Watched the director’s cut of Daedalus Variations this afternoon. Andy Mikita did a terrific job on this one. Wow! Talk about a visual effects extravaganza! For those of you who enjoy “team” episodes in particular, this is one to look forward to.
Incorporated all of the notes on the Broken Ties producer’s cut and will be locking the episode later next week once the cafeteria scene and the wraith battle sequences have been shot. It’s an episode that takes Ronon far beyond the wise-cracking warrior persona fans have grown to know and love, offering up a glimpse of the character at his most vulnerable. Jason goes all out in this one, delivering by far his best performance to date. Some really wonderful scenes for Rachel and Bob as well as Teyla and Woolsey deal with personal issues. Also, a couple of touching Ronon-Sheppard moments as well.
David Nykl dropped by the office to say hello. I, of course, admonished him on your behalf for not updating his blog in a timely manner.
The title of Brad’s episode, The Shrine of Talus, has been changed after running into clearance problems. I suggested an alternate, The Shrine of Glapnok, which, alas, nobody else liked. Instead, the episode has been re-titled The Shrine.
Meanwhile: Paul is doing a polish on The Queen, Marty G. is working on The Lost Tribe, Alan is focused on his third script, Carl is spinning ideas for his third, while I continue my “research” for Whispers
Speaking of which – the deals have been closed and we finally have our guest cast in place. And quite the kick-ass guest cast it is:
Major Anne Teldy… Christina Cox (http://www.christinacox.com/)
Captain Alicia Vega… Leela Savasta (http://www.leelasavasta.ca/)
Sergeant “Dusty” Mehra… Janina Gavankar (http://www.janinagavankar.com/)
Dr. Alison Porter… Nicole de Boer (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0207498/)
Finally – production continues. Shooting now: Ghost in the Machine.
Are the new characters going to reacurring throughout the entire season, or just one or two episodes?
I’m excited about the new characters (despite knowing next to nothing). It will be interesting to see Nicole de Boer on Atlantis, I liked her in The Dead Zone.
I notice a few of the season five episodes are starting with “The”…is it me or have the Stargate shows tried to steer clear of “The” in the past?
Oh, and just so you know, I can’t stop seeing how often “the” occurs now. It’s white car syndrome all over again!
Wow, so all women of the armed forces look like models.
hmmmmmm
Is it so hard to cast females in the show who represent or look like the people who actually serve, or who are not so freaking skinny and perfect looking?
Hi Joe!
Ooooooh, excellent pics today!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 Also, great info on upcoming eps. Yeah, I’m looking for Shep info, but I’ll take anything you got to offer in the way of not-really-spoilerish S5 news!
Yowza, Maj. Teldy is a hottie! And so are all of the other lovely ladies who’ll appear in S5! I hope your choices in handsome men are just as successful! *hope, hope, hope*
Not asking for a blog dedication, but rather lots of prayers and positive vibes from everyone here for me and my fellow 13,000 riders who are bicycling 180 miles this weekend for a charity ride (BP MS150 for the Multiple Sclerosis Society). 🙂 If I can sit down on Monday, I’ll catch up with the blog!
All the best!
eddy
…”wraith battle sequences…”
Yeah, I’m already depressed…
Will we see these guys win a fight, ever??
I know, I know…”go read some fan fic and stop yer belly-achin’…” 😛
das
Nicole de Boer! Awesome! I’m a big fan of hers. I look forward to seeing her in the Stargate universe.
All four women look very intriguing. I’m excited. 🙂
So now we have Vicki from Blood Ties and Ezri Dax from DS9.
Unattractive women are not allowed through the Stargate, it would really mess with the aesthetics of the place. I don’t know why I even bother hoping for just one or two “real” looking females ever being cast. But hope springs eternal! Maybe next year.
Huge -legasp-!
Like, woah! Can’t judge the actors yet, gotta see them in the show to test them out, you know? We’ll see, right?
And….. whomever is in those picturs you put up today reminds me ALOT of FRAN. Who is that?
FRAN! I’m so glad she’s coming back. I loved her in BAMSR. 😀 “Broken Ties” sounds really interesting and I read the summary for “Tracker” on GateWorld today. I’m glad Ronon’s getting some development outside of his warrior persona. Can we expect some similar development for Teyla too? Will Ronon and Teyla utilize more of their Pegasus connections this season with the focus on the other civilizations of the galaxy?
I’m excited for this all-female team. We need some more kick ass chicks in space.
EZRI DAX ON STARGATE ATLANTIS?!?! *BOOM*
😀
Wow, that’s a huge production update, and right on the cusp of the weekend too! Thank you so much! Perfect timing too, as I just finished my last class, and I now have 2 weeks of studying to do before getting hit in the face with 3 finals scheduled in 4 days. Hooray.
Heh…a promo for Irresponsible is currently running on the TV right now, and it actually made it look…not comedic. The power of advertising, eh?
Anyways…I’ll just copy and paste yesterday’s question, for one more try (and add another):
1. What do you think about removing one of Atlantis’s piers, permanently, during some battle or explosion or something? Do you guys think you’ll ever do something like that, damage one of the show’s vehicles permanently?
2. Any good Shep-centric stories so far and/or coming up?
I don’t know if this has been asked already or not.
Are you guys running Season 5 straight on thru with no breaks like Season 4 or is their going to be a huge break like seasins 1-3?
Ok and yes I may have said I’m not the brightest bulb in this pack but that looks a lot like the Replicator Rodney created in BAMSR….but this is a side and sort of backside view. (uncrosses her eyes).
Have a great weekend !!! Oh! and Eddy good luck and positive karma your way hun!!
So, all the new characters are girls…no new guys? What’s up with that, Joe? Can’t us girls have some new men…of course, we love the men already on SGA, too. 🙂
Seriously, Joe, I am really looking forward to this episode with Ronon. I wasn’t a huge fan of his when he first appeared. I thought he was cardboard and wasn’t much more than the heavy lifter of SGA. Even the episode ‘Sateda’ didn’t do all that much for me as far as his character goes.
‘Reunion’ changed a lot of that and I was glad to see it, too. Ronon became more real to me and the impact of being betrayed was so palpable that it jumped off the screen.
Since that episode, Ronon became a character I liked as much as Shep, McKay and Teyla.
