"Watergate" ( 4 x 07 )

Okay, prediction: Conspiracy and Colonel Slimeball Maybourne. Other than that, I have no idea. The title screen has O’Neill in a funky helmet.

We open up with SG-1 about to go on a mission, but that tricky little Chevron Seven won’t lock. (Why is it always that last one?) Later, Jackson thinks that maybe the recent power spike logged was a second Stargate, but the NID one is now here, and the second one was on the Belisknor, which is now in pieces underwater.

Or is it?

They find evidence of a seismic tremor just like the Antarctica one in… Siberia.

Oh, you tricky little Russians.

Hammond confirms that, yes, the Russians do have a Stargate, and they actually know quite a lot about our SGC here in beautiful Colorado. (MOLE?! I see you smirking in the background, Colonel Slimeball!) He goes on to say that their gate is stuck open, and that’s why the SGC in Colorado can’t dial out.

So, of course, a Dr. Svetlana Markov (is it just me or does “Markov” sound kind of Klingon-ish?) has enlisted SG-1’s help in closing the ‘Gate. Carter’s pretty excited; she’s a big fan of Markov.

We go to Russia, and Dr. Markov is-

HOLY COW

DEANNA TROI!?

WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?

GO BACK TO WILL RIKER AND YOUR STARSHIP!

WHAAAT THIS IS CRAZY.

Good god, what is UP with this series?! Is this like where bored Star Trek retirees go to guest star? Armin Shimerman, Rene Auberjonois, and now Marina Sirtis? And now I look and see that Tony Amendola was in an episode of Deep Space Nine? This is too weird!

…Ahem. Anyways.

She’s oddly familiar with all of them (even Teal’c; I must say she’s one of the few people who doesn’t give him a weird look when they first meet) and seems nice enough. They go onto a plane, where she explains more or less the events of “Nemesis”/“Small Victories” (3x22, 4x01) from the Russian point of view. Remember, they had picked up the Belisknor on its way down. The Russian government’s not too keen on the whole Stargate thing, but Markov convinced them to give it a chance.

Gets better. The Russians have a DHD.

Gets even better. SG-1’s going to have to jump out of the plane since the runway’s iced over.

FUN!

Teal’c is more than a little apprehensive about this (“This does not seem wise, O’Neill!”) but he jumps off along with the rest of the team.

Markov, Carter, and O’Neill rendezvous with Jackson and Teal’c inside the Stargate facility. The two have found several bodies outside the ‘Gate room, and then they see several more just outside of the Stargate itself.

Yup, I smell a conspiracy.

Markov tearfully explains that an emergency protocol was enacted and nerve gas spread throughout the ‘Gate room. (But, hey, that doesn’t explain the bullet wounds!) While Teal’c and Jackson go off to start cataloguing the bodies, Markov tells the other two that they had found a water world where the water had energy potentials. The sample she had is now gone.

Well, that explains it. Sort of. Okay, not really.

They think they can close down the ‘Gate if they take a sub through and use its controls to shut off the drone (which is likely emitting power and thus keeping the Stargate open). So Markov, Carter, and Jackson are pulled through the ‘Gate in a mini submarine (“We all live in a mini submarine, a mini submarine…”).

In the sub, they have successfully shut down the Stargate on our side, so now it’s time to look around and find the DHD. However, the submarine suddenly starts to shut down. They’re completely stationary… and there’s no way to get back.

And the pressure is increasing outside the sub.

So, basically, implosion is imminent.

Meanwhile, Teal’c and O’Neill wander around and find more bodies in the kitchen. They open up a freezer when they see footsteps leading into it and –

- IT’S THE KING SLIMEBALL HIMSELF.

Frozen!

They set him down on a table, and yup, it seems that this is the mole. And, maybe unfortunately, maybe fortunately (I say the former), he’s alive.

The situation on the sub is worsening. The pressure continues to increase, and Carter and Markov think that they have maybe an hour left.

Back in Russia, Maybourne finally sits up (you keep that gun trained on him, Teal’c. I still say you have every right to dismember him) but he’s very dazed. He suddenly collapses and coughs up what looks like water and some substance. Maybourne shoves Jack into a freezer and some kind of vapor takes over Teal’c (NO! TEAL’C! GAH MAYBOURNE YOU RUIN EVERYTHING. THIS IS WHY I HATE YOU.)

