As a kid, I used to hate field trips. Invariably, they consisted of meandering strolls through the quaint streets of Old Montreal or infamously mind-numbing sessions at the Dow Planetarium. As an adult, my aversion to field trips hasn’t really changed – but at least the work-related outings offer up a little more variety. Yes, remote quarries, decrepit warehouses, and abandoned sugar refineries are just a few of the colorful locales you too can visit when you’re scouting locations for an upcoming episode. And such was the case today when Paul popped his head into my office and happily inquired whether I would be up to going on a scout. I pretended I didn’t hear him, feigning deep concentration in the task at hand – deleting old photos from my camera. “I think it would be a good idea if you came along,”he spoke up a little louder. “It’s your script after all.” I glanced up from my camera. “We’re not going to the planetarium, are we?”I asked suspiciously. Thankfully, we weren’t.
We met up outside the offices at 1:00 p.m. – John Smith, the Art Department gang, Paul, Alan, and myself, and piled into the van. “Are we stopping for ice cream?”I asked as we rolled off the lot. I was roundly ignored. Disappointed, I sat back in my seat and tried to enjoy the passing scenery, noting a distant billboard for Wendy’s new Frescata sandwich. “Buddy, you’re Italian,”Paul reminded me. “What’s a Frescata?” Frescata? It’s a vaguely Italian-sounding nonsense word is what it is. As for the actual sandwich – I haven’t a clue but judging from the picture, my guess would be pasta on ciabatta.
After a twenty minute drive in which I was regaled with the sights and sounds of Vancouver I rarely have occasion to experience (auto body shops, outlet malls, auto body shops, rail yards, auto body shops) we pulled up to our destination. We filed out of the van and were immediately greeted by the location representative who welcomed us and then proceeded to take us on the grand tour of the facility.
It’s hard to describe the location. Suffice it to say, the producers of Saw 5 should seriously consider checking it out. It was a serial killer’s dream. On the upside, it offered up plenty of creepy looks. On the downside, the air was so thick with whatever particulates happened to floating around (“Hey, is anybody else’s eyeballs itchy?“) that I could feel my lungs seizing up. Ah, nothing like getting out of those stuffy offices.
As it turned out, it was a very good location but it didn’t meet all of our needs. And so, we are faced with a choice: shoot part of the episode there and build the requisite lab on one of our stages, shoot the episode there and lose the lab scene, or scout out a completely different location. Thankfully, we have time to think about it.
We piled back into the van. “Is everybody back?!”asked the driver. “Close enough!”I replied. And we were off on our return trip to the studio.
We did not stop for ice cream on the way back either.
Mailbag –
Kyle: “Would it be possible to put a tank through a Stargate?”
Answer: It would have to be a mighty tiny tank.
Mackenziesmomm writes: “What is your favorite way to spend your down time?”
Answer: I’ve discovered a new appreciation for reading.
M writes: “Do you guys (aka the writers) dictate the uniforms in the screenplay or is this something that’s entirely up to the wardrobe department?”
Answer: The type of outfits required for a scene are usually fairly self-evident. However, there is often room for interpretation and so, during the costumes meeting, Val will come up with designs and/or photos and/or fabric samples and offer up her take on a given scene. We’ll discuss, more often than not tell her “Brilliant!” and off she’ll go.
Anonymous #1 writes: “What’s the bet Hewlett gets a slap on the wrist now for actually telling the fans something??”
Answer: I don’t know. What is the bet?
Anonymous #2 writes: “If the ratings suck, it’s not because of individual actors. It’s because people aren’t happy with the storytelling.”
Answer: It’s possible that is one of the reasons. But this recent article suggests otherwise – http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070601-nielsen-ratings-drop-nonexistent-when-dvrs-are-accounted-for.html
Ruffles writes: “Does that mean that you do not anticipate an S4 start until late October?”
Answer: Probably sooner than that.
Rebecca writes: “Actually, I like Magneto for a dog name.”
Answer: Thought of Magneto but I was worried it would be too close to Maximus and potentially confusing.
Neep writes: “What is that stuffed down the front of Amanda’s top?”
Answer: She has a flashlight in her vest.
Jenny writes: “Do think long & hard re: more doggage. Sometimes they are less special & appreciated when they become legion.”
Answer: That’s my one and only concern.
Anonymous #3 writes: “CBS and other networks who want to bring back their audience in front of the TV will lose the battle , ultimately. They’re just trying to salvage their business model, but you can’t go against progress forever.”
Answer: True. It’s already begun. The internet and DVD are forcing everyone to rethink the existing business models. Given the proliferation of alternate viewing venues, should 1.2 be considered the new 2.0? I don’t know.
Anonymous #4 writes: “Sorry but what did Carter do this season to be a Full Bird Colonel?”
Answer: You mean besides helping to keep the entire galaxy safe from an invading alien army? Not much.
Anonymous #5 writes: “What I would like to know is – have you ever had squid ink pasta before?”
Answer: I have but it was so long ago that I don’t remember what it tasted like. I do, however, remember enjoying it.
Shannon writes: “Do you ever put your pugs in daycare?”
Answer: They do go on occasion and hang out with Don Davis’s bulldog.
