It opens to Jack assembling a sniper's rifle and Kinsey pressing flesh at some kind of political fundraiser. Jack supposedly shoots him and walks off, looking real good girls, in sexy black shades and gloves. However...but! He gets himself caught on camera in the hotel he shot from... Now I ask you, would Jack really be that dumb? He walks into the SGC after a vacation, although Sam looks very brown, and dare I say almost orange, as though she has been on vacation, (maybe this was shot after their summer hiatus?), and he finds out that Kinsey has been assassinated.

A couple of SF's walk in with Hammond and they arrest him for the murder... ooooh Jack complains he was on vacation fishing, which was ironic because his face was full of confusion and totally fish like when Hammond asks him to cooperate. So Jack is taken to Peterson AFB, then to Washington and the rest try to piece together what happened. As they reached the briefing room, Major Davis, yay a Colin Cunningham bit, is waiting there with a video of the camera that incriminates Jack and lays the murder squarely at the feet of Jack.

Jonas defends Jack saying that doesn't prove anything, but Davis explains that the FBI used the video as evidence and searched Jack's house and cabin. They found nothing there but some nosey neighbour of Jack's, someone clearly with nothing better to do than sit at home all day and play on internet sites dedicated to their favourite programme and in between taking the exams, involve themselves with watching other people go about their business, who told the FBI that Jack was doing something in the lake near him. Maybe he was feeding the ducks, who knows? They searched the lake and found the weapon. They matched the ballistics to the bullet that killed Kinsey. There's a lot of exposition around Kinsey's activities with the NID from previous adventures. Hammond says there is nothing he can do but he can suspend SG-1's mission schedule and assign them to finding out what went on.

So, off they go to see the wizard, well Jack in cuffs...Ok girls calm down! Jonas and Teal'c explain what is happening to the rest of SG-1 and what evidence they have against Jack. Jonas explains that they have a video placing him there, and asks him if he was on a covert mission. Jack goes ballistic until Teal'c interjects, ahh the voice of reason. Jack still maintains that he wasn't there.

We leave Jack and are back at the base in the briefing room, they talk about how Jack could have been duplicated in some way. Jonas didn't know about the foothold (episode "FOOTHOLD") situation that the SGC had where O'Neill and the others from the SGC (apart from Carter and Teal'c) were copied with devices, which transmitted a holographic image, including how the person sounded. Hammond explains that it was covered up because of the political wrangling and that they would have shut the SGC down. Carter goes to Nellis (Area 51) and discovers that the mimicking devices have been swapped for copies. Predictable? Yes. Jonas and Carter visit O'Neill and tell him that he was copied, but they can't use it as evidence because it would show the cover up. What a pickle they are in, hey are you still with me here? So they use it to find the real assassin. Good ole Carter. She explains to Jonas how it all worked and that in Area 51 the device that scanned the person to copy was not taken, just the devices.

Sam shows Teal'c and Jonas the personnel files while she goes to "look up" an old acquaintance.She pops along to the NID and visits a chap who looks very much like a man in black. She chats to him and he refuses to admit they are involved. He also slides her a piece of paper, on it a rendezvous time. She meets up with him on a park bench and he explains that there is a shadow group trying to bring down everything. Hmmm... anyone else detect a hint of X-files? He has been assigned by the President to find out how and what happened. He and Sam form a partnership... Did anyone warn him about her reputation? We really miss the back-story here, as we have no idea how they originally knew each other. It's clear they do from the inferences, but none of it is explained.

Meanwhile back at the corral, Jonas explains what he and Teal'c have found out about the personnel working on the mimicking devices. It turns out that one of the doctors, Dr Brent Langham, died in a car accident about three weeks prior to the assassination. Dr Fraiser points out during the investigation into his death the coroner missed something. It turns out that the body had no traces of drugs. Dr Langham had epilepsy and has to take anti convulsants daily. They deduce that it was not Dr Langham in the wreck, but that he is still alive and probably sold the devices. They are instructed to find him. Basically Fraiser works out that he is on a special type of drug and locates possible people for them to visit.

Sam and Agent Barrett stop at an arms dealer, who sold the gun to the fake O'Neill. He lets the buy the only other gun that he touched. She and Agent Barrett fingerprint the gun and try to work out who he was. Sam wants him to check NID personnel files and kinda throws it in his face, "You said it yourself Agent Barrett, you have a cancer in your organisation." He doesn't smile, but says she made a good call checking for the other weapon he may have looked at. He takes the disc to NID headquarters and goes to check the files. He finds out that there is an NID agent responsible, Mark Devlin, he and Sam drive off to find him.

