Template:SG1-10 "Memento Mori" is the eighth episode of the tenth season of Stargate SG-1.
Synopsis
While out having dinner with Daniel, Vala is kidnapped and forced to undergo a session with the Goa'uld, Athena seeking to get to the Clava Thessara Infinitas that she and Qetesh once worked together to find. However, during a rescue mission, Vala manages to get to safety but winds up losing her memories. Unable to remember her past, Vala takes a job as a waitress in a local diner. It's now a race against the clock but who will find Vala first: the Trust or SG-1?
Plot
For some reason, Vala Mal Doran is working as a waitress in Sal's Diner. She gets along well with the customers and the cook. Suddenly, a pair of criminals attempt to rob the restaurant. Vala quickly takes them down in hand-to-hand combat much to everybody's surprise, including Vala's.
The scene then rewinds three weeks earlier to a fancy restaurant Vala and Dr. Daniel Jackson are having dinner together, since they have spent so little time off-base for recreation, though Vala insists that Daniel is taking her out on a date (a fact which Daniel vehemently denies).
As she leaves the table to go to the bathroom, Vala is ambushed, drugged, and kidnapped by an unknown assailant. Once Daniel realizes what has happened, it is too late. Vala and her kidnappers are gone.
Vala wakes up in an abandoned warehouse, strapped to an alien machine. She has been captured by The Trust because Athena, a Goa'uld who knew Qetesh (for whom Vala had been a host), believes that Vala possesses repressed memories that can lead her to the Clava Thessara Infinitas, an unimaginable treasure left behind by the Ancients. Using a Goa'uld Memory recall device, the Trust attempts to forcibly retrieve Vala's repressed memories.
Meanwhile, Lt. Colonel Cameron Mitchell, Teal'c, Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter, and Daniel manage to track down the locations of several Trust safe houses and simultaneously raid all of them. The safe house SG-1 raids turns out to be a dead end, but another team raids the correct safe house and a firefight ensues between the soldiers and the Trust. During the fight, a stray Zat'nik'tel bolt strikes the memory device, causing Vala to lose her memories. With both sides still fighting, a dazed and confused Vala manages to escape and disappear.
Back at Stargate Command, Sam reports that the raids didn't turn up anything except for SG-15. Tragically, they lost all members of the team as well as two members of the local team with one witness reporting he saw Vala making a run for it. Teal'c then wonders why Vala hasn't attempted to contact the SGC.
Daniel and Teal'c interrogate a man named Weaver (the man who was interrogating Vala with the device) in the isolation room, while Mitchell and Carter watch. Weaver isn't very forthcoming with information, and is clearly concerned about what will happen to him if he helps them. Teal'c whispers something in Weaver's ear, causing him to lose all of his courage and tell SG-1 everything he knows.
Meanwhile, a confused Vala wanders the streets of a city alone; being hungry, she enters a diner. When she tries to skip out on the bill, the owner, Sal, stops her. She confesses that she has no way to pay her bill ... and, in fact, she doesn't even remember who she is. She has no memory of her life before she walked into his diner. Sal offers her a job as a waitress, which she takes. Time passes, and Vala begins to get the hang of her new job. However, she experiences disturbing visions (pieces of her repressed memory) and has a nagging feeling that being a waitress just isn't her lot in life. She refuses to seek medical attention. Now the first scene of the episode is shown again, as the criminals enter and Vala defeats them.
Vala escorted by fake SGC personnel.
She is then taken to the local police station, where Detective Ryan is suspicious of Vala's superior combat skills. When Vala can't even tell him her real name, he decides to detain her and begins sending out fliers seeking to find anybody who can identify her. Both the SGC and Trust receive a flier and race to retrieve Vala. Trust agents disguised as Air Force personnel reach the police station first and take Vala with them. SG-1 arrives minutes later and, realizing what has happened, Mitchell commandeers a motorcycle and sets off in pursuit. A scared Vala then attacks the Trust agents, causing their car to crash. Mitchell catches up with them, but is injured by one of the Trust agents. Vala, unsure whether Mitchell is a friend or enemy, takes him prisoner.
SG-1 return firing with Zats.