I would like him to have more than just wanting to kill all the Wraith. It’d be nice if he had a larger more meaningful objective that helps bring out more of his humanity, IMO.
Now, admittedly, my experience of Armed Forces personnel are strictly British servicewomen, so perhaps the former colonies are different, but i can categorically state that your average Major or Sergeant rarely looks that good.
Oh wow… I am so excited about the guest star list… I showed my sister, expecting her to get really excited about Nicole de Boer. Instead she said Christina Cox? The horse fetish lady from Bones?
Ok, so not very military like… but wow! What a list!
hey Joe,
wow Nicole de Boer? cool I know her from DS9 and The Cube (never watched The Dead Zone) and really enjoyed her performances. I don’t know the other actors, except for Leela Savasta of course. apparently Christina Cox appeared in two SG-1 episodes, I may need to rewatch those. The Shrine of Glapnok? somehow I find this funny 😀 honestly though I think ‘The Shrine’ may be an even better title. woohoo for another team episode. several fans have been complaining that there haven’t been any in season 4 so this is indeed good news
Wow. Haven’t seen Nicole since her days as Dax #2 on Deep Space Nine!
Nicole de Boer? Yay! Another Trek actor. You keep working through that checklist. When you get to Brent Spiner, get ready for some squeeing. (Seriously, you should get him on sometime.) Actually, I’d like to see Jonathan Frakes on there, too. He does leadership types well. I could see him fitting in easily somewhere, maybe as a Genii. Or Michael Dorn as an older Satedan general or something. Or maybe Linda Park as a wraith queen. Or…well, you get my drift. It makes my geeky Trekkie heart go all girlie.
Kinda agree about all these women looking so hot.
But Anne, you must be getting excited about all of this. Now you can put a face to the actor who’s playing you!!!
All the females cast are gorgeous – not fair. Makes the rest of us feel inferior. (meow, bitch)
What happened to the captions on the photographs? You were doing so well, all I had to do was hover my cursor over the piccie and the caption popped up.
Give the doggies a hug from me and d’kitties.
🙂
Who is the special effect Ronon is pointing his gun at? 🙂
@ AV eddy: Sending mucho positive vibes your way. I hope you see some excellent results re. donations for the benefit of those with MS. Kudos to all who are taking part.
Season 5 just keeps sounding better and better. Atlantis has given so much enjoyment to a lot of people, and I hope very much that it’s possible for SGA and SG-Universe to coexist on equal terms.
Amz Said:
You didn’t like her as Ezri Dax on Star Trek Deep Space Nine? 😉
Off-topic note: The Poivre de Szechuan chocolate is from Café-Tasse, not Dolfin, and the flavor is excellent. If I have one niblet along with a bit of shortbread, I can enjoy it without having my whole mouth set on fire. So, I’ll have the pleasure for a long time – perfect!
Nicole! Dax! ZOMG! So many Star Trek actors on SGA now! Bob, Nicole, Connor!
Katie wrote:
Wow, so all women of the armed forces look like models.
hmmmmmm
Is it so hard to cast females in the show who represent or look like the people who actually serve, or who are not so freaking skinny and perfect looking?
well, then no one would watch. especially not the oh-so important 18-49 year old male demographic. –sarcasm–
on another note, i’m glad to see Nicole de Boer make an appearance. as a star trek fan, i’m thrilled to see trek people on stargate.
That’s pretty cool that you got Nicole. I haven’t seen much of The Dead Zone, but I loved her on Stark Trek DS9.
Skinny and perfect looking? They all just look like ordinary women to me, other than Vega who is admittedly smoking.
Dear Joe,
I was wondering if you gonna have an episode following up the ZPM list from the season one episode Before I Sleep in season 5? Or a follow up to the Brotherhood?
thanxs sir
Ahahaha! I should applaud new female characters. Can’t wait for Season 5 – hopefully we’ll see it in the summer 🙂
I do adore team episodes actually.
Nicole de Boer that is just awesome! I enjoyed her on the last season of Star Trek DS9
Is The Lost Tribe the second part to the mid-season two parter?
Do you realise how ridiculous it is that the Asgard beam weapons destroy a Hive in three shots? It’s like blowing up Everest, and if by some twisted logic you can explain it then why didn’t the Ancient take advantage of this weakness?
The Wraith constantly use Hives in combat against 304’s however i calculated the resources to create Hives and cruisers and the resources for one Hive is equal to at least 104 cruisers, so unless cruisers are a hundred times weaker than a Hive the obvious question is why aren’t the Wraith using masses of cruisers against 304’s?
Are we going to see any Ancient warship with a beam type weapon as they are the best type of weapon on the show?
All is well with the world. Everyone slaving over their word processors, the cameras rolling and recording, new cast/redshirts hired, ready to be offered up for sacrifice to whatever Stargate gods insist on dead characters. As for the no Sheppard-centric stories so far. It does seem just a tad strange, but I fully expect we’ll see at least one episode in the back 10 to fill in the gap. One quibble. Aren’t we about due some cute doggie pics this weekend? Can’t let those pesky kittens let other blogs get more hits after all.
Katie – yes, and all aliens look like Rachel Luttrell and Jason Momoa. Your point is….?
It’s TV. And it’s SCIFI TV. Don’t you remember McKay’s comment about “absurdly good-looking people” on television? And have you even -watched- Battlestar Galactica? Go yell at them too, if you’re going to complain.
Sometimes, people like to watch TV to -escape- reality. I know I do.
So relax, and enjoy the show.
Joe: it’s nice to see some fresh faces. Not that I don’t enjoy the regular faces….
Hey Joe!
Amazing cast choices you made there! Christina Cox and Leela Savasta have their foot already in the Stargate universe, Janina Gavankar has a ton of experience overall, and Nicole de Boer is just fantastic with lots of science fiction experience! 😀
Glad to see Fran again, and that is a HECK of a lot of weaponry! 😛
Thanks as always!
– Enzo Aquarius
“And quite the kick-ass guest cast it is:
Major Anne Teldy… Christina Cox”
Joe I must say that I seriously love you at this moment in time. Really, I cannot get over you casting all my favorite people as guest stars. Especially ones as wonderful as Christina. If I could hobble up there fast enough I’d bring you a gagillion chocolates from the new chocolate store that just opened down the street.
