Jack O'Neill is in his home, shaving. On the mirror in front of him is an unfinished crossword puzzle, which he is trying to solve. He then has a cell phone call, which he eventually answers. On the other end is Dr. Daniel Jackson, who tells him that SG-2 returned from P3X-439, where there may be a Repository of knowledge which could contain the Lost City they are looking for. Knowing the information from the repository once almost killed him in 1999, he decides not to avoid the conversation any longer, and tells Jackson he will be at Stargate Command in half an hour before hanging up, while continuing to shave and solve the crossword.
In Washington D.C., a blond woman is talking to her colleague, Michelle from her head-set cell phone. She is running a little late to go to the White House to meet the President of the United States, but a Russian man tries to take her taxi. While they both argue, both in English and Russian, a limousine stops nearby, and the driver wants to know where Dr. Elizabeth Weir is. The woman is Weir, and she is taken to the limo by Vice President Robert Kinsey.On the way to the White House, Kinsey briefs Weir that the President wishes to talk to her about an alien transportation device called the Stargate. At first, she thinks this is a joke. However, Kinsey shows her a note saying "THIS IS NOT A JOKE" signed by the President, and he gives her a mission report. Weir reluctantly decides to read the mission report.
O'Neill arrives at the SGC, still solving the crossword puzzle in the elevator. He arrives at Level 28, where he finds his teammates, who tell him he is half an hour late. The team finally makes it to the Briefing Room with Colonel Albert Reynolds and Major Harper. Major Samantha Carter informs O'Neill that on 439, SG-3 picked up a Goa'uld Reconnaissance probe, meaning the Goa'uld are now aware of the planet and its importance; the planet may contain the whereabouts of the Lost City as a means to find technology capable of defeating Anubis. When Major General George S. Hammond joins the meeting, they plan to have SG-1, 3 and 5 to go to the massive structure on the planet, find the repository of knowledge and bring it back to Earth to extract the information. They can't let O'Neill have the Ancient knowledge in his brain again, since they tried calling the Asgard for the heads up, but there has been no reply from them. Since Anubis is quickly wiping out other System Lords, Hammond authorizes the mission.
Meanwhile, back in Washington, Weir arrives in the White House, and is escorted by Kinsey to a room full of box files with mission reports. He tells her to try and say no to the President's offer, before leaving her to read the mission reports.
The SG teams arrive on P3X-439. SG-3 and SG-5 set up defense perimeters around the Stargate, while SG-1 checks out the monument. However, after a while they have not found anything. Furthermore, Anubis' fleet jumps out of hyperspace over the planet. At the same time, Carter finds an energy reading, and soon, Jackson finds a way to make the repository materialize on the wall. They just need to figure out how to extract it. However, SG-3 hears a squadron of Al'kesh and Death Gliders arriving and carpet-bombing the area. O'Neill decides to destroy the repository with C-4, but Jackson doesn't want that to happen, and offers to put his head in. However, O'Neill stops him, as he needs Jackson to translate the speech of whoever "goes Ancient." Seconds later, he decides to put his head in again, despite knowing the risks. The repository grabs O'Neill's head and downloads the knowledge of the Ancients directly into his brain. While SGs 3 and 5 hold off the Goa'uld attack, Carter sets off the C-4, destroying the repository so Anubis won't get his hands on it, and they carry O'Neill back to the Gate. The teams safely return to Stargate Command, where O'Neill remarks to Hammond, "I did it again."
Back in the White House, Weir is at the Oval Office when President Henry Hayes walks in. He wants to spend five minutes with her to tell her his offer. Weir admits that the Stargate Program seems too unreal after reading the mission reports. Hayes says he understands how she feels, but tells her that not only does she now know about the Program, Hayes asks her to run it. At the end of the meeting (which actually took seven minutes), Weir wonders what would happen if she refuses. Hayes is confident she won't. While considering, Kinsey tells her to be careful who to trust, and warns her that he is the man that is on her side, unlike the President, and warns her further that she does not want to cross him.
While debriefing Hammond of what has transpired, they must now face the inevitable; O'Neill's human consciousness will soon be obliterated and he will begin speaking in Ancient. Not long after that, his human physiology will no longer be able to handle the strain of all the knowledge and he will die. O'Neill requests to take the weekend off to get his personal affairs in order, before his mind can conjure up the Lost City's location. Hammond grants it.
