Sam Carter/Amanda Tapping Discussion/Appreciation

[chocdoc]

Yep. Amanda Tapping is truely a classy lady. Every time I hear something new about her it just reconfirms it. Imagine spending all that time with a fan when you're directing for the first time. She sure could have justifiably begged off given the nature of her week, but she was gracious as always. Even when the girl said Jack was her favorite.

Completely agree. In some ways, AT is alot like Sam. Modest about herself and very caring with others, and very smart! Now in the romance area, AT is much wiser than Sam! In every report I have ever read from a fan, they have nothing but wonderful things to say about her.

[chocdoc]

Greetings All - It has been a long week and RL has been very busy for me. I've finally had a chance to get on here and read the last few pages of posts. I wanted to make a coment on the issue of who at SciFi has influence on Stargate. Took me a little while to remember were I had read this - here part of one of Joe Mallozzi's blogs were he talks about this very subject.

That said, I have to admit, its been a pleasure dealing with Nora O'Brien from SciFi Channel. Her notes are always specific, well thought-out, and well-argued. Hey, I may not agree with her all of the time, but I'll always know exactly what she's arguing for and why. She's courteous and professional - but firm in her belief that the changes she is suggesting will make the episode that much better. And she's usually right. There are even times when I don't think she's right and I'll go back to the script, re-read it with her note in mind and realize "Damn! She's right!" I hate that! Nora oversees SG-1 while Tony Optican (also a very nice guy with some good ideas) oversees Atlantis.

If you want to read more of what Joe had to say here is the link to his blog

SciFi Chanel Address
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
Phone 212 408 9100

thanks, Tsaxlady for this info.

Okay, I am confused though. where are people sending their emails about the leadership issue?

[the dancer of spaz]

Wow, I was looking through the thread and this was my very first post:

Nice thread guys!

I have to say that I agree with pretty much what everyone's been saying about the character and the actor. Both are really great role models.

I have to say that I really like being able to look at the first season and comparing Sam's characteristics to now. It's so cool to see what they did to start the character off, and how AT adapted the character over the years.

There was a bit of a chip on her shoulder (though not too large) in the beginning, but she proved to be a competent and integral member of the SGC.

By Season Two and ITLOD, it was clear that Sam had big things ahead of her. The characters are extraordinary, and Sam's extraordinary characteristics go beyond her intelligence, and right down to her soul. She's got a heart, and she really wants to do the right thing.

Having a character who is "next to perfection," but manages to maintain humility is awesome in my book. Sam has managed to show beauty, superb character, and intelligence that far surpasses that of the Classic SciFi bimbos (i.e. Anise, etc.).

Then you look at the actress, and it's no wonder that everyone loves her! When you have so many fans, co-stars, producers, etc., who openly compliment an actress, there's no doubt that it's all true. There's no doubt that she really is one of the nicest people you'll ever meet. And I think her genuine girl-next-door mentality totally translates on screen. She doesn't care if she's the most important person in the show, but she is willing to fight for the integrity of her character.

Sam is still the soldier WHO HAPPENS TO BE A WOMAN, but there's no mistaking the bond she has with these men. At the end of the day, I believe Daniel and Teal'c, her teammates, will always feel that brotherly obligation and privilege to protect Sam at all costs, and it's really sweet to know that the feeling is mutual and well-deserved.

While I am definitely a hardcore team fan, I have to say that AT/Sam are my favorite actor/character duo on television, because I can honestly watch her work and not wonder if, at the end of the day, she really is the kind of person she says she is. She truly does care, and she really is concerned about what we, as fans, think.

It has been really cool to see the character's transformation from a competent officer and scientist, with childlike awe, to a matured and somewhat weathered soldier and scientist, with an experienced outlook on life. She deserves the command she has been given, and she definitely deserves some happiness - no matter where that may be.... Although, I'd prefer it was with a certain General.

Again, great idea with the thread! Very cool!

*sniff* That was about 10 months ago!

How time flies.

[golfbooy]

Just thought I'd let everyone know that Joe Mallozzi left another blog entry. The command issue is addressed and answered. I'm not exactly sure how I feel about his answer, but the situation is, perhaps, not as bad as it could be. Anyway, check it out and let me know what you think.

[jckfan55]

Well, JM pretty much confirms what my interpretation has been. I'd prefer Sam clearly in charge, but I can deal with this. But why, oh why, didn't they *write* this in somehow? Gee, a few lines in an episode? The way this has gone leads me to believe whoever (sorry I forget who it was) has said TPTB are basically big chickens about addressing the issue is right.