It’s not that all women in the military look like models, but that the actors hired to portray military personnel have websites with pictures that make them look very attractive. Nicole De Boer didn’t look like a model in Cube, I’ll say that much (didn’t see her on DS9, sorry!)
I mean come on, I adore David Nykl as much as anybody, but he’s totally smokin’ on his website and Radek is a bit more… nerdy and nebbish. 🙂
susanthetartanturtle Said:
All the females cast are gorgeous – not fair.
Eh, no worries…just eye candy for the boys. Bet none of ’em can work a leather coat like Todd can, not to mention being able to pull off the whole ‘no eyebrows’ thing and still look hawt.
😉
das
Well you figured out how to get me excited about “Broken Ties” — Jason given something meaty to act, Jason at his most vulnerable, and touching moments between Ronon and Sheppard… sounds like an episode tailor made for me.
Sounds like it might be an episode fulfilling the promise of the article I read three some years ago that said that Joe auditioned with Jason because they were testing out the chemistry for a sidekick role. Although to be fair, Midway, Reunion and Tabula Rasa delivered some great moments along that line.
And as long as I’m speaking of episodes, did I tell you that Sateda has been and still is my favorite Atlantis episode? To me, it’s near perfect… great moments between each of the characters and not overpowered by the terrific action sequences.
As for the female team of female models showing off this year’s chic in camouflage… color me unenthusiastic… if I’m lucky, they’ll be background material, if I’m not and they are center stage, they’ll join the ranks of Trio and Missing as episodes I will never watch again. Realize you have to have different episodes to please everybody, but you seem to have enough people saying how excited they are to see this new team, so I thought I’d let you know some of us, not so much… some of us like our team episodes to be with wise-cracking, buddy-banter, got-your-back, occasionally vulnerable men.
I think that you have made some great choices, knowing most of their backgrounds (woot Dax) I think they will fit in, mind you I do have to wait to see how you have all developed their characters.
As for the comments about, “real looking women” and the fact that while most women, let alone women in the military do not look like that…it is a very valid point. While as, the point made by someone of “who would watch” and “escape from reality” those are valid as well.
I guess for me, it would be nice if more of the shows would cast everyday people…I still enjoy the show.
What all goes in to getting a title cleared? For that matter, character names? I remember some big thing awhile back with Walter on SG-1 because there was some problem with Davis — or was that just an unwanted conflict with Major Paul Davis? — before he eventually became Walter (cough*Norman Davis*cough) Harriman.
@ AV eddy…you have my postive vibes. Good luck!
These casting developments have set me to thinking. Nicole de Boer was on DS9. My mother loved DS9. I have been trying to get my mother to start watching SGA for quite some time. Could this be the hook needed to drag my mother to this show? Maybe so, maybe so.
pm font of useless knowledge:
My point is that as much as I love Rodney and Radek, the look like normal people as well as Woosely. I know about appealing to demographics, but how about casting a female who doesn’t look like the cast of “Charlie’s Angels”…One out of the four would ahve been fine.
I did enjoy the actor who played Sheppard’s wife though, atleast she was his age.
Other then that, thanks for the pic of Ronon. Glad to see we get to see another side of him in “Broken Ties”, I enjoyed his progression in season 4 very much!
Yeah those actresses are no more models then Jason M!
Er… yeah. Can they act? Please let them be able to actually act.
Acting, that is the thing.
Joe, your blog ate my last post… it just disappeared! Something about my email address, it didn’t like it.
Be thankful, it was long and went on and on (again) about men hugging on SGA 😀
Hmm. . .looks like F.R.A.N. is back. Cool beans on the New casting as well. Lots of ladies.
Hello Joseph=) Waahouuuu!!! Merci pour ces photos de la saison 5!! c’est super^^!
merci aussi pour ces petites information et le lien vers les sites de ces actrices!!
Sa va faire beaucoup de femmes sur atlantis,vous n’avez pas de nouveau beau garçon a nous présenter?
Sa fait qu’en même peur pour le “sheyla” tout sa! Qui me dit qu’elles ne voudront pas convoiter le plus belle homme de la citée (john)?
Bon aller gros bisou, je doit aller faire ma prise de sang =(
Je vous adore! Merci♥
FRAN?! Is it? Please say yes, I LOVED Fran.
Thanks for wishing me a Happy Birthday on Thursday the 10th. Oh, did you forget? Why yes you did. I even dropped a huge hint a day or two prior. My wound is deep for not having been celebrated in the style in which I am accustomed.
…and I always thought I was one of your favorites. Woe is I. The harsh reality cuts me, and I bleed.
Hey Joe, the jenks who posted above also posted this on Gateworld:
http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/sumer_anunnaki/esp_sumer_annunaki13.htm
The new episode title makes this all pretty eerie, doesn’t it?
Hi Joe!
Wow, this are great news. I am especially thrilled by the idea of having Nicole deBoer in the show. I liked her very much in DS9 but I love the idea to see her and David Hewlett together again.
Hope there will be a reference, and if it is a very, very small one towards the CUBE!
Glad to see that FRAN is back. That lady made an impact in BAMSR. Glad to listen to all the other details. They sound terrific!
I guess tomorrow or the day after tomorrow we will see and hear from McKay again?
Hi Joe,
Sounds like you’ve been busy so first I’ll wish you a restful weekend.
Next, I agree with what many have said about the “appearance” of the female team, it would be nice to see women on TV that actually looked more like the read of us in the world.
Now for my actual question, in The Siege III we see Ford leave by fling a PJ through the gate. Ford didn’t have the ancient gene that I can remember. There were several episodes where it was evident that he couldn’t fly a PJ and in Hot Zone it was made clear that he and Radick didn’t have the gene. Did I just miss it, or was I just to assume that sometime between those episodes and The Siege that Dr. Beckett gave him the gene therapy?
Thanks for sharing the impressive cast lineup – wow.
Nicole (Ezri Dax) was not so recognizeable without her Trill (sp) spots. The IMDB photo is so small anyway.
Wow, Ms. Dewey is on Atlantis! Cool Mr. M.
Cheers, Chev
p.s. if anyone hasn’t checked out Ms. Dewey it’s hilarious.
I haven’t seen pictures of Beckett in any of the episodes you’re shooting so far. How many episodes is he in during the first half of the season?
And since it took Michael less than two years to grow a Beckett, will Clone Beckett have some personality changes, I hope. Because I’m going to have a hard time believing that the personality transfer would be perfect. Since Michael only needed him to find Teyla, I don’t see a reason why he’d waste resources making an exact copy.
