To all of you asking me to post the actual rating we received for our premiere – I can’t reveal that information because we don’t have a real number yet. What we have is the raw number before 3-day DVR is factored in and this is key because:

SciFi Channel is the most DVR-’d channel out there (curse you tech-savvy scifi fans).

SciFi Channel saw the biggest increase of DVR use among its viewers over the past year.

Atlantis is apparently one of the most DVR’d shows on SciFi.

Friday night is the most DVR’d night of the week.

So, bottom line: the number we have will get a bump before becoming official later this week.

With all of the intense number-crunching going on today, it’s a wonder we found time to get anything done. Still, we did manage to squeeze in a viewing of Trio. Great, great episode. Unfortunately, the director’s cut was running long and certain things ended up not making the cut – the chiefest being Carter’s discussion about “that guy in Washington”. Nevertheless, the exchange will make the deleted footage compilation Ivon Bartok is in the process of putting together for the season four dvd release – or, perhaps, find its way into a future episode. Also found time to sit down and chat with the lovely Emma Matthews, the new editor of Stargate Magazine. Our fifteen minute chat turned into a forty-five minute discussion about Atlantis’s fourth season, and if not for our unit publicist Brigitte stopping by shuffle her over to John N. Smith’s office, we’d probably still be talking.

Today’s pics: Emma from Stargate Magazine, over on the FX stage.

Today’s video: Click on the date to see Martin Wood and that crotchety old guy.

Mailbag –

Dovil writes: “I didn’t even recognise DH there, at least not until the last photo.”

Answer: Yep, that’s what fatherhood will do to you. Be warned.

Herbert writes: “Is the pattern on the guitar Jason got for Joe the same as Jason’s tatoo?”

Answer: It is. It’s the equivalent of the Momoa family crest.

Rachel writes: “ How in the world do you decide what comments to allow through and what questions to answer?”

Answer: If I’ve already answered the question, I’ll skip it. If it’s a question that will give away spoiler, I won’t answer it. And, ultimately, if I’m short on time and there are other questions I find more interesting, I’ll answer those instead.

Anonymous #1 writes: “So why is the series’ continuation dependent on the ratings in the US alone?”

Answer: While the international ratings are important, the first-run U.S. ratings take precedence because the licensing fee SciFi Channel contributes the lion’s share of the show’s production budget.

Horse N. Buggy writes: “Will we see at least one fun, non-arc story this season?”

Answer: We do have a few non-arc stories this season. As for a fun episode – definitely check out Harmony.

Anonymous #2 writes: “Joe, she’s all over GW talking about her inside knowledge. Does that concern you, or are you happy to let her claim she has inside information?”

Answer: I’m thoroughly ambivalent. Keller and Ronon romantic scenes? Teyla and Sheppard ship? All I can say is tune to find out.

Padawan Aneiki writes: “How long does it usually take before you hear if you got the next season pickup?”

Answer: I’m hoping we’ll learn our fate within the next two weeks.

Andrew Timson writes: “Production-related question… how common is it for a shot to be flipped in post? It’s probably not all that common on Atlantis, thanks to the uniforms and displays with text… but in “Adrift”, the closeup of Sheppard playing with Zelenka’s suit was rather obviously flipped thanks to the mirrored text.”

Answer: The shot was not flopped. The text is mirrored because a space-suited individual (say Zelenka in this case) would not be able to glance down and read the text on display. Rather, he would have to hold a mirror up to text and so, by making the text mirrored straight on, the text becomes un-mirrored once reflected back up for easy reading.