Pauline writes: “Okay what did I miss? Was it a time dilation bubble in Liverpool or does your blog say 14th of July on purpose?”
Answer: I’m so loathe to go on hiatus and leave my wonderful work environment that, subconsciously, I’m skipping ahead a month.
Lady Dulcinea writes: “Do your dogs have a “preference” between you and Fondy?”
Answer: Bubba and Maximus are momma’s boys. Jelly is daddy’s girl.
Rebekah writes: “From a rating standpoint, does it matter which showing we watch, or do both count?”
Answer: Both are important but, really, the first showing is the one everyone zeroes in on.
Allison writes: “Since the energy weapons, like ZATs, Ronon’s gun, etc., can be set to ‘stun’ as well as ‘kill’ through theoretical means of changing the power output, would it be possible to set an energy weapon to ‘tickle’?”
Answer: No, but as a quick screening of The Other Side will demonstrate, zats can be set to “unlock door”.
Someday Scientist writes: “Olliebollen is like a donut; dough, deep fried, and then rolled in sugar.”
Answer: I’m in!
Amy writes: “As a writer, do you put one space or two between sentences?”
Answer: I’m a two-spacer.
Gilder writes: “HOW ABOUT THEM SPURS???!!!”
Answer: Oh, yeah. I almost forgot. Maybe that’s what I’ll do this weekend – check out the NBA Finals. Oh. They’re already over?
Anonymous #6 writes: “There have been all the news about Teyla’s pregnancy but what i want to know are we going to see Teyla kicking some bad guy backside and generally putting them back into their slimy, scumey filled place?”
Answer: Missing comes to mind…
Okay now your worrying, me 15th of July??? If I could just go back to the 15th of June with the lottery numbers. Pauline
Out of curiousity, for your snarky answer to anonymous’s snarky comment on what Carter did to deserve the promotion to full bird colonel — if she got the promotion because she helped save the galaxy from alien invasion, what did the others who equally helped save the galaxy get?
Hi Joe !
Thanks for your blog it’s a little sunshine in my internet life every day ;D
Ok here some question for you !
1) Obviously you’re a dog person, but do you like cats ? and did you ever think to adopt a little kitty ?
2) What do you plan to do during your vacation in july ?
3) On the SG1 front, will us have a bit (even a tiny) start of an answer concerning Jack and Sam lovestory in the movies ?
4) What character in SGA do you enjoy the most writing ?
5) Do you think one day, maybe, if it’s possible, people will stop complaining about what they didn’t even watch ?
The last question is a reflexion of mine, because, really often, people are angry, they complain etc… but at the end of the day, they’re happy with what they have, when they have watched the show. Personnaly, I have faith in your job, and even if sometimes i’m not a 100% with you(aka you the writers), I’ve been watching the show(s) for ten years now, if you were that bad, would it last ten year ?
I don’t think so !
Have a nice day !
Quilani
Ohh that location does look rather creepy. Can I be cheeky and ask what episode it was being considered for?
Crystal said…
Out of curiousity, for your snarky answer to anonymous’s snarky comment on what Carter did to deserve the promotion to full bird colonel — if she got the promotion because she helped save the galaxy from alien invasion, what did the others who equally helped save the galaxy get?
For goodness sake..… It’s a TV show.
Fictional Carter got a fictional promotion so she would outrank everyone on fictional Atlantis (when she takes over command) and be at least the equal in rank of any fictional military who might visit (except Jack and he isn’t going to visit Atlantis).
That makes the Carter fictional character more interesting to write for and to perform.
As for the others:
Fictional Jack became a fictional General.
Fictional Daniel and Vala find they are .. (Whoops.. that’s next week) .
Fictional Teal’c remains the hero he has always been .. (Whoops.. that’s next week too).
“what did the others who equally helped save the galaxy get?
The honor of serving with Colonel Carter, of course. Ooooh, someone’s a good teacher!
Those people over at SaveDanielJackson have got to be kidding – right?? They just cannot be serious; can they?
“It’s not only the fact that she’s going to have this darker side, but also the fact that she’s going to be faced with taking care of someone who may be the last of her kind.
This was from Luttrell’s interview. So is Teyla the only Athosian parent or will the father have been an Athosian as well? The guy Teyla was seeing in private?
Ruffles writes: “Does that mean that you do not anticipate an S4 start until late October?”
Answer: Probably sooner than that.
How much sooner? *begs* August?
While I’m not a connoisseur of different types of foods, I’ve been enjoying reading your blog about them as well as talk about Atlantis and the occasional tidbit on SG-1. I usually find myself looking forward to the newest entry and wanted to say thank you. 😀
I thought this article on the TV Viewer Bill of Rights might make you smile in case you hadn’t seen it yet.
Dear Joe,
Is Googlion a play on words for Paul M’s name?
I have a name for your pug. Pug Boy. This way you can have PB and Jelly. Just kidding. LOL
According to Wikipedia it says that Paul will return in those eps. Can you verify that or are they full of it?
