A BIGGER, BADDER GOA'ULD
Who's the next big enemy for SG-1 and the System Lords?
 WARNING: This article includes spoilers through Season Five's "Between Two Fires." Proceed at your own risk!
For months, SG-1 fans have heard rumors from the show's writers, producers and directors that Season Five would turn attention to a powerful new Goa'uld -- a "bigger, badder enemy" in the words of writer/producer Joseph Mallozzi.
He's said to be a Goa'uld who has a powerful army (featured in "The Fifth Man"), and is probably the same enemy who can withstand a Tollan ion cannon (which ripped through two of Heru-ur's Hatak-class motherships in "Pretense"), and who is "beating the you-know-what out of all the other System Lords" -- prompting the events of January's big two-parter,
"Summit" and "Last Stand."
He is someone with technology advanced enough to rival the Tollan, utterly destroying them. Who is he? Presuming that these statements refer to the same villain, let's examine the candidates -- starting with the least likely!
 HATHOR
She's surprised our heroes once before, escaping imprisonment on Earth and raising a small army of Jaffa in about 18 months' time. If she managed to survive being thrown into a cryogenic freezer by Colonel O'Neill ("Into the Fire"), she may have spent the last two and a half years quietly raising a new army.
Argument For: She's done it before, and if she's alive, she can do it again. She has also shown the ability to acquire advanced technology before the System Lords -- giving her an important advantage over them -- as she possessed the ability to appear and disappear ("Out of Mind").
Argument Against: There's been no indication that Hathor survived her last encounter with SG-1.
 MARDUK
Imprisoned in an alien ziggurat for thousands of years, Marduk escaped when a Russian Stargate team let him out of his sarcophagus ("The Tomb"). He took a Russian officer as a host, but was left with a pile of detonating explosives when SG-1 escaped the temple. He's nasty enough to go up against the System Lords -- and he's certainly crafty, having stayed alive for 4,000 years. But he's currently presumed dead.
Argument For: Marduk has the mysterious Eye of Tiamat, a piece of advanced technology that was said to give him "magical powers." The device may have allowed him to survive the explosion (it could be a powerful shield generator, or a healing device equivalent to a hand-held sarcophagus). Depending on what the Eye is, it could conceivably give him the power to overwhelm the System Lords almost immediately.
Argument Against: Based on the all-consuming explosion inside the fragile ziggurat, it's safe to say that Marduk is dead. Besides, he possessed the Eye of Tiamat long before his incarceration, and to our knowledge never ruled the System Lords.
 NURRTI
Nurrti is a wiz at developing new technology, in order to give her an edge over her System Lord peers. She used Cassandra and the children of Hanka to try and engineer a telekinetic host, and she developed a device that made her completely invisible -- and withheld its development from the System Lords ("Fair Game"). With Cronus dead, Nurrti escaped her imprisonment and likely set about reclaiming her army, her territory and her technology ("Rite of Passage").
Argument For: She's on the loose, she has technology more advanced than the other System Lords -- and after her imprisonment, she has a bone to pick with them.
Argument Against: Aside from the fact that she isn't at all a "new player" amongst the Goa'uld, Nurrti has never demonstrated that her army is powerful enough to attempt a move on the System Lords -- if it even still exists.
 ZIPACNA
One of Apophis' shifty underlings, Zipacna orchestrated an attack on the Tollan homeworld -- one that failed only due to the Nox's involvement ("Pretense"). Now that Apophis is dead, someone will probably step up to take command of the massive army he left behind. Zipacna could be just such a snake.
Argument For: A casting sheet for the two-part episode lists "Zipacna's Jaffa" as one character to appear -- implying that Zipacna himself (played by Kevin Durand) is likely to appear. It's unlikely that Zipacna himself has ever been put in a position to become a System Lord, so he could be the new enemy they are allying against.