At night on P3X-439, Anubis questions his Commander, who tells him that the Tau'ri saw them coming, and went ahead with destroying the repository. An angered Anubis tells him that he has failed, and orders his Kull warriors to execute him and some of his fellow Jaffa as an example that he will not tolerate failure.
The next day in his home, O'Neill is surprised to see Carter coming in to see him. He gives her a beer as she admits that she couldn't sleep, and wanted to see him and talk. However, when asked about his ex-wife or how he is feeling, O'Neill tells her not to ask him about that. Later, Jackson and Teal'c arrive to check up on O'Neill and find Carter's car in his driveway. They all gather round and drink beer, apart from Teal'c, who can't drink alcohol. They talk about O'Neill's analogy, that The Simpsons character, Mr. Burns is a Goa'uld, despite the others' disagreements. They are later interrupted by General Hammond, who has come to see Jack and the team.
As he also has a beer, Hammond gives the team some bad news; he has been relieved of command of the SGC. The President has apparently ordered a three month review of the military command of the Stargate Program, meaning the Stargate is to be shut down. The team suspects Kinsey may have something to do with this, influencing the President to make things go his way. This seems to be bad timing due to O'Neill's condition. Hammond also informs them that the SGC will be under the leadership of Dr. Elizabeth Weir, someone Jackson is familiar with; she does high level negotiations for the United Nations. O'Neill tells his team that they've been in similar situations, but Hammond tells them it is different this time. He has been called back to Washington for reassignment, where he could do more there than at Stargate Command. SG-1 is still scheduled to return to duty on Monday.
On that Monday, Jackson walks into the briefing room, where he finds Weir talking on her headset cell phone again, while gazing at the Stargate. After finishing the phone conversation, she and Jackson introduce themselves. While talking, Jackson tells her that the reason Weir feels so unwelcome is that she is somewhat anti-military, and has replaced Hammond, a "great man". She believes the best policy to fight the Goa'uld would be to end the proliferation of weapons, but Jackson warns her that the Goa'uld don't care, and tells her to dial to a random planet to see what they're up against. He also pressures her about O'Neill's current condition.
Just then, the Stargate is dialed. Even though all SG teams have been recalled to Earth, and the two investigate. Master Sgt. Walter Harriman tells them he has received Bra'tac's IDC. When he arrives, Bra'tac notices the change of leadership. He has come to Stargate Command to bring bad news; the Jaffa Rebellion members loyal to Bra'tac received intelligence that Anubis is gathering his force to Earth, and will arrive in just three days.
Back in Washington, Hammond arrives at the White House and meets President Hayes. After a friendly welcome, Hayes admits that he was pushed by Kinsey to make Weir the new leader of Stargate Command. Completely aware of Kinsey's history with Hammond, he informs the General that he does not want him to retire, and discusses reassignment. He knows full well that Hammond's experience will remain invaluable in the near future.
At the SGC, Bra'tac and SG-1 are in a briefing with Weir and Kinsey. He tells Kinsey what he has told SG-1; Anubis' full force is going to arrive over Earth in only three days, where they believe he will gather the whereabouts of the Lost City, which O'Neill does not yet know. Kinsey doesn't buy it, and claims that they would say anything to resume Stargate Operations. O'Neill becomes agitated about Kinsey's obliviousness to the situation. When Weir suggests trying to negotiate with Anubis, O'Neill says the word "derantis", which Jackson believes means "insane". Kinsey strongly objects finding the Lost City, but Weir actually considers it, which Kinsey also objects to. He has a talk with her alone. He wonders why she is disagreeing with him and Weir answers that she will not allow Kinsey to use her as a puppet to control the Stargate. Before he leaves, Kinsey tells Weir that she isn't as smart Kinsey thought she was.
Bra'tac and Teal'c both wish to return to Chulak in the hopes of procuring warriors and ships to defend Earth from Anubis' inbound fleet. O'Neill is about to give Teal'c the "if I don't see you again speech," but Teal'c is certain they will see each other again. The rest of SG-1 hope that he's right, and after bidding farewell to the rest of the team, Teal'c walks through the Stargate.