Hi Joe! I appreciate your mingling with us lesser mortals by way of this “blog” as you say in the higher realms. I have a question for you. Is Teyla’s child (a) legitimate, (b) illigetiamte, or (c) the result of some freakishly unpleasant experiment done to Telya at some point in the season? I’ve always liked SG-1 and Atlantis for being “clean” television, so option b would make me very unhappy. 🙁
I think that you need to broadcast the stargate episodes on MGM fee/or not and have it platformed that way and take a rating on how that works out.
I wouldn’t imagine the behind the scenes video’s doing too bad on the website.
My throat hurts from screaming and I have bruises all over. I’m never taking The Nephew to a theme park again. Until next summer, anyway. Actually, I promised that next year I’d ride that thing with him where they truss you up, hook you to a cable, hoist you in the air and drop you so you swing 60 miles an hour. I’m an idiot.
He votes for Apocalypse. GeekBoy votes for Galactus. I think Lex would be easier, but I’m lazy that way. Half the time we just call Radar “Ray.”
Hey Joe – just thought I’d say thanks for all the cool photos and insights.
Thumbs up on both of Friday’s episodes. I felt like I was watching the best of Stargate with the first episode.
Atlantis was suitably creepy and – best of all – Ronon’ speech to Shepherd about the experiment being a mistake. I was cheering him along. I think my dislike of the Beckett character stems from that experiment – a little too Mengele for me.
I assume it was simply a plot device to create tension and Connor Trineer has been consistently brilliant in the role of Michael – that story line is just not a personal preference of mine.
My cat is named also “Jelly”. She is the mistress of our house and, when my family visit, they praise her for training me well.
As to those praising the Spurs … should you really congratulate a team for winning when the other team clearly didn’t bother to show up? Cleveland has a unique ability – regardless of the sport – to choke in the big game. I hear the pierogies are good though …
I think it’s not uncommon for male dogs to prefer their moms and females to prefer their dads. At least, I know that’s how it is with our dogs. Our male is supposedly my dad’s, but his real order of priority is Mom, then me, then Dad. If Dad’s trying to work Sam and Mom or I come out, it’s hopeless.
Timeline wise, which takes first: Season 4 of Atlantis or the movies?
I hope that made sense.
Have a good weekend!
How important do you think the music score is to an episode? Do you think a terrific score can improve a mediocre episode, or that a mediocre score can bring down a really good episode?
Thanks for giving Teyla a secret boyfriend. It’s caused outrage on GW and is extremely entertaining to watch. Especially all of those who’ve had fun laughing at other people’s expenses!
I understand that promoting Carter for her new position on SGA makes sense, but what does that mean for Mitchell over on SG-1? Surely Carter can’t be taking over on BOTH shows.
Joe,
As excited as I am that Sam is being promoted, I don’t know if it was a good idea to say anything yet or not. I think it’s probably a toss up between Atlantis fans and Ben’s fans on who’s ticked off the most. I was lurking on a Ben forum and one of his fans was talking about how they had posted on your blog about it. I guess it doesn’t really matter because some of Ben’s fans have been bashing Rick, Amanda and Michael for a long time now but this just added fuel to the fire.
Don’t get me wrong Joe I understand why you answered the question. It just really bugs me when a group of fans who have admitted that they hate Stargate and only suffer through it for Ben would like nothing more than to have Stargate without Jack, Sam and Daniel.
A book rec for you: “Soon I Will Be Invincible” by Austin Grossman. I’m about half-way through it myself and am enjoying it. Have you ever read anything by Timothy Zahn? Just curious since he’s one of my favorites.
Just a little tidbit of information regarding the pug conundrum. I believe that there is a law in BC that states that a single household is not allowed to own more than 5 dogs without a kennel license. In fact, it may actually be 5 dogs and over, though I’m not too sure about it. Just something you might want to check into, because going through the hassle of getting a kennel license could be a factor in deciding whether or not you’re going to get the pups.
Hopefully this helps! Have a great day!
Just wanted to say thanks for answering my last two questions joe!
Have a couple quick ones for you today.
Do you ever take your pugs to the dog park?
Also how do you feel about cheese? Do you have a favorite kind?
I personally prefer a nice mild feta that is approximately 30 days old.
In response to this comment:
Thanks for giving Teyla a secret boyfriend. It’s caused outrage on GW and is extremely entertaining to watch. Especially all of those who’ve had fun laughing at other people’s expenses!
I’m not a shipper but I will say that the Sheyla people seem to be handling themselves a whole lot better than the Weir/Shep folks.
So I honestly don’t think this person has much to brag about. I’ve been watching your blog for the last few days and the Weir people really embarrassed themselves.
–Ron
Absolutely fantastic about Carter, Joe, and long overdue. Hopefully this means she again has sole command of SG1, though I do have my doubts after the botched number you all did on leadership in season nine. No offense to Ben or Mitchell fans, but that was just wrong. Totally out of left field and without justification. The Ben interview on Gateworld where his answer was basically, “Well people get screwed over in the military all the time,” summed things up nicely.
Any chance you could tell us which movie Carter actually gets promoted in? I’d like to know whether to buy AoT or not.
You better watch out, “Oliebollen” is a clothing label for those little critters some call “children”.
Answer: She has a flashlight in her vest.
