The Ori are fictional characters in the science fiction television series Stargate SG-1. Within the storyline, there are fictional beings described as "ascended" because of their use of advanced technology and knowledge of the universe. The Ori are an example of such beings. A significant part of the storyline in the ninth season of Stargate SG-1 involves the Ori's attempt to trick humans into worshipping them as gods. The Ori first appeared in the ninth season of the series Stargate SG-1, replacing the Goa'uld as the TV series's primary antagonists. While the Goa'uld relied solely on stolen technology from other civilizations to pose as gods, the Ori were conceived as having paranormal abilities in addition to advanced technology. As ascended beings, they live on a higher plane of existence with great power and knowledge and are as close to being "gods" as any non-deific being can be. The Ori fabricated a religion called Origin, which they use in an attempt to control non-ascended beings. Those who reject Origin risk getting their civilization–or even their planet–wiped out by the Ori.
Concept and creation
Genesis Since the eighth season of Stargate SG-1 was intended to be the last, the producers finished it with the defeat of the Goa'uld and Replicators. When the Sci Fi Channel renewed the series, however, the producers had grown tired of writing creative endings. Having had good experiences with the first season of Stargate Atlantis, they decided to revamp the series by introducing new villains and missions. Thus they considered the beginning of Season 9 as the pilot of a new show. Season Nine was about wiping the slate clean and resetting the story to where Stargate SG-1 was in its first season. The reason was that the SG-1 team was now winning every time, having already defeated the main enemies the previous season. Since SG-1 had always been grounded in Earth mythology, the producers chose the legend of King Arthur for the new season. Merlin, as a famous magical figure, became an Ancient, leading to the Ancients' enemies named the Ori. The Ori are thus "a natural extension of where the Ancient mythology had gone." Up until that point, the story of the Ancients had been kept at arm's length because the show was not about the aliens but "human beings going out into this unexplored, fantastical universe." The producers also stated that a premature full revelation of the Ancients would have caused their story to be less interesting. Producer Brad Wright believed the Ori were still within the overriding theme of Stargate, as they are "aliens playing gods" in their relationship with ordinary human folk. The introduction of the Ori was to prepare the viewer for their invasion that would occur later in the show. The Ori also served as a challenge for the new heroes in the SG-1 team (Mitchell, Landry, Vala). The writers believed that new bad guys and new obstacles for the characters to overcome would make for a more interesting story. The name "Ori" comes from the word "origin," as in the origin of the Ancients. When executive producer Robert C. Cooper looked at the root of "origin," he retcon-invented the word "Origin" as the name of the Ori religion. Cooper said it was an interesting idea for him to address the philosophical arguments with various religious people, seeing the whole challenge as "how do you prove whose God exists or whether God exists at all?" Unlike the Goa'uld, who were quickly proven to not be gods after killing them and figuring out their technology, it would be hard to present the same argument to the Ori followers because the Ori were essentially ascended gods. Even if their gods were dead, it would not make much difference to them, as their followers would continue to believe; without the "magic powers" of the Ori, their followers and the Priors (the Ori's missionaries) could still use the technology and their ships. Cooper said that "it's not necessarily wrong to believe in something [...] what's wrong is to murder somebody because they don't believe the way you do." Although Cooper was reluctant to get too serious about the meaning behind the Ori as Stargate should "first and foremost [...] entertain people," he considered it representative of television and the media "mak[ing] people believe whatever the people in charge of that magic box–whatever they want you to believe–they can pretty much convince you, or convince the vast majority of people." For Cooper, "the followers of the Ori were the interesting part," and he "wanted to do a story that was in some way reflective of the differences between people's beliefs that we see around us in our society, and how conflicts arise as a result of that." Cooper was particularly interested in the interaction between Ori followers and other normal human beings and the resulting "mysterious aspect and quality to religious belief and the passion that it invokes." The producers therefore inserted the Ori into the story's background, similar to the way there was very little direct interaction between the actual deities of the religion and mankind in real life. Cooper was concerned that the distinction between the Ori and their followers was often overlooked, and that the SG-1 team dealt with the followers, not the ascended gods. If, as "The Shroud" suggested, the Ori were actually destroyed by the Merlin's Ancient weapon, the real issue for the SG-1 teams became the followers. Brad Wright pointed to power corruption, the catch of the Ori killing unbelievers.
Story ideas In the original pitch for "Beachhead," Brad Wright had intended to let the Ori build and come through the Supergate. It was then decided among the writers to only let the threat of the Ori come through the Priors, and to postpone the actual arrival of the Ori until the end of the season. The last ten minutes of "Camelot" should serve as a "great, ominous harbinger of the foe" SG-1 is up against. In Season 10, the Ori sweep through the Milky Way galaxy, forcing SG-1 to start from scratch again in finding technology, resources, and allies to fight against them. If Stargate SG-1 had continued, the producers would have considered the search for the Ark (of Stargate: The Ark of Truth) as the overriding story for the eleventh season, similar to the Sangraal in seasons nine and ten. The producers did not explore more detailed ideas after the show's cancellation.
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