Watching the pilot a second time got even better?

[Madwelshboy]

I love the part after that when she drowns the liqour. Cracks me up each time.

Yeh a agree! It was one of the momments in "air" that really showed how human the characters were, IMO. Though considering some things popping up around here lately, im shocked that there inst a "Chloe's an alcoholic" Thread. *sarcasm*

Watching it a second time, i did enjoy it a little more than the first time. I still didnt love it though.

[Jeff O'Connor]

Watched it a second time yesterday, this time in hulu's higher quality. (Somehow I had more trouble with the audio for my speakers; got some crackling to the point that various musical frequencies made us turn it down, ugh.)

I've actually found I have a stronger opinion now in regard to both hours in separate ways.

On my first run, I thought the first hour was good but not great; now I think it's decent but not necessarily good. It has some stellar moments, mostly involving Eli+O'Neill, Chloe during the toast, !RushGrin, so on, so forth. But I have problems with how contrived the attack by the Lucian Alliance was, although I did post in another thread a few moments ago that I sort of see why it was done the way it was. It's supposed to be mysterious. And then the flashbacks; I don't much like the flashback system to begin with, never have, never will, but when done right I get over it. They weren't necessarily done badly here, it's just that some of the references are going to be lost on me for several weeks, probably. That drives me insane. The one with the medical offer, Johansen. It's like... such a teaser for something that may or may not even prove interesting and may or may not pop up in the next half a season. Ugh. Nice insight, but when you don't reap the benefit of it any time soon, I kinda lose it a little.

The second hour, now that's where it was at. Again, I just got stronger about things during my follow-up run. At first I thought it was great but not excellent, but now for the most part I've revved it up to excellent. While I still have a few issues -- my girlfriend asked me why they weren't being vented into space BSG-style when they'd open a door and could see the stars, and given they didn't really bother to make mention of the shields and how they operate but passively, it's understandable -- overall it was a fine, fine hour. (Before anyone points it out, yes, of course you can see the shields flickering and whatnot. But bear in mind my girlfriend didn't grow up on Star Trek or anything of the like; Firefly and BSG were the only two space-heavy shows she'd ever followed. The point here is that if that's what SGU's producers and SyFy are looking for, that kind of individual, then they should do a better job of acquainting folks of that variety.)

I did a run-on up there on a negative despite going on about the positive, so give me another paragraph. Generally speaking, of course, the second hour was grand. With the sole exception of Eli, I felt that we actually seemed to have gotten a better miniature portrait of who each of these characters were in the second hour, without the flashbacks, than with them. The flashbacks gave us insight but it was so disheveled and seemingly irrelevant at the time that it reminded me of BSG's 'Daybreak, Part I', except without a series finale coming up next week, there's no sense here that we'll get answers anytime soon. But seeing the characters in action in hour two, not bogged down by those flashbacks, was very comforting for me and I got to know the cast (those with much screentime, that is) far better than before.

Hell, give me another paragraph. In fact, I'll stop referencing paragraphs, it's eating up post length. At any rate, here are some examples. I think the Eli+Scott scene will go down as a fan favorite from the premiere; it was one of several times my Stargate-newbish girlfriend laughed out loud. (Come to think of it, they all involved Eli... hmm...) But yes, it was done pretty well. Of course, coming out of fifteen years of franchise history and being a fan of it all for about seven of those, now, I've admittedly seen that sort of scene before with characters I'm much more intimate with. I could have seen John+Rodney doing that, and I think most of us can say that. But this is the first two hours; everything starts somewhere. I'd like to see where their it's-obviously-coming friendship goes. Conversely, seeing the 'this season on SGU' gig, it's fairly obvious Scott and Chloe are going to become an item, so how is that going to effect Scott and Eli's budding friendship if they write Eli as jealous? Here's hoping it doesn't, because I don't really enjoy that sort of plotline, but I might as well face the facts -- it's probably going to happen, so at least let it be written smoothly.

I was relieved when Young was on his feet again. I'm sure the vast majority of the users here saw it coming, especially since he's apparently credited fairly high up in the credits and whatnot, but having avoided Gateworld for the most part for several months, I'd totally forgotten. I was expecting... you know. The colonel from SGA's premiere. That kind of obvious storytelling is something I have to grudgingly go along with in Stargate, because it happens so often but every now and then something surprises me. This was one of those times. I get the impression virtually everyone but me figured the Senator was going down and not Young, but me, I thought the Senator was going to become a political voice in the cast and Young would bite the bullet already, leaving Scott in command of the military. I was comfortable with that, but it was very predictable and I'd resigned to it, and it also bugged me because I was hoping Wray would be the major political voice instead. Lo and behold, the Senator sacrificed himself, leading to the premiere's most heartwrenching scene, and kudos to Chloe's actress for being amazing in it. I teared up a little both times, and that doesn't happen often for me. I attribute it 100% to the actress, she's excellent.