SG-1 tracks Mitchell down and find him semi-naked and handcuffed to a motel bed. Vala, realizing that she is being tracked, flees into a nearby warehouse. SG-1 pursues her but runs into several Trust agents. A firefight ensues, and SG-1 defeats the agents. Vala attempts to flee again but is stopped by Daniel, who convinces her that he and SG-1 are friends.
Vala refuses to believe him but before she can do anything, she receives another group of flashbacks which consist of her remembering herself, SG-1 and Landry in a mission briefing, Daniel in a hallway at the SGC, Daniel riding in an elevator and smiling at her over his shoulder.
As the flashbacks fade, Vala begins crying, suggesting that she finally remembers who she is. She lowers the gun with Daniel taking it from her and setting it aside before he pulls Vala into a hug just as the rest of SG-1 arrive.
Vala's team badges, revealing that she is a fully-fledged member of SG-1.
Back at the SGC, Vala recovers her memory and after telling everyone she's been cleared for active duty is given a gift by Major General Henry Landry.
Vala opens the box and inside are SG-1 badges. As of this moment, she is now a fully-fledged member and also a permanent member of SG-1 with her teammates congratulating her.
When Mitchell proposes going to a rib restaurant near his place to celebrate, Vala tells Daniel that they'll have to finish their date next week.
When Daniel denies that it was a date, the team merely walks out the room without saying a word.
References
Ancient; Anubis; Athena's capture of Vala Mal Doran; Agent Malcolm Barrett; Ba'al; Berringer Consolidated; Camulus; Cheyenne Mountain; Clava Thessara Infinitas; Coffee; Cronus; Dating; DNA; Forsythe Chemicals; Free Jaffa Nation; Galar; Galaran memory device; Genetic memory; Glock; Hamburger; Handcuffs; Major Harper; Il Fiore Bianco; Kidney; Carolyn Lam; Memory recall device; Motorcycle; Nathan; Ori; Qetesh; Sandwich; SG-15; Shih Tzu; Sol's Diner; Subcutaneous locator beacon; Supergate; Svarog; System Lords; Tok'ra; The Trust; The X-Files; Zat'nik'tel
Notable Quotes
(Both Vala and Jackson start talking at the same moment, then stop)
Jackson: Listen ... uh ... let me start.
Vala: Okay.
Jackson: Um, look, I know it hasn't been easy for you ... adjusting to your new life here, learning to trust other people, and, most importantly, refusing the temptation to fall back on your old ways. But you have worked hard to make a place for yourself with us and dinner tonight is my way of saying 'thank you'. Thank you for proving me right when I said we could take a chance on you.
Vala: I don't know what to say.
Jackson: Say what you were going to say before I interrupted.
Vala: Okay, I need to use the bathroom.
Weaver: How are you feeling?
Vala: A little dizzy. A little tired. And very very angry.
Weaver: That's because the flashbacks you're experiencing are dredging up some long-buried emotions that may be coloring your subconscious mind.
Vala: I'm going to kill both of you in the most painful way possible.
Sal: I'm Sal, the owner.
Vala: Sal the owner. Of Sol's Diner?
Sal: Yeah. Sol was the original owner. I bought the place from him. So, how was lunch?
Vala: Delicious.
Sal: Delicious enough to pay for it?
Vala: Yes! If I had the money, I would certainly have paid for the meal. And given the lovely waitress a sizeable gratuity.
Mitchell: Where are we going?
Vala: Just drive.
Mitchell: You know I'm bleeding here.
Vala: Shut up.
Vala: What's this?
Landry: Let's just call it a Welcome Back present.
Vala: These are—
Landry: Team badges. You're now officially a member of SG-1.
Carter: Congratulations. You earned it.
Notes
- The building used by The Trust in this episode, "Westminster Boiler & Tank", is also used by the Trust in the season eight episode "Affinity". New Westminster is also the location in British Columbia where this episode was partially filmed. Perhaps coincidentally, Westminster is also the name of a city in Colorado.
- Although Dr. Daniel Jackson says the Clava Thessara Infinitas may potentially be nothing more than an elaborate hoax, it goes on to play a significant role in later episodes.
- Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter makes a reference that Lt. Colonel Cameron Mitchell "keeps losing his pants." This is a reference to Mitchell losing his uniform in "Ripple Effect" from season nine.
- The episode shares a title with The X-Files season four episode Memento Mori. Vala mentions watching reruns of The X-Files.
- According to Wikipedia the title of this episode Memento Mori "is a Latin phrase translated as "Remember your mortality", "Remember you must die" or "Remember you will die". It refers to a genre of artworks that vary widely but which all share the same purpose: to remind people of their mortality, an artistic theme dating back to antiquity."
- Among the memories displayed as Vala's mind is probed are Serpent Guards advancing on the prisoners in the pilot episode "Children of the Gods" and the launching of the Death Gliders from behind Vorashs' sun from the Season 4 finale.
- In a nice bit of continuity, the scar from the injury Mitchell received in "Babylon" is visible while he is handcuffed to the bed.
- This is the first episode since "Homecoming" in which SG-1 has five members.
- Vala attempting to mislead the officer by creating a fake name by reading from the noticeboard behind him is a reference to the film The Usual Suspects. Unfortunately, her choice of a child's drawing with the words 'To Dad' didn't make a convincing name.
- According to the audio commentary, the scene where Major General Henry Landry is handed the police public information bulletin had to be re-shot as a different photo of Vala had been used as opposed to the same bulletin in the scenes immediately before and immediately after. As CMSgt. Walter Harriman is carrying it in the corridor outside you can still see that it is black and white showing only the face head on whereas when Landry examines it is now in color and a slightly side on profile showing the head and upper torso.
- When the silver car turns around, you can see it is the same crossroads from the crash by the exact same skid marks on the ground.
- Brendan Beiser (Weaver) previously played Tavius in the Stargate: Atlantis episode "The Tower". He is best known for playing Agent Pendrell on The X-Files.
- Adrian Holmes (Ryan) previously played Sgt. Krieger in the Stargate SG-1 episode "Nightwalkers".
- Phillip Mitchell (Robber 1) previously played Jaffa #2 in the Stargate SG-1 episode "The Serpent's Lair" and Major Thomas Graham in the episode "Divide and Conquer".
- Amanda Tapping (Samantha Carter) guest starred in the Stargate: Atlantis episode "McKay and Mrs. Miller", which was originally broadcast on the same day (September 8, 2006) which is the same day that this very episode aired.
- Daniel refers to the events of "Beachhead" while Cameron refers to those of "Collateral Damage".
- Sean Owen Roberts (Driver) would go on to play the leviathan Chet in Supernatural. The leviathans share some similarities with the Goa'uld, including the ability to impersonate humans and the secret infiltration of human organizations.
Goofs
- Detective Ryan said that the car which was used to kidnap Vala Mal Doran had U.S. Government license plates, but when the vehicle crashed it clearly had standard Colorado plates with no government markings.
- When Lt. Colonel Cameron Mitchell is chasing Vala's kidnappers on the motorcycle, you can see a sign on the side of the road that says "Ladner" "Surrey". Surrey, British Columbia was the location of the production shooting.
- During the second scene in the motel when Lt. Colonel Cameron Mitchell is handcuffed on the bed, his right hand is holding the bar of the bed or is dropped, depending on the camera view.
- During the raid the SG-15 member Zats the guy guarding Vala. After which he quickly regains consciousness and shoots him then falls unconscious again. This would not be possible since one shot would normally stun a human instantly or a Goa'uld temporarily not stun, revive then stun and again no matter which he was.
In other languages
- French: Amnésie (Amnesia)
- Italian: Memento Mori
- Spanish: Recuerda que Eres Mortal (Remember That You Are Mortal)
- Czech: Pamatuj na smrt (Remember the Dead)
- German: Tödliche Erinnerungen (Deadly Memories)
External links
- Template:SciFi
- Memento Mori on the official MGM website. (backup link)
- Memento Mori on GateWorld. (backup link)
- Memento Mori article on Stargate SG-1 Solutions' The StargateWiki
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This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Memento Mori (Stargate SG-1). The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with SGCommand, the text of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License. |