Stargate SG-1 - Season 3 [DVD]

With a well-established framework of back-story and an increasing list of adversaries, the third series of Stargate SG-1 was the place where casual viewers began to fall away. Unless you were taking notes it was becoming ever harder to stay on top of the Goa'uld history and their constant scheming. Fortunately by now a solid fanbase had appeared worldwide--with clubs, conventions and Web sites galore--so the ratings didn't slip even while ancient gods kept appearing and reappearing. Daniel Jackson could always be trusted to illuminate any relevant myth or legend (or find them in five minutes on the internet), while Carter's memory download from last year supplied the necessary ties with the rebellious Tok'ra. Away from the story arc the show's all-important stand-alone tales gave some thorny old subjects a new SF spin, including organised religion, the use of children in the passing on of knowledge, and leading an alternative life. O'Neill's sarcastic wit went into overdrive this year and Teal'c could be relied upon for a sneer or fish-out-of-water joke. Further comic relief came from Sam "Flash Gordon" Jones and Dom DeLuise, but perhaps the funniest thing of all was the wig Carter would apparently be wearing in an alternate universe. --Paul Tonks

The complete third season of the popular sci-fi series. In 'Into the Fire' the SG1 team are taken prisoner on Hathor's world, and it is left to Hammond and Teal'c to formulate a rescue plan. 'Seth' sees the crew attempting to track down an ancient Goa'uld who is on Earth posing as a religious leader. 'Fair Game' has Carter attempt to expose Thor's double-dealings with the Goa'uld when the latter plan an attack on Earth. 'Legacy' finds the SG1 team forced to make an enormous sacrifice when they discover a deadly parasite. In 'Learning Curve' Jack O'Neill disobeys orders when he attempts to save the twelve-year-old Merrin from being used by the Orbanians for memory storage. 'Point of View' sees SG1 visited by alternative versions of Carter and Kawalsky, who come from a parallel universe in which Earth has been taken over by the Goa'uld. 'Deadman's Switch' has the SG1 crew captured by a bounty hunter while on a routine mission. 'Demons' finds the team in trouble when they get mistaken for demons by a medieval civilisation. In 'Rules of Engagement' the SG1 team comes to the assistance of a unit it believes to be the missing SG11 squadron. 'Forever in a Day' sees Daniel Jackson reunited with his wife, though this has a damaging effect on his friendship with Teal'c. 'Past and Present' has the SG1 team visit an amnesiac planet, where Jackson becomes attracted to a brilliant and mysterious young woman called Ke'ra. 'Jolinar's Memories' finds the team attempting to rescue Major Carter's father, who has been captured and imprisoned on a moon which has been converted into a literal Hell. In 'The Devil You Know' the SG1 team are tortured for information when they are taken hostage by one of the denizens of Hell. 'Foothold' sees General Hammond conspire with Dr Frasier and a pair of aliens after the entire team is rendered unconscious. 'Pretense' has the SG1 team attend a 'triad' ceremony on the planet Tollan, only to discover that this is a front for the trial of their friend, Skaara. 'Urgo' finds the team implanted with alien spores which enable them to see a strange creature called Urgo, who claims to be their friend. In 'A Hundred Days' Stargate is destroyed by wayward meteors, leaving the SG1 team stranded on the planet Edora with no way back home. 'Shades of Grey' sees O'Neill suspended by Hammond after stealing a weapon from Tollana. 'New Ground' has the SG1 team trigger off a war between two cultures when they visit a new planet. 'Maternal Instinct' finds Daniel attempting to save a mystical child from two warring factions. 'Crystal Skull' sees Daniel disappear after finding a skull which was first discovered by his grandfather many years ago. Finally, in 'Nemesis', O'Neill is kidnapped by the Asgard and taken to a ship full of tiny metallic creatures who are on their way to destroy the planet Earth.