The final half-dozen scripts are in play and we’ve been busy writing, revising, reading, and critiquing. Once again, Carl wrote an incredibly tight script. Looks like Pain will require minimal changes. Brad did his pass on Sabotage and, Carl and I agree, it’s a much better script. Martin sent in his revised draft of Lost. Heh. Love the ending. Paul’s first draft of Subversion is very good and beautifully sets up the last two episodes. As for those last two episodes – Carl read ’em and liked them. He had some notes, specifically dealing with an element of the story that I was having trouble with myself, but offered up a great idea for the fix. Brad and Paul have only read the first script but responded positively. All well and good but I think I’ll hold off on breathing that sigh of relief until they’ve read the second script AND Rob (who’s been off directing Human) weighs in with his opinion. They’re all tough critics and one bad review is enough to thoroughly upend a draft. The guest casting on these final three should be a lot of fun.
Hey, check out the Destiny mess –
I’ve given myself a Saturday deadline to finalize my restaurant list for my Tokyo trip later this year. I’ve been reviewing, rearranging, trying to slot my choices in terms of rank, location, and (lunch or dinner) dining opportunities. It’s been both fun and extremely frustrating. I figure this must be what those guys who select the 64 March Madness tourney teams go through. #1 seeds include Aronia de Takazawa, Quintessence, and Les Creations de Narisawa. Automatic bids have been won by the likes of Ryugin, Sawada, and Ristorante Aso. Some of those on bubble: Sushi Saito, Ginza La Tour, and Gordon Ramsay.
Let’s hit the mailbag:
JJ writes: “Did SGU webisode get a name yet? Like Battlestar’s The Resistance. And how long is each of webisode?”
Answer: No names for the kino segments. Their run time is approximately a couple of minutes each.
Enviropony writes: “Yes, and it contained the *exact* same line that upset so many of us in the first place: “…happens to be quadriplegic.”
and
Arctic Goddess writes: “One personal comment, however. When writing the way that a person with a disability is described, remember that the person with a disability is a person first. “
Answer: Which is, I believe, why the statement was worded the way it was. It was intended to make this very point.
Quade1 writes: “Sorry I should have elaborated, I meant how did the production team get the Puddle Jumper from sound stage to sound stage? It’s pretty big and doesn’t look like it can be disassembled, can it?”
Answer: We had two jumpers actually – one was the regular size version we kept in Stage 2 (if I remember correctly) while the other was the smaller, portable version we would haul out to location shoots. We used the latter. And, yes, it could be disassembled.
Fuschia writes: “Do you have a projector or a big screen tv? Lazy boys or sofas? We are always curious about what other people have!!!”
Answer: 107 inch screen, DLP projector, lazy boys, and the entire room is painted black.
AnneTeldy writes: “Am I confusing two characters? I thought Rush’s name is Zachary???”
Answer: Rush’s first name is Nicholas. Telford’s first name was Zak – but it didn’t clear so we had to come up with an alternate.
Luis writes: “Joe have you ever had Poutine????what is it exactly????”
Answer: French fries topped with cheese curds and hot gravy. Au Pied de Cochon does a particularly tasty version with foie gras.
Phil writes: “As someone behind the scenes, do you feel that TV shows (not specifically Stargate, but as a whole) are doing a good enough job with focussing on other aspects of sexuality and how race/gender play a part in this?”
Answer: I think that, in general, more can be done to reflect society’s diverse make-up. I also think we have to be mindful that, in so doing, the goal should be to create real characters – and by real, I mean realistic rather than idealized. Being real, they’ll be flawed, make mistakes, occasionally do bad things, and occasionally have bad things happen to them. In the case of the latter, look no further than the recent uproar surrounding Torchwood, one of the most progressive shows in this respect. A lot of the accusations leveled against the show’s creative seems downright baffling given their impressive track record on these very issues.
Eric.Stewart writes: “I’ll be frank with you, I am still trying to understand why it was so important for this Stargate to include a female gay character and why does she has to be a visible minority (Asian).”
Answer: See above for the first part of your question. As for why she’s a visible minority – when we were casting the role, we weren’t looking to cast the role of “the lesbian character”. We were looking to cast the role of Camile Wray. Ming was hired because she’s an incredible actress and her audition blew us away.
