Season Five : Complaints and Misgivings

[fumblesmcstupid]

I felt like the actors got fed up (JF,JM,RL AND DH), and they were going through the motions especially in the last episode. I think TPTB had a lot to do with it too.

Focusing on Keller and the love fest they had for her character, dragging McKay along for the ride. It turned into the McGagMe show and this made me mad!

[kali1]

I felt like the actors got fed up (JF,JM,RL AND DH), and they were going through the motions especially in the last episode. I think TPTB had a lot to do with it too.

Focusing on Keller and the love fest they had for her character, dragging McKay along for the ride. It turned into the McGagMe show and this made me mad!

McGagMe.....that's hysterical fumble!!!!

Going through the motions is right. S5 was like Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

[Pajus]

I'm going to get a lecture on it tomorrow from my OH

Oh and Series 5 was crap because the writer's sold out to the Almighty Dollar

I think the USA will soon abandon their dollars and change them for Zimbabwean dollars. Name is almost the same and soon Zimbabwean dollars will be worth more than US dollars

[Stormtrooper]

I felt like the actors got fed up (JF,JM,RL AND DH), and they were going through the motions especially in the last episode. I think TPTB had a lot to do with it too.

Focusing on Keller and the love fest they had for her character, dragging McKay along for the ride. It turned into the McGagMe show and this made me mad!

There's only so much crap a person can take. Think about it. SGA actors watched the car crash from inside the vehicle. It mustn't be a pleasant experience.

[Lahela]

Interesting article here - this is the relevant bit:

What Makes a Great Show Go Bad?
...
In a completely different genre, another show caught my interest, Stargate: Atlantis. The exceptional acting and chemistry between the core cast, Joe Flanigan, Torri Higginson, David Hewlett, Rachel Luttrell, and Paul McGillion, made this show great.

So what happened to these two great shows? How can something so perfect, so prestine in every detail, suddenly collapse under its own weight, and could it have been prevented? The answer: most assuredly yes, it could have been prevented, if television producers had listened to the feedback of their fans.

...

Stargate: Atlantis Sinks to the Ocean Floor

It's fair to say that I have a great deal more anger toward the producers of Stargate: Atlantis than I do Gilmore Girls, which is why I decided to write about it second. In true SCI-FI Channel tradition, they take their greatest shows and end them early. The only exception to this so far is Battlestar Galactica, which was designed to give closure when its run ends later this year. Of course, they milked it for all its worth, making fans wait six months to see the last half of the final season.

But back to the topic at hand. Stargate: Atlantis had the dynamics that are rarely seen between characters. Under the leadership of Dr. Elizabeth Weir, the team of John Sheppard, Rodney McCay, Teyla Emmagen, Carson Beckett, and even Radek Zelenka (who is often unacknowledged, but a great addition to the crew) were so refreshing, so complete, that no matter what other factors went into the show, I believe we all would have continued watching just to see them!

By the third season, everything was absolutely perfect in the Stargate Universe. It even got me interested in its predecssor, which was still running into its tenth season, Stargate: SG1. But then, in the last episode of season three, they ended it with a huge explosion that left Dr. Elizabeth Weir in critical condition. It was a moment that would have a profound impact on the show. By the time the fourth season started, all I could do was pray that she was going to be okay.

And for a moment there, it seemed like she would, but by the end of the episode, it was clear, she was gone from us forever, replaced by Amanda Tapping from the original series. I wasn't happy about this choice, and many other fans weren't either. It seems the only ones that did care are those die-hard fans of the original series who didn't want to see their favorite show end. All it did was create the beginning of the demise of Stargate: Atlantis.

Things went from bad to worse when in the fifth season, Amanda was replaced by Robert Picardo (a great actor as The Doctor in Star Trek: Voyager, but totally unfit to be running Atlantis.) By the time all was said and done, the show had been destroyed, and I can't say that I'm sad to see it go, because after the third season, the show was ruined. They decided to take it off of the air with the intention of creating a new series, Stargate: Universe, meant to appeal to a younger crowd. (Fans mock this choice by displaying banners in forums that say things like: "if u can rd ths, thn strgte univrse is 4u!)

