- You getting the full thing? - Just about.
Instead of zooming out, pull back. Get it in context. Just keep going back.
- It's cool. - It's amazing.
Yes, it is. Mr Bregman? Colonel Tom Rundell, Cheyenne Mountain Complex.
- Public Affairs Liaison. - That's a mouthful. Call me Emmett.
- Yes, sir. - Is that OK?
- This is my posse here... - Tech Sergeant Dale James.
- Shep Wickenhouse. - Shep's doing sound.
Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, sir. But what are you doing here?
We're getting some establishing shots, the first of many, while we're waiting.
In fact, we should get a shot of you.
Sorry, you're not authorised until you're briefed by General Hammond.
I've already been briefed - Tom, is it? - by the Defence Department.
What's the problem? I'm cleared to shoot. Maybe you guys haven't been cleared.
- What's the problem? - General Hammond will see you now.
OK.
- This should be fun. - Oh, yeah.
- General Hammond? This is Mr Bregman. - I'm very excited to be here, sir.
You may find that we're not all as giddy as you are about this project, Mr Bregman.
Giddy?
I'm personally and professionally excited,
I think I said excited, to be here, General.
I haven't been giddy since, well, you don't want to know.
No. I just want to be as clear as I can up front.
- Sure. - Your presence is highly unorthodox.
I will not let it threaten the security of any missions or the safety of my people.
I've already been frisked three times, we can make it four. Do it if you want. Sorry.
I consider it my responsibility to protect my people's interests.
Frankly, I feel it's appropriate to warn you
that no one around here wants to be part of your little reality show.
Oh.
I see. You know, General...
you're probably aware that there were film cameras on the beaches of Normandy
decades before Survivor debuted on CBS.
I think it's outrageous that the Stargate programme hasn't been chronicled.
Because it's top secret. Only a handful of people will see anything you shoot.
So far, General. So far.
Eventually, inevitably, this programme is gonna be disclosed to the world.
And I think this film we're doing might in some way provide
insight into what's really been going on here for the last six years.
What's really been going on?
You know what, General?
I respect what you're doing. I even respect that you want me out.
But the President of the United States invited me to do this.
You see that red phone?
You wouldn't be here if he hadn't.
Well, then, I hope I can expect the full cooperation of you and your personnel.
- To the letter of these orders. - To the letter. I see. I see. Thank you.
You have high expectations to meet.
General.
Maybe it's just my opinion, but, to me, throughout history,
the best documentaries take a cinéma vérité approach.
- Let the subject tell its own story. - That's a very interesting point of view.
And mostly, if not totally, crap.
Especially in a situation like this. If this story was gonna tell itself,
there'd be Stargate updates on the nightly news. You do have a point.
We should make people feel comfortable, gain their trust.
You know what? We'd be here a year. These soldiers conceal things for a living.
- Airmen, sir. - These airmen conceal things for a living.
The only way to get anything out of them is not by the... Look at that.
..by the cinéma vérité approach.
It's gonna be by the wringing-it-out-of-them approach.
Look, Mr Bregman. You are here strictly to document what is going on.
Not to pursue anything prejudicial to Air Force personnel.
- Call me Emmett. - If someone were to say something...
- Is that who I think it is? - It's Colonel Jack O'Neill.
I like vanilla over chocolate,
my favourite colour is peridot, Tibet should be free,
and if I could have dinner with anyone in the world it'd be Mary Steenburgen.
- Mary Steenburgen? - She's nice.
I'm just trying to get a minute with you.
I really don't have time. I've got a briefing to go to.
I understand. I'm Emmett Br...
No, look. I'm not gonna get a perspective on this Stargate programme without you.
So, when is a good time for you?
Any time's good. Just send me a memo.
Memo.
Really sensed he's starting to trust you.
Don't worry about it. He only looks unprofessional.
General Hammond warned me people might be less than enthusiastic about this.
We did have a bad experience with a TV crew last year.
The Prometheus incident.
I know that the Air Force insisted on their own crew for that reason.
You might be sensing reluctance from people to put themselves on a pedestal.
We are just doing our jobs.
Just a job? Consider it my job to put you on a pedestal.
This job looks to me to be extraordinary,
and, from what I read in your file, the same can be said about you personally.
