Saul Rubinek guest stars as a documentary filmmaker, Emmett Bregman, who has come to Stargate Command to finally document the staff and project that so few on the planet know about.

Heroes: Part 1 first aired on 13 February, 2004 and was written by Robert C. Cooper.

As Emmett chats with all the members of SG-1, and SGC staff, though most of them aren’t willing to open up to him very much, Offworld an SG team led by Dixon (Adam Baldwin) finds a city that belonged to the Ancients.

All the cast gets a chance to shine, including supporting characters like Bill Dow’s Dr. Lee, Gary Jones’ Harriman, and Dan Shea’s Siler.

O’Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) works to avoid the crew, Carter (Amanda Tapping) is all science all the time, and Daniel (Michael Shanks) plays with the crew, seeing if they’ll follow him if he runs. And Teal’c (Christopher Judge)?

There’s a lot of fun character bits throughout the episode, highlighting the universe the series has created. Does it need a part two? Probably not, but there’s so much great material and dialogue, that it was split into two episodes, and given some action beats.

And the city Dixon discovered? Well, he and his team come under assault by Goa’uld, and despite knowing it’s a trap, O’Neill volunteers SG-1 and two other teams to go assist. And hey, there may be injuries so Fraiser (Teryl Rothery) who just had a bit of a flirt with Emmett is called to join. Throwing a To Be Continued on top of that makes me worry that Fraiser isn’t going to see the end of the next episode.

This story ends up being a way for Stargate to thank people for their service, and it’s really, really enjoyable.

Heroes: Part 2 sees Emmett working on the cut of his documentary, while he waits for news of SG-1’s assignment, their clash with the Goa’uld, and Fraiser.

Written by Cooper, the conclusion for this two-parter first aired on 20 February, 2004.

While SG-1 and the rest fight for survival against the Goa’uld attack force, countless lives are claimed. And yup, as painful as it is there are gonna be a number of tough reveals in this one. O’Neill takes a staff blast to the chest, and Fraiser… oh, poor Fraiser.

Emmett is locked out of recording anything valuable, including the gate in operation, and of course, when he gets the reveal of what happens, even he begins to reevaluate what the SGC is doing.

And it hurts.

But he also makes a powerful argument for a free press, and not one in service to the military and the politicians.

And the series also introduces a new character will pop up across SG-1, and the forthcoming series, Atlantis… Robert Woolsey is brought to life by Robert Picardo!

This is a fantastic two-parter, and it looks at the franchise and the idea of the SGC from an outsider’s perspective, and it works incredibly well. This is one of my favorite stories from the series. It’s done well, compassionately, powerfully, and it shows the impact of those who serve, the sacrifices they make, and the pain when we lose someone we love.

What a great two-parter. And even when you know the reveal, it still kicks your ass.