ZERO HOUR

08.04 Episode 158
Airdate: July 30, 2004

The President is due to visit the SGC in five days, and recently promoted General O'Neill has his hands full. Personnel files, bunting samples, and menu items demand his attention, Mark Gilmor, a new administrative aide, arrives at the base, as do quarrelling delegates from Amra, an alien plant from P6J-908 has been brought back for study by Dr. Lee, and SG-1 proposes a mission to P2X-887, which may hold weapons technology. O'Neill delays SG-1's mission, investigates the seedling in Dr. Lee's lab, locks the bickering Amrans in a room for a "time out," and, overwhelmed, begins to draft a letter to General Hammond.

It's four days to zero hour, and SG-1 and SG-3 embark for P2X-887, but shortly after SG-1 rings into a secret facility, SG-3 comes under attack by an alkesh. Meanwhile, Dr. Lee's plant has grown to enormous proportions, and even a machete and a blow torch fail to hold it at bay. As O'Neill orders backup for SG-1, Ba'al appears as a hologram, claiming to have captured SG-1, and offering to exchange them for Camulus. Camulus is willing to leave Earth, and offers a gate address for his freedom, an address that leads to a ZPM. Suddenly, the base loses power as the encroaching alien plant infiltrates the walls, and O'Neill's letter becomes a resignation.

Zero hour approaches, and Dr. Lee eradicates the plant using gamma radiation, which also reveals an anomaly in the ZPM. It has been booby trapped and could have destroyed the planet. O'Neill sends Camulus through the gate to Ba'al, but the exchange is made and SG-1 is not returned. Suddenly SG-1 dials in under fire. They had never been Ba'al's prisoners, but had been trapped in the secret lab. Once they are safely returned, the SGC prepares for the President's arrival, and Gilmor confesses he has come to respect O'Neill's leadership. O'Neill leaves for the ceremony, having completed his letter of resignation: "Never mind."

Written by: Robert C. Cooper
Directed by: Peter F. Woeste

Guest Starring: David Kaufman as Mark Gilmor, Cliff Simon as Ba'al, Bill Dow as Dr. Lee, Eric Breker as Colonel Reynolds, Steve Bacic as Camulus, Gary Jones as Technician "Walter", Colin Cunningham as Major Davis, Pierre Bernard Jr. as Sergeant O'Brien, Dan Shea as Sergeant Siler, Michael Ryan as John Prior, Jesai Jayhmes as Amran Delegate, James Ashcroft as Amran Delegate, Ken Kirzinger as Jaffa

Reference: Amra, Ba'al, Camulus, Davidson, Paul Davis, Mark Gilmor, Holographic Projection, Bill Lee, Sergeant O'Brien, Jack O'Neill, P2X-887, Planets, Plant of P6J-908, John Prior, Prochaska, Radio, Colonel Reynolds, Sergeant Siler, Symbiote Poison, UTD, Zero Point Module

DESTINATIONS & INHABITANTS

NOTES OF INTEREST

• Mark Gilmor is a civilian who had been an analyst at the CIA for the last eight years, with top-level clearance, mostly doing background checks, before being sent on special temporary assignment as O'Neill's new administrative aide.
• P2X-887 had formerly been within Anubis's domain and held a secret base for which Ba'al was searching, but which contains no significant defense technologies.
• The plant from P6J-908 grew from a seed to a plant in 20 minutes. By the second day it had spread beyond the lab to the entire level, showing resistance to both machete and blow torch. By day three it had entered the walls and shut down power and communication systems. It responds dramatically to visible light, but can be eradicated using gamma radiation.
• The ZPM, or zero-point module, is an Ancient power source that draws its energy from subspace and is the only thing powerful enough to activate the Ancient Defense Weapons found in Antarctica.
• SG-2 completed a mission to P8F-809.
• SG-3 accompanied SG-1 to P2X-887.
• SG-5 returned with the Amra delegates to discuss a pending trade agreement.
• SG-8 returned from P6J-908 with the alien plant.
• SG-10 and SG-12 joined SG-3 in the rescue mission for SG-1.
• Fourteen teams were currently off-world.
• O'Neill addresses the technician as Walter.

MEMORABLE REMARKS

• He's not like other generals. [Gilmor]
  Actually, he's not like other people. [Walter]
• Nothing in peridot? [O'Neill]
• I know, sir. But every time I open my mouth to say "George," "General" comes out. [O'Neill]
• Is that snippiness? [O'Neill]
  Is that a word? [Daniel]
• Knock twice when you're ready to talk like adults, all right? [O'Neill]
• Dear General Hammond... Wish you were here, and that I was... not. [O'Neill]
• Did they try the doughnuts? You made sure they were Krispy Kremes, right? [O'Neill]
• Well, the good news is it hasn't eaten anybody yet. [Lee]
  Well, thank you, Seymour. [O'Neill]
• I thought you were just going to question him. [Gilmor]
  He didn't have the right answers. [O'Neill]
• I knew it wasn't easy for you, but had I known what it was really like, I would have tried to be less of a pain in the... ass. At least, I would have tried harder. [O'Neill]
• Before you know it, you'll have old Camel-ass back in your grubby little mitts. [O'Neill]
• You dare mock me? [Ba'al]
  Ba'al, come on. You should know. Of course I dare mock you. [O'Neill]
• Is it really wise to provoke him? [Gilmor]
  It's what I do. [O'Neill]
• Wait a minute. I think there's a joke in there somewhere... Got nothing. [O'Neill]

FOR THE RECORD

• Oy: 1
• Cameos: Names on the lockers include B. Prochaska (publicist) and M. Davidson (set decorator)
• Popular Culture References:
  • Little Shop of Horrors
    • Well, thank you, Seymour.