- See, now I'm blushing. - So you are.
Then we should start. It'll look good on camera.
Let's go, guys. Are you ready?
No.
You don't need a light meter, the woman is glowing.
Let's get rolling.
- We're rolling. - Sound?
Rolling.
OK.
Major Samantha Carter. US Air Force.
Astrophysicist. Considered the foremost expert on the Stargate.
You've explored territory that no one on Earth has ever seen
and you've fought an enemy that no one on Earth has even imagined.
Major Samantha Carter.
Meet the six and a half billion people of the planet Earth.
Hi.
I don't think I've ever asked this question before,
- but what was it like to be, well, dead? - I wasn't exactly dead.
You, what's the word, transcended?
Ascended. Yeah.
Well, actually I did have the unfortunate experience of dying first.
Slowly and quite painfully first, I might add.
In your file it says "Your human body"... I'm quoting here.
"Your human body transformed into energy."
"A bright white light rose above the hospital bed." Is that...
- Yeah. - ..accurate? So, could you...
Dr Jackson, could you, I don't know, elaborate?
What did it feel like?
I don't know. I really don't remember much after that.
Will you excuse me?
Follow him. Come on, come on.
Move.
Move! Move!
Dr Jackson!
What is it? What is it?
- The mask fragment... - Sorry, could you slow down?
The mask fragment from P3X-298 was dated to predynastic Egypt here on Earth.
Could you get a close shot of this? What is the...
What is the significance of that?
It's fascinating.
It's... OK, you can back up. Back up.
That's it? It's fascinating?
Why were we running?
Oh.
I just wanted to see if you'd chase me.
OK, turn it off. Turn it off. Get that mike away from me. Turn it off.
Kevlar will not stop the energy blast from a staff weapon.
The plating in other bulletproof protection gets superheated from the plasma.
While it would stop the penetration,
the wearer is trapped in what becomes their own personal microwave oven.
Not a good idea. Anyway, what we've been working on is this.
A ceramic polymer which will resist the heat, stop the blast, and...
fits into a standard-issue SG vest.
Which Sergeant Siler will now demonstrate for us.
Wouldn't it be a better... No, don't shoot me, shoot him.
Don't you think it would be more interesting... if I wore the vest?
- No. No, no, no. - Isn't it safe?
Absolutely. It's not like we've never done it.
Away from the face, big guy.
It's all good. I'm fine.
You see, um... Yeah. See, he does that all the time.
The control room is sort of like the air-traffic control tower.
We monitor all gate activity from here.
So, what are all these blinking lights about? What are those lights there?
This monitors the power consumption required to generate outgoing wormholes.
Interestingly, we found our gate draws 10% more wattage than offworld gates.
That far exceeds any potential loss due to our man-made interface.
We think it's the way the superconductive crystals inside absorb electrical energy.
But we're also trying to demonstrate that the DHDs are somehow producing
a purer, more efficient form of power.
Could we get a shot of the gate spinning?
Sure. It's really cool. Steam comes out of it and everything.
- Great. - Major.
Sorry, guys. An SG team's due to embark on a mission.
That's great. We'll get a shot of them leaving.
Actually, you're gonna have to leave.
Could I ask you something? Are you... You can stop shooting. Cut.
OK, Balinsky, which way?
- That way. - I'll take point.
Wells, Bosworth, you're rearguard. Five-metre spread. Keep your eyes open.
The MALP showed no indication of any recent Goa'uld activity on this planet.
I don't see any indication of anything here.
Take the usual bet on that, sir?
- Sure. Wells? - An abandoned naqahdah mine.
Boring. Good odds. Bosworth?
I'm gonna put my money on trees, sir.
Bosworth's disqualified for being a smart ass. I'll go with two-headed aliens.
Hostile or friendly, sir?
One head good, one head bad.
Balinsky?
Ruins of an ancient city.
Yeah. You wish.
All night screaming. Projectile vomiting.
Nuclear diapers. You have no idea.
The reason they make 'em so cute is so you don't suffocate 'em in their sleep.
- Sir, you have four kids. - Why do you think I enjoy work so much?
Don't get me wrong. I love the little buggers to death, but trust me...
it makes going through a Stargate and facing alien bad guys look like nothing.
