Im not sure Im a Stargate Atlantis fan anymore? Can anyone help me back!

[Sealurk]

I think the underlying problem with Atlantis is with episodes like Quarantine and Trio - if you have to force your characters together to develop them and look (desperately) for chemistry, you're in trouble, as a series. SG-1 doesn't have anything comparable to those episodes that I can remember, it's characters chemistry resulting from their reactions to the plot, not each other. It seemed to flow more, to be more effortless.

And with the current writers, SGU is almost certain to suffer the same fate, as far as I can see.

But...SGA is salvageable, I think. More exploration, evolving characters (Rodney McKay has got to have his episodic whinge quota slashed, and Ronon needs something to do besides...what was it he does?), and some well written, ideally original stories...and a single, interesting enemy that genuinely poses a colossal threat. Distinct recurring Wraith enemy characters WITHOUT human names, Wraith getting a serious tech boost (shields, beaming, IG hyperdrive etc)...it might work.

[Kezia]

Mach1, the "enter" button is your friend.

Throughout the early seasons, I felt that SGA had the potential to finally step out of SG-1's shadow, possibly even surpass it but S4 blew that hope for me.

[tmservo]

I don't think it's a matter of chemistry as it is writing style is such that there is difficulty creating chemistry. They simply never have an opportunity to share enough time doing anything that reads 'team'.

If you look back at SG1, or any good Sci-Fi show, you'll find that even those that are incredibly arch driven there are times in those episodes to have characters explore, do basic things together to build chemistry. SG1 did a really solid job of this, having "episodes in a bottle" that reminded us why the characters liked each other as characters.

SGA has a problem in that it hasn't managed to come up with a concept that the writers can rally around to form a real ongoing storyline.

SGA has become a situation of the "super villain". Villains are portrayed as so overpowering that their first real thought is surrender. So you can't have a long arch where they are trying to figure things out.

It's just a crutch to try and build tension on the show.. add to the excitement.. but instead it's just annoying. It means all characters fall into stereotypes because there isn't anywhere for them to go.

I followed along with SGA, and found it a passable but lesser stepchild to SG1. But once the Asurans came along I thought: "The writers have completely ran out of ideas". It was a complete reversal of things learned in SG1, and just drove me batty. It was writing that screamed "we don't know where we are going."

SGA is a different concept from SG1. The writers on SGA should have taken a look at a different SciFi show.. like "Star Trek: DS9" Not saying I want this to be DS9, but DS9 was a radical departure from all Trek before it, and it focused on the same base ideas in a very different way. So enemies were different and complex and the characters grew.

Same kind of thing needed to happen with SGA. When I first saw "Rising" I thought SGA had potential to be truly unique. Yes, have some enemies, but have a big part of the story about how Earth can interact and learn from whole new cultures and the like.. I thought adding some to the cast would help with that.

But those kind of storylines have went nowhere. How much do we know about Tayla and her people, really? By Season 4 of a show like DS9, Bajoran mythos was deep.. and provided a reason to care about a large cast of characters..

SGA had potential to do the same kind of thing; be a show about building allies and making friends. SG1 had a tendency to show yes, there were terrible things in the universe, but there were also far more friends. SGA makes it seem as though everyone should just go home and live under a rock.

As such, it's pretty boring and cyclical.

And a comment about a post above: I cared far more for Penny in Dr. Horrible then I did almost any character in SGA.

[padr49904]

Ok so Atlantis is coming from a relatively good show. It could be better maybe if they took away the Daedalus and had it cut off from earth again it would bring some people back. If they actually have some fun with the wraith it might bring some people back.

But Sg-1 had its bad moments too. So much stuff they stopped without revealing.

If you give up on SGA its almost like giving up on all of stargate because believe it or not it is stargate and keeps some elements of the original show and it might get better, believe it or not.

