Reflections on SG1

[MacLeod]

I discovered SG1 shortly after Voyager went off the air. I was aware of it before then, but I think it was on Showtime at first and we didn't get that. It quickly became my new favorite sci-fi show. Oh and I had also seen the movie Stargate before that as well. I like Stargate because it combines 2 things I like, sci-fi and mythology.

I think Atlantis was OK, but I disliked how many characters got killed off. First Ford (they never completely resolved things about him did they), I can't remember if Weir or Beckett was axed next. Beckett* was my favorite character in Atlantis. I did not know Tori Higgenson was let go until I read this thread.

I couldn't stand SGU. I tried twice to watch it. But I got about half way through the first season and couldn't stand it.

*The actor that played Beckett, Paul Gillion was in a season 1 episode of SG1, he played the young version of Ernest Littlefield in The Torment of Tantalus. I believe he also had a bit (like maybe 1 or 2 lines) part in the 2009 Star Trek. I wonder if he was ever considered for the role of Scotty.

From memory the decision to kill Beckett did not go down well with the fans as he was a popular character with the fans. The fact they had to bring him back might mean they realised it was a mistake to kill him. Bear in mind he was promoted to regular from recurring. As for Ford perhaps that was one character they never really got a handle on or just really didn't have any ideas of where to go.

As for Weir whilst it would have been nice to keep her around, I don't think the show suffered as much from her loss as it did Beckett's.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

I just went through a marathon of SG1. I've been putting in huge hours of work recently, and SG1 works quite nicely in the background. That doesn't mean I wasn't watching it as I was... but it is a show that can sustain being a little distracted.

Anyway... I just wanted to spew some random thoughts!

I never watched any Stargate until a couple years ago, wound up getting the SG1, SGA and SGU boxsets and having a huge marathon of it. Still pick up the occassional season or episode and watch it again from time to time, though might be a while before I go through it all again--does kinda consume the life, lol.

Arc vs episodic
But it's amazing how right now.. while there was so many good episodes of the more political/Earth nature I felt there was a missed opportunity.

You have a gate, that can go ANYWHERE. And you piss around on Earth again and again.

I don't know whether that's my mood, or my age... but quite frankly, I longed for the earlier seasons more as I went on.

I liked when they focused on Earth-based stories, seeing as how it was a contemporary series, looking at humanity 'now' as opposed to in the future, I think they got in the right amount of political and military manoeuvring and back-stabbing.

One thing that did constantly annoy me were the clip shows. I know they help save the production money, but on a binge, when what they're flashing back to you watched just six hours ago is just tedious. Thankfully it was something they got out of the habit of doing.

Season seven
Worst season by a mile...The stories really suffer.

Season eight however is considerably better...Way better than season even.

I did find S7/8 a really weird 'transitory' period. I have to admit here, I am not a huge fan of RDA so I didn't mind seeing less of him. Was great seeing Carter command the team though.

Ben Browder/Claudia Black
Huge Farscape fan... but Ben Browder just fits very well.

Vala is just so endearing, I love her.

Cameron/Vala and the SG1 team work so well that season 10 felt fresh and original and could have gone on for years.

I love Ben Browder (such a shame he wasn't in leather trousers though ) and he adds a nice new dynamic, adding the adventurous aspect back, since Gate travel is still all new to him.

Likewise with Claudia Black, Vala was just a hoot. Fortunately, they didn't fall into any pitfalls of trying to have them play the same characters as FarScape. They both breathed new life into the show that really could've seen it carry on for a few more years.

Daniel Jackson/Jonas Quinn
I really liked Jonas Quinn at the time and still do. Admittedly... huge sexual attraction to him, which does make me inclined to like him a lot. But he added something fresh and he only went because Shanks got bored and wanted back in with his special 'and' credit.

I was less angry this time than I was last time, but boy do I miss Corin Nemec in those t-shirts...