Cool, thanks or the answer. That was one guess, but we had a lot of fun speculating. One guess was a “personal warming device” which we started to call “RDA” for short. Because we’re good like that.
Thanks for your tip on Scifi shutting down the story archives. I’ve been wandering through now and them, and hadn’t heard until your note this was being shutdown.
It is worth noting
is properly cached at the Internet Archive, or at least some of the stories are. The link
http://www.scifi.com/scifiction/archive.html
Once on the “Wayback Machine- maps
http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.scifi.com/scifiction/archive.html
This will probably be available for a while. The archive can be a lot of fun if you haven’t played with it before.
Thanks for giving Teyla a secret boyfriend. It’s caused outrage on GW and is extremely entertaining to watch. Especially all of those who’ve had fun laughing at other people’s expenses!
Hah, it’s hysterical isn’t it? I’m glad Teyla actually gets a boyfriend though. It hasn’t been fair that only Shep and Rodney got to have romances throughout the series.
I asked this: “Sorry but what did Carter do this season to be a Full Bird Colonel?”
Answer: You mean besides helping to keep the entire galaxy safe from an invading alien army? Not much.
I mean she really didnt do anything,, i would say Cam and Daniel and even Vala did more this season to save the world than Carter did. btw, how do you find time to write stories for the show, and produce( not sure exactly what you do so sorry) read all those books, eat all of those great looking food, and still have time to blog? God i envy you. Any chance you could adobt me?
Please tell me Teyla is not prego to Shep. That would be the kiss of death.
Jonas and LT. Ford, do you feel casting them was a mistake considering how they are forgotten about in the storylines? Was it the actors themselves by rubbing the writers the wrong way or just they didnt fit the part anymore?
Sorry just wanted to understand all the cast changes that take place on your shows.
I guess it doesn’t really matter because some of Ben’s fans have been bashing Rick, Amanda and Michael for a long time now but this just added fuel to the fire.
It just really bugs me when a group of fans who have admitted that they hate Stargate and only suffer through it for Ben would like nothing more than to have Stargate without Jack, Sam and Daniel.
Take a gander at the Anti-Season 10 and Anti-Cam/Vala threads if you think the Daniel, Sam, and Jack fans are full of sunshine and roses. And as a frequenter of the Gateworld board, I have seen more hate aimed at Cameron/Ben than I have at Sam/Amanda and Jack/RDA combined. I’m not a HUGE fan of Mitchell’s but in the grand scheme of things, the Ben fans aren’t the ones you should be bugged about.
Wait, this is a comment board for Joe?! Oops, sorry.
Since your camera is present when you’re at work, on location, in restaurants and at the pet shop: How many hours of the day is your camera more than 5 meters away from you? Was the same before you started your blog?
Some of Ben’s fans have been bashing Amanda, Rick and Michael??
What about the awful things that have been said about him, because heaven forbid, RDA decided to quit (yes, it was his decision) and Ben accepted the job?
This is a very different situation to the Beckett/Weir situation where both actors wanted to stay with the show and were, effectively, shafted.
But hey, why should the Ben fans be free of crisis, right?
So far, TPTB have irritated:
**Beckett fans, by dumping him.
**Weir fans by dumping her.
**Atlantis fans who quit SG1 because they got bored, or have never watched it
**Shep fans who don’t think he should be taking orders from Princess Samantha
**Shep/Weir shippers for dumping one half of their ship
**Weir/McKay shippers for dumping one half of their ship
**Shep/McKay slashers for bringing in Carter, who’ll cut in on their Shep/McKay time, because of course she has to technobabble with McKay
**Sheyla fans, because Teyla has a mystery boyfriend, and it’s not John
**Ben fans for making Carter superior to Mitchell
**Carter fans for putting her mostly behind a desk
**Sam/Jack fans because if Carter’s in the Pegasus galaxy on her own, without Jack.
Who’s left? Oh, the people who watch for special effects.
I hope you’re very sure about these changes, Joe, because so many angry people will tune out. In droves.
What about “Sylar” for your new pug ?
a while ago, I asked you if you were going to see a Wraith city (it’s one of my stargate dream), you answered that it was possible, and then, last week you unvailed a picture which could be a wraith city, so is it really a Wraith city or facility ?
Just wondering Joe, but have you and the other crew considered starting your own channel?
Joe,
I can’t express how pleased I was with Dominion. What a great way to end the series storyline. I am dying to see the movie!
Unending was gift from heaven. I could kiss & gift with chocolates whoever gave us with THE scene. If it is you, I will have to research my chocolates more.
IMO the series went out with a bang. I think people will be talking about this like the cancellation of Star Trek , And we all know SG1 was a much better series.
How do the networks know we are watching ? I’m not a Neilson family ?
Why don’t countries besides the US count when considering renewal? Don’t the US guys make enough $ ?
Will write more about dogs later. About names – by sound alone I prefer Electo, Lex Luther & Mysterio.
Of the villians I prefer Lex. but Mysterio is the most unusual name. Even if he is a total sweetie ( a pug liklihood) the name will fit.
I can see people constantly asking if it is Electro or Electra.Do you call your dogs by their full names ? Apocolypse is a mouthful. What do you all him for short ? Pox ?
