200

200 is the sixth episode of the tenth season, as well as the landmark 200th episode of Stargate SG-1.

Plot
Martin Lloyd (Willie Garson) returns to the SGC looking for assistance from SG-1 with his feature film script. The team is reluctant, especially Lt. Colonel Cameron Mitchell (Ben Browder), who is excited about his next off-world mission which marks his 200th trip through an event horizon. However, when technical glitches prevent the team from gating off-world, they are stuck in the briefing room under the orders of General Landry (Beau Bridges), because the Pentagon believes a successful science fiction film about intergalactic wormhole travel will serve as a good cover story to keep the Stargate program a secret.

The notes session, however, quickly 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). Additionally 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 version of the original movie where all the characters are marionettes, and even an imagined wedding that features the return of General Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson). However, the planning session is all for naught, since the studio ultimately decides to cancel the movie in favor of renewing the series.

At the end of the episode, the focus shifts ten years into the future to an interview with the Wormhole X-Treme cast and crew celebrating their 200th episode as well as renewed plans for a movie.

In-jokes and References
This episode was written in sections, each section written by one of the many SG-1 crew, and is riddled with in-jokes. Below is a breakdown of the references in the episode by the order in which they appear:

Precredits sequence
The precredit sequence includes scenes from a real previous SG-1 episode, "Wormhole X-Treme!", intercut with footage of other episodes as well as a pretend episode in which SG-1 (with O'Neill) meet the infamous Furlings. Robert C. Cooper had written the Furlings into the Season 2 episode "The Fifth Race" referring to them in passing, not anticipating that fans would ask him about this race whenever he went public. The Furlings in this episode look like four-foot tall koalas, speak with a high-pitched voice and live in a village similar to the Ewoks in Star Wars. (The look of the Furlings in this episode is based on koalas after a joke photoshop session of art director James Robbins. ) Producer Joseph Mallozzi had hinted at an actual appearance of the Furlings early on, creating considerable hype. Jackson greets the Furlings with "we thought we'd never get to meet you", but since they only appear as part of Martin Lloyd's script reading, SG-1 has still yet to meet the actual Furlings.

After the "Previously on" sequence has ended, Dr. Jackson asks who would make a movie out of a series that only lasted three episodes, to which Teal'c replies that it had strong DVD sales. This is a reference to Firefly, a scifi show that was canceled after airing 11 episodes, but high DVD sales allowed the creation of the feature film Serenity. Martin also threatens to take the movie to another studio if the present one does not like the budget; Joss Whedon actually did switch studios to produce Serenity, moving it from to. Martin also insists, like Firefly/Serenity, that the movie would not use footage from the original series as it is "not a clip show".

Concerning the opening title sequence for the movie, Col. Mitchell would prefer it to be strong, but Martin states that opening credit sequences are no longer common and have been replaced by simple title screens. His remark is followed by an uncharacteristic five second title screen for Stargate SG-1. Aside from the more obvious gag, this short sequence is the writers poking fun at SCI-FI Channel shortening the title sequence of SG-1 once. There is a trend in many recent television shows to forgo the traditional opening and theme song, like for Lost, something the SCI-FI Channel also pursued for the first 10 episodes of SG-1's Season 9, a decision panned by many fans. It is also interesting to note that this occurred with the third Stargate series, Stargate Universe where a quick title screen is shown rather than a "strong" opening credit sequence.

Zombie sequence
When Mitchell's zombie sequence was shot, it was originally much longer but was trimmed. Pierre Bernard appears in Mitchell's zombie sequence as "zombie" O'Brien, shot dead by Mitchell. (The O'Brien character first appeared in "Zero Hour", and also featured in a comedy segment on Late Night with Conan O'Brien where he was shot dead by Daniel Jackson.)

Allusions to other Stargate SG-1 episodes:
 * The zombies are being created by an Ancient Healing Device, first seen in "Evolution, Part 2", and the name "Telchak" is a reference to a previously-encountered Goa'uld, Telchak.

Missing main man
This makes light of the fact that O'Neill is no longer part of SG-1, and Mitchell has taken his place. After the team impossibly reaches a Stargate (see 'Cameron's 200th' below), Mitchell suggests a line for his character and Martin responds by saying, "How many times do I have to tell you, it's not you. Colonel Danning is based on Colonel O'Neill."

