How The Gang Got Back Together and returned to the Pegasus Galaxy
May 10, 2013 6:09 PM Subscribe
Here is how Stargate: Atlantis' planned movie, Extinction, was supposed to follow up on the series finale of Atlantis cloaked in the San Fransisco Bay and its return to the Pegasus Galaxy.
In 2004, hot off the success of Stargate SG-1, the Sci-Fi Channel premiered Stargate: Atlantis. Following the discovery of the eighth chevron, an expedition was sent to the distant Pegasus Galaxy to find the lost city of Atlantis. They succeeded in finding the city, an abandoned city-like starship hundreds of feet beneath the surface of the ocean on an alien world. From the moment the city burst to the surface of the sea to the first encounters with the new villainy race, the Wraith, Stargate: Atlantis became a popular new addition to the Stargate universe.
However, after five seasons, the controversial decision was made to end the show in order to launch a new spin on the world of Stargate, Stargate Universe. At the same time, the canceled precursor show, Stargate SG-1, had successfully released two straight to DVD movies, Stargate: The Ark of Truth and Stargate: Continuum. The plan was then put in place to do the same with Atlantis, with the expectation that success would result in more cinematic visits to the Pegasus Galaxy. Thus, Stargate: Extinction was planned and fans excitedly waited the opportunity to visit their favorite Atlantis team members once more.
Then the Great Recession occurred. The owner of the Stargate franchise, MGM Studios, filed for bankruptcy. Stargate Universe was not renewed (it's success was not helped by vocal Atlantis fans, outraged at the replacement of their show with a stylistically different approach to the Stargate universe), and the Stargate direct to DVD movies were canceled. For years, fans were left in the dark as to how the story of Atlantis was supposed to end, until March 31, 2013, when producer Joseph Mallozzi, posted on his blog all that had been intended for the adventurers beyond the eighth chevron.
In 2004, hot off the success of Stargate SG-1, the Sci-Fi Channel premiered Stargate: Atlantis. Following the discovery of the eighth chevron, an expedition was sent to the distant Pegasus Galaxy to find the lost city of Atlantis. They succeeded in finding the city, an abandoned city-like starship hundreds of feet beneath the surface of the ocean on an alien world. From the moment the city burst to the surface of the sea to the first encounters with the new villainy race, the Wraith, Stargate: Atlantis became a popular new addition to the Stargate universe.
However, after five seasons, the controversial decision was made to end the show in order to launch a new spin on the world of Stargate, Stargate Universe. At the same time, the canceled precursor show, Stargate SG-1, had successfully released two straight to DVD movies, Stargate: The Ark of Truth and Stargate: Continuum. The plan was then put in place to do the same with Atlantis, with the expectation that success would result in more cinematic visits to the Pegasus Galaxy. Thus, Stargate: Extinction was planned and fans excitedly waited the opportunity to visit their favorite Atlantis team members once more.
Then the Great Recession occurred. The owner of the Stargate franchise, MGM Studios, filed for bankruptcy. Stargate Universe was not renewed (it's success was not helped by vocal Atlantis fans, outraged at the replacement of their show with a stylistically different approach to the Stargate universe), and the Stargate direct to DVD movies were canceled. For years, fans were left in the dark as to how the story of Atlantis was supposed to end, until March 31, 2013, when producer Joseph Mallozzi, posted on his blog all that had been intended for the adventurers beyond the eighth chevron.
It's unlikely anything as expensive as Stargate would have survived in any form after SyFy decided their future lay with cheap to produce popular fare like wrestling and ghost hunting. The summary execution of the promising Caprica was also tragic.
posted by localroger at 6:29 PM on May 10, 2013 [5 favorites]
posted by localroger at 6:29 PM on May 10, 2013 [5 favorites]
A movie based on a TV show based on a movie?
No, a movie based on a TV show based on another TV show which was much better than the movie it was based on.
posted by localroger at 6:30 PM on May 10, 2013 [13 favorites]
No, a movie based on a TV show based on another TV show which was much better than the movie it was based on.
posted by localroger at 6:30 PM on May 10, 2013 [13 favorites]
A direct to DVD movie, which would have premiered on SyFy.
Much like Blood & Chrome.
posted by Mezentian at 6:31 PM on May 10, 2013
Much like Blood & Chrome.
posted by Mezentian at 6:31 PM on May 10, 2013
...much better than the movie it was based on.
I will CUT you.
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 6:33 PM on May 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
I will CUT you.
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 6:33 PM on May 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
Much like Blood & Chrome.
Much more like Stargate: The Ark of Truth and Stargate: Continuum, which actually got made.
posted by localroger at 6:33 PM on May 10, 2013
Much more like Stargate: The Ark of Truth and Stargate: Continuum, which actually got made.
posted by localroger at 6:33 PM on May 10, 2013
...much better than the movie it was based on.
I will CUT you.
Aw, c'mon. Stargate: TOM was awful. It took itself way the fuck too seriously considering its total lack of scale and history. I ignored SG1 because I had hated the movie so much and only got around to watching when Hulu released the whole series a season per month. And I was shocked ... at how much fun it was. It took the tropes that worked from the movie, ditched most of what I hated, and comported itself with a sense of fun that made its lapses forgivable.