Totally with you there on Jonas Quinn

The movies.
Memory said they were good... not so much. Ark of Truth is just a rehash of everything before. Continuum considerably better and movie feeling, but hardly sets the world on fire and still rehashes a lot. Has none of the warmth and character stuff of seasons 9/10.

They did tie up plot threads, though the PTB could've given SG-1 an eleventh season and done all of that as well, though with more development of the characters and given them their own send-offs (such as Carter leaving the team for the George Hammond and so forth).

After going through all the series, as much as SG-1 set the template and created the universe for the franchise (the movie was just a concept, the TV series really made it) I rank it in third place for the Stargate shows. I'm not saying I hate it or that its bad, but the other two just resonate better with me.

 

[fireproof78]

I just went through a marathon of SG1. I've been putting in huge hours of work recently, and SG1 works quite nicely in the background. That doesn't mean I wasn't watching it as I was... but it is a show that can sustain being a little distracted.

Anyway... I just wanted to spew some random thoughts!

I never watched any Stargate until a couple years ago, wound up getting the SG1, SGA and SGU boxsets and having a huge marathon of it. Still pick up the occassional season or episode and watch it again from time to time, though might be a while before I go through it all again--does kinda consume the life, lol.

Arc vs episodic
But it's amazing how right now.. while there was so many good episodes of the more political/Earth nature I felt there was a missed opportunity.

You have a gate, that can go ANYWHERE. And you piss around on Earth again and again.

I don't know whether that's my mood, or my age... but quite frankly, I longed for the earlier seasons more as I went on.

I liked when they focused on Earth-based stories, seeing as how it was a contemporary series, looking at humanity 'now' as opposed to in the future, I think they got in the right amount of political and military manoeuvring and back-stabbing.

One thing that did constantly annoy me were the clip shows. I know they help save the production money, but on a binge, when what they're flashing back to you watched just six hours ago is just tedious. Thankfully it was something they got out of the habit of doing.


I did find S7/8 a really weird 'transitory' period. I have to admit here, I am not a huge fan of RDA so I didn't mind seeing less of him. Was great seeing Carter command the team though.


I love Ben Browder (such a shame he wasn't in leather trousers though ) and he adds a nice new dynamic, adding the adventurous aspect back, since Gate travel is still all new to him.

Likewise with Claudia Black, Vala was just a hoot. Fortunately, they didn't fall into any pitfalls of trying to have them play the same characters as FarScape. They both breathed new life into the show that really could've seen it carry on for a few more years.

Daniel Jackson/Jonas Quinn
I really liked Jonas Quinn at the time and still do. Admittedly... huge sexual attraction to him, which does make me inclined to like him a lot. But he added something fresh and he only went because Shanks got bored and wanted back in with his special 'and' credit.

I was less angry this time than I was last time, but boy do I miss Corin Nemec in those t-shirts...

Totally with you there on Jonas Quinn

The movies.
Memory said they were good... not so much. Ark of Truth is just a rehash of everything before. Continuum considerably better and movie feeling, but hardly sets the world on fire and still rehashes a lot. Has none of the warmth and character stuff of seasons 9/10.

They did tie up plot threads, though the PTB could've given SG-1 an eleventh season and done all of that as well, though with more development of the characters and given them their own send-offs (such as Carter leaving the team for the George Hammond and so forth).

After going through all the series, as much as SG-1 set the template and created the universe for the franchise (the movie was just a concept, the TV series really made it) I rank it in third place for the Stargate shows. I'm not saying I hate it or that its bad, but the other two just resonate better with me.

Not to put you on the spot, but this last point fascinates me. I enjoyed Atlantis well enough, even after they got rid of Ford () but it never quite clicked with me. Have to try it again.

Universe, I had a tough time connecting with the characters and felt like it was trying too hard to disconnect itself from the other shows.

But, bear in mind, I absolutely enjoyed the original film, and felt SG-1 carried that premise forward in a very interesting way.

Though, I heard Emmerich was thinking of creating a sequel to the original film based upon his ideas. Could be interesting.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Not to put you on the spot, but this last point fascinates me. I enjoyed Atlantis well enough, even after they got rid of Ford () but it never quite clicked with me. Have to try it again.

