Alas, it looks like I won’t be Comic Con-bound this July. Given the choice, I deferred moderation duties to Marty G. who, at the end of the day, will do a much better job than I would have (and, frankly, is in greater need of a tan). So, sorry to say no behind-the-scene snaps of the convention, party, and panels this year, but I’ll make up for it by posting video of my dog Lulu stripping the bark off my wife’s prized cedar topiary.
Speaking of Martin, we’ll be breaking his episode #16 when he gets back into town next week. Apparently, finding an oil rig-like setting for his script has been a bit of a challenge. John Smith did find one suitable-looking place however. The only drawback = it’s a sewage treatment plant and, by John’s own admission, tends to get “a little ripe in the summertime”. But sacrifices must be made for art and I, for one, don’t really have a problem shooting there despite the olfactory downside. Of course, the fact that I have no intention of visiting the location during production could have something to do with it. Also, the fact that Marty G., the director of said episode, WILL have to be there may result in a conceptual change. Maybe the story doesn’t take place on an oil rig after all. Maybe it takes place in a second-hand book shop…
Speaking of scripts, I went over my first draft of Remnants and trimmed it down from 63 to a somewhat more acceptable 58 pages. I’ll spend the weekend shaving another couple of pages off that count and then, we’ll be good to go. As is often the case when I write a script, I like it a lot more on second reading – although it’s not without its problems. Specifically, and at the risk of giving too much away…
S
P
O
I
L
E
R
A
L
E
R
T
I’m referring to pages 29, 31, 33, 34, 40, 44-50, 55, and 56. The nice thing about getting the script in early is that I’ll have a whole month to work on the rewrite rather than killing myself to incorporate everyone’s notes during prep week. It also means that my hiatus will be fairly free and clear. Outside of a brief side trip to Montreal to visit family, I’ll be spending my Summer vacation much like last year: sitting in the backyard with my dogs and a bunch of books.
No mailbag today. I’m taking the night off. Instead, enjoy not one but two clips from my visit to the Outsiders set. Click on the links:
http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee164/BaronDestructo/?action=view¤t=Outsidersvillage.flv
http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee164/BaronDestructo/?action=view¤t=Outsidersvillagescene.flv
Firstly, PALE is the new tan. I wore my PALE skin proudly at the Fuel dinner! 😛 If you don’t remember, you need to look at your picks again. I need a tan WAY more than Marty.
Secondly, you are a spoiler alert tease. Thankfully I didn’t fall for it. If I’d believed you I never would have read past the *alert* and would not have known your exciting summer plans. 😀
Great clips! Makes up for the spoiler alert thing.
Trish
A well deserved night off. I hope Mr. G. appreciates your empathy for his upcoming olfactory suffering. And we’re holding you to those spoilers. Don’t let us catch you cutting them out of the finished product! An Thanks fr the videos.
“I asked the wonderful Joseph Mallozzi to dedicate that day’s post on his own blog to him, and he kindly obliged. Not without wondering if I had spelled my brother’s name correctly though. Ah, well, it happens.”
Just wanted to show you this comment I made on my own blog when referring to my brother’s birthday. Oh and by the way, I would love to see an SGA episode take place in a second hand bookshop! Wonderful idea! Nice mustiness, compared to the less nice smell of a sewage treatment facility. Working at a bookstore myself, I’m always appreciative of the wonderful smell of books. Okay that sounds weird, but its true.
Sorry to hear you won’t be at Comic-con. You’ll miss Ray Bradbury. He’s listed as a guest this year.
lol…loved the spoilers…cool.
Thanks for the vids.
Please, vids of you and the bow-wows in the back yard too.
I love the spoiler!!! Sounds like you’re having the most trouble with the second half of the episode. (see, it was a spoiler… now when I watch the last half hour of Remnants, I’m gonna be thinking “This is the part of the script Joe referred to as ‘having its problems.'”)