Meanwhile Jonas and Teal'c check out the leads, and Jonas asks Teal'c who taught him to drive. He explains that Daniel taught him in 1969! Now we know how he learnt! Driving that big honkin bus! Anyway, they arrive at the house of David Szwydell, who to Jonas looks like one of the airmen in the gateroom! They work out he is Langham...Jonas runs after him with great athletic ability! He jumps a fence girls! Next he will be leaping a small building, but no the guy runs into a building instead, namely Teal'c... who leaves his arm out for him to run into! Such a shame, he is knocked out. They locate the mimic device on him and bring him back to the SGC. Teal'c is in trouble for the injuries on Dr Langham, but Teal'c is sure that he will volunteer the information.

This is THE best scene in the whole episode... It's clichéd but hey, it's just how you can imagine a pissed Teal'c. He comes in the darkened room and simply clasps his hands together, threading his fingers and just staring at the doctor. His face says it all, he doesn't need to speak and the beat acting from Chris Judge here is priceless. Intimidation by Jaffa, death by Jaffa, it really makes Dr Langham talk! So funny, Teal'c says absolutely nothing at all and just leans slightly towards him, the guy folds. It's hilarious!

Carter and Barrett arrive at Devlin's house, she goes to pick the lock but he just kicks the door in. Way to go for subtlety Barrett. They discover a massive bomb that is set to go off right now. They make a run for it as it explodes and he lands on top of Carter covering her.
I think any guy reading this or watching this episode would wish they were the ones "covering" her. She tells him to get up!

Langham explains how it all happened, how he sold it. He says that Area 51 have been selling the tech to the shadowy group, who are buying it to make money. He won't tell them anything more unless he can get protection and he knows they don't have a witness protection programme. Hammond and Jonas explain that there isn't anywhere on Earth he can hide, that they control the Stargate and not this powerful shadowy group behind the government.

Carter and Barrett go back to their hotel room and we get into an exposition about who trusts who. Hammond phones and tells her Langham was caught and revealed who is behind it. Barrett explains that his assignment is from the White House and that she had better tell him what's going on. She explains that they have the names of those responsible and that she shouldn't be telling him that it was an alien device that was used to assassinate Kinsey by using a mimicking device. She wants him to help get to those people but he won't and says that there isn't enough evidence. He thinks for a moment then tells her that Kinsey is alive and safe. She almost wipes his face but hands him a cloth. You see, I told you we missed some back story. You know, I was half expecting the guy to meet his maker during this episode! He explains someone is going to Kinsey, she asks who it is and he tells her it is Major Davies! She stands and explains that Davies is one of the people that were mimicked. They form a plan and off we go...

Devlin walks into Kinsey's hospital and we see him change into Major Davies with the mimic device. He walks into the room and prepares to kill the unconscious Senator. Then they cut to Devlin, who is briefing the shadowy group of nasty businessmen and they ask him if he is sure that Kinsey is dead. He explains that he wasn't wearing his bullet proof vest this time... and there were a few complications... We flash back to the hospital where a fire alarm goes off, as he is about to shoot him. The nurses rush in and take Kinsey out, and the two guards on the door detain Major Davies (Devlin).

Colin Cunningham gets to kick ass! He takes the guards out really quickly one of the best fight scenes, over before you know it type and goes after the gurney. He leaves the third floor via the East stairwell in an attempt to get to the Senator, who has been taken in the lift. When he gets there he is zatted by Carter, who is covered by Barrett.

We go back to the nasty businessmen, who laugh at the thought of Major Davies getting the rap for Kinsey's murder and then talk of getting rid of General Hammond. They tell Devlin to visit Hammond and kill him. But the holographic image wavers and reveals Carter standing there... The NID rush in and arrest them all.

Poor Senator Kinsey is well again and insists on Jack coming to the Hospital before he leaves it for a press conference. Jack is in dress uniform girls! Kinsey says he is gonna make Jack a hero and that the public don't want to think their military are the bad guys. So he is making Jack the hero of it all by helping to expose the real people behind it. As if Jack isn't already a hero, with all those medals and ribbons on his chest for crying out loud. It ends with Kinsey shaking Jack's hand for the camera's, telling him to smile, because Jack just made him President. Just sickening huh?

Ok, most people that spoke to me about this episode thought it was a Jack episode, but it was so a Carter one. Amanda carried it off well, deserving of her second place in the opening credits, are they ever going to give Carter a life? It would have been better to explore more of the back story with Agent Barrett. Yes, we know certain people want Jack and Sam together! The episode does fill in a few gaps about how Kinsey does become President in "2001". The story was clichéd and it felt like some of the story was missing. The memorable scenes were definitely Teal'c interrogating Langham without talking and Major Davies really kicking butt.