[the dancer of spaz]

Just thought I'd let everyone know that Joe Mallozzi left another blog entry. The command issue is addressed and answered. I'm not exactly sure how I feel about his answer, but the situation is, perhaps, not as bad as it could be. Anyway, check it out and let me know what you think.

Thanks, golfbooy.

1. Why isn't Carter leading SG-1? Why has the character been demoted?

We had a number of challenges facing us with the start of season 9. One was the introduction of a new team member: Cameron Mitchell. The other was Amanda's pregnancy which would keep her out of the show for the first six episodes of the season. Rather than going the "new guy joins the team" route, Robert opted for something a little different. We had finally wrapped up 8 seasons worth of loose ends, so it was natural that our characters would be moving on. Simply put, their main mission accomplished, the individual members of SG-1 were finally free to pursue areas of personal interest. In Teal'c's case, that meant helping the free Jaffa. In Daniel's case, it meant finally going to Atlantis. And, in Carter's case, it meant helping Cassie through a rough time, and focusing on the Research and Development of the technology we had acquired over the years. So, when Mitchell came aboard, there was no SG-1. He was given command of a team that he would have to rebuild. Ideally, he wanted to "get the band back together" - and that meant Daniel, Teal'c, and Carter. So who is leading the team? They both are. The two have reached a mutual understanding whereby they can alternate command on various ops. "Impossible!"some will undoubtedly howl. That goes against regs! Maybe. And it goes against regs to have two Colonel's on the same team. But rather than giving Carter command of SG-22 (and following her adventures in another spin-off series), we thought this would be a nice compromise.

Huh. That's all I can think of at the moment.

Somewhere in my head, a voice is whispering, "Cop-out," but I'm gonna ignore it. At least he answered...

Quick question, though: Is this considered a CANON answer, or does it have to be addressed WITHIN the boundaries of the show to be considered that?

[Uber]

Joe answered the leadership question on his BLOG!!!!!!!!!!!




Taken from his blog:

Scrolling through the responses to my blog, I've noticed that the same comments keep coming up. In the interest of putting people's concerns to rest (or, in some cases, enraging people even further), I've decided to take the time to answer some of the more, uh, controversial questions -

1. Why isn't Carter leading SG-1? Why has the character been demoted?

We had a number of challenges facing us with the start of season 9. One was the introduction of a new team member: Cameron Mitchell. The other was Amanda's pregnancy which would keep her out of the show for the first six episodes of the season. Rather than going the "new guy joins the team" route, Robert opted for something a little different. We had finally wrapped up 8 seasons worth of loose ends, so it was natural that our characters would be moving on. Simply put, their main mission accomplished, the individual members of SG-1 were finally free to pursue areas of personal interest. In Teal'c's case, that meant helping the free Jaffa. In Daniel's case, it meant finally going to Atlantis. And, in Carter's case, it meant helping Cassie through a rough time, and focusing on the Research and Development of the technology we had acquired over the years. So, when Mitchell came aboard, there was no SG-1. He was given command of a team that he would have to rebuild. Ideally, he wanted to "get the band back together" - and that meant Daniel, Teal'c, and Carter. So who is leading the team? They both are. The two have reached a mutual understanding whereby they can alternate command on various ops. "Impossible!"some will undoubtedly howl. That goes against regs! Maybe. And it goes against regs to have two Colonel's on the same team. But rather than giving Carter command of SG-22 (and following her adventures in another spin-off series), we thought this would be a nice compromise.



On Edit: DOH!!!!!!! Too slow. Spazzy beat me to the punch. CURSE YOU SPAZZY!!!!

[Agent_Dark]

Wooo, looks my interpretation of the command thing was right I'm quite happy with the way they've set it up, and now since JM has said what he has, I have no problems at all

[Uber]

Wooo, looks my interpretation of the command thing was right I'm quite happy with the way they've set it up, and now since JM has said what he has, I have no problems at all

I'm satisfied enough by the answer that I'll stick around...

But what will make it better is if on some other mission, Sam radios back saying "SG-1 leader to SGC"...

[ForeverSg1]

Actually I'm quite happy with his response. The answers he gave to every question in his blog post was exactly as I had been guessing since the beginning of the season ( well except the response about Jonas... not sure if I'm quite believing that response especially since there's been talk about Vala returning as a regular in season 10 ), but hopefully we'll get something in the second half of the season that will actually show Sam as co-leader being addressed or Sam placed into a position where she is leading SG-1 as well.


