Stargate: Universe

[scrape_medic]

Is anyone else interested/excited about the new show starting next week. Any new sci-fi has got to be good, and having done the marathon catch up of both SG1 and Atlantis this summer, I am a little excited.

[scaper4eva]

I've never managed to be excited about Stargate (besides seeing Claudia and Ben) but I have given each new variation at least a go! Plus isn't Robert Carlyle in this one? That's got to be some sort of excitement factor for brits!!

[scrape_medic]

Yes.He.Is! It will be good to see him back on the screen again.

[Camulvey]

When is the first episode airing?
I've seen some previews and the production value looks really good.

[scrape_medic]

Tomorrow night in the US, next tuesday in the UK.

[Camulvey]

Thanks for the info, and I just got an email telling me to watch at 8. Not sure if I'll be able to catch it tonight, but I'm going to try.

[scrape_medic]

Well I popped over to gateworld, (where I have a 4 year old membership and had never posted!) and started a one word review thread, hoping that will avoid the spoilerage......its here (http://forum.gateworld.net/showthread.php?t=69409) if anyone is interested.

[Afarscapefan]

Thanks for the link scrape. :cool:

I'm looking forward to seeing this now.

[scrape_medic]

Well....hmmmmm.....yes, a little slow at first, and it seemed like a little too much soul searching, but I guess, it had to be scene setter, and describe how dire their situation is. By the end of the second episode there was a hint of the SG we know and a lot of questions......
PS. I really like the theme music..

[Digital>X<Anarchist]

Seemed like a SG/BSG mash-up with a little Lost in Space.
Is there a Dr. Smith in the house?
I liked it.
Of course, ANYTHING would be better then the tripe Syfy has been serving.
Raw?

[zahncrelnik]

okay, I tried to watch, but missed the premiere. I really need to see Stargate Universe from the beginning to decide if I like it or not. I will have to try to catch it if they show a marathon of episodes on a weekend.

[Camulvey]

I saw the first two episodes and thought they were alright. I like the feel but I'm not sure if I like who they've chosen for the cast, I think they need to grow on me a bit more. It seems like it's going to become a lot more bureaucratic than the previous two series. If the writing holds up, which I think it was pretty good for the first two eps, then I'll probably be hooked. My only hope is that we're done with the flash backs, there were so many of them in the premiere, it was getting obnoxious. I think they felt like they had to set up the characters more, and there was definitely a BSG feel going on there with the light filters during flashback scenes and stuff.
I'd grade it a solid B so far.

[scrape_medic]

May be spoilers!....























The characters are not one dimensional; not sure what to make of Rush. I want to like him but he is not the sort that people warm to, and way too full of himself that he makes Mackay look like a modest pussy cat. But I feel his drive is motivated by more than the desire to explore, and I am sure it has something to do with the picture in episode one.
Greer comes over as an unlikeable character too, but towards the end of episode three you see little hints of a person who really does give a damn.
The senators daughter, whose name I still can't get into my head is about the most shallow character so far, even though she has been given a fair amount of air time.
As for Eli Wallace, he has got the funniest lines, and can scream like a girl reasonably convincingly.......I like him.
Overall I don't think its going to be as dark as BSG, like some people have feared.

[johh_crichton]

I like SGU so far. Great to finally have something stargate related in the matter, raw? ghost hunters? lol i can't take it anymore. gimme some farscape, sliders, stargate, bsg, and star trek enough of this paranormal crap. its not "spookfi"

;)

[Browncoat Serenity]

Checked it out, I think its ok, some of it is great, some not so great
the characters are starting to grow on me.

There is something kinda Voyager-ish or Battlestar-ish or SAAB about it but a lot of shows and scifi movies went for the goth, gritty look since 2001. That dark 90s thing has really taken off in scifi. BTW neither Voyager or Battlestar get points for originality since they borrowed heavily from previous version and copied heavily from other shows. To Stargate's credit it has gone above tv's Trek since it does not focus to much on federations, constitutions and technobabble...that kind of stuff turned people away from Trek and that's why Trek desperately needed a reboot from JJ. The Stargate series is also a lot more interesting than Battlestar, Stargate still has aliens, it has better written human interaction and its characters are enjoyable and not back stabbing manic depressives, also Battlestar divided its audience by jamming too much soap and politics into the series.


What works for me on SGU
It's a different show, way different to Stargate SG1, way different to Atlantis. The show is no longer camp and full of one-liners, people are stranded, people get killed much like the spirit of the original Stargate movie. They are a bunch of misfits, the series barely has a leader in charge, I get the impression there aren't a lot people trained for long term survival, not a lot of EVA trained people, not any over qualified pilots etc The seem to deal with real problems and come up with real solutions, where as in other shows they would invent some gizmo that would deus ex machina all their problems. I like drama when its well written, people having a fight in the cateen, other people romances are staring to kick off, other people debating over water supplies...its feels real and not angst for the sake of it. I enjoyed light a lot, I like the way the military is portrayed in SGU and it was also intresting how they are all less from perfect. When they thought their number was up and they would go cooked one of the "Military Jocks" comes to bully his way onto the escape shuttle. I like how Alaina's medic Lt. Tamara Johansen and Jamil's Sergeant Greer have two completely opposite views on how to deal with people, adding civilian extras to the show really helped lift the series up. Also I'm very impressed with Robert Carlyle as Dr. Rush and Louis Ferreira as Colonel Young great work from these 2. Its good how they have kept things still scifi with hints of alien experiences on the show and the whole body switching stones but I wish we got a little more of Lou Diamond Phillips

[BillFrugge]

I finally got around to watching the pilot, and I like it.