Also, if MGM ever decides to market a “Grow Your Own Beckett” kit, I’m in.
I was just curious as a writer of MANY SG-1 and ATLANTIS episodes do you have a favourite? and also do you have a favourite ‘couple’ that you’ve enjoyed writing for?
I have to say one of my favourite ‘ship’ episodes is Momento Mori.
Also can you give us any hint about what will happen in the episodes where Daniel FINALLY comes to Atlantis?
Wow. I’m impressed kick-ass guest cast choices. Definately looks to be a great episode.
*does the fangirl dance of glee* Ooooh! We got FRAN coming back! And Nicole DeBoer (Ezri Dax)! And a Ronon centered ep that is even stronger than “Sateda”?!?!. *squees quietly* Not to mention more cool battle sequences! Eeeeeeeee!!!! *goes into fangirl overload* And all of the rest of the character sequences you mentioned also sound like they’re going to be wonderful as well. Man, season 5 is so going to rock my socks!
Now, a question for you on the weapons spread in that first pic. Are those last 4 weapons on the right USAS 12’s? Wicked cool weapons!
Thank you, Joe! Todays post was like opening an unexpected pressie!
To Eddy, positive vibes are going out to you and the rest of the riders. Be safe and good luck, man!
As for everyone wanting real women cast in the series? Don’t hold your breath, you won’t look good that shade of blue. :-/ It’s a sad fact that our show as watched by millions of rabid female fans is geared by MGM and Skiffy to play to the 18-24yo male audience. We have the choice to either be happy with things as they are done or tough noogies. Personally, I can deal with the unreality and lock my disbelief in that 80 ton vault in the back of my mind along with the rest of my nit picks and quibbles because there just ain’t a crane big enough to suspend it all. I’m more than willing to do that because I like to enjoy my show and I love it to pieces despite the small stuff, with which I can gladly deal. And hey, Joe does listen to us on occasion, we gotta give him credit for that plus the fact that he shares all of these neat little tidbits with us, for which I am enormously grateful. Thank you, Joe!
And now I’m headed off to bed as I can tell the muscle relaxers and Ambien have kicked in. Ahhhh….fewer muscle spasms! ‘Night, all!
Phoooey, I oopsed the blasted HTML code and didn’t close out the italics properly. Sorry!
Talking about ROnon I just remembered that I never heard if Jason dewcided toi let Ronon keep the dreads or not. I thought I read every blog ever since.
Is he still undicided or has there been some silent agreement to let Ronon keep his dreads?
Nichole De Boer Dead Zone and DS-9 will she be a regular as I hope Christina Cox will be???
Nicole DeBoer, wasn’t she Dax in season 7 of DS9? Though I’m gay, I thought she was hot! 😀 Great choice!
More estrogen in the cast can only be a good thing (even if they’re temp characters). All I can say is: Boobies infusion. (Yes, yes, I know, I’m going to hell. We’ll all meet up there. No film at 11.)
The Adroid’s Dream, John Scalzi.
Discussion the week of May 26th, with author John Scalzi.
Hmm, must admit to some difficulty in finding this particular title. 🙂
Cute very, very sexy women. May their characters all die horribly.
Nicole de Boer Rocks!! I loved her in Cube.
Will she be working with David again at all????
NZJ
If at first you don’t succeed, and second and third 🙂 …
I’m going to take a chance and ask again. Can you please let us know what part Sheppard will play in the first half of season five and which episode will feature him prominently?
Thank you.
hachi Said:
Unattractive women are not allowed through the Stargate, it would really mess with the aesthetics of the place.
Actually its a whole lot simpler than that, you see all women that enter the stargate, regardless of what they look like originally, have their molecules rescrambled in much the same way that happens to enable all users to communicate, it was decided that alien peoples would respond far more positively to generic model type females and so even the most homely looking gal ends up looking like she just stepped out of a photoshoot. I guess in the cases of overweight gals the excess flab is stored in the buffers to give the anorexic ones a little more shape, that way everyone is happy.
erm where can I sign up?
Oh yeah, cool arsenal dude!
Folks should stop griping about the girls in the “Whispers” episode. I am slightly disappointed with the casting of Christina Cox and Nicole De Boer. They are really long in the tooth for their roles. They would have been muster out of the military in real life. Nicole is 37 and Christina is 36. They look physically fantastic edging toward 40. Majors in most military are usually in their mid to late twenties. Still nice to see TPTB finding kick ass girls for this episode.
Just a suggestion to the TPTB. Christina Cox should dye her hair a coppery red and Nicole a platinum white blonde. That would really make them looking quite different than their previous personas in film and TV.
Major Anne Teldy could be a recurring role. After her demise from the “Space Cows” encounter. She could be resurrected as a wraith hybrid experiment by Michael or other wraiths. She would be Stargate’s undead character. (LOL and running away now)
**YES** Preordered Continuum & SGA s4 DVDs!!!! LONG squirmy wait til July now, for those and (I guess) SGA s5 coming then, busy month!! For me Ark of Truth was just the appetizer, Continuum is the hugely anticipated main course and I hope its everything I’m looking for. The trailer certainly looks promising. I will definitely be dissecting that movie for review.
Thx for another title!! I hope that’s FRAN, funny how much I liked that character in just 1 short appearance. I think its because she came off so…. Stargate. Nice arsenal.
I’m really glad to hear Ronon gets more development, didn’t really warm up to his character until Sateda, and he’s only gotten better since.
So Nicole finally makes it to Stargate 😉
DD
I wonder if all the people above complaining about the women being ‘too attractive’ are the same people who get all hot and flushed over the sight of Joe Flanigan or David Hewlett or Kavan Smith on screen.
Well, at least its good to know that sexism is an equal opportunity discrimination.
If you need further “research” into what scares people, may I recommend “The Cube”, starring a certain David Hewlett and Nicole de Boer. Speaking of “Cube”, will David and Nicole have any scenes in “Whispers” trapped together, say, underground? Or in a maze of identical rooms filled with deadly traps while cabin feverish fellow inmates try to kill them?!
On a different topic, do you like Banoffee pie? I had it for the first time last week, and it’s the tastiest desert I’ve EVER eaten, but you don’t seem to have ever blogged about it. Why the oversight?!
