Joseph Mallozzi's Blog! (SPOILERS For All SG Shows and Dark Matter)

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I don't have time to post the whole thing, but here's the link to today's post
http://josephmallozzi.wordpress.com/...r-your-starga/

Of note:
BoltBait writes: “Any comment on this? http://www.gateworld.net/news/2011/0...m-syfy/“

Answer: Back in the last few years of Stargate, I took to giving the network notes on their notes. Essentially, I would go through the notes, address the concerns I could, then specifically respond to ones I couldn’t do or felt I shouldn’t do. As I read this article, I felt like responding in similar fashion. A lot of good points are raised. On the other hand, a lot of baffling points are made as well. For starters, I don’t think an official explanation on the part of SyFy is necessary. While I can empathize with fans who object to the abruptness of the cancellation after ten years on the network, one has to understand that television is a business. If SyFy has alternate scripted programming that performs better on Mondays or Tuesdays in the fall, then it’s understandable why they would choose those shows over a third season of SGU. That said, certain statements in the article had me scratching my head…

“When MGM decided to bring Stargate Atlantis to an end after five seasons…”

Hmmmm. Not to belabor the point (because I have discussed this in past entries) but, at the time, when we asked the studio whether or not there was any interest on their part in producing a sixth season of Atlantis, I was told that, while the increased budget made a season six less attractive for them, there were other reasons to do it (ie. as a lead-in to the new series). I wasn’t privy to the final decision-making process so it’s possible that the studio had an 11th hour change of heart – but I’m not sure why they would have.

“Because Stargate SG-1 and had performed so well for us in the past, we felt confident about SGU and committed to a two-season deal for it, as long as the show met certain milestones along the way. Two-season deals are rare in the TV world because they tie up a huge amount of investment (both time and money), but our great track record with MGM and Stargate made this seem like as much of a sure thing as you’ll get in the TV business. That means before any footage was shot or any actors were hired, we knew there’d be 40 episodes.”

Craig rightly points out that the second year pick-up was contingent on the show’s first season meeting “certain milestones”. Which makes the last sentence: “That means before any footage was shot or any actors were hired, we knew there’d be 40 episodes.” somewhat debatable – unless he’s suggesting that the network was insanely optimistic at the time. If the first season had not met the milestones set forth in the original deal, there would have been no guarantee of a second season pick-up.

“The show quickly moved forward and officially launched on October 2, 2009. The debut was watched by a good if not spectacular 2,779,000 viewers. To give that some perspective, Stargate Atlantis debuted with over 4 million viewers, so SGU was more than 25% below that.”

File this one under baffling. Comparing the SGA premiere to the SGU premiere overlooks is grossly unfair. First – Atlantis premiered during the summer while Universe – originally slated for a fall premiere – premiered in the much more competitive fall. Second the time between the two premiere has seen a significant increase in DVR usage and internet downloads, and a simultaneous erosion in live viewership. Coincidence? Maybe, but I don’t think so. Simply put, back when Atlantis aired, fewer viewers were recording or downloading television and many more were watching television live.

“With untenably low numbers and no sign of growth on Fridays where it had now lost 1/3 of its initial audience, we decided to move SGU for its second season. We’d had tremendous success on Tuesday’s with our breakout hit Warehouse 13, so we paired SGU with Caprica and moved them to Tuesdays, hoping to introduce both shows to a new audience.”

Sigh. Okay, look – while I understood (and supported) the move to Tuesday night and the pairing with Caprica, I nevertheless take exception to the assertion that the network had enjoyed “tremendous success on Tuesday’s with [their] breakout hit Warehouse 13″. While Warehouse 13 certainly aired on Tuesdays, it did so in the summer (where, I’d like to reiterate, SGU was originally scheduled to air).

“We moved the final 10 episodes of SGU to Monday nights where we’d just had success with a new show called Being Human, but the ratings remained flat.”

Okay but, realistically, the series had already been canceled so I’m not sure how much reasonable audience growth could be expected at that point.

Like I said – television is a business and decisions are driven by the bottom line. All the same, we were on the network for ten years. When my last relationship ended after 10+ years, we enjoyed a nice post break-up wrap-up dinner. Just saying.

[Jumper_One]

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May 13, 2011 - Part 1

Photos: Transporter: The Series, Dark Matter ship designs, SG-1 Season 6


When Stargate finally ended, I figured I’d take a year off to relax and recharge. As it turns out, 2011 is shaping up to be quite the opposite.

As you all know (or should know if you’ve been reading this blog) my writing partner Paul and I have made the move to Toronto in order to assume co-showrunning duties on Transporter: The Series alongside German wunderkind Alexander Ruemelin. Everyone involved, from the broadcasters to the production personnel, has been terrific so far and I’m very excited about the scripts we have in play. The show is going to be a lot of fun and I have no doubt a lot of you will really enjoy what we have in store for you. Like the movies, we’ve got an incredibly charming hero, high-stakes, eye-popping action, and, best of all, a sense of humor. One of the elements we all loved about the film franchise was the signature fight sequences, like the iconic motor oil fight scene in the first movie (Transporter). They stood out because they were unique and that’s something we’ll be delivering in every episode – clever, colorful fight scenes and car stunts that will have you reaching for the rewind button. And how will we achieve such audacious onscreen exploits. Well, I’ve got to names for you: Cyril Rafaelli and Michel Julienne. The former was the fight choreographer on Transporter 2 and the awesome Banlieue 13 – Ultimatum; the latter the car stunt coordinator on Transporter, Transporter 2, and Transporter 3. They’re the very best in their respective fields and they’ll be working on our show!

Also on deck for me is Dark Matter, my SF comic book series. Originally envisioned as a television series, I spent two years working on the story, fleshing out the characters, developing their relationships, and plotting every surprising twist and turn. Last year, we closed a deal with Dark Horse Comics that will see the series take comic book form. The opening four-issue arc launches in January of 2012. Things are coming together fast and furious now. My editor, Patrick Thorpe, has been forwarding me the preliminary designs and layouts artist Garry Brown has been working on. The other day, I received the early concept sketches for some of the ships Check them out -

Very exciting stuff!

I also got a call from Ryan Copple, writer and Executive Producer of Riese: The Series. Before leaving for Toronto, we got together and discussed the possibility of partnering up to produce a live-action series based on an existing anime property. We tossed potential titles back and forth, narrowed down our list and, today, Ryan reports we have some serious developments on one of my favorite prospects. We get into it next week. Fingers crossed.

When I last stepped off memory lane, I was heading into Stargate: SG-1′s sixth season, a season of change and fan unrest. Michael Shanks had left the show and actor Corin Nemec brought in. Corin’s character, Jonas Quinn, introduced in season five’s Meridian, became the new fourth team member. But it took Jack a while to warm up to the guy. Some fans, on the other hand, never quite warmed up to a character who, in their eyes, could never replace their beloved Daniel Jackson. I sympathized with Corin, a really nice guy eager to impress, who unwittingly walked into a firestorm of fan fury.

One of my fondest memories of Corin was his affinity for food props. Whether it was lollipops, toast, or bananas, Jonas always seemed to be feeling peckish. Maybe he suffered from low blood sugar. I don’t know. Whatever the case, that was his “thing”. One day, Corin decided to drop the food in favor of a mug of coffee. That proved problematic because the drinking mug was Rick’s “thing”. This was a running gag on the show, something we didn’t notice at first but, after someone pointed it out to us, would have us in stitches whenever we saw it onscreen. I wonder if any of you noticed at home? Whenever O’Neill has a cup or mug in hand, there will come a point in the scene where he’ll peer into it, frown, then dip his fingers in once, maybe twice, to retrieve some mystery object floating within – then carry on with the scene. Over the course of Stargate’s run, it happened A LOT. Apparently, Stargate Command had the dirtiest tea in Colorado.

The episodes...

REDEMPTION PART 1 (601)

Appropriately enough, Dr. Rodney McKay makes a return visit to the SGC and takes another giant step toward redemption – a process that would be completed by the time he assumed a lead position in the Atlantis expedition. This episode was also notable for the introduction of the Jaffa Shaq’rel, an otherwise inconsequential but for the fact that the part was initially written for a certain NBA star who, according to Chris Judge at the time, was interested in doing the show. Well, that never worked for whatever reason and while I won’t reveal the name of the basketball player, it really shouldn’t be that hard to figure out.

REDEMPTION PART II (502)

Looking back, this was the episode that cemented David Hewlett as a favorite guest star – so favored, in fact, that years later, when we were trying to cast the part of a medical doctor for the new spin-off, Atlantis, he immediately came to mind and Brad and Robert decided: “Screw that! Let’s put McKay on the team!”. And the rest, as they say, is history. Also in this episode, the role of Shaq’rel was played by Aleks Paunovic, who also returned to the franchise years later, but in a different role – playing Ronon’s former Satedan buddy, Rakai, in SGA’s Reunion.

DESCENT (503)

One sequence had Carter and O’Neill trapped in a chamber that was slowly filling with water. We achieved this by actually doing the opposite. We lowered the specially designed set into a pool, giving the impression that the water was actually rising. We shot at Vancouver’s Olympic pool and it was a tough day. Rick and Amanda were very wet and very cold, and had to sport wet suits underneath their clothing to keep warm. This episode also marked yet another cameo by Director Peter DeLuise, this time offering a tip of the hat to his old show, Seaquest, by playing the part of “Lieutenant Dagwood”.

FROZEN (504)

Early in the episode, one of the scientists claims his grandfather was “one quarter Cherokee”. This was an in-joke and poke at actor Chris Judge who had made the same claim. Also, at one point, Jack laments having forgotten to tape The Simpsons. This, of course, paralleled RDA’s love for the long-running animated series. There were many times he would swing by my office to check out the collection of Simpsons talking figures I kept in my office. Eventually, Rick’s love for the show culminated in a guest appearance by the voice of Homer Simpson himself, Dan Castellaneta – which was soon followed by Rick being asked to guest on The Simpsons.

NIGHTWALKERS (505)

This was one of my favorite episodes of the show’s sixth season simply because it was so different from other episodes we’d done – an old-fashioned small-town alien invasion story. Loved the gang all decked out in leather. Vincent Gale, who would later play the part of the cranky Carl Binder Morrison on Stargate: Universe, appears as Agent Cross. The role of Sheriff Knox is played by the terrific Blu Mankuma, a good friend of the late Don Davis (General George Hammond). Blu and I shared an affinity for ribs – lamb ribs in particular. I loved them so much, in fact, that I was “the lamb rib” hotline. Whenever my favorite barbecue joint, The Memphis Blues BBQ Restaurant made a batch, they would give me a call and I’d drive right over. I remember one night sitting down to a platter of ribs. So wholly focused was I on devouring them that I didn’t even notice Blue until he was standing right beside me. ”Breathe,”he cautioned.


Mailbag:

BoltBait writes: “Any comment on this? http://www.gateworld.net/news/2011/0...m-syfy/“

Answer: Back in the last few years of Stargate, I took to giving the network notes on their notes. Essentially, I would go through the notes, address the concerns I could, then specifically respond to ones I couldn’t do or felt I shouldn’t do. As I read this article, I felt like responding in similar fashion. A lot of good points are raised. On the other hand, a lot of baffling points are made as well. For starters, I don’t think an official explanation on the part of SyFy is necessary. While I can empathize with fans who object to the abruptness of the cancellation after ten years on the network, one has to understand that television is a business. If SyFy has alternate scripted programming that performs better on Mondays or Tuesdays in the fall, then it’s understandable why they would choose those shows over a third season of SGU. That said, certain statements in the article had me scratching my head…

“When MGM decided to bring Stargate Atlantis to an end after five seasons…”

Hmmmm. Not to belabor the point (because I have discussed this in past entries) but, at the time, when we asked the studio whether or not there was any interest on their part in producing a sixth season of Atlantis, I was told that, while the increased budget made a season six less attractive for them, there were other reasons to do it (ie. as a lead-in to the new series). I wasn’t privy to the final decision-making process so it’s possible that the studio had an 11th hour change of heart – but I’m not sure why they would have.

“Because Stargate SG-1 and had performed so well for us in the past, we felt confident about SGU and committed to a two-season deal for it, as long as the show met certain milestones along the way. Two-season deals are rare in the TV world because they tie up a huge amount of investment (both time and money), but our great track record with MGM and Stargate made this seem like as much of a sure thing as you’ll get in the TV business. That means before any footage was shot or any actors were hired, we knew there’d be 40 episodes.”

Craig rightly points out that the second year pick-up was contingent on the show’s first season meeting “certain milestones”. Which makes the last sentence: “That means before any footage was shot or any actors were hired, we knew there’d be 40 episodes.” somewhat debatable – unless he’s suggesting that the network was insanely optimistic at the time. If the first season had not met the milestones set forth in the original deal, there would have been no guarantee of a second season pick-up.

