Circle of Life
| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Circle of Life |
| Author(s): | Badgergator |
| Date(s): | |
| Length: | 80K |
| Genre: | het |
| Fandom: | Stargate SG-1 |
| External Links: | |
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Circle of Life is a Jack/Sara story by Badgergator.
Reactions and Reviews
When I read a good, emotional story I throw myself right in and go with it. Most of the time, no matter how much I enjoy the story, a couple of hours later the emotional resonance is gone. It takes a lot to put a lump in my throat that just won't shift, or to make me remember why I felt like crying. This story does both, and itdoes so because the major theme is one that strikes a deep chord for me. But that's a very personal reaction - I can't say that others will feel the same.
The author describes this story as the way she would like the series to end, adding "Imagine Jack happy." Which immediately makes me wonder...do we really think he isn't? Jack rarely - after the original movie, obviously - strikes me as unhappy or discontented. His life isn't all he would like it to be, certainly, and I don't question that he has some big regrets. I do have trouble with the characterisation of Jack, here, largely because of the implication that Jack never really moved on from the issues he was facing in the movie. If the story were about season one Jack, it would be perfect, but it isn't. It's set some indeterminate time in the future, or maybe an alternative "present". It begins with the "final mission" of SG-1, some unspecified plan of the Asgard to defeat the Goa'uld once and for all, which Jack thinks he's unlikely to survive. Trying to wind up his affairs before he leaves, he visits his ex-wife...and I can't say more without giving big spoilers, except to say this is definitely in the "they all lived happily ever after" category.
The story is essentially about the healing of Jack's old, emotional wounds: the loss of his marriage, and of his son. And that's why it works for me. While I have my doubts about the way this story goes about it, the theme of healing those omnipresent wounds is one that few stories tackle as successfully as this one. It's a deeply emotional story, and maintains that emotional intensity throughout.
Fundamentally, this is not a Stargate story. It's about Jack, and his life without the Stargate program as we see it in the show. The other major characters from the show make only brief, and for the most part
unsatisfactory, appearances. I can find a lot in this story to criticise...nevertheless, this is one of those stories I know I'll keep going back to, when I'm in a certain mood.[1]