First appearance of Dr. Elizabeth Weir.
"Lost City, Part 1" provides examples of the following tropes:
- All for Nothing: The team are understandably concerned that O'Neill's Heroic Sacrifice in interfacing with the Ancient repository could all be for nothing if the SGC is forced to cease operations.
- Bearer of Bad News: Bra'tac arrives with news that Anubis has launched an all-out attack against Earth and should arrive in three days.
- The Bet: O'Neill and Carter apparently have a bet going on whether or not he can (correctly) complete the crossword.
- Bilingual Dialogue: Weir and the random Russian guy who tries to get into her cab switch between English and Russian for the duration of their conversation.
- Call-Back:
- Daniel is still a cheap date.
- When Weir states that they don't have much time, O'Neill informs her that it's actually all relative, and Carter could explain it to her if they had more time.
- Kinsey is called out when he addresses Bra'tac incorrectly; a similar thing happened when he was introduced to Thor in "Disclosure".
- O'Neill and Daniel get into an Argument of Contradictions at the briefing room table when O'Neill starts speaking Ancient, in a scene almost identical to the one from "The Fifth Race".
- Can't Hold His Liquor: Daniel gets entertainingly tipsy from just a few beers when the team have an impromptu get-together at O'Neill's house.O'Neill: (to Teal'c) You're so shallow.
Daniel: (while trying to balance an orange on the neck of his bottle) Oh, please. Teal'c's like one of the deepest people I know. I mean, he's... so deep. Come on, tell 'em how deep you are. (to O'Neill) You'll be lucky if you understand this.
Teal'c: My depth is immaterial to this conversation.
Daniel: Ohhh! You see?!
O'Neill: No more beer for you. - Chekhov's Gun: The Ancient repository of knowledge, last seen all the way back in season two, makes another appearance and kickstarts the plot of the two-part finale.
- Continuity Nod:
- The episode contains several references to the events of "The Fifth Race".
- Daniel mentions that he referenced Weir's diplomatic work when he was drafting the first treaty with the Tok'ra.
- Hayes tells Hammond that he is aware of Kinsey's history with the SGC.
- Contrived Coincidence: In-universe, this is Kinsey's take on the fact that there's suddenly an immediate threat to Earth just as the SGC has been shut down for the next three months.
- Cunning Linguist: Weir apparently speaks five languages, and gets to demonstrate her fluency in Russian in her opening scene.
- Deal with the Devil: Hayes seems to view his partnership with Kinsey during the elections as this, now that he knows his running mate's true nature.
- Distaff Counterpart: Much is made of the similarities between Daniel and Weir during their first meeting, in that they're both civilians with a knack for diplomacy (though Weir is actually a trained UN negotiator, whereas Daniel just picked up the skill on the job) who effectively "sold out" to the military. Weir outright states that out of everyone, she'd hoped Daniel at least would have some sympathy for her position.
- A Father to His Men: It says a lot about Hammond's influence on those under his command that Daniel, who has never exactly been the most vocal supporter of the military's running of the program, openly objects to Weir taking his place.Daniel: You're replacing a great man, uniform notwithstanding.
- Funny Phone Misunderstanding: A variation occurs when Dr. Jackson walks in and addresses Dr. Weir, who is looking at the Stargate. Jackson says that the gate is amazing, and Weir responds with "I don't really care." This irks Jackson, until Weir turns around and we see she is talking to someone on the phone, using a hands free headset.
- Hurricane of Euphemisms: O'Neill comes up with several colorful euphemisms for his own impending death after interfacing with the repository.Carter: It will overwhelm his nervous system, and the Colonel will...
O'Neill: What? Meet my maker? Pay the piper? Reach the pearly gates? Start pushing up daisies here and there? - Insistent Terminology:Kinsey: Which is why I've taken it upon myself to come on down and hear what Mister Bra'tac has to say personally.O'Neill: Master Bra'tac. Master.
- Kicked Upstairs: Hammond is "reassigned to Washington" in order to make way for Weir taking over the SGC.
- Made of Indestructium: O'Neill drops his phone in the sink and washes it under the tap at the beginning of the episode, and it still seems to be working fine.