And thanks for the video. It goes to show me once again the impressive amount of people needed to film a TV show (are they all crew? or are there a bunch of extras in there as well? is it really sad that I can’t tell?).
Also, did everyone know Joe’s blog (actually, both of them) are up for Blogger’s Choice awards? Here’s the address to vote: http://www.bloggerschoiceawards.com/
You have to sign up with your e-mail address, then search “joseph mallozzi” in the search bar to find him =)
Outside of a brief side trip to Montreal to visit family, I’ll be spending my Summer vacation much like last year: sitting in the backyard with my dogs and a bunch of books.
I must say as much as I like hearing tid bits about the development of the current season or the insights into tv production, my favourite part of your blog is hearing the everyday things like taking your pooches out for a walk or a trip to Future Shop or Chapters. I’m curious as to how are the tomato plants that your lovely neighbour gave you? You have remembered to water them haven’t you? While sitting in your back yard this summer can you please take a few photos of the pooches and the tomatoes?
Definitely the secondhand book shop. Way cooler than an oil rig. And much more pleasant places to be.
I have to agree with Trish. Pale is totally the new tan. (Actually, my feeling is to simply leave your skin tone whatever it naturally is. I’m not about to get cancer for the sake of fashion, thankyouverymuch.)
You are such a tease! When saw the spoiler part, I was like wow I can’t believe he is gonna actually give us something and then the tease. You are so funny.
I help run the family business (plg, htg, fuel oil and yes septic services) and let me tell you in the summer when the driver thinks nothing of cleaning a porta potty on our premises, it is disgusting. I have all I can do to keep from getting sick. I don’t even let them in the office when they smell like that. They have to hose down first. That will not be pleasant for anyone to be at a sewage treatment plant (yuk)! Good luck to them.
Whaaat? I come back after disappearing for a month only to find out that you’re not going to Comic Con. Now I have to read the previous entries to find out why. That sucks that you’ll miss everything Joe. I’ll take lots of pics of the anime displays for you though. Heh.
LOVE the title!! hahah you’re coming up with some beauties.
As for the spoiler alert, gah didn’t want to see the page numbers! You’ve spoiled it all now.
Thanks for the vids.. it’s almost like being a visitor on the set.
Lt.Col.Errandboy wrote:
Ditto! It’s amazing just how much those little words can mean.
dyginc wrote:
Sylvia (skgraff) was kind enough to send me the next three discussion books (as well as two of the last three), maggiemayday sent me a huge box of Fantasy and Science Fiction digests, and Leesa Perrie sent me a CD-Rom filled with Stargate fan fiction. Add that to the stack of books you just sent, and I’m well stocked for reading material. And, since I was recently moved from my private room to a semi-private (Medicare-dictated), I really won’t have room for more books until I read some of what I already have.
susanthetartanturtle wrote:
A corn dog is a hot dog with a cornbread-type wrapping around it served on a stick. A pronto pup is similar but with a flour-based batter, not cornbread.
Anne Teldy
So it’s possible that episode 16 will depict all of our characters with wrinkled noses? 😀
Oh, and Cheeky…hells yeah it’s the hug I’m after! What else would there be? 😉 Unfortunately I realized too late that we’ve got a family trip planned the week after and I’m kind of the guy that has to plan it (shouldn’t have left it to the last minute; it’s a lot of work). So looks like I’ll have to enjoy that hug some other time. I wouldn’t want to distract you from your busy schedule anyway; I wouldn’t want you to miss a chance to take good pics and trick Joe (M or F) into revealing some juicy spoilers! So yeah, there you go; sorry about that. Still, enjoy your time here in Vancouver and at Bridge Studios! 🙂
Remember, DON’T kill Joe with your hug. “Don’t” being the keyword!
Here are the questions I posed from yesterday, if you don’t mind, Joe:
1. Do shelved stories actually see the light of day ever again? Have there been shelved stories that have been picked up later on?
