Christopher Judge's Favorite Stargate SG-1 Episode Makes So Much Sense

Christopher Judge's Teal'c was one of the most important characters in "Stargate SG-1." Both the actor and his character's inclusion in the series were significant since neither had appeared in Roland Emmerich's 1994 "Stargate" movie, which kicked off the sprawling sci-fi franchise we know today. While "SG-1" brought back some characters from the movie (including Jack O'Neill and Daniel Jackson, both of whom were recast for the series), the show also introduced new characters, most notably with Amanda Tapper's Samantha Carter and Judge's Teal'c. It's at least in part a testament to the actor's abilities, then, that the show managed to sustain itself outside of the Emmerich film, with both Tapper and Judge proving to be fan-favorite characters that stayed with the series until "SG-1" was cancelled by the Sci-Fi Channel after ten seasons.

But Judge was integral to "SG-1" in other ways, too. Though he never directed an "SG-1" episode, he did write three: season 6's "The Changeling," season 7's "Birthright," and season 8's "Sacrifices." He also returned as Teal'c in two episodes of sequel series "Stargate Atlantis" and in the direct-to-video movies "The Ark of Truth" and "Continuum." Teal'c also remains the character with the most appearances in "Stargate SG-1," which speaks to his popularity.

With all that in mind, it's always interesting to hear what the man who brought such vivid life to everyone's favorite Jaffa warrior thinks about the series in retrospect. What's more, if Judge has a favorite episode, you can bet it's going to be a good one, and as it turns out the actor has a couple of which he's particularly fond.

Christopher Judge spoke to IGN back in 2012, where he reflected on the impact of "Stargate SG-1." Asked about which episodes of the series he personally liked most, the Teal'c actor said that season 7 episodes "Heroes" (Parts 1 and 2) were his favorite. The seventeenth and eighteenth episodes of that season saw journalist Emmett Bregman (Saul Rubinek) visit the top secret Stargate Command facility. Charged by the government with creating a time-capsule documentary of the facility and its inner workings, Bregman isn't exactly welcomed by the crew members, who are hardly excited about being interviewed for the film.

Soon, however, the SG-3 and SG-13 teams require rescuing after they encounter a threat on an alien world. When several SG troops, including the SG-1 team, are deployed, tragedy strikes after Dr. Janet Fraiser (Teryl Rothery) is shot by the Goa'uld and dies. The episode then sees Bregman trying to discover what happened on the rescue mission, eventually uncovering the truth and making a documentary that highlights Fraiser's sacrifice. This then wins over the SG-1 crew, with Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) finally agreeing to sit down and be interviewed by the journalist.

Speaking about the touching story told in "Heroes," Judge said, "My favorite show has historically been 'Heroes.' I love that show, it really captured the humor, the human spirit, and the drama of what Stargate is all about in one episode." The episode has since been remembered as one of the series' best (unlike the worst "SG-1" episode that still upsets fans to this day). Indeed, back in 2004, IGN itself claimed the second part of "Heroes" delivered a "boot to the solar plexus," noting that it was "an episode of the series that fans won't soon forget." Neither, it seems, did Judge, who was clearly moved by the story. But there was one other "SG-1" installment for which the actor had a soft spot.

After naming the "Heroes" episodes his two favorites of the series, Christopher Judge went on to highlight the 200th episode of "Stargate SG-1" as being a particularly good time. "Just for sheer fun of it," he said to IGN, "the most fun I've ever had doing an episode was the 200th. And I mean, everyone, every department, was excited about it. The cast was excited, the writers were excited, and the 200th is really a thank you letter, a love letter to the fans, thanking them for all these years of support."

For the 200th episode of "SG-1," known simply as "200," the writers allowed themselves to create several "what-if" scenarios. The landmark installment came as the sixth episode of the show's tenth season, and saw Willie Garson's Martin Lloyd visit Stargate Command in search of help with his sci-fi movie script. While the team are initially hesitant, they're soon forced to help develop ideas for the movie after the Pentagon deems it worthwhile to produce a film about intergalactic wormhole travel as a way to distract the public from the real Stargate program. This leads to multiple zany pitches from the crew members, who all have different ideas of what a successful sci-fi movie could be. Throughout "200," we get to see the various ideas dramatized in the form of a zombie invasion story, a tale in which Colonel Jack O'Neill turns invisible, "Wizard of Oz" and "Farscape" homages, and a universe in which Christoper Judge's Teal'c is a private investigator, all of which does sound like it would be a lot of fun to film.

For Judge, it was nice to show fans of the series that the cast and crew were listening to their feedback. The actor went on to tell IGN, "A lot of the scenes [in '200'] involve stuff that fans have said the show reminds them of or what shows should be or shows could be. It very much is that and we just had an absolute blast doing it." At one point, Judge tried to spearhead an "SG-1" spin-off that would have changed the "Stargate" franchise. Sadly, it was not the Teal'c private investigator show we all saw in "200," but if anybody ever wants to revive "Stargate" for the streaming age, that idea might still have some juice.