The Broca Divide

"The Broca Divide" is the fifth episode of the first season of Stargate SG-1.

Synopsis
After visiting P3X-797, SG-1 discovers The Touched, a race of Humans infected by a disease that seems to devolve them into animal-like creatures. To make matters worse, SG-1 inadvertently brings the disease back with them, where it rapidly spreads throughout the SGC. The only way to cure them is to get a blood sample from the Untouched, who believe the disease to be a curse.

Plot
SG-1 accompanies SG-3 to the planet designated P3X-797. Upon arrival they find themselves attacked by a group of savage primeval men living in the forest like animals. They scare them off and walk out of the darkness into the light.

Once out of the forest and in the light they find a beautiful civilization that appears to be of Minoan origin, which fascinates Dr. Daniel Jackson immensely. The locals refer to their land as "The Land of Light" and the savages in the forest as "The Touched". Citizens of the Land of Light afflicted with a "curse" devolve into savage beasts and are banished into the dark.

After returning to Earth, Lt. Daniel Johnson begins to act irrationally and attacks Teal'c. Other members of SG-3 start displaying the same symptoms as "The Touched". Captain Samantha Carter tries to seduce Colonel Jack O'Neill, but he realizes she has the mysterious disease and takes her to the infirmary. Later, when Daniel expresses concern for Carter, Jack becomes unaccountably jealous, insisting "she's not yours to care about", and assaults Daniel.

Very heavily sedated, Jack asks Dr. Janet Fraiser to experiment on him in hopes of finding a cure, but she refuses. Teal'c returns to the planet with Daniel, as they are the only members of Stargate Command except Fraiser who haven't come down with the disease. Teal'c brings back a blood sample of the Untouched for Fraiser to analyze, but Daniel is taken by the Touched.

Fraiser realizes Daniel and she were not infected as a result of their antihistamine allergy medicine, and the "curse" is actually a disease targeting histamine. From analyzing the blood she concludes there must be something in the diet of the people in the Land of Light that acts as an antihistamine; which, if eaten more often will prevent the "curse".

In one of the Isolation Rooms, Fraiser then tells Jack and Teal'c that she has a cure that could help. Jack volunteers to be the test subject with Fraiser giving him the dose.

As Jack falls asleep, Fraiser tells Teal'c that they have to wait with Teal'c later lying Jack down and placing a blanket over him.

The next morning, Teal'c is interrupted by someone banging on the door of the cell he's been guarding.

When he opens the slide, it's shown that Jack has returned to normal, the injection having worked.

After some minor confusion over Teal'c calling Jack "Lucy", Jack is later released and he and Teal'c set off to find Fraiser.

Fraiser synthesizes a cure (lots of antihistamine) and the SGC is brought out of lockdown with everyone infected being cured.

The team goes back to P3X-797 and finds Daniel living among the Touched -without his allergy medicine he has contracted the disease. The team uses darts loaded with Fraiser's cure for the disease.

SG-1 explains to the people the "curse" is reversible, and their lost family members will be returning. When Daniel awakens back to his normal self, he serves as proof to the people who rush into the forest.

SG-1 follows and witnesses a moving moment of reunions. They give some medication and aid to the Land of Light so that none shall ever be "Touched" again, and, having made new friends, return to Earth through the Stargate.

Notable Quotes
O'Neill: Oh, I got in a little wrestling match with Carter.

Jackson: Why?

O'Neill: I guess she's got whatever Johnson's got. Had to drag her off to the infirmary.

Jackson: What, did she start a fight with you, like Johnson did with Teal'c?

O'Neill: No, she, uh, tried to seduce me.

(pause)

Jackson: Oh. (pause) You poor man...

Jackson: (about the people on the Dark Side) We came in contact with them. Isn't that special.

Fraiser: So, the question is, why haven't you and Mr. Teal'c come down with the symptoms?

Jackson: Uh, Mr. Teal'c... Teal'c's symbiote probably protects him.

Teal'c: That would be likely.

Fraiser: What about you, Dr. Jackson?

Jackson: That beats me. You're the doctor, Doctor. Uh, maybe I have a natural immunity.

Teal'c: Perhaps you will develop symptoms later.

Jackson: Thank you for the moral support.

Teal'c: Colonel O'Neill?

O'Neill: (imitating Desi Arnaz) Lucy, I'm home!

Teal'c: I am not Lucy.

O'Neill: I know that. It's a reference to an old TV... never mind, open the door.

Teal'c: I will summon the doctor.

O'Neill: No, come on. I'm fine. I'm back to being myself. Just open up.

Teal'c: I cannot be certain that you are back to being yourself. You referred to me as "Lucy."

O'Neill: Daniel, you dog! Keep this up, and you'll have a girl on every planet.

Carter: (uncomfortably) About my earlier behavior... I wasn't myself, and...

O'Neill: Oh, Carter, I don't even remember your earlier behavior.

Carter: You don't?

O'Neill: No, I was infected too, remember?

Carter: relieved Right! Good, I'm-I'm glad.

O'Neill: By the way, how's the wound?

Carter: Wound?

O'Neill: I understand you got stabbed in the stomach?

Carter: Oh, yeah, that-that was nothing. With any luck, there won't even be a scar.

O'Neill: Well, good. I was concerned.

Carter: You were?

O'Neill: Sure. (smiles) If it doesn't heal properly, you'll never wear that sweet little tank top number again.

(She stops in her tracks at that, and he keeps on walking.)

Goofs

 * Major General George S. Hammond states that there is no video to play back because the planet appears to be extremely dark, and that the MALP lights may have been broken during transit. However, light given off by the event horizon seems to illuminate the immediate vicinity of the gate quite well, as seen when SG-1 first arrives on the planet, and when the gate is active in the Embarkation room in most episodes.
 * P3X-797 is implied to have a light and a dark side due to synchronous rotation. However, the terminator between these sides is shown as a sharp edge between full darkness and full day, while on planets with an Earth-like atmosphere the twilight zone should be hundreds of kilometers wide. Furthermore, there would not be a dense forest on the side of the planet that receives no sunlight.
 * In the scene where Colonel Jack O'Neill prepares to fire an arrow at the Untouched, an injection or possible capsule filled with yellow liquid is visible on his right arm but in the next scene as he gets up to move, it's gone.
 * In the scene where Colonel Jack O'Neill is in the initial briefing, his epaulettes are above his collar. USAF rules would require them to be tucked underneath.
 * General Hammond is shown to be roomed when Colonel O'Neill when he is infected yet when Teal'c visits O'Neill and Frasier cures him, there is no sign of Hammond.

Characters

 * Dr. Janet Fraiser
 * Colonel Robert Makepeace
 * Tuplo

In other languages

 * Hungarian: A sötétség határán (The Edge of Darkness)
 * Czech: Mezi světlem a tmou (Between the Light and the Darkness)
 * Italian: La Luce della Civiltà (The Light of the Civilization)
 * German: Die Seuche (The Epidemic)
 * French: La Théorie de Broca (Broca's Theory)
 * Polish: Granica (Border)
 * Portuguese: A Divisão De Broca (The Broca Divide)
 * Spanish: La Vertiente Broca (The Broca Aspect)
 * Russian: Раздел по Броку (Razdyel po Broku) (The Broca Divide)