'Life' (109) General Discussion

[Saquist]

Loading and reloading the weapon is one thing, you don’t fire the weapon, get use to the recoil and handling it, you’re pretty much worthless with a weapon. Since they have little ammo it would appear the civvies will stay that way.

There are ways to simulate kick back at least with single fire weapons.
I don't think it's useless knowing a weapons function even before knowing how to handle it live. Taking the weapon apart knowing how it works, the safety, cleaning it and maintaining the weapon, solving a jam...

The most useful thing to know about a weapon is firing it...but its not the end all of all of all things to know about a weapon.

When?

He lied about the risk of the explosion translating through the wormhole. The wormhole likely jumped.

He lied to Telford (or decieved him)

He lied to Young in Life about the planet...and there is no telling how much he didn't tell them.

[Deevil]

Which is exactly why it shouldn't have been anyone but botanists and soldiers, at least in the first group.

Exactly, civilians have no place in those situations. Not only because they cannot handle themselves, but they put the team and in the mission in danger.

I also agree that they shouldn't be taught how to fire the weapons, or be on the front line. a) there is limited ammo to justify it, and eventually they'd have to use live rounds. b) not everyone is cut out for combat, and putting people in that situation makes it more dangerous and c) people have their own skills set, ignoring that for combat training is misusing resources.

[EllieVee]

He lied about the risk of the explosion translating through the wormhole. The wormhole likely jumped.

Uh, no he didn't because it hasn't been addressed in the show. I also note your use of the word 'likely' there. Given the power build up and the kawoosh, I posit that dialling any gate in the Milky Way would have been catastrophic.

He lied to Telford (or decieved him)

Funny how Scott's biggest beef with that was the lack of warning.

He lied to Young in Life about the planet...and there is no telling how much he didn't tell them.

To boost morale. Sure, it might have got him what he wanted, which was the use of the chair, but if he was really as dishonest as you and others keep saying, to get use of the chair all he had to do was say that it was a control chair.

[Eternal Density]

Exactly, civilians have no place in those situations. Not only because they cannot handle themselves, but they put the team and in the mission in danger.

I also agree that they shouldn't be taught how to fire the weapons, or be on the front line. a) there is limited ammo to justify it, and eventually they'd have to use live rounds. b) not everyone is cut out for combat, and putting people in that situation makes it more dangerous and c) people have their own skills set, ignoring that for combat training is misusing resources.

Doubly so for archaeologists.

[cornoir]

Not that it would be as exciting as weapons training, but they should do a basic medical training then as TJ is the only one doing any medical support, she goes and they will need that weapons training just so they can eat a bullet if things get bad medically.
In the Time episode she was the one who figured out about the nasty virus, not Eli, not Rush. TJ dies and everyone dies.
Or at least find some medical station on the Destiny.

[Gateking]

Hi,

General episode with nice touches - but what's up with the music ?

Music - perhaps not generally being accustomed to such music in stargate episodes, was a bit thrown back. Frankly felt annoying when the first song starting playing...

Telford goes for it:
Now here's a very good example of not letting the viewer wait too long before showing us the next round....Telford gives it to Labamba guy, was very nice to see events turn this way.....very rewarding.

Wray - loving relationship:
With the episode so aggressively bent on the Telford/Young (is that Labamba guy's character name ?) events perhaps Wray's involvement in this episode was as a contrast - to show a loving relationship where no conflicts with other people existed between the two parties, except separated by space and out-of-body.


Got to hand it to Stargate franchise owners to finally take this leap and show a same-sex relationship. It was loving, emotional, tender etc.
I remember the scene where Wray looks at the painting on the wall and suddenly feels distressed that she forgot the canoe/boat (in the drawing she created earlier in the episode on board destiny).

Also to note when Wray left and her partner (was character name Sharon ?) broke down into tears - reminds the viewer that the characters are a long way away and coming back for quick trips via the stones is perhaps not as much a subsitute as you may think....

Bring on next week......

