User Reviews

SG-1 has been summoned to Abydos by Kasuf, Daniel Jackson's father-in-law. He needs their help after a very strange incident happens. A mysterious voice calling Sha're's name. When SG-1 arrives to investigate at the same spot a mysterious wind appears, it is calling Daniel's name. When Daniel identifies himself a young boy is standing in the sand. It is Shifu, the Harcesis child, the son of Sha're. Later Daniel inquires into the knowledge of the Goa'uld and Shifu replies that the evil is too strong. Shifu places Jackson into a dream state and Jackson awakens with the Goa'uld knowledge in his head. He has big plans, a way to protect Earth from the Goa'uld and precedes to build a defense platform. A network of satellites launched into Earths atmosphere designed to destroy Goa'uld mother ships. Things are not all as they seem. Jackson has worked it so no one of the Stargate command can find out what he has in mind for a defense of the planet. The power has gone to his head, he has been corrupted by the 'absolute power' that Shifu has given him. He proceeds to demonstrate the weapons on Russia. There is no one to stop him, Jackson has made sure of it. He has the power and everyone will do as he wants... All is not lost for it has only been a dream. Shifu wanted everyone to know why having all the knowledge of the Goa'uld is a very dangerous thing.

This episode concludes the theme that started from Season 3 with the "Forever and a Day" and "Maternal Instincts" episodes involving Daniel, his wife, and her child. In the first part, Daniel's wife is killed as she is attacking him, but is also able to communicate with him through dreams to help find her child. In the second part, Daniel finds the child, but decides to allow an alien force (Oma Desala) to care for the boy instead. In this episode, Daniel comes across the child as an older youth who speaks to him like the monk that he encountered in "Maternal Instincts". He is brought back through the Star gate for further examination. The Star gate team hopes to obtain some knowledge from the child to develop a defense against the Go'auld. While talking with the child, he hits Daniel with an energy beam like his wife back in "Forever and a Day" and Daniel experiences a similar situation where he dreams of how the future could develop by using the child's knowledge. In the dream, he sees how he becomes power driven and eventually orders an attack on the Russian capital. After waking up from the dream, he realizes the danger of becoming power hungry by the wrong use of the knowledge. The child was raised by Oma Desala and the child was trying to pass on her teachings to Daniel through the dream. At the end of the episode, Daniel realizes the true nature of the child and that his journey through life has a different direction than just using alien technology to defend the planet. The Harsesis child ascends and departs through the Star gate to continue his journey and future destiny. Daniel ascends in future episodes, but the Harsesis child is not seen later in the series.

This brilliantly written episode by Robert Cooper is a self study about being an a##@O!%. By changing its meme into the corny "absolute power corrupts absolutely" near the end it reversed its own conclusion so beautifully that it was fun to see. Was that intentional? If it was, the creators couldn't have been too happy... (Mr. Cooper, kill that Share'i ark and keep Daniel on board, OK? Not the whole elitist attitude please!)

The patronizing attitude towards 'stupid but (in retrospect) needed' commanders generals, presidents, foreign powers, just people in general in this episode is overshadowed only by the muted (in retrospect) admiration towards brilliance.

The conclusion, in which Shifu is about to ascend, destroys all gains so easily that it shows how most SF is now tinged with elitism. Daniel showing up telling the Tok'Ra that he wouldn't understand kills the chance of dampening the idiotic elitism, and instead glorifies it. As the energy-being descends towards the stargate - so does the episode and series self respect.

Others already said that this episode kills the ark that justified Daniel's motivation for 2 years. I will add that it also killed the potentially interesting ark of Goa'uld. Without the Harcesis potential that was barely touched upon, they are a bunch of sly gang leaders with fancy guns (except for the one who's half-ascended.) Ultimately this episodes leaves us not chance but to expect SG1 to be super-human from there on. Too bad for a series that started with a self-critical movie and a few really good arcs.

No wonder they had to move on in quick succession to replicators, Ori, and life-suckling tall guys with bad hairdo...

Quite frankly, I think this is the biggest letdown of the series. Not that this is a bad episode. It's interesting and sadly plausible (and Daniel, who is normally the most ethical guy ever, has already been shown to handle power rather badly). Daniel's slow descent into power-crazed megalomania is chilling to watch, especially as part of him is sincerely struggling against murderous instincts. The moment when O'Neill finally resigns himself to killing him felt really heart-wrenching to me. Of course, the fact that that part of the story was set "one year from now", along with the rather radical things Daniel had done, clearly showed that this reality would be erased before the end of the episode, but it still made for an interesting illustration of how power (especially Goa'uld power) is bound to corrupt. (And meanwhile, poor Harcesis was being corrupted by the horrible influence of... TV. LOL.)

But in terms of overall storyline, I'm sorry to say, we've been swindled. This episode ends an arc that actually began in season 2 when Daniel found Sha're pregnant, and was regularly continued across the galaxy with the Keb and Ascended arcs. For two years we've been told how precious and powerful the Harcesis was, and THIS is what we get? "Oh, okay, bad idea, sorry, bye." Come on, Sha're died for this. Daniel set his grief aside for this. Even though I get the point about power and corruption, and even though (as I said) the episode in itself is far from bad, I want a refund.