John Sheppard Discussion/Appreciation

[Easter Lily]

Complaint on the Allies thread about how Shep-centric the season was. Wish I'd been watching whatever that show was ...

If only...

I didn't mind the under water episode... I thought it was better than its namesake, probably because Rodney is much better developed character than Carter was.
But Sheppard and Zelenka running around like headless chooks was the highlight for me.

[Merlin7]

I think I've had enough of hallucinating stories for a while... Conversion was good enough in terms of an "under the influence" type of plot. I'm not too keen on gimmicks for character development. I would like Sheppard to show the layers in his personality as himself... he's much more fascinating this way. Like what Linzi said... as the cute geek... for instance
A hallucinating Sheppard would just be a cop out for the writers.

The main reason I want to see something like that with Shep is because TPTB won't let him or Joe expand to that extent without creating a reason for Shep to act like that. I'm realistic enough to know that if I ever get that kind of SL for Shep, it's cause he's not himself and I can live with that.

Mind you...I totally want to see Shep do what Joe has said he'd like to see for Shep. Personal conflict. Shep and Carson are getting it. It would be FAR more effective for it to happen for/with Shep. ::Rodney of course has been getting it in droves::

I want to see Shep's reaction to things. The fall out of circumstances beyond his control and those created by him/them. But will I get it? Now with the current writers/PTB in charge. Sadly.

Joe deserves better. He's so freaking good. I'm grateful to him though. Because, as I say again and again, Shep is the layered character he is, thanks solely to Joe. Bless him for his talent and his gift at turning crap into something I want to watch.

[Easter Lily]

The main reason I want to see something like that with Shep is because TPTB won't let him or Joe expand to that extent without creating a reason for Shep to act like that. I'm realistic enough to know that if I ever get that kind of SL for Shep, it's cause he's not himself and I can live with that.

One of the reasons why I liked Susan Ivanova on B5 is because she was an ordinary, multifaceted woman. She didn't wear prosthetics, she didn't have a special role in the mythos of the show and she certainly wasn't perfect. She was a true-to-life leader, she cared about the people she worked with and yet emotionally she was very repressed for all kinds of reasons.
I think Sheppard (or anything else on SGA) has the potential to be the most interesting person on Atlantis. Apart from the gimmick that is the ATA gene (and it fits in with the story so it's fine), he is an interesting personality. He constantly straddles between humour and darkness, and yet thrown into the middle of all that is a very (IMO) tender heart. I would LOVE to know where that comes from... eventually... but first I think they need to take the character a bit more seriously than they have done this season.

[vaberella]

To each their own, obviously, but I'd rather look at it from the dramatic possibilities POV rather than the ship. Why not, for example, have the psychic link to anyone other than Teyla? Why not Weir? Or Rodney ... hmmm, maybe not Rodney ...

Well the topic did start in the Shep/Teyla thread..not another thread (if it did I would have given credit to that poster on that thread and the generated topic)..hence the reason I mentioned the ship. But the whole point was in the case of Shep alone is him having the Telepathy ability as well..it doesn't necessarily have to be with a singular person or for a paticular ship... I'm actually just looking for personal character development first off. And secondly I would like to see something more than the Midas Touch of Polytechnics....The ATA gene must have some other more productive uses, since it seems to be of such interest.

[Shep'sSocks]

One of the reasons why I liked Susan Ivanova on B5 is because she was an ordinary, multifaceted woman. She didn't wear prosthetics, she didn't have a special role in the mythos of the show and she certainly wasn't perfect. She was a true-to-life leader, she cared about the people she worked with and yet emotionally she was very repressed for all kinds of reasons.

All of those ordinary things are what made her stand out, I think, and one the problems I see with SGA is that it's filled with special people. Of the main cast, Sheppard is the one who's ordinary. Even the gene doesn't make especially special since all he does is light up rooms and fly stuff.