There is no way the tone of the original movie could have been sustained for 200 hours of final footage without inducing brain seizures and comas in the audience. I jammed SG1 in ten months and was disappointed when Hulu didn't do Atlantis, and one of the first things I did when I got Netflix was to use it to jam Atlantis.
I also liked SG:U. Even though it was more serious in tone than SG1 and Atlantis it had a sense of humor about itself, if at times a dark sense of humor. But the 1994 Kurt Russell James Spader flick -- ugh.
posted by localroger at 6:43 PM on May 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
I will CUT you.
Aw, c'mon. Stargate: TOM was awful. It took itself way the fuck too seriously considering its total lack of scale and history. I ignored SG1 because I had hated the movie so much and only got around to watching when Hulu released the whole series a season per month. And I was shocked ... at how much fun it was. It took the tropes that worked from the movie, ditched most of what I hated, and comported itself with a sense of fun that made its lapses forgivable.
There is no way the tone of the original movie could have been sustained for 200 hours of final footage without inducing brain seizures and comas in the audience. I jammed SG1 in ten months and was disappointed when Hulu didn't do Atlantis, and one of the first things I did when I got Netflix was to use it to jam Atlantis.
I also liked SG:U. Even though it was more serious in tone than SG1 and Atlantis it had a sense of humor about itself, if at times a dark sense of humor. But the 1994 Kurt Russell James Spader flick -- ugh.
posted by localroger at 6:43 PM on May 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
I will CUT you.
I will answer with maths!
Dean Devlin, Roland Emmerich < Jonathan Glassner, Brad Wright
Kurt Russell < Richard Dean Anderson
James Spader < Michael Shanks
Nameless solider 1 < Amanda Tapping
Namless Goua'ald < Christopher Judge.
The movie was fine, but the TV series expanded the universe. And made the characters likeable.
No contest.
posted by Mezentian at 6:47 PM on May 10, 2013 [5 favorites]
I will answer with maths!
Dean Devlin, Roland Emmerich < Jonathan Glassner, Brad Wright
Kurt Russell < Richard Dean Anderson
James Spader < Michael Shanks
Nameless solider 1 < Amanda Tapping
Namless Goua'ald < Christopher Judge.
The movie was fine, but the TV series expanded the universe. And made the characters likeable.
No contest.
posted by Mezentian at 6:47 PM on May 10, 2013 [5 favorites]
I was in SGA fandom, more despite of the show than because of it because the show quickly abandoned what I found most interesting about it. I wanted it to be a cut off from Earth, exploration, building a new community out of a bunch of military, scientist, and alien misfits type of show, but the showrunners took every opportunity to squander the whole cut off from Earth premise. So I'm just going to ignore anything Mallozzi says, because I vastly preferred the show as fandom rendered it, and Mallozzi seems to have consistently missed what made the show appealing to me and a lot of fandom in the first place.
posted by yasaman at 6:49 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by yasaman at 6:49 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
I loved all the incarnation but there is just too much TV to watch. Thanks for reminding me I didn't finish SG:A before it left Netflix instant.
I told some of my normal friends they should check out SG1, it is surprisingly fun, they worked in that Wormhole Xtreem spoof like half a dozen times. And Teal'c got funnier and funnier as a fish out of water alien. Not to mention they always won because human. Humans are just like awesome or something. The only thing they had to say was "who are those guys with the ears, I don't like those guys". Fuck being normal, go watch SG:1.
posted by Ad hominem at 6:49 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
I told some of my normal friends they should check out SG1, it is surprisingly fun, they worked in that Wormhole Xtreem spoof like half a dozen times. And Teal'c got funnier and funnier as a fish out of water alien. Not to mention they always won because human. Humans are just like awesome or something. The only thing they had to say was "who are those guys with the ears, I don't like those guys". Fuck being normal, go watch SG:1.
posted by Ad hominem at 6:49 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
Unfortunately Eli's calculations were a little off, so SG:U won't be back from hiatus for thousands of years.
posted by ceribus peribus at 6:57 PM on May 10, 2013 [6 favorites]
posted by ceribus peribus at 6:57 PM on May 10, 2013 [6 favorites]
promising Caprica was also tragic.
If they did a stripped down version focusing on the New Cap City game I would watch the fuck out of it. A long time ago I even posted an elaborate idea for a Pilot. Seriously SyFy, take it and run with it if you want. Just name a character after me. Make it happen,redeem yourself for all this ghost hunter bullshit.
posted by Ad hominem at 6:59 PM on May 10, 2013
If they did a stripped down version focusing on the New Cap City game I would watch the fuck out of it. A long time ago I even posted an elaborate idea for a Pilot. Seriously SyFy, take it and run with it if you want. Just name a character after me. Make it happen,redeem yourself for all this ghost hunter bullshit.
posted by Ad hominem at 6:59 PM on May 10, 2013
Yeah, I'm just going to back away from reading this blog entry because I hold in my heart of hearts that Atlantis seceded from Earth and flew off into the sunset. But the Stargate franchise is so strongly tied in a relationship with the Airforce that anything that so radically rejects that whole science+military shtick would never have gotten past a brainstorming session. I'm okay with that; like, sometimes the fact that Jack O'Neill is a character that exists in my imagination is something that gets me through my day, but I'm also okay with blithely allowing myself to pretend that half of the Stargate verse didn't really happen the way that it did.
posted by Mizu at 7:05 PM on May 10, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by Mizu at 7:05 PM on May 10, 2013 [4 favorites]
Gods, the SG shows were bloody awful. Take the cloying American exceptionalism and relentless militarism of Star Trek and crank it up a million times and you get Star Gate.