Since the SG1 movies are now completed, what has become of the standing SGC sets? Hopefully, there will be more movies, so they should not be destroyed.
I find it interesting that everyone is making such a big deal out of an all female team. All male teams go through the gate all the time and we don’t bat an eye. Double standards you think??? I can’t wait to see this episode. I’m thrilled to see Christina Cox back on Stargate. And I’m tickled about Nicole’s casting as well. And I’m jealous of Anne… talk about getting a cool actress to play your namesake! 😉
Oh! I almost forgot Fran! Awesome update today, Joe. Thanks!
I love it! More kick-ass women for the Stargate franchise!!
I can’t wait to see them make their debut.
And hooray for giving Jason a meaty script. I’m sure he’s knocking it out of the park. And I’m sure that story will be the launch of a thousand fanfics. (Which, as you know, is the highest compliment.)
On April 11, 2008 at 7:10 pm Shawna Said:
…When you get to Brent Spiner, get ready for some squeeing. (Seriously, you should get him on sometime.)….
He played Michael in Allies, presumably Connor wasn’t available. Of course, I didn’t notice it was someone else playing Michael until it was pointed out to me, so it’s not like Brent has been on SGA in a recognisable form … though for me a recognisable form would require him to look like an android!! Anyway, thought I’d mention he had been on SGA.
Sounds to me like S5 is going to rock. Really looking forward to quite a few episodes so far (and not just The Shrine for my Rodney (and Jeannie) fix, but quite a few of the others sound good too)!
Hope David Nykl updates his blog now – thanks for mentioning that we’re missing him!!
Leesa Perrie
Hi, newbie in the blog here. Enjoying it, time travel discussion of the last few days mostly.
Just wanted to tell u, i’ve been watching the episodes of the fourth season of SG1, and i hope that if there’s a 6th Season of Atlantis, you make a homage to the episode “2010” from SG1.
telling u in advance, so u have time to think about it… 🙂
So much new information about Season 5, here and on the Gateworld side in the last couple of days! I’m very pleased to see that the Wraith will be back in several more episodes and that we will be seeing Todd again in Season 5. I am also very curious about the new enemy that will be appearing and how it will effect the balance of power in Pegasus.
Your mention of “Wraith battle scenes” and dasNdanger’s post here got me thinking about the Wraith and their role in previous SGA episodes. It’s a bit like the “redshirts” in the old StarTrek episodes – you saw a minor character wearing a red uniform top in the opening scene and you knew he was doomed. With the notable exception of Todd (and Michael, sort of), Wraith have become the redshirts of SGA. Yes, I know they are “bad-guys” but killing off every one of them that appears in an episode … I think you and the other writers are better than that.
Just my thoughts on the subject.
Sparrow
Christina Cox!!! Awesome! I loved Blood Ties. Now you have to get the guy who played Henry and life would be good.
Your guest cast is full of monster personalities especially Christina Cox (Blood Ties rules!)
Speaking of monster personalities: how is Jason M’s prsonality really? Describe. In detail.
Mr. M… you are so diligent in keeping up with your blog, and that makes it a great place (for us) to visit. But what about the blog gives you the most enjoyment (sharing your personal interests, sharing production teasers, feedback from fans, etc…)??
das
Me revoila =)
Ma prise de sang c’est bien passée, finalement sa était trés vite =) oufff!! =)
Je voulais juste vous montrez un video de quelqu’un qui joue “Beyond the night” a la guitare éléctrique, sa fait jolie aussi comme sa^^:
http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=KKx-fbsUjdc
@ Leesa Perrie ~ Actually, that was Brent Stait as Micheal in “Allies”, not Brent Spiner …
I second the wish for Spiner on SGA! 😀 In fact, he would make a kick-ass Wraith, I think.
Bonjour Joseph,
Houalala, ça fait un p’tit bout de temps que je ne suis pas passée ici te dire BONJOUR !! Alors, BONJOUR !
Je suis dans un rush incroyable avec mes élèves, j’ai des secondaire 1 et 2 (entre 12 et 14 ans) et ils sont pas mal difficile à faire taire (je suis complètement épuisée quand je retourne chez moi (qui a dit qu’enseignant était le plus beau métier du monde ?? Ouais, peut-être, mais il faut avoir une très bonne attitude positive pour passer au travers!!!)) À part ça, je m’organise un petit voyage à Montréal pour dans deux semaines, je vais aller essayer les chocolats à la boutique que tu a recommander Suite 88 sur Saint-Denis. Est-ce que tu penses aller à Montréal bientôt ?
Toujours aussi intéressant ton blogue,
Morgia (la prof complètement exténuée, mais qui trouve que ses élèves sont adorables tout de même !!)
‘shiningwit Said:
Actually its a whole lot simpler than that, you see all women that enter the stargate, regardless of what they look like originally, have their molecules rescrambled in much the same way that happens to enable all users to communicate, it was decided that alien peoples would respond far more positively to generic model type females and so even the most homely looking gal ends up looking like she just stepped out of a photoshoot. I guess in the cases of overweight gals the excess flab is stored in the buffers to give the anorexic ones a little more shape, that way everyone is happy.
erm where can I sign up?’
LOL If only that were possible.:)
I love the new female team.
To everyone who thinks that the actresses
are too attractive and not ordinary enough, perhaps these are the most ordinary ones they could find. You should have seen the others.:)
No complaints from me if I can keep seeing the hot Kavan Smith, Joe Flanigan, Jason and all the other gorgeous males on the show.
Love the Ronon and Fran pic.
Daedalus Variations is sounding sooo good.
Nice guest lineup. My offer to help Ms. Savasta with Spanish or Spanglish (code-switching between English and Spanish) still stands.
@wolfenm: GMTA.
Photo of Trinneer:
http://www.shore-leave.com/archive/28/david-simerly/connor-trinneer.jpg
Photos of Stait:
http://www.starland.com/sf-sc/sf02/SF02_Burtram_Strait.htm
@ shiningwit:
Well, I guess I can credit visiting the SG-1 set in 2004 with my substantial weight loss since then. *grin* Or maybe it was just my disgust with the resulting photos…!
Photos of Spiner:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000653/
Also note, please, that Stait is 5’9″
Whoops, Joe, I apologize for the editing slip in last post. Time to stop typing!
