Rising, Part 2 (102)

[taupecat]

It took me two attempts to watch Atlantis all the way through, thanks to succumbing to a Benadryl-induced coma the first time. Anyway, my first impressions (I apologize for repeating anything anyone's already said...)

1) Overall, I think I liked it more than I thought I would, but it's still not up to SG-1 in my book. For one thing, it feels much more "sci-fi" than SG-1 does (let me explain). SG-1 is about an Air Force unit fighting bad guys. So those bad guys happen to be aliens on other planets, but everything's still grounded in "our" reality. Atlantis is *entirely* offworld, which removes it from our frame of reference. Add the uniforms which look vaguely Star Trek-ian and the rather sterile feeling of the main set, and the whole thing just has a slightly more contrived feeling, IMHO.

2) Somehow, McKay has become my favorite character, which is frelling scary considering how *annoying* I found him in his SG-1 eps.

"He's Canadian." "I'm sorry." ROFL!

3) I like Smirk Boy (a.k.a. Sheppard) a lot more than I thought I would, but he'll always be Smirk Boy to me. Was a little annoyed when I realized he was never originally intended to be on the team, but was merely O'Neill's ride. But still, I think he has potential.

4) Since when is Scotland an independent country?!?! Wait, I know the answer to this... not since 1707. Sorry, Scottish nationalists. Beckett should be wearing the Union Jack on his shoulder, not the Scottish flag.

5) I'm still not a huge fan of the new Weir and her incredibly changing accent. Pick one and stick with it.

6) Finally, the Wraith. I find one-dimensional villains very tiresome, and the Wraith seem really one-dimensional.

7) I really like the tie-in with Ayiana. Nice touch.

8) Okay, I know Sam & Teal'c couldn't be in the 1st ep because of some legal thing, but Siler could be? Found that slightly odd.

Summary... I'll continue to give it a chance (and forgo the benadryl before watching it). But I still don't have the same excitement for it that I do for SG-1.

[sshspooky]

Scotland is still an independant country with a football team and their own flag. Great Britain is just a coalition of countries, like the EU.

[Ugly Pig]

8) Okay, I know Sam & Teal'c couldn't be in the 1st ep because of some legal thing, but Siler could be? Found that slightly odd.

I was actually thinking the same thing. I guess if Brad Wright and/or Robert C. Cooper wrote the first episode he appeared in, it's not a problem. What episode did he first appear in, anyway?

[aAnubiSs]

first.

[Anthro Girl]

I was actually thinking the same thing. I guess if Brad Wright and/or Robert C. Cooper wrote the first episode he appeared in, it's not a problem. What episode did he first appear in, anyway?

Was Siler in COTG? I don't remember. Johnathan Glassner and Brad Wright wrote COTG and initially developed all those characters (except O'Neill and Daniel). RCC didn't come along until, I think, There But for the Grace of God, late in the 1st season.

I'm no lawyer so I'm actually not sure about exactly what legal issues prevented the characters of Sam and Teal'c to appear in the premier of Atlantis, but it someone said something about the Stargate franchise is all about spinning off from the movie, not just SG-1. It sort of makes sense in an Atlantis-can-stand-alone kind of way, but I'd like a better explanation...I get confused easily.

In any case, Siler - while near and dear to us, the SG-1 fans - is not a major character (don't hit me!! ). He is just a technician in the background of the story who fixes things or gets sent to the infirmary a lot. His presence is not a major plotline in the Stargate universe, whereas Sam and Teal'c are an entirely different story. Same goes for Gary Jones' Chevron Guy. People are saying that since Siler was there then Chevron Guy should have been there. I don't see why. We've seen other Chevron People before. From a contractual perspective, Dan Shea is credited as RDA's stunt double for Rising, so he was "there" anyway.

Is it my imagination, or was there absolutely ZERO mention of Goa'uld, Tok'ra or Jaffa in the Atlantis premiere?

[Ugly Pig]

Is it my imagination, or was there absolutely ZERO mention of Goa'uld, Tok'ra or Jaffa in the Atlantis premiere?

You are correct.
Just as well. Wouldn't want to confuse those new viewers with irrelevant information.

[Anthro Girl]

You are correct.
Just as well. Wouldn't want to confuse those new viewers with irrelevant information.

Ahhh, okay. Makes more sense now...I think...maybe... Just confuse the old viewers...

Actually, it does make more sense now. The less they actually directly refer to SG-1 plotlines and story arcs, the easier it is to have Atlantis stand alone.

[Indiana]

Never mind they do move... it's just so fast it's hard to tell.

