Why Stargate: Atlantis is cooler than Battlestar Galactica...

[Trek_Girl42]

I'm a massive BSG fan, it's my favourite show, but I also say NO! Things have worked out very well. I love BSG, but I don't want to see it dragged out, this whole idea of determining a shows quality by how long it lasts on the air is rubbish. Firefly must suck since it only lasted fourteen episodes. I want to see BSG have it's natural conclusion, and I'm going to enjoy every episode we've got left, hopefully they'll prove a satisfying conclusion to, in my opinion, the greatest sci-fi series ever made. I'm also really enjoying SGA, I think season four has gotten off to the best start yet, and am very glad that it hass gotten the fifth season renewal.

I think this has all worked out for the best.

[Pitry]

Thats a good point too. I didn't realize the writers were from another studio.

How come we don't have any more GOOD episodes with GOOD plots and CG?
- The Storm / The Eye
- Runner
- Sateda
- Common Ground
- Sunday
- Vengence

These are definitely my MOST favorite episodes with quite a good feel.

But theres many of CRAP episodes:
- Irresponsible
- Irressitable
- Tabula Rasa
- The Tower
- Inferno

No, it's the same writers as they always were. Same people responsible for the show.

And I actually thought Tabula Rasa was the best episode so far this year.
(Topic wise, I never managed to get into BSG, so with all its faults - and it has many -I prefer more SGA).

[Reichiru]

They can't cancel it until I have another form of Stargate to keep myself happy with! Especially since its the only sci-fi show left that I watch.

I personally have no problem with Atlantis at the moment (Aside from the Carter controversy...) and yeah, they can be pretty hit and miss, but when they hit, they HIT. And I definitely don't agree that SGA season 4 is anything like SG-1 season 10. I didn't even finish season 10 I found it so lame. *sigh*

Maybe they'd have better luck if they started ganking fan fic ideas. haha.

[Lord batchi ball]

I'm not a big BSG fan, well because there seems to be alot of talking and I just can't bear to watch it.

Now I really like the battle scenes and all the explosions but thats only a few episodes a season and when I go to watch I have no idea whats going on or why this person is'nt there, so I turn it off.

And most of all I just don't like it.

[Wraith_Boy]

Thats a good point too. I didn't realize the writers were from another studio.

How come we don't have any more GOOD episodes with GOOD plots and CG?
- The Storm / The Eye
- Runner
- Sateda
- Common Ground
- Sunday
- Vengence

These are definitely my MOST favorite episodes with quite a good feel.

But theres many of CRAP episodes:
- Irresponsible
- Irressitable
- Tabula Rasa
- The Tower
- Inferno

MGM owns Stargate, but they don't make it. They basically contract an outside studio to make it for them. In this case SG-1 & Atlantis are both made by 'Bridge Studios', which is the same one that will be doing 'Universe' as well. So it's be smarter to try & make MGM see the light in that Stargate needs to be given to a new production studio that can put Stargate up to where it should be. If I owned Stargate as a franchise, I would not let a studio that got SG-1 & probably soon after Atlantis as well, anywhere near future installments of either series.

Atlantis has failed to deliver big time thus far. It's S4, a few cast members have all been replaced, production costs are rising. Viewing figures are falling. So I personally beleive that it's too late for Atlantis now. I think it only got a S5 not because it was worthy of another season. Simply because it's other shows that they were banking on like PJK, FG have been rank. BSG has fallen away, so has Eureka. However I do not see it getting a S6. Unless S4 starts jumping viewing figures befor ethe end of the season. I don't even think they'll wait to see how S5 does before making their decision.

It's solely down to the people behind the camera. They just don't have the vision to take the show where it needs to be. Episodes like the 2 involving Lucius should never have gotten written in the 1st place, never mind produced. If they had a proper showrunner, he would have slapped the writer that started spinning those ideas & that character.

The biggest failing is that everything is too easy. We all know come the end of the ep, the main members of the team will always win. So it really irks me when they kill off minor cast members to try & show people that anyone is vulerable on the show. Even though we know that's not true!

Then a few times every season they hit the big magic reset button in eps & everything is good as new.