Universe, I had a tough time connecting with the characters and felt like it was trying too hard to disconnect itself from the other shows.

But, bear in mind, I absolutely enjoyed the original film, and felt SG-1 carried that premise forward in a very interesting way.

Though, I heard Emmerich was thinking of creating a sequel to the original film based upon his ideas. Could be interesting.

I first watched SG-1 going in with a very Star Trek mind, non-interference and all that, so seeing characters out to basically pilfer and steal technology from others just seems such an alien concept to me in the beginning.

I also have to say that I really didn't buy RDA as a leader and enjoyed the show far more after he stepped back, but that is just me.

I'm one of the odd people who love Universe, simply because it was so different from the others and not as formulaic (I also personally think it is how VOY should've been, but that's a totally different conversation).

Whilst Atlantis had such an interesting set up and concept and the characters were ones I just clicked with better, except for Woolsey (though again that's more because of the actor than anything else).

 

[MacLeod]

I enjoyed SG:U as well. I think after two similar shows it was time for them to try something different. Unfortunatly this can alienate some of your audiance, but so can keeping things similar. Lets examine two ST shows DSN and VOY, DSN did receive some complaints about it being different, and VOY recieved them for being more of the same.

 

[fireproof78]

Not to put you on the spot, but this last point fascinates me. I enjoyed Atlantis well enough, even after they got rid of Ford () but it never quite clicked with me. Have to try it again.

Universe, I had a tough time connecting with the characters and felt like it was trying too hard to disconnect itself from the other shows.

But, bear in mind, I absolutely enjoyed the original film, and felt SG-1 carried that premise forward in a very interesting way.

Though, I heard Emmerich was thinking of creating a sequel to the original film based upon his ideas. Could be interesting.

I first watched SG-1 going in with a very Star Trek mind, non-interference and all that, so seeing characters out to basically pilfer and steal technology from others just seems such an alien concept to me in the beginning.

I also have to say that I really didn't buy RDA as a leader and enjoyed the show far more after he stepped back, but that is just me.

I'm one of the odd people who love Universe, simply because it was so different from the others and not as formulaic (I also personally think it is how VOY should've been, but that's a totally different conversation).

Whilst Atlantis had such an interesting set up and concept and the characters were ones I just clicked with better, except for Woolsey (though again that's more because of the actor than anything else).

All fair points, and ones I can understand, even if I don't agree with the conclusion.

Universe was too different for me, after watching both SG-1 and Atlantis. I'm thinking of giving it a go after not watching Stargate for a bit.

Beyond that, O'Neill was hit and miss for me. Early on was a bit tough, but I definitely came to appreciate him more.

But, Browder was perfect, in my opinion.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

All fair points, and ones I can understand, even if I don't agree with the conclusion.

Well if we all agreed then that would make life a very dull experience

Universe was too different for me, after watching both SG-1 and Atlantis. I'm thinking of giving it a go after not watching Stargate for a bit.

Admittedly, SGU was my first taster of SG, I stumbled upon it when flicking through TV and since nothing else was on I watched it (happened to be the last episode), it intrigued me so I went back to the beginning to see how they got there.

Beyond that, O'Neill was hit and miss for me. Early on was a bit tough, but I definitely came to appreciate him more.

But, Browder was perfect, in my opinion.

I can just imagine how SGA might've turned out if he'd gotten the Sheppard role, though so glad they did bring him in for SG-1. He just has such charisma on screen that I can't help like him.

 

[sttngfan1701d]

Okay, I burned through the first 6 (of 8, so far) Atlantis "Legacy" continuation books. And y'know what? Not bad. Not especially compelling, but not bad. Most of the emphasis is on the characters which is what I care about most anyway.

Yeah, they're not canon, but I don't care since this is all we're gonna get anyway. The franchise is long dead. I actually didn't mind the direction they went with the Wraith culture. I enjoyed the exploration there, and actual characterization of the Wraith. The big-bad "Queen Death" was pretty lame though. I was mostly invested in how they expanded Todd's storyline and fleshed out the whole Wraith/Pegasus Galaxy mythology.

