The General in His Labyrinth of his former self. The labyrinth also recalls the labyrinth built to imprison the minotaur in Greek mythology, and the endless travelling and searching of ancient Greek heroes. In Danow's view, "The Labyrinth mirrors the wanderings and travails of the hero in search for meaning and resolution to the vicissitudes of life". García Márquez depicts the General's body itself as a labyrinth. His doctor observes that "everything that enters the body, adds weight, and everything that leaves it is debased." The General's body is described as a "labyrinth coming to a literal dead end". The labyrinth is also expressed in
The Daedalus Variations original concept of an episode involving alternate realities was a room in Atlantis that shifts into alternate realities. However, the idea had several issues, including the possibility of no Atlantis in one reality, so Robert C. Cooper suggested using the "Daedalus". The final draft of "The Daedalus Variations" was completed on February 11. On February 12, the prosthetics meeting for the episode, as well as "The Seed", "Broken Ties" and "Whispers" took place, which most likely involved the unknown aliens featured from the episode. The appearance of the aliens was revealed in the advertisement for the episode on July 27.