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Martin Lloyd seeks out SG-1 for assistance when his failed TV show based on the real Stargate program becomes a feature film.
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General Jack O'Neill has ordered Lt. Colonels Samantha Carter and Cameron Mitchell, Dr. Daniel Jackson, Teal'c, and Vala Mal Doran to review a movie script by Martin Lloyd. His failed television show based on the Stargate program, Wormhole X-Treme!, is being turned into a feature film!
The script opens with SG-1 finally meeting the elusive Furlings face-to-face. They are fury, panda-like creatures. But the Goa'uld attack, and Carter is unable to prevent a thermodynamic loop from feeding back into the planet's core. With a shrug, she and Jackson beam out as the world is blown apart.
At the real Stargate Command, Carter points out this never happened -- but Mitchell contends that a movie should open big! Sam thinks it's wrong to have the heroes cause a major catastrophe. Mitchell thinks the script review will be fun, while Jackson snipes that Mitchell thinks everything is fun. Vala notes the absence of a sexy, female alien in the movie script -- namely, her. General Landry promises to rescue them after they've spent some time around the conference table with Martin.
Cut to Mitchell's pitch for an action-packed movie scene: S.G.C. personnel have been transformed into marauding zombies by Telchak's device ("Evolution, Part 2"). Guns blazing, Cam fights his way to the gate, intent on returning the device that has caused this mayhem. Shooting zombies left and right, he orders Walter Harriman to dial the gate. But it is too late -- the control room has been overrun, and the zombies get the poor technician.
Martin interrupts the pitch, saying zombies have been done to death. (Jackson wants to know where the rest of SG-1 was during Mitchell's heroics.) When Marty receives a phone call from the studio telling him that his lead actor Nick Marlowe has backed out, the team offers ways to refer to the character, including phone calls. Mitchell suggests just bringing in another character. Martin wants them to pitch cool ideas like body switching, prompting Carter to recall a time O'Neill was rendered invisible by alien technology.
Landry interrupts to send SG-1 and Vala on a recon mission. Mitchell is especially enthusiastic because it will be his 200th trip through the Stargate. The gate, however, fails to power up. They'll have to go back to the conference room with Martin while diagnostics are performed.
Cut to SG-1 -- with 10 seconds to get through the gate, pursued by Replicators to a cliff's edge. On the plain below, between them and the gate, Al'kesh ships. But it's just another scene from the script.
Martin calls a break to write down Carter's techno-talk as she explains why the gate isn't working. Vala pitches a story that casts her as Dorothy, Carter as a Tok'ra, Mitchell as the Scarecrow, Teal'c as the Tin Man, Jackson as the Cowardly Lion and Landry as the Ascended being, a.k.a., "The Wizard of Oz." Her request -- she originally just wanted to go home, but now she wants to be a part of something -- a regular part. Martin recognizes the story and dismisses the eager Vala.
In Martin's new end to Act Two, the Stargate capacitors overload in an attempt to fix it, blowing up Cheyenne Mountain! Fortuitously, the heroes beam out, prompting a discussion of convenience beaming in science fiction.
Martin moves to Scene 24: a Star Trek homage with Mitchell as Captain Kirk, Carter as the blond assistant infatuated with Kirk, Teal'c as Worf and Jackson as the science officer. Reading the script, Jackson pronounces the whole scene ridiculous, and Teal'c wonders why everything must explode in the movie. Mitchell suggests never underestimating the audience, as "they are sensitive, intelligent people who respond positively to quality entertainment."
After another studio call, Marty reveals that when the star won't sign, a junior network execuctive wants to recast the team with younger, edgier versions.
Vala next tries to pitch Gilligan's Island. When Martin catches on, she recasts Farscape -- with Carter as Chiana, Teal'c as D'Argo, Jackson as Crichton, herself as Aeryn, Thor as Rygel, and Mitchell as Stark.
Vala asks why Martin wasn't just given the mission files -- all 1,263 of them. Jackson and Carter reveal there is a mission file Mitchell hasn't read. They won't tell him, but they tell Vala that "File 30185" concerns their trip to 1969 ("1969"), and that Mitchell was born 9 months later -- implying that he made it into the F-302 program and into SG-1 because Jack O'Neill is his daddy. Mitchell finally realizes he's being punked.
With his actors holding out, Martin ponders the possibility of doing his movie without them. In a scene done completely with puppets, General Hammond puts together a marionette SG-1 team about to step through the Stargate for the first time.
At the real S.G.C., General O'Neill arrives just as Teal'c pitches a show about himself in a trench coat, hat, and earrings: Teal'c P.I. With the gate fixed, Colonel Mitchell invites O'Neill on his 200th trip through the Stargate.
When Martin wants a new ending for the movie, O'Neill suggests fishing ("Moebius, Part 2"). Martin wonders what the twist is -- no fish?
