there.

YES, it was fantastic to watch a brand new ep of SG-1, and I'm suddenly looking forward to S6!

...And yes, I want someone to write the fic where the lightning bugs turn out to be the Furlings! :)

Comments

[nomadicwriter]

See! See! See?! *Daniel flail*

You should listen to us when we tell you to watch stuff. ;P

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

Daniel flail for the win! :D

Within SG-1, yes. Don't try to tempt me with SGA. ;)

[colej55.livejournal.com]

I think you said it all - especially the part about their taking a cadet through the gate. That bugs me, too. When you posted the pre-watch commentary, I was going to point out that Hailey is just a young Sam, so I'm glad that you see that and found some other things to like about her, as well.

Go Dr. Lee! Bill Dow is wonderful in this role! He's a great character actor who has added much to the show over the years.

Favorite moment? When Teal'c zats Jack. Perfect comedy with Teal'c as the straight man.

I really like this episode for all the reasons you stated. I just put my Mary Sue blinders on and enjoy all of the other goodness.

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

Teal'c is just such LOVE in this episode!

The evolution of Bill Lee strikes me as hilarious. Someone posted... somewhere that "Lee" was originally supposed to be an Asian woman, and it makes me doubly glad that Lee turned out to Bill Dow, because his stopping to thank Jack, and warning him on the radio - all that would seem meek and submissive if a woman played that role. (Think the sweet young Russian soldier in The Tomb.) Don't get me wrong - I want there to be competent bright female scientists, too (even if Hailey might not be my first choice, heh). But Bill Lee - with those ill-fitting glasses that looked like they came from a Holloween costume! - totally perfect.

[abyssinia4077.livejournal.com]

Hee :) This really is a Very Good Teal'c Episode. I mean, I love it for a lot of reasons, but very good Teal'c.

"Her SAT scores were through the roof, even higher than yours." That's classic Mary Sue there: being better (or should that be "bet-ter"?) than the main character. "Her physical skills are terrific, despite her size..."

*nods* I think this is the single strongest case to the Mary Sue point. What saves it for me is 1) if she were truly a Mary Sue ALL the characters would be agreeing that she's the smartest and following her every command rather than taking her down a few notches (in my mind someone thinking of themselves as extra-special isn't Mary Sue, it's the story and other characters telling us so that is) 2) the way she acts is "arrogant teenager" and the reactions of people around her are (aside from this one moment with this one officer) "you may be booksmart, but you have a lot to learn" and 3) selective memory :)

Honestly, this quote doesn't make much sense to me. First off, Sam took the SATs with the older grading system and Hailey with the newer (where it's easier to score higher). Second off, when you get to the upper end of SATs, the difference between, say, a 1550 and 1600 is really more on whether you were having a good test day and there's no way Sam did poorly enough to make there be that much of a difference, even if Hailey scored perfect. And, finally, SATs don't really mean much in terms of intelligence and doing well. Hailey being top of her class means A LOT more. *ahem* *stops academic rant*

Is Hailey annoying and arrogant? Yep. What I love is that even in spite that she is willing to learn and listen and try to change and I love that we see that change - that maturation - when she comes back in "Proving Ground" and I'm glad Sam got to take a girl who was a lot like her and help start molding her to become what she could be - which is, I think, a lot of what Jack did for Sam in season one.

I agree the letting-her-go-through-the-gate thing was silly and eye-rolling but I do feel they've gotten more and more lax this season and maybe this was one of the first more grievous occurrences, but in the light of show trends, it doesn't bother me that much. (It would bother me A LOT more if she wasn't Air Force. Plus, maybe they were already talking about recruiting from the Academy and this was a first test? Oh, I could find all sorts of handwaves)

Anyway, Very Glad you enjoyed it. I agree it's not their best episode, but I think it has enough good bits to stand well on its own

*patiently waits for Furling fic*

[aelfgyfu_mead]

I was going to say much of what you said...but now I don't need to.

Some bits of this ep really annoy me, but you and Fig have identified most or all of them. I like much of it anyway--especially Bill and Teal'c. (I had a tough choice here, deciding whether to use my Bill icon or my Teal'c icon! I get more opportunities to use Teal'c, so I went for Bill.)

Fig, have you seen Hailey's other appearance yet? (I hope that's not too spoilery.) I wanted to see more of her after that.

[goldjadeocean.livejournal.com]

I think I agree with you. Part of what makes me love Hailey so much is that she is abrasive and arrogant--it feels true to life, and makes her a much better character than if she'd been mild and submissive.