2. Is Todd still slated for 3 episodes this season?
3. Is Halling going to appear this season?
Moving onto the marathon stuff:
2001: An enjoyable episode; I liked it more than 2010, actually. We got a lot more Aschen screentime here, along with elaboration on their background; I liked that a lot; they just grow more and more intriguing as an enemy. I loved how our team slowly put the pieces together (it was very disturbing how Danny was on the cusp of a horrible discovery that we all know, and yet he didn’t), with the last piece given to us so easily! Though what was really chilling was the chat Jack had with Kinsey; it just showed how seedy and disgusting the “real world” was, and how, despite the dangers faced by the SGC everyday, it’s just better working there than elsewhere. Very nice episode.
Desperate Measures: Oooo…very nice indeed. I loved how the plot twisted and turned in almost every scene, and it all flowed naturally. I also loved how neatly it fit into the overall arc being developed so far, and I’m eager to continue with it. And then there is the usual Jack-Maybourne stuff, which is always gold. Loved it.
Wormhole X-Treme!: HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Ok, episode 100 is upon us, which means I’m about 1/3rd of the way through the marathon. I was howling with laughter for pretty much all of the first half of the episode, and still chuckled a fair amount later on when things got serious. Loved the cameos, especially that guy asking for the donuts. We should hire him more often. Uh huh. There were so many in-jokes that I got now that I didn’t get before thanks to my immersion into fandom, as well as my reading your blog, since a lot of “showbiz lingo” was used, and many of the crew was featured (like Evil Kenny!). Willie Garson was once again brilliant in this, and watching Jack in the studio was just hilarious. Though, I did find the NID/alien stuff a little slow. Still, that can’t change the fact that this was a brilliant move by you guys, to make the 100th episode be such a self-parody full of cameos and injokes. Loved it, A LOT.
Any tips on cutting down scripts? If I was lucky I’d be able to reduce a 63page script to 62pages. I always feel like I’m taking away something special from one of my characters! (I write for the stage not t.v)
I liked your answer about what is the driving influence in sci-fi. Surely its our imaginations and science itself. Everytime science goes “look we have finally managed to….” someone with imagination goes, ok you can do that now but what if this or that could be possible. This would mean it is either books or film that could create new ideas. Although there is no such thing as a completely new idea in fiction. A book can equally be influenced by film and T.V as they can be by books.
I was quite glad to see your reference to children of men. In my opinion both are equally good, but both concentrate on different aspects of human nature, also the film has political undertones. Also glad that you said it was sci-fi as my friend working in the media was under the impression that it couldn’t be due to the lack of aliens/people from the distance future/science experiment gone wrong.
Coucou Joseph =)!! Bien dormis? moi oui^^!!
Aujourd’hui mon cheri vient a la maison, donc je ne pourrais pas venir tout les jours, mais rassurez vous ce ne dura que 7 jours ^^!!
Ohh je suis téllement triste de ne pas vous voir au Comic Con cette année =(, jespert que vous posterez beaucoup de photo de vous sur votre blog, car sa me manque de voir votre tête.
Yé!! Merci pour ces 2 video^^!! Cette épisode a l’aire super:)
Questions:
1) Avons nous une chance de vous a une autre convention que le Comic Com?
2) Quand son vos futur vacance?
Bon, bah gros gros bisou, passez une bonne journée, je vous adore!!!!!!! =) a bientot =)
I’ve turned my mom into a fan of your dogs. 😀 She is always looking forward to any pictures you post of them. That said, she’s been having a difficult few days healthwise and I was wondering if you could put some pictures (or vids) of Lulu and the pugs up soon. It’d make her day.
Re: Comic-Con or the lack of Joe M. at the party of the Summer!
Oh, man! We are going to miss you! We have so many fun things lined up…I’ll take pics of our craziness. Well, hopefully I’ll see you in August instead on my next Bridge Studios’ trip or at GateCon. But Comic-Con won’t be the same!
I think todays title was my favorite of all your recent awesome titles. Have you been have you been getting more traffic lately?
