Peter DeLuise directs (and of course cameos) in Descent. Written by Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie, this episode was first broadcast on 21 June, 2002.

When Stargate Command detects a Goa’uld ship in orbit, Jacob (Carmen Argenziano) shows up to help them investigate. Carter (Amanda Tapping) begins to suspect that it’s the same ship that Anubis had used to kidnap and hold Thor but now it’s completely deserted.

While Teal’c (Christopher Judge) and Jonas Quinn (Corin Nemec) wait nearby in a cargo ship, O’Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) and the rest, including Major Davis (Colin Cunningham) investigate.

Jacob warns about the possibility of a trojan horse, but O’Neill is hoping that they can recover and use the tech on the ship. Jacob unfortunately proves to be correct. There’s a self-destruct engaged, a group of jaffa aboard, and time is ticking down.

Things escalate when it seems the ship is going to come down, hard, in the ocean. Can Teal’c, Jonas Quinn and Hammond (Don S. Davis) help figure out a rescue operation? Can O’Neill and the rest get off the mothership before it’s too late? The ship is starting to flood…

Jonas Quinn also struggles with his position on the team, realizing he may not be the warrior he imagined himself to be. But before the end of the episode, he may prove to himself, and the rest of SG1 why he is on the team.

It’s a fast-paced tale, has some fun moments, and with the flooding adds a nice ticking clock to the pace of the episode. Welcome to the fight Jonas Quinn!

And maybe, sooner or later, the SGC will be able to recover a Goa’uld ship without it being a trap.

Frozen sees SG1 travelling to Antarctica to investigate a stunning discovery! Written by Robert C. Cooper, the episode first debuted on 28 June, 2002.

It seems a research team has discovered a body in the ice. A body that predates mankind. Fraiser (Teryl Rothery) joins the group, and they are all stunned by the discovery of the young woman, christened Ayiana (Ona Grauer).

But when she thaws out, and comes back to life, everyone begins to fall ill, falling victim to a virus. Ayiana is able to heal them though at a cost to herself. Ayiana is able to heal most of the team, but not O’Neill. The Tok’ra show up with an option, one that he’s not going to like, a blending with a Goa’uld, a temporary one just to heal him.

He agrees, but the episode ends as the Tok’ra take O’Neill to meet his fate… so will it all happen off camera or will we see things play out next time? (Or is this the beginning of Anderson stepping back from the series bit by bit?)

Oh! and Bruce Harwood from The X-Files shows up!

This is a quieter episode, a little more cerebral, which coming on the heels of Descent seems particularly quiet, but it does let the character breathe, and lets Jonas Quinn settle into the team a little more.