One of the aspects I really liked about this episode was that it plays with the idea that the SGC stands and falls by the brilliance of a lot of people, not just SG-1 (the show really falls down on this later and makes it seem that everyone but our team is an utter dunce, see also: Felger, Cam's S9 recruitment efforts). I personally love SG-1, but I think the show would have been a lot stronger if we'd been able to see the SGC as several hundred smart, motivated, innovative people fighting to destroy the Goa'uld, rather than being... walk-on bit parts to four (or five, whatever) peoples' heroism.

But I think that's just me.

[ryf.livejournal.com]

Is Hailey annoying and arrogant? Yep.

And I love her all the more for it - because she's probably been told she's oh so brilliant for years by that point. As I mentioned in another comment, I love the similarities between Sam, Hailey and Rodney - Rodney almost certainly was like Hailey at that age and had no-one taking him aside and telling him he won't get far with that attitude.

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

Everyone talked about the great Jack and Teal'c moments, and they were marvelous, yes. But no one mentioned the sheer awesomeness of Teal'c!

You're right that Hailey doesn't get Mary Sued by everyone, although Kerrigan singing her praises (and not wanting to expel her, because she's so wonderful) comes pretty close. I very much like that Sam and Jack take her down those necessary pegs - not because I think she needs it (although maybe she does) but because it makes her less Mary Sue-ish.

I confess that I glossed over Hailey in Proving Ground - from the skewed perspective I had from the transcript of this ep, it was just one more irritation that Hailey was the cadet "in the know" for that final test. I look forward, as I said, to watching it again with more neutral eyes!

I didn't say I'd write the Furling fic - I just said I want it written. ;)

[rdamel.livejournal.com]

Hailey is too annoying and arrogant in this ep, and when I rewatch it, I tend to skip thru most of the Hailey parts and just watch the "on the moon" parts. But I love Hailey when she reappears in Proving Ground--that ep I love so much and have watched many times.

But this ep is great Teal'c and Jack--the bit with "I am going to shoot you" still always makes me laugh out loud--so hilarious, so "them"!

Melissa M.

[pepper-field.livejournal.com]

Yay! Ah, I miss new Stargate eps. And I just adore every moment of Jack and Teal'c in this ep. Particularly when Teal'c zats Jack - oh, I bet he relished the opportunity. *g*

but at this point, the only non-SGC member who has ever walked through the Gate is Jacob Carter, on his way to become a host for Selmac.

And Martin Lloyd, just a few eps back. Don't forget Marty! And whoever was evacuated through the Gate in Serpent's Lair (I forget, do we know if they're SGC personnel or just groups of the best and brightest, no matter what their military status?).

[pepper-field.livejournal.com]

Oh, and Schrodinger. ;)

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

But Martin Lloyd is an alien. I mean, yes, Cassie went through too. :)

True enough that there are people at the Alpha Site. But Hailey getting expelled shouldn't quite equate with the world ending. ;)

Yes, Teal's must have loved that moment!

[neiths-arrow.livejournal.com]

And Ambassador Joe Whats-his-name-who-would-have-become-Sam's-husband also went through the gate. Remember the Aschen?

Isn't a Mary Sue someone who is meant to be an extension of the author? Do you guys think she is the "author's pet" as Wikipedia describes?

[lavenderlocks.livejournal.com]

Yay! Knew you'd at the least like it - and yes, as ever Teal'c pwns all!! :D

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

I did like quite a bit of it, yes. And Teal'c is, as ever, First Prime of Pwnage. :D

[sg-betty.livejournal.com]

I would give anything to have missed some episodes so that I could see new SG-1 now!! ENVY!!
On the other hand, I've only seen season 6 once, so... :)

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

You'll just have to enjoy S6 when we Redial it! I know I've found myself enjoying eps much more after I've immersed myself in the fandom. :)

[randomfreshink.livejournal.com]

My favorite Bill Lee episode still stands as Evolution -- he's so over his head and trying to be as cool as Daniel about all of it (and Daniel's just cool about all of it because he's done it before, and he's even cool with Bill not being able to handle the situation and not say anything).

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

Yes, I do like how Bill tries and tries there. No one ever asked him to do that kind of thing.

[suzannemarie.livejournal.com]

See? See? See? See? See? )

This is why I say you can't just rely on reading a transcript to tell you if you're going to like an episode or not. You don't get the full experience when you only see the words n the page.