Just let the bad egyptology and jingoism die, already.
posted by clvrmnky at 7:11 PM on May 10, 2013
Just let the bad egyptology and jingoism die, already.
posted by clvrmnky at 7:11 PM on May 10, 2013
There is an entire generation who will never think of Richard Dean Anderson and go, "Hey! MacGuyver!"
This is why I hate Stargate.
Though... Begbie as a mad scientist was kind of awesome, even if he never wound up glassing anyone. I was waiting for him to follow an Ori into the men's room, but he never did. I blame John Scalzi.
posted by Slap*Happy at 7:19 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
This is why I hate Stargate.
Though... Begbie as a mad scientist was kind of awesome, even if he never wound up glassing anyone. I was waiting for him to follow an Ori into the men's room, but he never did. I blame John Scalzi.
posted by Slap*Happy at 7:19 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
If they did a stripped down version focusing on the New Cap City game I would watch the fuck out of it.
Considering those sequences were the most expensive to produce of an already heavily CGI-laden series, I hope you are in the mood for some wrestling and ghost hunting.
posted by localroger at 7:19 PM on May 10, 2013
Considering those sequences were the most expensive to produce of an already heavily CGI-laden series, I hope you are in the mood for some wrestling and ghost hunting.
posted by localroger at 7:19 PM on May 10, 2013
I liked Caprica. It needed time to breathe that it never got. So much lost potential.
posted by Mezentian at 7:26 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Mezentian at 7:26 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
Gods, the SG shows were bloody awful. Take the cloying American exceptionalism and relentless militarism of Star Trek and crank it up a million times and you get Star Gate.
I read it as satire. Even political satire if you choose to look at it as metaphorical.
Humans are always good and noble.
Aliens are mostly cattle who just need that human spark to show them the way.
Humans always win against all odds, even if it is because we are so dumb aliens couldn't predict what stupid shit we would do.
Somehow humans become a galactic powerehouse and defeat all the evil enemies they made by bumbling around, so they have to go to an entirely new galaxy to find more evil aliens to defeat.
Humans have some mystical "humanness" that aliens respond to, like Teal'c just abandoning his life to chill with SG:1
posted by Ad hominem at 7:30 PM on May 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
I read it as satire. Even political satire if you choose to look at it as metaphorical.
Humans are always good and noble.
Aliens are mostly cattle who just need that human spark to show them the way.
Humans always win against all odds, even if it is because we are so dumb aliens couldn't predict what stupid shit we would do.
Somehow humans become a galactic powerehouse and defeat all the evil enemies they made by bumbling around, so they have to go to an entirely new galaxy to find more evil aliens to defeat.
Humans have some mystical "humanness" that aliens respond to, like Teal'c just abandoning his life to chill with SG:1
posted by Ad hominem at 7:30 PM on May 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
I mean admittedly Ad hominem if you saw Sam Carter kicking ass and taking names with science and fabulousness you might want to drop everything and go hang out with her, too. And by you I mean me, of course.
posted by Mizu at 7:31 PM on May 10, 2013 [9 favorites]
posted by Mizu at 7:31 PM on May 10, 2013 [9 favorites]
Caprica had potential, but it took forever to move along the story. It became tedious to almost see something cool over and over again. Throw in way too much teen-robot angst, and I see why it got canceled.
posted by spaltavian at 7:33 PM on May 10, 2013
posted by spaltavian at 7:33 PM on May 10, 2013
...but but but genderbending Jaye Davidson! And his creepy eyes!
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 7:51 PM on May 10, 2013
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 7:51 PM on May 10, 2013
Throw in way too much teen-robot angst, and I see why it got canceled.
SyFy was surprisingly candid about why Caprica and SG:U got murdered. They decided to refocus from expensive SF to cheap reality TV, which got almost as many eyeballs with much fewer dollars.
Caprica wasn't hard to watch or follow at all if you could find it every week. But they only broadcast half the first season, then waited months, then with little warning started the second half, moved it, and inexplicably cut it off completely with three eps to go which they later aired at random times when nobody could be bothered to expect them.
Caprica was, like many recent series, hard to follow if you missed too many episodes. SyFy made sure you would.
posted by localroger at 7:54 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
SyFy was surprisingly candid about why Caprica and SG:U got murdered. They decided to refocus from expensive SF to cheap reality TV, which got almost as many eyeballs with much fewer dollars.
Caprica wasn't hard to watch or follow at all if you could find it every week. But they only broadcast half the first season, then waited months, then with little warning started the second half, moved it, and inexplicably cut it off completely with three eps to go which they later aired at random times when nobody could be bothered to expect them.
Caprica was, like many recent series, hard to follow if you missed too many episodes. SyFy made sure you would.
posted by localroger at 7:54 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Stargate SG-1 was fun.
