Sam Carter/Amanda Tapping Discussion/Appreciation

[WhatFateAlmondRoca]

and a less 'girly' smile

Can someone show me a picture of a 'girly' smile? I just don't get it.

LOL. Me neither.

You probably remember this, but so people don't think I'm smoking something, the 'girly smile' is in reference to when I first came onto Samanda and people were bewailing how vociferous and shrill the pro-vala/anti-sam people were, even going so far as to say Sam's smile was too girly. All of us were like WTH???

Fond remembrances of when I came onto this thread....

[deepspace]

i love sam.
i love amanda.
i just wanted to say it... it makes me feel better.
sally

I know the feeling Sal!

so...
Sam/Amanda are the best!

[WhatFateAlmondRoca]

i honestly never saw him as a true 'stalker' either. but i did see him as selfish, and i saw sam's response to his actions as needy. but we all know this was the writers doing, not really our sam being ms doormat.



sally

What bothered me is that he couldn't respect what Sam said, he had to go behind her back and try to get information about her. Its not even like he waited a few hours or even a day to think about it, he just sprung into action. To me that said "I don't respect you, I'm going to do what I want despite what you've told me. In fact, I'm not even gonna think for a while about what you said, so I'm gonna take control and make a phone call." Do you think that was a bit of a 'lunatic fringe' act? I kinda see it that way. Selfish, controlling perhaps, definitely DISRESPECTFUL to not give much credence to what a person you supposedly care about has said. After finding out her records were wiped he went on the stakeout. As a cop he should have known better, but then he gets out of his car and goes up to her as the action is starting??? He can't just let her be herself and do her job and THAT to me is lunatic fringe. Just because he does it with a goofy grin bearing flowers and boxes of wine doesn't make it any less weird IMHO.

<---is not bitter

At this point, however, Pete didn't see her the way we do. It wasn't until a bit later he found out she was was a defender of Earth and a brilliant scientist; that she can handle a P90 AND make a souffle with the acumen of the well trained. But even with what happened in Grace, it seems that Sam's response was the writers, NOT the Sam we know. (I'm going to rewatch just to reexamine my thinking on that). And I think the plot hole somewhat comes from the fact that (for me anyway) they didn't show that his attitude toward her changed after finding that out about her. Him going out and buying the house HE wanted was pushy and over the top just like making that initial phone call.

Just my humble .00002....

[minigeek]

i honestly never saw him as a true 'stalker' either. but i did see him as selfish, and i saw sam's response to his actions as needy. but we all know this was the writers doing, not really our sam being ms doormat.sally

That's the reason Amanda's been against the idea of Sam/Jack for as long as she has, too. In so far as any sort of "relationship" for Sam Carter is concerned, the writing team too often turns her into a female cliche-which belies her character. With supporting, on-again off-again characters like Pete Shanahan, Sam has more potential to recover from those sorts of stereotypical character moments and return to the strong Carter we all know and love in the story. If the "powers that be" put her with one of her co-stars, especially the leader, that female cliche would come around to define her character on-screen. And that would bite.

Don't get me wrong, I adore the idea of Sam/Jack as much as the next shipper, but I agree with skydiver about seeing a lot of it onscreen. Fanfiction authors (certain of them, including skydiver) do a far better job of maintaining Sam's integrity as a strong character (in a romantic situation) than I believe the current writing team for SG-1 would end up providing. Not because they can't; because I think they're more encumbered than most fanfiction authors are. They already fall victim to tired network "formulas" for holywood plot devices, etc etc. I don't think we'd see the kind of Sam we'd like to see if she were involved with a major character on-screen.

Having said that, I really do believe in Sam/Jack. I am a shipper, after all. As of the present date, I think we've been given enough canon "hints" to happily believe the two of them are currently an off-screen relationship of some sort.

I also believe we will see it resolved, down the road. But I think seeing it contine to be hinted at for the time being, would be a lot less dangerous to Carter's integrity than the alternative - for the present, at least.

mini(geek)

[jerin]

sam is the greatest......I admire her so much that I wrote my monologue for my hsc about her......I hoped that i did her justice as i tried to stay true to her character and say what she would say........I had a section where she let out all her feelings about Jack and I felt what I was saying so much that I started crying........I love sam even though she be only a character......To me she is real and she will never die as long as I remember, even if the show stops.

Welcome! Kindness definitely reigns here. Do you mind sharing your monologue with us?

[jerin]

Well here's what I just sent - how long do yu think I should continue to hold my breath?

Dear Mr. Edelman:

I am writing to hopefully get an answer to a question:

why is a person (person (a)) that:
(1) has never seen a Stargate,
(2) has never been through a Stargate,
(3) has exactly zero, zip, nada, off-world experience,
(4) has never seen an alien, friend or foe,
(5) has no experience with off-world ground combat,
(6) has no experience with alien technology or science,
(7) has no experience with alien diplomacy,
(8) has no experience with alien languages and is shown to be wholly unqualified for the position,

made leader of the elite SG1 while the person (person (b)) that:

(1) has 8 plus years of knowledge on all things Stargate,
(2) has been through the Stargate hundreds of times over 8 years,
(3) has 8 years of off-world experience,
(4) has seen, dealt with in great detail and even killed, alien foes and made and dealt with alien friends for 8 years,
(5) has 8 years of off-world ground combat experience,
(6) has 8 years of experience with alien technology and science,
(7) has 8 years of experience with alien diplomacy,
(8) has 8 years of experience with alien language through a teammate

all while was serving as 2IC of the elite SG team for 7 years and as its wholly qualified and competent leader for 1 year, is demoted to 2IC of that very same team in favor of person (a) without any plausible or credible explanation? Is it seriously because someone there felt the silly need to have a male lead (person a) so the female lead (person b), is demoted, insulted and damaged? I can find no other reason that doesn't lack credibility, but then again the male lead reason lacks credibility in spades.