[Jumper_One]

http://josephmallozzi.wordpress.com/...r-your-starga/

May 13, 2011 - Part 2


“The show quickly moved forward and officially launched on October 2, 2009. The debut was watched by a good if not spectacular 2,779,000 viewers. To give that some perspective, Stargate Atlantis debuted with over 4 million viewers, so SGU was more than 25% below that.”

File this one under baffling. Comparing the SGA premiere to the SGU premiere overlooks is grossly unfair. First – Atlantis premiered during the summer while Universe – originally slated for a fall premiere – premiered in the much more competitive fall. Second the time between the two premiere has seen a significant increase in DVR usage and internet downloads, and a simultaneous erosion in live viewership. Coincidence? Maybe, but I don’t think so. Simply put, back when Atlantis aired, fewer viewers were recording or downloading television and many more were watching television live.

“With untenably low numbers and no sign of growth on Fridays where it had now lost 1/3 of its initial audience, we decided to move SGU for its second season. We’d had tremendous success on Tuesday’s with our breakout hit Warehouse 13, so we paired SGU with Caprica and moved them to Tuesdays, hoping to introduce both shows to a new audience.”

Sigh. Okay, look – while I understood (and supported) the move to Tuesday night and the pairing with Caprica, I nevertheless take exception to the assertion that the network had enjoyed “tremendous success on Tuesday’s with [their] breakout hit Warehouse 13″. While Warehouse 13 certainly aired on Tuesdays, it did so in the summer (where, I’d like to reiterate, SGU was originally scheduled to air).

“We moved the final 10 episodes of SGU to Monday nights where we’d just had success with a new show called Being Human, but the ratings remained flat.”

Okay but, realistically, the series had already been canceled so I’m not sure how much reasonable audience growth could be expected at that point.

Like I said – television is a business and decisions are driven by the bottom line. All the same, we were on the network for ten years. When my last relationship ended after 10+ years, we enjoyed a nice post break-up wrap-up dinner. Just saying.

Mr. Scirev writes: “Will there be a box set of all SGU?”

Answer: Eventually, I’m sure there will.

MNP writes: “My only disappointment (other than the scandal thing, which I hadn’t noticed before now) was that the possibility of uploading was never even brought up in the episode. Surely Rush would think of such a thing?”

Answer: Not sure what you mean. Uploading one’s consciousness to Destiny would be a last resort. Their body would die even though their mind would live on.

Randomness writes: “Just wondering Joe, why wouldn’t you be a part of the shows second season? I highlighted this part of your answer to Tammy as I was more curious in knowing. So are you planning to join another show, or another project? Or is Toronto not growing on you?”

Answer: As I said, I have no doubt Transporter: The Series will go at least two seasons (probably more). That said, I think it would be presumptuous of me to assume I’ll necessarily be along for the long ride. I love the show and the people I work with but, once work on the first season has been completed, our contract is up and no one is beholden to anything. Who knows what the future holds?

stacy fincher writes: “ I did have a question for you did you are the other ever think of the dimities of the Destiny how big it was?”

Answer: Sorry, that’s something I never gave much thought to – although the design team and VFX crew certainly did. Head on over to twitter and ask VFX Supervisor Mark Savela.

David Knowles writes: “Your Dark Matter comic, just wondering if is Scifi and is there anything about the plot, either in one of your previous blogs or somewhere on the web.”

Answer: Yes, definitely scifi and, no, I haven’t really talked about it. As things are moving quickly now and we have an artist on board, I thought I would share in the exciting developments.

Joe Cool writes: “if we gathered fans to donate money and started a project on kickstarter.com for you guys to be able to continue some form of production on the stargate canon (whether it be a movie or a comic book or webisodes or what have you) do you think that could be beneficial at all?”

Answer: Afraid not. MGM owns Stargate and the final decision on what gets produced and when rests with them.

Expletive:BMP writes: “Mr Joe, how much would it cost to have Kino episodes with Just Eli trying to fix the problem with the stasis pod, and other such adventures?”

Answer: Unfortunately quite a bit since, in a matter of weeks, those sets will no longer exist.

William Francais writes: “Was there ever any discussion of resolving the DHD problem Or bringing on races similar to that of Atlantis?”

Answer: I want to say “yes and no” but am not exactly sure what you mean by DHD problem and races similar to that of Atlantis? Are you referring to the crew’s reliance on the remotes and an alien species like the wraith?

Vinci writes: “so right now your saying that is mostly likely that stargate universe will not continue?”

Answer: Yes. Sadly, that is what I’m saying.

Dr. D. writes: “Is “Dark Matter” a comic book or graphic novel (or do you consider those terms synonymous)?”

Answer: It will launch as a comic book series and, somewhere down the line, have its individual story arcs collected in trade paperback form (a graphic novel).

Sparrow_hawk writes: “So are you going to move on to answering SG:A questions next? If so, please tell us: what happened to poor Todd.”

Answer: Will do.

Tammy Dixon writes: “So, at least, two seasons in Toronto but will you get summers in Vancouver?”

Answer: Nope. We shoot summers.

max writes: “Joe, you mentioned that the fate of the SG movies hinged on DVD sales, so given that no SG movies will be made, would you characterise the sales of DVDs as unusually disappointing for MGM and Syfy?”

Answer: DVD sales have dropped significantly over the past few years. They’ve been unusually disappointing for everyone.

Zac writes: “Do you think it would have been possible for either Eli or Rush to use the neural link of Destiny to project her surroundings into her head… kinda like when TJ was doing surgery and saw Amanda Perry?”

Answer: An interesting idea, but I don’t think the neural link works that way.

Balial writes: “now that SGU is sadly over, could you please tell us, who The planet builders from episode Faith were? What kind of civilisation or society they were? Something more powerfull than the ascended ancients, or something different?”

Answer: We envisioned the planet-builders as an extremely advanced race who, while very powerful, differed significantly from the Ancients. They didn’t possess the extensive knowledge of the Ancients nor did they, at any time, evolve from a physical form similar to ours. Brad threw around the idea of having them pay us a personal visit at some point – but, like so many others, we’ll file that one under “season 3 stories that might have been”.

Ulrike Tannenberg writes: “How would Rush have fared later on?”

Answer: I don’t know. We would have continued to develop him as an individual who walks the line between darkness and light, someone capable of touching surprises and crushing disappointments.

scottland7 writes: “On a different topic do you think you could have a guest or two on your blog to take questions?”

Answer: I’ll see what I can do.

My Name Is Scott writes: “Did anyone in the writer’s room have that moment between Teyla and Ronon in mind (can’t remember the ep) whenever Teyla’s lack of mercy in front of Sheppard was devised?”

Answer: Motherhood was just one of several life changes that affected Teyla for the better. Although it wasn’t a conscious decision on our part to do this, it’s fairly obvious that it did change the way we were writing her character. I think that, after the birth of her son, she became more focused, cautious, but also more a realist when it came to threats like Michael.

Marc writes: “do you think a real stargate movie (in the theatres I mean) could be successful and a possible future for the franchise?”

Answer: It’s a possible scenario – but, I imagine, I long way off.

sss writes: “whether it is possible to agree on the extension of the franchise to another channel in another country?”

Answer: Alas, no. Not possible.

Rhyney writes: “Is there a chance that you and the other authors could come together to write Extinction and Revolution as comic books, as well as a continuing SGU comic series with your advisorial support?”

Answer: This might be an option MGM could pursue in the not too distant future, but its doubtful any of the writers involved in the production would be the ones to write any comic book continuation of the series.

DougIndy writes: “On another note, do you think it is impossible that there will ever be another sg1, atlantis, or universe dvd movie? Has the studio closed the door on those 3 shows for good or is it more of a not now?”

Answer: Unfortunately, I have no idea what the studio has planned.

Prior_of_the_Ori writes: “I wanted to ask, was there any talk of who created the Berserker drones?”

Answer: If you’re asking whether we considered the possibility that the crew’s descendants were responsible for creating the drones – yes, that was one possibility floated.

Prior_of_the_Ori also writes: “Also, wanted to ask, would Rob Cooper be able to answer questions like whether there was a Stargate network in the Ori galaxy?”

Answer: Rob has been pretty busy of late. Maybe once his schedule eases up a bit.

Alfredo De La Fe writes: “What are your thoughts of the fan attempts at convincing SyFy and MGM to reconsider?”

Answer: Love the fans and wish them luck!

[Jumper_One]

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May 14, 2011 - Part 1

Photos: Jelly, Masked, edited by Lou Anders, SG-1 Season 6


Wow. Over the past few days, this blog has averaged a little over 15 000 daily views. And this without a single gratuitous cute dog picture!

Well, so as to not tempt fate any further -

Okay. With that out of the way, onto the business of this blog.

Those of you who took part in our book of the month discussion on Marjorie M. Liu’s The Iron Hunt no doubt: a) enjoyed the book and, b) have been wondering “Hey, what happened to the promised author Q&A?”. Well, as it turns out, our guest authors are busy people – which is why, whenever I send the reader questions their way, I assure them they are free to deliver the responses at their earliest conveniences. Being a writer, you’re faced with looming deadlines at every turn, so I don’t want these Q&A’s to prove similarly daunting. Instead, I want them to be something to be savored over the course of a few hours spent in the comforting darkness of a den or basement while the sunny outdoors beckon. It builds character, y’know?

Anyway, after weathering a perfect storm of deadlines, Majorie recently surfaced to complete her Q&A. Thanks to Marjorie for taking the time. And, also thanks to Marjorie for being such a huge fan of the show (October 2, 2010: Your Affable Host! Tia Carrere! Marjorie M. Liu!).

**snip**

For more on Marjorie, head on over to her blog. In addition to her many novels, you might also want to check out her past comic book work on such titles as Dark Wolverine, Black Widow, X-23, and NYX: No Way Home. Oh, and she’s got a mighty awesome short story in the Masked superhero-themed anthology which also features contributions by the likes of Gail Simone, Paul Cornell, Matthew Sturges, Daryl Gregory, James Maxey, Mark Chadbourn, Bill Willingham, Ian McDonald, Peter David & Kathleen David, Chris Roberson, Stephen Baxter, Mike Baron, Mike Carey, and yours truly ["Downfall"]: Amazon.com: Masked (9781439168820): Lou Anders: Books

Reflecting back on Stargate: SG-1′s sixth season, I can honestly say it was a challenging year. With the departure of Michael Shanks, actor Corin Nemec had some mighty big shoes to fill and, to some fans, it didn’t really matter how successful we were in finding a place for his character, Jonas. At the end of the day, he wasn’t Daniel Jackson. While I initially sympathized with the fans (I’d enjoyed writing for Daniel Jackson and did feel his loss), it became increasingly difficult to maintain a polite online discussion on the subject. They were upset because Daniel was no longer a part of the show. I understood it wasn’t the same for them but, realistically, it was the actor’s decision to leave the show, not ours. They countered that the actor wouldn’t have left the show had we made more of a concerted effort to focus on his character. My answer to that I already outlined in a previous entry – we simply saw the show differently. To them, the show revolved around the relationship between Jack and Daniel. To me, the team was the heart of the show. Anyway, I won’t go into the details of the “lively debate” that followed but, suffice it to say, it was always interesting.

And it became even more interesting when, six episodes into the show’s sixth season, actor Michael Shanks returned for a guest spot...

ABYSS (606)

This was a great episode for all sorts of reasons, but chiefest among them was the terrific onscreen dynamic between RDA and Michael. I know that both of them had a great time, as did Brad Wright who wrote and produced Abyss. Brad, as the show’s co-creator and longtime show runner, had written some of the best Jack-Daniel scenes in the series, so I was surprised and disappointed when angry fans targeted him. I thought it immensely unfair given all he had done to build the friendship between the two characters but, this business, it’s often less of “Thanks for what you did for us in the past.” and more of “What have you done for me lately?”.

One issue I had with the script was the idea of Jack being killed, then brought back from the dead. I thought it opened a can of worms re: memories of the afterlife. I was told the ship had sailed on that particular subject. I don’t know if I agree. I always considered ascension a very different matter, an experience specific to an isolated group.

SHADOWPLAY (607)

When Dean Stockwell came to Vancouver to guest on the show, Brad took advantage of the gorgeous summer weather to treat him to a round of golf. Apparently, they spent their afternoon enjoying the game and chatting about Married to the Mob. Most of the Stargate producers were avid golfers (Brad, Rob, Paul, John Smith, Michael Greenburg) and so, over the course of my many years on the franchise, I had to put up with endless Monday morning chatter about everything from everyone’s weekend scores to rehashings of recent airings on what I refer to as the Old Golf Channel. It became so annoying for me that I started to follow Japanese Professional Baseball (Pro Yakyu) just so I could interject equally annoying details about teams like the Orix Blue Wave, the Nippon Ham Fighters, and the Yakult Swallows.

