is Stargate dead for good?

[SG-17]

Stargate is really a prime candidate for a reboot given that the current franchise has never held a wide audience. Few enough people are invested in the current incarnation that there's very little to be lost in rebooting.

I'd like them to at least finish up the Lucian Alliance Attack on Earth plot before they reboot it though.


Why? Because I want to see a giant fricking space battle happen over Earth.

The Lucian Alliance attack on Earth plays out in one of two scenarios:

-They send a cloaked cargo ship loaded with naquadah and explosives to Earth. Watch the episode Family Ties to see how this gets resolved.

-Three or four Ha'taks arrive in the solar system and are obliterated by the combined fleet of Asgard upgraded BC-304s, or perhaps by ZPM enhanced Odyssey alone. This takes three minutes. Or perhaps the motherships arrive in Earth orbit before being taken out by drones launched from Antarctica. Just watch Lost City if you want to see that happen.

The Lucian Alliance planning an attack on Earth is the most tiresome thing SGU has done this season. There's no possible way it can succeed. We've more threatening attacks launched by more powerful enemies thwarted. They might as well just have a line in a 2.5 episode saying the attack on Earth has been prevented and never mention it again. I would make that suggestion even if the show weren't cancelled.

Not necessarily. Their fleet is pretty large. If they were desperate they could muster the entire thing.

 

[AJ86]

Due to the clause Dean Devlin has in the rights agreement, any reboot would likely have to be a series...

No it wouldn't. It simply means that Devlin and Emmerlich would have to be involved in the movie - and a movie would be the way to go. They did, after all, produce the first movie which was a hit and on which a remake would almost certainly be based.

No it wasn't.

 

[BlobVanDam]

If they ever reboot Stargate, I give up on it. The original movie wasn't great, and the basic premise of the show, while good, is too general for me to care about anything new that isn't connected to the established series. I love the characters, the built up mythology and technology, the obstacles that the characters have overcome over the past decade, and the fact it feels like an alternate reality running alongside our own in the same year, and the style of humour and adventure that the current writers have brought to the series. I'm sick of everything following the trend of "rebooting" every time there's a slight lull in a franchise.
SGU failed because it strayed too far from what fans loved about Stargate, while not introducing anything new to keep the franchise fresh while it was at it. And while their goal was to go for a more mainstream audience, even from the start I never felt it did a good job of this. I've been watching Stargate for over a decade, and even I got a bit lost with how quickly they skimmed over the mythology, and I think the action and comedy of the original two series were a lot more appealing than the style of SGU.

I thought it was decent overall, and I'm sad to see it go when it had a lot of potential, but a reboot is not going to help much. I think they need a few years break, then a new show that continues the current universe, but with some new creative talent to make something new and fresh without losing what they've established. They can still get the best aspects of a reboot without throwing away everything and starting from scratch.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

The Stargates had a very good run. Trying to turn the franchise into nuBSG was obviously a commercial failure. Even if I personally liked SG-U's change in tone and themes in the storyline such as the message in the CMB, lots of people obviously didn't. The series was also saddled with crap villains such as the Lucian Alliance, which didn't help. Let's move on.

 

[JarodRussell]

Due to the clause Dean Devlin has in the rights agreement, any reboot would likely have to be a series...

No it wouldn't. It simply means that Devlin and Emmerlich would have to be involved in the movie - and a movie would be the way to go. They did, after all, produce the first movie which was a hit and on which a remake would almost certainly be based.

No it wasn't.

LOL, what?

 

[Gepard]

Here's what Wiki has to say about box office:

Release

The film was met with inconclusive reviews upon its release in 1994, though in recent years it has become a cult classic and developed a reputation as one of the best media releases from the Stargate series. The film was released on October 28, 1994 in the United States and released internationally in December of the same year. Stargate has a MPAA Rating of PG-13 for sci-fi action violence. It is rated 14A in Canada for violence.[1] Later in 1995 the film was released on DVD format, on June 18, 1997, however the DVD format was re-released in October 1999 under the title Stargate Special Edition. The film was released on Blu-ray format and on August 29, 2006.[11][12]

Box office
The film received a warmer reception from the public, grossing $71.5 million at the US box office and $125 million in the rest of the world.[1] At the time, the film set a record for the highest-grossing opening weekend for a film released in the month of October.[13]

