Joe Mallozzi Blogs Again! (Massive Spoilers ALL seasons all SG Shows/Movies)

[Briangate78]

One more day until Stargate: Universe episode 8: Time! No sex (I promise!) so gather the kiddies around for this one! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts tomorrow night.

LOL, I love it!!

[mamasue9]

Normally.....I cringe when a man says "I promise", but I've met Joe in person so.....

[Jumper_One]

http://josephmallozzi.wordpress.com/...time-for-time/

November 13, 2009

Photos: Environmental conditions in Stage 1, Rob Cooper, Carl Binder, Ivon Bartok, Jamil Walker Smith, Brian J. Smith, Stage 1, Jim Menard


After weeks upon weeks of talking about it, it finally premieres tonight on SyFy and Space, then on Tuesday in the U.K., and later next week in Australia. Yep, I haven’t talked up an episode this much since that one where Hamtaro got lost in the mountains near the Yoshi family residence.

The forecast calls for rain with a 40% chance of aliens.

For a few days last May, Stage 2 was transformed into a dark and rainy jungle set. What amazed me was how fast and how far the temperature dropped in there once it started raining.

Kudos to Robert Cooper for forging ahead with this script even after being advised that it was “more of a season two episode”. I think this is a perfect season one episode, a fun and clever standalone episode that delivers a new spin on a scifi chestnut. This one was complicated and, after working the story through in his head, Rob was hit by an epiphany that finally made all the pieces fall into place. He pitched it out to us and we agreed, it was brilliant. Satisfied, he set the story aside and busied himself with other things. Then, about a week later, he phoned up Brad in a panic. ”What was that great idea I had for the ending? I forgot!” Fortunately, Brad remembered.

Even though the conditions were miserable, the actors were all troopers and, by all indications, loved working on this episode.

This is one of those episodes that demands a little more of its audience. In addition to just sitting back and enjoying the ride, viewers will be called upon to put the pieces of the puzzle together. And, by the way, I love the ending. It’s one of my very favorites, right up there with McKay’s post fade out “Oh, crap!” at the end of This Mortal Coil and Teal’c unintentionally attending a reading of The Vagina Monologues.

If he’s not too busy, I’ll get Rob Cooper to swing on by to do a Q&A with you in January. That way, you can ask him all sorts of questions like what the hell he was smoking when he came up with this episode.

Some really memorable scenes throughout, but David Blue’s performance in this one really made me stand up and take notice. He’s been great so far but, in Time, he really wows, proving that he is far, far more than terrific comedic actor.

Of course, it’s always tough to gauge audience reaction. Many times, we’ll produce an episode that I think will knock the fans’ socks off – and it’s met with a lukewarm response. Other times, I figure certain segments of fandom will hate an episode – and end up genuinely surprised when their response is overwhelmingly positive. After so many years of doing this, nothing surprises me anymore. That said, I WILL be surprised if the fan response to this one isn’t very favorable.

One of the things I truly love about this episode – beside the mayhem – are all the little character moments, mere instances that go such a long way toward informing the audience on who these people are: Eli’s confession, T.J.’s reflection, Scott’s ingenuity, Rush’s flash of pop culture humanity, Greer’s blind courage in the face of the seemingly insurmountable – to name just a few.

One of the things I always loved about Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis was the freedom both shows gave to tell a variety of stories. One week, our team could be heading off-world to explore some alien landscape; the next, our heroes could be caught up in a no-holds-barred ship to ship battle; the week after that, they could be on Earth investigating a mystery or dealing with a crisis situation on the home front. And, I’m pleased to say that Universe affords us the same freedom. We’ve had ship-based adventures (Air I and II, Darkness and Light), explored alien worlds (Water, Air III), dealt with Earth-based embroglio’s (Earth) – and, finally, tonight, it’s something completely different.

Anyway, tune in and let me know your thoughts. More behind-the-scenes pics and videos headed your way.

By the way, thanks to everyone who has weighed in with suggestions to help me with my ongoing tech issues. My MacBook is working fine now, no network issues. On the other hand, I’m still experiencing problems unploading my email settings to my iPhone. Isn’t there some sort of sync feature that would allow me to plug the iPhone into my MacBook and download the settings directly from my laptop.

Okay, I’m off for dinner – and should be back in plenty of time to watch tonight’s episode…and, of course, peruse your comments.

[Replicator Todd]

Joe knows how to make people pumped! I sure am pumped for "Time!"