There really is no drama. No tension that when you watch you believe anything can actually happen. 'First Strike', Atlantis is running out of power & lost in space. 2 eps later & not only is it found, but they magically have power. Exactly the same as in S3, McKay screws up & drains a ZPM down. A couple of epsd later, they're fully powered all over again.

We're in a city of the Ancients, yet they haven't got a single worthwhile thing as of yet out of it. Despite being in it for over 3 years!

They come across an advanced ship or pieces of technology, we all know come the end of the ep or the 1st times it's ever used that it's a goner.

We saw a sister city in 'The Tower', this should have been a major thing for the show. Yet it was used as nothing more than a stop gap for them to get some more Drones. All that disappointment with a little help from a bunch of shakespearean rejects.

In 'The Return', we get a chance for the first time in the shows history a chance to come face to face with a bunch of real-life living Ancients. They had a real chance to do something special here. Yet what do they do. Kill them off by not even showing them being killed. A simple sentence from a robot that reveals they were all killed off.

Into SG-1 they evolve the Replicators to human form. Kill them off. Goes into Atlantis. Wraith not working out so well, so lets bring back the human form Replicators again. Despite them only being killed off at the end of S8 which would equate to around the same time of 'The Siege I' over on Atlantis.

They've had all these eps. How many were actually good. So they may have got a few but you have to expect that for the amount of eps that they've put out. Throw enough balls at a target & your bound to get a few hits.

The best thing for the Stargate franchise would be to get all production away to a brand new studio asap. Give it to a bunch of new people that can take a fresh approach & revive Stargate all over again. BS have killed off SG-1, Atlantis is about to follow very shortly. 'Universe' will be starting probably next year to get things worked on. Which I'd say Atlantis won't be around at the time it finally hits the air. So why on Earth would you give control to a studio that got your only 2 shows of the franchise cancelled previously!

I know BW & RCC are already screwing around with 'Universe' & I think others like JM, PM etc will be brought over as well, so unless you could mount some major anti-Bridge campaign, then I doubt MGM will change it.

Personally the best thing to do is simply not watch it if you don't like it. I used to always make sure I was able to watch it live in S1. I wouldn't have missed it for anything. I really started to fall away when they put guff eps like 'Epiphany', 'The Tower' etc in S2. At this stage, it honestly doesn't bother me if I don't get to watch the ep at all because I know I won't have missed anything significant. It's all down to bad writing & bad showrunning but while it's being done by Bridge Studios that'll never change! The same people have been at the helm for far too long & it's becoming stale.

[Mister Oragahn]

Oh come on. SG1 Season 10 was fairly decent.

Season 9 was the season that blew.

None were decent from the moment you consider that SG teams were supposedly under realistic military jurisdiction.

When I see the kind of leeway the civilian characters are given, it's just absurd.

That and the god boring fillers and stretched plots. Plus season 10 has Unending.

[P-90_177]

the main problem with atlantis at the minute is that it has lost the realism that made sg-1 so popular. Don't get me wrong i love atlantis. I think it's fun and action packed with great characters. But SG-1 was the same, the dffierence was though that it was also grittier and darker at times. Something that atlantis rarely does. there is also the whole military installation vs the civilian operation thing. Rising seemed to indicate that the show would be very dark and the first season kept with that. But then it began to slip as the McKay/Sheppard angst increased.

[Mitchell82]

Man, as I watch this season, I find that Stargate Atlantis to be just as crappy as Season 10 of SG1.

I watched all of Season 1, 2, 3 of BSG, and find myself enjoying every episode. Not one episode made me lose attention from the episode. Plot lines are fluid and theres no plot holes in the storylines.

What about Stargate series?
- Plot holes
- No fluditiy between episodes
- Storyline blows

Even the good storylines like "The Travellers" could have been done much better.



I love Stargate. I watched Stargate since Season 2 of SG1, and Season 1 of SGA.

But this is just putrid.

If I had the power, I would definitely give up both stargate series (if SG1 was still airing) for Battlestar Galactica.

I am just vexxed that SGA continues to go, and BSG is gone by 2009.