THE OTHER GUYS (608)

This was the script that earned Damian Kindler a spot on the writing staff and it was one of my favorites. The episode was tons of fun and ur guest stars, John Billingsley and Patrick McKenna, were terrific.

One memory I have connected to this episode doesn’t have anything to do with this episode at all. While prepping The Other Guys, a couple of guys from the VFX department came by the office. One was wearing the greatest Stargate t-shirt I’ve ever seen. It had a finger pointing off to the right and, below it, the text: “I’M WITH SHOL’VA”.

Early in the episode, O’Neill asks Teal’c who he likes for the cup. Teal’c responds: “I believe the Canucks of Vancouver are superior warriors.” During the Vancouver Canucks playoff run of that year, that clip was played several times on the jumbotron.

ALLEGIANCE (609)

Hmmm. This one’s a bit of a blur but for two things: 1. The Rambo-esque sequence of O’Neill’s 360 degree machinegun turn that, believe it or not, was at least three times as logn in the director’s cut, and 2.The hokey ending: “This single blade did what we could not. It has brought us together.” Ouch.

CURE (610)

The thing that drove me nuts about this episode was the big Egeria reveal near episode’s end that comes about as a result of Jonas FINALLY and conveniently coming across the text in the underground chamber. Whenever I watched that scene in dailies, all I could think was: “Man, if you could’ve just started with that particular section instead of saving it for later, things would’ve gone a whole lot easier.”

PROMETHEUS (611)

Richard Dean Anderson was an Executive Producer on the show and liked to read and provide notes on all of the scripts. I remember getting a script back from him once and Paul being delighted by how much Rick obviously liked it. ”Look at all the check marks!”he pointed out. ”Check marks are bad,”Rob informed him. Oh.

Well, let’s just say this script got A LOT of check marks. Rick greatly objected to the basic premise – that a group could actually steal an Earth ship. As a result and to spare his character any potential blame, the script was rewritten so that O’Neill wasn’t anywhere near the Prometheus when it was taken. So passionate was his opinion that, in the scene in which he dresses someone down for allowing the ship to get grabbed, I swore he was actually channeling himself.


Mailbag:

RFVDevil writes: “Frankly, I agree with you Joe. A response from SyFy to the fans was not nessecary and IMO is more of an acknowledgement / justification that they screwed up and that the execs are trying to cover their own arse in explaining why the show was canceled. The Stargate Franchise has been airing on SyFy for 10 years and for the most part served as their bread and butter.”

Answer: Let’s be fair. Like I said yesterday, television is a business. It’s unfair to expect the network to pick up a third season of a show if it doesn’t make financial sense to them. But it’s equally unfair to make a case for cancellation by comparing SGU’s performance unfavorably to shows that had the benefit of airing in the summer or were less impacted by downloads and DVR usage.

Sam/Martouf writes: “Could you please give some details about the characters such as: birthdates, birthplaces, heights, weights, etc”

Answer: Sorry. We didn’t flesh out each character’s backstory to that detailed extent. I’ll have Carl Binder get on this.

Sam/Martouf also writes: “What was the “Blueberry’s” plan(s) for Chloe?”

Answer: The plan was to eventually use her to amass as much information about the Destiny’s systems as possible and then, eventually, use her to gain access to the ship.

“What did they do to her body in the first place?”

Answer: They implanted her with an alien virus that slowly mutated, taking over her mind and body and acting as an organic satellite. Once the mutation was complete, she would have been entirely under their control.

“Why didn’t the crew check out the crates, to see if there were more spare parts for the Destiny?”

Answer: They did check out the crates – and several unexplored sections. We simply didn’t see them search and come up empty.

“After all these years, why did you just skip over how the gates are made, like it was not that important to anyone?”

Answer: There was never a story point that required us to see the gates being manufactured. By the time we found the seed ship in Awakening, it was long dormant.

“How come no one ever really did anything about the Furlings?”

Answer: I think part of the reason was their unfortunate name. We considered doing a story about them just so that we could introduce them as some tall, gaunt, morose alien life forms, totally different from short, furry, lovable creatures that would invariably come to mind.

Mike writes: “By the way, the ship concepts look amazing. Did you give the artist a rough idea about what you wanted and they just went with it, or did they come to you with their thoughts and you approved/disproved them?”

Answer: I gave a fairly vague description in the script and Gary took it from there. The design is all him.

William Francais writes: “was there ever any intention to have any humanoid races in SGU world?”

Answer: Yes. As I said in a previous entry, the plan was to encounter more off-shoot civilizations that originated from the crew’s descendants.

max writes: “Joe, do you believe some of the problems is that the 3 SG series catered to an aging audience? [...] In hindsight, if this is true, would you have casted even younger actors to make the SG shows more appealing to that younger demographics?”

Answer: I don’t think so, and I don’t know how much younger you could cast without running into problems “not being out late on a school night”.

SZL writes: “1. There would have been a chance that way, that Atlantis going after the Destiny with the star-drive?”

Answer: Nope. In the movie, Stargate: Extinction, the wormhole drive gets fried and, thus, rendered useless.

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May 14, 2011 - Part 2


“2. If the destiny is the oldest technology, then how’s that he has a rotating gate? “

Answer: Good question for whoever designed it, either Production Designer James Robbins or the Ancients.

“3. Why did the blue aliens leave the destiny in peace?”

Answer: Because they had retrieved all the information they needed from Chloe when they divested her of the alien virus.

“4. What happens then, if from the home dial, while the destiny is between the two galaxies yet?”

Answer: Sorry. I don’t understand the question.

“5. Eli’s smile means that there is not everything yet on his end disappearing regarding the continuation?”

Answer: I think it means he’s come to the realization that, despite how dire the situation, he’s where he truly wants to be.

J514 writes: “havnt heard about rob cooper lately… is he still working on the transporter with you and paul?”

Answer: Yes, he is – among many other projects. Stay tuned!

Elliott writes: “1.) What happened to Franklin’s body? I know that his mind became part of the Destiny AI (or something to that effect, like you said in a previous post), but I was just wondering what happened to his body.”

Answer: His physical being was either absorbed as well or atomized.

“2.) Can you give us any more information on the blue aliens or the Ursini? Where they came from, what they wanted, would we have seen them again and in what capacity?”

Answer: I believe I already covered this in a previous response. The blue aliens had designs on Destiny and were using Chloe to gather information on the ship’s systems. The Ursini were the remnants of what we discover is a long-dead race, wiped out by the drones.

“3.) You discussed the planet builders in this post; why were they helping the Destiny crew (creating Eden, sending Caine etc back)? What did they hope to gain from it? And if they weren’t helping us, what were they doing?”

Answer: I believe that they felt some responsibility for the death of the Destiny crew and sought to make amends by restoring them and returning them to the ship. Given what we know about the planet builders, it’s highly probable that this was also part of an experiment to learn more about humans and Destiny itself.

“4.) I understand not revealing what the ultimate end for the show was, but can you talk about how Destiny played into the CMBR message? How did it gather the data, and what role did it play in understand what it meant?”

Answer: Again, there’s not much I can reveal on the subject. This is a question for Brad and/or Robert.

“5.) Were there ever any plans to show flashbacks to the building and the launching of Destiny and the seed ships?”

Answer: Yes. I tossed around a time travel idea that either would have seen the crew shifting back to the past or the Ancients of the past shifting forward to the present. What was causing the shift, what it influenced, and how the problem was solved were aspects of the story I never got around to figuring out.

John T. Williams writes: “Just wanted to ask if the statis chambers aboard Destiny are different to those found in Atlantis and other ancient outposts?”

Answer: They’re different.

James writes: “Also forgot to ask do you know if a OST (soundtrack) for Stargate Universe is coming out soon?”

Answer: Sorry, no idea. I’ll drop Joel Goldsmith an email this week and ask him. Remind me!

Prior_of_the_Ori writes: “I will keep an eye out on Dark Matter. Will there be any information about the setting?”

Answer: Eventually, yes. Keep checking out this blog for more info.

Prior_of_the_Ori also writes: “Going through the old notes you mentioned on AU Season 6, you mentioned that Atlantis was going to get trapped into a bubble universe whereupon there would be a resurgent Wraith threat due to the actions of a mysterious new ally. Who was this ally going to be anyway? Would this have been seen in Extinction in some capacity? Not the bubble universe but the mysterious new allies.”

Answer: Hmmm. I’m afraid this one is lost to time. If I get my hands on my old laptop (back in Vancouver), I’ll be able to look up the details for you.

Rhyney writes: “Why is nether SyFy nor MGM interested in Extinction an Revolution as well as the two SGU movies, despite the fact the moves cost money and need good viewer ratings?”

Answer: Uh, I’m going to say the fact that the movies cost money and the show requires good viewer ratings.

Lou Zucaro writes: “Joe, when you say that your idea for the planet builders included that they didn’t evolve from a physical form like ours, can you elaborate on that? Were they energy beings? Mechanical? Or just a lifeform vastly different than humans / humanoids?”

Answer: We never got that far, but I envisioned them as lifeforms vastly different than humans.

mike mcginnis writes: “Isn’t syfy obligated to produce stargate extinction because they promised SGA would be followed by at least 1 2 hour direct to DVD movie? Is there any legal action that can be taken?”

Answer: Afraid not. For what it’s worth, I think all the parties had every intention of doing a movie. And then the DVD market collapsed.

Gilder writes: “Joe, just for fun, does WordPress give you stats on your posters’ locations?”

Answer: Nope, but I do receive updates on new subscribers to the blog that offer details. I’ve been picking up a lot lately and from all over.

Beau O’Brien writes: “My quick question is, Is it a possibility to return SGU in a Novel Series perhaps? Or is it just up to MGM?”

Answer: Again, up to MGM.

sparced writes: “Did aliens really take TJ’s baby and what would have happened with the rest of that baby storyline?”

Answer: We left it purposely vague but, given everything we know, it’s more than likely that Destiny was responsible for T.J.’s vision in the season two premiere.

Donna S writes: “Anyway, I explained that you had blogged about it & I tried to put a link to your blog but it keeps disappearing. Do you know why this is?”

Answer: Sorry, no idea.

Jade writes: “1. Do SyFy count live views from other countries such as the UK?”

Answer: No because the network makes money selling ad time to advertisers who depend on American viewers to watch the show live – and catch the commercials.

“2. Did you have any intention in pursuing TJ’s baby storyline?”

Answer: Aside from the repercussions of the loss, no.

“3. Given that TJ was the only medic onboard destiny why wasnt she making trips to earth to improve her medical knowledge?”

Answer: Yes, she was. In fact, we were considering doing a story that, at least in part, focused on this.

“4. Would Varro have been a big part of season 3?”

Answer: Yes, he would have found a place as a regular member of the crew.

scottland7 writes: “Who would you suggest the fans could go to read comments by MGM?”

Answer: I would suggest leaving comments on the official Stargate website which is managed by MGM.

Mo Restrepo writes: “ Was the introduction of the Ancients considered at any point during the originally planned 5-year run of the series?”

Answer: Yes, it had been considered.

Bryan M. White writes: “How is the casting for Transporter going? Any chance you could tell us what network or cable channel we can look forward to watching that on?”

Answer: Big announcement coming up. Watch for it!

Randomness writes: “Or if you’re wanting to do a Scifi type show, aim for something like Planetes, Crest/Banner of the Stars, or Infinite Ryvius.

Or Black Lagoon, any of those would make me happy to see.”

Answer: Loved them all. Coincidentally, I happen to be wearing my Black Lagoon t-shirt today.

max writes: “In your opinion, is Rush’s character capable of murdering the whole crew just to get to the end of destiny’s exploration mission?”

Answer: In my opinion, no.

Charles Dockham writes: “Not to be just another comment in the crowd and I kind of hope this one actually gets read by one of the writers, but why haven’t you thought of using atlantis?”

Answer: Atlantis would certainly have the capability to dial Destiny (as would most any gate) but it wouldn’t have the power necessary to complete the connection.

Jimbo writes: “However, it’s killing me not knowing. Is there anyway to contact- or have myself contacted by- Brad?”

Answer: I’ve extended an invitation to come by the blog and field fan questions. Hopefully, once things have settled down and he has some free time…

kimmy writes: “In Common Descent, when Eli plays the kino footage of Young’s speech, did he also show Young the entire set that we saw of TJ giving birth to his son or just the speech? It wasn’t too clear for me. When Young find out that he & TJ did stay together on Novus if he wasn’t show the footage?”

Answer: It’s safe to assume that either Young did see the footage or he was told.

kimmy also writes: “In Twin Destinies, Rush stated that he was trying to buy them some time when crew went through Stargate after Telford. Did that mean Rush modified the wormhole direction to have it run closer to a solar flare? Thus enabling the crew to gate to desert planet 2000 years “

Answer: No. It just meant he was trying maintain the stability of the wormhole, allowing them the time to gate through (to Earth presumably).