The Genii were annoying in the books. The whole "plans within plans wrapped in another plan" thing might play out well in 44-minute TV bites, but in books, it just drags and gets old. Loved how they went forward with Teyla's growth and went deeper into Sheppard's psyche. And the more Radek Zalenka, the better! Pretty much every character had nice exploration - Woolsey, Carter, O'Neill - but I didn't really enjoy what they did with Dr. Keller. Yes it makes sense with what they do within the story, but it just left me kinda cold. And the whole McKay thing...too drawn out over multiple books. Sheppard also made some decisions I don't personally see him making, but I can see why the authors used it as a device to explore his character.

But I really would've liked to see Atlantis' new home planet on the TV show. Cold and snowy would've been a treat and we could've seen some cool cold-weather gear and snow CGI.

But most of all, I enjoyed the exploration of how life in Atlantis shaped the characters, both main and minor. How longtime members of the expedition adjusted to life there over a period of years, little asides about daily life and personal downtime, and wondering about the future and whether the IOA would pull the plug on the whole thing...it felt like an extension of the show in a lot of ways.

Not perfect, but enjoyable. Hit the spot. It takes you back to Atlantis and lets you see the characters grown more. Quibbles about overall story arc pale next to that, since "character moments" were what I was looking for anyway. And now I'm hoping that books 7 and 8 aren't the end of the line!

 

[Mr Light]

I had no idea there were 8 post-series Atlantis books

 

[sttngfan1701d]

Neither did I, until this thread. The first 6 "Legacy" books are one big story arc, and that was originally supposed to be it, but apparently they were popular enough to warrant 2 more...the 8th book coming out just this past July.

 

[Tracy Trek]

Spoilers


Are they (the Legacy series) the ones where the first in the series has them investigating a type of Wraith that's been on earth for thousands of years (the basis of the incubus and succubus myths)? Because I have read that one recently.

 

[AntonyF]

From memory the decision to kill Beckett did not go down well with the fans as he was a popular character with the fans. The fact they had to bring him back might mean they realised it was a mistake to kill him. Bear in mind he was promoted to regular from recurring. As for Ford perhaps that was one character they never really got a handle on or just really didn't have any ideas of where to go.

Very much so. I was at Comic Con at the time, and the fans campaigning for his return gave out Scottish flags to everyone... hundreds of people waving Scottish flags when the producers came on stage was quite a statement, I'll give them that. And it clearly worked.

I love Ben Browder (such a shame he wasn't in leather trousers though ) and he adds a nice new dynamic, adding the adventurous aspect back, since Gate travel is still all new to him.

Very wise sir!

I just did a re-run of SGA... so I can do reflections on SGA now!

At the time, I always felt SGA could be my favourite Stargate or at least had the potential too. But a lot of it really doesn't hold up.

Opinions I held at the time are largely the same. Weir was great, Carter stuck out like a sore thumb, Wolsey was good and introduced balance again.

Rewatching, the loss of Weir struck me even more. For me she was SGA. When they got rid of her, they got rid of Atlantis and it lingered until death.

The introduction of Carter feels very convenient for them, but I do believe what the writers said about getting into a corner with Weir... that she was meant to be on-base Hammond style, but her character had grown out of that. Both Carter and Wolsey do for the most part fulfil that. It's hard to take an existing actress and give her less to do.

That said, I don't care... Weir was just so good.

There were some good episodes in the latter part, but few and far between. Season five in particularly was painful. There's only so many times they can escape a Wraith ship or escape Wraith on a planet. Very tedious.

Todd was very fun though.

Oh and John Shephard is mighty hot.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Rewatching, the loss of Weir struck me even more. For me she was SGA. When they got rid of her, they got rid of Atlantis and it lingered until death.

