Divide and Conquer is episode 5 of season 4 of Stargate SG-1, first aired in 2000.
A historic summit between Earth and the Tok'ra nearly turns into a bloodbath: Za'tarcs, sleeper agents programmed by the Goa'uld without their knowledge, are hiding among the delegations. Anise's detector soon points at O'Neill and Carter, whose accounts of the armband mission don't match. To prove they haven't been programmed, they'll have to confess what they've been keeping quiet.
Why it matters to the mythology
Martouf falls as a martyr of the alliance, and O'Neill and Carter's confession, that he cares about her a lot more than he's supposed to, changes the pair forever.
The review
The episode where the series stops pretending: the Jack-Sam subtext becomes text, in a confession scene in front of the detector that is heartbreakingly restrained. And since Stargate never makes you pay halfway, the same hour takes Martouf, forced to die at the hands of the woman who carries the memories of his great love. The Za'tarc concept may be convoluted, but the emotion is crystal clear. A turning point.
Written by Sebastian
Founder and editor-in-chief of Stargate Initiative
Gallery · 2
Stills from the episode, via TMDb.
The community watches the episode
Creators watch it, react to it, break it down. We're just the bridge: the views stay on their channels.
Comments
0Create an account or sign in to leave a comment, earn XP and help keep the community alive.
Sign in to comment