I think Sheppard (or anything else on SGA) has the potential to be the most interesting person on Atlantis. Apart from the gimmick that is the ATA gene (and it fits in with the story so it's fine), he is an interesting personality. He constantly straddles between humour and darkness, and yet thrown into the middle of all that is a very (IMO) tender heart. I would LOVE to know where that comes from... eventually... but first I think they need to take the character a bit more seriously than they have done this season.

Yes, or they'll lose him, I reckon.

[Merlin7]

One of the reasons why I liked Susan Ivanova on B5 is because she was an ordinary, multifaceted woman. She didn't wear prosthetics, she didn't have a special role in the mythos of the show and she certainly wasn't perfect. She was a true-to-life leader, she cared about the people she worked with and yet emotionally she was very repressed for all kinds of reasons.
I think Sheppard (or anything else on SGA) has the potential to be the most interesting person on Atlantis. Apart from the gimmick that is the ATA gene (and it fits in with the story so it's fine), he is an interesting personality. He constantly straddles between humour and darkness, and yet thrown into the middle of all that is a very (IMO) tender heart. I would LOVE to know where that comes from... eventually... but first I think they need to take the character a bit more seriously than they have done this season.

I love the ATA gene aspect. Not cause it makes SHep special for having it MORE than anyone else, so to speak. But because Shep is special and is just cause he's Shep. And all those things we see..which I love...because Shep isn't someone you can pin down. I never EVER know how SHep is going to react to something, which I love. Yeah..I'm saying that alot...LOL
Well..it's what Joe brings to the character. Now if TPTB would write for Shep...I'd be happy as a clam.

I love Shep's flick switch. One minute he's joking and such the next DEADLY. And I love how cool he can be yet super passionate about something the next.

Shep, to me, IS the most interesting character on SGA already. I just want the writers to get with the program.

[Merlin7]

All of those ordinary things are what made her stand out, I think, and one the problems I see with SGA is that it's filled with special people. Of the main cast, Sheppard is the one who's ordinary. Even the gene doesn't make especially special since all he does is light up rooms and fly stuff.



Yes, or they'll lose him, I reckon.

I'm hoping TPTB have plans for Shep in that regard. I don't think he's the ordinary one though. That's Weir. Seriously..what does she contribute. Shep has the gene, which I think is supposed to mean something more than it has, down the road. His pilot skills make him special. I don't think any other human has flown a dart and he's flown it without Rodney's hookup now.

He may not be the smartest/IQ guy in the bunch, but without his thinking skillz, they'd have been toast. OFt times he comes up with the plan for Rodney/others to implement. So...John is ordinary in a sense, he's just a guy who doesn't think he's anything special. But he's actually extraordinary in many ways. Which I love.

[Elinor]

I love the ATA gene aspect. Not cause it makes SHep special for having it MORE than anyone else, so to speak. But because Shep is special and is just cause he's Shep. And all those things we see..which I love...because Shep isn't someone you can pin down. I never EVER know how SHep is going to react to something, which I love.

That is an excellent point Merlin.

It's one of the reasons why I find Shep so totally compelling. What an enigma? I can never predict what he's going to say or act like. A totally fascinating character.

The writers really need to play on that!

[Merlin7]

That is an excellent point Merlin.

It's one of the reasons why I find Shep so totally compelling. What an enigma? I can never predict what he's going to say or act like. A totally fascinating character.

The writers really need to play on that!

I hope they do play on it. But even if they don't, at least Joe will.
I'm never really surprised by how any of the other characters act/react. But Shep? It's always a surprise. Which just keeps me focused on him all the more. Yep.

[Elinor]

I hope they do play on it. But even if they don't, at least Joe will.

That's true! Our guy's flippin' clever at doing that!!

