We’re starting off on the base this week when suddenly the iris closes. SG-1 and Hammond rush down to the control center, and the iris is being forced open by some off-base force. Suddenly, the small adorable child walks through the ‘Gate.
He’s sooo cuuuute!
Of course the initial concern is that he’s either a Goa’uld or a living bomb, like Cassandra was, but Carter checks him out, and he’s clean. (She did that with her “feelings”.) Then, though, the child says he’s here… to warn them.
Aw man. Can’t these kids just be kids?
Fraiser checks him out and says that while he’s no threat to them, he’s quite unhealthy. The boy recognizes O’Neill, and looks off into space, indicating to a “Mother”. There’s some connection between the boy, this “Mother”, and Tonane. He speaks with O’Neill, and since the boy doesn’t have a name, he decides to be called “Charlie”, after O’Neill’s son… So that’s what I’ll call him.
He’s really an interesting kid. He’s from a planet called “Retalia” and his people are called the “Re’tu”. Retalia, too, was ravaged by the Goa’uld, but Charlie has come to warn SGC about a rebel faction of the Re’tu. The thinking is that if they eliminate all possible hosts, the Goa’uld will eventually fall.
After a quick debriefing, O’Neill returns to the infirmary to check on Charlie, Teal’c with him. Charlie immediately freaks out at realizing that Teal’c is a Jaffa.
(Come on, man! Why? Why do they always freak out? It doesn't make any sense. Teal'c's such a great guy. I bet he gives the best hugs. I’d totally dig a hug from him. Not scary at all. Besides, he’d been in the room when Charlie had first stepped out of the ‘Gate. Had he just not noticed him then? Hm…)
O’Neill tries to reassure the kid, and addresses “Mother” again, trying to get to her now. He seems to succeed, but as soon as Teal’c steps forward, he gets a pained look on his face and quickly excuses himself.
Jack goes after him and finds out that his symbiote had reacted very strongly to the kid. O’Neill still doesn’t believe that he’s any sort of real threat to them. Fraiser joins the two in the hall and has a bit of bad news for them: Charlie’s organs and the like are severely underdeveloped, and he may not live for much longer. I’m thinking he’s a clone of some sort; like a genetically engineered human being. He also has a larger area of the brain that is for perception… Maybe “Mother” exists after all.
Back in the infirmary, Charlie confirms that he was created by the Re’tu (by “Mother”) in order to be a liaison to the Tau’ri, and to ask them to help take down the rebels. It’s his heightened mental ability that allows him to see Mother. She followed SG-1 in weeks before and learned how to operate the iris, and that’s how Charlie got in. She sends a blast of energy at them, for she is growing impatient, but it crashes harmlessly into a monitor.
At the Hangout, Teal’c says that he can sense the Re’tu among them, but not pinpoint its location. They send a message out to the Tok’ra… and Jacob comes in!...
(Hi Jacob! Hi! Hi! I missed you! You’re so cool! Oh my gosh, we need Bra’tac now! Then the whole show will IMPLODE from the sheer AWESOME of your collective AWESOMENESS!!!)
…Along with some other Tok’ra who are not nearly as bra’tac as he is. But that’s okay. They can stay, too.
They speak with Selmak (remember, his symbiote) and he asks to be taken to where the Re’tu is.
However, the second Jacob/Selmak steps into the room (after Charlie’s initial freakout… geezus, I wonder how the kid would react to freakin’ Apophis) he has to step out. He passes out these gun-looking things he says will eliminate the Re’tu. A huge insect-looking-alien-thing appears at the sight of the guns and Charlie jumps to its… or, uh, her, defense.
At the Hangout, Jacob explains that while the Re’tu are obviously very stealthy and a potential threat, they are largely benign as a race. It’s just that this faction isn’t so friendly. The guns he had (called T.E.R.s) were developed by the Goa’uld and ripped off by the Tok’ra.
“Mother” tells O’Neill where the world some of the rebels are on is, and a team of SGC and Tok’ra travel there to gain intel. They look down and see easily a hundred Re’tu, though Jacob says they generally work in small groups of five to ten.
Back on base, as Carter is installing a hand scanner, Teal’c doubles over in pain, and there’s a Re’tu there. It zaps one of the Tok’ra allies, but Teal’c manages to grab the T.R.E. and shoots it. The base locks down.
At least three more appear and the teams split up to get rid of them all, sealing doors behind them as they go. A pursuit ensues as they fight their invisible enemy.
Jacob gets hit, but he insists that Carter just go on without him, and she gets one of them.
In the infirmary, one of the remaining Re’tu blasts “Mother” and… oh man, she’s a goner. But at least all the rebels are done with.
However, Charlie’s condition has worsened. Selmak, through Jacob, offers to take him back. She believes that he will be okay as a host, and it would save his life. They all part, with Selmak giving her final request to Teal’c that he be diligent in his protection of the base – and ultimately of this world. Jacob hugs his daughter goodbye, takes Charlie’s hand, and exits.
Final thoughts… This episode had all sorts of things going right with it… Adorable child, strange aliens, a new threat, Tok’ra, JACOB CARTER (yay!!), and an epic firefight of stealthy awesomeness at the end. Since we did have the Tok’ra show up, I presume that means the Re’tu are going to be a pretty important part of the series. Well, relatively so, anyways. So far just about every semi-important-seeming race has appeared or been mentioned at least twice.
Onto the Re’tu themselves… pretty cool, but graphically they weren’t that impressive. However, you’ve got to keep in mind that this was produced in 1998-99 or so, and they made huge technological leaps in filmmaking even between this time and the time that Star Trek: Enterprise came around. It’s a lot easier to create a ship or Stargate in CGI than a creature. If anything I hope we get to have a better look at them in the future.
Man, O’Neill was just tortured by having to say good-bye to that kid. Again, we’ve got the father-sympathy line playing here. In fact I find it kind of ironic that when Jacob and Teal’c entered into Charlie’s general vicinity, respectively, he responded to them alarmingly, even though I’d say they’re both pretty darn cool dads. But I suppose that’s what happens when you’ve got a little worm keeping you alive…
It was so great to see Jacob/Selmak again. It was nice to see that things are working out well for them, and that the Tok’ra are truly as willing to help as they said. Having Jacob around probably helps though!
PREDICTION/REFLECTION THINGY
(The crew settles after the exciting day.)
O’Neill: So. How’s Junior doing?
Teal’c: (He glances absentmindedly towards his abdomen.) The symbiote is far less agitated now.
Jackson: I can’t imagine that was much fun for it.
Carter: I’d like to dangle one of those Re’tu in front of Heru’ur’s face just to see his reaction…
Jackson: (Chuckles) Like a Tribble to a Klingon.
Teal’c: ‘Tribble’; ‘Klingon’, Daniel Jackson?
O’Neill: Just ignore him.
Carter: In any case, it was good to see my dad again… I just wish it had been on happier terms.
Teal’c: Indeed.
O’Neill: As much as I hate to admit it, I was sad to see Charlie go.
Jackson: You two got pretty close, didn’t you?
O’Neill: Yeah… we did. It was almost like having a son again.
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