Mark Watches ‘Stargate SG-1’: In The Line of Duty

This Stargate commission is also for Devon, who (correctly) insisted that I watch this episode before delving into the Tok’ra arc. AND I HAVE THOUGHTS, Y’ALL.

Before we get to them, the video file for “In the Line of Duty” is here. I’m testing out Rackspace as a streaming/storage option because Dropbox is being difficult about bandwidth. Let me know how you feel about it!

  • This episode does something I think I have never seen in science fiction: introduce the idea of a parasite that cares about the consent of its host. And up until the point that this is revealed, I have to say this episode felt a little stale. I like Carter probably more than the other characters, so I was sad that it felt like this show had done something irreparable to her. She had a Goa’uld in her now? BUT WE SAW WHAT HAPPENED THE LAST TIME A GOA’ULD INFECTED A HUMAN.
  • Well, I must have missed the episode where Cassandra was introduced. I got the sense that Carter was quite attached to her. Is she the same girl who appears in the future in “1969”???
  • Anyway, I was confused how this was going to be resolved since I knew Carter was alive beyond this episode. The Goa’uld was in her long enough to become a part of her, right? Kowalski’s body/mind merged over to the Goa’uld after 24 hours or so, give or take. So how would this work?
  • The writers come up with a solution that’s not just clever, but for me was unheard of. As soon as the Goa’uld, named Jolinar, offered to give up Carter’s body and return her, I was flummoxed. That’s possible??? That’s a thing that could happen? Where would the Goa’uld live? As far as I understand it, they can’t live outside a host for that long, right?
  • And then the writers twist this even further: There are actually good Goa’uld. The Tok’ra are a rebel force who reject the System Lords. Oh my god, WHAT. What. Okay, NOW I am super into this story arc.
  • Oh god, it’s so weird to see Carter switch between her own persona and that of Jolinar.
  • It’s also clear that O’Neill is going to be a hard sell for the Tok’ra. Understandably so, he doesn’t trust that there truly are Goa’uld that are benevolent, that are a force for good. His entire experience with the creatures was negative. So I’m hoping that it’s a sign of good faith that Jolinar gave his own life to ensure that Carter survived.
  • BRING ON THE TOK’RA ARC. BRING IT.

About Mark Oshiro

Perpetually unprepared since '09.
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