Where Did They Go Wrong?

They replaced key characters and key writers, without which, these two incredible shows could no longer maintain the magic that made them so special. Some shows manage to survive when key characters are replaced (we were able to accept losing Jared Padalecki from Gilmore Girls, for example), but sometimes it can be the worst move a producer can make.

There's a lesson in all of this, but unfortunately it's not a new one and it's one that is largely ignored by those the lesson is meant for: listen to your fans or it could cost you dearly in the end. And the worst part of all is it is the fans that suffer the most. It may just be television, but some shows are so powerful that they just beg to be watched. I've often joked that I wish I could like in Stars Hollow. When a show is really good, we can't help but plan it around our schedules or record it on Tivo!

[Reefgirl]

Isn't the Euro mightier these days?

And the ponds, how are they doing? How's the Queen on the notes feeling? Feeling like being sucked dry by a Wraith or full of life like an Ancient?

I think the USA will soon abandon their dollars and change them for Zimbabwean dollars. Name is almost the same and soon Zimbabwean dollars will be worth more than US dollars

The pound is worth less than the Euro, Dollar and Zimbabwean Dollar

Interesting article here - this is the relevant bit:

That sums it up perfectly

[Stormtrooper]

Interesting article here ...

Yes, the article is well-written, and the author analyzes SGA's destruction very accurately.

[Falcon Horus]

The pound is worth less than the Euro, Dollar and Zimbabwean Dollar

Then the Queen is not feeling well... and I should stick to that 20 poundt note I found in my wallet just last week.

[Reefgirl]

Hang on to it for a couple of years, she might be worth a bit more then

[Falcon Horus]

Hang on to it for a couple of years, she might be worth a bit more then

My sister and I are planning to visit Cardiff (Torchwood-town ) in April (and Oxford, Stonehenge and Avebury along the way)... I might spend her sooner rather than later.

[Reefgirl]

Have fun

[fumblesmcstupid]

I wish that TPTB had chosen NOT to give writers free reign over plots and allowed their personal feelings to MARE the feel of the show! I find it hard to believe that a writer is the one who has say on how the characters are to be ANYTHING! I thought that a writer is told the premise and gave an outline of what TPTB want then TPTB went over the scripts and okay'd them, not the other way around! (insert bitterness)

[Stormtrooper]

I wish that TPTB had chosen NOT to give writers free reign over plots and allowed their personal feelings to MARE the feel of the show! I find it hard to believe that a writer is the one who has say on how the characters are to be ANYTHING! I thought that a writer is told the premise and gave an outline of what TPTB want then TPTB went over the scripts and okay'd them, not the other way around! (insert bitterness)

They were all writers, and they were all TPTBs. Probably the main reason the show went downhill.

no hierarchy = no oversight = failure

[Reiko]

They were all writers, and they were all TPTBs. Probably the main reason the show went downhill.

no hierarchy = no oversight = failure

From what I understand there was no structure/hierarchy at all. You're right; the M&M wrote a lot of episodes and so did Gero. (Who is not executive producer, but he seems to have a lot of influence.)

Oh, and on a side note, anyone take note of in the episode Identity there were lots of stabs of McKeller. It was written by Binder who wrote Q in s4 (also known as shipper's hell -- both the John/Teyla and Ronon/Keller made me fast-forward to the Zelenka parts) and presumably wanted Ronon/Keller.

Just didn't know if anyone caught that.

[fumblesmcstupid]

That's what happens when there is no chain of command, even in producing a show.

You have Gero who LOVES McKay and Keller and everyone else be darned!

None of the rest of the cast had any one stick up for them and say.. What are you doing?

What about Teyla or Sheppard?

That is very shameful!

I would not be into making a movie for theses people if I was the rest of the cast!

Plus I am sure David most likely noticed the focus on him as well.

What do you say to that?