Allusions to other Stargate SG-1 episodes:
 * Martin complains that his main actor has pulled out of the film, and asks what to do. Cameron suggests simply replacing him with another character, which everyone seems to think wouldn't work. This is a nod to the fact that Richard Dean Anderson's character, Brig. Gen. Jack O'Neill, was replaced on SG-1's roster by Ben Browder's character, Lt. Col. Cameron Mitchell. The joke is furthered with the idea of having O'Neill mentioned but not seen, as in Season 9 episodes like "Beachhead" or "Ethon".
 * Martin suggests body-swapping, while Vala deems his idea to be ridiculous. Daniel then rolls his eyes at her. "Body-swapping" itself has occurred multiple times in SG-1: when Ma'chello swapped bodies with Daniel and O'Neill swapped bodies with Teal'c ("Holiday"), when both Daniel and (ironically) Vala herself temporarily inhabited the bodies of a pair of people in another galaxy ("Avalon, Part 2") and when Vala controlled Daniel's body in the episode "Crusade".

Invisible O'Neill
Carter mentions a previously unseen incident when O'Neill was once invisible as an example of a way to avoid using a main actor. This sequence is the result of the writers not knowing whether Richard Dean Anderson would want to appear in this episode, so they wrote around him.

According to Robert C. Cooper, the "Naked Carter" scene was not very liked in fandom because it was too "off-color". In the scene with Teal'c walking down the corridor with invisible O'Neill, Richard Dean Anderson performed himself in a green screen suit in reality, and his voice is heard throughout. The production team originally wanted to hire a man to use in a green suit carrying O'Neill's coffee mug, to be edited out so that the mug would appear to float as if 'invisible' O'Neill carried it. However, since Richard Dean Anderson was there on the day of filming anyway, it was decided that Richard Dean Anderson should effectively appear as his own stunt double.

Allusions to other Stargate SG-1 episodes:
 * In the scene with Daniel writing on the whiteboard, he says "And so by translating this tablet we should be able to determine the most important thing in the universe" (which is followed by invisible O'Neill's snoring). Translating tablets and other things of implied major importance were featured in SG-1 episodes like "The Torment of Tantalus", "Fallen" and "Chimera", usually enjoyed by Daniel Jackson and downplayed by O'Neill.
 * Martin discards the idea of having an invisible O'Neill, saying that invisibility is too powerful a story device. Sam proposes inventing negative side effects. Exactly such effects were featured in "Uninvited" with the Sodan cloaking device; as a rule, "advanced technology" in any episode-format scifi, and particularly in SG-1, that gives the team too great of an advantage is almost always revealed to have serious drawbacks (notably in the episode "Upgrades").

Cameron's 200th
In a possible "sequence" for the fake movie which features the Replicators, Carter shouts that they have 10 seconds in which to get to the gate, when they promptly arrive to find the valley containing the Stargate swarming with Jaffa and Goa'uld, only to be seen seconds later exiting the gate safely. After the sequence, when the SG-1 team members refuse to accept that they could have made it to the gate in ten seconds, Marty proposes 30 seconds, then 38. Cooper wrote this joke, and it is implied that it refers to 38-minute limit on any Stargate wormhole. Daniel responds sarcastically, asking why there wouldn't be an actual ticking clock on the screen. Martin replies that the idea of impending doom and a "Ticking Clock" on screen is the E=mc² of the Entertainment World (as they are also prominently featured in 24), and the writers expressed that they "are mocking the network" since they so often get notes saying "more jeopardy, ticking clock, ticking clock, more jeopardy!"

Carter makes a statement in her usual techno-babble and an impressed Martin attempts to write down what he remembers of Carter's statements after she refuses to repeat them. In the process, though, he mentions a Flux capacitor (Back to the Future), apparently mis-hearing Carter's mention of the Gate's "capacitors" as such.

The fact that Mitchell was to celebrate his 200th trip through the gate was a nod to the fact that it was the 200th episode of the series.

Allusions to other Stargate SG-1 episodes:
 * Teal'c says "I have been reflecting while changing into our gear" without having the team shown to change their uniforms. This is done again later in the episode when Walter runs to join them at the gate and impossibly switches to a different uniform on the way. A similar gear change occurred in the episode "The Light" when close-to-death Daniel Jackson needed to be moved from the SGC's infirmary (when he was still in a hospital gown) to another planet, where he was fully dressed in Battle Dress Uniform.