Performance analysis
It became more commercially successful than most film industry insiders had anticipated.[14][15] This film is seen by many as Emmerich's breakthrough film.[16] Stargate grossed over $16,651,018 in the United States during its opening week in October, 1994. It was the 35 highest opening film in the US in October.[17] From 4-6, November, the film grossed around $12,368,778 dollars, meaning a decline around 25%. The film would continue this decline until the end of November, when the film garnered $4,777,198 dollars, an 8.2% rise. The week before that the film garnered around $4,413,420 dollars, which was a 45.6% decline. At its last week on cinema, the film garnered around $1,170,559 in the US.[18]

While I don't know what dollar amount equated to blockbuster back in 1994, "highest-grossing opening weekend for a film released in the month of October" up to that point doesn't sound like anything to sneeze at.

OT, but "developed a reputation as one of the best media releases from the Stargate" franchise? Since when? The entire second half of the film bores me to tears, and I've not met anyone else who feels differently. Am I just out of the loop?

 

[BlobVanDam]

Trust wikipedia for an unbiased and factual article. I'm sure it was the most commercially successful, since it's a movie, and not a TV series, but "best"? I've never heard anyone call it a great movie, and everyone I know has only watched it because of the series.

 

[Gepard]

Yeah, I notice they don't have a citation for that one.

(Note: XCKD allows hotlinking.)

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

They did, after all, produce the first movie which was a hit and on which a remake would almost certainly be based.

No it wasn't.

Yes, it was - about 200 million dollar worldwide gross in 1994. It was universally considered a hit. The TV arm of the franchise has produced nothing comparable, and the audience for it has declined to next to nothing.

Who gives a shit what people call "best?" That's entirely a value judgment that varies from individual to individual (I'd sit through Spader and Russell's romp a lot faster than I'd rewatch an episode of Atlantis or Universe). The measurable definitions of success that matter to studios when deciding what to finance are:

1. Money;
2. Money; and
3. Money.

There may be a fourth - I'm not sure, but I think it starts with "m."

 

[Gepard]

Yes, it was - 200 million dollar worldwide gross in 1994.

As already noted by a freindly, helpful and – let's face it – devilishly handsome cheetah a mere two posts above.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Your cousin Chester is the real star.

 

[Gepard]

So I'm the Michael Shanks to his James Spader, huh?

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Could be worse, you could be the French Stewart.

 

[Gepard]

At least I'd get a semi-long-running sitcom out of the deal, then.

 

[The Wormhole]

I'd like them to at least finish up the Lucian Alliance Attack on Earth plot before they reboot it though.


Why? Because I want to see a giant fricking space battle happen over Earth.

The Lucian Alliance attack on Earth plays out in one of two scenarios:

-They send a cloaked cargo ship loaded with naquadah and explosives to Earth. Watch the episode Family Ties to see how this gets resolved.

-Three or four Ha'taks arrive in the solar system and are obliterated by the combined fleet of Asgard upgraded BC-304s, or perhaps by ZPM enhanced Odyssey alone. This takes three minutes. Or perhaps the motherships arrive in Earth orbit before being taken out by drones launched from Antarctica. Just watch Lost City if you want to see that happen.

The Lucian Alliance planning an attack on Earth is the most tiresome thing SGU has done this season. There's no possible way it can succeed. We've more threatening attacks launched by more powerful enemies thwarted. They might as well just have a line in a 2.5 episode saying the attack on Earth has been prevented and never mention it again. I would make that suggestion even if the show weren't cancelled.

Not necessarily. Their fleet is pretty large. If they were desperate they could muster the entire thing.

Earth has superior technology and potential allies who could help if it became necessary. The Lucian Alliance would still be slaughtered. The Lucian Alliance attack on Earth is a stupid storyline which would be best left forgotten. There are other things the show could be focusing its time on.

 

[AJ86]

Earth currently has no means to detect cloaked cargo ships. The planet isn't in a stronge position, it's in an incredibly weak one. If anything is stupid about the storyline, it's that the Tau'ri haven't already been wiped out, as the LA could surely do it if they wanted to.