Rush was also fantastic during the second hour. (Am I just going to do a full review in this thread or something? I guess so... whoops...) The acting was masterful. I haven't seen Robert Carlyle in anything before, at least not consciously, so going into it I'd heard good things about him but had no idea he was this believable. There's a review somewhere, by someone, can't remember who, but anyway, they said that he's a different kind of star from Richard Dean Anderson and Joe Flanigan, that he can say anything no matter how hokey and it's totally believable. Well, personally I always thought RDA was amazing at that too, and Joe was great because he carried RDA's 'bewildered/you said what!?' phase in a different direction. But Robert might just take the cake here, because he's the one actually spouting some of these farfetched lines. Young and Scott are the RDA and Joe, and maybe literally in that order, too. Carlyle's Rush is the Carter here, though making these comparisons is silly in and of itself because the cast is so radically different. But you know what I mean -- he's Samantha Carter, he's the one tasked with saying this stuff, and he's great. And lastly, his attempted consolation with Chloe was pretty good, and both times I sneered when he goes 'but you have to understand -- it wasn't my fault!' Oh, ONE MORE THING, his little repeated !RushGrin at the end, priceless.

I could go on, but I won't. I've wasted enough of your time, I should really post a full review somewhere more fitting or something. The original purpose of this post was to state that I found myself more rock-solid on my separate stances of each hour on the second run-through, which I didn't expect. The first hour initially garnered around a 7 from me, now I'm thinking 6. But the second would have had an 8, now it's a 9.

[renboy]

You should really post this as a review

[Jeff O'Connor]

You should really post this as a review

I actually did post a review in the 'fan reviews' thread, but sadly the 1,000 word limit actually made it a lot smaller than that one. Though it was a good bit more compact and well-presented IMO, so there's that.

[Sp!der]

Yes very well written that one. I only wish my english were better .

[SBN]

I did end up watching it a second time Saturday afternoon, and did enjoy some parts more, some parts even less, found some characters more interesting, and others less.

My first viewing I thought the show was too jumbled how it jump back in forth through different time segments. This is something that kind of irked me about Defying Gravity. It is a nice style when done right, but when done wrong can just be aggravating. The second viewing this did not bother me as much, though I did get the feeling they tried to show too much while actually showing very little. Imagine that. I would give the writers a C to C- for this. They don't get a D or F simply because there was some moments that were good.

The second time around I found myself more interested in Jamil Walker Smith and Alaina Huffman's characters. At the same time I found myself less impressed with Dr. Rush's character primarily because of the writing..110%. I think Robert Carlyle had to carry this one through. I did not see a "complex" character written, but rather a shallow one. It was purely by his acting that he did convey some sense of duality. This concerns me more after the second time.

Watching Ronald Greer (Jamil Walker Smith) the first time I got a sense that this was a character very boxed in. The second time round I saw a different person who was more than just some bad tough guy who happened to be in the brink for unknown reasons. If the writers have the talent, and allow the freedom, this may be the character that can grow the most on this show. I think there is great potential.

I did not pay much attention first time to Tamara Johansen (Alaina Huffman), nor did I care about her background as much. It is still up to the writers to make me care about her little mysteries (why she was leaving....blah blah), but I did get the feeling that she naturally belonged their as a character. I was comfortable having her there, which I am not comfortable with the Senator's daughter being there which seems contrived.

Second time round I found the whole plot in the 2nd half, the whole life support must fix, door won't close, etc.. to be rather bland and unimaginative. I was even less impressed the second time, enough so that it gave me cause for concern. I just saw Pandorum, a movie with a somewhat similar theme. People suddenly on a ship that is failing, and given a certain amount of time to deal with it under adverse conditions. Pandorum kept me at the edge of my seat, this show did not. There was absolutely no suspense at all.

After the second viewing I thought about this; maybe if they were set on having a crew of 80, they should have actually arrived with 100-120 or so. Introduced a few expendables, then conceived of a plot whereby there is actual danger, enough that 20-40 get written off right off the bat. This would have showed some serious situation, and that they truly are in grave danger. Instead we get the same story we have gotten for 5+ years on SGA, and 10 on SG1. Problem arises=Problem solved. That got old. For me Stargate franchise MUST offer something new as I got damn tired of Stargate old (15+ seasons of it!).