Please know that you, Sci-Fi, Ms. Hammer and those in charge of this show have done a disservice to the character of Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter, women in the military and women in general. In addition, you have summarily damaged any credibility you may have had with many fans of this show.

The courtesy of a response would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much for your time.

I LOVE your well-written letter. It's so much better than mine. Here's what I wrote:
I’m a loyal fan of Sg-1. I have watched and re-watched the DVDs many time, and still watch the re-runs on SCIFI. I want to begin by thanking you and everyone else involved for bringing such an enjoyable show to us year after year. That being said, I must express how disappointed and angry I am at Cameron Mitchell having command of Sg-1. What reason can The Powers That Be give for him having command over Sam? In the 1st episode of season 9, it was obvious that he never even saw a stargate before. How could they possibly give him command over an officer with 8 years of experience in the field, not to mention her own command in the last year. I can’t think of any logical reasons, except that her reproductive organs are on the inside, instead of the outside like Mitchell. Don’t get me wrong. I like Ben Browder and Mitchell’s character. However, this doesn’t make any military or logical sense. I’m not alone in my opinion. Many other fans feel this way. As proof, please feel free to stop by gateworld’s thread on Sam. Here’s a link: Sam's a great character - spoilers for *ALL* seasons

I think the least the powers that be can do is offer a solid explanation on why someone with virtually no experience with the Stargate program would have command. Thank you for your time.

[Skydiver]

i can agree with how amanda feels. how many shows have the leading female shipped with the leading male? and then it seems taht she exists for little more than to be the other half of _____ & ______

as much as i do personally like sam and jack, now that brad's all but gone, i personally don't trust rob's take on romance. it would be hard even when brad was tackling it.
i think that amanda and rick had a blast playing it and interacting with each other. whenever i watch the behind the scenes stuff, i'm struck at how well these two play together. it is a nice, comfortable 'big bro, little sis' type of relationship. and a lot of that chemistry showed up on screen which is what fed into the ship

however, that being said, and with all due modesty (thanks minigeek) i really don't trust teh fine writers of teh show to write romance in what i'd see as a good way.

and i would rather have it either done right or not done at all

[Qasim]

[Coley]

In season 8, I really think TPTB never ever really intended to write Sam as SG1 leader---at least very little. They wanted the stories revolving around RDA even with his limited time---too bad because the audience would have been thrilled to actually see our team go off world with Sam as leader. And they figured that season 8 was their last, so why not have Sam "lead." Little did they know that they would once again get renewed. Too bad they couldn't follow through and continue with Sam as leader once AT returned.

Interesting observations chocdoc and it does seem that way. Though another reason may be that the writers didn't want to load Amanda too much considering what she was having to cope with at the time. Wonder if we'll ever find out about these things!

[Dani76]

For those of you who haven't seen it yet, the complete TV Zone interview with Amanda has been posted on ScifiGate. Be careful, there are some spoilers for season 9, but there is also some neat behind the scenes info. Enjoy!
http://www.scifigate.net/tvzone194tapping.php

[Coley]

The perfect opportunity to make one small attempt at being different, for a tv show to actually let the female be the lead for once, has just been ignored. It's like TPTB are shying away from a concept that could be a little tricky for them. It's almost like they feel threatened by the possibility of that story line, so instead they're just going to turn their backs on it and ignore it, and stick Vala up there on the screen in the hopes of distracting the audience so that they don't notice. Unfortunately, I find this a far too clear reflection of RL. And that annoys me, because I believe that whether we like it or not, what we watch as a good story on tv really does end up affecting our perception in the real world, and this was a chance for TPTB to change at least a few people's viewpoints in this world. But no. If I could think of it as 'just tv', it might be ok, but I know that this is exactly what happens in the real world. Nomatter how our country's pride themselves on being forward thinking and changing, there's so much that is still stuck in a very muddy rut. And it doesn't look like stargate's going to be one to try and get out of it.

All that said, I hope that there's at least something to enjoy by the time I get to watch season 9. I wish I could look forward to it, but it's not looking to be as cracked up to be as we all originally speculated.

Deepspace this was so well put, sorry I can't green.

I've seen the first 4 ep's of season 9 and despite my dislike and disapointment of the Vala character the plot I'm finding surprisingly interesting for the time being. So there is some hope for a good show!!

Cam lacks the charisma of a leader, Sam has it in spades. If you rewatch the episodes where she has taken over leadership of the control room. Hammond was happy to sit back and let the cool, quick thinking Carter throw out the orders with definite authority in the way that instills confidence and respect. It is laughable she is not in command. However we have to accept there may be behind the scenes RL issues involved in this decision and it may not be appropriate to publicise them

[SamFan31]

For those of you who haven't seen it yet, the complete TV Zone interview with Amanda has been posted on ScifiGate. Be careful, there are some spoilers for season 9, but there is also some neat behind the scenes info. Enjoy!
http://www.scifigate.net/tvzone194tapping.php

Thanks for the link, Dani. I love what she said about CB. Yes, as always, AT is one very classy lady.

[WhatFateAlmondRoca]

Okay, I know its a little late in the game but I finallly got some Photoshop time....

[LaCroix]

You know when I came in here and saw that picture, I thought I was in the wrong room. Just came here to say I like Sam.

[WhatFateAlmondRoca]

I forgot 'radar'!