Yeah so that's why BSG got canned, and SGA didn't. man you will get so flamed for this ok let me spell this out for you.
Things going right for SGA
1. Good steady plots, and stories that make sense.
2. Great characters
3. Great actors
4. Excellent Music
5. Good quality entertainment
Things going bad for SGA
Can't seem to come up with anything since they do a great job of keeping me entertained. SUre some eps are better than others but nowhere near what you stated. You stated plot holes, no fluidity between eps and stories blow. It seems that you are a BSG and came here to bash SGA because in your opinion it's responsible for dooming your show. Get a life ok? TO state that a show has plot holes you need proof, do you have any? And it needs to be more than a small continuity error that happens when you have lots of writers. There is nothing that makes the stories stupid and since you also stated no fluidity I'm going to guess you would prefer it to be like BSG and have each ep flow into the next. SGA is an epsiodic show that can be viewed at any time. Some eps have a season/series story arc while others are stand alones. Since you really have no valid complaint here I can just guess you wanted to start trouble. Also I can't help but lol at this point...

What about Adrift and Lifeline? Good ops episodes, but could have used more action and plot.

It seems to be the same stuff over and over again.

1) Bad problem
2) We're screwed
3) Op mission, or fight
4) Get objective completed
5) Friend or someone gets left behind, or something screws up a bit
6) The end, problem solved.

It's a bit more than that but whatever.
Now BSG is nothing more than a softcore porn based in space. The stories have become more and more outlandish and there is sex and language almost every 10 minutes, and far from entertaining so you love BSG fine love it and don't watch SGA but don't come in here causing trouble because you believe SGA is responsible for it's demise.

[Mitchell82]

None were decent from the moment you consider that SG teams were supposedly under realistic military jurisdiction.

When I see the kind of leeway the civilian characters are given, it's just absurd.

That and the god boring fillers and stretched plots. Plus season 10 has Unending.

Can you ever come up with something orriginal to gripe about?

[SoulReaver]

None were decent from the moment you consider that SG teams were supposedly under realistic military jurisdiction.

When I see the kind of leeway the civilian characters are given, it's just absurd.

yeah man that's outrageous ! (not to mention unpatriotic)

[Guest]

So they have to cancel Atlantis in order to keep BSG on the air? The fact that it's ending in '09 is clear evidence that it's not being canceled because of the rating but because of something else, maybe that's just where the writers think it's best to end it. Would you rather they just drag it out an extra 2 seasons like they did to SG1 and be left with an average over extended show?

Don't come here bashing Atlantis cause you're mad Galactica is ending, we don't want to hear it. I love BSG too but i'm certainly not going to blame other shows for it's departure.

Damn right!

[McSwift]

I am going to quote this directly from the Gateworld.net website:

This is down 0.2 points from the previous two weeks, and 0.3 (25 percent) from the season premiere's 1.2 rating. It is also the lowest of the series to date, and the first time a new episode of either Stargate series has fallen below the 1.0 mark.

When i'm talking about Battlestar Galactica, i'm taking about the long pause until we see Season 4.

Season 4 is not being shown until April, because SGA is zapping money from the production of BSG. Remember now, BSG costs more money to produce than SGA. Still, I think that the reason it is split over 2 more years is because of the fact of the high cost. (I remember reading this on Gateworld a few months ago).

If this statistic does not show a clear indication that the show is in for some very bad shape, I don't know whats wrong with the rest of you guys but this has gotten downhill.

What happen to great episodes that we supposed to see?

Everything is crap now.

[PG15]

Season 4 is not being shown until April, because SGA is zapping money from the production of BSG.

How can you possibly know this?

Remember now, BSG costs more money to produce than SGA. Still, I think that the reason it is split over 2 more years is because of the fact of the high cost. (I remember reading this on Gateworld a few months ago).

I think it's so they don't loose their media darling by the end of the next year.

If this statistic does not show a clear indication that the show is in for some very bad shape, I don't know whats wrong with the rest of you guys but this has gotten downhill.

What happen to great episodes that we supposed to see?

Everything is crap now.

The ratings are down, but that doesn't usually correspond to quality.

[Lord of Nightmares]

Truth be told, I can see where McSwift is coming from to a certain degree. From what I've seen of S4 of SGA thus far, it hasn't really gripped me as much as SG-1's S4. Personally, I found 'Adrift' to be pretty boring for a season opener as compared to 'Small Victories', and as a whole, I keep getting this feeling that they seem to be rehashing quite a few plotlines from SG-1 every so often. Frankly, the last episode that I genuinely enjoyed was 'Common Ground', and I absolutely hated what they did with Michael's character.

