Season 9 of Stargate SG-1...cool!

[Atrahasis]

On Stargate Atlantis they're basically fighting space vampires, which is cool...

But in the new season on Stargate SG-1, the new great threat to the universe is....a race of religious fanatics!

I love it. It's one of those themes that would have not been allowed years ago. And on a sci-fi show, a genre till now which has generally ignored religion.

What makes this even more fun is that the people who watch and love shows like Stargate are not only sci-fi buffs who would generally poo-poo organized religion anyways, but there's also the fact that a significant part of the viewer audience is military, who tend to be Republican, on the right side of the spectrum, and praticing a religion (in our Western case, Christianity). If sci-fi has a tradition for expanding one's preconcieved notions, then it's about time sci-fi has tried to tackle the topic of religiosity in a persistent way. Like for a whole season of a popular show.

I wonder if it will make anyone look at themselves hard in the mirror.

[Johanobesus]

I've had the same thoughts. I love that BSG has virtuous (more-or-less) polytheists being ruthlessly hunted by evil monotheists.

I was just a bit put off by the ending of SG1, though, with the rather heavy handed pro-Christianity spiel. It was bad enough when the general and the colonel talked about their grandmothers, but Jackson's declaration of faith made me cringe. It seemed so artificial. It was probably tacked on just to placate the fundamentalists who will surely see themselves reflected in the evangelizing enemy.

[Atrahasis]

Great points! It just never struck me about the Cylons being monothesits and the humans being polies...you've given me something to think about. Although we have yet to really know whether 6 is spewing crap or her own sincere beliefs. She seems to want to confound Baltar as well as help him along, and when you want to confound, you basically baffle with your bullshit.

Imo, the religious bozos in SG1 reflect Islamicists (note I didn't say "Muslims") as much as they reflect zealous Christianicists, and it's about time a popular show started to explore this.