Bedrosians
Summary
The Bedrosians were humans inhabiting Bedrosia, one of two continents on the planet P2X-416. The people of Bedrosia believed that they were created by the god Nefertum, but the people on the other continent of Optrica believed that they were brought through the Gateway (Stargate). It just so happened that the Stargate was on Bedrosian soil, so a war was being fought between the two continents. SG-1's arrival proved that the Optrican beliefs were correct, but they were considered spies by the Bedrosians and were captured and tortured. With the help of Nyan, the archaeologist who excavated the Stargate, SG-1 and Nyan made their escape back to Earth, leaving the world to continue its war. The Bedrosians were introduced in the episode, 3.19 "New Ground".
Stargate References
Bedrosia had a central registry where everyone's DNA was apparently part of a database that could be used for identification. Optricans were obviously not part of the registry. There was a two percent differential between the blood tests of SG-1 and the standard Bedrosian results, indicating they were human, but not from Bedrosia.
The Bedrosians seemed to center their society around their religious belief in the Book of Nefertum. The war was fought because of religious differences with Optrica. Even some scientific pursuits went forward to prove this theology. Although fighting a war, not everyone was drafted into the military. Some individuals, such as Nyan, continued in civilian pursuits, such as archeology. The military had both male and female members.
The Bedrosians believed their god Nefertum created all life on the planet on the continent of Bedrosia. They went to war with a neighboring continent, Optrica, whose inhabitants believed aliens had transported humans to the Bedrosian continent through a gateway from another planet. This war had been going on for decades. Scientists such as Nyan and Mallin, spent their professional lives doing research to prove the Bedrosian theology. The pair were in an area, trying to find evidence of a civilization pre-dating the Upheaval. By finding this evidence, they hoped to prove the Bedrosian theory. What they uncovered was the Stargate. As they conjectured as to its possible uses, such as astronomical study, coincidentally, the SGC gate cold-dialing program got a lock on the planet's address and activated the Stargate.
Nyan and Mallin were the first Bedrosians met by the SGC via their contact with the MALP. Mallin became concerned at what the Stargate was and ran to alert the authorities. Nyan's scientific curiosity got the better of him, and he eagerly awaited the arrival of SG-1. He was very concerned when the Bedrosian military arrived and tried to get the team to run and hide with them. They did not follow him, and were knocked unconscious by a Bedrosian forcefield. Teal'c who had scouted ahead, was the only member not captured.
Nyan, as a scientist, was just as excited to discover proof that his hypothesis was wrong. He wished to introduce Teal'c to the scientific community at the Bedrosian research academy. Nyan believed they would be more accepting of the truth of the Gateway. When Teal'c refused to be Nyan's "evidence", the Bedrosian agreed to help the Jaffa rescue the rest of SG-1. He helped heal Teal'c of his injuries and engaged in the fire fight during the rescue of SG-1.
The military establishment, at least the group commanded by Rigar, was not so accepting Rigar dismissed the possibility of SG-1 truly being from another planet outright. He refused to accept that they had spent their lives praying to a god who does not exist and that many Bedrosians lost their lives fighting a meaningless war. The Book of Nefertum was the truth, and the Stargate was a fabrication to fake the Optrican gateway myth. Rigar believed the device was a tool of Optrican psychological warfare to sow the seeds of doubt among the Bedrosians and create dissention from within. He became visibly angry at SG-1's insistence they were from another planet and took his anger out in physical violence.
Rigar planned to learn all he could from SG-1 about the device and then destroy all the evidence, including killing Col. O'Neill, Mjr. Carter, and Dr. Jackson. Parey followed Rigar's orders, but was obviously troubled by his plans. Nyan predicted Rigar's plans accurately when theorizing on the situation with Teal'c.
When Hammond attempted to contact SG-1 and spoke with Rigar, the commander was concerned the situation was getting out of hand. He ordered a transport shuttle to take SG-1 to a more secure facility and told Parey to guard the Stargate site. When Teal'c and Nyan arrived to rescue the rest of SG-1, all of the Bedrosian soldiers, including Rigar and Parey, were stunned in a firefight. Wounded during the battle, Nyan was brought back to the SGC where he gained refugee status.
Notable Characters
- Mallin: Mallin was an archaeologist from Bedrosia who discovered the Stargate with her colleague Nyan. Concerned when Daniel Jackson contacted them via a MALP transported to the active Stargate, Mallin contacted the Bedrosian military and reported the incident. The commander, Rigar, ordered her returned to the base for further questioning. Since the Bedrosians wanted to cover up evidence regarding SG-1's experience on the planet, her final fate is unknown.
- Nyan: Nyan was an archeologist trying to discover evidence of a Bedrosian civilization that predated the Upheaval. Instead, he and Marrin found the Stargate coincidentally around the time the SGC attempted to dial the planet through their cold dialing program. Nyan was both frightened and excited possibility of proof of a theory, even if it was the Optrican theory. After SG-1 arrived, Nyan feared for SG-1's safety and tried to lead them from the Bedrosian authorities, but was unsuccessful in keeping three members from capture. Later, he helped heal Teal'c from injuries and assisted him in rescuing the rest of SG-1. Wounded in the firefight, Nyan was brought to the SGC by O'Neill and Teal'c, where he received refugee status.
- Parey: Parey was an officer in the Bedrosian military and second-in-command to Rigar. She performed DNA testing on Col. Jack O'Neill, Maj. Samantha Carter, and Dr. Daniel Jackson when they were captured near the Stargate. Parey's faith in the Bedrosian belief system were challenged as she watched Rigar interrogate the prisoners and the activation of the Stargate. Whether or not she turned from her beliefs after SG-1 and Nyan escaped is not known.
- Rigar: Rigar was the commander of Bedrosian forces and a zealot who captured and tortured Daniel Jackson, Jack O'Neill and Sam Carter in a bid to cover up their arrival in Bedrosia through the Stargate. He believed the three members of SG-1 were believed to be spies for the Optricans. He became very angry at their insistence there was no fourth member of the team, even after one of his men had been killed by an unknown weapon. He was determined to expose this Optrican fallacy and destroy the Stargate and any evidence connected to it, including the execution of SG-1.
Alliances
- Nefertum: the inhabitants of Bedrosia were loyal, if deluded, followers of the Goa'uld Nefertum.
Enemies
- Optricans: The inhabitants of a rival continent, the Bedrosians were at war with the Optricans over their differing belief system. The Optricans believed a Gateway (the Stargate) existed on Bedrosia and that an alien had brought humans to Bedrosia from another planet.
- SGC Stargate Command and SG-1 were considered enemies by the Bedrosian military. The leader, Rigar, believed them to be Optrican spies, partly because if they were telling the truth and that they were from another planet, it would mean their war with the Optricans would have been for nothing and would destroy their cherished belief system.
Episodes
Related Articles
Actors
- Richard Ian Cox as Nyan
- Daryl Shuttleworth as Rigar
- Desiree Zurowski as Parey
- Jennifer Copping as Mallin
--Aurora 16:52, 15 January 2006 (PST)