Gurluas writes: “Would the Ori Supergate be able to dial Destiny due to it drawing power from a black hole? And does it still exist?”

Answer: Hmmm. Good question. Given the fact that a ZPM wouldn’t supply enough power, I’m not sure it would – as crazy as it sounds.

Darth Novos writes: “So I do have to ask a very important question, are you going to actually finish something that you start? Or are you just going to continue to disappoint your fans, because that is exactly what you are doing… with everything that has happened and how you have constantly let your fans down, why would any of us watch the next thing you come up with when we can just expect you to do it again? And you cannot sit there and say that it is all MGM’s fault, if you guys really wanted to continue this, then you guys would have put more into the pitch, you would not have taken “no” for an answer.”

Answer: Seriously, dude. Time for a reality check. After ten years of a show, in the case of SG-1, you will not get all the loose ends wrapped up, no matter how many movies you do. In the case of Atlantis and Universe, we didn’t get the chance to wrap anything up because news of the cancellation came too late – and, quite frankly, even if it did come in time for us to rewrite the final episode, again, we’d have been hard-pressed to wrap everything up. As for not taking no for an answer – what exactly would you have us do? Stage a sit-in at the MGM offices? Hijack the sets and produce a movie out of our own pockets and upload it to the internet before the studio catches on? I look forward to your input.

Ize V. Spielman writes: “If Stargate Universe were to be continued in novel/comic form, is it safe to assume you’d be the first to tell us?”

Answer: Wish I could but it’s more than likely it would be someone else – either someone at MGM or whoever was hired to write the novel/comic book.

Archersangel writes: “now that you’re doing season 6 reminisces, will there be anything on might have happened to jonas if the character had been kept on?”

Answer: Wasn’t planning to but I’ll certainly consider it.

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May 15, 2011 - Part 1


Holy Smack! So there I was this morning, minding my own business, perusing the internet for cornish game hen recipes when I came across THIS article in which a religious group alert us to the possible end of the world May 21. The evidence is mighty convincing. According to the article, the group’s elderly leader claims he arrived at the May 21st date through “a mathematical calculation that would probably crash Google’s computers. It involves, among other things, the dates of floods, the signals of numbers in the Bible, multiplication, addition and subtraction thereof.” Multiplication, addition AND subtraction! Usually, you get one, maybe two of the aforementioned in your average doomsday calculation, but the fact that this guy made use of all three (division is for losers by the way) suggests a mind-boggling thoroughness and attention to detail. If that’s not enough to convince the skeptics, the group’s leader also points to the many obvious signs that the apocalypse approacheth. According to the story in the Washington Post, he “mentioned the massive earthquakes in Chile, Haiti and Japan, as well as the recent tornadoes in the South. And to top that off, gay people are thriving.” Yes to the earthquakes in Chile, Haiti and Japan. Another yes to the tornadoes in the South. And, the last time I visited my favorite cupcake shop in Vancouver, owned by a really nice same-sex couple, business was booming which seems to be confirm the final piece of the prophecy.

I’m of two minds here. On the one hand, I’m horrified at the prospect that, in a matter of days, everything I know will cease to be. On the other hand, this means I don’t have to kill myself to complete that pesky script rewrite.

Hell, I’m taking the rest of the week off!

Steve Eramo interviews actor Louis Ferreira (Colonel Young) here: http://scifiandtvtalk.typepad.com/sc...ver-young.html

Thanks to all those who have taken the time to weigh in with their comments and questions. I do read them all and, hopefully, will get around to addressing most. Eventually. In the meantime, my trip down memory lane continues with more Stargate: SG-1 reminiscences...

UNNATURAL SELECTION (612)

Although I liked the replicators when they were first introduced, I felt a little of them went a long way – which was why I loved their evolution into human form. Same villain but new, improved, and far more dangerous. What made this very good episode great was O’Neill’s double-cross of the all-too-trusting Fifth. Was he right to do it? Sure, an argue could be made for the fact that his actions do contain the replicator threat. Of course, the double-cross comes back to bite us in the ass down the line when Fifth escapes the time dilation bubble. So, would we have been better served taking him with us. Again, hard to say. And that’s one of the things I loved about SG-1. Sometimes, amid the high adventure and humor, there were situations that offered no easy answers.

SIGHT UNSEEN (613)

Boy, did I NOT like this episode, this despite actor Jodi Racicot’s brilliant turn as the beleaguered Vernon Sharpe. My note at the script stage was: So what?. I mean, okay, people started glimpsing interdimensional creatures that caused them to “Freak out, man!” but, when it came down to it, those alien centipedes really weren’t much of a threat.

SMOKE AND MIRRORS (614)

See if you can spot Peter Kelamis (SGU’s Adam Brody) in one of his first guest spots on the franchise. Yep, that young little guy who gets clotheslined by Teal’c. That’s him! This episode also marked the return of one of my favorite characters you love to hate: Senator Kinsey played by the brilliant Ronny Cox. It was always a pleasure to have him on the show.

The hotel at the beginning of the episode where Kinsey gets shot is actually located right across from The Bridge Studios where the show’s production offices are located. Apparently, back in SG-1′s early days, a new writer joined the staff and was offered accommodations in town. Instead, the writer elected to move into The Accent Inn! I mean, sure, it was convenient in that all you had to do was walk across the street to get to work but there is nothing of interest in the neighborhood outside of the ABC Country Restaurant. Sorry. Strike that. Nothing of interest in the neighborhood.

PARADISE LOST (615)

Robert Cooper’s long-standing distaste for arugula is finally revealed. The mysterious plant Jack and Maybourne eat in order to survive apparently tastes horrible – not unlike arugula. Not only that but, at episode’s end, we realize it’s the cause of the frightening hallucinations that almost get them killed. Rob’s aversion to spicy leaf plants isn’t restricted to arugula alone. Back in the day, we used do our annual trips to Vegas to celebrate our respective birthdays that all used to fall in the same month (Rob, Chris Judge, John G. Lenic, and myself). I remember going to The Cheesecake Factory with him once and, when our two orders of corn tamales arrived, having him look down at the heavily cilantro-topped tamale he’d received and lamenting: “Hey, why do I get to have all the cilantro?” as if to imply I’d been left out because my tamale was relatively cilantro-less. A clever bit of reverse psychology.

METAMORPHOSIS (616)

And the award for Most Awkward Seduction scene in an episode of Stargate goes to… Whenever I see the Nirrti’s Bedchamber scene, I vacillate between squirming and laughing out loud. “Mrs. Nirrti, you’re trying to seduce me!”. Poor, simple, innocent Jonas.

Another thing I recall about this episode was the gratuitously gory shot of the mutant exploding on the hospital gurney that ended up being cut.


Mailbag:

Darth Novos writes: “MGM may own the rights but there is nothing stopping you from talking to other people about possible deals.”

Answer: Actually there is – believe it or not, MGM, who own the rights.

Marius writes: “I think your unwillingness to “wrap up loose ends” is what has driven the Stargate franchise down the toilet. [...] It is obvious you´ve “gone with the flow” on both Atlantis (which also sucked) and Universe. [...] I also want to add, that I have some genuine good ideas for an alternatively new Stargate series concept. [...] I´m positive my ideas could generate a show that gathered good viewer ratings. If you believe in me, contact me via email.”

Answer: Clearly, you know what makes for a successful t.v. show better than any of us who were involved in Stargate’s 14-year run. I’m forwarding your email to the Grand Councilor of Awesome Programming at MGM’s moonbase headquarters. Good luck!

glennh73 writes: “1. Your comic Dark Matter, does it have any connection to the book Dark Matter written by S. W. Ahmed. Great Read!”

Answer: Nope.

“2. You stated Atlantis couldnt connect to Destiny with 3 zpm’s nor with the Ori Supergate. Well if the Anicents were still around, how would they of going back aboard?”

Answer: That’s a questions for the Ancients. Or Brad and Robert.

“Honestly wouldnt a black hole powered ORI Supergate have more power than a Icarus type planet?”

Answer: Possibly.

“3. Oldie but goody. Daniels grandfather Nicholas Ballard. Those aliens he is with, were they the Furlings or even the Faith Aliens or something else and why didnt we get another story about him.”

Answer: Definitely not furlings. We never did another story about him because, alas, no one came up with a good story idea that would have included him.

“4. From SG1, is there any storylines you wished you could of expanded on. Ex Daniels grandfather, the Aschen, Re’tu, ORi?”

Answer: While there were no specific stories I’d want to revisit, I would certainly love to revisit every one of those characters.

Shannon writes: “Just wondering if you can clarify here. Was it Destiny just trying to help TJ survive/cope or was this Destiny actively doing something (like, since it’s the latest fashion, uploading the baby to the Destiny computer)?”

Answer: It was the former – Destiny reaching out to T.J. and creating a scenario which would have made it easier for her to accept the loss.

tidusspear08 writes: “Did you have any plans to make Ginn a series regular?”

Answer: As much as we all absolutely loved Julie McNiven, there were no plans to make Ginn a series regular.

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May 15, 2011 - Part 2


nm writes: “Assuming though that you are referring to the dvd market in general rather than specifically the SG1 sales figures, do you think if the movies could have been made within a year they would have been successful?”

Answer: Don’t recall the timing of the collapse in dvd sales (and, yes, I’m referring to the general marketplace) so it’s hard to say. Back when Atlantis’s fifth season was drawing to an end, Robert Cooper floated the idea of rolling right into a production of a two-hour event (I dubbed “Project Twilight”) that, once completed, could have delivered as either a movie (in the case we didn’t receive the sixth season pick-up) or the first two episodes of season six (if we did receive the pick-up). For whatever reason, we weren’t able to move forward on this idea which, in hindsight, probably would have been the best way to proceed.

detanfy writes: “First of all, what exactly did the Blue Berry aliens want with Destiny. I know you said they are collecting information to try and take over, but what do they actually want with the old gal. Do they even know about Destiny and her ultimate mission?”

Answer: This is something we would have discussed and detailed in time but the idea was that the Blueberry aliens had been aware of Destiny for quite some time. It’s doubtful they would have been aware of her ultimate mission, but they certainly would have been impressed with her capabilities both offensive and defensive.

detanfy also writes: “How did the Blue Berry aliens discover Destiny?”

Answer: I imagine they encountered Destiny during one of her many refueling stops, attempted communications and, receiving no response, scanned the ship. Their interest pique and assuming their prize was unmanned, they attempted to board Destiny – only to be rebuffed by the ship’s automated defenses.

detanfy also writes: “Can you tell us about any of Destiny’s past experiences before the Icarus crew got on board? She seems to have been through a hell of a lot of battles. I would imagine she would have just been in FTL all this time and would only drop out to recharge, so why all the battle scars?”

Answer: A lot of the damage could be attributed to attempts by the Blueberry aliens to capture the ship. Of course I’m sure they weren’t the only alien life forms to attempt as much.

detanfy also writes: “Are the Icarus crew the first to gate to Destiny since its launch?”

Answer: As far as we know, yes, but I loved the idea of discovering some humanoid corpses during a search of the ships unexplored sections. Along with those corpses, we would also discover a recorded account of what happened to them when they gated aboard. Of course, the experience of the long-dead explorers would somehow help or hinder our crew (preferably both, first hinder, then help). Again, one of those stories that never developed beyond that germ of an idea.

mike mcginnis writes: “Also was there ever a plan to bring ford back for another episode?”

Answer: Yes. I believe the story is included as part of my AU Season 6 post.

mike mcginnis writes: “Also was there ever a plan to bring ford back for another episode?”

Answer: Yes. I believe the story is included as part of my AU Season 6 post.

Andrew Jung writes: “Being from Vancouver Island, would you have ever considered doing an SG shoot on the island, or other parts of BC outside of the Lower Mainland; like the Okanagan desert?”

Answer: Sure. We considered all possibilities. What it ultimately came down to was budgetary constraints, what we would really gain from shooting so far out of the zone and whether it would be worth the extra costs.

Andrew Jung also writes: “Was there ever any talk about having a point where the Stargate actually became public knowledge and start using the gates and ships for colonization?”

Answer: The possibility of the Stargate program going public was going to be the premise of the next SG-1 movie, Stargate: Revolution.

Don Matthews writes: “…was the idea of Destiny going into the past and creating a civilization that would stretch into the present partially designed to allow SGU to showcase human type aliens ALA SG1/SGA?”

Answer: Yes, it would offered us a plausible scenario by which humans would have colonized that section of space.

Don Matthew also writes: “Oh and frying the Wormhole drive, that was kind of a “this tech is too powerful/deux ex machina and we have to get rid of it” decision?”

Answer: Over the course of Stargate’s run, there have been several technologies the show introduced that I felt undermined drama or handcuffed the storytelling. Off the top of my head, in particular order: beaming technology, the Asgard core, and the wormhole drive.

