The episode was written by the shows executive producer Robert C. Cooper, with Damian Kindler writing the teleplay and Will Waring directing.
In the episode, Dr. Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks) has been having strange dreams, recalling memories of his time spent with Dr. Sarah Gardener (Anna-Louise Plowman), before she became host to the Goa'uld Osiris that don't quite line up with what actually happened.
The next morning in a coffee shop, Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping) meets her new boyfriend Pete Shanahan (David DeLuise) who tries to persuade her to spend the day with him instead of going to work.
Declining Pete's request, she arrives at Stargate Command and is greeted by a tired Daniel who tells her about a strange dream he had about his ex-girlfriend Sarah, who is now host to Osiris.
Carter then tells Jack O'Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) about her new relationship with Pete, revealing to him that her brother set them up together.
The next morning at Stargate Command, an extremely tired Daniel tells Sam and Teal'c (Christopher Judge) about his dreams and the tablet.
He tells them that the tablets bears resemblance to the one they found on Abydos and Teal'c & Sam suggest he's that he's subconsciously attempting to reveal the location of the Lost City.
Executive producer Robert C. Cooper wanted to use season seven of Stargate SG-1 as an opportunity to "really showcase a little more of the personal sides" of the characters Major Samantha Carter, Dr. Daniel Jackson and Teal'c.
[1] This was influenced by the reduced availability of Richard Dean Anderson who portrays Colonel Jack O'Neill in the series, with Cooper explaining "he's going to be present in almost every episode.
Tapping also believed that Carter's dating history had become "a joke on the Internet, the 'Black Widow Curse'" and so she encouraged the writers to move away from these elements.
[6][7][8][9] Both fans of the show and those involved in making the series joked that Carter had a "Black Widow Curse", whereby everyone she was linked to romantically ended up dying, which included Martouf ("Divide and Conquer"), Narim ("Between Two Fires") & Jonas Hanson ("The First Commandment").
[8] As writing commenced on the new season in late 2002, Cooper pitched the idea of Carter entering a relationship and having the love interest live out the episode.
[23] An offer was made to Ben Browder to play the role of Carter's love interest, however the actor turned the part down.
One of the first locations visited was the recurring home of Samantha Carter, a private residence on Grand Boulevard in North Vancouver.
[11] Production then moved to a private residence on Edinburgh Street in North Burnaby for two days, with the location being used as the home of Dr. Daniel Jackson.
[11] Elsewhere on the standing sets at Bridge Studios, the multipurpose room was dressed as a canteen for a number of scenes, before being redressed as a gym.
[35] The community hall attached to the Saint Nicholas and Dimitrios Greek Orthodox Church down the road from The Bridge Studios was used for the 60th wedding anniversary ballroom dance that Sam and Pete attend.
[11] Producer and director Andy Mikita's Funk-soul band The Hip Replacements were the act performing at the ballroom dance.
In Waring's original cut, the dance scene opened with a close-up of the poster before panning round to Sam and Pete.
Spragg praised the character development and chemistry between the couples as being "spot on", whilst also highlighting the episode for its "great comic moments".
[46] Jayne Dearsley for SFX also awarded the episode the full 5 out of 5, and similarly directed their praise at what they called "wonderful character moments - too many to count", also complementing the chemistry between Shanks and Plowman.
Although Vincent-Rudzki was critical of the Daniel Jackson and Sarah storyline, writing the "story takes too long to get going and doesn't really spark any interest much before its conclusion", but did however enjoy the Sam and Pete romance for its "charming dialogue which is a pleasure to hear".
The TV Zone reviewer went on to say "'Awe' has been missing for a lot of this season, and so when down-to-Earth Pete encounters his first alien his reaction is a reminder of that thrill from previous adventures".
Alli Snow criticised the episode for being "more concerned with 'getting Sam a guy who doesn't die' than writing a single, solid story", but did enjoy the interplay between Daniel and Osiris/Sarah as well as the scenes with Teal'c "finally getting the opportunity to show some humor and extracurricular interests".
In a more positive fan review on Gateworld, Lex called "Chimera" "one of those episodes that leaves you with a smile on your face", praising Amanda Tapping for playing the part of a "charmed and content woman beautifully" and believing that "David DeLuise complemented that performance with a confident and cheeky portrayal of Pete".
He waltzed in, swept Sam Carter onto slinky high-heeled feet and sent the internet into overdrive as fans fought to decide whether or not he deserved the moniker 'Stalker Pete'.