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Season 10: episode ratings & reviews
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24 Jul 06
10.02 Morpheus review by Aurora Novarum
Aurora Novarum episode rating: very good
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To quote Col Mitchell, "Now that's what I'm talking about!" This episode had all the elements that make a great Stargate SG_1 episode. Teamy goodness, personal moments, heroes in peril, a blend of angst and humor.

Even the appearance of an icky bug did not detract from the overall tone. "Morpheus" was a wonderful team episode. All four members of SG_1 gelled together, and there were nice several individual moments between and amongst the teammates, way too many to list. Often audiences are lucky to get one or two of these moments, this episode had loads of them.

The other SG team had personalities that belied their red shirt status, despite their unfortunate moniker of "Red Team". Side note: Did the SGC run out of numbers after 22 that they couldn't give them team patches? They had to paint the bullseye by calling them "Red Team"? At least they gave a plausible reason of a double mission as to why they succumbed first, and I think Grimsby apparently survived.

"Morpheus" was a nice break from several arc related episodes to have a more stand_alone show. The quest for Merlin's weapon was still the background and there were more clues along those lines, but the immediate danger took precedence. However, I kept waiting for more hypotheses into why was the creature there? Was it natural, or actually a curse left by Morgan Le Fay? Perhaps this will be explained in a later episode, when the team isn't worried about, you know, dying.

It was also a realistic touch that the team did not get themselves out of trouble, but were rescued. Was this a quick tidy up? Yes. But it was a bit more plausible than the "insta_beam" out of danger that's been happening so often it should be a drinking game item. A weakness was the fact that the wrap up happened a bit too quickly. Carter's two sentence exposition was a bit unclear, and blink if you missed it if the lizard was a factor in the cure (presuming Joe Bob was "Teal'c's sample"). However, considering how often character development is sacrificed for plot exposition, more of the team conversation in Carter's lab was a welcome change of pace. Keeping Lam alive offscreen was a nice touch.

The Vala subplot

Surprisingly, the humor felt a bit more forced in a few of the test scenes, but it's unclear if this was something to do with the Hutchison character, the scenario as a whole, or the nature of the sequence. Vala's scenes with the team and with Landry flowed more naturally. Woolsey's role was a predictable twist, but Vala's reaction upon the reveal was not expected...though not surprising. Vala's range in emotions kept her character from reverting into caricature. When she spoke with unusual personal candor, it had an added impact.

As for the "redemption" of Vala herself. Joe Mallozzi floated the Vala as Teal'c analogy months ago, and as a Vala skeptic, I find it no more convincing now than I did then. Some of Daniel's arguments were weak, others stronger. How and why Daniel felt so strongly about having her involved is also more offscreen leap. Landry's own skepticism and reaction helped sell the idea within the canon of the show; within the audience is a different but related story. The nature of the various characters' conversations throughout the episode were extremely meta.

Vala has been a polarizing figure amongst fans since her debut. The merits and demerits of Vala are an essay in and of itself. Ultimately it is not being told why fans should accept Vala, but her own actions that will prove whether her integration to the team will be effective. This Vala non_fan has not been completely won over...yet, but I'm still open. Most importantly, the final sequence proves that even after this "redemptive reintroduction" to her character, Vala is still irreverent and opportunistic Vala. She therefore will still provide a fresh and different perspective, hopefully adding to the entertainment value of the show and not overwhelming it.

The shortcuts in plot and the hard sell of Vala prevent me from giving the episode an Excellent rating, but team interaction, a simple adventure, and an overall nice pacing of angst and lightness spur an extremely strong very good rating and a high recommendation for "Morpheus".

  © Aurora Novarum, 2006.  All rights reserved.
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