Universe show format?

[Colonel Forte]

While discussing the setting of Universe, namely the Destiny, with another fan it occurred to me, after the initial pilot/set-up episodes, will the show be more serialized (a la Battlestar Galactica or The X-Files, wherein most episodes more or less feed right into the next, apart from the occassional filler eps) than SG-1 and Atlantis ever were?

The nature of the setting, being that the Destiny is always on the move and anyone could potentially be lost during any given expedition down to planet, leads me to think it will. It would be pretty bad if, say, some team member got left behind unwittingly or through some sort of crisis and the next week that character is largely forgotten and mentioned only in throwaway dialogue.

The fact that its basic premise is that they're mostly trying to get home does dictate to a small extent how the plot should unfold. It doesn't have to be like Quantum Leap where every episode begins where the previous ended, but where SG-1 and Atlantis did operate in real-time to an extent, during the season premiere there were occassional references to the "slow 3 month break", the most dire of conflicts were always split up throughout the season. I get the feeling this team is experiencing a dire conflict constantly and to ignore that by skipping days between episodes each week might take away from that tension.

[jackson2009]

Forte, Maybe not...but, they can do it counitune season..wait and see what happen next.

[SGSteve]

I like your idea, but I would limit it to a series of episode arcs, like (don't hate me) the last season of Enterprise. Their travels through different galaxies would be covered in, say, 5 episodes. Actually that would work very well if they follow the same format as Atlantis - where the 10th episode of every season is a cliffhanger.

[GateFanSamJack]

I think it is the basic survival arc that will be pretty long at first.

From what they've said, I think there are intentional plans for long character arcs.

They have said there will be stand alone episodes, though. It's those stand alones that have the potential to hook in new audiences, then the long arcs keep them. Can you imagine trying to pick up on BSG now? You gotta' throw in those stand alones.

Potential for other long arcs would seem to depend on how recurring their communication can be with Earth and other species/ships and I haven't heard enough to speculate on that.

[HorizonSurfer]

Well I know I personally like series with a strong arc that winds it's way through most every episode. It just seems to make me want to tune in that much more every week.

I know that there's a lot of people that prefer more one off type shows though. I guess they feel that they can miss a few and still jump in most anytime.

Hopefully it'll strike the right balance between the two.

[Colonel Forte]

They have said there will be stand alone episodes, though. It's those stand alones that have the potential to hook in new audiences, then the long arcs keep them. Can you imagine trying to pick up on BSG now? You gotta' throw in those stand alones.

That's basically what I'm worried about.

Potential for other long arcs would seem to depend on how recurring their communication can be with Earth and other species/ships and I haven't heard enough to speculate on that.

You'll have to explain that logic to me. A long arc could be over who-knows-what, it shouldn't have to depend on anything. I hear what you're saying though, you need those stand alone episodes. Fortunately, that's one thing the franchise has done well though, stringing plot threads through stand-alones; so that when episode 8 rolls around we get a nice "previously..." that references 4 eps of this season and 2 from last season. I hope they keep it that way, I was just wondering what anyone else thought.

Edit:

Hopefully it'll strike the right balance between the two.

I saw this after posting, well said.

[jelgate]

I hope its more arc based but I don't want a heavily serializied show. Those shows tend to look good at first but get boring fast

[jamesgilfoyle]

Stargate ... 24 style?

I likes it!!

[BeardedKirk]

The occaisional stand alone would be good, but the question is if the story arc is quite bleak/dark etc... should the stand alone be a funny one? If it's too dark then the humor would be a good pick me up, but on on the other hand would all of a sudden having a funnier episode be completely out of place and break the spell?

(Sorry if i my point isn't very clear, but my daughter has spent the entire day wearing me out and i'm not good for much now...)

[Jlove]

Stargate ... 24 style?

I likes it!!

I was not a big fan of 24 but yes it does sound like it would be a lot better. This spin of reminds me of sliders!! Not sure if you remember the show but anyway. Additionally, I would like to comment briefly on what others have said:

"Boring Fast" - Jelgate - Yes I agree with you and think that they will have to be careful in how they portray each episode as if they do roll on like a 24, only so much can happen in an hour! You can't have the gaps in which a trap is set up and to get prepped for a mission takes longer than an advert break!!!

Furthermore, I believe that there was talk of what will they encounter?? Well ultimately the goal would be to fid away back to earth? Yes. If that is the case then how long can then this spin off run for? BSG only ran for four seasons if I remember correctly before eventually we all get tired of the struggles of finding earth!!! So how long and where can they take it??? I will watch in anticipation!

Finally, I like the concept and my overall view of this spin of is a mixture between four shows I feel like it will be like SG meets with BSG (spaceship part), Sliders (have a ever pending time line or left behind) and 24 that each episode will continue onto the next in some shape or way. Look this is what I have thought of and I am open and happy for criticism or thoughts on my thoughts! Sorry if I offend anyone in what I say

[Colonel Forte]

That's what my fear is, that the ultimate goal of finding a way home takes a backseat to other plot threads and/or runs too long. Waiting for Voyager to find a way home I finally lost interest, it took 7 seasons. BSG, being the character-driven drama the producers intended it to be, started to deviate from the ultimate goal of finding Earth by season 2, which was the major draw initially. The producers can say they wanted the show to be about the characters all the time, but finding Earth was still the primary goal and so it's no surprise that ratings started to drop and I'm sure that's why the original plan to go 5 seasons became 4.

There is a way around that though. Sometime during the first episode(s) a controlling force/entity/organization/person would be introduced that may present a moral conflict later. Sometime later, a season or two, a permanent link or way to get home is found but they choose not to take it so as to avoid the conflict presented by the controlling force. In the event of a true emergency they have a contingency now, but the freedom to explore, without artificially extending the run of the show, is still there. This also opens the door later for crossovers, two-parters, etc...

[AutumnDream]

Hopefully they learned from the writing disaster that was Atlantis and will be writing stories that actually pertain to the premise on a regular basis. This would imply moderate to heavy serialization, especially given the context. But hey, with these writers you never know. It sounds like they will be trying to make an effort to improve but one can't be certain.

[Replicator Todd]

Hopefully the ship has beaming technology....

[Jlove]

Sometime later, a season or two, a permanent link or way to get home is found but they choose not to take it so as to avoid the conflict presented by the controlling force....

I am not sure where or what you have in mind but really wouldn't this force need to be connected to the 'seeder' ship* (Not the one they are on - Destiny? if I am correct?)!!! I believe it would! To make the rest of their journey relevant to what they started off as. This would make sense! Al least in my little world! LOL!
In regards to beam technology! When or how would they discover this! I know I am diving into the finer details. But I they can’t steer the ship, why would they be able to control this feature. I have also heard that this ship may have something along the lines (similar) to a puddle jumper? Anyone Know what they have I mind?
*I say this as they could have a reason to catch this ship! Introduces freedom in writing and creativity! My thoughts anyway!

[Colonel Forte]

Hopefully the ship has beaming technology....

I almost think that's too easy. The Ancients never had beaming technology, at least nothing beyond ring systems and elevator-like transporters (Atlantis). I'm inclined to believe that this ship predates Atlantis even by several hundred (thousand?) years.