Baal (Stargate)
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In the science fiction television show Stargate SG-1, Baal is a Goa'uld based on the Baal of mythology. Although exceptionally ruthless, Baal seems to possess a somewhat better understanding of human nature than is typical for the Goa'uld and he has a vague understanding of the concept of humor; his style tends toward subtle insidiousness rather than outright cruelty. During Season 8, he is one of the primary antagonists of the show. Unlike other Goa'uld, Baal is reasonable and, since the collapse of the old Goa'uld structure, acknowledges that he is not a god (prior to its downfall, he would treat his "godhood" rather flippantly to those who already knew about the secret), but nevertheless he cares only for his own interests. He is played by the South African actor Cliff Simon.
Baal is first seen in the two part episode in season five, "Summit/Last Stand", where he is portrayed as one of the System Lords at the time. When Osiris appears on behalf of Anubis to petition the System Lords to accept him back—on the condition that Anubis will, in turn, destroy the Tau'ri—Ba'al is one of the System Lords that supports the petition.
Anubis subsequently failed in his attempts to destroy the Tau'ri and moves against the other System Lords, demonstrating an impressively powerful fleet which only the combined fleet of the System Lords could hope to take on. When Lord Yu's growing senility left him unable to lead the combined fleets, Teal'c convinced Baal to assume control of the fleets and lead the war against Anubis.
After Anubis's fleet was destroyed by the Ancients' Antarctic outpost, Baal seized control of Anubis's armies and technology, including captured Asgard teleportation technology, and waged war against all the other System Lords. This led the other Goa'uld into a failed attempt to negotiate with the Tau'ri for their support against Baal. Baal quickly began to conquer the other System Lords using Anubis' forces. However, at some point Anubis managed to return and secretly re-take control of his forces from Baal. Baal was forced to serve under Anubis, much to his displeasure.
Baal's advance against the other System Lords was stopped only by the long-anticipated invasion of the Replicators into the Milky Way galaxy. The Replicator armadas quickly overwhelmed and destroyed the Goa'uld System Lords, and Baal found himself fighting a losing battle against the invaders. When knowledge of an Ancient superweapon capable of destroying all life in the galaxy was discovered, Baal secretly assisted Samantha Carter and Jacob Carter in modifying the weapon, along with the Dial-Home Device associated with Dakara's Stargate, destroying all Replicators in the galaxy.
Even with the Replicators destroyed, Anubis still intended to claim the superweapon for himself and use it to destroy all life in the galaxy. Anubis allowed Baal to live so that he may bear witness to the end of all galactic life. When Anubis' plan is foiled by Daniel Jackson and Oma Desala, Ba'al is left as the only known surviving System Lord (the others having been killed by the Replicators).
With his power base gone following the destruction of the System Lords and the rebellion of the Jaffa, Baal needed a place to hide, and ended up seeking refuge on Earth itself. Baal then set himself up as a wealthy businessman to live out his exile.
Ultimately, Baal was abducted and publicly executed by the Jaffa leader Gerak, causing the Jaffa and SG-1 to briefly believe Baal had finally been killed. However, Baal had secretly used the Trust's cloning technology to create multiple versions of himself. Not only was the Baal executed by Gerak merely a clone, but several Baals continued to be hiding on Earth with at least one other Baal presumed to be off-world, possibly in the Archeba system. Baal adapted well to the Earth lifestyle, and he even began incorporating elements of 21st century Earth fashion into his offworld System Lord wardrobe.
Later, Baal managed to regain an army by recruiting Jaffa, largely using mind control. One of Baal's clones initiated a scheme to take control of the Jaffa counsel with his mind control technology, but the scheme was foiled and the clone killed by SG-1.
Baal also planned to rebuild his empire by using Asgard beaming technology to steal Stargates from other planets and hide them using a method developed by Nerus, Baal's former servant who defected to the Ori and was captured by the SGC. His plan was foiled when Nerus returned to Baal and accidentally downloaded a virus into one of Baal's motherships. The Stargates were then beamed off the mothership by the newly created Earth ship, the Odyssey, and the mothership (along with several Baal clones) was destroyed by the Lucian Alliance.
Baal is the Goa'uld who infiltrated The Trust. Most if not all surviving Goa'uld are under his command (this was already the trend under his figurehead for Anubis before The Replicators' invasion). He still commands some Jaffa (probably all from brainwashing) and human slaves. It is also likely that he still has some Kull Warriors and will make more at the first chance. Template:Recurring characters on Stargate SG-1es:Baal (Stargate) fr:Baal (Stargate) nl:Baal (Stargate)