- This is relaxing. - Then why'd you have four?
One's pretty bad. But you figure...
you gotta have two so the little guy can have a brother or sister, right?
Then you have two boys, and the wife says she wants a girl.
You figure, hell, three can't be much worse than two, right?
What you don't realise is your brain is fried cos you haven't slept.
After three, four is no big deal. You're so deep in.
Nothing seems to matter any more. It's chaos.
You're just trying to make it through each day alive. And in the end...
you spend all the energy you have left trying to get 'em into bed.
Only to lie awake, praying they don't get hooked on drugs.
Or hurt. Or worse, wind up dead in an alley somewhere.
- I can't wait, sir. - Miracle of birth, my ass.
I'll tell you what a miracle is. Birth control that works.
Well, I'll be damned.
I win.
Sir.
Did you do your interview yet?
Yeah.
Mary Steenburgen?
She's so hot.
Can you tell me the reason for this documentary again?
Didn't you read the memo? Officially, it's for the 1,000th trip through the Stargate,
- but I think there's more to it. - One thousand?
I know. Hard to believe we've been at it this long.
There should be a cake.
Wait, um...
Dr Jackson, I just gotta...
"Your memory was erased when you returned to..."
I'm quoting here.
..."human form".
That sounds completely idiotic. Make a note, I have to reask that question.
Sorry. Could you...? What can you tell us about all that?
Not much.
OK. Well, can you tell us a little bit about what things were like before that?
Thankfully I have most of those memories back. There are still a few holes.
OK.
"The pharaohs of the fourth dynasty did not build the pyramids."
No, they didn't. They're landing pads for Goa'uld motherships.
I'm quoting from a speech you made before your introduction to the Stargate.
I presume that you knew nothing about landing platforms or motherships, right?
- Right. No. - Until you met Catherine Langford.
- Right. - And she introduced you to the Stargate.
Right.
So.
Why?
Why what?
- Why did she do that? - I don't know. You'd have to ask her.
OK, maybe I'll ask her. Where is she? Is she transcended?
- Or ascended, or something like that? - No, retired, actually. But...
you never know.
So I'm just reading your file here.
It's fascinating. I should ask you immediately here... You're an alien?
I mean, well, not to you. To us, you would be...
Anyway, you were the highest-ranking officer in the service of our alien enemies.
And you turned against them.
Why did you turn against them when you did?
I mean, why are you sitting there if you don't intend to answer my questions?
Because I was requested to by General Hammond.
I see. And he didn't happen to mention to you that part of the interview process
involved actually saying something?
No.
OK. Um...
All right, let's try this. Colonel Jack O'Neill.
You must have a tremendous amount of respect for him.
Or maybe you don't. Let me rephrase.
Colonel Jack O'Neill is your immediate superior.
OK, maybe not in terms of species, but...
- He's your commanding officer. - Indeed.
Good! OK, good. Good.
Terrific. Is there anything you can tell us about him?
If you wish to learn of Colonel O'Neill, you should interview Colonel O'Neill.
OK. Thanks. That's a good idea. Let me ask you this... Where are you going?
How long?
- I don't know. Why? We just got here. - An hour ago.
I need more time. Look at this place, it's incredible.
- You've seen one crumbled city... - Sir.
- This place was built by the Ancients. - Are you sure?
Yes. These markings, and this stone architecture...
Dr Jackson is gonna die when he sees this.
What, again?
Funny.
Don't go far.
- It looks like an alien. - Shut up.
- Remember that thing on P2X-787? - Get lost.
See, that thing was easy on the eyes by comparison.
Let me see.
- That's pretty scary, Wells. - It's my unborn son, sir.
How can you tell?
I don't know, Wells. I wouldn't paint the room blue just yet.
Take cover!
Colonel, now!
Hold!
What the hell is it?
Like the people who are now serving here at the SGC,
the youth of tomorrow will one day have to defend the free spirit of mankind.
And not just on our fair planet, but out there. Through the Stargate.
In the vastness of the galaxy,
where untold evil with powers... we've never seen before
are still waiting... to prey upon us.
OK. Cut.
Senator. Great.
Thank you so much for doing this. It was really terrific.
- These people deserve it. - We're trying our best. Listen, Senator...
