Post by oblivion on Jan 13, 2005 20:29:48 GMT -5
I watched "Rite of Passage" from season 5 last night and I got quite confused on a few minor points. At least I think they were minor.
Cassandra was the little girl in the episode called Singularity. Everyone on her world (Hanka I think) was killed but her. So SG1 took her home with them. Then, her body began to construct a monstrous bomb. She had been spared so she could die destroying the SGC and Earth's Stargate
The SG1 team took her to an old abandoned rocket bunker. They were going to leave her at the bottom in the shaft behind blast doors where she could go kablooey without hurting anyone else. But being removed from the vicinity of the Stargate caused the bomb to deactivate and be reabsorbed by her body. Sam made a frenzied last minute decision to stay with her and go kablooey too, but she had a "feeling" it was going to be ok.
Cassandra stayed on Earth, was given a history ("I'm from Canada") and was adopted by Doctor Frasier. Doctor Mom. And little Cassandra grew up. She looks around 14-15 in this episode. The beginning of the episode had a great parent/teen interaction between the two. Cassandra was rebellious and impatient, and Frasier gave one of the best parental hairy eyeballs I've seen on TV. My oldest son yelled "I know that look!" When Cassandra caved, rolled her eyes and said "FINE", I yelled back "I know that look!"
The Goa'uld who was responsible for wiping out her people on Hanka might have been mentioned in Singularity, but it didn't sink in at the time I watched that episode.
It turns out in "Rite of Passage" that the Goa'uld responsible for killing everyone on Hanka was Nirrti. The only time I remember seeing this Goa'uld on screen before was in the episode where Earth is added by treaty with the System Lords to the planets protected by the Asgaard. Nirrti kills Chronos, frames Teal'c and nearly gets away with it. At the end, she's dragged away through the Stargate by Yu, like she was headed for the System Lord's Principals Office.
I'm certain that Nirrti, if mentioned at all, was a completely off-screen presence in "Singularity". There were a couple of Goa'uld ships in orbit apparently fighting. And a planet full of dead people.
Nirrti is into genetic engineering, retroviruses and all kinds of interesting biotechnology. I think she's the first Goa'uld I've seen who seems to have any interests beyond conquest, killing, and pleasure. The System Lords' techological improvements have been to weapons or to warships.
Nirrti seemed to be playing her own game. She was attempting a multi-generational evolutionary process to create an advanced human species, or at least one advanced human who could be her next host. Unfortunately (for her) all her work so far had resulted in people who would die at some point in adolescence when their psychokinetic (and possibly other) powers began to emerge. Back on Hanka, Nirrti would cure the retrovirus that created the changes when a teen became sick. The idea was that over time maybe their children, grandchildren, etc. might be evolved enough to survive the effects of the retrovirus and come into their full powers, whatever those powers might be. It definitely involved using a much higher percentage of their brains, a lot more brain activity, unusual perceptions (like being able to sense Nirrti in the room when she was cloaked), and telekiniesis (twirling a chesspiece in the air "no hands").
Cassandra was sick with the retrovirus on this episode, and SG1 returned to Hanka to see if they could find any clues. They mentioned right off the bat that Nirrti had destroyed the people of Hanka. So, I'm sure she must have been mentioned in Singularity though I have no recollection of it. SG1 finds her secret laboratory (GRIN) and Daniel translates her lab notes. When they return to Earth, Nirrti sneaks along with them using the invisibility device she alone of the Goa'uld possesses (I think).
Anyway, Nirrti cures Cassandra and gets to leave alive.
But, it seemed to me that some of the traits Nirrti displayed were most un-Goa'uld. She apparently had no trouble making sense of Dr. Frasier's notes, MRIs, X-Rays, a tissue sample under a microscope, etc. Totally different technologies than those she used. Probably primitive technogies by her standards. Instead of a technology acquirer, an opportunist like the Goa'uld are usually characterized, she seems to be more of an inventor and thinker. Not just an exploiter.
At the end of the episode she seemed surprised the SGC let her leave. She displayed a reluctant respect for O'Neill, and definitely for Frasier. The Frasier respect factor might have had something to do with being eye-to-eye over the barrel of a gun in Dr. Frasier's hands.
Anyway, there wasn't any real arrogance on her part. Just stealth, and when she was caught a desire to cut a deal. And that final "You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din" exchange with O'Niell before she departs through the Stargate.
We're only up to season five, and I can't help but wonder if Nirrti is a potential ally.
Oh, and Cassandra blew O'Neill's cover. She told Sam "He's not as stupid as he acts". Which he did his best to disprove in the next scene when they had a briefing huddle around the conference table. His explanation for the magically twirling chess piece? "Magnets!" It was a traveling chess set and the pieces had magnets on the bottom. Sam's facial expression was priceless.