Maybourne explains that the water “is alive”. When it was exposed to air, it turned to vapor, a sort of entity. (Oh, that explains the missing sample. Which is presumably using Teal’c’s body as a vessel.) Turns out that these life-forms are able to communicate with their hosts in some way, and they don’t seem that malevolent.

Jackson correctly (knownst to us, but not to them, of course) theorizes that maybe it’s a life-form preventing them from moving. The sub is obviously seen as a threat. The sub starts to crack under pressure… Think fast Daniel!

The bubble breaks, and Jackson reaches out to the water, which isn’t flooding in yet. Suddenly, it starts to pull him in, and Carter and Markov grab him..!

O’Neill runs after Teal’c, but is stopped and the doors close behind him. Teal’c starts to dial out, and the ‘Gate whirls to life. He collapses just as Maybourne had (please please PLEASE be okay) and the entity escapes through. Teal’c’s okay!

And then the three submariners come out through the Stargate… with no submarine.

Hostages have been exchanged, and it seems we’re all okay.

Final thoughts… Okay, while it was pretty cool to see Deanna Troi (er, Marina Sirtis… haha, kind of ironic that her name is Marina and she went underwater in a submarine… okay I’m dumb just ignore me) in a different kind of role than I’ve seen her before. Of course I only really know her as the counselor on Star Trek: The Next Generation (and it’s her character’s mother, Lwaxana Troi, played by Majel Barrett-Roddenberry who I adore) so it’s neat to see her like this, amongst SG-1.

In terms of the actual plot with the water entities, I thought that was kind of “meh”, but I’m sure things will get very interesting now that the Russians have a Stargate, too. It seems they know (or knew, I guess) everything about the SGC, and surely all those files will still be on hand. But have they met the Goa’uld? Any of the other races (i.e. Asgard, Tok’ra, Nox, etc.) we have? I know it was only operational for a month but what now? Will the program still be shut down as the government had planned?

I confess I’m not that keen on politics. This episode also took place ten years ago, and I’m not sure what kind of rifts (if there were any) existed between the US and Russia. (Hey, I was only seven.) However, I still find it odd that the two nations didn’t make up and try to work together. I suppose with something as secretive as the Stargate, the less people that know, the better, but think how great it would look to races like the Tollans if the Tau’ri put aside their differences and collaborated.

Maybe I’m just a wishfully thinking idealist but it’s a nice idea. It’ll be interesting to hear what happens to this Russian program – I don’t see it as something that’ll go away completely after one episode.

We also must address the issue of Colonel Harry “Slimeball” Maybourne. (Yes, the Slimeball nickname has officially become canon for this blog. If I’m not mistaken, selling national secrets to another nation is considered treason. (Again, not a Poli Sci major here.) Which means he’d be in big trouble. Which means he’ll probably find a way to weasel his way out of this. Which means I’ll once more be sad because the Slimeball will have, once more, escaped.

And he’s still a jerkface, too! He tried to stop Jack from going to help Teal’c!

Just admit it, ya slimeball, you never liked him. You’re just scared because he could take you down with his awesome.

(Oh, wait, that power is reserved to Bra’tac.)

Also, clever title: "Watergate". A scandal and, literally, a gate to a water world all in one.

PREDICTION/REFLECTION THINGY

(Hey, why aren’t we on Earth? Oh, right, we’re on the U.S.S. Enterprise-E.)

Deanna Troi: You said I was Russian? How could I possibly be Russian? I’m not even fully human.

Cdr. Will Riker: Don’t ask me. I guess some crazy things happen.

Capt. Picard: Excuse me, Counselor, but were you not on the Voyager at the time?

Troi: Uh, no, sir, that was just a hologram.

Riker: How did you travel back in time, anyways?

Picard: Ah, Riker, how would you know?

Troi: Yes, good question. (She lifts her eyebrows at him.)

Riker: What were we talking about again? Where’s that Worf…

Troi: …Qo’noS?

Riker: Right. Well. I’m going to go say hi, so… (He quickly exits.)

(An awkward pause.)

Picard: Riker, I did NOT authorize that!

(And they dash after the first officer.)