[smallgirl]

As has been said earlier in this thread what was so great about Sheppard in RISING was that he was the person the audience could identify with. He was the guy that just happened to be assigned to fly O'Neill to the base and then accidentally the gene was discovered and how naturally he used it and so he was asked to join the expedition. I loved that aspect of his character in RISING. Even as a long standing SG-1 viewer I recognised the appeal of a main character in SGA who could bring the sense of wonder/surprise out on the screen to viewers who were completely new to the Stargate Universe. He is special, because of the gene, because of his piloting skills, because he passed a mensa test but at the same time he is a very ordinary person, an every man. Watching him reacting to all the crazy new stuff in early season one was fascinating to me. Yes, he has military training in his background to prepare him for a lot of things but he was completely unprepared for all that the Stargate Universe means to an individual. We saw on SG-1 how much preparation and special training goes into selecting individuals for the SGC. The Atlantis Expedition was hand picked and they worked together for ages before going to Pegasus. John Sheppard had none of that to fall back on. All the things that enabled him to cope and to rise to each new challenge thrown at him came from him as a personal individual. His own resources, inner strength, commitment, idealogy, intelligence and compassion were what made him succeed where others might have floundered. The back story we crave is to see how John Sheppard got to be the man he is. It should be revealed bit by bit over a long time but so far we haven't had anything. To me, the 'rising' in RISING wasn't just the city but Sheppard as well - another way in which the two are linked. I am not so interested in what the gene enables Sheppard to do but more in how Sheppard himself views it in relation to himself. EPIPHANY wasn't great but one of the aspects that I enjoyed about it was the way Sheppard viewed the whole idea of ascension. There has been this assumption all along it seems by people of 'ancient leaning' on the show that because Sheppard has such a strong version of the gene that he is somehow lined up for ascension at some point. I don't see Sheppard that way, and apparently he doesn't either, he was quite clear in EPIPHANY that he is too attached to his current existence to concider opting for a different one. He kept trying to emphasis to the people in EPIPHANY the importance of living a full life, rather than just contemplating the big questions. Sheppard has been a 'doer' all along, he acts, gets his hands dirty, interacts with people, he makes things happen and reacts to things when they do. He's a mover and shaker but still a thinker. TPTB seem content at the moment to just have him be like that in order to move the plot forward but it also should be used as a way of revealing his character. Sheppard's attractiveness to me has always lain in how human he is and TPTB need not to shy away from this.

[Merlin7]

As has been said earlier in this thread what was so great about Sheppard in RISING was that he was the person the audience could identify with. He was the guy that just happened to be assigned to fly O'Neill to the base and then accidentally the gene was discovered and how naturally he used it and so he was asked to join the expedition. I loved that aspect of his character in RISING. Even as a long standing SG-1 viewer I recognised the appeal of a main character in SGA who could bring the sense of wonder/surprise out on the screen to viewers who were completely new to the Stargate Universe. He is special, because of the gene, because of his piloting skills, because he passed a mensa test but at the same time he is a very ordinary person, an every man. Watching him reacting to all the crazy new stuff in early season one was fascinating to me. Yes, he has military training in his background to prepare him for a lot of things but he was completely unprepared for all that the Stargate Universe means to an individual. We saw on SG-1 how much preparation and special training goes into selecting individuals for the SGC. The Atlantis Expedition was hand picked and they worked together for ages before going to Pegasus. John Sheppard had none of that to fall back on. All the things that enabled him to cope and to rise to each new challenge thrown at him came from him as a personal individual. His own resources, inner strength, commitment, idealogy, intelligence and compassion were what made him succeed where others might have floundered. The back story we crave is to see how John Sheppard got to be the man he is. It should be revealed bit by bit over a long time but so far we haven't had anything. To me, the 'rising' in RISING wasn't just the city but Sheppard as well - another way in which the two are linked. I am not so interested in what the gene enables Sheppard to do but more in how Sheppard himself views it in relation to himself. EPIPHANY wasn't great but one of the aspects that I enjoyed about it was the way Sheppard viewed the whole idea of ascension. There has been this assumption all along it seems by people of 'ancient leaning' on the show that because Sheppard has such a strong version of the gene that he is somehow lined up for ascension at some point. I don't see Sheppard that way, and apparently he doesn't either, he was quite clear in EPIPHANY that he is too attached to his current existence to concider opting for a different one. He kept trying to emphasis to the people in EPIPHANY the importance of living a full life, rather than just contemplating the big questions. Sheppard has been a 'doer' all along, he acts, gets his hands dirty, interacts with people, he makes things happen and reacts to things when they do. He's a mover and shaker but still a thinker. TPTB seem content at the moment to just have him be like that in order to move the plot forward but it also should be used as a way of revealing his character. Sheppard's attractiveness to me has always lain in how human he is and TPTB need not to shy away from this.