I hope you don't mind me saying this, but...
It sounded a bit like a speech. I don't think you're gonna like the results.
What if we do it off-the-cuff and I throw things at you and see how you respond?
No.
- No? - No.
- If you want anything else from me... - Yes, actually, Senator...
Colonel. As I'm sure you know,
I'm to be part of the piece these men are putting together
to document the fine work you're doing here at the SGC.
- No, I didn't know that. - Well, I'm...
I'm sure there was a memo.
Did you tell them about the time you tried to shut this place?
- Or the time you had Hammond by the... - I suggest you watch what you say.
- Slander is a serious offence. - Yes. So I hear.
I have always been a strong supporter of this programme.
I admit I was critical in the past, but only because of
the unrealised potential I see this operation as having.
How did your interview go, Colonel?
It was short.
Yet oh, so sweet.
The president wants you to play ball on this.
I hope you're not intending to disappoint our Commander in Chief.
I would think you would want to show your appreciation for his backing.
What are you doing here? Last time I checked, you were trying to discredit him.
His term is up.
My running mate and I are merely pointing out to the American people
certain areas that we think we can do a better job in.
And when that time comes...
I know we can count on your vote, Colonel.
Yeah. That'll happen.
And I want you to know this.
If elected, this programme can count on our full support.
- You want to get this? - Sure.
You smarmy, self-righteous, opportunistic...
Unscheduled offworld activation.
Colonel O'Neill to the control room. Repeat, unscheduled offworld activation.
Duty calls.
- I was done. - Colonel, what is this offworld activation?
- I won't know until I get there. - Great. Where's there?
There is here for you.
Ongoing activity.
Balinsky wants to stay, sir.
You see anything else worth staying for?
- Hard to say. - We need to finish searching these ruins.
- How long? - A day or two, maybe more.
Be nice to send up a UAV, get an aerial overview.
Permission to remain granted. I'll send SG-3 as backup.
- Any further threats, get out immediately. - Understood, sir.
In the meantime I can run some tests on the device. See what it's been doing there.
Send the device back, report in on the hour.
Yes, sir. SG-13 out.
Sir.
- It's not that I don't appreciate... - I knew they were headed your way.
I thought you might be looking for an excuse to get away.
I thought as much, sir. And I just wanted to express my deep and unyielding...
...love for you, sir.
General? If you have a moment, Mr Bregman would like a word.
"Exempt from clearance are all current activities not reviewed by this office."
That being the Pentagon.
- Breathing is a current activity. - My interpretation is:
You are not authorised to know about the most recent unscheduled activation.
General, I need a little leeway.
I said I was going to hold you to the letter of these orders, Mr Bregman. Give it up.
- You know, Colonel O'Neill... - Is currently unavailable.
The president has given me his full support. Why are you resisting?
I'm not resisting. I'm following orders.
My opinion is that I don't think my people need to be put under a microscope.
Cameras don't just record things.
They change what they record simply by being there.
The work these people do is hard enough without them feeling
that every breath they take is being preserved for judgment.
- Maybe it should be. - Excuse me?
I said maybe it should be.
The Pentagon has allowed journalists to be embedded with the forces before.
Under fire, under pressure. So that what's seen and what's heard is the truth.
- I think we're through. - I don't. I don't disagree...
Excuse me.
- You ever seen anything like this? - I have not.
Definitely a remote probe of some kind. The capacity of the memory is immense.
But so far, all I've found are detailed images of the ruins.
You know, it makes sense. We use a MALP, why wouldn't the Goa'uld?
The Goa'uld are scavengers. It is quite possible they got the idea from us.
So, you do your interview with the documentary crew yet?
Indeed.
I can't wait to hear what everyone else said.
I did not say much.
Really? That is surprising. It's usually so hard to shut you up.
I found the entire experience unpleasant.
- They want to talk to me again. - Did your interview not go well either?
I thought it was fine, but apparently I looked nervous.
What is the meaning of "offworld activation"? What is that about?
- I'm not... - You wouldn't tell me even if you knew.
You remind me of the minders in the Gulf that used to censor our reports.
It's not as if we're conspiring to cover up the truth.
Censoring reports in combat makes sense.