I think the best compliment I've heard about it came from my mother who said watching the just-cheesy-enough adventure stories populated with characters who only took themselves seriously when they absolutely had to reminded her of what it was like to watch the original Star Trek in the 1960s.
The movie was enjoyable, but I prefer to accept the show's in-universe explanation that it starred the other Colonel Jack O'Neill that spells his name with only one "l" and who has no sense of humor at all.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 7:57 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
I think the best compliment I've heard about it came from my mother who said watching the just-cheesy-enough adventure stories populated with characters who only took themselves seriously when they absolutely had to reminded her of what it was like to watch the original Star Trek in the 1960s.
The movie was enjoyable, but I prefer to accept the show's in-universe explanation that it starred the other Colonel Jack O'Neill that spells his name with only one "l" and who has no sense of humor at all.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 7:57 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Kurt Russell < Richard Dean Anderson
I love Anderson, but... Damn. Them's fightin' words.
posted by brundlefly at 8:02 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
I love Anderson, but... Damn. Them's fightin' words.
posted by brundlefly at 8:02 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
I love Anderson, but... Damn. Them's fightin' words.
It depends on the role. In, say, John Carpenter's The Thing, Russell nailed. I don't think Anderson could have done it. But as O'Neill? We saw 'em both, and it's Anderson who nailed the part.
posted by localroger at 8:09 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
It depends on the role. In, say, John Carpenter's The Thing, Russell nailed. I don't think Anderson could have done it. But as O'Neill? We saw 'em both, and it's Anderson who nailed the part.
posted by localroger at 8:09 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
I love Anderson, but... Damn. Them's fightin' words.
Seriously. MacGyver over Snake Plissken?
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 8:17 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Seriously. MacGyver over Snake Plissken?
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 8:17 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Gods, the SG shows were bloody awful. Take the cloying American exceptionalism and relentless militarism of Star Trek and crank it up a million times and you get Star Gate.
What's weird is that they're filmed in Canada and most popular overseas.
posted by Sys Rq at 8:21 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
What's weird is that they're filmed in Canada and most popular overseas.
posted by Sys Rq at 8:21 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
I really hope that this kind of recap-of-the-never-was catches on, and that one day, we can count on screenwriters of all of our favorite axed shows to tell us how they would have ended. If we can't use the internet to bring 'em all back from the dead, we can at least hear what would have happened.
I'd give a couple of toes to know how Now & Again would have resolved the cliffhanger at the end of its lone, marvelous season.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:29 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
I'd give a couple of toes to know how Now & Again would have resolved the cliffhanger at the end of its lone, marvelous season.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:29 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
Seriously. MacGyver over Snake Plissken?
This is Jack Burton in the Pork Chop Express, and I'm talkin' to whoever's listenin' out there...
(I love Mac as much as the next '80s nerd-child, but man... you cannot take on Jack Burton. He sees things no other men can see, and knows things no other men can know...)
posted by Slap*Happy at 8:32 PM on May 10, 2013 [6 favorites]
This is Jack Burton in the Pork Chop Express, and I'm talkin' to whoever's listenin' out there...
(I love Mac as much as the next '80s nerd-child, but man... you cannot take on Jack Burton. He sees things no other men can see, and knows things no other men can know...)
posted by Slap*Happy at 8:32 PM on May 10, 2013 [6 favorites]
I do mean in the role of O'Neil(l).
I mean there are some high notes in Russell's career, like Tango & Cash and Overboard.
Anderson basically owned StarGate and MacGuyver.
And The Love Boat, I'm sure.
posted by Mezentian at 8:52 PM on May 10, 2013
I mean there are some high notes in Russell's career, like Tango & Cash and Overboard.
Anderson basically owned StarGate and MacGuyver.
And The Love Boat, I'm sure.
posted by Mezentian at 8:52 PM on May 10, 2013
GIVE MY REGARDS TO KING TUT, ASSHOLE!!!
posted by nicolas léonard sadi carnot at 9:00 PM on May 10, 2013 [5 favorites]
posted by nicolas léonard sadi carnot at 9:00 PM on May 10, 2013 [5 favorites]
I liked Caprica.
Of course, I also get to walk through it every day at work.
Minor trivia: Also filmed in the same location: Halo.
posted by wenat at 9:00 PM on May 10, 2013
Of course, I also get to walk through it every day at work.
Minor trivia: Also filmed in the same location: Halo.
posted by wenat at 9:00 PM on May 10, 2013
Have you ever heard someone say they "Plisskened" something together out of spare parts?
No? Ok. Argument over. Move on.
posted by Cyrano at 9:01 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
No? Ok. Argument over. Move on.
posted by Cyrano at 9:01 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Loved SG-1 and was terribly sad when it got canceled. I felt like they went through a rough patch (Season 8) and then reinvigorated the series with the introduction of Cam Mitchell and Vala Mal Doran. And I adored Beau Bridges as the new general. It's too bad that they didn't manage to do what they originally intended, which was have seasons 9+ as a new show called "Stargate Command"; they might have gotten to keep the show on a little longer as it would have allowed them to renegotiate certain contracts.
Stargate Atlantis I adored for several seasons and was heartily frustrated with by the end. The writing had really gone downhill. I was not sad when it was canceled.
