The Ark Season 1 - Episode 6
New episodes of The Ark will be released exclusively on Syfy for viewers in the U.S. For those in the UK and internationally, there is no word on a premiere date just yet. However, given other Syfy originals have shown up on Sky Max in the future, the same will probably be the case here too!
The Ark Season 1 - Episode 6
"200" is the sixth episode of the science fiction television series Stargate SG-1's tenth season, and the 200th episode of the series overall. Unlike the more serious nature of the season's story arc, "200" is a light-hearted parody of both Stargate SG-1 and other sci-fi shows, as well as popular culture like The Wizard of Oz.
"200" won the 2007 Constellation Award for Best Overall 2006 Science Fiction Film or Television Script,[1] and was nominated for the 2007 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.[2] The episode also marks the first time original SG-1 member Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) is seen since the beginning of Season 9.
The episode received a 1.9 average household rating, one of the few episodes of the season that surpassed the average rating of Stargate SG-1's previous season. "200" also received near-universal praise for its humor and writing. Despite the strong performance of the episode, the Sci-Fi Channel announced soon after the episode's airing it would not be renewing the series for another season.
The notes session devolves into the team members pitching their own versions of a successful sci-fi film, including a zombie invasion (from Mitchell), a previously unseen mission where O'Neill became invisible (from Carter), "tributes" to The Wizard of Oz and Farscape (from Vala), and Teal'c as a private investigator (from Teal'c himself). Also featured are a vignette of the team's mental image of a "younger and edgier" SG-1 (sparked by the studio's suggestion to replace the original Wormhole X-Treme cast), a suggested scene by Martin that turns out to be both scientifically inaccurate and highly derivative of Star Trek, a re-imagined version of the SG-1 pilot episode where all the characters are marionettes in the style of the television series Thunderbirds, and an imagined wedding that features the return of General O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson). The studio decides to cancel the movie in favor of renewing the series. The end of the episode shifts ten years into the future, where the Wormhole X-Treme cast and crew celebrate their 200th episode, as well as renewed plans for a movie.
"200" follows up on the events of the Season 4 episode "Point of No Return" and the Season 5 episode "Wormhole X-Treme"; the episodes feature the character of Martin and are self-referentially written. In comparison, "200" riffs on science fiction and genre television more broadly.[4] In comparison to attitudes that fans are largely powerless and in opposition to producers, the episode posits fans as empowered shapers of entertainment.[4]
Executive producer Robert C. Cooper originally proposed they write a normal script for the 200th episode. However it soon became clear that deciding who would have the privilege of writing the 200th episode would be awkward. This led to the idea to create a sketch episode in the manner of Saturday Night Live, with each writer creating a vignette.[5] The episode took shape when the writers thought to bring back Wormhole X-Treme and the character of Martin, and frame the whole episode as a notes session.[6] By the end of the writing process the episode had turned into "an homage to the cast, crew, and die-hard fans."[5]
Stargate producers were not sure actor Richard Dean Anderson would return for the episode, so they devised many scenes where Anderson was "in" the episode but not actually shown.[6] However, Anderson was willing to return and appeared in several scenes. In the DVD special Stargate SG-1: Behind the 200th Cooper said, "it was a big deal for us to have [him] back for the 200th episode. We obviously didn't think we could do it without him."[5]
Despite the markedly different content of the episode, "200" took no longer to shoot than a normal episode, mainly because much of the filming took place on the briefing room set.[7] On the other hand, the episode was much more expensive than a typical one, due to the unusual sequences. For example, the marionettes used in an elaborate spoof of the series were created by the Chiodo brothers, who also made the puppets for Team America: World Police; each puppet was expensive, and the wires pulling each puppet had to be readded by CGI in post production because they didn't show up well enough.[8] Several existing sets were used as stand-ins; for example, the bridge of the Odyssey was used for a Star Trek: The Original Series spoof, while a set from the sister production Stargate: Atlantis was used as the chamber of the Wizard of Oz.[8]
In an interview about the tenth season of Stargate, Cooper and series co-creator Brad Wright stated that there was a fine line between the humor of regular episodes turning into camp. While jokes for the joke's sake are usually limited in normal episodes, the line between humor and camp is deliberately crossed frequently in "200". The producers even talked about recreating a part of Blazing Saddles that breaks the fourth wall, but they could not afford the horses.[9]
The producers made sure that the episode was well-publicized, dropping hints that Anderson's character O'Neill would return for the episode.[8] Joe Mallozzi, executive producer for the series, also hinted that series fans would finally meet the Furlings, an enigmatic race referenced in the second-season episode "The Fifth Race" but never seen.[8][10] Despite the outlandish scenes filmed for the episode, many of the writers' favorite moments did not make it to production due to time constraints. For example, Cooper noted that a Gilligan's Island skit was cut from the script.[6]
The episode won the 2007 Constellation Award for Best Overall 2006 Science Fiction Film or Television Script,[1] and was nominated for the 2007 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.[2] Richard Dean Anderson also won a SyFy Genre Award for his guest appearance in the episode.