Also loved the spoiler alert. 😉 I really love page 40.
I know this was a little bit ago but thank you for the pictures of David Hewlett and Michael Shanks together… I can’t wait for that episode!
Hey Joe…listen, seeing as you’re not going to the comic-con, and I’n not going either…maybe I could come to your place, have a BBQ, ya know 🙂
You deserve a night off, so I won’t ask any question.
You are a bad, bad boy.
Blog title today = best one yet!
Have you seen the new Indiana Jones movie yet? I saw it tonight and I was floored!
I just watched the two videos and I was wondering how do you guys create the realistic affect of sunlight on your indoor sets like “Outsiders”?
Have a good time!
Hey ytimynona,
I signed up and voted for Joe’s blog, but there was only one choice… I did not know Joe had two blogs… as to the second blog of what do you speak???
Thanks for the info… EVERYONE!!! Go vote for Joe’s blog!!! Hurry!
Oh, and thanks for the video’s! Amazing!
Cheers,
Patricia
ytimynona wrote: Also, did everyone know Joe’s blog (actually, both of them) are up for Blogger’s Choice awards? Here’s the address to vote: http://www.bloggerschoiceawards.com/
You have to sign up with your e-mail address, then search “joseph mallozzi” in the search bar to find him =)
Hey ytimynona,
I signed up and voted for Joe’s blog, but there was only one choice… I did not know Joe had two blogs… as to the second blog of what do you speak???
Thanks for the info… EVERYONE!!! Go vote for Joe’s blog!!! Hurry! …feet hit’en the ground a la the Flintstone’s…
Oh, and thanks for the video’s! Amazing!
Cheers,
Patricia
Oh..nevermind… I get it… now, you got take more than a second to read what’s on the page!!! DUH!!!
What? The year I finally get to a Comic-Con and you’re not going to be there? I’m so disappointed. I wanted to get a photo with you.
Ah, well. I’ll just have to settle for the amusing words of Martin Gero.
“as the Gate Turns”
Funniest thing ive ever read! Joe I dont understand these people, the “stargate is turning into a soap opera whinge whinge”, apparently where their from they dont have human interactions. 0.0
You keep doing what your doing, its been a hit so far. SGA writers rock!
To Mercie: I love the smell of books too!
And I’m back. I’ve got another casting question for you. When you (or whoever does it) go through the headshots that agents send, how important is the resume? If an actor has little to no experience, or if their resume is comprised largely of school experience, what are the chances of getting called for an audition? Or is it not that big of a deal and the audition calls are based mostly on look (at least for small roles)?
I noticed you already decided on the stories of episodes 519 and 520 before doing the other ones – does this mean ep 519 and 520 are somewhat linked?
Noooooooooo! Not page 44 !
Curses.
hi there
bookshop, much better, unless you want to be evil, in which case push for the rig. -be evil it’ll be more amusing.
pale is much more pretty than tan, just look at all those yummy wraith and their adoring masses.
joe, could you tell us which actors are playing wraith this season. The poor wraith above, kenny, baldy and any others that are going to pop up.
i need a happy now, going off to watch blackadder
waves
Nice vids! sorry to hear you’ve decided to skip Comic Con, even if only as a fan.
I’ll take the oil rig (think Armageddon) over used bookstore any day. Allergies. Oddly, Doctor Who has done both kinds of sets… may I mention that the critical set/CGI SGA has been missing is a foundry. You know, with swinging dangerous things like hooks and sparks flying everywhere…
Speaking of Doctor Who, this season (Tennant 4) has been terrific so far despite the really awful season opener. Definitely waaay more worth watching than BSG, which is absolutely boring the hell outta me but like I said, I was a fan of the original so I’d see this through to the end, and to see who gets killed off next.
DD
Hey Joe
Glad to hear about the excellent progress of Remnants. Way to go!
After reading about the initial outlines of most of season 5, is ‘Monkey in the Control Room’ as you put before us the original title of Ghost in the Machine, The Prodigal or another episode of season 5?