She really was. I know that the field team is meant to be the focus, but I feel that more focus should've been given to Weir--her role as a diplomat and negotiator would be crucial for such a mission, whilst her non-military background was also something that made her stand out. I think it'd have been nice to have a little more exploration and intrigue of Atlantis itself, other than elements that seemed to be there to solely try and kill everyone

Oh and John Shephard is mighty hot.

Yes, yes he is.

One thing the things that always bug me about SGA, is that they never had him and Teyla get together. The chemistry between them was great and there was just always that little hint of something more, but after Ms Luttrell became pregnant they create some random guy whose supposedly always been about though we've never heard of, and that ends any possibility of there relationship going anywhere. I'm sure they could've created a plot to have had the two of them get together and then have to deal with the pregnancy as a result.

Another problem I have with his is that he spent far too much time with his shirt on

 

[sttngfan1701d]

Spoilers


Are they (the Legacy series) the ones where the first in the series has them investigating a type of Wraith that's been on earth for thousands of years (the basis of the incubus and succubus myths)? Because I have read that one recently.

No.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I found Vala to be kind of annoyingly over the top. And Browder a little wooden.

But the bigger problem with the last two seasons of SG1 to me was that the Ori were too powerful to be interesting. You couldn't bring them down with the same cool ground battles and pyrotechnics we got early in the series. You needed to discover an ancient deus ex machina. But I guess that wasn't a new problem with the series, it'd been a problem since Anubis.

 

[MacLeod]

Well if the show had continued for an 11th season would they have used a similar plot device to wrap up the Ori storyline as they did in The Ark of Truth?

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Killing Beckett there was kind of dumb and random but it didn't piss me off as much as caving into fan demands to bring him back.

If they were always planning to bring him back, fine, but I hate it when writers change their plans for pandering reasons.

 

[Mr Light]

As I understand it, the Ark of Truth was basically a condensed version of the original plans for Season 11. They would have spent the season searching for the Ark and used it at the end to defeat the Ori.

 

[sttngfan1701d]

She really was. I know that the field team is meant to be the focus, but I feel that more focus should've been given to Weir--her role as a diplomat and negotiator would be crucial for such a mission, whilst her non-military background was also something that made her stand out. I think it'd have been nice to have a little more exploration and intrigue of Atlantis itself, other than elements that seemed to be there to solely try and kill everyone

The show lost its guiding star when they wrote out Weir. I mean, I liked Carter a lot and I ended up liking Woolsey, but Weir was unique. That's something these continuation books touch on too. Characters muse about the loss of Weir and what it means for diplomacy in the Pegasus Galaxy. Woolsey is competent enough, and Teyla helps out, but Weir knew best how to come to a solution that made all parties happy. And neither the IOA nor the military could push her around. I miss her character a lot, really.

One thing the things that always bug me about SGA, is that they never had him and Teyla get together. The chemistry between them was great and there was just always that little hint of something more, but after Ms Luttrell became pregnant they create some random guy whose supposedly always been about though we've never heard of, and that ends any possibility of there relationship going anywhere. I'm sure they could've created a plot to have had the two of them get together and then have to deal with the pregnancy as a result.

Same here, and thankfully the continuation story remedies that. In a very sweet, natural, unforced way. Because after all, these are two adult characters, in their late 30's/early 40's, and the "will they-won't they" doesn't make much sense. It happens very organically, the way it probably would have in a season 6 of the show. Sheppard and Teyla have a very deep bond, and Sheppard himself is a very caring guy, so I was happy to see that play out, especially with baby Torren.

 

[The Wormhole]

Killing Beckett there was kind of dumb and random but it didn't piss me off as much as caving into fan demands to bring him back.

If they were always planning to bring him back, fine, but I hate it when writers change their plans for pandering reasons.

The only thing that really bothered me about the Beckett storyline was that they brought him back as a clone in an effort to maintain the significance of his death. Personally, I think they should have just revealed that the real Beckett was captured by Michael the Wraith and that who we saw throughout most season 3 and who ultimately sacrificed himself was the clone. If you're going to negate the death, might as well go all the way.