The episode was generally well received. IGN declared the episode "one of the smartest and funniest hours of television to grace the small screen yet this season."[13] They went on to applaud the decision not only to parody other works but the show itself.[13] Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune agreed, but also noted that "you don't need to be a longtime fan of the long-running program to enjoy its jibes at sci-fi clichés or expedient writing."[7] Eclipse Magazine noted that although the episode was "not a work of comic genius", "200" was the best comedy episode of the series.[14]
The highly publicized debut of the episode garnered a 1.9 average household rating, a 36% jump from the previous episode, and the first episode of the tenth season to reach or exceed the previous season's rating of 1.8;[15] Stargate SG-1 at that point was averaging about 3.3 million viewers per regular episode in the United States.[16]
"The Pack" is the sixth episode of the first season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the sixth episode in the series. Written by Matt Kiene with Joe Reinkemeyer and directed by Bruce Seth Green, it was originally broadcast on April 7, 1997, on The WB network.
Tropes Abusive Parents: Raven relates to Clarke how her was an alcoholic who would trade Raven's rations for moonshine.
Arc Words: We get chronologically the first instance of Bellamy and Octavia's mantra of "My brother/sister, my responsibility." It turns out to be a piece of imparted wisdom that Aurora Blake gave to Bellamy after giving birth to Octavia.
Chekhov's Gun: The two-headed deer pendant that Finn made for Clarke. Raven's discovery of it, combined with Finn's distance from her, lets her easily deduce that Clarke and Finn were sleeping together before she got to Earth. She's justifiably incensed.
Childhood Friend Romance: The origin of Finn and Raven's relationship. Finn was always there for her as a child when her mother never was.
Crazy-Prepared: Finn has begun carrying an emergency tent around, as a shelter from the acid fog. He ends up using it this episode, but it turns out there is no fog.
Dead Guy on Display: The search party comes across two skeletons posed like this, and conclude it's a warning to keep out of the Grounder's territory. It works for a few of them, but Bellamy, Jasper, Finn and a few others persevere.
Due to the Dead: Bellamy closes Roma's eyes when the group discovers her body.
Dwindling Party: The Grounders pick off a few members of the search party, one by one. Later, Diggs is killed by a booby trap he triggers, which displays him like this.
Flashback: The episode is interspersed with flashbacks to Octavia and Bellamy's life. It gives the viewers the origins of Bellamy's Big Brother Instinct, Octavia's thirst for life, and how Bellamy came to try and assassinate Jaha.
Fish out of Water: In flashbacks, it shows Octavia to be this when around anyone other than her mother and brother. She adjusts to it fairly well.
Forgotten First Meeting: Jasper had a brief encounter with Octavia over a year ago at the masquerade dance. Neither of them seem to remember it though.
