Within the Serpent's Grasp

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“Within the Serpent's Grasp (Part 2)”
Stargate SG-1 episode

Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 21
Guest stars	Alexis Cruz as Skaara/Klorel Gary Jones as Walter Harriman Peter Williams IV as Apophis
Written by	Jonathan Glassner
Directed by	David Warry-Smith
Production no.	121
Original airdate	March 6, 1998
Episode chronology
← Previous	Next →
"Politics (Part 2)"	"The Serpent's Lair (Part 4)"
Episode chronology

"Within the Serpent's Grasp" (Part 3 of 4) is the Season 1 finale episode of the science fiction television series Stargate SG-1.

[edit] Plot

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details for Season 1 follow.

Senator Kinsey has shut down the Stargate program. Hammond went to him twice and the second time he was thrown out of Kinsey's office. He then went to the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Chiefs, even the President himself; but it would be political suicide for any of them to override the Senate committee. Knowing that the slaughter that took place in "There But For the Grace of God" could happen here, Daniel convinces his team members to violate orders. They then arm, activate the Stargate and travel to the home of the Destroyers.

They find themselves in a large room and at first don't know on which planet they are (they however find an until now unknown type of Goa'uld weapon named Zat - small hand weapons - which they take with them). Suddenly there is a strong movement and all the members of the team (except Teal'c) are thrown back. Hidden doors open and SG-1 hide as Jaffa march in. They bow before the Stargate as a big ball rises into the center of it. The Jaffa leave. Teal'c explains the big ball is A Goa'uld long-range communication device (much like TV except far more advanced). They soon discover they have gated not to a planet but to a Goa'uld mothership which was in orbit of a planet (thus making a dialing possible). It launched into hyperspace towards Earth after their arrival, cutting off escape (Point of origin is not valid anymore). On Earth Ferretti is ordered to bring them back ("...officially your job is to bring back SG-1 for court-martial"), but because the ship jumped into hyperspace they also can't go through the gate.

SG-1 hide in the Death Glider bays and realise they are on an attack ship headed to Earth. They also notice that Jaffa are heading to a gathering. Sneaking back into the cargo room, they watch a large meeting in which they overhear Apophis unveil his son, Klorel (Skaara), the leader of this ship until Apophis rejoins them. O'Neill orders Carter and Daniel to plant C-4 all over the ship while he and Teal'c grab Klorel, in the hope that Skaara can fight the Goa'uld within him.

They capture Klorel but Skaara is able to assert control only briefly after one painful shot from a Zat gun (two shots kill). He says sorry to O'Neill since he feels responsible for Klorel's doings but then the Goa'uld takes back control. When guards enter they surrender rather than kill Klorel, who then brings the two into the cargo room and contacts his father. Apophis is pleased, and orders Teal'c's and O'Neill's immediate execution. (Klorel makes a typical Goa'uld mistake of overconfidence, declaring "I assure you, father. There could be no more.")

Skaara seemingly exerts some influence, as Klorel disobeys his father's orders and delays their execution, bringing them to the Pel'tak (bridge) to witness the destruction of Earth. Carter sets a timer on the bombs, and she and Daniel try to free their friends. They successfully take out the guards but then Klorel grabs Daniel, knocks the gun out of his hands, and uses a hand device on him, intending to kill Daniel. When Klorel doesn't stop, O'Neill is forced to kill Klorel/Skaara.

Looking through the window, they see Earth while the Death Gliders prepare for launch.

[edit] Notes

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Within the Serpent's Grasp (Stargate SG-1)

This episode contains the only scene produced especially for Showtime, not shown on the syndicated or DVD versions. When seeing a floating metal ball, Teal'c explains "It is a Goa'uld long-range visual communication device, somewhat like your television, only much further advanced."
In the Showtime version, and in the Season 1 Box Set, O'Neill says "Think it gets Showtime?"
In the other versions, O'Neill says "Mmm... Goa'uld TV."
Since Richard Dean Anderson is a fan of The Simpsons, the latter is one of many such in-jokes.
In Australia (Region 4) the "Showtime" scene is included in the Box Set.
This episode marks the last appearance of Louis Ferretti.
Teal'c introduces Zat'nik'tels and how they operate. Previously, the only Goa'uld hand-held weapons known to the viewer (and the Tau'ri) were the much longer staff weapons.
The guest star credits list "and Alexis Cruz as Skaara".
Cairn Deep Space Radar, which detects the Goa'uld ships passing Saturn, appears to be a fictional part of the Deep Space Network. The Hubble Space Telescope and NASA, who get a closer look, are of course real.