I like Drax the Destroyer but he isn’t considered a villian. I have given this some consideration having consulted wiki & http://www.marvel.com/universe/Category:Villains
OK, I got distracted at the site. Eventually I gave up on picking the best supervillain & opted for the coolest sounding name.The little research I did, showed you pick good (if that is appropriate) supervillians.
” Thought of Magneto but I was worried it would be too close to Maximus and potentially confusing.” Good thinking .Our toddler & dog’s names begin the same. Whenever we call one, they both come running. It feels horrible to mistakenly call your child by the dog’s name.The puppy’s name is too similar to our deceased dog that we occasionally slip up.
“Fondy had already chosen a name for the pug she wanted – Uni (named after the Japanese word for sea urchin and not any lofty universal concept of The One)”
Actually I was referring to the singular not universal meaning of uni. As in THE one (special dog.)
I did actually look up foreign , specificially Asian, definitions before I posted. All I could come up with was sea urchin ,which I dismissed. Oh well.
I liked all the field trips that didn’t include the Nutcracker Suite. I loved nature & science so a planetarium would have been cool.
Thanks again for a great Friday night.I enjoyed both Stargate & Atlantis.
Silver
Rise of the Googlion
Joe,
can you give us any clue at all ? A very broad concept would suffice. We probably won’t come up with something good but we might amuse you. – Or ourselves at least.
I didn’t figure on such a HUGE temporal dislocation field between Cornwall and Canada. Your location pictures look like the inside of my airing cupboard which is free at the moment if you want to use it.
Why do you have your fake marines on atlantis wear ridiculous “uniforms”?
especially the beret, Marines do not wear berets. At least the “marines” on SG-1 wore a marine uniform.
Joe,
Why won’t you answer the question about whether or not Mitchell gets promoted? You’ve already told us about Carter. Be fair — spill the beans about Mitchell!
On Vengeance: LOVED it. Dark, creepy, Conner Trinneer – all good stuff. I, too, loved the argument between Ronon and John on what to do with Michael. I really liked that you followed through with the retrovirus being a mistake.
Question: It is noted twice in the ep that Michael’s knowledge of how to manipulate genetics showed amazing growth for such a short period of time. Is that our hidden Beckett clue?
Is the team immediately acceptant of Keller and/or Carter, or is there friction at first?
I just wanted to add my thanks for giving Teyla a boyfriend at long last. Please let Rachel be a part of the casting. Since chemistry is so important, seeing them interact on screen beforehand would be a big help.
Can I get more excited about season 4? Maybe if you tell me we’ll get shirtless Shep at long last also.
Hey Joe,
Thanks for a great blog. It’s definitely the place to come for a portion of my daily dose of snark.
Question(s) for ya.
1) The spoilers for Continuum talk about time travel to different periods. Is the team doing the travelling to fix the timeline “our” Sg1 (as in not alternate, ala Moebius)?
2) If you could travel back in time as an observer, where would you want to go and why?
I know s4 hasn’t aired yet, but if Carter is going to Alantis and, based purely on the pictures you’ve posted, is a leader, does that mean Atlantis is militarized? Or is Weir still in the highest command?
Did you know that if you go to the British Board of Film Censors website, you can find out the official classification for each individual episode and extra to be released in the UK? Have you ever been surprised by the classification for an episode you have written: was it higher or lower than you might have expected, and why?
I was just wondering how long will Joe Flannigan stay on Stargate Atlantis because on a webpage it has been said that he is quitting after 100 episodes.
Joe, je voudrai savoir quelque chose:
Pourquoi Torri ne fait plus partie du cast principal de SGA?
J’attend votre réponse.
Anonymous said: “Who’s left? Oh, the people who watch for special effects?”
You forgot Daniel fans.
**Daniel fans that don’t like Vala.
**Daniel/Sam shippers that don’t want Vala near Daniel.
**Jack/Daniel slashers that don’t want Vala near Daniel.
**Daniel fans that aren’t slashers or shippers that don’t want Daniel with anyone, especially Vala.
**Daniel fans that don’t like seeing him as Vala’s sidekick.
**Daniel fans that would have loved to have seen ONE episode with Daniel and Mitchell. Instead we get Mitchell with his sidekick Teal’c or Sam.
**Daniel fans that would have loved a friendship hug between Daniel and Sam too.
I just wanted to point out that Vala has divided alot of Daniel fans and caused problems too. Alot of fans have been angry for several years now but I have never seen it this bad. I think it’s because the show is now basically over and fans see alot of missed opportunities. Alot of Atlantis fans are now VERY angry because of all the changes in their show. Add to that Mitchell fans now angry because of Carter’s promotion. Unfortunately when fans get angry a few will cross the line and take it out on the actors….and the actors are the last ones that should be blamed.
Atlantian said…
I have a question for you. Is Teyla’s child (a) legitimate, (b) illigetiamte, or (c) the result of some freakishly unpleasant experiment done to Telya at some point in the season? I’ve always liked SG-1 and Atlantis for being “clean” television, so option b would make me very unhappy. 🙁
Having a child outside of marriage is “unclean”? :S Or is your understanding of the words legitimate and illegitimate different from mine?