Kat

[Dani76]

Thanks for the tip, golfbooy. Here is my take on it:
First of all, finally somebody took the step and gave us some answers, and I appreciate that.
Secondly, that doesn't mean that I like the answer.
Spoilers

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It is what we thought was going on, or at least the impression I got.
The "good" thing is that we will never hear Sam say "Sir" to Mitchell, something I would have had a hard time dealing with. The "bad" thing is, she is not the leader of SG-1 and, furthermore,

Spoiler:

it probably also means that the awesome idea of Sam being 2IC of the SGC will not come true.

That being said, the explanations given for the decision do not satisfy me. Just because Amanda was pregnant and they chose to split up the team (which does make sense in a way), doesn't mean that she could not have come back to lead SG-1. It also does not mean that they couldn't have given some kind of explanation when Sam was back. Some conversation between her and Mitchell and maybe Landry to show that Sam is fine with it or even that it was her idea, or whatever. The "no explanation" was one of the issues I had with the whole thing.

As it stands now, I am glad we finally got an answer and we don't have to wonder about it anymore. And, like I said, the solution is still better than having Mitchell being the leader.
Finally, if they keep writing Sam the way they did since she is back, I can live with it. I don't mean that everything they did with Sam this season is to my liking. What I mean is that they showed her as a leader in a lot of scenes, as being able of taking charge, and as being more in command of the whole situation than anybody else. I like that aspect of Sam. Like someone said earlier, we have seen Sam more in charge this season than in Season 8 when she was "officially" in charge of SG-1.

So, in conclusion, considering that Sam is being shown as the leader a lot of times this season and considering the spoilers for the second half, I am looking forward to January and to some "up the body count" Sam, Sam in charge, and Sam saving the world.

[SamFan31]

Thanks Kat for the post from “Excerpts from Wandering Through the Wormhole, By Katie Evans”. I certainly agree with everyone’s comments about Amanda. It seems every time I read something about our fair lady she becomes more amazing. She’s a truly special person.

And thanks to Tsax for the pics and transcripts of some of the Burbank Con DVD with AT. More proof positive of why she’s our favorite.

You all probably saw the SciFi promo for the second half of the season. We got a little bit of Sam and here are two pics. Not very good quality, but you get the idea. My goodness, Sam’s in jail in one and in command in the other since it looks like Cam is a bit preoccupied! I don’t know what eps they’re from, but somebody else probably has a good idea.

S9 2nd Half Promo 1

S9 2nd Half Promo 2

[crazedturkey]

It makes me wonder if they've still got a military advisor on the show? They must do surely, because wasn't General Jumper meant to be in the Fourth Horseman? He wouldn't have been if the Air Force had nothing to do with the show.

I'm all for cutting TPTB some slack (as you guys already know) but part of what makes the show so awesome is that while the premise is implausible, the plausibility of the set-up makes it great. They act like real air force personnel.

So why is it that suddenly it's ok to go against regulations and have two colonels on the same team? Why is it ok to break some regulations and not others? I remember AT saying once, that she'd had to fight tooth and nail to call O'Neill 'Jack' in Solitudes, because it was an important emotional beat, dying man and all, but the military advisors were going bonkers because it was against regulations to call a superior by his first name.
And they're ok with this whole silly leadership thing???

*scratches head* OK I'm confuzzled....

[the dancer of spaz]

Actually I'm quite happy with his response. The answers he gave to every question in his blog post was exactly as I had been guessing since the beginning of the season ( well except the response about Jonas... not sure if I'm quite believing that response especially since there's been talk about Vala returning as a regular in season 10 ), but hopefully we'll get something in the second half of the season that will actually show Sam as co-leader being addressed or Sam placed into a position where she is leading SG-1 as well.


Kat

Yep. I'm glad he addressed all of those issues. Except for the Jonas deal, yeah... That was a load...

Now that the "Cam vs. Sam" threads can die FOREVER, I'm waiting for the "WTH?! Joint Command?" threads to pop up...

[jckfan55]

I agree that 2 colonels on the same team and switching off command is pretty implausible. But then again having a colonel, a major, a civilian and an alien on a team is pretty implausible too. 2 of the greatest minds in the world on an offworld team risking death on a daily basis? Not trying to be snarky--I just mean I've accepted it all for the sake of keeping a great team together and the show going on.
For me, the way they have arranged it is the liveable option given that they made Mitchell a Lt. Colonel.