[Jumper_One]

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November 14, 2009

Photos: Peter Kelamis, Kenny Gibbs, Carl Binder, Rob Cooper, James Robbins


Honestly. What the hell was I thinking choosing a Blackberry over an iPhone? Why didn’t anybody tell me what I was missing out on? If anyone out there is faced with a similar decision – Blackberry or iPhone – allow me to break it down for you: GET – THE – iPHONE! Seriously. I feel like someone has just introduced me to HD television after about a year and a half of entertaining myself with radio. Following the suggestions kindly given me, I synced my MacBook with my iPhone and now I’m surfing the net and getting my emails on both. Not only that, but I was up past midnight last night downloading apps in preparation for my upcoming Tokyo trip. Forget my Garmin GPS, English-Japanese dictionary, guide books, hard copies of my schedule, and subway maps. Nowe, they’re all in one handy, portable device. Yes, my conversion is complete. All hail, Apple!

Oh, hey, prior to heading off on hiatus, I told several cast members that I’d like them to swing by the blog and do a Q&A now that the show has finally started airing (David Blue and Brian J. Smith did one prior to the premiere and I aim to get them back for another go now that you’re all familiar with their characters). Anyway, Peter Kelamis, who plays Adam Brody on SGU, checked in with me the other day, dropping me an email on an unrelated topic – and has found himself officially corralled. SO, if you’ve got questions for actor/comedian/pet psychic/t.v. scientist, start posting. I’ll be gathering them up through Monday. What was it like working on the first year of Stargate: Universe? Where would he like to see his character go (provided we haven’t killed him off yet) next year? Which is his favorite sandwich off crafts service and why do they serve up those little baby carrots? I mean, come on. It’s not as if anybody actually eats them!

Also, while perusing my backlog of photos, I came across a batch I snapped during the Time shoot. As you know, the creatures used are underwater denizens from the deep, deep depths of the Pacific Ocean and, while deadly, can be docile given the right conditions: while sleeping, drugged, or dead. So our resident monster wrangler, Evil Kenny Gibbs showed up with one for a little show-and-tell and, well, things got a little out of hand…

Pleased to see that the response to Time has been overwhelmingly positive. I’ll weigh in with further thoughts after the episode airs in the U.K.

Off to peruse the App Store. Hey! Holographic Audio Thunder and Bird Songs! I ask you, how did I live without it?!

[Pharaoh Atem]

right on schedule jum,per

[Jumper_One]

http://josephmallozzi.wordpress.com/...our-questions/

November 15, 2009

Photo: Adam-Troy Castro


Holy Mother of Nerd! I’ve just spent the last three hours trying to upload today’s blog entry. For some reason, it kept uploading as one giant paragraph. Well, after multiple transfers between multiple laptops, numerous copies and pastings, seemingly endless saves and re-saves, and 27 consecutive drafts (wordpress keeps track, bless their hearts), I finally had to switch over to html. Not exactly my forte, but it seems to have done the job.

So – tada! Here it is! A terrific Q&A with author Adam-Troy Castro in which he touches on, among other things, his work, his love of Ellery Queen, and how he enlisted Electro to bump off his wife. Read on for the details.

And, hey, let’s get those questions in for actor Peter Kelamis, Stargate: Universe’s Adam Brody. The last thing we want is for him to relax on his time off.

Over to Adam…

*snip**

[Jumper_One]

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November 16, 2009

Video: SGU's Time - Jungle take


Aw c’mon!!!! Now a screw-up on the part of my internet provider has booted me off-line. The telus rep is hopeful I can be back online tomorrow. Tomorrow?! But today is TODAY!!!

As a result, I am painstakingly tapping out this entry on my iPHone. If I still had my Blackberry, I’d be hooped right about now. Well, even more hooped.

You have until midnight tonight to get those questions in for Peter Kelamis, SGU’s Adam Brody. And start reading next month’s book of the month club pick: The Misenchanted Sword! And clean up after yourselves! What am I, your maid?!

Good thing I uploaded the following video earlier today, otherwise you’d have all dropped by for nothing.
xxx

[Jumper_One]

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November 17, 2009


Hey, guess where I am! That’s right! NOT ONLINE!!! Apparently, a simple change to my billing information has proven a real challenge for my Internet provider, Telus. So much so that they felt it necessary to shut down my Internet access while they work on the problem. And what exactly IS the problem? Beats the he’ll out of me. I assume it’s just a matter of making the change to my billing info, just typing something into that little box. I don’t know. Maybe only unionized typists are permitted to enter information at Telus, and they only work on odd-numbered Tuesdays. Of course, that still doesn’t explain why they felt it necessary to pull the plug.