Vala suggests a wedding. Daniel is Jack's best man in the fantasy scene, though he is concerned that if Carter doesn't show up for their big day, people will think he and Jack are marrying! Thor, Carter, and Vala (her maid of honor), beam in. Despite the intimate moment, O'Neill calls her "Carter" and she calls him "sir."
In the real world, General Landry announces the mission to P2C-106 a go. O'Neill invites Landry, who in turn invites Walter to join them. When Walter enters the gate room, Landry asks if everything is ready. SG teams 3 through 18, cake, balloons, and streamers are waiting on the other side to commemorate Mitchell's 200th trip.
O'Neill invites Martin to go along in search of his ending, but the producer announces that the movie has been cancelled. The TV series, however, has been renewed! Skip ahead to Wormhole X-Treme!, 10 years later, wrapping their own 200th episode. As he and the Wormhole actors do interviews, Martin learns that the movie is back on.
- S. Fetter
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PRODUCTION
Why such a radical departure from the Stargate formula? "200" is the show's landmark 200th episode, of course.
SG-1 talks about the incident in which Jack was rendered invisible, complete with "flashbacks." This scene (like the "Previously On ..." opening segment with the Furlings) never occurred on the show, but was completely original to "200."
Stargate SG-1 executive producer and co-creator Brad Wright makes a cameo in the Star Trek scene, as Scotty.
Ben Browder was originally set to play John Crichton -- the role that made him amous in science fiction circles -- in the Farscape scene. He and Michael Shanks decided to switch roles at the last minute, as a nod to the fans who suggested when Browder joined Stargate that the two look alike.
"We've come up with some pretty crazy ideas. ... We've just started spinning the 200th episode so its unlikely you would have heard anything about it."
(Executive producer Joseph Mallozzi, in a message at GateWorld Forum)
"Episode 6 will be, of course, our 200th episode and we've tossed around some great, albeit insane, ideas on this one."
(Executive producer Joseph Mallozzi, in a post at his blog)
"As for the Furlings -- how's this for a newsflash -- we may finally find out about them in Season Ten." ... "Don't laugh. We've seriously discussed the possiblity."
(Executive producer Joseph Mallozzi, in a message at GateWorld Forum)
"Brad [Wright] has been working on the third episode of SG-1 as well as that wild (some will no doubt say 'crazy') idea for the 200th episode, getting on it early as it will take some time to prepare for."
(Executive producer Joseph Mallozzi, in a post at his blog)
"And, of course, there's the big 200th episode that will offer up a little something for everyone. It'll be an episode unlike any we've ever produced, both in terms of format and content."
(Executive producer Joseph Mallozzi, in a post at his blog)
"We started to break the 200th episode today and discussed the possibility of a special guest star. Fingers crossed."
(Executive producer Joseph Mallozzi, in a post at his blog)
"I would say it's going to be not unlike 'Wormhole X-Treme!' We're going to be taking a few potshots at ourselves, but at the same time the audience will certainly be in on the joke. It may also involve the appearance of a face that we've missed for some time."
(Actor Michael Shanks, in an interview with Sci-Fi Talk)
"We'll see Willie Garson [Martin Lloyd]. He's coming back. It's sort of a full circle thing."
"It's out there ... in a good way! It's fun. Hopefully it's funny. Hopefully it's very funny -- if not, it's at least fun."
"The essence of [the] idea is that we'll all write it. And that's a lot of fun. And we each took sections -- and my section is possibly the most outrageous. Fans are either going to love it, or they're going to hate it. But I thought it was fun. And I figure every hundred episodes you should be allowed to go outside the box a little bit."
(Executive producer Brad Wright, in an interview with GateWorld)
"We've asked him [Richard Dean Anderson], and he's going to come back. Certainly not for the whole time, but he's going to come and play with us again. That door was left open, and he's going to come back and step through it."
(Executive producer Brad Wright, in an interview with GateWorld)
"The 200th episode was very grulling for me. I had a 2-month-old baby who was very fussy baby, didn't sleep much, and being up all night with my baby and in every scene, every set up, every day at work was probably the greatest challenge I've had in terms of trying to keep energy up when I had none in reserve. And one day on set I actually couldn't remember my line, and no matter how hard I tried I could not get it out of my mouth.
"I was doing a sequence with Willie Garson and he was very supportive and very sweet, and I tried very hard and I just could not recall the line. And everyone was standing on the set very ... I think they felt very sorry for me because it's very arkward for an actor when they are going through that. It's very painful to watch, and very painful and embarrassing for me. And I went to Robert Cooper and I said, 'I had a terrible day on set and I'm sorry I just couldn't remember my line.' And he was very sweet, and they didn't fire me! But that was very challenging that day. Probably the most embarrassing day!"
(Actress Claudia Black, in an interview with The Scifi World)
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SCORE:
8.20
Good
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