Stargate Universe was canceled way too soon. After a few episodes they started to bring a little humor back in (Brody and Volker and Park, especially, and Greer always had a dry, wry zinger, but everyone had their moments) without sacrificing the darker tone they'd created, and I think if they'd done that from the first it would have been more successful out of the gate (no pun intended) despite the Atlantis-fan vendetta. I was incredibly disappointed when it was canceled. I miss having that entire cast together on my screen every week.
posted by rednikki at 9:10 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
Stargate Atlantis I adored for several seasons and was heartily frustrated with by the end. The writing had really gone downhill. I was not sad when it was canceled.
Stargate Universe was canceled way too soon. After a few episodes they started to bring a little humor back in (Brody and Volker and Park, especially, and Greer always had a dry, wry zinger, but everyone had their moments) without sacrificing the darker tone they'd created, and I think if they'd done that from the first it would have been more successful out of the gate (no pun intended) despite the Atlantis-fan vendetta. I was incredibly disappointed when it was canceled. I miss having that entire cast together on my screen every week.
posted by rednikki at 9:10 PM on May 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
Have you ever heard someone say they "Plisskened" something together out of spare parts?
You don't Plissken something together, silly. You Plissken it into tiny little bits.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 9:19 PM on May 10, 2013 [11 favorites]
You don't Plissken something together, silly. You Plissken it into tiny little bits.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 9:19 PM on May 10, 2013 [11 favorites]
SG1 was so much fun. I really looked forward to it each week. Even when they started recycling plots. Even when they started sheepishly hanging a lantern on the fact that they were recycling plots. SGA left me cold. For one thing, the bad guys made no sense...they were bugs shaped like humans who fed on 'life force.' And the actors were all whiners. And as for SGU...yuck...gross. That was basically conceived as an insult to the show's fan base, who loved the tongue-in-cheek stuff. I remember the stupid jock soldier character being particularly offensive to nerds.
You could depend on SG1 for decent scripts, good acting, solid direction, and aliens who weren't immune to bullets.
posted by jabah at 9:24 PM on May 10, 2013
You could depend on SG1 for decent scripts, good acting, solid direction, and aliens who weren't immune to bullets.
posted by jabah at 9:24 PM on May 10, 2013
All that really matters is that Quantum Leap > Enterprise in terms of Bakulation.
posted by Sys Rq at 9:48 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by Sys Rq at 9:48 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Loved SG1 until about season 7 - the whole Daniel ascends and then back down again thing. Then Anderson semi-retired, and don't get me started on the Ori. Plus no Hammond of Texas. But seasons 2-5 were about as good and fun as genre TV gets. Jack and Teal'c teeing up at the gate. Come on! They did story arcs of magnificence and still managed to not take themselves too seriously.
Atlantis had a rough start but the chemistry between David Hewlett and Joe Flanigan was damn near the equal of Shanks and Anderson, and I'm not even a shipping slasher (that would be my wife). And Jason Momoa rocked.
MGM's financial incompetence harmed three franchises. They screwed SGA straight up the ass, delayed Bond for aeons, and delayed the Hobbit so long that del Toro had to drop out as director. When the revolution comes, the studio heads at MGM will be the third to be lined up against the wall, after of course the Bush administration and those bastards at Fox that fucked up Firefly.
posted by Ber at 10:22 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Atlantis had a rough start but the chemistry between David Hewlett and Joe Flanigan was damn near the equal of Shanks and Anderson, and I'm not even a shipping slasher (that would be my wife). And Jason Momoa rocked.
MGM's financial incompetence harmed three franchises. They screwed SGA straight up the ass, delayed Bond for aeons, and delayed the Hobbit so long that del Toro had to drop out as director. When the revolution comes, the studio heads at MGM will be the third to be lined up against the wall, after of course the Bush administration and those bastards at Fox that fucked up Firefly.
posted by Ber at 10:22 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Wait. A movie based on a TV show based on a movie?
Raymond 'Ray' Gunne: I'm Christian Bocher. I'm portraying the character of Raymond Gunne, who portrays the character of Dr. Levant which is based on the character, uh, Daniel Jackson, portrayed by the actor Michael Shanks, originally portrayed by the actor James Spader in the feature film.posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 10:34 PM on May 10, 2013 [5 favorites]
those bastards at Fox that fucked up Firefly
There are some things that need to be brief little jewels. Firefly, Jimi, and so on. I would not be shocked to eventually learn that Firefly was canceled, and Hendrix's and Cobain's lives cut short, through the indirect actions of time-traveling art critics trying to prevent them from turning into their own versions of Fat Sad Elvis.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 10:42 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
There are some things that need to be brief little jewels. Firefly, Jimi, and so on. I would not be shocked to eventually learn that Firefly was canceled, and Hendrix's and Cobain's lives cut short, through the indirect actions of time-traveling art critics trying to prevent them from turning into their own versions of Fat Sad Elvis.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 10:42 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
but the chemistry between David Hewlett and Joe Flanigan was damn near the equal of Shanks and Anderson,
I never though Shanks and Anderson had that much chemistry. Now, if you had said Black and Browder.
and those bastards at Fox that fucked up Firefly.