You should not jeopardise troops involved in ongoing missions.
This isn't the news. Are you broadcasting this to the enemy on some other planet?
Look, I have been denied access to several prior mission files
cos no one wants me to know how close we've come to...
You're not conspiring. Why don't you tell me?
- We've come close to what? - Being compromised.
Being compromised. There's a euphemism.
Close to the brink of planetary annihilation is more accurate.
That's why we're not allowed to film.
Every time they open that gate, something could go wrong.
In which case, it wouldn't really matter what we had on tape, would it?
What did you say?
What did you say? "It doesn't matter"?
If you had any integrity at all, you would resign before I had to replace you.
I'd rather be replaced than court-martialled.
The bottom line is, the SGC is not gonna let any of this out until it's declassified.
- Why not shoot it and decide later? - It's not up to me.
"Not up to me." "Not up to me."
Colonel. Colonel. We're all set up for you right here.
- Briefing. - Colonel. Colonel.
Colonel! You know, I'm gonna get you on camera sooner or later.
Even if all I get is a series of shots of you avoiding being got.
Fire away. I hope shots of my ass serve you well.
All right, pack up. What are we doing here?
How do you feel about Colonel O'Neill?
He's an amazing man.
After everything he's done, he's still modest. Quite self-effacing, actually.
He even likes people to think he's not as smart as he really is.
Bottom line: he's an incredibly strong leader
who's given more of himself for this programme than any man has given for...
well, anything I can imagine.
Do you spend a lot of time together outside of work?
We don't get much time outside of work.
And when we do, our personal interests are a little different.
Did you ever hear the expression "opposites attract"?
We have a very professional relationship.
Really? Professional? After everything you've been through?
You must have, maybe it's not too much to say, faced death together?
Yeah. Not unlike countless military personnel throughout the years.
I won't deny there's a bond between us. Daniel and Teal'c are also like family.
Colonel O'Neill is first and foremost my superior officer.
Even if there was potential for something more, and I'm not saying that there is,
our military positions and the very nature of our job wouldn't allow for it.
Well, basically, when the gate is dialling, I say:
"Chevron one encoded, chevron two encoded"
and so on incrementally, up to the seventh chevron,
which is a little different because that's when the wormhole connects.
When that happens, I like to change things up a bit and just say:
"Chevron seven locked."
Locked. That's great.
That's good. Anything else?
Oh, yeah. I'm responsible for this.
Close the iris.
Open the iris.
That's pretty much my job, right there.
- That's it? - Pretty much.
- I think you're being a little modest. - Oh, I mean...
Don't get me wrong.
It's really rewarding. It really is.
And we have tried various automated scenarios,
but the SG teams agree that when they send the iris code through the wormhole,
they like to know that there's a real person on the other end.
Someone that they can trust to get it right.
That gives me and the other gate technicians
a great sense of pride.
Sure. That's good.
- Dr Jackson. Hi. - Hey, how's it going?
You're packing. Going off... Sorry, I forgot the expression.
- Offworld. - Offworld. Is that it? So, you're going?
No, no. Just going through my pack.
That's the camera you use, though, right? I've seen hours and hours of your footage.
- Inscriptions and ruins and artefacts. - Cool, huh?
I wonder...
If you get the opportunity, maybe you could point your camera at some action?
Just for a change?
See, when there is action, I'm too busy to be pointing a camera.
I'm running, shooting, translating what the bad guys are saying.
It's just that I've heard a lot about these amazing events. But my medium is visual.
I can't tell the story unless I have pictures.
I'm not suggesting you put anybody in danger, not yourself,
but if the opportunity arises,
take a second and just point your lens at something that moves.
All right. Well, I'm not scheduled to go on a mission offworld for a couple of days.
- If it's there, shoot it. - Right.
Just not the inscriptions all the time. Some action would be good.
- Hey. - Hey. One second.
You want me to translate something?
I'm trying to get the interface connection stable. SG-13 kicked the crap out of it.
Its system log seems to be isolated on a separate crystal.
Bregman had the nerve to suggest that all that archive video footage was boring.
OK. Here's what really bugs me. He's only here cos this president is on his way out.
He doesn't want to look bad if and when the programme goes public.
This is all about political posturing.
Man, he really grilled me on that.