Very true. Thankfully we've had TINY reminders of how John is the everyman and how he wasn't prepared for any of this. In INTRUDER when he got his first sight of Hermiod. When he was underwater with the PJ in GRACE. He was all full of wonder. I love those little moments.

I want Shep to be connected to the Ancients and stuff. To have his gene be the Key to Atlantis. But it's what you pointed out in Epiphany about him not wanting to Ascend or how in SANCTUARY when Chaya said she and Shep are more alike than he knows, but Shep doesn't get it or see it...I love that shep doesn't see himself as anything special. Hence why he puts his life on the line for everyone, like the suicide run in SIEGE3. Atlantis needs him, and I think Atlantis needs him more than pretty much anyone else...but Shep sees himself as expendable for the people. I love that about him.

Shep should be special to Atlantis/Gene/Ancients, but because he's always going to be the guy that never sees himself that way. That's a big part of why doing that would be so cool. Why I hope TPTB go that route. Shep would still be Shep. At least as far as he was concerned. And me.

[Cpt. Ritter]

Very true. Thankfully we've had TINY reminders of how John is the everyman and how he wasn't prepared for any of this. In INTRUDER when he got his first sight of Hermiod. When he was underwater with the PJ in GRACE. He was all full of wonder. I love those little moments.

I want Shep to be connected to the Ancients and stuff. To have his gene be the Key to Atlantis. But it's what you pointed out in Epiphany about him not wanting to Ascend or how in SANCTUARY when Chaya said she and Shep are more alike than he knows, but Shep doesn't get it or see it...I love that shep doesn't see himself as anything special. Hence why he puts his life on the line for everyone, like the suicide run in SIEGE3. Atlantis needs him, and I think Atlantis needs him more than pretty much anyone else...but Shep sees himself as expendable for the people. I love that about him.

Shep should be special to Atlantis/Gene/Ancients, but because he's always going to be the guy that never sees himself that way. That's a big part of why doing that would be so cool. Why I hope TPTB go that route. Shep would still be Shep. At least as far as he was concerned. And me.

Yes, very good. I like how he doesn't blantantly see himself as the hero, even though he is. I personally prefer him more as a guy who uses his wit as a shield to keep others at arms length. I think they main cast of Atlantis has gotten under that wit, but when they first met him, that's all he had. I love how the character has been fleshed out in some aspects, but I wish we saw more backstory, you know, like what Collateral Damage did for Mitchell in SG-1.

[Merlin7]

Yes, very good. I like how he doesn't blantantly see himself as the hero, even though he is. I personally prefer him more as a guy who uses his wit as a shield to keep others at arms length. I think they main cast of Atlantis has gotten under that wit, but when they first met him, that's all he had. I love how the character has been fleshed out in some aspects, but I wish we saw more backstory, you know, like what Collateral Damage did for Mitchell in SG-1.

Word. I'm still bummed that Mitchell who's BRAND NEW got the back story ep but not Shep. ::kicks PTB::

[Cpt. Ritter]

Wasn't there supposed to be backstory in Epiphany but they cut it in favor of Shep making out with ancient babe 101? I love Mitchell and Shep, but right now Mitchell's doing a whole lot better than Shep, it's not the characters or the actors fault, it's the writers. We know Shep had two buddies who got killed in Afghanistan, but what happened and how did it affect Shep, that's what I'd like to know.