Don Matthews also writes: “And was there a big payoff to come with the “franklin getting absorbed by the ship” thing? We saw him but it was kind of ambiguous.”

Answer: Purposely so. It was something we could have explored more in the show’s third season.

Don Matthews also writes: “Was the “disappearing fetus” story just a way of dispensing with a pregnancy that you didnt feel fit with the rest of what you had planned for season 2?”

Answer: Over the course of Stargate’s long run, the production has had been faced with a number of pregnancies. In a couple of cases, we were able to ignore the pregnancies by shooting around them. In another case – Rachel on SGA – the pregnancy became part of the storyline, as did the subsequent birth and associated motherhood issues. Ultimately, we decided that, while Atlantis was a hopeful enough environment to raise a child, Destiny was not. We wrestled with how we wanted to proceed, none more so than Paul who faced the challenge of scripting the season two opener and, eventually, came up with the ambiguous/mysterious solution. It’s interesting to note that, even though it’s more or less stated that Destiny was responsible for T.J.’s vision, many in the writing department refused to confirm it one way or the other.

Don Matthews also writes: “Oh and any gate that was powered by a blackhole should have been able to contact Destiny since they were able to keep the supergate blocked indefinitely (Pegesus Project).”

Answer: Having slept on it, I’m now firmly uncertain as to whether or not it would have been possible.

ben writes: “Regarding your new series The Transporter, have you already cast the lead roles? I’m eager to find out who you will cast as Inspector Tarconi, since you both share an affinity for haute cuisine.”

Answer: Oooh, you’re in for a treat on the casting front. Stay tuned.

Shiny writes: “Finally got to see a marathon of SGU on Hulu; was there a caveman lurking in background of Common Descent?”

Answer: Peter DeLuise loves unique-looking extras. The producers, not so much so. There was plenty more of him but Paul succeeded in cutting around him. For the most part.

paloosa writes: “You mentioned something about another series in the works? And are you still looking for a more permanent home?”

Answer: Everything I mentioned in my previous post is all I’ve got on the go. And, yes, still looking for an actual house here in Toronto.

Dustin writes: “Judging by how far Destiny is away from earth could it be the gates left by the seed ships are sending back info to the other gate networks in the Pegasus and Milky way? “

Answer: Theoretically possible, but not something we considered.

Spectrefire writes: “I read up on Netflix’s intentions on possibly footing the bill for shows and series that are about to be cancelled, and was thinking that Stargate Universe, or at the very least, a couple of movies might be right up the service’s alley.”

Answer: Agree. I suggested this option to the studio. The fact that it didn’t pan out suggests it wasn’t a viable option.

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May 15, 2011 - Part 3


Arctic Goddess writes: “I have a question about Torri Higginson and something that Joe Flanigan said at the Creation Convention. I’m paraphrasing, but Joe said how good and serious an actress Torri was and how she fought for every word she got and was concerned that she only worked two days out of five, but that she got quite a lot of screen time in spite of that.

Then Joe said that the writers were all aiming for the young adult male demographic and did not write a lot of strong women parts. That the writers did not come to the conventions and see the wide audience that Stargate was reaching. and that the writers were not very receptive to Torri’s concerns.
Eventually when you keep getting that kind of reception, you stop going upstairs to talk to them. He said it would probably have been better if there had been a few women writers writing it.” What is your opinion of Joe’s comments?”

Answer: Between seasons, we always made a concerted effort to bring in new writers by inviting them to pitch and, hopefully, sell a story that would allow them the opportunity prove themselves and land a staff position on the show. No easy feat. Many of the writers, while very good, simply weren’t able to offer us stories that we felt were right for the show. Others did manage to sell us pitches but, for whatever reason (and, again, I have to stress that it often had less to do with talent than it did with their inability to “get” the show’s tone), were unable to get past the outline or script stage. If you check the credits on past shows (particularly in the first half of each season), you’ll note that quite a few writers, both male and female, were given a shot. Ultimately, what it came down to was the fact that the show (be it SG-1, Atlantis, or Universe) was tough to write for because, after so many years, it was backstory and mythology heavy.

I can’t speak to claims that the writers weren’t receptive to Torri’s concerns as I was never privy to any such conversations. I do know, however, that Brad and Robert always maintained an “open door” policy with regard to the scripts and the actors (something Paul and I maintained when we took over as show runners in Atlantis’s fourth season). I’m aware of many shows that simply ignore actor input, so I do take exception to the suggestion the writers weren’t receptive to any serious issues the cast may have had – especially since I would often see the actors in discussion with either Brad or Robert. To be fair, there is a difference between “not being receptive” and “disagreeing with a take on a particular scene. Simply drawing from personal experience, I can tell you I had great conversations with Bob Picardo, Beau Bridges, and the late Don Davis about their respective characters and was always receptive to any input they might have had. The same was true for other actors like Jason Momoa (whose desire to go darkside resulted in my writing Reunion and Broken Ties) or Jamil Walker-Smith (who’s crisis of confidence story in The Hunt came about as a result of a visit he paid me one afternoon).

William Francais writes: “I wish you would have brought Jack’s clone back, did anyone in the writing room want to bring him back years later?”

Answer: Yes, revisiting Young Jack was suggested on a couple of occasions but we were never able to find the write story for the character.

scottland7 writes: “… why did Hammond get reassigned? I think I read because of Don Davis’ health problems started around this point. Is this really the reason he was written as being reassigned?”

Answer: I don’t recall the circumstances. There was a point in the series when Rick was scaling down his appearances on SG-1, resulting in quite a challenge for the writing department. I remember Don coming up to the production offices one day and volunteering to have his character retire so that O’Neill could take over as the commander of the SGC and thus make things easier from a creative standpoint. That was typical Don. Incredibly generous. We didn’t take him up on his kind offer but, later on down the line, that more or less became the scenario that was adopted. To my recollection (again, I wasn’t privy to these discussions), the call to have Hammond reassigned was a mutual decision on the part of Don and the show’s Exec. Producers. He enjoyed a semi-retirement of sorts, focusing on his art but still finding the time to do the occasional guest spot for us.

MNP writes: “Also, what did Jonas do during the Ori invasion? Did he lead a resistance movement? Go into hiding?”

Answer: In my mind, he led an underground resistance movement. Following the defeat of the Ori, he retired from public office.

Lance W. writes: “1. What does Eli do for those two weeks when he’s not fixing his stasis pod? Did he even attempt to fix it, or did he know it couldn’t be fixed? Does destiny come across problems that he alone must fix? Does he take a final trip back with the stones?”

Answer: Presumably when he’s not working on the problem, he’s eating and sleeping. I assume if it was the 11th hour and he realized he wouldn’t be able to fix the problem, he would use the stones to pay his mother one final visit – but that’s awful pessimistic.

“2. Did Rush volunteer, knowing that Young would deny him and instead choose himself? Was Rush hoping to get rid of Young, despite how well they’ve been getting along?”

Answer: I think Rush volunteered because he wanted to be the one to stay and fix the problem, but there’s no doubt he suspected that Young might disagree and insist he be the one to stay.

“3. What year and month did they enter the pods? I wish to make a note on when the three years is meant to be up.”

Answer: I suppose whenever the episode aired: May 9, 2011.

“Finally, I’m grasping at my last straw here, but this episode seemingly left it open to a film after three years, is that even a possibility any more?”

Answer: It’s a nice thought but, given the fact that the sets are about to be struck, very unlikely.

Lisa R writes: “When you planned your original five-year arc, was it planned for the Destiny to be in a different galaxy each season as they got closer to their goal or would there be more time spent in one particular galaxy?”

Answer: That’s was the original plan – but plans change.

Phillip writes: “Were the mindless drones in SGU a metaphor for the unsupportive fans that wanted to see SGU the show end?”

Answer: Ha. Apt but no. Reminds me of a similar theory way back in early SG-1. During a warehouse shootout, a bullet ricochets off a fan. The following days, some fans were claiming this was wish fulfillment on the part of the producers = shooting a fan. No kidding. Well, I’ll say the same thing to you now as I told fans back then – you’re reading too much into it. Entertaining theory though.

zakhar writes: “I was wondering if there was every any plan to further explore Alan McCullough’s unknown aliens from The Daedalus Variations episode in Atlantis.”

Answer: Another idea that was floated but ultimately shelved.

Greg writes: “Why would the blue aliens have to transform Chloe when they had access to Destiny ? I make that conclusion based on their ship detaching at the end of the one episode.”

Answer: That assumption is incorrect. They were able to attach a scout ship to Destiny’s hull, but that doesn’t mean they were able to gain entry to the ship. And the only reason they were able to do so in Space was because the inexperienced crew was running the show (cutting off power to a section of the ship, thereby bringing the shield down and allowing the alien ship to attach and penetrate the hull) instead of Destiny’s automated defenses.

Greg also writes: “How did Chloe suddenly become Bruce Lee by changing into a blue alien when Rush was able to take one out with a metal bar ?”

Answer: Chloe wasn’t transforming into a Blueberry alien but mutating into a hybrid alien form with similarities to them – and another species they had experimented upon.

Elliott writes: “1.) Did you ever discuss who built the ruins from “Human” and “Lost”?”

Answer: Not to any significant length, no (and by significant, I mean to the point where it would offer us a kernel of an idea we could use as a springboard for another story).

“2.) Who is your favourite character from each of the Stargate shows?”

Answer: Which ones did I have the most fun writing for? SG:1 – Vala, SGA – Ronon and Woolsey, SGU – T.J. and Greer.

“3.) Why didn’t you mention that the Odyssey’s secret mission in “Enemy at the Gate” was the search for an Icarus planet? I think many assumed that it was “Revolution”.”

Answer: I didn’t write the SGU premiere so I can’t answer that. I assume Brad and/or Robert changed their minds and did, in fact, shift Odyssey’s mission to Revolution.

“4.) If you could change anything about each of the Stargate shows (besides cancellation, greenlighting movies etc.), what would it be?”

Answer: Probably the aforementioned tech. I’d have lost the beaming tech, Asgard core, the Earth fleet, and wormhole drive. I’d have maintained Atlantis’s isolation from the Milky Way.

“5.) Any idea when “Dark Matter” will be released?”

Answer: January of 2012. Will have a firm date shortly.

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May 15, 2011 - Part 4


John T. Williams writes: “So how’re the two types of statis chambers different? Do the Destiny type freeze completely so that the occupants don’t actually age whatsoever?”

Answer: Yes, that’s the way they were designed to operate.

Airelle writes: “How are the pups doing in day care, have they taken over the place yet?”

Answer: They’ve been attending two different daycares. Lulu and Bubba passed the rigorous screening process and are now attending St. Roch’s Academy for Gifted Canines where they are learning arts & crafts, proper table manners, and elementary Latin. Jelly and Maximus, meanwhile, are occasional attendees at a more downscale every-dog institution.

Lloyd writes: “How did you get into the world of Stargate?”

Answer: Our Canadian agent got us the opportunity to pitch. We came up with five story ideas, two of which we sold. One, Scorched Earth, was the script that landed us a position on staff.

“Have you watched before Season 4 Stargate SG-1 before coming to the team?”

Answer: No. In fact, I had only seen one episode of the series – Emancipation – and hated it. It wasn’t until we got the opportunity to pitch that we started watching episodes and realized – hey, this show is pretty good!

“When you watch an episode of Stargate (SG1, SGA, SGU), you have the eyes of a fan (or viewer) or a critical eye on your work?”

As with every film or television series, I view it through the eyes of a writer first and the eyes of a producer second. My ex used to hate going to see movies with me because I’d spend most of my time sighing and muttering angrily to myself in the dark.

“If the MGM offers to return to something new: about Stargate, Will you join in?”

Answer: I’m committed to other projects and, unfortunately, would be unable to participate. Provided Brad Wright was in charge, any new project would be in excellent hands.

“Is there some episode you remember most? and why?”

Answer: A few. Harmony, Whispers, 200, Ripple Effect, The Hunt to name a few. As for why – well, you’ll find out when I get around to reminiscing about their particular seasons.

“Today you have another project (the series “The Transporter”), how would you like your job, compared to Stargate?”

Answer: To be honest, Toronto has been a major adjustment (still ongoing), but I can’t say enough great things about Transporter: The Series. I can honestly say that I enjoy going into work and that speaks to the show and the people involved.

“If you had to summarize in one word, all your work on Stargate, which one? ? and why this word?”

Answer: Fun. That’s what I set out to do (have fun) every time I envisioned a story and sat down to write a script. If the viewers at home had fun watching, then mission accomplished.

“Finally, what do you think about the cancellation of ALL projects Stargate? (“Extinction”, “Revolution”, a film SGU) Why all of a sudden?”

Answer: I think .

Jeff writes: “obviously the ancients had to create a ZPM to power their ships, bases, and atlantis, so i guess my question is, didnt they leave directions in the ancient database on atlantis on how to actually create a ZPM?”