Anonymous said…
[a load of nonsense including a list of the fans TPTB have “irritated”]
I wonder if you realise that your little list actually completely undermines whatever polarised point you are trying to make? You yourself has just proved the point that fandom’s interests in the show are fractured and contradictory at the best of times – as the saying goes, you can’t please all the people all the time. And if TPTB ever tried to, then the show really would die.
*waves*
Hiya Joe, i’m in rant mode, sorry in advance.
Wow, lots of bitchiness going on today! You know what? I think manners have gone completely out of the window with some people. It seems that every week in the fandom or on Joe’s blog, people are bitching about ‘how they’re not getting what they want’ or ‘how TPTB screwed them over’! Well, you know what folks I’m getting sick and tired of some people’s bitching. Especially when they don’t even have the courtesy to give the benefit of doubt to something that hasn’t even aired yet.
Are your lifes just so completely miserable that you (nd I men the vitriolic posters) have to bore the rest of us with your constant moaning about not getting what you want? Well, maybe it’s time you (and I mean those that a habitual moaners) took a step back and just looked at your posts and realise that it makes you look like a two year old throwing a tantrum!
*gathers momentum*
Lately it seems like some of you have got nothing better to do than to take a swipe at someone else’s genre. Does it make you feel big and clever by slagging off the fandom and the different genres? It makes me feel very angry to be associated with people like you, because the majority of people on here and at other parts of the fandom are decent people. But you know what some of you sound like? Spoiled brats.
The fact that you’ve got me on my soap box, ticks me off. So stop it! You’re making me lose my squee! 😛
So you’re not happy at the changes, fine, we get that, really we do, but for goodness sake, at the very least if you’re going to post negatively at least have the decency to;
1) Post your name.
2) Post constructively.
3) Leave other genres out of your post. It’s not big and it’s not clever to insult other parts of the fandom to bolster you own arguments. In fact the opposite is true. It makes you look desperate and clutching at straws!
4) Have a bit of decorum and a sense of decency. Good manners never cost anything.
Okay i’m done ranting sorry Joe…
*gets off her soapbox*
Thank you Mr M for the lovely location pix. And for the fab vengeance episode, what a great team episode with some lovely character moments in it. Definately a favourite for S3. So thank you to everyone involved for providing us with such great entertainment.
And now that i’ve calmed down 😀 A quick question. Are we likely to see any more instances of Shep’s bug phobia in S4?
*hugs*
Hi !!
Aren’t you a little bit irritated by people using your blog as a forum, answering questions that were only asked to you ???
There are so many places to do that but here !
Cheeky Lil Devil does have a point people.
Joe, that Ford truck. Is it new, or do you employ slaves to polish the hell out of it daily?
Sorry Joe but I need to rant…..
In response to someone mentioning Gateworld and the anti season 10 thread and the anti Vala/Mitchell thread, I also view those threads almost daily and I can tell you that I have NEVER seen any bashing of Ben or Claudia EVER!! There is a difference between not liking a character and actor bashing. Actor bashing is not allowed on Gateworld that is why Ben’s fans, some who are also members of Gateworld under the same name, do it on different boards. I HAVE READ IT! They know it is actor bashing and that’s why they don’t do it on Gateworld because it is not allowed.
Hey Joe, you wear such pretty suits…any favourite designers? Also, have you ever seen Milo & Otis? That’s my all-time favourite animal movie.
Catherine
I’ve always wondered & never got around to asking…but what kind of music are you into?
I decided I should go ahead and get an actual blogger account name so I can stop being just another Anonymous….
I’m the Anonymous who kept saying that they were nervous about season 4 but still hopeful and excited! (which is still true, btw :O) I’m also the person who dared to ask about Rodney’s allergies.
Anyway I’ve 2 questions this time:
1) Did Michael get his knowlage of genitcs from Carson?
and 2) are we going to learn anything about John’s background (and I mean his family background not his military background).
And ignore the people telling you that all fans of “whoever” are annoyed with you. I count my self as part of a lot of “fans of groups” and I can tell you that at least ONE is not annoyed with you because of “whatever some person thinks I should be annoyed about”.
Anonymous said…
Why do you have your fake marines on atlantis wear ridiculous “uniforms”?
especially the beret, Marines do not wear berets. At least the “marines” on SG-1 wore a marine uniform.
If I were you Joe i’d have the marines all wearing frikkin TUTUs just to annoy some people…but then I’m like that…rave on!
Thanks for the pics. Yeah, it looks like a horror movie paradise..
Today at Le Bol’s (my favourite French Restaurant) eating the fabulous Bomb au Chocolate..
Have a nice weekend..
Hey Joe,
Do executive producers like yourself have a particular ranking system for order of appearance in the opening credits that everyone in the business sort of knows but nobody ever puts down in writing?
If so, could you put it down in writing?
Sincerely,
Copernicus
I really like the location pictures. Thanks for posting them!
Will Sheppard be more emotional in season 4?
Thanks for answering our questions. I am really excited about season 4.
