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Favorite Stargate work?
Stargate: The Motion Picture 1 (20%)
Stargate SG-1 3 (60%)
Stargate: Atlantis 1 (20%)
Stargate: Universe 0 (0%)
Those neat direct-to-video Stargate movies that resolve dangling plot threads because Sci-Fi is a bunch of show-canceling dicks 0 (0%)
Total Votes: 5
The Stargate Topic; Movie, SG-1, Atlantis, Universe...
Topic Started: Oct 25 2009, 11:45 PM (483 Views)
NewtypeS3
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The Rejected Spartan
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So, here we go. Not sure if we ever had a Stargate topic ever before, but what the hell. With a new show, and more direct-to-video DVDs of Stargate coming out at some point, we might as well have a topic for it.

So, in any case, Stargate Universe has been running for a good four weeks now (5 episodes, though, thanks to a 2-part premier), and... I'm really not sure what to think about it. It's not that I'm a Stargate "virgin," as I've seen a fair chunk of SG-1 and I've seen all of Atlantis - not to mention the pretty good DTV movies... it's that the entire show feels like it's downright determined to be as bland as possible.
Our first episode, Air, gave us an introduction to our crew. Which consists of a geeky guy like the fanbase, a royal asshole parading around as a scientist, an Adama clone, about 10 faceless jackass marines and 40 or so completely idiotic civilians who resemble those giant baby scientists from Prince of Space more than any other form of civilian scientist associated with the Stargate Program. And, of course, we also get our ship: the Voyager Destiny. And it's falling apart, because it just wouldn't be fine drama to be stranded with a mostly-functioning base - and it was done before with Atlantis (expect Stargate: Enterprise to be done with "we're stuck on a planet in another plane of reality with the ruins of Ancient buildings" just to top Universe at some point).
Oh, and no one is really likable outside of Eli, the nerdy geeky guy we're supposed to identify with.

Our second third episode, Air... part 3 winds up having the cast wander around a desert in order to find limestone to fix the air scrubbers in the Destiny. And they singlehandedly prove that every single person aside from Eli on this expedition is suffering from the same raging-asshole-bipolar-syndrome that Captain Janeway suffered from on Star Trek: Voyager. Complete with some of the away-mission people deciding to strand the rest on a desert planet with no way of getting back to their cool ship (ie: strand to death) while they go explore a planet that the ship has taken great efforts to make sure they don't go to.
And then no one cares about them anyhow, aside from Eli. I expect this to be a pattern, people.

Episode four is entitled Darkness, where half of our cast is undergoing withdrawal from various legal addictive substances... and our Asshole Scientist is an even greater asshole, taking the whole thing into levels that William Shatner would never touch with a twenty foot pole. And so, the ship loses power. Because nothing else could go wrong - and sadly, it's pointing right at the star of this solar system they parked in.

Episode 5? Light. Where everyone, again, turns into raging assholes, the asshole scientist is painted as either a Magnificent Bastard or a royal moron or both... and Eli doesn't get any from a girl he likes. Oh, and the ship refuels by diving into the Stars, so go figure. I'm calling the ship being 100% repaired by the end of the second season at this rate.

God, I want to like this show. I enjoy SG-1's episodes beyond the first two seasons (and even then, the first two seasons are tolerable), and I loved Atlantis. But this just feels like every single time I tried to watch Battlestar Galactica's remake series: confusing, morally retarded and disjointed while everyone is an asshole to one another.
I suppose I'll stick with the show until the end of the first season, at least. I mean, someone has got to develop into an actual character outside Eli. It's statistically impossible for the rest of the cast to remain faceless assholes who panic at the drop of a hat and then try to bitch mindlessly at one another for an entire season.

So, anyone else watching SG:U? Anyone looking forward to the upcoming movie Stargate: Extinction, which will be more of Atlantis? Anyone want Atlantis back?
Hell, anyone just getting into Stargate?
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Lowe Gear
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HNH

I liked SG-1 until around Season 7 or so, when it was obvious that it needed to bow out gracefully and didn't. Those last couple of story arcs really wore thin, IMO.

Atlantis started off slow, but ended up pretty good. And the fact that it had Robert Picardo didn't hurt, either.

Far as Universe goes, I missed the pilot, but thus far I've had no real burning desire to watch the rest, really.
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PhoenixGundam13x
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The Angel with Charcoal Wings
I've been watching Stargate since it began airing on Fox during Season 1 many years ago. It's been sad to see the series devolve into what it is now.

The Goa'uld arc of SG-1 is easily my favorite part of the franchise thanks to nostalgia. The Anubis arc started off poorly, but got much better as the seasons went on. The Ori arc really doesn't feel like SG-1 to begin with, but luckily Atlantis showed up to carry the torch of quality.