- Mildly Military: O'Neill shows up an hour late for a briefing and gets away with nothing more than a verbal slap on the wrist from Hammond.
- Moment Killer: O'Neill requests the weekend off after sticking his head in the repository and Carter drops by his house unannounced, leading to a brief moment between the two before Daniel and Teal'c interrupt, apparently having had the same idea.
- More Expendable Than You: Daniel tries to use the repository after it becomes clear that they have to destroy it to prevent it from falling into Anubis's hands, but O'Neill anticipates that he would do so and bodily shoves him into a wall to prevent him from making the sacrifice. Daniel argues that somebody has to do it or they risk losing their only chance at finding the Lost City; O'Neill agrees, but insists that Daniel is the only one who can't do it since he'll be needed to translate when the "possessed" person starts speaking Ancient, and with that he sticks his own head in the device before anybody can stop him.
- Multitasked Conversation: When Daniel goes to introduce himself to Weir, who unbeknownst to him is having an Earpiece Conversation with somebody while looking down on the stargate from the briefing room window.Daniel: (about the stargate) Amazing, isn't it?
Weir: I don't really care.
Daniel: Okay...
(Weir turns around, gesturing to her earpiece to indicate that she wasn't talking to him.) - Neuro-Vault: O'Neill deliberately allows the Ancient repository of knowledge to be downloaded into his brain in the hopes that it will allow him to learn the location of the lost city.
- Never Say Goodbye: Played with when Teal'c returns to Chulak at the end of the episode; O'Neill starts to give him the "if I don't see you again" speech, but Teal'c cuts him off.
- "Not Making This Up" Disclaimer: When Kinsey first tells Weir about the stargate, she asks if he's joking; he responds by passing her a note from the President which simply reads "THIS IS NOT A JOKE" with his signature.
- Nothing Personal: Hayes makes it clear to Hammond that he has nothing but appreciation for the job he's done over the last seven years and having him replaced with a civilian has nothing to with his record but is simply a matter of politics.
- Put on a Bus: Hammond is officially relieved of command at the SGC, and though he does make several return appearances throughout the following seasons, it's never in any permanent capacity.
- Race Against the Clock: The team have three days to find the Lost City before Anubis arrives to attack Earth.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Weir proves herself to be one, much to Kinsey's frustration.
- Running Gag: Teal'c's love of donuts gets another nod, as he brings a box along with him when the team decide to drop by O'Neill's.
- Secret Test of Character: Daniel grilling Weir before everybody else arrives at the base, though he's not particularly subtle and it doesn't take long for her to call him out on it. O'Neill later takes his own turn by directly addressing her rather than Kinsey, and seems satisfied when she promises to consider the team's request to go offworld.
- Shout-Out:
- When describing the inevitable results of having an Ancient repository uploaded into his mind, O'Neill finishes with "A few days after that, it's "Goodnight, My Someone, Goodnight".
- O'Neill argues that Mr. Burns is a Goa'uld.
- Skewed Priorities: At the beginning of the episode, when O'Neill seems more concerned with finishing his crossword than finding the Lost City.Carter: The fate of the world is hanging in the balance, and you've been sitting in your truck finishing this?
O'Neill: I believe it was double or nothing. - Stealth Insult:Weir: The reality of this is — it's an adrenaline rush.
Daniel: Hey, at least I know you have a beating heart! - Straw Civilian: Mostly averted with Weir; Hayes tells her that he chose her specifically for her skills, not just to be a figurehead in case the program ever goes public, and she makes it clear that she's not willing to be a patsy for Kinsey to control the SGC by proxy.
- The Teetotaler: Teal'c can be seen with a glass of juice while the rest of the team are drinking beers at O'Neill's house.
- Translator Buddy: O'Neill states that he needs Daniel for this purpose once the Ancient knowledge overwrites his ability to speak English.
- Tyrant Takes the Helm: General Hammond is relieved by President Hayes for political reasons and replaced with Elizabeth Weir, a civilian diplomat. She initially gives this impression during a phone conversation where she says there will be many changes. However, she actually turns out to be quite a reasonable person and stops Kinsey's latest (and last, as it turned out) attempt to seize control of the stargate program cold.
- You Have Failed Me: Anubis has several of his Jaffa killed after they fail to stop SG-1 from destroying the repository.