Please tell me that you aren’t going to give Carter command of BOTH SG-1 and SGA. I’m sorry but that would be a little too much even for me, and I’m a Sam fan. I’ve really been happy with the dynamic of the team right now. I think you guys finally got the mixture right in these last 10 episodes. Something that I’ve been thinking about: if Sam got promoted to Colonel and Mitchell didn’t, wouldn’t she just be transfered off the team and made a leader of her own unit (or a commander of something more than an SG team…such as a ship)?
Anonymous #4 writes: “Sorry but what did Carter do this season to be a Full Bird Colonel?”
Answer: You mean besides helping to keep the entire galaxy safe from an invading alien army? Not much.
So season 4 takes place AFTER the movies then- seeing how at the end of Season 10 of SG1 they haven’t saved the galaxy yet… thanks for answering my question! ^_^ Even though it was indirectly…
will the character of Katie Brown be making an appearance in season 4?
I agree, there is entirely too much negativity on this comment page. Take it to a forum thread people! That’s what they are there for. 😉
Anyway, Joe, I was just wondering…if you could go to any planet out of the stargate series for a week vacation, where would you go?
Adding my thanks for giving Teyla a boyfriend, and something to do this year. I think she has been woefully underused up till now.
Double thanks for promoting Sam to full bird. It has been a real shame these past two years seeing her demoted. Not cool.
Now all I need is to see Jonas return for a two parter to finish off his involvement and I’d be set.
ruffles said…
On Vengeance: LOVED it. Dark, creepy, Conner Trinneer – all good stuff. I, too, loved the argument between Ronon and John on what to do with Michael. I really liked that you followed through with the retrovirus being a mistake.
I’m the one that posted the original reference, today, to the retrovirus being a mistake (I think), but I’m not even sure that “the show” was calling it “a mistake”.
I, of course, think it is obvious that it was – thought it was before Michael entered the picture in fact – but it was definitely a plot device that has been used.
What I think the “Michael” episode (episode name?) didn’t show was the discussion of its morality before the decision was made. All of Ronon’s responses in THAT episode were at a more fundamental, “personal dislike of Wraith” level. That may have always been his “only” problem with the decision to do the experiment – last night he didn’t say anything that proved differently. Last night’s speech, however, was gave the appearance that his objections may have been more involved than his previous knew-jerk response seemed to indicate.
Teyla has seemed to dislike the “morality” of the decision even prior to it being made, but she has been more restrained in the past couple of seasons versus her wild earthiness of Season 1.
I wanted some character to do some yelling for me on the topic and finally got that last night with Ronon’s speech in the episode……. which we, of couse, never really saw Shepherd’s final response to, did we? Hmmmmmmmmm…..
OK, I do have a “Teyla Question” now to think of it. If a Seasom 5 happens, any chance we will see “why” she is such the stick fighting maven?
“Simple farmers and hunters” generally don’t have a lot of time beyond the everyday efforts at survival even when there are no life-sucking aliens after them. Her knife skills and even her success with projectile weapons makes sense.
The stick fighting, however, takes hours to perfect and to what purpose? Running really fast and hiding really well seems to have been the Athosian defense to the Wraith. Stick fighting doesn’t do much against Wraith stunners.
So, her stick fighting skill must have been honed to fight for a different purpose. Either there is a race we haven’t seen yet that just drives the Athosians bat guano crazy by their mere presence or Athosians women had a really, really intense competition for males in their own society.
I’m a big fan of sword fights and all the other fighting and gunplay that goes on on the show, but I don’t understand the whole appeal of the stick-fighting thing. Stick-fighting??? How does that hurt?
I was just wondering how long will Joe Flannigan stay on Stargate Atlantis because on a webpage it has been said that he is quitting after 100 episodes.
Would you have a link to that? 🙂
Can we stop for ice cream?????????*smilies pleadingly*
I’m not a shipper but I will say that the Sheyla people seem to be handling themselves a whole lot better than the Weir/Shep folks.
Some of the people who don’t like Shep/Teyla are Shweir fans, but not all.
There are some who don’t like Shep/Teyla for the simple reason they are a lousy pairing and they don’t want a sappy soap opera on their sci-fi show.
I bet scouting those tunnels “Vengance” was filmed in was a lot of fun. They looked icky, and according to Joe Flanigan, they truly were! Yuck. Andy Mikita did a good job with the “less is more” philosophy on the bugs. I thought Sheppard should have been a little more freaked out, but then again, he would do his best not to show it, wouldn’t he?
Cliff Simon must be getting pretty good at those dying scenes! Ba’al has died more than Daniel! Good job to whoever came with the idea to clone Ba’al and kill him every other episode–that just never gets old! He should snark at them about it one of these times.
My DVD with the first two parts of “The Siege” got scratched and won’t play–what am going to do?? I have to find a way to replace it!
I’m not a shipper but I will say that the Sheyla people seem to be handling themselves a whole lot better than the Weir/Shep folks.
You can’t really say that..because from both sides— I have to say there has been both bad and good about it. I’ve seen some Sheyla shippers FLIP out. However, I think if we are picking who handled it the best out of the shippers affected. You have to admit the Teyla/Ronon fans have been pretty cool about it. =] — they are the only shippers I can stand! haha =S
Dear Cheeky Lil Devil – Can you please get off your daily high horse and stop being “self appointed blog moderator” for Joe Mallozzi?