Fantastic casting for the other team! Can’t wait to see Nicole De Boer on the show! I’ve been a fan of hers since CUBE and Deep Space Nine!
Ahhh so Nicole de Boer starred with David Hewlett in Cube. That was a great film. Would be interesting to see what happens to the character and whether she and McKay get some screen time together.
Hey Joe!
I’m back home now and fighting the jet lag. You wouldn’t think three hours would mess with one’s eating schedule this much. I can’t figure out when to be hungry.
I’m already missing the mountains in Vancouver and even the 10 degree weather. Yesterday it got up to 92 degrees Fahrenheit! That’s the equivalent of 32 degrees celsius!
Again, thanks for meeting us fans at Fuel. Not only did it mean a great deal to me, but Allie truly enjoyed herself. She’s already wishing we could have the wild BC salmon for dinner.
I’m thrilled about the news on the irish character on Atlantis. Fantastic name, Paddy O’Shamrock. Ha! Ha! You are a very funny man.
Yesssssssss, FRAN’s back. I’m so glad we don’t have to wait till later in the season to see the replicator storyline picked up, they’re my favorite Stargate people.
Is Michelle Morgan going to be in any other episodes during season 5, in the back half maybe? Any chance of more pictures from the set? please.
Oh, and all female team, can’t wait.
Christina Cox? OMG! I love her! She’ll be an amazing addition! Yay 🙂 At least this character I will like 😛 hehehehe 🙂 Thanks for the casting info 🙂
@ the folks concerned about how hot the women of the armed forces are being portrayed on Atlantis…Now! Now! To be fair, there was actually one time when an attractive-but-not-quite-hotty appeared on the show as an American service woman. As I recall, she wound up in somebody’s head because of a snafu (an actual military acronym: Situation Normal- All F***ed Up) of some sort of equipment, and that brought us the infamous (yet still delicious) lip-lock between McKay and Beckett!
@das: Honey, Todd’s a realist, but he always plans to succeed. Channel him!
Sparrow_hawk makes a very good analogy and a very good point. I’ve been a fan of SG: Atlantis from episode one. I grew up reading scifi/fantasy, and the lost continent of Atlantis was one of my favorite topics. The best stories were about how Atlantis was lost because the actions of the Atlanteans required a price to be paid. A price too high to be reasonable, yet even though they saw it coming, they refused to stop their abuses of the power brought to them through their technology. They were cautionary tales. A big portion of early SGA seemed to be following this same track, and it was a very creative portrayal of how the Earth Atlanteans were inadvertently following in the steps of the original Atlanteans. Then came the shift where they began to willfully follow in the poorly chosen ways of the early Atlanteans, yet they still felt the right to critisize
“The Lost Tribe”…*SQUEE*… now both episodes have a name!!!!! I hope you’ll post pictures when Michael is on set like you did when he was there to film “Continuum”. Can’t wait to see them if you do.
I agree, Joe. The guest cast that you guys have chosen for “Whispers” is excellent. Really looking forward to season five.
danielfanforever
DARN CAT ON THE KEYBOARD! (or maybe I just hit the wrong key)
…the interfering ways of the original Atlanteans when viewing the aftermath of some foolish, eons old experiment? The same idiots who played a game which in reality was manipulating two actual peoples and brought them to the brink of destruction and criticized the original Atlanteans for playing God, then decided it was a good idea to try to “save” the human half of the Wraith by suppressing the bug DNA?
Can we say, “Xeno-phobia?” In my best ‘Deliverance’ hillybilly drawl, “If it ain’t human, it ain’t good enough to have the same in…inali…alienable rights we do!”
About money-in versus money-out, has anyone actually considered all-out, greedy, money-grubbing merchandising (also called capitalism) to solve that issue? Capitalism has many good traits going for it. For instance, you’d be able to smile while reading all of the postings from those of us in the Wraith Defenders Club over at GW because you’d actually be thinking about all the money you’d be making off of us weirdos rabid about all things Wraith! Seriously, you folks make available a life-size cut out of CH as Todd, and I’ll be at the pawnshop hocking my stuff. You toss in a life-size cut out of JL as Steve with it, and I’ll be at the pawnshop hocking das’s stuff, too! Well, maybe not das’s things, but I’ll definitely need more stuff!
Okay, joking aside, we really do want to see lots of merchandising of, not just Wraith, all things Atlantis. You do that right for us, and we’ll float your show for you!
Sincerely,
Wraithworshipper
aka: Nancy C. Wall
In the episode “Sunday”, Lorne is working on a painting, did the actor actually paint it himself it or was it done by the art department?
Christina Cox and Nicole DeBoer……No freaking way,seriously………WOOHOO……Two great actresses,and they can be kickass when they wanna be……I was so excited when i found out about this…Sorry i’m not squeeing over the other actresses but i kinda don’t know who they are but i’m sure they’ll be great also.
Anywho will the Atlantis crew be using more of Teyla and Ronon’s expertise of the Pegasus galaxy in S5?
Is there anything you can tell us in regards to Teyla in S5,we haven’t heard much about her apart from The Queen ep…Anything would be much appreciated?
Thank you JM!!
Quick question…is David Hewlett as bad as what everyone says he is? On the special Features, and in interviews, everyone says that he is really annoying…just like McKay. Is this true???
“David Nykl dropped by the office to say hello. I, of course, admonished him on your behalf for not updating his blog in a timely manner.”
Aw, thanks a lot M’Lord. We are honoured that you would keep the humble requests of your Tartan Army in mind while ruling over the Studio of the Bridge.
The pictures look amazing. Yay for more kick-ass-Ronan eppies :). And Nicole! I would laugh if Natali did a walk-on as a Wraith XD.
My hubby is going to be very excited … he never goes online unless I drag him to the computer and show him pictures. Yeah, he’ll like the ladies. Thank you, thank you, this will improve the ol’ love life.
Hey, actresses are attractive, that’s part of the job description. Nothing wrong with pretty women. The Armed Forces does have beautiful people if memory serves. I have some hottie pictures of myself from DG when I was in the Navy, tanned and blond and a whole person thinner. 22 years ago, but time passes. These days I could give Dr. Lee a run for his money though; I certainly have more hair!
I’m asking for snark by doing this, be kind, and hopefully you can view my Tribe photo:
http://tinyurl.com/6ehnkg
For those of you who enjoy “team” episodes in particular, this is one to look forward to.