Hope things continue to go well for you, your writing and the rest of the team. 🙂
Tim
woops! typo. Tennant 3.
A corn dog is a hot dog with a cornbread-type wrapping around it served on a stick. A pronto pup is similar but with a flour-based batter, not cornbread.
Anne Teldy
BLECHH!!!!! The corn dogs not you Anne
Thoroughly enjoying extra large Atlantis but not over keen on supersized Nickelodeon though 🙁
You know reading this blog and watching the vids you post makes me realise how absolutely amazing is the world of television. Thanks so much for supplying our entertainment.
Oh yeah, have a good weekend.
Its a freezing day here at the bottom of Africa and the cats are fighting for possession of the computer monitor. I could have had a neat flat screen a long time ago but I just couldn’t do that to them…
Enjoy the sunshine, and Joe – enjoy the break. BTW, what happened to your Italian speaking neighbours? Are you avoiding then like the plague now?
will we finally find out where all wraith technology came from?
Yay for the video clips! 🙂
Wraith feeding – do all humans have the same calorific value or does it depend on the age, size, gender or metablic rate of the person being fed upon?
Are human children just considered to be snacks instead of full meals?
Could a Wraith get fat (like me) by feeding too often?
Can a Wraith get indigestion by feeding too quickly?
Do Wraith burp after meals?
Do Wraith go to the little boys/girls room?
Am I bored? 🙂
The oil rig sounds cool Joe and if you put enough Vicks Vaporub under your nose you wouldn’t smell a thing. 😀
I’m not sure if I can watch Remnants though. You’ve totally given away the middle and ending. I’ll be thinking, was that page 44?
Now regarding emailing yourself a copy of the draft scripts, you could always cc it to me as well in case your email is compromised. I’m very trustworthy.
I don’t know how I could top susanthetartanturtle’s probing wraith questions, however I’ll give it a go. When people travel from Earth to the Pegasus Galaxy on the Daedalus etc do they have to go through quarantine to make sure they haven’t brought over seeds from a noxious weed in their clothes or baggage? Also do they have the same viruses we have here on Earth?
Cheers, Chev
Hey, your viz effects guys should be able to whip up an oil rig no problem! Green screen is all the rage, you know. 🙂 Oh, what about that location you used for SG1 Season 6’s “Shadow Play”? It had a pipeline/industrial feel to it.
I’m so sorry to miss you at Comic Con. I got talked into going even though I swear I’ll never go again every year (all those crowds!). I’m sure the newly media-savvy Martin will do fine.
I’m back from surgery recovery. I still have one week left before having to return to work. Thanks for the blog dedication.
Your vacation plans sound excellent. I dislike vacations that leave you more worn out than when you went on them. My ideal vacation would be a bungalow either in the mountains or on the beach with a swing on the porch, my dog and my books.
The behind the scenes look into script writing and directing certainly make us appreciate the show even more because now we realize just how hard everyone works just to entertain us for an hour each week. (Okay, and to get a paycheck.)
Taking my very ragged looking chow/lab to the groomer today. He has started shedding the winter coat and not only is he a mess, but so is my carpet. It’s somewhat expensive but I think he’ll feel better and I’ll have a lot less dog hair floating around.
Between you and David H I’m on pins and needles waiting for the most excellent Season 5 to begin!
P.S. Now that Carson is back will McKay return his turtles? Are the turtles stil alive? Will we get to see the exchange if it happens? It would certainly be a great ‘ahhhh’ moment.
Pssst! Joe! The Vancouver Regional Burn is held in July!
http://www.burningvan.org/a2z/phpbb/
I know, I’ve got burning on the brain.
1)Will any of the crew become (voluntarily or otherwise) intoxicated at any point?
2)Do any team members display any disturbing behavior this year, much to the disbelief of their team mates?