Wild guess, forth up will be the people who cancelled Farscape?
posted by Mezentian at 10:52 PM on May 10, 2013
I never though Shanks and Anderson had that much chemistry. Now, if you had said Black and Browder.
and those bastards at Fox that fucked up Firefly.
Wild guess, forth up will be the people who cancelled Farscape?
posted by Mezentian at 10:52 PM on May 10, 2013
The Ori were a mistake. They should have done a season about the Stargate Program being revealed to the public, and the start of Tauri colonization of space. When you have as great an enemy as the Goa'uld, you should not try to top them.
posted by BeeDo at 11:19 PM on May 10, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by BeeDo at 11:19 PM on May 10, 2013 [4 favorites]
When you have as great an enemy as the Goa'uld, you should not try to top them.
In the words of the greatest Sci-Fi writer of our time: there's always a bigger fish.
posted by Mezentian at 12:15 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
In the words of the greatest Sci-Fi writer of our time: there's always a bigger fish.
posted by Mezentian at 12:15 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Here is how Stargate: Atlantis' planned movie, Extinction, was supposed to follow up on the series finale of Atlantis cloaked in the San Fransisco Bay and its return to the Pegasus Galaxy.
Good god that plot is hackneyed. Well, actually hackneyed is good. Tired is what that plot is.
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 12:19 AM on May 11, 2013
Good god that plot is hackneyed. Well, actually hackneyed is good. Tired is what that plot is.
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 12:19 AM on May 11, 2013
I always assumed they thought SG-1 was getting cancelled at the end of season 8, so they pretty much wrapped up the whole goa'uld storyline in preparation. They had to scramble a bit to come up with story lines (and new characters!) for season 9, and ended up with ascended goa'uld i.e. the Ori vs farscape.
Atlantis never really worked for me. Flannigan is no Richard Dean Anderson, and they clearly struggled to make Mckay likeable given his primary role in SG-1 was to be an annoying dick to Carter. Plus the whole initial setup was being cut off from earth and on their own, which they promptly rolled back as soon as they got the chance. It basically was SG-1 lite with worse characters and often recycled plots.
Universe was what Atlantis never managed to be - awesome. I really liked that they had to face the realities of being 'the B team' stranded on a fairly broken ship without the right supplies - and what they did have, they were always running out of. Plus with Robert Carlyle playing scheming scientist to perfection. (is there anything Carlyle isn't awesome in? He even makes once upon a time watchable, and the one-take Johnnie Walker ad is impressive). I was really pretty upset when Universe was cancelled.
Still, it's interesting to see what might have been with Atlantis; good they planned to take it back to Pegasus, and Todd was one of the best Stargate characters.
posted by ArkhanJG at 4:31 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Atlantis never really worked for me. Flannigan is no Richard Dean Anderson, and they clearly struggled to make Mckay likeable given his primary role in SG-1 was to be an annoying dick to Carter. Plus the whole initial setup was being cut off from earth and on their own, which they promptly rolled back as soon as they got the chance. It basically was SG-1 lite with worse characters and often recycled plots.
Universe was what Atlantis never managed to be - awesome. I really liked that they had to face the realities of being 'the B team' stranded on a fairly broken ship without the right supplies - and what they did have, they were always running out of. Plus with Robert Carlyle playing scheming scientist to perfection. (is there anything Carlyle isn't awesome in? He even makes once upon a time watchable, and the one-take Johnnie Walker ad is impressive). I was really pretty upset when Universe was cancelled.
Still, it's interesting to see what might have been with Atlantis; good they planned to take it back to Pegasus, and Todd was one of the best Stargate characters.
posted by ArkhanJG at 4:31 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
I really hope that this kind of recap-of-the-never-was catches on
For a moment I thought you were referring to that awesome "Previously, on Stargate SG-1" in the 200th episode that recapped a bunch of episodes that never happened, including the time SG-1 finally met those perennially absent members of the Alliance of Four Great Races, the Furlings.
I'm convinced the SG-1 writers must have been working next to a lampshade factory, what with the sheer number of them that they hung over the years.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 7:35 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
For a moment I thought you were referring to that awesome "Previously, on Stargate SG-1" in the 200th episode that recapped a bunch of episodes that never happened, including the time SG-1 finally met those perennially absent members of the Alliance of Four Great Races, the Furlings.
I'm convinced the SG-1 writers must have been working next to a lampshade factory, what with the sheer number of them that they hung over the years.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 7:35 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
I really hope that this kind of recap-of-the-never-was catches on, and that one day, we can count on screenwriters of all of our favorite axed shows to tell us how they would have ended,The stories are out there; what's missing is an obsessive compulsion to collect, edit, and publish them in a tidy blog. Though one might say that sci-fi tv blogs serve that purpose.
posted by ZeusHumms at 9:17 AM on May 11, 2013
SG-1 was really great during the Showtime years; they coasted a bit during the Sci-Fi/SyFy years, but faced a lot of challenges - seismic cast changes, lackluster storylines, and a home network in turmoil.
SG-A felt pretty derivative at first, and had plenty of eye-rolling moments from beginning to end. But it also had a really great cast that added a lot to the stories. It's a good show for shippers. I didn't love or obsessively follow it, but it was a good show that deserved a better ending.