Answer: You would presume so but the fact that this was never discovered suggests that either: a) it wasn’t uploaded to the Atlantis database, or b) is there somewhere but is so top secret it will take a while before scientists uncover it. Ideally, they could have uncovered it in time to come up with an alternate power source capable of dialing Destiny and sending a retrieval team to the rescue – but that’s a story for another fan fiction.

Jeff writes: “btw, the wedding is october 29, where should i send your invite?”

Answer: Just tell me where in Vegas you’ll be.

Alex writes: “in your mind was the earth Stargate still at the SGC in Colorado or was it moved to Homeworld Command?”

Answer: In my mind, it would make sense to have moved it to Homeworld Command – but the nostalgic part of me says it’s still inside Cheyenne Mountain.

C-Verse writes: “1. Given that Atlantis was more family friendly, do you think the darker tone of Universe might have discouraged people from watching it?”

Answer: I’m sure it turned off some people. On the other hand, I’m sure it attracted new viewers as well. It’s a double-edged sword, just like the word Stargate in the title.

“2. Again concerning the darker tone, do you think Universe would have had better luck, if it taped more in the Battlestar Galactica fanbase, than the old Stargate fanbase?”

Answer: Sorry. Don’t understand the question.

“3. Do you think Universe could have survived if it had a smaller budget?”

Answer: I don’t think it would have made any difference.

“4. Given that more people are now downloading shows instead of watching them, do you think Sfy-Fy should put in more effort in advertising it shows online, rather than traditional media?”

Answer: Eventually, we’ll all be going that way.

Michelle writes: “ fans reacted more to how Daniel was treated than to his screen time, anyway: Jack didn’t seem to give a crap about Daniel going off undercover with the system lords; in fact, he seemed irritated at him when he made it back alive. Seriously? And on and on.”

Answer: Again, because I wasn’t privy to any discussions Michael may have had concerning his character, I didn’t realize there was an issue. In fact, having written episodes like Scorched Earth, The Curse, and Summit (and looking at season 5 episodes like Beast of Burden and Menace), I still have a hard time seeing it. In the case of Jack seemingly not giving a crap, being irritated with him, or not even broaching the subject that he almost killed him (Scorched Earth), I can see it but this was a source of frustration because these reactions (or lack thereof) were not scripted.

Michelle also writes: “As far as it being Michael’s decision, there was a rumor he changed his mind after filming Meridian, but Brad and/or MGM told him to get lost, they’d already found another 6′ actor to fill his role. Any truth to that?”

Answer: Again, I was out of the loop but I’d bet my last dollar that Brad and/or MGM did not tell a guy they had worked with for the last five years to “get lost” or any variation thereof. If there was an issue, it would have been with the fact that they’d already signed an actor to a one year deal that made it difficult for Michael to come back as a series regular. I stress again, I was out of the loop and don’t know what happened, but I’m quit certain all parties discussed the decision at length before taking the next step.

Michelle also writes: “And I know it is hard to accept, but, just as with SGU vs SGA, not liking Jonas was not solely a reflection of missing Daniel. Convenient to blame it on that, but also inadequate.”

Answer: True. There were fans who simply felt Jonas didn’t work. But there were also fans who, quite clearly, had not intention of ever giving the character a chance. Some of the arguments made against him at times felt a little suspect. For instance, the fact that he turned his back on his people led some fans to brand him a traitor and untrustworthy, yet these same fans had no problem with Teal’c who did the same – and also had the deaths of hundreds of innocents weighing upon him.

Joe Cooper writes: “At risk of sounding harsh about something that happened like a million years ago, Jonas was written as a bit of a “mary sue”; his only real flaw was that others around him (namely Jack) wouldn’t accept how ridiculously awesome he was. Over and over again everyone would be ****ting bricks and then Jonas would come along and fix everything.”

Answer: That’s fair. In an effort to make his inclusion and eventual (necessary) acceptance as part of SG-1, we built up the character in such a way that he came across as a little straight and one-note. In retrospect, given the time, we would have been better served adding a little more depth to the character by taking our time and not worrying so much about making him an instantly beloved and accepted teammate.

Dave writes: “I’ve always wondered, was any thought given to which SG unit Young commanded before being assigned to Icarus base? Was he on an SG team back in the days Jack led SG-1 or was it more likely during the Mitchell years?”

Answer: We never got into this but I think it’s more than likely, given their respective ages, that Young and Mitchell crossed paths at some point. Hell, it’s likely that Young and O’Neill crossed paths at some point as well.

Rachel Grizzot writes: “I was looking through the old notes about what could’ve been the Season 6 of SGA and one of the topics were ‘Carls replicator story’
can i assume that maybe that was a attempt to bring back Elizabeth Weir ? or not?”

Answer: Yep. That was the plan.

DeanGrr writes: “With a a reputation earned by years on Stargate, why not try it to support a new or cancelled production? “

Answer: Again, you’re approaching the wrong guy. The only entity that can make this happen is MGM.

DeanGRR also writes: “What is Dr. Rush’s true motivation, given that even with all the power of the Ancients, he cannot bring his wife back?”

Answer: The answer to this is tied to the conclusion Brad and Robert imagined for the series.

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May 16, 2011

Photos: Convention pics, SG-1 Season 6, Transporter: The Series, Carl Binder


I’ve had some mighty crazy experiences in my life. I’ve partied to excess, dated a few lunatics, sampled the deadly fugu. But it all pales in comparison to the daredevil exhilaration of attending my very first fan convention. After being roasted alive online, I was fully expecting similar in-person treatment at the hands of some angry weekend Jaffa but, to my surprise, the fans I met ranged from indifferent to incredibly sweet. Not a deranged one in the bunch. Even the few attendees who disagreed with some of the creative decisions we’d made on the show were very polite and respectful. No Daniel Jackson impersonators pelting me with rotten fruit. No furling wannabes demanding answers to the show’s mystifying minutiae. Not even an overexuberant Nox cornering me with a pitch for a future episode. It was all very civil, very friendly and, dare I say it, most enjoyable. The organizers of the event, Gatecon (the first and, in my humble opinion, best) were equally gracious in hosting us.

Of course the fan-run, homey Gatecon was in marked contrast to the big studio extravaganza that is Comic Con. I attended my first Comic Con in the show’s sixth season. I flew to San Diego with my wife and, as we sat in the traffic, waiting for a light, I glanced over at a “Haunted Tour Bus” and jokingly suggested we purchase a couple of seats. As expected, Fondy nixed the idea. The very thought of walking some spirit-infested hall was enough to make her skin crawl. I chuckled, the light turned green, and we motored on, finally arriving at our destination – an old, turn-of-the-century boutique hotel. As we stood at the reception, checking in, I glanced over and watched as the same “Haunted Tour Bus” pulled up and released it’s ghost-lovin’ horde. The tour went right by us, through the lobby lined with white-eyed Victorian dolls, and up the rickety elevator to, I assumed, the cold spot where the grisly murder was committed – no doubt the bed we’d be occupying that night (“Oh, sorry to disturb you. Won’t be long. Just wanted to show everyone the butchering nook. Thanks. Nighty-night!”). Needless to say, Fondy didn’t sleep a wink all night – and ensured I didn’t either. Every five minutes it was: “Wait! What was that?! Did you hear that?!!

The next day was our panel and, by today’s San Diego Stargate panels, it was fairly light – just Corin Nemec (SG-1′s Jonas Quinn) and myself. Oh, and then MGM President Hank Cohen who volunteered to act as moderator but actually ended up fielding almost every question thrown our way except for one related to the average running time of an episode of Stargate (Oh, about forty-four minutes). Afterwards, I walked the floor, picked up a bunch of comic books, and lamented the fact it would be too much trouble to lug the Randy Bowen Juggernaut statue I’d been eyeing back home. Great, great time!

And then it was back to Vancouver to finish up production on what we all assumed would be our final season...

DISCLOSURE (617)

When Paul and I learned SG-1 would be doing a clip show in its sixth season, we lobbied hard and eventually won the opportunity to write it!

Juuuust kidding. When we were first handed the assignment, we were less than enthusiastic. But, as we started writing, it became, if not exactly fun, then certainly interesting. It’s Stargate 101 as the series deals with an issue that would plague it for years to come: How the hell can the government possibly keep the existence of the Stargate program a secret? Sure, there were past incidents that required some fast-talking (“Exploding spaceships? No, no, no. Those were Cinco de Mayo celebrations. Er, yes, in November.”), but the apparent crash of a spaceship into the Pacific Ocean was going to be tough to cover up. And so, rather than even try, we come clean. Of course it stood to reason that our allies would be annoyed at being kept in the dark for so long, so Rob Cooper suggested an appearance by Thor, the ever-affable Asgard, to smooth things over (and put the conniving Kinsey in his place). I love the sequence where Kinsey raises his finger to interrupt only to have Thor trump him by raising his finger (shut up) and continuing.

FORSAKEN (618)

Tiny nitpick but, in the opening scene, O’Neill peers through Carter’s telescope and remarks on the fact that he can’t see anything. She points out that, no, he wouldn’t because it’s daytime. Amusing and all if not for the fact that the show had already established Jack as a guy who likes to check out the stars at night through the telescope in his backyard. Was Jack being purposely dense? Perhaps. In fact, as the series went on, O’Neill became increasingly “intellectually relaxed”. After some six years of playing the role, I guess Rick wanted to have a little more fun with the character. And that was fine with us, the writers, since it allowed us to do something we always enjoyed doing – bring the funny. Less so some of the fans who began to derisively refer to the new and improved(?) O’Neill as Dumb Jack.

CHANGELING (619)

Actor Chris Judge tries his hand at writing with surprising spectacular results. I say surprising because, while I had no doubt it would be a solid script, I was mighty impressed by how good it turned out (this despite the fact that he neglected to include act breaks in his first draft – “I leave that sh*t up to you, m*th*r*****er.”). From what I remember, Chris really enjoyed the process and was quite proud of the final product.

MEMENTO (620)

What was this episode about again?

PROPHECY (621)

This episode turned out to be one of my biggest disappointments of the season. I thought the script was solid but the entire episode rested on the final twist, the moment in which O’Neill hears the horn and calls out to Pierce. It’s meant to be the episode’s big, defining moment but it’s so casually underplayed that it loses any dramatic impact.

FULL CIRCLE (622)

Ah, another series finale. Executive Producer Robert Cooper wraps up SG-1 in fine style – except that, as we learned late in season 6, this season would not be the show’s last. After six seasons, SG-1 was still going strong, much to the delight of our new broadcaster, SciFi, who were more than happy to pick up the series for one more year. Which, of course, we assumed would be its last...

Taking a break from the mailbag to focus on some scripts for my new show -

We’ve got six scripts written, one almost complete, and another five to be broken. Carl Binder rolls into town on Thursday and we’ll spend the rest of this week (and next) spinning stories.

Looking ahead, our Pink Pre-Production Schedule (please ignore the Blue) looks like this: Camera Test Technical Meeting, Beam Meeting (Asgard?), Update Meeting, Interviews, Conference Call, Summit! And not longer after, shooting begins. Andy (Mikita) reports that the Audi’s will be arriving in Toronto shortly.

Expect a big announcement on the casting front sometime this week. Ish.

Today’s entry is dedicated to birthday blog regular Elminster!

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May 17, 2011 - Part 1

Videos: SGU behind the scenes of Blockade

Photos: Patrick Gilmore, Jennifer Spence, SGU's Blockade behind the scenes pics


So I was tackling another round of mailbag questions last night when I came across a query that asked how we achieved the Park in Boiling Water sequence for SGU’s penultimate episode, Blockade. In the sequence, Park, sporting a protecting spacesuit, takes refuge in the hydroponic dome’s collection pool as Destiny plunges into the outer surface of a star. She waits out the wild ride, holding on for dear life as the heat intensifies, the plants burst into flames, and the surrounding water boils away. I was going to direct the curious reader to a past entry in which I’d revealed how it was done – only to realize such an entry didn’t exist!

Apologies. Here ya go...

Testing the waters...

And the effect from within the collection pool, looking up at a panicked Park...

Today’s entry is dedicated to all of the long-time lurkers/first-time posters who have taken the time to leave a comment over the past week.


Mailbag:

Jon writes: “Was Park’s submersion in the water in Blockade a practical effect?”

Answer: Thanks for reminding me. See above.

AD writes: “If you had unlimited time to tell the story of Atlantis, do you think they would have rebelled against earth and become independent? They always make me think of the American colonies dealing with Britain pre-Revolutionary War.”

Answer: I would have liked to see Atlantis exert its independence, not so much through a willful severing of ties with Earth but more of an agreement that would have seen it acting more like, yes, an independent colony. Having Atlantis more isolated (ie. without the ability to dial Earth or receive resupply runs from Earth ships like the Daedalus) would have certainly helped as well.