Answer: Days of our Stargate! Hey, that’s pretty…no, now that I think about it, kinda lame. Days of Our Hives would have, frankly, been a better effort. Also, as the Gate Turns was one I read that I thought was pretty clever. Might I also suggest All My Children of the Gods.
OMG, you’re too funny! I bet you watched (or watch??) all these shows too, don’t you. How about, in the case of Daniel Jackson, “Many Lives to Live”? Or, “The Edge of Atlantis”? Or, “The Wraith and the Restless” (good alliteration, isn’t it)? Or you can go with the primetime soap format, and call it something like “Atlantis” (instead of Dallas), or “Desperate Atlanteans” (not Desperate Housewives) or in lieu of Beverly Hills 90210, you can have “Atlantis 19304582749382047291802947…” Well, you get the point, right? You did?? Damn, you’re good.
Hey Joe!
Hope you had a great night off! Reading, eating, watching DVD’s, playing with the dogs…
Last night, I – the designated driver – spent the night in Toronto accompaying my hubby and his drunken friends on a pub-crawl. It was his last official day as an employee! Yay! He’s left his company after 17 years to go freelance (he’s a Technical Director and cameraman, but after so many years he’s also doing just about every other job under the sun including audio…) 😛 Good for the work requests I guess!
Pub-crawl’s aren’t quite as much fun when you have to play security guard to a group of “i love you….” stammering drinkers.
Wish us luck! Otherwise we may soon be living in a trailer much like the one next to the dumpster in your parking lot from a few blog’s ago….
This little tale, of course, does lead me to a question for a mailbag sometime:
Do you guys get paid on a full-time basis, or a by-script basis? Or does it all depend on the contract each season? It sounds like you have a pretty solid core of writers for your show – have you ever used a freelance writer?
Nika
Will we find out what Micheal did with his Super Bugs when he abandoned research on them and started work on the Hybrids?
From: ytimynona and Patricia Lee – excerpts below.
The blogs are those on blogspot not wordpress.
I think Joe said he was keeping the blogspot up to date, but to be honest I have not gone back there and just visit the wordpress blog.
Apparently one can nominate – the blog under different categories and that could be a reason why it appears there are two blogs. When you look at the description of each blog it appears to be two different blogs. Do not know the source of the descriptions.
And, of course – Joe’s blog fits a number of categories:
Best blog of all time
Best entertaining
and the list goes on.
ytimynona wrote: Also, did everyone know Joe’s blog (actually, both of them) are up for Blogger’s Choice awards? Here’s the address to vote: http://www.bloggerschoiceawards.com/
You have to sign up with your e-mail address, then search “joseph mallozzi” in the search bar to find him =)
Hey ytimynona,
I signed up and voted for Joe’s blog, but there was only one choice… I did not know Joe had two blogs… as to the second blog of what do you speak???
Have fun with the dogs and the books!! Hope mom is doing well and will cook for you when you visit, maybe lasagne,,yum..
Love the titles you’re coming up with.
Okay, fool question coming up – SGA related:
Do Ronon and Teyla get paid, like the rest of the expediation or do they just get room and board???
Sorry, just been floating around in my otherwise empty head.
Hey Joe…I know I said I wouldn’t ask any question today, but I sent you another e-mail, could you please respond to it!
Thanks Joe…and this will be my last time bugging you…for today:)
I’ve been wanting to ask someone this since I started reading the Harry Potter books: is a “whinge” the same thing as a “whine”? Seriously.
GeekBoy is no longer Duckman. He still looks like someone punched him in the mouth, but he is eating real food again. He’s not willing to risk citrus or anything too spicy just yet, at least until the stitches come out, but he seemed to do okay with the pepperoni pizza.
Since there are an infinite number of possible universes out there, do you think there would ever be an episode where they run into a universe where Col. Sumner was still alive?
I know that it would be hard to do with Robert Patrick on The Unit. Actor availability is always an issue, but I think it would be a great character piece, especially for Sheppard, having to deal with him. And find out how things would be different on Atlantis if he had survived.