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Stargate SG-1
is the spin-off TV series from the original
Stargate film,
a review of which can be found by clicking on that title, with the same basic
premise and special FX, most notably the stargate itself.
Since the original actors went on to other things, MacGuyver star Richard
Dean Anderson took over the principal role of Colonel Jack O'Neill, with
Michael Shanks making a good James Spader-a-like for the role of
scientist-cum-adventurer Daniel Jackson. The series also adds Amanda Tapping
as Major Samantha Carter and Christopher Judge as the does-he-ever-smile
Teal'c. In my limited knowledge, the only character I know from the original
film to make a return has been Alexis Cruz as Skaara, the young boy
from the other side of the 'gate.
There are four episodes to a disc and Volume 5 contains the following :
"The Tok'ra (Part II)": The Tok'ra have turned down O'Neill and SG-1's
request for an alliance against the Goa'uld because they are not seen to offer
enough rewards to justify the security breach. In the meantime Goa'uld becomes
privy to what is going on and launchs an attack on the Tok'ra, with the
consequences being perilous for O'Neill and Carter.
"Touchstone": A group posing as the SG-1 team steals the
climate-controlling Touchstone from the planet Madrona. It is then used to
cause the deterioration of the planet's weather, threatening inhabitants
with imminent death unless the stone is recovered. The SG-1 team are blamed
for the theft, and on trying to clear their name they discover some disturbing
information.
"A Matter of Time": SG-1 are threatened by the gravitational pull of
black hole on planet P3X 451 (don't you just hate it when that happens?).
Trying to break free, the team decides to shut down the gate's power with
dangerous results.
"Fifth Race": The SG-1 team travel to an ancient room that houses alien
inscriptions. When O'Neill peers through a viewer in the ancient room, he is
caught momentarily in its grasp and shortly after alien words begin appearing
in his speech.
The four episodes on Volume 6 are :
"Serpent's Song": Apophis, a sworn enemy of the SGC, is forced to throw
himself on the mercy of the team. Despite his past evil, SG-1 grant him
sanctuary. However, events pass and the SG-1 team's Tok'ra ally, Martouf,
insists that unless Apophis is sent back to face his fate, all those around him
will be destroyed.
"Holiday": The SG-1 team stumble upon the chamber of former Goa'uld enemy
Ma'chello, and fall victim to his powerful body-swapping invention. Ma'chello
takes on Daniel's body and the young archaeologist finds himself trapped in
the body of an old and dying man. When O'Neill and Teal'c attempt to help
their friend things go awry and they find themselves in each other's body.
"One False Step": A UAV plane crashes into a cactus-like plant on a planet
inhabited by aliens. Sent to recover the plane, the SG-1 team discovers those
living on the planet are, compared to humans, gentle friendly creatures.
However, soon after the SG team has arrived the aliens start to become ill,
and it soon becomes obvious that they are unwittingly responsible for a
disease that that threatens this entire alien civilization.
"Show and Tell": The SG-1 team have a new, uninvited passenger, a young
boy, who has been sent to tell them that the Goa'uld has destroyed the planet
Reetalia, and now Reetou rebels are plotting to kill all potential hosts for
the Goa'uld, which means all human beings are at risk.
The first thing to note is that all the episodes presented on DVD from MGM
are in the original 16:9 anamorphic widescreen ratio, rather than the
4:3-centre-cropped presentations we're more used to on Sky One and Channel 4.
However, for some reason there's a horrible layer of grain all over the screen
and it's really off-putting. Apparently this was the same for earlier discs
in the series, but why? The average bitrate hovers around 5.5Mb/s for each
episode.
The sound is the one thing that's spot-on here. Dialogue is clear and when
the action starts, there's plenty of explosions, gunfire - and of course
the gate - to keep your speakers happy. English viewers also get the
soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1.
Extras :
Chapters :
There's a decent number of chapters: 8 per episode, each adventure lasting
exactly 42:24.
Languages & Subtitles :
Dialogue comes in English, French and Spanish, although the latter only hear
Dolby Surround, not DD5.1. Subtitles are also available in English, German
and Spanish, the first two being 'hard of hearing' options, which detail
aurally what's happening apart from just the dialogue.
Menu :
The menus contain animation and sound and launch impressively with the Stargate
opening up. After selecting the dialogue language, a 'thru the gate effect'
takes you to the main menu.
Overall, I rather enjoyed the original film and the TV series' opening
double-episode, "Children of the Gods", but the rest of the series
tends to be a bit hit-and-miss, some episodes building on character while
others just follow the Quantum Leap-style-of-play, ie. arrive in a
location, sort out the natives' probles and then leave, with the stargate
only serving as a function to get from A-to-B, occasionally stopping off at
base.
For reasons best known to themselves, MGM never put out the whole of Season 1
on DVD, but while Vol.7 will see the final two episodes from Season 2, it also
includes two from season one: "Thor's Hammer" and "Hathor".
Here's hoping the picture problems can be addressed and some extras find their
way onto the discs?
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Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
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