Argument Against: There is no indication that Zipacna returned to the service of Apophis after he took over the army of Sokar ("The Devil You Know"), though it's possible that Heru-ur eventually absorbed Apophis' old forces, which were in turn reabsorbed by Apophis ("The Serpent's Venom"). Besides, Zipacna was little more than an underling, and it's very unlikely that he would have the ambition or ability to take over Apophis' new fleet and claim that power for himself.
 TANITH
Only a little more than a year old, Tanith was a servant of Apophis before the powerful Goa'uld's untimely death ("Enemies"). Tanith delivered Teal'c into Apophis' hands, then left the ship before the Vorash sun exploded. Now that Apophis is dead, the ambitious Tanith may make a play for the powerful army he left behind.
Argument For: Apophis' army, remember, is the largest Goa'uld army ever. He took over Sokar's powerful fleet only days before it was to strike the System Lords ("The Devil You Know"); then, Apophis absorbed the large army of Heru-ur after killing him ("The Serpent's Venom"). That huge force -- minus the dozen or so ships destroyed by the Vorash sun -- has to go to somebody.
Tanith's appearance on the Tollan homeworld in "Between Two Fires," though, introduces a new element. He claims to be in the service of another Goa'uld, having allied himself after Apophis' death.
Argument Against: He may be ambitious, but Tanith is only a year old. How could he, and not another Goa'uld in the service of Apophis, take control of the army? Also, the Jaffa in "The Fifth Man" bore no resemblance to the sharp, reddish uniforms Apophis employed after taking control of Sokar's forces. Finally, taking Tanith at his word reveals in "Between Two Fires" that he is now working for this "bigger, badder Goa'uld."
 OSIRIS
Imprisoned on Earth for thousands of years, Osiris is back on the System Lords scene. In the year since she left Earth ("The Curse"), the crafty and evil Osiris could have raised a new army. And it only takes one technological discovery to give her that advantage over the rest of the Goa'uld.
Argument For: Thanks to writer Joseph Mallozzi, we've known for months that Osiris would return in a Season Five two-part episode. Unless she's since been dropped from the story, bet on seeing her -- on one side of the line or the other, either allying with the System Lords or "beating the you-know-what" out of them.
Indeed, Osiris herself may be the powerful, unknown Goa'uld with whom Tanith has allied himself. He brings her the largest Goa'uld army in the universe, she brings skill, cunning, knowledge -- and perhaps weapons technology that allows her to destroy the Tollan.
Argument Against: A year ago, Osiris had nothing. It would be a miracle for her to have raised an army and acquired much of any territory by now (without the help of someone like Tanith). While she may be recognized as a System Lord, it's unlikely that she's become powerful enough to oppose them outright.
Who do you think the 'bigger, badder Goa'uld' is? Here are the poll results!
Hathor 8 (2%)
Marduk 7 (2%)
Nurrti 4 (1%)
Zipacna 4 (1%)
Osiris 124 (28%)
Tanith 28 (6%)
Someone else we have met 33 (7%)
Someone we haven't met 242 (54%)
TOTAL VOTES: 450 |
The truth is, while Osiris may be the most likely candidate, it's entirely possible that this great new enemy is someone entirely different -- someone SG-1 has not yet encountered. "Summit" will see the introduction of as many as eight new, myth-based System Lords, from Shiva to Bastet to Morrigan.
In fact, DeLuise also stated that "in 'The Fifth Man' a new System Lord appears, and our heroes have to learn that there are some pretty cool guys out there who they haven't met yet. There are still quite a few of the Egyptian gods that we haven't used yet. For example, we could meet Bastet or Anubis."
Whomever he is, he has one thing going for him: he's kicking the crap out of his fellow Goa'uld. And that's something to make everyone happy.
| UPDATE! GateWorld.net has obtained pages from the scripts for "Summit" and "Last Stand," revealing the identity of the "bigger, badder Goa'uld." Read the news story if you want to be spoiled! |
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