[Jeff O'Connor]

Yes very well written that one. I only wish my english were better .

Why thank you!

[Saquist]

and i just cant believe that

I'm shaking my head too, sir.
Is it possible to pay even...less attention the second time around?

[Saquist]

I did end up watching it a second time Saturday afternoon, and did enjoy some parts more, some parts even less, found some characters more interesting, and others less.

My first viewing I thought the show was too jumbled how it jump back in forth through different time segments. This is something that kind of irked me about Defying Gravity. It is a nice style when done right, but when done wrong can just be aggravating. The second viewing this did not bother me as much, though I did get the feeling they tried to show too much while actually showing very little. Imagine that. I would give the writers a C to C- for this. They don't get a D or F simply because there was some moments that were good.

The second time around I found myself more interested in Jamil Walker Smith and Alaina Huffman's characters. At the same time I found myself less impressed with Dr. Rush's character primarily because of the writing..110%. I think Robert Carlyle had to carry this one through. I did not see a "complex" character written, but rather a shallow one. It was purely by his acting that he did convey some sense of duality. This concerns me more after the second time.

Watching Ronald Greer (Jamil Walker Smith) the first time I got a sense that this was a character very boxed in. The second time round I saw a different person who was more than just some bad tough guy who happened to be in the brink for unknown reasons. If the writers have the talent, and allow the freedom, this may be the character that can grow the most on this show. I think there is great potential.

I did not pay much attention first time to Tamara Johansen (Alaina Huffman), nor did I care about her background as much. It is still up to the writers to make me care about her little mysteries (why she was leaving....blah blah), but I did get the feeling that she naturally belonged their as a character. I was comfortable having her there, which I am not comfortable with the Senator's daughter being there which seems contrived.

Second time round I found the whole plot in the 2nd half, the whole life support must fix, door won't close, etc.. to be rather bland and unimaginative. I was even less impressed the second time, enough so that it gave me cause for concern. I just saw Pandorum, a movie with a somewhat similar theme. People suddenly on a ship that is failing, and given a certain amount of time to deal with it under adverse conditions. Pandorum kept me at the edge of my seat, this show did not. There was absolutely no suspense at all.

After the second viewing I thought about this; maybe if they were set on having a crew of 80, they should have actually arrived with 100-120 or so. Introduced a few expendables, then conceived of a plot whereby there is actual danger, enough that 20-40 get written off right off the bat. This would have showed some serious situation, and that they truly are in grave danger. Instead we get the same story we have gotten for 5+ years on SGA, and 10 on SG1. Problem arises=Problem solved. That got old. For me Stargate franchise MUST offer something new as I got damn tired of Stargate old (15+ seasons of it!).

Its like you saw it how it actualy was.

[s09119]

Its like you saw it how it actualy was.

Or maybe he saw it as some people did and most didn't.

[Commander Zelix]

I personally didn't hear what Eli said about whiteboards the first time around, but when he gets this wide-eyed look and goes "...seriously, you have computers everywhere!" I just burst out laughing. It was so nerdy yet perfectly reasonable to say.

What got me laughing in this scene is when Eli scream "Save! Save!" when Rush is erasing the board. LOL

[fandomatic]

I have to agree that the flashbacks were not clear. They lacked a change of color and texture that screamed 'this is a flashback.' As great as the sets are, the flashbacks would have been clearer had the sets radically changed from place to place with lighting or a better transition. Maybe even a wormhole, stupid as that is. Stargate tends to be blue in tone anyway. Even the similarity between the Hammond and the Destiny were basic blue triangles in space. Even though the story is about subtlety, this isn't where you need subtlety.

With the second viewing, I didn't have to work as hard to follow the character introductions so the show flowed with less mental interruptions.

I actually liked the simple issue of a door in space because a simple problem in space will kill you just as quickly as a complex one. That reminds me of the joke about why submarines have screen doors? (To keep the fish out.) Okay, back to topic...

As for all the guests along for the ride, Eli was just one of many, so I found Chloe's presence just as valid as a contest winner or an IOA rep.

[YutheGreat]

This is so. I tried it it was pretty good.

[Lt.Colonel John Sheppard]

yeah i was like that the first time i was like a kid in a candy store i couldn't stay still so after watching it the first time i decided to calm down and see how it was and i got to say it was pretty good.

[Saquist]

Or maybe he saw it as some people did and most didn't.

*head scratch*
..yes, sir.