[OutandAboot]

Telford goes for it:
Now here's a very good example of not letting the viewer wait too long before showing us the next round....Telford gives it to Labamba guy, was very nice to see events turn this way.....very rewarding.

Wray - loving relationship:
With the episode so aggressively bent on the Telford/Young (is that Labamba guy's character name ?)

Telford = actor Lou Diamond Philips = Labamba guy in the movie from 1987

Young is the character who hit Telford.

[pjt]

Note the reaction on Chloe's face when she found out he had a kid.
To me it notes how superficial and emotionally expendable she is...

They attracted each other physically, and it became a "fling" when they thought, they were going to die. They grew closer with time, but sure this relationship is hardly on a firm basis.
Then he drops it all on her in one sentence, that he knocked up a sixteen year old girl, she lied to him about the abortion, now his a daddy, and mommy has issues with drinking and dancing.
This would put a lot of strain on any steady relationship, even on a marriage. So let's not rush with words like superficial and emotionally expendable. Judge not, that ye be not judged.

[Lahela]

Also to note when Wray left and her partner (was character name Sharon ?) broke down into tears - reminds the viewer that the characters are a long way away and coming back for quick trips via the stones is perhaps not as much a subsitute as you may think....

That's just how I feel about the stones too. Borrowing someone else's body to visit your loved ones is not the same as being there, as has clearly been shown with many of the visits. As someone who lives on the other side of the planet to her family, I can assure folks that speech does not equate to contact, especially in hard times. On top of that, the people on the destiny have to return to the ship still not knowing if they'll ever get back home - powerful stuff, IMO.

[Yusagi]

Given that no one else has responded yet, and it seems such a long post shouldn't go unresponded:

Ok guys im sure that you have all heard this 1000 times but I NEED to have a forum for my complaint....so here it goes:

My biggest issue here is that I love the Stargate Universe. No, not the show, but the 15 seasons of SG-1 and SGA that define what we know of the Universe in this SciFi Epic. SGA wasn't different from SG-1...it didnt have its own identity for a reason. This reason is that SG-1 didn't just define a universe but a "view" of that universe. In this universe you have heroes and you have villains and while the lines can turn to gray they are usually pretty solid in the black and white categories. Action / New tech / Crazy new Aliens / Awesome adventures. THIS IS THE STARGATE UNIVERSE.

This show they seem to have taken all the backstory and RIPPED OUT the guts of what makes stargate Stargate. They have instead replaced the innards with a giant "soap opera" even MORE boring then BSG.

Now, I will admit one thing. Had this show begun the universe. Had it defined it from the beginning. Had their been NO SG-1 or SGA I would actually find this show semi-interesting. No more however. Unfortunately I enjoy a plot that is fast moving and isn't solidly centered around character development. I like the fact that we only knew the basic backgrounds / life stories of the characters in SG-1 and SGA and it took us 15 seasons to learn as much as we have learned about the SGU characters in 9 episodes.

Y'know, I agree with this. I find that, when I forget that this show is supposed to be in our Stargate universe (or put it out of mind, or set it in an alternate universe), I find it somewhat more palatable. Frankly, a large portion of SGU's problems is that it's packaged itself as 'Stargate' and then presented a drama disconnected and largely unrelated to the Stargate we know. Even Star Trek's reboot is closer, so far, to its original canon than SGU. The moment in Time where they put the Ancients' ascension as some sort of legend, rather than a fact, is a stark example of that.

Rewatching episodes of SGA and SG-1 also reminds me that we had no problems getting to know the characters, and seeing snapshots of their 'normal' life, without following around said life with a kino.

I think that sums up my opinion (and yes its just an opinion). In conclusion, I simply could not stand this episode because there was only a solid 4 minutes of ACTUAL plot development while the rest was awkward silences, pointless non-developmental scenes, whiny crying babies and adults acting like teenagers. I could ALMOST stand all the drama if they would actually begin to focus some more on the tech / aliens and other cool things that makes this SCI FI.

Indeed. This episode was the most painful for me so far, especially after Time being primarily plot-driven.