Wizard of Oz
Vala recounts to Martin a story which turns out to be the The Wizard of Oz, a movie that has been referenced in Stargate SG-1 many times since Season 1. In the sequence, Vala is in the role of "Dorothy", Carter the "Good Witch of the North", Mitchell the "Scarecrow", Daniel the "Cowardly Lion", Teal'c the "Tin Man" and Landry the "Great and Powerful Oz". The writers said this is based on the painting of a fan that they have hanging in their office. Some of the little people in this scene also played Furlings at the beginning of the episode. In another fantasy sequence, Vala/Dorothy tells Landry/Oz that, at first, she "thought she wanted to go home", but had decided that she would like to be a regular part of something. The writers said "it's a subtle joke", implying it is indeed a reference to her joining Stargate Command and a meta-reference to the character's recurring role prior to becoming a regular in Season 10. This scene was filmed in the Atlantis Gateroom.

Broken Stargate
This scene was carefully filmed to look real and not give away that it is in fact a gag. First, the Gateroom is then flooded with electricity, and when Siler tries to fix it, he gets hurled across the room, muttering "Why does this always happen to me?" Dan Shea, who plays Siler, is the stunt coordinator on 'SG-1, and gets hurled across rooms in many episodes (usually followed by being seen in the infirmary later on), most notably in the episode "Heroes, Part 1". This scene was filmed three times, and there were thin mats to protect Dan Shea. The writers admitted that he "had done [these things] seriously [...] as real dramatic moments."

As a solution to how SG-1 survive Martin's idea of the SGC being destroyed, he says they could be beamed out at the last second, something that has happened on the series numerous times, like in "Off the Grid or "The Scourge". In response to Teal'c's doubts, Martin explains the concept of hanging a lantern on a scene: by having someone refer to how convenient it is in dialogue, the writer is essentially winking at the audience, saying that they know it is convenient, but to just go with it. The technique is, more often than not, used for humorous effect, and to counter fan criticisms about plot points that seem too contrived.

The following explosion is referred to as the end of Act 2 of the movie, and it is also the end of Act 2 of the episode.

Star Trek parody
This sequence is an obvious Star Trek parody. SG-1 are shown in the set used for the bridge of the Daedalus class battlecruisers wearing uniforms similar to those from the Star Trek universe (specifically The Motion Picture) including color-coding. The doors open and the communications system has the same sound as in Star Trek. Mitchell acts like Captain Kirk, Carter wears an earpiece like communications officer Uhura, and Jackson looks into a science monitor like Spock, and uses the classic "eyebrows" expression and Dr. McCoy speech pattern. Teal'c is similar to Worf manning a weapons console, while his uniform is similar to Ricardo Montalbán's outfit from The Wrath of Khan. It was Chris Judge's decision to have his uniform as open in the front. The engine room is an actual still from the Enterprise from Star Trek: The Original Series, is manned by a Brad Wright (co-creator and producer of Stargate SG-1) as a Scottish engineer. Originally, Paul McGillion was to play this part, but Brad Wright decided to appear on his show after ten years. According to director Martin Wood, Wright's parents did not recognize their son when they watched this episode. Also, Mitchell asks Carter to "reverse the polarity," a common technobabble plot device used in Star Trek: The Original Series episode That Which Survives, SG-1 episode "Learning Curve" and is repeatedly used by the third incarnation of The Doctor from the British BBC-series Doctor Who.

During this sequence, when Carter is asked to reverse the polarity, she blinks with "boing, boing" sound effect. This is taken from classic sitcom Bewitched, where the witch Samantha Stephens, played by, twitches her nose (with the same "boing, boing" sound effect) whenever she performs magic. It is also a nod to the similar I Dream of Jeannie, where the character of Jeannie performed magic by blinking.