Everyone is just writing their own opinion, as you are writing your own in response to the posts. So please don’t repeat the “going into rant again” … because that seems to be all you do.
If people feel the need to be anonymous poster, it’s their prerogative, just as your need to school the fans.
Thanks and have a wonderful time watching SGA.
Answer: You mean besides helping to keep the entire galaxy safe from an invading alien army? Not much.
Helping being the operative word. I assume then that Mitchell will also be receiving the same promotion for also helping? And can we enquire what Daniel and Teal’c’s reward will be?
Actor bashing is not allowed on Gateworld that is why Ben’s fans, some who are also members of Gateworld under the same name, do it on different boards. I HAVE READ IT! They know it is actor bashing and that’s why they don’t do it on Gateworld because it is not allowed.
Nice try but Gateworld has a funny definition of “bashing” depending on who is on the receiving end. Nothing short of an outright death threat would be considered bashing if levelled at MS, BB (x2), CB, LD but dare to so much as mention that AT’s hair wasn’t at it’s best or RDA may not be god’s gift to world television, well you get the idea…
Joe, Vengeance was very, very cool! Many thanks to everyone involved!
Zabadoo said…
I’m a big fan of sword fights and all the other fighting and gunplay that goes on on the show, but I don’t understand the whole appeal of the stick-fighting thing. Stick-fighting??? How does that hurt?
Given that most technologies in the Pegasus Galaxy are at a fairly primitive stage of development, thanks to the Wraith, only the rare exceptions like the Genii have guns and the most common/appropriate form of combat amongst the human populations is likely to be close-quarters, hand to hand fighting. Sticks might be no good against an enemy with a ranged weapon like a gun or a bow but they’re mighty useful in close-quarters melee combat… and, as was proven in Comdemned, if you’re in a situation where your knives and guns have been taken and you are unarmed.. sticks are a common natural resource which can be used as a weapon.
Hi Joe!
You’ve hinted that even although the idea of McKay becoming a dad has been shelved (just for now hopefully), that we’ll still be seeing Katie Brown in Atlantis …what storyline’s in store for these two characters?
Thanks! 🙂
Joe,
I can’t believe you actually read most of this crap with out losing your mind.
i CANNOT HELP MYSELF ANYMORE – i WENT TO sAVEdANEIL jACKSON AGAIN FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES AND LITERALLY FOUND MYSELF LAUGHING OUT LOUD FOR THE NONSENSE THERE. iT IS A SCREAM A MINUTE AND IF IT WASN’T SO FUNNY IT WOULD BE PATHETIC.
I’m not a shipper but I will say that the Sheyla people seem to be handling themselves a whole lot better than the Weir/Shep folks.
Gee, perhaps that’s because Teyla is still a main character and Weir isn’t? If the situation had been reversed I can guarantee you that the Shweirs would be handling themselves a whole lot better than the Teyla/Shep folks.
I wish people would quit trying to make certain groups of fans out as better than others. Almost all groups are made up of a bunch of great people and a handful of antagonistic jerks. Stop generalizing about an entire group of people because of the actions of a few.
I read that interview with Rachel Luttrell, and it doesn’t say Teyla has a boyfriend. I suppose there’s lots of people who want her to have one for multiple reasons, but that’s not what it says. What if this love interest is that someone she alluded to in Sunday? Lots of people have theorized it’s someone in Atlantis already. Wouldn’t it be ironic if all these snarky S/W people who are posting anon and laughing at what they perceive to be other people’s misery had to come back and eat their words when they find out who it is? That would be delicious.
How much season 4 has been hacked from original conception so that this pregancy stuff works somehow? This could spell doom for the show. Just something I’ve seen over and over on TV.
Here is what I do not understand. You people complain about the shweir fandom name calling and being snarky when you, yourselves, are name bashing them. Do not you see a little hypocrisy in this at all? It goes around full circle until everyone is provoked and then put on the defensive by the actions of a few people. What is the point? To downgrade an entire part of the fandom that happens to disagree with your views? How is that justified? It is not right to condemn the whole because of the acts of a few.
BTW, in my own selfish hypocrisy, I believe that if it were Teyla being reduced and possibly faded out a lot of you would be singing different tunes.
Shubra said…
Dear Cheeky Lil Devil – Can you please get off your daily high horse and stop being “self appointed blog moderator” for Joe Mallozzi? etc.
Asking people to use a little common courtesy when posting on someone’s personal blog is “schooling the fans”? Wow. I guess you really do learn something every day. Me, I’d thought it was just common sense and plain good manners… 😉
Thank you, Anonymous, for describing what the word ‘fictional’ in ‘TV’ means… I’m sure I wouldn’t know that without your help.
I doubt giving fictional Carter a fictional promotion NECESSARILY makes her more interesting to write for or perform… good stories and good writing do that. That is, writing good fictional stories for the fictional TV series on my oh so real TV airwaves.
And for the other anonymous, or maybe even the same anonymous in another post, if your denegration of the opinions of a specific group is in response to my post, know, for your information, that I’m not a member of any group, for any fictional show… and hence, my opinions are strictly my own.