[Jackie]

Well I should start by telling you that SG1 is my favorite show of all time. I was pretty thrilled when they announced atlantis. I loved the 1st season, thought it was awsome, really liked the second season too. I really started to dislike the show in the 3d season. By then, it seemed to me that they had really dumbed down the wraith for one, they really werent that scary anymore, the ancients I thought were too humanized, didnt really feel like the most advanced race of people we had ever met. And then, they bring in the asurans who are like a neutered version of the original replicators, not really intimidating or scary at all. Then season four comes, they kill off weir which I hated, I really liked her character, and at this point it just seems like many of the episodes are just rehashed ideas already done in other series, every problem they encounter seems to be solved by rodney typing on his little PDA thing, for the last 2 seasons, there are very few episodes progressing the acutal wraith storyline that was really focused on more in the 1st 2 seasons. And after watching 4 full seasons I honestly can say that the team interaction is nowhere near that of SG1, and 4 years later I dont think the characters with maybe the exception of rodney and shepard are even developed to the point that the original sg1 team was after the very 1st season! Now Amanda Tapping is gone and they pissed off Tori Higginson so bad that she dosent want to come back (cant say I blame her) It seems like the cast is just like a revolving door at this point. More and more I feel like Im having to force myself to watch through these. Im not looking to get flamed or start a flame way, I guess Im wondering if anyone else feels any of this stuff Im feeling. Maybe some of you can even help me to get back into it.

Another gripe I have that I forgot to mention is that "stargate" atlantis sometimes feels like it has nothing to do with the stargate anymore! lol Ive seen whole episodes where they dont even turn it on! Even the enemies are bland, I mean who does atlantis have? Michael? Comare him to Ball or Anubis, even the Oraci or 5th. Am I being too hard on Atlantis???

might want to try posting on the anti thread instead of making a new thread. We (meaning collective antis) post our concerns and complaints there.

It helps you get it off your chest and out of your system. The show may get better or it may not...but I find getting my complaints off my chest makes me more willing to watch the next ep. For I'm not carrying the emotional baggage of the eps that were bad prior.

[diane23]

Well, in response to all of this. I know what you mean. I miss the old SGA.. Seasons 1-3. It seems like after that, the show changed a bit. Season 4 definitely wasn't the best season.

BUT! The writers bring Woolsey in tells us that they're trying to mix it up a bit. They have a lot of new things to work with this season, imo. I'm still a die hard SGA fan. Just keep faith! Remember that SG-1 had some times that weren't the greatest either (given, not as many as Atlantis does,) but I think the writers are trying... Give it a bit. Maybe they'll surprise us.

[seinfeldsg1]

Well, in response to all of this. I know what you mean. I miss the old SGA.

I miss SG-1

[Knight_ofthe_Word]

*in relation to SGA and SG-1 exploring the city/universe respectively

It is? I don't feel like they've done much exploring of the city. And I think we learned more about the Ancients from SG-1 than we have from Atlantis. I think SGA is more about fighting the enemy of the week. It's more about battles and explosions. Exploration, through the Stargate or of the city, never seems to be a priority for them.

SO TRUE. What ever happened to the filler episodes in which the team would just go through the gate to a random planet and find a new culture, one of the team would end up hooking up with a hot local and they would save the day from some silly little problem the town was having! THE GOOD OLD DAYS lol

its happened all the time in SG-1 but never in atlantis...=(

K_ot_W

[IratusFarm]

I live in Indonesia so I didn't really have access to Stargate a few years back and the only one available to me at the time was Atlantis season 1. I rented it and absolutely loved it. Disc 5 had previews for SG-1 and I immediately guessed it must be a better show. And it was.

For me, what Atlantis lacks is The Primary enemy. They always seem to be fighting a collective enemy namely the Wraith and Replicators as a group. No Individual wraith or replicator ever really stood out as a primary threat, to both SGA or their own kind (remember the system lords?). SG-1 had Apophis from the get-go and then Sokar, Anubis, 5th and lastly Adria. It's been 4 years and there has been no sign of a real badass like Anubis, although Michael is a good candidate as long as the writers don't mess up (they should be able to focus now that Sg-1 is over. A primary enemy will give the show more focus, it's all over the place right now.

And get rid of Ronon! I have nothing against jason Momoa but the character does SGA no favors. I dread (get it?) the Ronon centered episodes. Neither Teyla nor Ronon have the same depth as Teal'c.