SG-U was even more derivative, and seemed designed to fill the space-opera quotient that SyFy wanted to capture, and sort of did with BSG. Alas, no. Plus the communication stones were so lamely used from beginning to end; the number of good stories they allowed were dwarfed by the controversies and handwaving they facilitated.
If nothing else, following shows on Sci-Fi taught me just how much of a business TV is, and how lucky we are to get something entertaining, and how rare it is to get something thought provoking. Otherwise shows get moved around like chess pieces and raided like piggy banks for someone else's plans. And it's hardly limited to North America or commercial TV.
posted by ZeusHumms at 9:25 AM on May 11, 2013
SG-A felt pretty derivative at first, and had plenty of eye-rolling moments from beginning to end. But it also had a really great cast that added a lot to the stories. It's a good show for shippers. I didn't love or obsessively follow it, but it was a good show that deserved a better ending.
SG-U was even more derivative, and seemed designed to fill the space-opera quotient that SyFy wanted to capture, and sort of did with BSG. Alas, no. Plus the communication stones were so lamely used from beginning to end; the number of good stories they allowed were dwarfed by the controversies and handwaving they facilitated.
If nothing else, following shows on Sci-Fi taught me just how much of a business TV is, and how lucky we are to get something entertaining, and how rare it is to get something thought provoking. Otherwise shows get moved around like chess pieces and raided like piggy banks for someone else's plans. And it's hardly limited to North America or commercial TV.
posted by ZeusHumms at 9:25 AM on May 11, 2013
Namless Goua'ald < Christopher Judge.
Indeed.
posted by DreamerFi at 12:27 PM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
Indeed.
posted by DreamerFi at 12:27 PM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
I never could get into Atlantis, but Universe was good. It ensaddened me when it was prematurely canned. Interestingly, I don't think I have watched anything on SyFy since. Guess me and people like me were a pretty small share of their viewership, since they seem to have no intention of showing good TV over there again.
posted by wierdo at 1:43 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by wierdo at 1:43 PM on May 11, 2013
Interestingly, I don't think I have watched anything on SyFy since.
SG:U and Caprica were the last actual original science fiction series SyFy bothered to run. You probably haven't watched anything on them since because you've seen the old stuff and you're no fan of wrestling or ghost reality.
posted by localroger at 3:17 PM on May 11, 2013
SG:U and Caprica were the last actual original science fiction series SyFy bothered to run. You probably haven't watched anything on them since because you've seen the old stuff and you're no fan of wrestling or ghost reality.
posted by localroger at 3:17 PM on May 11, 2013
SG:U and Caprica were the last actual original science fiction series SyFy bothered to run. You probably haven't watched anything on them since because you've seen the old stuff and you're no fan of wrestling or ghost reality.
Those two were the last shows I watched on SyFy. I've been intrigued with the idea of Defiance, but I don't own a DVR and the other means I have to watch shows, Roku / Fire, don't have a means to watch it (that I'm aware of). But yes, the moment those two ended (and really, Caprica after they suspended it for who knows how many months), I ceased tuning in to the channel. All the shows that I had loved to watch were gone.
I am in the middle of re-watching SG-1 and Atlantis for the third or fourth time (I can't recall), and still find myself enjoying the majority of the episodes. I still love how Samantha Carter is the brains of the Stargate Program, and have a hard time figuring out what shows had a major female character in the same or similar role (soldier / scientists / buttkicker / nametaker). It was a pleasure to go back and watch Michael Shanks transform his Daniel Jackson from a similar representation of James Spader's character to a character entirely his own. With such a lengthy show, it's just a dandy of a time to watch the characters and actors evolve.
For a franchise that spawned three television shows, two successful direct to DVD movies, and other materials in other mediums, it's a bit surprising that no one has thought to try and resurrect the show or idea that the show presents in a new form.
posted by Atreides at 4:02 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Those two were the last shows I watched on SyFy. I've been intrigued with the idea of Defiance, but I don't own a DVR and the other means I have to watch shows, Roku / Fire, don't have a means to watch it (that I'm aware of). But yes, the moment those two ended (and really, Caprica after they suspended it for who knows how many months), I ceased tuning in to the channel. All the shows that I had loved to watch were gone.
I am in the middle of re-watching SG-1 and Atlantis for the third or fourth time (I can't recall), and still find myself enjoying the majority of the episodes. I still love how Samantha Carter is the brains of the Stargate Program, and have a hard time figuring out what shows had a major female character in the same or similar role (soldier / scientists / buttkicker / nametaker). It was a pleasure to go back and watch Michael Shanks transform his Daniel Jackson from a similar representation of James Spader's character to a character entirely his own. With such a lengthy show, it's just a dandy of a time to watch the characters and actors evolve.