The series looks to have potential. The characters are 3-dimensional, and the situation they find themselves in has many possibilities. They've managed to incorporate some mystery and drama, and there is definitely something going on with Dr. Rush. (Is he a bastard, or just simply misunderstood?) With limited contact with Earth, I suspect Destiny is going to be a pressure cooker.

They relied too heavily on the flashbacks. Seriously, a lot of this would've worked out in a linear fashion.

Eli was a nice touch. I know it's nitpicking, but they didn't need to drag him along -- he solved their problem, and they didn't act like they expected anything more from him. Still, he provides a good frame of reference for the audience. Kudos to the actor portraying him.

I've got a few episodes to go in order to catch up with everyone else, but I'm already starting to wonder what they'll find. We've seen the Go'auld, the Ori, and the Wraith. You just know they're going to run up against something.

[Spedoinkel]

The first season ended and a lot of reviews I'd seen from people were complaining that it "isn't Stargate". Of course that is a somewhat skewed viewpoint. It is Stargate; it's Stargate-on-a-ship...well sort of.

Actually since the show is unappologetically borrowing ideas and devices from other shows that working in their attempt to make the Stargate franchise not horrible anymore the show is really a grab bag of BSG, ST:V, The Last Starfighter (How did Eli not even point this out when it was so obvious?), and Sliders. I say Sliders over Stargate because of the entire "We have a window of time to work before the gate won't work anymore" device. Then there is their singular medic who is undertrained because the original medic is dead (ST:V obviously); who the actress is made to look like Scarlett Johansson and the character's last name is Johansson.

Getting past the nitpiky, I'd say the show's not bad. Some formulaic plots, but also some interesting, if rare, fresh material. I think I'm going to stick around for this one...What else am I going to watch besides Dexter?

[BillFrugge]

These people that complain that it 'isn't Stargate' have 15 seasons worth of SG1 and Atlantis they can watch. I've even gotten into arguments where these people claim that SG-U 'isn't even science fiction.'

Season one hasn't ended yet. There's another 10 episodes scheduled to air starting in April. Yes, you read that right: April. By then, most people will have forgotten about the show.

[scrape_medic]

April IS a long way off...

[grinner]

Is it just me... or do you think that these characters are more... real? That they don't just 'know' everything like Jackson and Rodney appeared to. I think that there is a different group of show runners on this so hopefully they don't get into the same old ass-pull that the other shows did.

[Trusting Illusion]

Wow I almost forgot about this site. But here are my thoughts on SG-U.

My problems with SGU The characters do indeed feel more real for the most part. But, in some respects they fall flater then those from SG1 and SGA. I mean what is the actual point of Chloe? And the Col. seems more concerned about a wife who obviously wants to leave him, then taking care of his people. Not to mention the boneheaded move with Rush. The constent interference from the SGC is annoying. The focus on sexual relations is pointless filler intended to make the series more adult. And in the end is Just creepy in the instances involving the communication stones. Over all I do like the show, but it lacks the heart of the previous two. Honestly they should ditch the stones, it's pretty pointless, and adds nothing but unnessary character drama. I mean if you're stranded in the far side of the universe, you really don't need to worry about who you're ex is seeing, or that your wife is having dinner with someone else. Also the premise of "These are the wrong people to be here" doesn't make sense. To even make it on an SG team, or be involved with the program you have to take extensive mental and emotional testing. Go through training on everything you might come up against an so forth. The script writers either forgot that or worse straight up ignored it. (this doesn't include the civilians, they Just have to pass a physical, and a few pych tests)

The good. Rush is the man. While he may not have the pure genuis of Mckay he is a very interesting character, and by himself enough to keep me watching. Eli is also entertaining, and a very promising character, I'll have to see if they plan on making him more then Just comic relief, and a love sick guy. (seriously Chloe is not worth all those "I wish I was with her" looks) Greir (I think this is the right guy.) Is interesting, he was in the brig for something, but seems like a good soilder who follows orders. All in all a good show once. Once they hit their grove a great show could emerge. Also use the Stargate more.. After all this is a Stargate show, not Battlestar Galactica with a wormhole device.

[BillFrugge]

Is it just me... or do you think that these characters are more... real? That they don't just 'know' everything like Jackson and Rodney appeared to. I think that there is a different group of show runners on this so hopefully they don't get into the same old ass-pull that the other shows did.

One of the elements that I liked about Farscape are the 'Oh Frell!' moments. Those moments where not everything went according to plan, and they go from being in a bad situation to worse. Crichton is in another universe where nothing is the same as he understands it, and has to learn. He doesn't have the answer.