That being said, I still enjoy SGA as a whole, just not as much as SG-1, but it's definitely better than a majority of sci-fi shows. Oh yeah, and personally, I loved S10 of SG-1 and would go so far as to say that it's easily one of my fave seasons, especially with episodes like 'Flesh and Blood', 'The Pegasus Project', 'Insiders', 'The Quest' (IMO a much better mid-season arc as compared to SGA's 'The Return'), 'Line in the Sand', 'The Shroud', 'Dominion' and of course, 'Undending'. Which is way more episodes that I enjoyed as compared to S3 of SGA (off the top of my head, I only liked 'Sateda', 'Progeny', 'The Real World' and 'Common Ground').

I too am fairly certain that Skiffy will cancel SGA after S5, since I have a nagging suspicion that the only reason they even renewed it for an extra season so early on was just so that it could reach the magical 100th episode mark (similar to what happened with SG-1), which I suspect will be the final episode of SGA since it's the 5th season finale. I'll definitely be sad to see it go if that's the case, although even TPTB themselves have stated on at least one occasion that they've always believed that SGA would never last as long as SG-1.

And as for BSG, I definitely enjoyed the first two seasons, although I didn't really like the episodic approach that they used throughout much of the third season. That being said, I too enjoyed the first 2 seasons slightly more than all of SGA thus far, although SG-1's still better in my book. BSG
s S3 finale was most definitely excellent in my book however, and I really can't wait to see how it'll all be resolved in the fourth and final season. And I do understand the creators' decision to end it, as they stated that the series was always meant to have a clear cut beginning, middle and end (kinda like with 'Lost'), and I respect them for it as it shows they aren't trying to milk the cash cow for all it's worth and drag the series on without providing any real answers or payoff. That being said, I too don't believe that there's a need to cancel one series just to allow the other to continue, since MGM's the one which produces SGA whereas Skiffy finances BSG, and they're both great shows in my book.

Just my 2 cents on the matter, bear in mind that everyone's opinions aren't necessarily the same.

[HyperspaceDaemon]

Man, as I watch this season, I find that Stargate Atlantis to be just as crappy as Season 10 of SG1.

I watched all of Season 1, 2, 3 of BSG, and find myself enjoying every episode. Not one episode made me lose attention from the episode. Plot lines are fluid and theres no plot holes in the storylines.

I share your enthusiasm about BSG. Yet there were some BSG episodes that I found dull. So, BSG is interesting and i'm looking forward to watch the next season and find out who are the last cylons, but it's not perfect .

Anyway, my understanding is that it's already established that it will last exactly 4 season. This is a good thing: this way the writers are able to build the story knowing exactly how many episodes are available. This means better planning : less time-wasting episodes and a more robust overall storyline. And no unexpected cancellation.

So : i'd like to watch both BSG and SGA. Choosing one of them is unnecessary.

This doesn't mean that SGA hasn't been declining recently ... And while I hope that there will be some interesting episodes in season 4 , I am somewhat pessimistic about seeing major improvements in Atlantis .

1) Bad problem
2) We're screwed
3) Op mission, or fight
4) Get objective completed
5) Friend or someone gets left behind, or something screws up a bit
6) The end, problem solved.

This pattern is extremely accurate . The episodes are too short : the resolutions are given too few minutes , and are hasty + convenient . And often too predictable : the team either escapes from the Wraith/Asuran base , or McKay manages to repair/program a certain device just before "something" would explode. And these are the good plots because at least the Wraith are appearing ...


SGA tends to be just "we, the hu-mans, are soooo good: the best soldiers, the best scientists. It doesn't matter that others races are many thousands of years more advances than us . All the other races are crap , and we can beat them anytime. We don't need allies or Ancient technologies for that. A machine guns, a good team and a convenient plot and a few doses of pure luck are enough. "

Where is the exploration? where is the discovery of new things? where is meeting the inhabitants of the Pegasus galaxy ? where is learning about the galaxy ?