Universe is pretty terrible however. It may be worse than Infinity and that was just a poorly written kids show with the Stargate name attached to it. So far it has little of the humor or wit that made the franchise so fun to watch. In fact it reminds me of that one segment in the 200th episode of SG-1 where the cast had been replaced by angsty teens more than anything.
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NewtypeS3
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The Rejected Spartan
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Yeah, the show probably should have ended around season 8, where the System Lords plotline ended. But hey, we got Ben Browder being awesome for the next two seasons, so I'm not gonna complain.
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PhoenixGundam13x
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The Angel with Charcoal Wings
The Ori arc had its charm for sure, but the Ori just felt like terrible villains to me. It probably would have been great if Ba'al were the main enemy as well as possibly the Lucian Alliance.
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Raxtenko
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The Maleficent

I'm all right with Stargate I suppose, but I always felt that it relied too much on O'Neill's witty banter. Still I was decently entertained by it even without him and it was always fun to watch to catch the local sights.
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Infected
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Legendary Junker
Watched all 10 Seasons of SG-1 and am in the process of watching the fifth season of Atlantis (currently airing for the first time in german TV), and thoroughly enjoyed both of the SG-1 DtDVD movies.

Unlike the general mood here, I'd have liked atleast one more season of the original SG series. While the bigger budget of the movies had it's nice side effects, and considering the circumstances 'Unending' was not only one of the most beatiful episodes, but also just about the best way to end the series, I still would have liked for the writers to have had some more time to flesh out the Ori Galaxy plotline as well as not get to know on such a short notice that the series would be ending.

I haven't seen the end of Atlantis yet, though from what I have heard they ended up in a similar situation as the original series.
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NewtypeS3
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The Rejected Spartan
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Pretty much - the creators of SG-1 were expecting another season or so before Sci-Fi pulled the plug on them for literally no reason - though they did at least have a chance to write up a damned good series finale. In their slot went, IIRC, Eureka... so I'm not entirely complaining (space sci-fi for Earth SCIENCE with the same sort of main? I'm sold)...
...but Atlantis? From what I've heard, the crew found out they were canned while filming the season, essentially leaving very little time to adjust for a series finale. As such, while the finale would make a good season finale, it just doesn't seem as good as a series finale. Sorta like if Star Trek: Voyager ended with an ending that said "we're only halfway home, but we made it this far in seven years. We'll make that remaining time home, even if it takes a lifetime" and then cut to the credits.

That said, season 5 does have my favorite Doctor McKay episode... though I tend to enjoy all his episodes, as he's also my favorite character on the damned show. It's certainly fun to watch the guy try to learn social skills after being so socially inept for decades - especially when he actually succeeds at those attempts.

It almost seems like they took Doctor McKay and then ramped him up to 11 while dialing all of his redeeming attributes down to zero for the Asshole Scientist in SG-U, though, now that I think about it.
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Infected
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Legendary Junker
I think McKay is the favorite of about 90% of the people that watch the show, simply because we tend to be the nerds and simply can better identify with the science guy then for example Ronon who's more like a Bulldozer given human shape.
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NewtypeS3
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The Rejected Spartan
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Well, I also find Ronon to be pretty cool, too. And his 'brothership' with McKay (they ain't friends, as McKay is bad at that... but they look after one another half of the time like they're flesh and blood or something) is always fun to watch.

In fact, the only characters I've never felt anything for are...
---Teyla. She may be attractive, but she never did anything. It's like they combined the "cool-headed alien" trope with a Doctor Who companion from the old series - she's almost always getting captured or waiting for something to happen.
---Shepard. He's... kind of a dick. I do like his friendship with McKay, though, so it's not like I want him off the show or anything. I just think he crossed that moral event horizon way too damned many times.
---Wier. Same reason as Teyla: she never really did anything. But hey, didn't need to worry much there.

But yeah, McKay is awesome.
Hell, I'd pay good cash up front for a series that focused on Daniel and McKay having to work together to solve problems in the Stargate Universe.
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Infected
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Legendary Junker
I really liked Ford, so Ronon coming along irked me for quite a while. Especially since the whole "Strong 'Alien' Fighting Guy had been filled up by Teal'C in a way that made Ronon feel bland. He still isn't my favorite character, but I really liked that they tried to move a bit away from the way he was portrayed early one with the whole trying to score with Dr. Keller and the talk between him and McKay pretty much always managed to score a laugh, but then again McKay manages that one on his own pretty well.
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NewtypeS3
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Oh true - I liked Ford as well. He just came off as a little bland, but he could have worked pretty well had they given Ford some actual development. At least he got to do something before being sent off on the proverbial bus.
And yeah, I did find Ronon to be a little bit of a Teal'c clone at first, though by the end of the second season, he was more or less his own guy... which made that one episode in the fifth season all the more awesome to watch.

And McKay can even get laughs while stranded on his own, as we've seen before. :lol:
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