This sequence leads Mitchell to state "Never underestimate your audience. They're generally sensitive, intelligent people who respond positively to quality entertainment." This phrasing coming from Mitchell is unusual and noticeable. Given that one of the purposes of this episode is also as a present to fans, this flattering remark can be taken as one designed to break the fourth wall. Aside from the obvious direct reference to the show's fans, the remark may be a reference to the notion of sci-fi fans in general and the high standards they often demand of science fiction. Ben Browder has also been particularly notable in making sure both SG-1 and his previous series Farscape rewarded the viewers by keeping track of everything that's happened and never using a "reset button."

Teen Gate
Martin says that an executive producer has suggested recasting with a "younger, edgier" cast. The next sequence adds "hip" dialogue, hormonal teenagers (a teenage Teal'c is found passionately kissing a blonde Goa'uld), a rock soundtrack, frenetic camera movements and overly dramatic ideas. When director Martin Wood wanted to include "younger and hipper" elements of teenage shows, he actually found them "really boring" and needed to "amp them up a bit".
 * Cast
 * Anwar Hasan as Young Teal'c
 * Cory Monteith as Young Mitchell
 * Julie Johnson as Young Carter
 * Jason Coleman as Young Daniel
 * Barbara Kottmeier as Young Vala

Farscape parody
Director Martin Wood had only seen a handful of Farscape episodes but still wanted to mimic its style, so he asked writer Joseph Mallozzi for the DVDs. Mallozzi, who has watched all Farscape episodes according to Cooper, wrote this scene.

In the sequence, Vala suggests another idea which Martin recognizes as . He advises her that if she is going to rip something off, it should be something more obscure. This leads into a parody of Ben Browder and Claudia Black's previous series Farscape, filmed on the Atlantis Wraith set. The scene parodies the large array of invented swearwords in that show. Ben Browder puts on a heavy Australian accent in reference to the show being shot in Australia with mainly Australian actors. Claudia Black/Vala reprises her former role of Aeryn Sun, Carter plays Chiana, Teal'c plays Ka D'Argo, and Thor the Asgard plays Rygel. Michael Shanks was originally to play Stark, and Ben Browder (Cameron) was originally to play his former character John Crichton, but the roles were switched the day before the sequence was shot at the request of the actors. According to Cooper, it's a myth that the actors chose to switch their roles because of looking so similar; the reason was rather that Claudia Black and Ben Browder were concerned with playing their old roles. When the scene switches back to the real world, Martin replies that he has no idea what it is, likely referencing Farscape's relative obscurity. Martin receives a text message that his budget is being cut due to the bankrupting of a foreign distributor. The writers said their budget had never been affected in a similar manner.

The sequence ends with Martin saying he may not be able to complete the special effects sequence at the end of Act 3. At that point, the scene cuts to black and immediately goes to commercials, symbolizing the end of Act 3 of the episode.

1969 mission
The next scene opens with a jab at the fact that occasionally in the series, a leading character is told that certain information is classified, despite the fact that Stargate personnel have the highest security clearances in United States government. While the SG-1 team members are discussing previous missions, Mitchell then claims to have read all 1,263 reports. Brad Wright later stated that this number doesn't add up to all missions if you account for all the other teams. Carter and Daniel mention Report #30185 which he was not permitted to read. When Vala asks what the mission was, Carter turns to her and proceeds to divulge the main details.
 * This is most likely a nod to Ben Browder, who before joining the show watched every single episode from the previous 8 seasons.
 * This references how frequently SG-1 arrives at a new planet for diplomatic negotiations for technology and proceed to disgorge the nation's highest classified secrets to aliens.

Allusions to other Stargate SG-1 episodes:
 * Carter continues with the story about the time the SG-1 team was sent back in time in the episode "1969". After revealing that Mitchell was not born yet in 1969, the rest of the team imply that exactly 9 months before Mitchell was born, Jack O'Neill fathered him and continued to take an unusual interest in his career, as seen in "Avalon". Mitchell refuses to believe it, saying he's getting punk'd (a reference to the TV show), after which Sam admits that they can not reveal what happened. A similar situation occurred in The Terminator when future John Connor was fathered by Kyle Reese while he was in mankind's past.