Just gotta get this in before I read the rest of the thread. Chevrons do not move. In the old Stargate it was the innder ring that moved the Symbols into place where each Chevron was. Then the Chevron clicks into place. The Chevron is the triangular shaped part of the Stargate that locks. Not the indivdual symbols. Lol, I saw a fansite called "The 37th Chevron" or something like that. I was just like there's only 9 on the actual gate

[AgentX]

Canadian, so I am a bit behind you guys but I just finished watching the two parter on TMN, and since it was commerical free, I couldn't really differentiate between parts one and two. So my thoughts will be on this thread. Was it a servicable premiere, yes. Was it a great premiere, no. I'm not exactly busting with anticipation for next week, like I was after COTG and eagerly selecting the 2nd episode on the DVD.

I don't really care for many of the characters. I like Weir, and I could see myself growing to like Dr. Scotty - but I could also see his personality getting old. The rest of them... nothing - I could care less what happens to them. Perhaps this will change with time but that's what I'm feeling right now.

I also am totally unimpressed with the Wraiths.They aren't interesting enough to be feared, and were built up to be nearly indestructable that the plausability of Terrans mounting any kind of defense is not there.

On the plus side, this had some great visual effects. Some of the best I have seen on television this year, really great stuff.

[DownFallAngel]

Commercial free with some extended behind the scenes stuff? Killer! We got commerciaqls galour!

[AgentX]

The behind the scene's stuff was a bit weird. The guide said it would be on from 7.30-8.00, but in total there were probably only 10 minutes if not less of that, shown sporadically in that time frame.

[DarkQuee1]

My reaction to the Atlantis premiere was basically...*shrug*. It wasn't particularly bad, but it wasn't particularly good, either. In the entire episode, there was only one scene that had me going "Wow!", and that was the rising of the city. Unfortunately, that's a one-time deal.

I wasn't wowed by the characters and/or the actors. I liked Weir better in NO and TLC. Shepard is a poor man's O'Neill--and he has to (1) stop sounding like Owen Wilson and (2) get a personality boost. There was no spark to his performance at all. Teyla might turn out to be interesting but right now is more than a little dull. The Wraith were too much like the Daleks and not enough like the Master (too one-note, no nuance). This might change with time but the set-up is not promising in this regard. They may have also made them *too* powerful: they do not age, they can read minds, they can make you see things that aren't there, they are extremely difficult to kill when hopped up on "lifeforce". When your villains are too powerful, then your heroes succeed (or merely survive) only because the bad guys make a lot of mistakes or because the good guys are very, very lucky. Both "devices" wear out their welcome quickly. We need to see if *believable* weaknesses get added over time.

I did like the McKay/Beckett Comedy Hour (liked McKay realizing that the chicken had lemon!), but Beckett was a hard to understand on occasion. Having a Scottish burr is one thing; having a Scottish burr *and* mumbling is something else again.

And for me, there was a basic flaw in the set-up: why would you send them to the "lost city" if you *know* that it's one-way? How does it help Earth if this team has no way to send back any information or technology--and you know that before you send them? Yes, I know, "knowledge for knowledge's sake." But not in this instance: you don't deplete your only power source for Earth's primary defensive weapon and you don't send some of your best minds out on this one-way trip--people who would be needed to obtain technology and information from the outpost and who then are the people who could run with it and develop other technology--when there is no chance of getting anything in return that would help Earth. These are resources you can't afford to lose at this juncture, when Earth is still at war.

And I didn't get the line about staying and carrying out their mission of exploring other worlds (I think that's what I heard, anyway). Huh? When was that established as their mission? The only mission I remember is exploring the lost city. Was their dialogue I didn't catch??

It may improve. Right now, it isn't "must see" TV for me.

J.

[Anthro Girl]

I don't really care for many of the characters. I like Weir, and I could see myself growing to like Dr. Scotty - but I could also see his personality getting old. The rest of them... nothing - I could care less what happens to them. Perhaps this will change with time but that's what I'm feeling right now.

Dr. Scotty? Hehe...that's cute. I think he's one of my favorite characters right now and am looking forward to his development. Gawd, I miss the days on Showtime without commercials...

[Adamixoye]

I don't know if it's been mentioned, with the "Jack and Daniel can be in the premiere, but Teal'c and Sam can't" issue, but forget Siler, what about Weir?

[Yu Huang Shang Ti]

Maybe it has something to do with characters which appeared in the premiere episodes, since Siler and Weir weren't there for "Children of the Gods."

Tell you the truth, this is perplexing me too -- Captain Picard appeared in the premiere of DS9 and Quark was in Voyager's premiere, and I don't remember any copyright ruckus over those decisions.