NationStates Jolt Archive


I liked Pete

Klonor
13-04-2005, 00:52
Pete was awesome. He was a cop, he lived a normal life, and he knew when he'd gotten his hooks into a good woman. He didn't feel the need to have wild adventures when they weren't necessary, but was willing to go through with them when they were. He had a plan for his future and worked hard to make sure the plan came true, he didn't sit around and wait for life to hand the world to him. He was nice, funny, and was willing to fork over the cash for a rather impressive engagement ring. But Samantha still dumped him!

For those who have no clue what I'm talking about, you have more of a life than I do. For those who do know what I'm talking about.....well, you probably still have more of a life than I do. Damn you all! Anyway, to help you along, I'm referring to the characters Pete (Damnit, I can't remember his last name) and Samantha Carter from the television series StarGate: SG1. Samantha Carter is a member of a secret government organisation known as the SGC (StarGate Command) whose duty is to explore other planets, contact alien races, and aquire advanced technology for human use. Pete is a normal cop on Earth who fell in love with Sam, dated her for a while, popped the question, then was shot down by Sam a while after she'd accepted his proposal. Now, this wouldn't be so odd if Pete wasn't a guy worth marrying, but he seemed perfectly fine to me! Granted I'm not really one to judge, having never had a relationship lasting more than six months I might not be the best person to plan out life-long partnerships, but even I can see a good thing when it's dropped in my lap!

The implied, but never directly stated, reason for Sam's rejection of Pete is that she and Brigadier General Jack O'Neill have long harbored feelings for each other but could never act on them due to their differences in rank and the restrictions placed upon them by the Air Force. This has actually popped up at times earlier in the series (With both hilarious and tragic results) and I could accept that as a reason for her leaving Pete if they acted on those feelings. If she and Jack started dating in secret, if they found a loophole that made it okay for a General to date a member of his staff, if they even just said "I love you" once and never again, I could accept her leaving Pete because of Jack. But they never do any such thing. From what I can tell they continue just as they have in the past, revealing nothing to each other of what is so obvious to the people around them and the viewers.

So, in essence, nothing has changed between Jack and Sam. If their relationship, which existed before she even met Pete and continued during Sam and Pete's relationship and engagement, didn't stop Sam from accepting Pete's proposal why would it cause her to reject Pete after she'd already accepted his proposal? Pete was a great guy, she didn't have plans to improve her relationship with anybody else, so what happened?
Klonor
13-04-2005, 01:54
Come on, nobody else wonders why Sam dumped Pete?
King Binks
13-04-2005, 02:44
Maybe he was impotent.
Cogitation
13-04-2005, 02:55
I have to get the most recent seasons of Stargate:SG1 on DVD.

--The Democratic States of Cogitation
Klonor
13-04-2005, 03:14
Well, if there are any clues you'll let me know, right? Of course you will. I will not forget this favor, either. One day, and that day may never come, I will do a favor for you in return. Until then, I will consider this a gift.

Okay, I now know that I have definitely watched The Godfather to often recently. I mean seriously, this exchange wasn't even funny in this setting, but I put it in anyway! It's not even going the right way! Damn Corleone family!
Cogitation
13-04-2005, 04:04
So, in essence, nothing has changed between Jack and Sam. If their relationship, which existed before she even met Pete and continued during Sam and Pete's relationship and engagement, didn't stop Sam from accepting Pete's proposal why would it cause her to reject Pete after she'd already accepted his proposal? Pete was a great guy, she didn't have plans to improve her relationship with anybody else, so what happened?
Okay, I've thought this over briefly. My best guess (without watching the episodes involved) is that Sam never really got over her feelings for Jack. So, lingering doubts remained in her mind, however buried they might be. As the wedding got closer, the prospect of actually going through with the wedding with Pete may have forced Sam to confront the fact that she would have to give up completely on her feelings for Jack; prior to rejecting Pete, Sam may merely have been hiding from this ultimatum: Reject Pete or give up on Jack. She may merely have been going through the motions of having a relationship with Pete while trying to ignore her feelings for Jack, as opposed to confronting her feelings for Jack.

So, although nothing has changed between Sam and Jack, Sam still wasn't ready to turn her back on Jack and abandon her feelings forever. She has to do this before she can marry Pete.

--The Democratic States of Cogitation
"Think about it for a moment."
Founder of The Realm of Ambrosia
Klonor
13-04-2005, 04:09
That actually does make sense, other eps have also dealt with Sam pushing off dealing with her emotions rather than making a decision. If she saw a wall approaching where she'd have to make a yes/no choice it could have been what motivated her to break off the engagement.

Interesting.
Pael
13-04-2005, 04:47
God, Klonor was a spammer back in the days of my first country, too!

It's so good to see that some things don't change :)
Klonor
13-04-2005, 04:50
Spammer? How dare you! We prefer the term "Free poster"