I was offline most of yesterday. The guy at tech support assured me that a dedicated Telus employee was working on it and that the problem would be solved in the morning. I was pissed to say the least – and even more so this morning when I woke up to discover the problem hadn’t been fixed. So I called back tech support and they assured me that they had one of their dedicated employees working on the problem and the problem would be solved by tomorrow morning. I politely called bull**** and pointed out that I could be paying another Internet provider for non-service. Or, even better, pay another provider for actual service! I was informed that it would take them just as long to hook me up so I might as well wait. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”asked the Telus rep.

“You mean beside the Internet service I’m paying you for? No.”

“Well then have a nice day.”

I then called customer service and explained the situation. She was appropriately outraged on my behalf and put me on hold while she addressed the issue. Moments later she was back with good news! First, I would be getting one month free for the inconvenience. And second, she had made arrangements to get me back online. Yes, she assured me that a dedicated Telus employee was working on the problem and I would be back online sometime today.

Or as late as tomorrow morning…

[Jumper_One]

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November 18, 2009


So Monday they told me I’d be back online Tuesday.

On Tuesday, they assured me that my Internet would be up and running by Wednesday.

Today, Wednesday, I was told: a) they had no record of my being promised either, and b) I’d be surfing by this Friday.

Friday?! FRIDAY?!!!!!!!!!!

Okay, I’m going to go out on a limb here and declare Telus’s “Train a monkey to work tech support” program a big fail. It may have seemed like a good idea but, clearly, holding their annual job fair at the local zoo’s primate enclosure didn’t really pan out. In retrospect, I suppose I should be grateful. They could have disconnected my Internet service, given me the run-around for three days, AND thrown their feces at me. Today, I was ping-ponged between tech support and customer service so many times I actually became nauseous.

All this to say: you’re regularly scheduled blog postings will resume once Telus feels like getting around to doing whatever it is they do.

Oh, and I’d like to take a moment to respond to the poster who accused me of plagiarism because one of my emails to a spammer was exactly like one of the email responses featured on this site: www.spambait.wordpress.com. Yeah, genius, they’re identical. As is every one of the emails on said site. I know because it’s my site. I put them there. Check my blogroll. Or better yet, consider attending Telus’s next job fair. Trust me when I say you’re just the type they’re looking for.

[Jumper_One]

http://josephmallozzi.wordpress.com/...y-back-online/

November 19, 2009

Photo: Bubba


I’m online! But no thanks to Telus. My home internet is still inaccessible for the foreseeable future (Telus says the issue will be resolved by tomorrow morning but, hey, they say a lot of things – like, for instance, that the issue would be resolved by the the day before yesterday, or that the issue would be resolved by yesterday morning), so I’m blogging from work – instead of reading Paul and Carl’s outlines. Oh, and you’ll be pleased to hear I did get around to finishing MY outline which is no doubt sitting, ignored, on Paul and Carl’s desks as well. We’ll read them all tonight and then reconvene tomorrow to belittle each other’s ideas. There’s also a rumor that we’ll be coming back into the office the week of December 14th to break more stories. Of course this is just a rumor I read over on the Solutions forum so I’m not sure if it’s official. Just in case though, I think I’ll show.

So, hey, I’ve decided to adopt a new approach to offensive comments. Understand that by offensive comments, I refer not to negative opinions but insulting, disrespectful, or generally inflammatory posts. Rather than delete them, I will approve them, but only after I’ve edited out the offensive portions. Here are two recent examples I dug out of the trash bin. As you can see, with a little tweak here and there, they can still get their message across without being obnoxious…

alex writes: “[...] actors [...] energy.”

Answer: That they do, Alex! Not only energy, but exceptional talent and a terrific work ethic. We’re lucky to have ‘em.

gigi writes: “[...] your ”talented” [...], mallozzi. [...] wonderful [...] scripts.”

Answer: Shucks, thank you, gigi. It’s comments like yours that make it all worthwhile.

A minor doggy emergency the other night. While jumping off the couch to tell off the horse on t.v., Bubba did something to his left hind leg. It simply collapsed beneath him, suddenly incapable of supporting his weight. The poor little guy was so freaked out he crapped on the spot. I scooped him up and was on my way to late-night emergency when feeling magically returned to his injured limb. The vet checked him out and he seems to be fine now, although his stair-climbing ability seems to be compromised. And rather than barking at ‘em, he’s taken to letting those t.v. horses off with a stern look instead.

[Jumper_One]

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November 20, 2009


According to Telus, my internet issue has been resolved. Yep, they’ve informed me they’ve fixed the problem and that, theoretically, I should be back online and surfing away. Of course, as any student of science will tell you, theory and practice are two very different things. Take early man for instance. He theorized that he could fly like a bird if he flapped his arms and leapt off a cliff. Alas, like many budding theorists to follow, early man quickly discovered that reality can be, well, a bit of a downer.