Hell Is That Noise: The Grounders turn out to have a warning system in place when the acid fog is coming. It's an ominous blown horn that comes off like this.
Help Mistaken for Attack: A lot of Lincoln's behavior is mistaken for this throughout the episode, including treating Octavia's wounds. It doesn't help that he's almost completely silent the whole time, so doesn't bother to provide an explanation.
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: The delinquents Diggs and Roma are both killed this way. Diggs after he hits a Booby Trap and Roma after she is impaled by a spear.
Internal Reveal: Finn realizes that Lincoln sounded the fog horn, which saved their lives from the other Grounders.
Intimate Haircut: Finn is introduced getting one from Raven. He's less than enthusiastic.
Injured Limb Episode: Octavia is actually more badly hurt than the usual tumble-down-a-hill would cause on tv. Her leg is injured, she's bleeding heavily, and Lincoln has to Heal It With Fire to save her life.
Ironic Echo: We learn the origin of Bellamy's advice to Charlotte. "Slay the Demon." It was his mother's mantra to keep Octavia from panicking while hiding under the floor.
Just Following Orders: Shumway's response when Bellamy gets mad at him for floating Aurora.
Last-Minute Baby Naming: Bellamy is given no warning when his mother tells him to name his new baby sister. Having just been speaking about Augustus, he chooses the name of the emperor's sister, Octavia.
Masquerade Ball: Turns out the Ark has one for teenagers, though due to limited resources the costumes are mostly small masks. Flashbacks show Bellamy taking Octavia to one for the first time, but a surprise inspection gets her discovered.
My Greatest Failure: Bellamy taking Octavia out of their room only once was this. Her discovery by the guard had her imprisoned, their mother executed, and Bellamy's career destroyed.
My Secret Pregnancy: The episode opens with Octavia's secret birth, as the One Child Rule prohibited her mother from revealing her pregnancy to anyone, including doctors.
Never My Fault: Bellamy blames Octavia for Lincoln stabbing Finn, saying she should have let Bellamy kill him. She's having none of it, as she just wanted to leave, and Bellamy delaying to try to kill Lincoln is was got Finn injured. Then she and Bellamy get into a further argument over who's fault off of the bad things that have happened to them are.
No Name Given: Since Lincoln never says a word, or interacts with any other Grounders onscreen, we only know his name retroactively.
An Offer You Can't Refuse: In flashbacks Shumway blackmails/bribes Bellamy to assassinate Jaha, with the promise of getting Bellamy a spot on the Drop Ship in exchange.
Oh, Crap!: Several: Bellamy at the beginning of the episode, when he realizes Octavia is missing.
All of the 100, once they see the "meteor shower" that is actually all of the bodies from the Culling being returned to Earth, meaning the flares didn't work.
Bellamy and Octavia when the guards come to inspect the masquerade ball.
Raven, when she realizes Finn will definitely die unless she can get the radio working.
Rank Up: Flashbacks show Shumway going from a Lieutenant to Commander.
Reassigned to Antarctica: Bellamy's punishment for hiding Octavia's existence was to be expelled from the guard and made a janitor.
The Reveal: Commander Shumway was the person who coerced Bellamy into trying to assassinate Jaha.
Sex for Services: It implied Aurora Blake prostituted herself to one of the guards so that she would know when the random inspections would take place, so she could hide Octavia. She also got Bellamy recommended to be in the guard this way.
A Storm Is Coming: Spoken literally and figuratively by Bellamy to close the episode. It helps that he's looking at a literal thunder storm approach the camp.
Tap on the Head: Lincoln gets this twice in a single episode.
Tattoo as Character Type: Lincoln has the tribal variant, although they are difficult to distinguish from his warpaint.
Worst Aid: Surprisingly averted. Bellamy makes sure to keep the knife firmly in Finn's abdomen before carrying him to safety, as pulling it out is a sure way for him to bleed to death before they can help him.
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