Classics: SG1 4:18 - The Light

Overall Rating: 4.9

If you ascribe a numeral to every letter in the alphabet in ascending order, then W is worth 23, T is worth 20, and F is worth 6. In honor of this episode, I'm giving it a rating of (W+T+F) / 10, because that perfectly describes my reaction to it...WTF???

Plot Synopsis:

Have you ever stared at a lava lamp so long you thought it might hurt to stop looking at it? No? You haven't accidentally smoked a year's supply of pot? Well neither have I, but the writer of this episode apparently has, because he thought it would be a good idea to base a story idea around his lava lamp. That's right...the whole plot of this story is...there's a light in a house attached to a generator. It makes mesmerizing colors that literally freeze your brain while the generator pumps out a narcotic-like wave that you become addicted to. And some Goa'uld thought it would be a good idea to let his warriors become opiate addicts? Seriously...WTF??

The Skinny:

Talk about boring episodes...they tried to make this one interesting by having our heroes get stuck on the planet or become suicidal and then go into shock...but...they failed. Boring...boring...boring. And worse than that...it views like it was written in deference of fanfic wank-a-thons...it's the kind of thing you'd dream up in answer to a fanfic challenge question like "write a fic where SG-1 gets high." The way the characters react to the negative impacts of coming off the high and going into withdraw make no sense either...it is, believe it or not, possible to write a story like this involving drugs and have each character's suicidal ideations come out in a way consistent with their greatest sources of pain or stress. That's not what happened here.

Writing: 2.5

Boring...boring...boring. And frankly...kind of amateurish.

Acting: 6.2

I don't think the actors were nearly as hackneyed as the writer. The group will willingly tell you that this episode was a bad misfire even on the part of the cast, but I've seen worse acting.

Message: 6.0

What message?