To those of you who may have come to this story late, allow me to recap what I shall hitherto refer to as The Telus Saga.

Last week, I called up Telus, my internet provider, to make a change to my billing information. I was informed that, as a result of my request, I would be offline for up to seven hours on Tuesday. I protested. It was a change to my billing information. Surely it shouldn’t affect my internet connection. But the Telus rep informed me that this was company policy (in keeping with what I imagine is the Telus company motto: “If it doesn’t inconvenience the client, why do it at all?”). So, Tuesday, I would be offline for up to seven hours. I didn’t like it but, hey, what could I do?

Come Monday, I went to get online and discovered I was unable to make a connection. I phoned up Telus and was informed that I’d be up and running by Tuesday morning. I was annoyed – after all, they had told me the work would be done Tuesday and I’d scheduled my work day on that assumption – but, what the hell. I’d have my internet back on Tuesday morning, right?

Come Tuesday morning, I still wasn’t online. WTF? I phoned up Telus and asked them what was going on. The customer service rep was suitably outraged on my behalf. Why, this shouldn’t be! She offered me a free month of Telus for my troubles. And promised I’d be online by Wednesday morning.

Come Wednesday morning, I sat down, turned on my laptop, went to check my email – and discovered I still wasn’t online. W-T-F?!!! I called up Telus tech support who transferred me over to customer service who transferred me back to tech support who transferred me over to customer service who transferred me back to tech support who transferred me over to customer service who checked my file and informed me that they had no record of anyone promising me that the issue would be resolved either Tuesday or Wednesday. Still, they felt really bad for me and, in addition to not charging me for the days I was without service (how nice of them) they would be giving me an additional month of free service. That’s two months of free internet service! Now, on the surface, that seems like a wonderful thing but imagine, if you will, that I offer you a lifetime of free soap. You sit by your mailbox, waiting for that first soap shipment and, when it doesn’t arrive, you give me a call. I’m mortified and, in a bid to make it up to you, also offer you a lifetime supply of free toothbrushes in addition to that lifetime of free soap. Great, huh? So you sit by your mailbox, waiting for the soap and toothbrushes to arrive. Unfortunately, they never do, but a quick call to my customer service center mollifies you because, in addition to a lifetime of free soap and toothbrushes, you have now been promised a lifetime supply of free cheese! How fantastic is that? Okay, true, you may not actually receive any soap or toothbrushes or cheese, but they are FREE! See how that works?

Anyway, the customer service rep reviewed my file and informed me that the last customer service rep indicated I had changed my mind and wanted to switch my billing information back to its original state. I told her that was incorrect. I simply wanted my internet back. Well, she assured me it would be back. By Friday morning.

At this point, I may have said something that caused them enough concern to transfer me to their customer retention center where I spoke with a woman named Jaye in Calgary who seemed genuinely sympathetic to my plight. I seemed to be finally getting somewhere – when, suddenly, we were disconnected. I’d apparently been on my phone so long that the battery had died.

So, fast-forward to today – Friday morning. I turn on my laptop, check my connection and, sure enough, I’m still not online. W – T – F?!!!!!!!!!!! I call up Telus. The guy at tech support informs me that the work order went out for today and that I should be back online. Sometime today. Okay, so when they told me I’d have my internet back by Friday morning, they didn’t specify Friday morning where. I mean, I assumed they meant Friday morning Vancouver time but, in all fairness, they could well have meant Hawaiian time.

But wait! A double-check of the situation revealed that the problem HAD been addressed and that I really should be back online. Theoretically. After running through the tech 101 rigmarole – unplugging my router, plugging it back in, unplugging my modem, plugging it back in – and it became clear it wasn’t working, the tech rep did some further digging and, FINALLY, figured out what was at issue, narrowing the source of the problem down to two possibilities: either it was on my end or theirs. He assured me they would get someone on its immediately.

First thing Monday morning.

I wasn’t mad. Or annoyed. Simply…amused. Sure, go ahead. Fix the problem. Don’t fix the problem. Stand on your ****ing head and play the kazoo. I don’t care. I’ve had it. I’m switching to Shaw.

Hey, head on over to SF Signal for their latest mind meld where I list my top ten favorite SF/Fantasy covers (http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/200...f-book-covers/). Give it look and then hop back here and offer up your list.

Hey, Michelle – Yep, consider it a Solutions exclusive. We’ll back the week of December 14th to discuss more stories.

A new episode of Stargate: Universe tonight and one of my very favorites. Check it out and report back.