Cassandra was the little girl in the episode called Singularity. Everyone on her world (Hanka I think) was killed but her. So SG1 took her home with them. Then, her body began to construct a monstrous bomb. She had been spared so she could die destroying the SGC and Earth's Stargate
The SG1 team took her to an old abandoned rocket bunker. They were going to leave her at the bottom in the shaft behind blast doors where she could go kablooey without hurting anyone else. But being removed from the vicinity of the Stargate caused the bomb to deactivate and be reabsorbed by her body. Sam made a frenzied last minute decision to stay with her and go kablooey too, but she had a "feeling" it was going to be ok.
Cassandra stayed on Earth, was given a history ("I'm from Canada") and was adopted by Doctor Frasier. Doctor Mom. And little Cassandra grew up. She looks around 14-15 in this episode. The beginning of the episode had a great parent/teen interaction between the two. Cassandra was rebellious and impatient, and Frasier gave one of the best parental hairy eyeballs I've seen on TV. My oldest son yelled "I know that look!" When Cassandra caved, rolled her eyes and said "FINE", I yelled back "I know that look!"
The Goa'uld who was responsible for wiping out her people on Hanka might have been mentioned in Singularity, but it didn't sink in at the time I watched that episode.
It turns out in "Rite of Passage" that the Goa'uld responsible for killing everyone on Hanka was Nirrti. The only time I remember seeing this Goa'uld on screen before was in the episode where Earth is added by treaty with the System Lords to the planets protected by the Asgaard. Nirrti kills Chronos, frames Teal'c and nearly gets away with it. At the end, she's dragged away through the Stargate by Yu, like she was headed for the System Lord's Principals Office.
I'm certain that Nirrti, if mentioned at all, was a completely off-screen presence in "Singularity". There were a couple of Goa'uld ships in orbit apparently fighting. And a planet full of dead people.
Nirrti is into genetic engineering, retroviruses and all kinds of interesting biotechnology. I think she's the first Goa'uld I've seen who seems to have any interests beyond conquest, killing, and pleasure. The System Lords' techological improvements have been to weapons or to warships.
Nirrti seemed to be playing her own game. She was attempting a multi-generational evolutionary process to create an advanced human species, or at least one advanced human who could be her next host. Unfortunately (for her) all her work so far had resulted in people who would die at some point in adolescence when their psychokinetic (and possibly other) powers began to emerge. Back on Hanka, Nirrti would cure the retrovirus that created the changes when a teen became sick. The idea was that over time maybe their children, grandchildren, etc. might be evolved enough to survive the effects of the retrovirus and come into their full powers, whatever those powers might be. It definitely involved using a much higher percentage of their brains, a lot more brain activity, unusual perceptions (like being able to sense Nirrti in the room when she was cloaked), and telekiniesis (twirling a chesspiece in the air "no hands").
Cassandra was sick with the retrovirus on this episode, and SG1 returned to Hanka to see if they could find any clues. They mentioned right off the bat that Nirrti had destroyed the people of Hanka. So, I'm sure she must have been mentioned in Singularity though I have no recollection of it. SG1 finds her secret laboratory (GRIN) and Daniel translates her lab notes. When they return to Earth, Nirrti sneaks along with them using the invisibility device she alone of the Goa'uld possesses (I think).
Anyway, Nirrti cures Cassandra and gets to leave alive.
But, it seemed to me that some of the traits Nirrti displayed were most un-Goa'uld. She apparently had no trouble making sense of Dr. Frasier's notes, MRIs, X-Rays, a tissue sample under a microscope, etc. Totally different technologies than those she used. Probably primitive technogies by her standards. Instead of a technology acquirer, an opportunist like the Goa'uld are usually characterized, she seems to be more of an inventor and thinker. Not just an exploiter.
At the end of the episode she seemed surprised the SGC let her leave. She displayed a reluctant respect for O'Neill, and definitely for Frasier. The Frasier respect factor might have had something to do with being eye-to-eye over the barrel of a gun in Dr. Frasier's hands.
Anyway, there wasn't any real arrogance on her part. Just stealth, and when she was caught a desire to cut a deal. And that final "You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din" exchange with O'Niell before she departs through the Stargate.
We're only up to season five, and I can't help but wonder if Nirrti is a potential ally.
Oh, and Cassandra blew O'Neill's cover. She told Sam "He's not as stupid as he acts". Which he did his best to disprove in the next scene when they had a briefing huddle around the conference table. His explanation for the magically twirling chess piece? "Magnets!" It was a traveling chess set and the pieces had magnets on the bottom. Sam's facial expression was priceless.