Sci-Fi Storm

The last (for now…) installment of the Stargate SG-1 franchise hits the shelves on the 29th with [sfs=831]Stargate: Continuum[/sfs], with the members of SG-1 expecting to see the “extraction” of Ba’al by the Tok’ra, but end up in a time-traveling paradox on the frozen wastes of the Arctic…Read More for a review of this straight-to-DVD release.

This review is based on a pre-release screener copy. No packaging was available, and the final DVD release may differ slightly.

Synopsis: While SG-1 attends the execution of Ba’al, the last of the Goa’uld System Lords, Teal’c and Vala inexplicably disappear into thin air. Carter, Daniel and Mitchell race back to a world where history has been changed: the Stargate program has been erased from the timeline. The remaining SG-1 members must find the Stargate and set things right before they world is enslaved by the Goa’uld.

A number of previous characters appear, in roles varying from a few seconds to a few scenes. Maj. Davis (Colin Cunningham) and Sgt. Siler (Dan Shea) are seen briefly. Among past Goa’uld are Apophis (Peter Williams), Cronus (Ron Halder), Nirrti (Jacqueline Samuda), Camulus (Steve Bacic), and Lord Yu (Vince Crestejo). Ra (played by Jay Williams) also has a cameo appearance.

Jack O’Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) also appears, in a more than a cameo but in less than a pivotal role that I had hoped. He appears mostly at the beginning, and again at the end. Gen. Hammond (Don S. Davis, in one of his last roles) also appears as the adviser to President Henry Hayes (William Devane).

This may have been a good opportunity to bring a couple of other characters back from the dead, such as Maj. Kawalsky, Sha’re or Hathor, or bring in Ronny Cox as “President” Robert Kinsey (since the timeline is different, perhaps he wasn’t disgraced).

The feature raises an interesting dilemma with regards to the alternate timeline plot device – if the present isn’t so bad, should you attempt to go back and “correct” the change in the timeline? What about all the people who now exist who might otherwise not exist in the original timeline? Or those who weren’t killed because the Stargate program never happened? Never mind trying to convince anyone in the current timeline that they should let you…

There is also a big question, but because it could be a spoiler, I’ll leave it to the end of this article.

Overall though, this felt just like a double-length episode than an extra-special epic adventure. Even with the location shooting in the Arctic, there was a less artistic sense to the locations, unlike the mountain scenes in The Ark of Truth.

The DVD itself opens with ads for:

• [sfsasin=B0015NORDM]WarGames: The Dead Code[/sfsasin] (looks more like a remake than a sequel)
• Stargate: Atlantis Season 4
• [sfs=742]Stargate SG-1 Seasons 1-10[/sfs]
• Joyride 2: Dead Ahead

The DVD has a static menu, with the main menu having a wintery background (meant to represent the Arctic), with a white rendition of the Stargate with a photo inset of Col. Mitchell, Col. Carter, and Dr. Jackson. The submenus (except the Scene Selection screen) have a different background and the menu items are within the Stargate.

The audio menu provides choices for English 5.1 Dolby Surround, French and Spanish Dolby Surround, Feature Commentary, and English and Spanish subtitles. There is also a standard Scene Selection menu.

Special Features offers:

• Commentary (Executive Producer/Writer Brad Wright and Director Martin Wood)
• “The Making of Stargate Continuum – Just what you’d expect, with Martin Wood and Brad Wright, the principal actors, and others. Gets into shooting in the arctic, a really cold set, and in real F-15 fighters. 22:35
• “Stargate Goes To The Arctic” – All about the fun of shooting in the Arctic, including getting a real submarine to hit its mark through the ice. 21:54
• “The Layman’s Guide to Time Travel” – An astrophysicist tries to explain about time travel and the “grandfather paradox”. This feature had some stuttering video. 9:19
• “Trailers” – [sfs=787]Stargate: The Ark of Truth[/sfs], [sfsasin=B00157OI9Q]Fantastic Four Season 1[/sfsasin], Stargate Worlds (the upcoming MMORPG game), and X-Files (the movie “I Want To Believe”, which opens this weekend)

SPOILER ALERT: Everything below here is a spoiler. Do not continue if you do not want to be spoiled. This is your final warning. I mean it. Really.

No, seriously.

So, what exactly happened to the Mitchell that went back in time? Aside from the photograph, at least?