I think SGA still has a lot of potential but they better shape up fast. Get Vala or something, we need the wittiness of SG-1 that will complement sheppard and McKay, Teyla and Ronon are a lost cause in this respect. And possibly a Daniel Jackson figure who can understand things they find. SGA hasn't really uncovered anything new.

Full steam ahead SGA!

[Tias]

One more thing. As I said, there still is hope. The second episode of SGA wasn't half so bad, in fact Woolsey DID bring some refreshment and realism. And we totally got some new information. About Wraith technology, that is.
One of the problems of SGA, i think, was that they could do whatever they wanted, they actually forced it from the leader. Woolsey will be a bigger problem from that point of view, I hope.

I'm staying hopeful. Don't know for the res of you, but I love stargate too much to just let it go, even if it's just atlantis. As somebody said earlier before, we all miss SG1, but Atlantis gives us a sence that Stargate is still alive.

[Knight_ofthe_Word]

Just as a random not for fun...

Don't you just love it when the credits at the beginning of the show are on the screen and suddenly there's (for example) Special Guest Appearance - Amanda Tapping

i get goosebumps lol its awesome to see someone from SG-1 in SGA, brings the show closer to home cos we've all grown up with the original cast (those real fans that is =P)

can't wait to see if Teal'c makes another appearance in Season 5!

but thats the problem, i think without the constant reappearance of old crew members, SGA simply doesn't have that...SNAP SG-1 used to have to it...

im just rambling now...=)

K_ot_W

[PG15]

Well, if you don't like the show anymore, then there's no point in continuing to watch it. Nobody's forcing you; you're not breaking any fandom rules by not watching it.

You don't need any help. Just let go.

I think the underlying problem with Atlantis is with episodes like Quarantine and Trio - if you have to force your characters together to develop them and look (desperately) for chemistry, you're in trouble, as a series. SG-1 doesn't have anything comparable to those episodes that I can remember, it's characters chemistry resulting from their reactions to the plot, not each other. It seemed to flow more, to be more effortless.

Of course SG1 had those kind of episodes; it's a staple of drama to see what can develop when the only things your characters can do is interact with eachother.

For instance, Solitudes was one of these for Jack and Sam. Tangent was for Jack and Teal'c. And of course, there's Unending for the whole team.

[g.o.d]

you can quit watching, or continue watching and after that you're welcome to complain about it here that's what I do. I'm no longer Stargate fan, AoT ruined the Ori story line (which I loved more than goa'uld) for me, and SGA? Well, I consider it as the worst scifi show ever made.

and before some SG lovers will start bashing and redding me, these are my opinions only and they aren't more valid than yours

[Sealurk]

For instance, Solitudes was one of these for Jack and Sam. Tangent was for Jack and Teal'c. And of course, there's Unending for the whole team.

You're right, I'd forgotten them. However, I do still stand by my point about Quarantine and Trio - the point of those episodes is exclusively for characterisation, and both simply tried too hard in my personal opinion.

Both Tangent and Solitudes had very good plots to drive them - a significant new defensive measure for Earth that goes wrong; and the discovery of a second Stargate on Earth. In both cases, the characterisation happens as a result of the situation AND the plot. In the two SGA eps, I just can't remember any major plot or arc or even significant backstory developments. They existed because the writers realised their characters didn't mesh as well as SG-1's did, so maybe they felt they had to write episodes exclusively for this purpose.

[Tal-Galahad]

you can quit watching, or continue watching and after that you're welcome to complain about it here that's what I do. I'm no longer Stargate fan, AoT ruined the Ori story line (which I loved more than goa'uld) for me, and SGA? Well, I consider it as the worst scifi show ever made.
and before some SG lovers will start bashing and redding me, these are my opinions only and they aren't more valid than yours

That title belongs to Farscape. Honestly, that show was the worst mess I ever had to witness.

So glad SciFi cancelled it to take over Stargate.
To get one thing straight...I`m not one of these Die-Hard SGA Fans. I don`t even consider it one of my top 10 shows but it`s just not as bad as you try to make it with every single post.