That would be me, hurrah!
Captain Vega: “Oh no’s, I’ve broken a nail!”
Sargent Mehra: *falls over under weight of gun, muses hair*
Major Teldy: “Quick girls, lets double time it back to the beauty salon!”
I jest. Kind of. North American tv does seem to have a lot of actors that seem to spend a lot of time making themselves generically beautiful though, which is why I have a soft spot for English tv where it just seems a bit more real – it doesn’t look like they spent an hour on getting their hair done before a scene and you don’t get women leaping out of bed with fully done makeup quite as much. I guess it’s just one of those wacky cultural differences things. Perhaps there should be a war.
But major (haha) props for having more female characters on and am especially looking forward to FRAN’s return.
♥Bonne nuit mon Joseph adoré♥ a demain =) Bonne nuit =)♥
Is that Fran I spy in those pictures? Awesome! I really liked her before in her (admittedly small) role and was glad to see she’d be back again.
I have to say, Joe, that all this talk of cafeteria scenes with John and Rodney, moments between Rodney and Ronon, Ronon being fierce and, well, not, and The Team makes me long for my SGA Fridays. I miss my show!
We have noticed a distinct lack of information about Sheppard in the first half of season 5. Is that due to the spoilery nature of his role in the eps, or have you decided to put the spotlight more on other characters?
Do you have any idea when SciFi will announce Atlantis’ return date?
Quick question…is David Hewlett as bad as what everyone says he is?
Worse. The famines in North Korea? David Hewlett. The war in Sudan? David Hewlett. Why supermarket trolleys always seem to have at least one wheel that wont go in the right direction…well, I think you know why.
They would have said more in the interviews, through their tears of terror and despair, but he was holding a gun. Thank god the publicity department at least got a warning out to the general public. God bless them and their heroism. *minutes silence*
David Hewlett: renowned actor, complete psychopath.
umm, comments about attractive women on the Gates.
What about Amanda, Teri, Rachel, Jewel, Teryl, Morena, Claudia, Kate Hewlett, Ona Grauer, and many names I missed who appeared in various roles? What have I missed?
Will Michael’s role in Season Five make all his past evils appear as nothing more than stepping stones to what he has finally become?
I wish to second wraithworshippers’ idea of SG merchandising.
I live in a Disney kind of world. You call it Florida. It’s so easy to dec my house out in Mickey Mouse stuff. Where is the fun in that? If I could deck my house out in SG stuff, I’d be all over that like, well, a rabid SG fan would be all over that type of merchandise! What SG fan wouldn’t want a wraith yard gnome as opposed to a Mickey Mouse yard gnome? Yes, they sell those at Walmart. Or so I’ve been told. I only shop at the Evil Empire as a last resort.
Besides I read somewhere (or maybe someone at Disney told me) that Disney makes most of its profits from DVD and merch sales. Maybe I’m wrong about that. However, sci-fi fans are notarious for buying and collecting things from the shows that they worshi—I mean adore.
I already own every SG-related DVD (including “A Dog’s Breakfast” which I’ve bought 8 times and counting…really!). So how about some Kawoosh sheets for my bed or a wraith costume for my dog? I’d love a toaster that burns the symbol of earth into my bread. A Koyla punching bag would be a great way to relieve stress.
If it keeps Atlantis on the air for five more years (and then some), I’ll buy it!
I’m just sayin’.
Trish
(aka Rabid SG fan)
Hi Joe,
Thanks for the pics and the production updates! I was wondering: 1. Has the extreme Shep-whump ep found a new home yet? 2. Do you think there’ll be less team eps this season than in S4 or about the same? 3. Will there be eps like Trio and Missing in S5 in which only 1 or two members of the core team will be featured prominently?
Thanks! 🙂
Jenn
MY feelings on the new girl team are my feelings on the ancients- BBOORRIINNGG ..
I’m tired of seeing all these newbies coming aboard and getting airtime when Teyla is still ignored and overlooked . I’m not interested in watching a bunch of new women coming on the show . I’m much more interested knowing when Teyla is finally going to start be shown more and not merely a prop for the guys on the show..
Heck even Keller gets more to do than Teyla and I’ve nothing against Keller but already we know she is going to be featured decetly in season 5 but yet the only episode Teyla is being featured in is The Queen but will she be the primary focus or merely shown briefly while somebody else gets the attention ?
More Teyla please !!
@ Wraithie…ixnay on the aithwray efendersday…we do NOT want JM reading that bit of insanity now, do we?? 😆
And NO hockin’ my stuff! Besides, I already have a life-sized Todd ‘doll’…it’s Mr. Das in green face paint and a wig! 😀 W00T!
I wasn’t going to post again, seeing as how I’ve already said way too much today, and on this subject in general…but ugh…really, really sorry (I am supposed to be doing taxes!!! But THIS is more fun!)…
As a longtime trekkie, what worked for me was how (in most cases) a way was found to get along with the major enemies…even those who ate one another. 😀 Alliances despite the dangers, challenging the humans to find ways to coexist – and if that’s impossible, then at least learn to keep a respectful distance from enemy-controlled territory.
Although I haven’t watched much of SG1, from what I know of the show, and from what I see in SGA, the formula seems to be one of non-tolerance, putting human existence above all others and eliminating any threats that exist. This is fine in small doses, but after a while it wears on me. Let’s face it – a space exploration sci fi show where everyone left standing in the end is an attractive earthling isn’t much of a sci fi show. That’s more like real life… 😛
Wraith fans were treated (perhaps even a bit spoiled) in S4 with the alliance between Todd and the Lanteans – it was a breath of fresh, Atlantean air! But I doubt such an alliance will continue forever.
So, if a true alliance with the Wraith is impossible, then the next best thing would be to see a pulling back of their forces to an area where they hold dominant, impenetrable control, and no Lantean dare enter it lest they be killed on sight. And no wussifying the Wraith (again) by having Shep & Co. sneak in and blow up 12 hive ships or anything… 😉 Isolate them, but don’t annihilate them.