Tom Baker used to say that the Doctor shouldn't be infallible. When he's confronted by a crisis, it gets very boring for him to just say "Oh, that's easy!" and pull out his sonic screwdriver. (My complaint about the current crop...) Or he calls K-9. The audience has to be able to look at the show and wonder how he'd get out of it this time.

SGU has already broken the Stargate mold. I didn't anticipate the senator's solution to the air loss. Maybe if Rodney were on the ship instead of Rush, he'd have found the right switch, and everything would've come out okay in the end. The problems they have faced seem natural, and we're left with the idea that they just got lucky to have solved them.

And in the end is Just creepy in the instances involving the communication stones. Over all I do like the show, but it lacks the heart of the previous two. Honestly they should ditch the stones, it's pretty pointless, and adds nothing but unnessary character drama. I mean if you're stranded in the far side of the universe, you really don't need to worry about who you're ex is seeing, or that your wife is having dinner with someone else.

My take on the stones: They intended to use the stones to emphasize the isolation of the ship. Although they can visit Earth, they really aren't home; and that should be more apparent to them when they return to the ship. Meanwhile, the lives they had on Earth are falling apart.

But the use of the stones to have sex on Earth is just too creepy. Not just for the people on the ship, but what about the people who's bodies they inhabit while visiting Earth?

They do need to get away from using the stones. Concentrate on where they are, not where they were. They've got enough problems without creating new ones.

[RustySlinky]

Just started watching the reruns now. That and for the show "Fringe" too.

[Camulvey]

I've been watching the series since it came out. I thought it really picked up after the first few episodes of the first season--not that they were bad. So without giving up any spoilers, I wonder if anyone is current and saw the episode "resurgence" and what you think about the new developments from that episode.

--You might not want to read this if you've just started the show, nothing specific is given away but :ehsign: --
One thing I really like about this show is that they are very free with introducing new aliens. At the same time they only give us little tastes. It'd be interesting to see how much of that is due to budgetary constraints and how much is purely a natural result of story telling. If it is for budgetary reasons I think that we've lucked out and got good mystery and suspense along with amazing looking aliens.

[Camulvey]

Well it looks like it's been cancelled.
http://insidetv.ew.com/2010/12/16/stargate-universe-canceled/

According to the blurb there are still 10 more episodes to come.

[BillFrugge]

Well it looks like it's been cancelled.
http://insidetv.ew.com/2010/12/16/stargate-universe-canceled/

According to the blurb there are still 10 more episodes to come.
Well, we are talking about the SyFy network... If it's good, they'll cancel it early.

Honestly, they've wanted a dumbed down audience for so long. When they establish a show with mystery and suspense, their audience runs around asking 'Where's the aliens?' After all, isn't Sci-Fi supposed to be about spaceships and battles? (That's not me asking that...)

Looks like Caprica didn't do well, either. Let's have another BSG spinoff and see if it can do better. We can even have lots of space battles! Plot? Who needs that? :hypno:

I think it's time for another 'Farscape' re-watch. That, and 'Firefly.'

[Camulvey]

You're probably right, that certainly would explain the rise of "sci fi" WWE wrestling and Ghost Hunters also known as the "Ghost or Cameraman?" show

I don't know too much about the logistics of a sci-fi television show ("too much, who am I kidding, I don't know anything) or the expected attrition rates, but I wonder if they're just so expensive to produce that they get dumped at the first hint of sluggishness--in terms of ratings. But who knows. I'd love to see HBO come out with a good solid sci-fi show. They seem to be willing to spend big for quality. They're not without their mistakes but overall I think they're pretty good.

I was bummed to see that they cancelled Universe because it's one less show out there. It's slim pickings these days. A re-watch isn't a bad idea.

[BillFrugge]

Looking back at the show, I don't think that SGU was all that expensive in the ways you'd figure.

The size of the cast is fairly large for a series. That's going to cost some money. And there are a couple of names in the cast that probably earn a bit more money than others.

Most of the sets were built in the first season. This season, we got Rush's secret bridge. Apart from that, there've been no other sets other than planetside; and that's typically a location shoot.

Most of the series looks to be shot in low lighting. Less energy, but also the low lighting would help hide a cheaply built set.

The few scenes with aliens probably cost some good money. But they've been few and far between.

But...

My comment on space battles wasn't made lightly. If you peruse SyFy's chat boards (and Blastr.com) you'd see that the biggest problem with the show is that it is slow. SyFy's audience is actually delighted that SGU and Caprica are cancelled. They don't see anything happening. SGU requires thought and attention, and they're waiting for action.

On another forum, I was excoriated because I commented that the movie 'Alien' had little to do with Science Fiction. Their argument was to point out that there's an alien, and it was set in space.

It's no wonder that shows like 'Defying Gravity,' 'The 4400,' 'Invasion,' and 'FlashForward' have failed. Hopefully, 'Fringe' will survive.

One last thought upon reflection: This is one of the strongest points of Farscape; all of these elements are present throughout the series. REAL science fiction, combined with action and drama. It has so much to offer, that it appeals to people with so many divergent interests.