How many new aliens have we met? 1

You mean inteligent ones, right? Technically they encountered those lizard things and those microbes, too.

What did we do when we met these aliens? We stare at them and then continue to shoot them with homemade flame throwers. Yes, real smart.

That disquieted me, given the fact that we've had so much experience with beneign aliens. It's as if the crew were rejects that somehow managed to gain clearance, and then were delegated to a dead-end mission because they couldn't grasp the most basic functions of the Stargate Program. I'm not ranting here, I've actually wondered this while watching. It does not help that they really haven't been competent as a whole dealing with anything so far.

How much new tech have we discovered? None. Oh wait no. We discovered weird little flying cameras that give us dizying and annoying camera shots. Oh and then there is the ship of course...however the one key to opening the ship nobody will touch in fear for their own life! What happened to the heroes of SG-1? Where is the Col. Oneil? Why didn't Young throw his head in it ONCE even though Oneil had the balls to do it TWICE! Why? I'll tell you why...because he was too busy pining away over some two bit woman. I'll take the Oneil character anyday.

They also found something that re-energizes batteries, and it's implied they found other cool little gadgets, but they never actually use them.

I'm disappointed in Rush. If he were Daniel or Rodney, he would have done it himself. How do I know this? Because they have in their own similar situations. (In O'Neill's second time, Daniel tried to do it first). I know he's supposed to be ambiguous, but he's really pushing over the line for me. I'd much preferred if Rush had been willing (even if he were reluctant), and Young said they couldn't risk it, and put guards up around it. This way. Rush just looks like a jerk, and...there really aren't any white-hats as it is, save for Eli, who (to me, at least) comes off as immature.

Now, the sex...ok I get it...people have sex. Did you see any of it in SG-1 / SGA? No! Did people have sex in those shows? Im sure they did. It just did not further the story line in any way and therefore was not made a dominant feature in their plot line.

There was sex, actually, in both. But they were usually done in a humorous or tasteful way. For me, SGU has really overdosed us on the sex. It's gotten to the point where I'm past exasperation, and just stunned at the number of sex scenes we get in an episode.

Ok im really concluding now. I think this episode would have been great if they had focused more on A) the progress made on the plan sent to them from earth B) young had put himself in the chair C) A little more attention had been dropped on the new discoveries that are being made on the ship. Kinda like when the crew first got on SGA and they started playing with all sorts of new toys (like the hilarious personal shield). D) I've received enough character development to last me 10 seasons of this. Please stop developing the characters and making the show about "who slept with who" and "this person has a kid he didnt know about" and more about "the chair" and "the ship".

I don't think Young should be in the chair, because, for all of his insubodination to the people back home who are trying to help him, the Destiny needs someone to lead them, and no one--no one--respects Rush enough for it to be him.

I would definitely enjoy seeing more wonder in the tech to be found on the ship. While I am dubious why anything pre-Atlantis would be more advanced than Atlantis, there must be some pretty cool menial things there. Where Atlantians packed up their toys, Destiny should have some...purely Ancient thingamabobs (that's a scientific term) which should prove interesting on some level or another.

I, too, am itching for some real action. Contact with sentient, speaking aliens, some grand plot driving us forward that's more defined than 'let's find some sort of way home'. I realize SGU is a character driven story...but this isn't actually a soap opera/drama (Is it?), so we're going to need plot to keep it afloat, too. I don't think they need to be shy about sending people home, either. We have an undefined number of people on that ship. We can afford to let a few get home to heighten the plot, and it's not inconceivable they might find a way to bring more to refresh the ranks.

[Skydiver]

Exactly, civilians have no place in those situations. Not only because they cannot handle themselves, but they put the team and in the mission in danger.

I also agree that they shouldn't be taught how to fire the weapons, or be on the front line. a) there is limited ammo to justify it, and eventually they'd have to use live rounds. b) not everyone is cut out for combat, and putting people in that situation makes it more dangerous and c) people have their own skills set, ignoring that for combat training is misusing resources.

i disagree.

while the civvies didn't need to know before, i think they do now.

as it becomes more and more evident that they aren't getting home soon, the self defense skills the military have should be taught to the civilians.