In the meantime, other enemies can be developed (as I believe is happening in S5 🙂 )…perhaps enemies SO evil we don’t mind seeing them killed off. See, I think what worries Wraith fans is that – for us – the Wraith have evolved beyond expendable enemy. We’ve become sympathetic to the race as a whole, seeing them as a species with a special dietary requirement, and not something that is inherently evil. We are afraid that the PTB will go the easy route, kill them off in order to introduce a new enemy, instead of finding some way to keep the Wraith around as both a threat and as an occasional ally. New enemies ARE GOOD, but not at the expense of the entire Wraith species.
I think that’s our concern. Other fans are concerned that a particular actor/character may be written out of the show as was done with Ford and others, but Wraith fans are more concerned that the entire species will eventually be eliminated, leaving our fandom with nothing left to fall back on.
Mr. M – I apologize for the ramble. I’m just… well…really, I’m just avoiding finishing up the taxes with this glorious distraction! 😛 As always, thank you for providing a place where fans CAN express their concerns, even if those concerns seem a bit silly or annoying at times. Thank you, and thanks for your patience with us all.
das
Oh my goodness, Mr. M., Shep fans are going crazy… from the details we’ve gotten, no episodes stand out as Shepisodes, which is bringing a lot of people down on the boards. Literally losing squees completely.
I’m a big Shep fan myself and the way I see it, Sheppard will have some good moments and S&R looks very promising especially for a Shep-whumper like me, but I have to say, the GW forum is depressing to go to now.
Well, I hope you are well.
Trish: I have a cement penguin in the front garden already, but I would so go for the front-yard wraith ‘gnome’! People going by would be like either, “What in the world…..?” or like “OHMYGOODNESS IWANTONE!”
So cool.
«On April 12, 2008 at 1:08 pm dovil Said:
Quick question…is David Hewlett as bad as what everyone says he is?
Worse. The famines in North Korea? David Hewlett. The war in Sudan? David Hewlett. Why supermarket trolleys always seem to have at least one wheel that wont go in the right direction…well, I think you know why.
They would have said more in the interviews, through their tears of terror and despair, but he was holding a gun. Thank god the publicity department at least got a warning out to the general public. God bless them and their heroism. *minutes silence*
David Hewlett: renowned actor, complete psychopath.»
AWWWWWWWW!!! That’s is so hilarious !!!
Ezri Dax is coming to Atlantis! Cool!
Now can you get Avery Brooks?
Agent Dark Said: “I wonder if all the people above complaining about the women being ‘too attractive’ are the same people who get all hot and flushed over the sight of Joe Flanigan or David Hewlett or Kavan Smith on screen. Well, at least its good to know that sexism is an equal opportunity discrimination.”
Thank you! I’m glad some people get it.
A couple of the actresses have already been involved in the Stargate universe. What’s wrong with having them play another role? If they can act (and Nicole de Boer certainly can, I don’t recall seeing the other actresses), and the producers are familiar with their work, then good for them.
Sorry Joe, it wasn’t meant to turn into an argument over the show being too damn pretty. For me, it’s icing on the cake.
Awesome. I can’t wait for those John/Ronon moments in Broken Ties! I’m a sucker for those two. That episode just may kill me.
And the new female team looks great in my opinion. Dunno why everyone is getting their panties (boxer-briefs?) in a bunch over it. They look nice and feisty. 😀
Eva K: I know, right?
Tekken Lord Said:
Nonsense! It’s a refracted Baryon mixed particle beam – it would slice through it like an axe through butter 😉
The show told us: The Wraith Zerged them!
Katie Said:
Oi! What’s this ageism thing you’ve got going on there – it’s not the age its the mileage which counts you know 😉
Besides, she’s not just anyone… its Special Agent Tanya! Tanya could blow up buildings and kick the butts of Shepard, Ronon, Tayla and SG1 at the same time! *g* (In the computer game Red Alert 2 😉 )
dasNdanger Said:
Indeed. We need some of that. They should try giving the wraith tretonin. 🙂
sylvia Said:
“umm, comments about attractive women on the Gates.
What about Amanda, Teri, Rachel, Jewel, Teryl, Claudia, Kate Hewlett, ”
Nope.
“Morena, Ona Grauer,”
Yep!
“and many names I missed who appeared in various roles? What have I missed?”
Sarah Strange!
Which reminds me I must get that agent so i can pitch my Atlantis story about how the team visits a tropical island (hey, lots of planets have tropics 😉 ) where they find Adria and Morgan Le Fay naked, human and amnesiac 😉
Joe,
Wonderful pictures. I’m on board with the rest when I say that I’m guessing that’s FRAN. I was actually hoping to see her again – though am not sure how that will be explained.
I love that we’re going to see another side of Ronon – or rather that the softer side we’ve seen glimpses of will be explored more. Thank you all for that.
Thanks, also, for the peak at the women of the “all female” team. I remember Ms. Cox from “The Sentinel” as well as her performance in CSI: Miami. And I LOVED Ms. DeBoer in DS9.
Thank you, again, for the info!
MA
Thanks so much for the Pics and the updates Joe. 🙂
So we’ve got Christina from “Blood Ties” and Nicole from “The Dead Zone” huh? Should be interesting.
Oh and yay on FRAN coming back, looking forward to that. 😀
Much Excitment at Seeing Fran is back, she was excellent!
Joe, is “The Queen” about Teyla or more about the Wraith Queen? Will the episode be about Teyla, or is it set up more like “Michael” in that Teyla was an adjunct character (and victim) to Michael?
When will there be an episode where Teyla’s awesome “kickass chickness” which you have referenced in several other episodes (but never truly showcased) is actually given the attention that you’ve given Rodney’s neurotica, Sheppard’s emotional stuffed-upness, Ronon’s passion?
As Kimberley and others have pointed out, Teyla is highly unappreciated by both PTB and fans – why bring in an “all-new team” of kickass chicks when you’ve already got one who’s shown her street cred in episodes “The Long Goodbye”, “Phantoms”, “Submersion”, “Tabula Rasa”, “Missing”, and “Spoils Of War”?
What’s so wrong about Teyla that TPTB never find a use for her as anything other than the victim?
Tielan.
Hey Joseph. Many of us Michael Shanks Falns loved it when he woudl blog at TVGuide.com, but we were sad when he stopped. Please, tell him that all his fans miss his blogging and telling us how things are going for him in reguards to his work, his family, his projects, etc. Please let him know that we’d love to hear from him, even if it’s only once a month or once a week. We love hearing about how he’s doing, and it’s nice when he can tell his fans himself. 🙂