Puppet sequence
In response to Martin's news that he can't afford to pay for actors, Cameron suggests he should use his imagination and make a version. The following sequence then uses puppets to re-play the plot of the original Stargate film. The puppets in this sequence were made by the Chiodo Bros, which also made the puppets for ' and '. Director Martin Wood filmed this sequence with real actors first, and then their background plates were used for the filming of the puppets in front of green screens, which happened in Los Angeles. The puppeteers then made their puppets mimic the actors. Some of the wires had to later be re-added by CG because they didn't show up well enough. According to Cooper, a puppet cost about US$25,000. Brad Wright wrote this scene before Christmas, long before the plot of this story was discussed in detail. Cooper then helped in writing the details. The pointing-in-the-air moment of O'Neill was actually done by Richard Dean Anderson, and the puppeteers needed to practice two days to get this short clip right.

Martin's reply is to doubt the possible success of a whole movie made with puppets and mentions jumping the shark, referring to the episode of Happy Days in which the Fonz did exactly that - the phrase is used to indicate when a show has reached its creative peak. After wanting to do a Team America scene, the writers asked themselves, "how can we ever make our show seriously again?"

Allusions to other Stargate SG-1 episodes:
 * Puppet Carter parodies Carter's appearance in the first episode of the show, saying "Just because my reproductive organs are on the inside instead of the outside doesn't mean I can't handle...", which was a reference to an actual line of Carter's in "Children of the Gods" which was also parodied in "Moebius, Part 1".
 * The puppet Walter announces each chevron as "lit up" instead of the more usual and more dramatic "encoded", and finishes with "Chevron Seven is also lit up," instead of the usual "Chevron Seven locked."
 * The scene ends with the cords manipulating the SG-1 puppets being cut, while a shocked Walter and Hammond look on, echoes the archival footage of Ernest Littlefield's 1945 trip through the gate ("The Torment of Tantalus").

A twist
Martin talks about needing a twist that the audience would not expect, at which point O'Neill walks into the room. Daniel and Carter doubt that anyone would not see that coming, noting that there will be spoilers, and predict that "it'll be in the commercial." This sequence is a reference to the numerous times that trailers and commercials have spoiled plot twists, like spoiling the fourth act twist of "Solitudes". The writers knew that O'Neill appearing was anti-climactic and anticipated him appearing in commercials, but according to Martin Wood, the fans responded exactly like the producer had wished for. Producer and writer Joseph Mallozzi also bemoaned in personal blogs that SCI FI commercials spoil significant plot twists.

Teal'c P.I.
Teal'c pitches an idea of himself as a private investigator in a trailer which airs after a commercial break, giving the impression of being a possible genuine series. In the trailer, Teal'c throws a man through a glass pane door, stands over him, and says "Indeed" in a stylish voice before touching the brim of his hat. The insignia on the door to Teal'c's office is his Jaffa mark. The end credits reveal that Isaac Hayes (who previously played Tolok in Stargate SG-1) did the voice-over for this vignette. Hayes had written and recorded the theme for the 1971 movie , which also featured a black private detective.

Season 8 ending
When wondering how to end the movie, General O'Neill suggests a fishing scene and comments that it would not make sense to continue after that. The final shot from the Season 8 finale "Moebius, Part 2" is then shown, with SG-1 at O'Neill's pond. This time it includes a brief shot of Cameron and Vala also at the pond, who weren't part of the cast then. Martin Wood employed whip pans to make this more obvious.

Allusions to other Stargate SG-1 episodes:
 * O'Neill calling the Stargate "the Orifice" was a scripted ad lib, written by Robert C. Cooper. He was aware that it did not sound as tasteful as it was intended to sound. The Stargate had many different names the show, for example "stone ring", "ring of the Gods", and "Chappa-ai".
 * Martin asks what the twist would be: "No fish?" This is a further reference to "Moebius, Part 2", where SG-1 travelled in time and disturbed the "present" timeline. When the timeline was restored, there were fish in the lake, when previously there weren't.

Wedding sequence
As an alternative twist, Vala suggests a wedding. O'Neill and Carter are about to marry in this imaginary sequence, Daniel is the best man, Vala is the bridesmaid, and Kvasir appears as the minister. All people who worked on Stargate for the past 10 years appear in the wedding sequence: Peter Woeste (director of photography), Andy Mikita (director), Christina McQuarrie (costume), John Lenic (producer), Mark Davidson (set decorator), Jan Newman (make-up artist), Dan Shea (stuntman), Michelle Commins, "Trudy of accounting", and more.