I mean, worst case scenario (and highly unlikely for the show) if something happened on a planet and all the military folks got killed, what will the survivors do? They need to know how to take care of themselves.

I'm not saying that it should be mandatory, but voluntary.

and i think it should go both ways. If only one person knows how to run the hydroponics, someone else needs to learn. cross train, share those skills. try to insure that even if someone is killed or dies that their knowledge won't die with them

[Deevil]

as it becomes more and more evident that they aren't getting home soon, the self defense skills the military have should be taught to the civilians.

I'm all for teaching them self-defense. I think that'd be smart, not just because it's an important skill, but because it exercises the crew. I was specifically talking about civs having guns (when ammo is in limited supply) and being on missions they are ill equiped for.

Not that I believe that Young would trust any civs with a gun...

and i think it should go both ways. If only one person knows how to run the hydroponics, someone else needs to learn. cross train, share those skills. try to insure that even if someone is killed or dies that their knowledge won't die with them

One person should not have all the information, I wasn't suggesting that at all. But, really all I was suggesting is not sending people like Chloe - who has no real ability to care for herself - onto another planet.

Having her there is a danger, and it serves no purpose but that doesn't mean with a little training she might serve a purpose later.

[Saquist]

i disagree.

while the civvies didn't need to know before, i think they do now.

as it becomes more and more evident that they aren't getting home soon, the self defense skills the military have should be taught to the civilians.

I mean, worst case scenario (and highly unlikely for the show) if something happened on a planet and all the military folks got killed, what will the survivors do? They need to know how to take care of themselves.

I'm not saying that it should be mandatory, but voluntary.

and i think it should go both ways. If only one person knows how to run the hydroponics, someone else needs to learn. cross train, share those skills. try to insure that even if someone is killed or dies that their knowledge won't die with them

It is only logical.

I'm all for teaching them self-defense. I think that'd be smart, not just because it's an important skill, but because it exercises the crew. I was specifically talking about civs having guns (when ammo is in limited supply) and being on missions they are ill equiped for.

Not that I believe that Young would trust any civs with a gun...



One person should not have all the information, I wasn't suggesting that at all. But, really all I was suggesting is not sending people like Chloe - who has no real ability to care for herself - onto another planet.

Having her there is a danger, and it serves no purpose but that doesn't mean with a little training she might serve a purpose later.

It's logical to prepare for the worse.
If one does not prepare for the worse then you are planning to fail.

There are a multitude of unforeseen situations and events that may have the limited number of military paired with civilians under a tactical situation has the solider out numbered, injured or otherwise disabled. Military personnel might even become scarce. We've already lost one. To not prepare for the civilians to be capable of handling a gun is counter productive

Eli has already gained experience and he's about as young and immature a civilian can get.

[Skydiver]

i can't disagree with sending chloe down to the planet.

then again, to be horribly practical - and NO this is NOT an invite for chloe bashing....she's expendable.

it's an alien planet, who ya gonna risk? the one person that knows how to run a device or the person that has no set skills yet?

and, we will have to accept that Chloe is part of the main cast, thus her character will be in places it may not be logical for her to be in simply because the character is part of the show and is likely contractually obligated to be in a certain number of episodes

[Saquist]

Chloe's role is mainly to be a female go between, between the two male characters. This is story device that is overused in Japanese story telling. Normally it's between two very dominant male characters.

In the American version (as it's playing out) the two male characters are not just at odds but are fundamentally different. In truth it's not really a competition in the American version. This Marty McFly (Back to the Future), Ten Things I Hate About You style where the social outcast or less popular is vying for the attention of the beautiful woman who doesn't notice the more sound and good for her, geek, weirdo, nerd that really does have her best interest at heart and not just a phyical relationship.

In this role the female is seen as incapable making a decision.
I often find these stories...transparent and a bit...offensive to women or at the very least...a bad example to women.