Sam Carter/Amanda Tapping Discussion/Appreciation

[Uber]

Scorpius, shmorpius... but STARK RULES!!!!! If they were going to bring over a farscape character it could have been him. Hes sort of like a crazy ascended guy.... bet he could play creepy stalker Ancient and hit on Sam too. Maybe him and Orlin could be brothers

My side...your side...my side...your side...my side...your side...my side...your side...my side...your side...

You're right...Stark was great...but come on...Dominar Rygel the XVI rules!!!!!!!

[sg-1fanintn]

Congrats to:

ÜberSG-1Fan
Myrth
&
ForeverSg1

for their amazing showings
in the The Amanda Tapping Contest!

So many wonderfully talented people hang out here!!!

[NowIWillDestroyAbydos]

Season 3, episode 21.

That early. Personally I liked the later seasons of the X-files.

[sg-1fanintn]

On Uber's advice I got ahold of the Farscape DVDs and started watching them to see what the "hype-ola" has been about. I was also quite interested in the differences/similarilties between Vala/Aeryn and Mitchell/Crichton. I've now watched all of Farscape season one and half (13 episodes) of season two. It's a pretty neat little show! Little bit different than what I usually go for in sci-fi, but it's neat (the actress who played 'Chiana' is astoundingly talented).

Anyway, on with my (crazy!) observations. I remember having a (brief) conversation in another forum about the fact that several fans couldn't abide Amanda's character (Sam) because they hated her acting and felt she had "no range" (I always love when people use that term 'no range' in reference to an actor, because it's almost always used by laypersons who've never taken an acting course and don't really know what a technical acting 'range' really is). But I digress. The point was, these fans attempted to illustrate their opinion with examples of range, using Claudia Black, and Vala/Aeryn. How "radically different Vala Mal Doran is from Aeryn Sun".

Now that I've watched Farscape for a season and a half I'm really going to have to jump in here and disagree a little bit with the concept that Vala Mal Doran and Aeryn Sun are "completely and radically different".

On the outset, obviously the characters are different. But when I watch Claudia playing Aeryn, I see a lot of Vala, too. Maybe it's because I met Vala first. I'm sure that has something to do with it, but if you take out the burlesque (sex-kitten) image, all of Vala's "serious" scenes so far now scream at me with the words: Hello, Aeryn Sun?

As for Ben Browder's performance - now that I've seen him in Farscape, I'm amazed at how almost identical his character is to Cameron Mitchell. The SG-1 scene which (I think one of the executive producers - possibly Joe - lauded as so fantastic, where Mitchell exclaimed: "Bullets bounce!!", and jumped up and down. That was classic John Crichton. (I actually wish he was a lot more different now, I'm a little disappointed in that, but that's a whole other essay/discussion I'll leave out of this bit).

For the moment, I'm looking back on the discussion I (tried to) have with those fans about Amanda's acting range, and I'm realizing something. It wasn't about her acting range at all. I'm seeing less of an actual logical argument from that (aforementioned) point of view and more of a Farscape fan's reaction to simply loving Claudia so much that it somehow engendered a wacky need to elevate her status (due to an oddly perceived female 'competition' that doesn't actually exist between Vala Mal Doran and the character of Sam Carter).

Thank you, mg! As a fan of both shows (but more of SG-1), this is exactly what I've been saying since the get-go! John Crichton was modeled after Jack O'Neill, and when you remove the sex kitten stuff, Vala is a lot like Aeryn. That's why I've felt that despite the star power BB and CB offered, the show would have been better served with relative unknowns like Joe Flanigan.....who has certainly become popular with fans quickly and in his own right!

And I'm not trying to make it an either-or contest between the actresses either. But after several years of watching the nuances in AT's work, I've concluded that she's one of the most talented actresses I've ever watched in anything! She can say more with her eyes in one scene than most actors can convey in an entire script.

Ok.....down off my soap box and back to catching up on and enjoying your posts.....

[sg-1fanintn]

What do you think of Sam over in Atlantis? Would you watch the show with Sam in it?

I am more of in a wait and see mode. If SG-1 becomes the Daniel/Vala show as it has been written so far in the first six episodes, it isn't SG-1, a team show, anymore. So I actually think it might be more painful to watch than not to watch. I do really like CB, but Vala only works for me in small doses. Unfortunately, I'm not finding Mitchell very interesting and I'm having a very hard time buying that he should be leader instead of Sam. It is just bad writing. To be honest, though, I probably would still watch SG-1 with Sam because I like AT that much.

I definitely would watch Sam in Atlantis because right now to me Atlantis is much truer to the Stargate show than SG-1 is. It has more of the team feel. Unfortunately, the two female characters have had the short end of the stick in terms of development though (gee what a surprise).

If SG-1 moves toward the lines of Prometheus Unbound and The Ties that Bind, I will cry! And if Vala actually joins the SG-1 team, any believability that remains goes out the window.

Wow, chocdoc! It's like I wrote it myself! I feel to the letter as you do on this issue. I'd prefer for Sam to stay in an SG-1 universe that we recognize. But if that is not to be, I'd much rather see her in SGA, where everything still "feels" like Stargate.....and where I think Brad Wright would treat the character much better. To me, that would be the lesser of the two evils.

[esoap524]

Thank you, mg! As a fan of both shows (but more of SG-1), this is exactly what I've been saying since the get-go! John Crichton was modeled after Jack O'Neill, and when you remove the sex kitten stuff, Vala is a lot like Aeryn. That's why I've felt that despite the star power, the show would have been better served with relative unknowns like Joe Flanigan.....who has certainly become popular with fans quickly and in his own right!

And I'm not trying to make it an either-or contest between the actresses either. But after several years of watching the nuances in AT's work, I've concluded that she's one of the most talented actresses I've ever watched in anything! She can say more with her eyes in one scene than most actors can convey in an entire script.