About the programme going public? What did you say?
- Babbled incoherently. - Could you imagine if it did?
I try not to think about it.
There.
- It's mostly just technical stuff. - Anything jump out at you?
Well, here's where it encountered SG-13.
- Uh-oh. - What are "Uh-oh"?
After it engaged shields and weapons it activated a long-range communicator.
Colonel Dixon.
We believe the Goa'uld probe sent out a transmission prior to your disabling it.
I'm ordering you to return immediately.
Roger that, sir. Estimated arrival time 15 minutes. Dixon out.
Pack it up, Doctor. We're going home.
- Wells, Bosworth. - Wells here.
Bring it home. We're booking out.
- Roger that. Wells out. - It's about time.
Taking fire! Wells has been hit.
Get to the gate. SG niner, requesting assistance.
OK. Three gunshot wounds, four staff-weapon burns, severe hypothermia.
I'm quite surprised he's actually authorised me to discuss all this.
Nanite technology artificially aged him.
He had his shoulder punctured by an alien time capsule device.
Three knee operations.
That's the whole Hathor incident which he's asked me never to discuss.
Oh, this was a good one. Last year he was exposed to an ancient incurable disease.
Obviously not incurable, right? Or...
Well, there was a Tok'ra symbiote in need of a temporary host. That did the trick.
I don't understand what you just said, but it's amazing that Colonel O'Neill is alive.
Yeah, I never know what's next. You just try and keep your head on straight.
We also set a lot of broken bones and prescribe a ton of antibiotics.
Well, still, it sometimes must be overwhelming.
Yeah. It's funny. All the training, everything we know about medicine...
It amounts to very little. Often I face situations where there's nothing I can do.
- Is there an upside? - Are you kidding me?
We all persevere because we feel we're on the brink of understanding so much more.
And not just about medicine, but about who we are.
Where we came from, what the future has in store,
how we fit into the grand scheme of things.
Unscheduled offworld activation. Repeat, unscheduled offworld activation.
- We've heard that before. Is that unusual? - No, it happens from time to time.
- What does it mean? - Your guess is as good as mine.
- You got that announcement? - Yeah, we're good.
OK, good. Well, thank you, Dr Fraiser.
Guys, why don't you go roll some cutaways and get some sound bites.
- So this... - Yeah, we're good. Thank you.
Uh, anything you can. OK?
- Sorry. - Ow. Ow.
I'm glad the Pentagon sent you. Just...
Go away.
Listen, I was just wondering. It seems like the unpredictable happens here a lot.
- Yes. Pretty much. - Yeah.
- You're not needed for this thing? - If I am, they know where to find me.
I was thinking of getting something to eat in the café. I'm not sure where...
- That way. - I was wondering...
If I'd like to join you. OK, yeah.
- What are you doing? - I'm just white balancing.
Well, go balance the white somewhere else, OK?
- Somewhere else. - I'm gonna dump these first.
- Wells is alive, but he's hurt badly. - How many Jaffa? Five? Ten? A hundred?
Colonel Dixon counted six. They were able to fend them off.
- Did the Jaffa come through the gate? - No, SG-3 was covering it.
- The gate's clear? - SG-3 was there when I left.
- Take SG-5 and 7 and Dr Fraiser. - Thank you.
- Colonel. - Yes, sir.
It sounds like an ambush. But there's nothing else we can do.
Right. Go.
Oh. Sorry. I was just...
I was just thinking that you have a very natural quality. I mean, on camera.
You let me film...
You allow people to see grace under pressure.
Are you flirting with me?
Ah, well... See, I, on the other hand, am very clumsy under pressure.
I've seen worse.
So, um... What's with the ring?
Oh, just...
It's sentimental. My wife died a few years ago.
So how do any of you have a personal life?
We don't. I spend most of my time outside work with my daughter.
- Oh. So you're married. - No.
- No, she's adopted. - Oh.
She's from another planet.
OK.
Um... would you be willing to talk about that on camera?
- I'd rather... - Excuse me, ma'am.
- You're required in the ready room. - Thank you.
- Sorry. - That's OK.
Let's go, gentlemen.
All because I wanted an aerial survey.
Took me too long to figure out it sent a transmission.
None of that matters now.