Scott Hander writes: “Are the sets for Universe being struck and stored, or struck and destroyed?”

Answer: I would imagine that certain pieces will be auctioned off and everything else, sadly, destroyed.

SupremeLegate writes: “ In the beginning Eli was a slacker and Chloe, for lack of a better term, was a spoiled daddies girl. But by the end they had both changed a lot. Which leads me to wonder, what was the intent for them, where where they meant to end up?”

Answer: Pretty much where they ended up by the end of season 2: fish out of water who had started to develop the skill set and character that made them valuable members of the Destiny crew.

“Now this next question is a shipper question, previously you gave some insight into the Young/TJ/Varro triangle. So now I am asking for some insight into the Eli/Chloe/Scott triangle.”

Answer: As much as she cared for him, I just never saw Chloe developing feelings for Eli (although the idea of downloading Ginn’s consciousness into Chloe’s body which I outlined in this entry - May 12, 2011: Stargate: Universe, Beyond Season 2! What Might Have Been! - would have been pretty close. Rather – besides the the obvious Young/T.J./Varro triangle – I wanted to explore a possible Chloe/Scott/James angle in season one, but no one else seemed quite as enthusiastic.

Guy writes: “Any chance un-filmed scripts can be published as book or books, or is MGM restricting this option?”

Answer: If you’re referring to the movie scripts (there are no unfilmed scripts for any of the shows), that is again up to MGM. For what it’s worth, I dropped them an email on the subject a couple of weeks ago.

William Francais writes: “My question did anyone ever suggest exploring the history contained in the core? “

Answer: Nope. It was in the hands of R&D, undergoing extensive testings – like the goa’uld healing device and the time-jumping puddle jumper from Good to Be King – that made it impossible to figure into future stories until research had been completed.

nm writes: “The one thing that’s always bothered me is re s9 and I always wanted to know if it was an oversight and intentionally. Why wasn’t a single mentioned of where O’Neill went and why in all of season 9?”

Answer: I believe it was an oversight at first and then, mysteriously, intentional.

Moritz writes: “Would be great, if you can give some information about the storyline of the moonbase Carter was talking about on Continuum. What was the plan for?”

Answer: I’m not sure if she was kidding or not, but Atlantis is the moonbase – as we reveal in Stargate: Extinction.

@iom666 writes: “Joe, I got the feeling that you wouldn’t go back to a Stargate show even if you had the choice (I mean from your current situation as you now moved to Toronto)? If so is it because you considered you had enough of Stargate or do not want to do business again with MGM/Syfy… or your consideration is purely on business AKA “why not if there is money to make with Stargate again, i’m in” ?”

Answer: I’m simply being realistic. As much as I would love to see the franchise come back with a series in the very near future, I don’t think that’s very likely. Similarly, I don’t really see a movie being greenlit either. If I’m wrong (and nothing would make me happier) then it would more than likely be a movie – in which case Brad and Robert, as the series co-creators, should be the guys to write and produce it.

Anat writes: “1. Ronon’s gun is the same as the Travellers gun (correct me if im wrong) so where did he get it from? Did he trade/steal it from the Traveller’s directly or did he get it from someone who got it from the Travellers?”

Answer: I would imagine he either scavenged it from a dead Traveller or had it given to him by someone.

“2. Also how many technologically advanced races did you guys imagine inhabited the Pegasus Galaxy?”

Answer: The technologically advances races of the Pegasus Galaxy were few and far between. Unless they had a way of shielding their technology from wraith detection, they would have presumably all been culled.

JDale writes: “…we could have seen a earth ship catch up with destiny (using maxed out hyperdrive?) or an earth expidition with a earth ZPM? come to destiny?”

Answer: No, giving a ship that kind of capability would have totally undermined the enormity of Destiny’s long mission. The only way Earth could have reached Destiny was through the gate.

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May 17, 2011 - Part 2


flib writes: “Is it for certain that any novel/comic continuation will be strictly non-canon?”

Answer: I suppose it depends on the fan. Given the fact that it’s unlikely we’ll see any new adventures of SG-1, Atlantis, or Universe, then why not consider the books canon if it allows the characters to live on?

Adam writes: “Anyway, I’m curious, at the beginning of season 7, was it ever considered to keep both Jonas and Daniel around, and have a five-person team?”

Answer: Unfortunately, SG-1′s budget couldn’t support a five person team.

fsmn36 writes: “I admit, I’m a little behind on SGU eps…but why would Destiny have non-aging stasis pods and the later-created ones, like on Atlantis, didn’t?”

Answer: What would be the point of having non-aging stasis pods? The whole point of being in stasis is that your body enters a hibernative state that significantly slows down the aging process.

Lyle writes: “1) Will your Transporter series still need to be green-lit after a network has seen the pilot? Any idea, if all goes as planned, when the series will air?”

Answer: Nope. We have a U.S. network on board (as well as a Canadian, German, and French broadcaster).

“2) I know there’s been a lot of people wondering about what would have happened when Destiny reached it’s final destination, but is it possible that Brad/Robert will not reveal anything at all just in case Universe (or another SG show in the future) is revisited? Have they told you whether or not they will?”

Answer: I can’t speak for Brad and Robert. I’ve extended an invitation for Brad to visit the blog and do one final fan Q&A.

David H writes: “Are downloads (iTunes, Amazon, etc) considered at all when looking at ‘DVD’ sales?”

Answer: They certainly are by the studio, but the network doesn’t have anything to gain by increased online sales.

myhelix writes: “I would love to know your opinion about your perfect SGU team that would go through the gate together, like in SG1 and SGA (choose 4-5 people)?”

Answer: I believe I already answered this question in a previous entry: Greer, Vala, McKay, T.J., and Ronon with Woolsey overseeing the action.

Shiny writes: “…but can we now surmise that the reason so many of the gateworld people we’ve met in SG1 and SGA speak English is because they are the descedents of the Destiny crew? Kinda like Destiny descendents are the prequel to everything that came later?”

Answer: Interesting theory but not one that we considered.

Chad: “Were we ever going to get an official name for the blueberry aliens?”

Answer: Yes. From now on, let’s refer to them as the Nakai.

Chad also writes: “Were there plans to encounter human decendents in the next galaxy?”

Answer: Yes, like the military force I mentioned here: May 12, 2011: Stargate: Universe, Beyond Season 2! What Might Have Been!

Tom writes: “Did the writers have any idea what the message in the the background radiation was going to be?”

Answer: Yep.

DatDude writes: “Would Eli and scott have had to take rush and youngs places after a while?”

Answer: When we were originally arcing out season 2, we were planning to have Scott take over when Young hit rock bottom. It would have been interesting to see him run assume command.

Lisa R writes: “For those who are interested in our job news, hubby has two phone interviews tomorrow—one for a job here in town and the other for the job in CT; they have a whole hour scheduled for this one.”

Answer: Good luck!

max writes: “Do the SG fans recognize you by sight?”

Answer: Not usually but I was once recognized in Montreal, in the dead of night, on an almost deserted street corner while looking for a restaurant.

James writes: “Why didn’t Destiny’s Stargate have a security measure in place like the Earth Iris or Atlantis’ Shield?”

Answer: It was an early model.

Duptiang. writes: “ I was left with the impression the Corin Nemec also did not fit into the cast nor some of the upper staff, or am I off the mark?”

Answer: Can’t speak for anyone else but I always found Corin incredibly polite, gracious, and easy to.

dasNdanger writes: “…dated a few lunatics,” Do tell, DO TELL!!”

Answer: Three words – talking teddy bears.

RFVDevil writes: “Where there any plans to follow up on the “Other Rush” who sat in the chair in Twin Destinies?”

Answer: Nope. It was assumed he perished aboard the twin Destiny.

Kevin writes: “Are you going to go over the entirety of Stargate that you’ve worked on?”

Answer: That’s the plan. Next up: SG-1′s Season 7!

JoanieC writes: “Have they cast the series yet, or did I miss that post?”

Answer: Official announcement to come!

trybutez writes: “Maybe I missed it, or maybe it was implied, but what was the ship/craft that detached from Destiny at the end of Air?”

Answer: A scout ship/drone placed there by the Nakai (Blueberry aliens).

PJR writes: “1 - “Of course I’d pitch to the UK. In fact, one of the projects presently on the stack is a potential Canadian-UK co-production.”

Any more info? Heading to UK for it at any stage?”

Answer: Nope. It’s still out there but was a project in development in search of a broadcaster.

“2 – How many Acts (plus Teaser, always?) to an SG episode, or does it depend on which series?”

Answer: Stargate = Teaser + 5 Acts.

“3 – How many for Transporter: The Series? How long will each episode be? How many in a season?”

Answer: Transporter = Teaser + 4 Acts, 12 episode season.

“4 – Being interested in the nut n’ bolts of story creation, what constitutes story spinning, breaking, etc? What are the differences? Only done per episode? Or arcs too? Then, after those, the assigned writer sweats the first draft, submits and awaits the notes?”

Answer: Someone throws out an idea and we proceed to “spin it”, throwing ideas around until we feel we have enough to work with at which point we “break it”, sitting in the room and breaking it down into its story beats, Tease and five acts. Once we’ve boarded it, the writer heads off and works on an outline.

“5 – Transporter’s stories seem to be coming together very quickly. More so than SG?”

Answer: Stargate’s scripts came together quicker than any show I’ve ever worked on. Since Transporter: The Series is a new show, we’re looking at more rewrites than the well-established Stargate.

“6 – What, if any, protection did the Ancients design or put in place for their long chain of Stargates through the cosmos, for, surely, they wouldn’t have expected them to sit unmolested or no-one to suss how to block them (like Destiny suffered)? Were there ideas among writers to address this as a reveal of some kind if the SGU had run on? Hell, the drones weren’t birthed by them? Or, were the Ancients never expecting to take too long out in space and, anyway, way back at that time all other life was too primitive so wasn’t an issue – only became an issue for SGU?”

Answer: Presumably the Ancients intended for the gate network to be used by future generations/species, so I don’t think they would have put “safeguards” in place.

“7 – By the grand end, the cosmos would have been cracked as a mystery enabling the FTL and stargates to be obsolete, in effect, because transfer through space-time would be able to happen instantly, with vanishing and re-appearing, no needs for ships (but can take!) and dimensional explorations beginning, on the fringes of which Rush would have encountered those he’d lost to death – and this yearning, this need, this hunt is what was driving him all along to try to crack the mystery. Big. And, spin-off potential! Any chance of comment on how what chimes with what Brad and Rob dreamed?”

Answer: As I said, I leave the details of the big end of series reveal to Brad and Robert.

“8 – Dark Matter – what came first to you – a character, or characters, of scenes with potential to weave, or ‘What if…?’ story question. Given that it is original to you and so differs to the pre-existing worlds you are making (Transporter) and have made (SG) into series, it’d be interesting to know how this works for you.”

Answer: I actually started with the ending of the pilot (first episode), a huge WTF?! moment, then fleshed out the rest of the series from there. When you see it (actually, the end of issue #2 in comic book form), you’ll understand.

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May 18, 2011

Video: PC ad

Photos: Alexander Ruemelin, Orbitz, McDonalds’ “I’d hit it” campaign


Hey, you know what my fellow Transporter: The Series Co-Showrunner, Alexander Ruemelin, hates more than haute cuisine, French moving companies, and guys in black turtlenecks combined? Macs! And not just Macs but the fact that several of his co-workers, myself among them, are supporters to what he views as an elitist techno-cult bent on world domination. You see, Alexander is a PC guy and, as a PC guy, he’s outnumbered in the writers’ room 5 to 1.

The fact that everyone else here works on Macs REALLY annoys him. How much?

Look at how enraged he is by the mere thought of our syncing our iPhones with our laptops.

I can empathize. Really. I remember my first experience Mac encounter. Then Stargate writer Damian Kindler brought one into the office one season and it was all sorts of weird. It looked funny, didn’t have a right click, some of the keys were in the wrong place, and any script that came out of that thing was always ten pages too long. I termed it the “Norwegian Fancy Writer” and dismissed it as a fad. Sort of like that drink, Orbitz, with the floating edbile balls that fairly approximated the sensation of drinking your own vomit (“Kids’ll love it!”).

Well, while Orbitz went the way of New Coke, The Geico Cavemen t.v. show, and the McDonalds’ “I’d hit it” campaign that seemed to encourage consumers to fornicate with a double-cheeseburger...

...Mac thrived and, before I knew it, almost everyone in the Stargate writing department had one: Marty G., Carl B., Rob C., even my long-time technologically-challenged writing partner, Paul M. Well, that made me want to dig in my heels all the more. I didn’t care how amusing Apple’s commercials were or how much my co-workers seemed to love their new laptops, I was a PC guy!