Ok.....down off my soap box and back to catching up on and enjoying your posts.....

Oh, boy. Well, there's no way I'd jump into an either/or contest between Black and Tapping BUT...having watched Farscape ad nauseum (LOL) and seen Claudia Black's work, especially throughout season 3, I don't see any way to say the Vala is essentially Aeryn with sex kitten thrown in. I definitely see Vala as CHIANA from Farscape. Aeryn was emotionally repressed, responsible, noble and always put others before herself. I have yet to see Vala do that once. Oh, she may eventually come around to doing the right thing but that's after she's depleted her options for doing the wrong thing.

As far as acting styles are concerned--and again, not drawing a comparison because I haven't seen enough of Amanda Tapping to have a good basis for comparison--I have to say that Claudia Black has that same expressive ability to convey a lot with very little. A raised eyebrow, a quirk of the lip, a quick blink of the eye...there's a lot that she had to convey as Aeryn.

Again...the Aeryn/Vala thing...um, no. I think I'm a pretty good expert on the subject of Farscape and Aeryn (sad to say). Chiana/ Vala--yep, without a doubt. Rygel/Vala--yep, I see that too.

Now, Crichton/Mitchell. Yeah, there's more similarities except for the whole Cricthon was absolutely insane pretty much after season 1 ended. He was a loud mouth take over kinda guy after he started to go nuts, yelling at people and getting in their faces about stuff. Mitchell seems like a pretty cool, discerning, "let's not draw attention to ourselves" type.

My two cents, as a die hard Farscape fan.

[Myrth]

Awww thanks... I won a keyring.. yay

Meanwhile on the FS discussion, I went and bought all 4 seasons plus the mini series and watched the whole thing to see what all the fuss was about. It was a great show.. brilliant in a way but way ahead of it's time... which is a little sad. I enjoyed the Aussie star of the week thing, I think every known Australian actor was in that show.. it rocked.

I think Mitchell & Crichton are essentially teh same personality at the moment, but that will probably develop.. I love both Aeryn & Vala but I see them as quite different. I'd actually enjoy seeing Aeryn interacting with Sam I think.. a bit more than Vala.

So for me SG is the winning thoroughbred, but FS is certainly near the top of the winning shows list in my little book.

Annd.. if we're bringing characters over.. I vote Zhaaan.. .every show needs a big blue *****

Congrats to:

ÜberSG-1Fan
Myrth
&
ForeverSg1

for their amazing showings
in the The Amanda Tapping Contest!

So many wonderfully talented people hang out here!!!

[AGateFan]

Awww thanks... I won a keyring.. yay

Meanwhile on the FS discussion, I went and bought all 4 seasons plus the mini series and watched the whole thing to see what all the fuss was about. It was a great show.. brilliant in a way but way ahead of it's time... which is a little sad. I enjoyed the Aussie star of the week thing, I think every known Australian actor was in that show.. it rocked.

I think Mitchell & Crichton are essentially teh same personality at the moment, but that will probably develop.. I love both Aeryn & Vala but I see them as quite different. I'd actually enjoy seeing Aeryn interacting with Sam I think.. a bit more than Vala.

So for me SG is the winning thoroughbred, but FS is certainly near the top of the winning shows list in my little book.

Annd.. if we're bringing characters over.. I vote Zhaaan.. .every show needs a big blue *****

Well of course if you bring Stark you got to bring Zhaan. That would definitly stop the Sam Stalking as he would be otherwise occupied. Sam\Jack, John\Aryen.... they got nothing on Stark\Zhaan

[sg-1fanintn]

Our very own bink gets the gold-snark award (the polite, good natured one, of course) in today's posting race, folks! Give her a round of SAmandan applause! Woohoo!

http://forum.gateworld.net/showthrea...70#post4648070

Hugs,
mini

Woo-hoo!
Way to go, binkpmmc,
for posting this for JM to see!

And way to go, Dani76,
for creating it!

[esoap524]

. I love both Aeryn & Vala but I see them as quite different. I'd actually enjoy seeing Aeryn interacting with Sam I think.. a bit more than Vala.

So for me SG is the winning thoroughbred, but FS is certainly near the top of the winning shows list in my little book.

Annd.. if we're bringing characters over.. I vote Zhaaan.. .every show needs a big blue *****

Aeryn and Carter would rock! LOL. Brawn and brains, although Aeryn has some brains and Carter has some brawn but still...you get my drift.

I have a friend who's writing a crossover SG1/FS. Aeryn goes thru the gate by mistake, much angst ensues. Anyway!

Big Blue! *sigh* She and Teal'c can admire each other's baldness

[AUCat]

Hello to the greatest Sam fans in the world. I am in need of help. I have plot bunny running around in my head and can't get rid of it. I've looked and looked and can't remember/find an answer of this question: Has Sam ever been put in a sarcophagus? Thanks for the help.

[AGateFan]

Nope, I dont think so. I think maybe her Jolinar experience may make her very anti-sarcophagus... plus shes usually taking cover while daniel gets shot

[Uber]

Hello to the greatest Sam fans in the world. I am in need of help. I have plot bunny running around in my head and can't get rid of it. I've looked and looked and can't remember/find an answer of this question: Has Sam ever been put in a sarcophagus? Thanks for the help.

No. Neither Sam nor Teal'c have been sarc'ed.

And howdy from a Sam fan from the great state of Tennessee!!!



By the way...how do I find out what I won for the video thing???

[AUCat]

Oh thank you! gives cookie

Now my plot bunny really wants Sam to get put in one. Ba'al maybe. Evil laugh

[AUCat]

I voted for you. Your cool! cookies, cake and blue jello from the half-buried Stargate known as the Saint Louis Arch