For a franchise that spawned three television shows, two successful direct to DVD movies, and other materials in other mediums, it's a bit surprising that no one has thought to try and resurrect the show or idea that the show presents in a new form.
posted by Atreides at 4:02 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Atreides, yes on all counts. I was introduced to the show when Hulu jammed it a season a month and Iwas shocked at how, well not exactly good but how much fun it was. At that pace you can really see the character development arcs and they were really well done, and Sam is one of the best strong female characters ever. Every once in awhile I catch an episode on cable when I'm out of town and I get to see the full rez FX, which I missed in the Hulu jam. There seems to be a consensus at TVtroes that SG-1 did a full trope marathon, then dd a second lap hanging lampshades. I kind of thought the Ori were a misstep and they should have just taken the SG program public, but they managed to still make it fun and they might have thought a public SG Earth would be just too expensive to shoot on film.
posted by localroger at 5:21 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by localroger at 5:21 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
> There is an entire generation who will never think of Richard Dean Anderson and go, "Hey! MacGuyver!"
Yes, that was a problem.
Say what you want, I know the real reason Atlantis -- which I loved -- had to go. Blame it all on Ronan's bangs. I could suspend disbelief for all sorts of ridiculousness, but his new hairstyle was just too much.
posted by The corpse in the library at 7:39 AM on May 12, 2013 [2 favorites]
Yes, that was a problem.
Say what you want, I know the real reason Atlantis -- which I loved -- had to go. Blame it all on Ronan's bangs. I could suspend disbelief for all sorts of ridiculousness, but his new hairstyle was just too much.
posted by The corpse in the library at 7:39 AM on May 12, 2013 [2 favorites]
SG:U and Caprica were the last actual original science fiction series SyFy bothered to run. You probably haven't watched anything on them since because you've seen the old stuff and you're no fan of wrestling or ghost reality.
I don't want to go crazy, but you might consider Defiance.
It has a second season order, and you might not like it, but give it until episode four. I enjoyed the pilot, others thought it was cliche riden gunk, but it has the DNA of something great.
Rob Bricken at io9 shares my opinions, if you want to hunt his recaps.w
But, I love Warehouse 13. YMMV.
posted by Mezentian at 7:21 AM on May 15, 2013
I don't want to go crazy, but you might consider Defiance.
It has a second season order, and you might not like it, but give it until episode four. I enjoyed the pilot, others thought it was cliche riden gunk, but it has the DNA of something great.
Rob Bricken at io9 shares my opinions, if you want to hunt his recaps.w
But, I love Warehouse 13. YMMV.
posted by Mezentian at 7:21 AM on May 15, 2013
Joseph Mallozzi is a douchebag. He couldn't write his way out of a paper bag. He and his writing buddy are responsible for season 3's "Irresistable" aka the "OH RAPE!!! HAHAHAHA!!!" episode. In this episode, multiple women are induced to sleep with Lucius Lavin while they're under the influence of a mind-altering substance. This is played for laughs.
They're also responsible for "Whispers" aka the "WHOOO!!! HOT MILITARY CHICKS!!!" episode from Season 5. And the episode where Sheppard kills Kolya in a stupid, cliched gunfight at the Pegasus corral. All of his ideas are terrible and he's a terrible writer. How he ever got involved with Stargate, I'll never know.
Basically, everyone at the top tier of management on the Stargate shows was pretty much a douchebag. They ran Atlantis into the ground so they could rush out their BSG clone. It failed and now they don't get to do Stargate anymore. It's their own faults and I feel bad for the casts and crews of the two shows they ruined. But I don't feel bad for TPTB because they brought it on themselves with their shitty behavior, hubris and bad management.
posted by i feel possessed at 3:39 AM on May 18, 2013 [3 favorites]
They're also responsible for "Whispers" aka the "WHOOO!!! HOT MILITARY CHICKS!!!" episode from Season 5. And the episode where Sheppard kills Kolya in a stupid, cliched gunfight at the Pegasus corral. All of his ideas are terrible and he's a terrible writer. How he ever got involved with Stargate, I'll never know.
Basically, everyone at the top tier of management on the Stargate shows was pretty much a douchebag. They ran Atlantis into the ground so they could rush out their BSG clone. It failed and now they don't get to do Stargate anymore. It's their own faults and I feel bad for the casts and crews of the two shows they ruined. But I don't feel bad for TPTB because they brought it on themselves with their shitty behavior, hubris and bad management.
posted by i feel possessed at 3:39 AM on May 18, 2013 [3 favorites]
SG-1 was fun for awhile, but I never could get into Atlantis. I was glad it was there, though, since it meant someone was having goofy scifi fun and that's a good thing.
Universe had potential, but I felt like the writers didn't know what they wanted to do with it. I remember getting fed up with it after they'd created a storyline in which several characters were separated from the ship and it was a big deal because they were going to be lost for a long time, but then an episode or two later they just strolled through the gate like nothing had happened. I think it would have improved if it had been given given more time.
posted by homunculus at 5:03 PM on May 18, 2013 [1 favorite]
Universe had potential, but I felt like the writers didn't know what they wanted to do with it. I remember getting fed up with it after they'd created a storyline in which several characters were separated from the ship and it was a big deal because they were going to be lost for a long time, but then an episode or two later they just strolled through the gate like nothing had happened. I think it would have improved if it had been given given more time.
posted by homunculus at 5:03 PM on May 18, 2013 [1 favorite]
« Older Always Look Both Ways .... and UP ! | Do you wear headphones? Do you like skeletons? Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
I notice you didn't mention the Stargate cartoon.posted by Mezentian at 6:24 PM on May 10, 2013 [2 favorites]