How long could the show have gone?

[Snowman37]

Let's say that there was no push for a third series, allowing for Atlantis to run it's coarse and then allow for SGU to happen. This raises a question. How much longed would Atlantis have gone on for? I'm speaking from a production point of view, not in terms of what stories could be told. Do you think it always would have ended with five seasons? SciFi Network shows always tend to have short runs, no? Even SG-1 only had five years on the network (Seasons 6-10). Maybe one more season?

I'm not bitter about the show ending where it did. 100 episodes is a good, long run. I also loved the finale, as rushed as it was. I'm just curious if anyone thinks the show had the gas to last longer.

[the fifth man]

IMO, Atlantis could have probably gone another season or two. At least one more though for sure.

[Lythisrose]

I think one more season would be good to wrap things up in Pegasus and set up whatever they wanted to do next in the franchise. Of course I'd watch if they continued beyond that but I don't think several of the actors and writers would have stuck around. It's possible Stargate would still be on the air today (in some fashion) if they had done that. But again, maybe not. Who knows?

[Replicator Todd]

I could easily see a 7 or 8 season run. But I didn't get to see it.

[Snowman37]

Why another 2 or 3 years?

[Cate'sCorner]

As much as I enjoyed the finale for the way it ended the series, I think there was at least one more series that could have been made. I'm sure the writers, directors, and of course the actors could have kept us entertained for another twenty episodes - it would have been interesting to see how everyone settled back into their lives on Earth, and how Teyla and Ronon adjusted to their new home.




Cate

[Snowman37]

There was a sixth season planned and partially mapped out with episode pitches. I'm not asking if there were more stories to tell, because the answer is yes. I'm asking if SciFi would have been willing to renew the show if there wasn't a push for SGU.

[Falcon Horus]

I was always under the impression they were aiming for 6 seasons, so perhaps if SGU hadn't happened they MIGHT have gotten that extra season - depending of course on viewership.

[Morgania]

If SGU didn't happen, maybe it would have gotten two more seasons?

[Energizer_Vs_ZPM]

I personally think there was a lot more scope for SGA.

I think it would have been a good plot for Atlantis to leave pegasus and move onto the next galaxy to explore and study it and encounter yet another deadly enemy who is trying to rule everything. Obviously Atlantis is fleeing the wraith with minimal power and the ZPM hunt starts again from the early 'seeker' ships and crews that were exploring the galaxy in ancient times before determining that it would be safe for the entire civilisation to make the move. The new enemy has however taken over a lot of ancient tech putting Atlantis at severe risk and they consequently have to spend a lot of time in orbit around planets with the shield at minimum to avoid being trapped on the surface. As for why they'd head away from teh MW and Pegasus.. well the database has revealed some super experiment lab that the ancients had on board a ship that would always move ahead of Atlantis to the next galaxy. This lab would be where the ancients developed the very latest experimental weapons, shields, etc etc. Naturally being in orbit above other planets the Atlantis gate gets a tad screwed over but this then draws Rodney to discover that the main gate in each solar system can then redirect a wormhole to other gates in the same system - something he'd not considered or thought of previously.

I could easily see SGA lasting another two seasons with the new twist.

[Snowman37]

I think it would have been a good plot for Atlantis to leave pegasus and move onto the next galaxy to explore and study it and encounter yet another deadly enemy who is trying to rule everything.

Do you realize how big the galaxy is? There could easily be other deadly enemies in the Pegasus galaxy known to the Wraith yet unknown to the Atlantis expedition.

Obviously Atlantis is fleeing the wraith with minimal power and the ZPM hunt starts again from the early 'seeker' ships and crews that were exploring the galaxy in ancient times before determining that it would be safe for the entire civilisation to make the move.

This is a bit of a run on sentence here. Atlantis is fleeing the Wraith with minimal power? How are they going to find ZPM's if they're in a galaxy the Ancients never went to? What early seeker ships and crews are you talking about?

The new enemy has however taken over a lot of ancient tech putting Atlantis at severe risk and they consequently have to spend a lot of time in orbit around planets with the shield at minimum to avoid being trapped on the surface.

One thing I like is finally realizing Atlantis's full potential. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be in budget for Atlantis to be in space every week. Maybe for the big two-parters and trilogies, but not every week. It's a city, not a starship. The flight capability is more for relocation than for continuous space flight.

As for why they'd head away from teh MW and Pegasus.. well the database has revealed some super experiment lab that the ancients had on board a ship that would always move ahead of Atlantis to the next galaxy.

This goes against the premise of the show. There was no next galaxy for Atlantis to go to. The Ancients relocated to the Pegasus galaxy, because a plague was wiping them out in the Milky Way galaxy. They had no reason to relocate to a third galaxy. Actually, it makes you wonder why they didn't do this when the Wraith threat popped up. Overconfident in their ability to win the war, perhaps?

This lab would be where the ancients developed the very latest experimental weapons, shields, etc etc.