 

[AJ86]

Here's what Wiki has to say about box office:

Release

The film was met with inconclusive reviews upon its release in 1994, though in recent years it has become a cult classic and developed a reputation as one of the best media releases from the Stargate series. The film was released on October 28, 1994 in the United States and released internationally in December of the same year. Stargate has a MPAA Rating of PG-13 for sci-fi action violence. It is rated 14A in Canada for violence.[1] Later in 1995 the film was released on DVD format, on June 18, 1997, however the DVD format was re-released in October 1999 under the title Stargate Special Edition. The film was released on Blu-ray format and on August 29, 2006.[11][12]

Box office
The film received a warmer reception from the public, grossing $71.5 million at the US box office and $125 million in the rest of the world.[1] At the time, the film set a record for the highest-grossing opening weekend for a film released in the month of October.[13]

Performance analysis
It became more commercially successful than most film industry insiders had anticipated.[14][15] This film is seen by many as Emmerich's breakthrough film.[16] Stargate grossed over $16,651,018 in the United States during its opening week in October, 1994. It was the 35 highest opening film in the US in October.[17] From 4-6, November, the film grossed around $12,368,778 dollars, meaning a decline around 25%. The film would continue this decline until the end of November, when the film garnered $4,777,198 dollars, an 8.2% rise. The week before that the film garnered around $4,413,420 dollars, which was a 45.6% decline. At its last week on cinema, the film garnered around $1,170,559 in the US.[18]

While I don't know what dollar amount equated to blockbuster back in 1994, "highest-grossing opening weekend for a film released in the month of October" up to that point doesn't sound like anything to sneeze at.

OT, but "developed a reputation as one of the best media releases from the Stargate" franchise? Since when? The entire second half of the film bores me to tears, and I've not met anyone else who feels differently. Am I just out of the loop?

No, it's remembered by most as a mediocre at best sci-fi action flick. It might have sold well, but the reception it got wasn't great, so much so that MGM wouldn't touch Devlin's trilogy ideas with a 10 foot barge pole.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

No, it's remembered by most as a mediocre at best sci-fi action flick. It might have sold well, but the reception it got wasn't great, so much so that MGM wouldn't touch Devlin's trilogy ideas with a 10 foot barge pole.

The first is an assertion of an opinion rather than something you can demonstrate or defend, and the second is basically made up.

The short answer to the topic question is "the TV version of Stargate that started with SG-1 is dead for good, and it died with a whimper. Not enough people pay any attention to it now (measured by audience) to make another show worthwhile."

Let the studio give it back to Devlin and Emmerlich to remake.

 

[The Wormhole]

Earth currently has no means to detect cloaked cargo ships.

And yet they did just that in SG-1's Family Ties.

Yes, I remember the finale arc from last year. I'm choosing to ignore it.

If anything is stupid about the storyline, it's that the Tau'ri haven't already been wiped out, as the LA could surely do it if they wanted to.

No, I don't think leather-clad cliched cartoon supervillains are capable of wiping out Earth. Cliched cartoon supervillains in fancy dress couldn't do it, neither could ones in prosthetics and long hair acting like vampires. For that matter, neither could ubervillains in robes and spewing religious rhetoric.

Besides, we know from 200 that Earth is basically safe until the year 2016, based on the ten years later scene at the ending.

 

[AJ86]

No, it's remembered by most as a mediocre at best sci-fi action flick. It might have sold well, but the reception it got wasn't great, so much so that MGM wouldn't touch Devlin's trilogy ideas with a 10 foot barge pole.

The first is an assertion of an opinion rather than something you can demonstrate or defend, and the second is basically made up.

46% on Rotten Tomatoes is pretty damning.

The short answer to the topic question is "the TV version of Stargate that started with SG-1 is dead for good, and it died with a whimper. Not enough people pay any attention to it now (measured by audience) to make another show worthwhile."

One has nothing to do with the other. Most people couldn't care less about being loyal to a franchise, they watch what they like and not what they don't, the success of a new series would be based mainly on how many people like it, not how well or not recent instalments have done. If that were the case, then Blood & Chrome would be the last thing on Syfy's minds, as Caprica did a hell of a lot worse than SGU.

Let the studio give it back to Devlin and Emmerlich to remake.

I don't think it'll ever happen. If they didn't trust them then, I don't see why they would now after all the crap they've produced since then.