Oh! And did you catch the rather magnificent continuity error when Sam and Hailey went through the gate. PDL really takes himself to task on it in the commentary, but apparently nobody noticed it until it was too late do anything about it. Or maybe it had already aired,I misremember.

[aurora-novarum.livejournal.com]

PdL STILL hadn't noticed it. Tichenor or whoever was with him in that commentary pointed it out.

THEN PdL was kicking himself. Hee!

[maevebran.livejournal.com]

I like Bill Lee before season 9. In season 9 he was hit or miss with his competency. Although there is the matter of the plant in Zero Hour.=)

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

I don't think Bill was incompetent in Zero Hour, any more than, say, SG-1 were incompetent in Message in a Bottle. Alien tech (or biology) getting out of hand isn't unique - it just took a while to control it.

I do agree that in later seasons, Bill's competence is dependent on the storyline. And it is HUGELY annoying. But I still love him. :)

[redbyrd-sgfic.livejournal.com]

the only non-SGC member who has ever walked through the Gate is Jacob Carter, on his way to become a host for Selmac

Ah? No, actually- remember that they evacuated several hundred Air Force personnel to the Alpha site during the Serpent's Lair arc. Honestly, I think that security got out of control pretty much the day they started staffing the SGC. Too many people know. I expect there's a lot of wink, nudge 'deep space telemetry', now let's talk about that local sports team, going on.

And remember, they do another huge evacuation in S5 Failsafe, which isn't that far off.

[redbyrd-sgfic.livejournal.com]

Ah, I just spotted the comment above- the point isn't that Hailey's situation is on a par with the world ending.

The point is that a whole whacking great lot of people have been through the gate, many of them on routine trips that we don't ever see because they weren't exciting. So, the military engineer crew that went through to construct buildings and infrastruction at the Alpha site, the Congressional fact-finding committee (because you *know* that some suit in DC had to get tossed into a wormhole before he actually believed that this was a real project and not some kind of cover for a massive swindle), and quite likely a bunch of civilian specialist contractors for one thing or another...if we assume that, Hailey isn't so startling.

And given that Hailey is already working on physics related to gate operations, it's a good bet that she was already slated for assignment to the SGC. And they *do* have a security problem- recruiting really top-flight people with established reputations who already have positions in research labs and universities? Not necessarily so easy. I bet that a lot of their talent comes through NASA (hmm...using a NASA front for recruitment is probably a damned good idea- I bet Paul Davis coordinates that end of it). So if they've a talented prospect in the Air Force Academy, who they have probably already done a security clearance for? They aren't going to want to lose her. Security clearance is a big issue too- when I applied for defense-relate jobs (this is relatively low-clearance stuff, too) they told me it would take 6-18 months to complete the security investigation to receive clearance. Young people are actually *easier* to clear, because they don't have as much personal history to be investigated.

(Okay, yep, you've just had a short tour through the fanon part of my hindbrain...ymmv. But that's how I justify Hailey.)

[samantilles.livejournal.com]

hoorah for finally watching new SG-1!!! (I have to wait until the third movie to do so... *iz a bit jealous*)

Something tells me you might not enjoy S6 as much as you did for Prodigy, but that is because Daniel's been "replaced" rather than just excluded for the episode.

and I sooo totally have to start watching the commentaries!!

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

SG-1 can be good without Daniel. Matter of Time is one of the top 20 episodes, easily. I think I'll like Jonas a lot more when he's being himself and not not!Daniel, but, well... we'll see. :)

[cleothemuse.livejournal.com]

I'm not going through the bazillion comments here to see if anyone recced this, but if so, here it is again: Traveling One's "Enlightened (http://www.travellingone.com/enlightened.htm)". Not Furlings, but awesome nonetheless.

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

No, it's wasn't mentioned here, although I think it got mentioned on the poll entry. And it's a good fic, yes, so thanks for linking it here. :)

[kalquessa.livejournal.com]

See, I did sort of roll my eyes at Hailey getting to go through the gate despite the fact that it is a HUGE SECRET but other than that I sort of failed to notice the Mary Sueisms. Which are definitely there, now you point them out. But since the Real Point of this episode is the Jack and Teal'c awesomeness, I guess it doesn't really matter that much. And as you say, NEW SHOW OMG YAY!! That's pretty much never a bad thing.

I think my Teal'c love has grown irrational of late. I don't actually see a problem with this. :)

THERE CAN NEVER BE TOO MUCH TEAL'C LOVE!!!!11ONE!!!