Why can't they do this on an uninhabited world in the Pegasus galaxy?

Naturally being in orbit above other planets the Atlantis gate gets a tad screwed over but this then draws Rodney to discover that the main gate in each solar system can then redirect a wormhole to other gates in the same system - something he'd not considered or thought of previously.

What?

[Mnikolic]

If SGU wouldn't happen, I definitelly can say that SGA would've lasted another two seasons. I would love to see the crew and the expedition to fully explore Atlantis. Of course, the city would be moved to another planet in another Galaxy. I think it'd be great if the Wraith storyline would be concluded in a story arc during season 6, so season 7 would be a prelude to SGU and it could set up the plot for it. The SGU characters would be introduced in the final season and the SGA expedition would pass the torch to the new people.

SGA S07 could also serve as a test for the new format that the third series introduced and presented. Then the writers would see if the new format works or not.

Besides, if SGU hadn't been pushed, we would probably get that third planned SG-1 movie, so we would have at least two series completed. This way, we have 1 series semi-completed (SGA), one that's one movie short (SG-1) and one incomplete (SGU).

[jelgate]

Thats crazy. The 3rd SG-1 movie had nothing to do with SGU

[Snowman37]

If SGU wouldn't happen, I definitelly can say that SGA would've lasted another two seasons. I would love to see the crew and the expedition to fully explore Atlantis. Of course, the city would be moved to another planet in another Galaxy. I think it'd be great if the Wraith storyline would be concluded in a story arc during season 6, so season 7 would be a prelude to SGU and it could set up the plot for it. The SGU characters would be introduced in the final season and the SGA expedition would pass the torch to the new people.

Why another galaxy? In five years, the expedition would have barely scratched the surface of the Pegasus galaxy. Whole worlds are barely explored with only the immediate area around the stargate being explored. It would take a lifetime to explore another planet let alone a whole galaxy. I don't like the idea of relocating the city to a third galaxy.

Besides, if SGU hadn't been pushed, we would probably get that third planned SG-1 movie, so we would have at least two series completed. This way, we have 1 series semi-completed (SGA), one that's one movie short (SG-1) and one incomplete (SGU).

The movies were never going to happen due to MGM's bankruptcy. What do you mean by incomplete shows? SG-1 and SGA had endings. SGU is the only one that left everything unresolved.

[Mnikolic]

Why another galaxy? In five years, the expedition would have barely scratched the surface of the Pegasus galaxy. Whole worlds are barely explored with only the immediate area around the stargate being explored. It would take a lifetime to explore another planet let alone a whole galaxy. I don't like the idea of relocating the city to a third galaxy.

They could easily make some exploration-focused episodes in which the expedition could briefly just scan trough the whole Pegasus Galaxy. That would've started new plots and stories, but at the same time, it would end the show's main plot story (stories). The series could have ended with Atlantis explored as well (and probably some main/secondary/guest characters revived or brought back, knowing the writers and perhaps some guest characters becoming series regulars), while leaving the further exploration of the Galaxies for possible movies.

Besides, having just one threat/enemy can get really old after 5 seasons, so bringing new villains to the show would be a nice refreshment. The idea of Atlantis moving from one Galaxy to another would also open endless possibilities, as it would show that there are other threats out there and the show itself would be more interesting.

The movies were never going to happen due to MGM's bankruptcy. What do you mean by incomplete shows? SG-1 and SGA had endings. SGU is the only one that left everything unresolved.

I know that the MGM's bankruptcy prevented the movies from being made. I'm just saying that the producers could easily do the movies instead of SGU by using the money, spent on it, for the movies. I'm sure the producers would be able to make such a deal with MGM - contract-wise, they would be doing the series, but for real, they would be doing the movies. And once those would be done, they could easily move on to SGU.

The "SG-1: Revolution" movie would show the Stargate program going final and that's a big deal, considering that in SGU, it is hinted that the Stargate program is no longer a top secret. I'm really interested to see how everyone in the World would react to this new revelation. The movie was unfortunately shelved along with any other planned movies with the cancellation of the show, thus, leaving a huge gap somewhere in between.
SGA's ending was rushed and MGM could just allow for the producers to do a two-part episode at least. Plus not to mention that the expedition brought Atlantis to Earth, thus, putting the entire planet in grave danger.
Even SG-1's final episode felt more like a finale than SGA's. At least the producers managed to kill the last Goa'uld and make the Ori good guys with two movies, but SGA didn't get that chance. For me, "Enemy at the Gate" is a semi-ending that resolves only some of the character's stories, but leaves the main plot unresolved.

For SGU, yes. Of course we're on the same page here. However, the writers managed to get crew to be free of danger at least temporarily, so at least that gave some satisfaction to those that watched the show (including me). SGU's last episode was kind of like SG-1's finale: it gave an ending, but left the show's plots and stories unresolved at the same time, unlike SGA, which actually left A LOT of stuff unresolved in my opinion that could be easily addressed with additional 20 episodes or perhaps a movie or two.