Stargate SG-1--"The Fourth Horseman, Part II"

“The Fourth Horseman, Part II” resolves the cliffhangers set up in the first episode while introducing the back ten of the ninth season. The episode does an unusually good job of tying up all loose strings. With any multiple cliffhanger story, one would expect some weak resolutions. Even some points about Cameron Bright’s performance as orlin and Don S. Davis too brief cameo as Hammond are addressed.

From where we left off; Garek has become a prior and is not willing to attack Chulak in order to purge the unbelieving Jaffa. Teal’c and bar’tac form a rebel defense against him. The Sodan have come to reject the Ori after they were ordered to slaughter a planet of farmers for rejecting Orign. They are willing to help Cam and Daniel capture a Prior in order to test their defensive weapon against him. Orlin is fading fast while working to cure the plague that has now become a worldwide pandemic.

Teal’c is able to appeal to whatever Jaffa is left in Garek by reminding him his father was an early rebel against the Goa’uld.the weapon works in stunting the Prior’s power, but not before he gets to kick cam around a bit. A philosophical debate between him and Cam and Daniel, played mostly for laughs, does nothing to convince him to reject Origin. Orlin has deteriorated to the poin the is no longer useful in seeking a plague cure, but Landry decides to have him confront the prior. We learn the ori intend to come to the milky way in order to destroy the Ancients. The prior is killed when he infects Landry with the plague. In a last act of redemption, Garek cures earth of the plague. Orlin has deteriorated by this point to need permanent commitment to an asylum.

“The Fourth Horseman, Part II” relies heavily on dialogue to resolve matters. I am not complaining, mind you. Christopher Judge in particular gets to shine as he appeals to Garek not to spark off a civil war over following more false gods. I thought playing the debate between the prior an our heroes for laughs was a nice change of pace, but I cannot help but note it is the third time Daniel has had this conversation with an acolyte of the Ori to no avail. Cameron Bright settles into his role as orlin much better. He comes across as much more natural than previously. Hammond shows up again, so the all too brief cameo last time around winds up not being as brief as I previously thought.

“The Fourth Horseman, Part II” is solid all around. It lacks that certain epic feel you would hope after a four month hiatus, but the story closes out every plotline satisfactorily while revealing the ori’s ultimate plan is to destroy the Ancients. You cannot complain much when the episodes does exactly what it is supposed to do, no?

Rating; *** (out of 5)