In this sequence, Daniel stands next to O'Neill at the altar before the bride shows up and comments "People will think that you and I are..." In another take, Richard Dean Anderson replied by yelling "We're GAY!?" which the writers considered inappropriate, but Brad Wright said that "the joke was already implied [as a homosexual pairing]." It turns out that Sam Carter is the bride, referencing to the wish of many fans wanting to see a wedding. The scene ends with Marty saying "I'll do that if I want to torture the audience on purpose," referring to the segment of fans that want to see Carter and O'Neill finally begin a relationship.

The organ music that plays during the ceremony combines the familiar wedding march by Wagner with the Stargate SG-1 theme.

Final SG-1 scene
When the team leaves for the working Stargate, Martin replies "I still don't have my ending." This was the writers' reference to not having an ending since the puppet sequence was so expensive. The "ten years later" scene was only added as an afterthought.

Martin reports the Wormhole X-Treme! movie has been cancelled because the show was picked up again, echoing the Stargate writers' plans for a movie always being disrupted by the show being renewed.

Landry invites Walter, who initially protests that he is not wearing the right outfit. Walter nevertheless leaves the control room and is instantly dressed to match SG-1 seconds later as he enters the gate room. This marks the first time that Walter is seen walking through the gate (although he was once offworld in "Fallen"). Director Martin Wood wanted to show with Walter that this whole sequence is in fact not real.

Closing Wormhole X-Treme sequence
The final sequence involves a flashforward of ten years with the cast of Wormhole X-Treme! celebrating 200 episodes, which contains numerous references to the Stargate SG-1 production. The cast stepping through the stargate, just as SG-1 did moments before in their 200th episode. The stargate on the set is also similar to the "real" stargates, as opposed to the Wormhole X-Treme one seen briefly in the precredit sequence. The whole sequence (before the "cast" interviews) was shot in one go, and you see two cameras filming each other. The interviews were a last minute thing, and according to Wood one of the biggest in-jokes. Martin Wood made sure that Peter DeLuise is in the background of each interview segment, to show that his character as the new guy is still "eager".

One of the Wormhole X-Treme! actors (a Mitchell analogue played by producer Peter DeLuise) talks about a catch phrase as a string of obscenities being "okay" because the show is on cable. In Wormhole X-Treme!, the character-character was played by Michael DeLuise, who, as Peter DeLuise's brother, bears some resemblance to him. Since Peter DeLuise is the best at swearing, he should do "level 6", then "level 19" explicits that had to be beeped out later as an in-joke.

Martin Lloyd receives a cell phone call and tells the fictional cast and crew that they're going to be doing a movie next. The writers had pitched several versions of SG-1 movies over the years, but "our success kind of got in our way." Shortly after this episode aired, two direct-to-DVD movies were announced.

Martin Wood said that most of the things the "actors" say are things that the real cast & crew said but what was taken out of context. According to Robert C. Cooper, "every single one of these interviews has an incredible kernel of truth to it," but all actors were asked before if they were all right with shooting the scenes. The in-jokes are or may be:
 * The DeLuise character talks about making viewers forget about the main character who left the show after seven strong years and "phoning in" an eighth, a parallel with Richard Dean Anderson's reduced presence in the show during Season 8.
 * The Dr. Levant actor discusses leaving and returning to the show, a parallel to Michael Shanks' absence in the show's sixth season. He even refers to fan Web sites hoping to revive the character, parodying the real website SaveDanielJackson.com, stating that they get "dozens of hits a month." He also refers to fans placing an advertisement in , something did in an attempt to stop the series being cancelled.
 * The female cast member mentions wanting to have a baby, paralleling Amanda Tapping's absence for pregnancy at the beginning of Season 9. She also mentions that she feels the writers don't know what to do with her character, echoing fan criticisms of the Carter character's writing.

In "Wormhole X-Treme!", Grell the Robot (the Teal'c analogue) never says anything, referencing earlier seasons in which Teal'c didn't say much. In "200" however, Grell makes the closing statement of the episode: "Science fiction is an existential metaphor, that allows us to tell stories about the human condition. once said: 'Individual science fiction stories may seem as trivial as ever to the blinder critics and philosophers of today — but the core of science fiction, its essence has become crucial to our salvation, if we are to be saved at all." '