Until I saw this -

WTF?!! I was never bothered by those Apple commercials that seemed to imply PC-users were a bunch of loser-dorks because I figured, hey, that’s just Apple marketing. But when PC marketing seemed to confirm the point by having Bill Gates star alongside Jerry Seinfeld in a painfully unfunny ad spot that had absolutely nothing to do with computers and culminated in Gates awkwardly adjusting his pants, I was left confused and, admittedly, a little frightened. Then, when they followed that spot with an equally excruciating four and a half minute commercial that ends with a gawky Gates doing the robot, I realized Apple was right. Loser-dorks, adjusting their pants, doing the robot, and spending millions of dollars on a confusing vanity ad campaign that has nothing to do with the product your selling.

The following day, I bought myself a MacBook and never looked back.

Hmmm. Well this…sucks. No sooner do I extol the virtues of Mac than it freezes up on me, necessitating a force quit of Safari. I return to my post-in-progress to discover it failed to auto-save the rest of the entry which included my rundown of Michael’s return to SG-1 as a series regular and some insight into the first six episodes of season 7. At this point, I’m too enraged to start over. How enraged?

I am presently regretting the loss of my loser-dorkiness.

Ironic, no?

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May 19, 2011

Photos: Production office kitchen message, Top Chef Canada message, SG-1 Season 7


Came across this message in the production office kitchen the other day:

Seriously? Flicking the switch kills the lights in King Henry VIII’s court? Are the torches and braziers in the royal palace all on the same power grid?

And then there was this message that flashed up onscreen during a recent episode of Top Chef Canada:

Not sure what the controversial ingredient may have been but I’m guessing they were barbecuing placentas. At least the show can take solace from the fact that, given its poor lighting, bland judges, and uninspired contestants, it’s unlikely all that many people were offended.

Stargate: SG-1′s seventh season was one of change. Well, actually, season six was one of change. Season seven saw a return to the status quo with the return of the recently deceased Daniel Jackson and the departure of Jonas Quinn. I remember Rob calling me into his office to tell me that he was planning to reinstate DJ as a series regular. All online flack aside, it made sense to me. With Richard Dean Anderson scaling back his appearances on the show, bringing back Daniel would help ease long-time fans into the change. For my part, even though I’d disagreed with Michael on several aspects of the show’s creative (we’d long since buried the hatchet over Jack Daniel shots at actor Chris Judge’s behest), I had nothing but respect for the guy as passionate, committed, and immensely talented actor.

FALLEN (701)

Before work began on the show’s seventh season, I emailed Rob Cooper a notion I had of an angel cast down from heaven, stripped of his memories and left to start a new life on Earth. Rob ended up taking the whole “stripped” thing literally – much to the delight of Michael’s fans.

Paul flagged an exchange at the script stage. One off-worlder notes Teal’c's presence with: “He is Jaffa.” to which O’Neill replies: “No, but he plays one on t.v.”. Paul felt it broke the fourth wall but was ultimately overruled. When the episode aired, many fans loved the exchange – while many others followed suit and waved their own red flags.

Following the scene in which O’Neill appeals to an amnesiac Daniel, DJ refer to Jack as “Jim”. It’s a gag that Brad calls back to in SGA’s The Shrine.

HOMECOMING (702)

Even though the Jonas Quinn character never found firm footing on the show, I was nevertheless sad to see him go. Actor Corin Nemec was a good guy and we got along well so I wanted to make sure he got a proper, respectful send-off that left the door open for a possible return. And I think we accomplished that in Homecoming. Corin returned later in the season seven to guest in an episode for which he received a story credit: Fallout.

FRAGILE BALANCE (703)

Actor Michael Welch delivers one of the show’s most impressive guest performances in the role of a young, cloned Jack O’Neill. He captures (Rick as) Jack’s mannerisms and rhythms perfectly and so wowed us that, in the following months, we tried to spin several different stories that would have seen Young Jack make a return. Unfortunately, none of these stories panned out. I did end up running into Michael Welch at the that year’s Saturn Awards (Best Award Show Ever!). He told me how much he’d enjoyed his experience on the show while I told him how much we’d enjoyed having him. Interestingly enough, it was the same night I first met actor Ben Browder. We discussed Farscape, scifi, and the possibility of him doing a guest spot on the show. I ended up writing a part for him as a potential recurring character on Atlantis but a scheduling conflict prevented him from accepting the role – which, in the long run, was a good thing because it allowed him to accept the more substantial role of SG-1′s Cameron Mitchell two years later.

This episode also sees an appearance by the beautiful Theresa Lee, a friend and huge film and t.v. star in Hong Kong and China (where she recently headlined their version of Dancing With the Stars). Whenever Theresa comes into town, we try to grab dim sum and rare is the occasion when she is not recognized by someone at a neighboring table. The last time we grabbed a bite, I glanced up from my sticky rice purse to catch her on the restaurant’s t.v. screen, starring in some Hong Kong comedy. Loved in Big Bullet!

ORPHEUS (704)

Not to be confused with season 9′s Morpheus, Orpheus is another Peter DeLuise extravaganza. You can always recognize Peter’s episode because they always contained one of three things: Unas, noble Jaffa, and/or explosions.

Loved Carter’s review of Signs in the gym scene. Other movies I would have liked to see receive the onscreen review treatment: The Village, Lady in the Water, and The Happening.

REVISIONS (705)

This story started out as a pitch about a town living within a hermetically sealed bubble surrounded by a toxic atmosphere. SG-1 happens upon the scene and discovers its inhabitants are hiding a terrible secret. I hesitate to reveal the shocking conclusion I originally envisioned because the story we ended up with was so different that I’d love to repurpose it given some future opportunity. Anyway, even though the episode ended up quite different from the way I’d originally envisioned it, I loved it nevertheless. And I wasn’t the only one. Then VFX Supervisor James Tichenor really enjoyed the script. It’s a great SF standalone episode. And the location we found for the town was perfect in its bizarre cross-cultural architectural weirdness. It is, in reality, a former amusement park, Fantasy Gardens, with a fairly interesting history: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantasy_Gardens. We would return here years later to shoot SGA’s Irresponsible.

Carl Binder gets into town today. Tonight we check out Toronto schnitizel!

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May 20, 2011

Photos: Chris Vance, Andrea Osvart, SG-1 Season 7


Today, it gives me great pleasure to announce: We have our Frank!

Pictured above (looking suave, tough, and all sorts of charming) is Chris Vance as Frank Martin, The Transporter. He delivers anything, anywhere, no questions asked – for a price.

We auditioned a ton of very talented actors for the part but, ultimately, Chris stood out as, well, just damn perfect for the role. And once Transporter: The Series premieres in early 2012, I know you’ll agree.

In other Transporter: The Series casting news...

The beautiful Andrea Osvart has signed on to play the role of Carla, Frank’s handler and partner in danger. Again, we saw some terrific talent in the auditions but, in the end, it was Andrea’s smart, sexy, self-confident portrayal of our ex-CIA op that won everyone over.

The Movie Network and Movie Central Sign on as Canadian Partners for Transporter-The Series

Based on the popular Transporter theatrical franchise, series is set to go into production in Toronto in July
Partners include QVF Inc. and HBO/Cinemax
Series stars Chris Vance from Prison Break

(May 20, 2010) – Astral’s The Movie Network (Eastern Canada) and Corus Entertainment’s Movie Central (Western Canada) today announced their participation in the 12-part action series Transporter-The Series. Based on the high-octane Transporter films, the series is an international co-production between The Movie Network and Movie Central, Canada’s QVF Inc., M6 and Atlantique Productions in France, Germany’s RTL Group and HBO/Cinemax in the U.S.

“The Movie Network is all about premium entertainment and we’re proud to add this made-in-Canada big-budget action series to our original content offering,” said Aubie Greenberg, Director, Original Programming, Movie Services, Astral Television. “The theatrical Transporter franchise has connected with audiences on The Movie Network and around the world through its iconic characters and frenetic pace. We’re excited to further this connection through participation in such a large-scale production, especially one that takes our long-standing partnership with HBO to the next level.”

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Cinemax, M6 and RTL Television,” said Jocelyn Hamilton, Vice President, Original Programming, Kids, Comedy, Drama, Corus Entertainment. “As a franchise, Transporter offers a solid fan base with appeal to grow into an exciting series. Filming in Toronto with our world class production partners, the action-filled series will bring the beloved character of Frank Martin to premium television.”

Based on the popular film franchise of the same name created by Luc Besson, this fast-paced series follows the adventures of professional transporter Frank Martin (Chris Vance), who can always be counted on to get the job done. Operating in a seedy underworld of dangerous criminals and desperate players, Frank plays by three rules: never change the deal, no names and never open the package. Occasionally, complications arise and rules get broken. Good thing Frank can improvise. The series will premiere on HBO Canada in 2012.

Transporter-The Series is a France/Canada co-production produced by Atlantique Productions SA (Klaus Zimmermann) and QVF Inc. (Susan Murdoch). Executive producers are Luc Besson, Alexander Ruemelin, Fred Fuchs, Robert Cooper, Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie.

Thanks to The Movie Network and Movie Central for recognizing all of our hard work!

I’m also pleased to report some great news on the V1 Jets front. My disagreement with the company over a recent jet charter has been settled to my immense relief and satisfaction. Company President Andrew Zarrow called me personally after being made aware of the problem. After discussing the outstanding issue with me at length, he promised to look into the matter and get back to me asap. Well, he was good to his word, calling me back the very next day to explain V1′s position and present a solution that has happily put the matter to rest. A stand-up guy! A big thank you to Andrew for wasting no time in stepping in, getting involved, and taking care of this customer.

When last I left off my Stargate reminiscences...

LIFEBOAT (706)

An acting tour-de-force for Michael Shanks who delivers a multitude of terrific performances in an episode that sees him playing several different characters. Guest star James Park’s portrayal of the doomed Pharrin is also incredibly touching and the perfect compliment to Michael’s multi-layered turn. Brad had the idea for this story back in season six but, since he’d constructed the story for Daniel who had since left this mortal coil, he’d shelved it indefinitely. When Michael came back to the show the following year, however, Brad was able to dust it off and put it back in play. It’s one of those self-contained pure SF stories, like Revisions (and the episodes Brad used to produce in his Outer Limits days), that always appealed to me in much the same way that I always preferred the stand-alone horror X-Files episodes over the arc-driven entries.

ENEMY MINE (706)

Enemy Mine was the working title of this episode which, like Watergate before it, went from placeholder title to official title before anyone could do anything about it. FYI, past placeholder titles that didn’t make it to official status include: Teal’c Interrupted, Turn of Events, Dark Gambit, Flowers for McKay, CSI: Atlantis, Ad Infinitum, Remember When, and Beckett Returns.

Writer/Director Peter DeLuise excelled at stories that, like this one, focused on the show’s rich mythology, building upon the races and characters established in previous episodes and developing them in interesting, often surprising, ways.

SPACE RACE (708)

Working on Stargate was a writer’s dream in that it offered a host of wide-ranging opportunities when it came to scripting an episode. The stories could be arc-driven or standalone, Earth-bound or off-world centered, mythological in nature or purely scifi, dramatic or humorous. And, every so often, we occasionally did those departure episodes that stood out all the more in the uniqueness of their narrative or execution. Space Race was one of those episodes and, as a result and to no one’s surprise, was a little divisive went it came to fan opinion. Some fans loved it. Others hated it. Still, whatever negative response it may have received online paled in comparison to the scorn heaped upon...

AVENGER 2.0 (709)

Okay, in retrospect the title was one of the best things about this episode. We shot Felger’s apartment at the Accent Inn across the street from The Bridge Studios (where we also shot Ronon and Sheppard watching BSG on motel t.v., Teal’c enjoying the thousand finger massage in Point of No Return, and the scene of Kinsey’s shooting in Smoke and Mirrors). In the original script, Felger is painting his Warhammer figures but the gang at Warhammer nixed the idea because they felt suggesting a character like him (ie. brilliant scientist) played Warhammer would depict the game in an unfavorable light. So we went with Stargate action figures instead.

At one point in the episode, Felger makes reference to an old science professor of his named Mr. Hoffman. This was a salute to one of my own high school teachers, Mr. Hoffan, a knowledgeable man in his own right. Once, during a class, he informed me that the chocolate bar I was snacking on could contain a maximum of three hairs and one rat turd according to regulations set down by the Canadian Food and Drug Administration. For my part, I always avoided Charleston Chews which seemed to allow for roughly twice that.

BIRTHRIGHT (710)

Actor Chris Judge’s second foray into scripting sees him tackle Jaffa cultural constraints, sexism, and uneasy alliances. Apparently, he wrote the part of Ishta for Jolene Blaylock. Thankfully, she was available to play the role. The episode also features a cameo by Executive Producer Michael Greenburg’s wife, Nicky. At one point in the episode, she rides by on a horse and shouts something.