Drldeboer writes: “October BOTMC, I’d like to recommend The Seeds of Change anthology edited by John Joseph Adams”
Answer: It looks like a great book, however I believe it’s a hardcover (I prefer to stick with paperback editions to keep the cost down for those interested in taking part) and we’ve already had fab editor John Joseph Adams join us for The Living Dead anthology.
Sparrow_Hawk writes: “Hey, Joe! Did you ever go to any D&D conventions back in your younger days?”
Answer: A few. Me and my 14th level goblin thief alter ego with a charisma of 18, Delfoss Draco.
AvatarIII writes: “is there any technological relationship between the Kino and Goa’uld communication spheres?”
Answer: Nope.
RebeccaH writes: “I’ve just finished Iain M. Banks’ “Inversions”. JM, didn’t you do a short review of that book some time back?”
Answer: I don’t recall if I wrote a review, but I did read it. And enjoyed it immensely.
AnneTeldy writes: “Mark Dacascos, the chairman of Kitchen Stadium on Iron Chef America since 2005 and who played Tyre in two episodes of Stargate Atlantis is among the 16 competitors on Dancing With the Stars, ABC announced Monday morning on Good Morning America.”
Answer: I dropped Mark a note to let him know that Stargate fandom was in his corner.
Rraarr123 writes: “So now, as is my nature, I am curious. Do you support Sea Shepherds and/or Green Peace? What about other similar groups?”
Answer: I certainly do support organizations that actually put the welfare of animals before their own egos.
Rraarr123 also writes: “Are you for the philosophies of these groups, but against the actions?”
Answer: I object to ridiculous philosophies and actions that choose to dictate rather than educate.
DasNdanger writes: “Joe, tell me you did NOT dress your dogs up in costumes. I was just seeing things, right??”
Answer: Read ‘em and weep.
- Jelly, the princess, IS a Princess.
- Maximus metes out wild west justice.
- Bubba is off to Hogwarts.
You are sooo sick mallozzi, those poor dogs.!! Sheryl
@Deni, it’s now Tues. , 3 days and counting!!! Sheryl
I’m staging at Fuel again. I snapped this while I was there on Friday http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/205/picture742.jpg
Joe How is the Comic book series that you and paul are working on comming along?
The Destiny seems like a large ship. But I’ve seen blueprints for rooms in it and pictures of the rooms. It seems like these rooms feel small for a ship of its size. For instance, the infirmary looked so small for a ship that big. Is there an explanation for this? Such as there being multiple infirmaries or medical rooms associated with the infirmary shown. Or did the ancients just feel the room was a reasonable size because they figured they would never have that many causalities or something?
Lulu wants to be a Ninja, not a pumpkin, this year!
*casualties
Hey Joe,
I’m woefully out of the loop on so many online things and the great casting sides controversy caught me off-guard. It’t worth the hour of typing this one-handed to comment.
Having gone back now and read all of the links I could find, I appreciate the efforts being made by you, Brad, Rob and the team to address the issues raised in this instance.
I’m very familiar with how the sides don’t often come close to the final script, but as a woman writer (and a lesbian at that) I can see how the tone of those sides can look to the rest of the world – and how they – at first blush – didn’t even raise an eyebrow with your mostly all-male team when they were released.
Please believe that I’m not a bitter, man-hating, flag waving issue-monger; I am just someone who has experienced, first-hand, that kind of thoughtless lack of consideration by the very predominant male establishment of the industry. You guys released those sides because, quite frankly, from your in-group (inside SGU and mostly male) perspective, there was nothing wrong with them.
To the rest of us, there was.
Now you know better and you’ll no doubt do better next time. It’s all a learning process and it’s great that ALL sides can discuss the topic rationally. And, it’s also great, quite frankly, that we as outraged (upset, disappointed, angry) consumers of your product, have such a clear path by which we can contact you and get a response/resolution.
Other than Geordi LaForge on ST:TNG, I can’t remember the last time I saw a disabled person (I checked with the ADA to use the correct term) portrayed in Sci-Fi. I’m glad you’re taking that step, just as I am that Ming Na’s character will have a life that represents a good portion of the population.
Still looking forward to SGU, and am simply grateful that we have some “real” sci-fi to which to look forward. The landscape is grim, pretty much just SGU and Sanctuary.
~Pol
Going to Japan again? Just wondering, would you ever be willing to try whale? Also do you still play D&D and if so do you like 4th edition?
I have to say, the set looks amazing. Thanks for the pictures Joe 🙂
I’m thinking about a trip to Vancouver before I go to uni back home in England, so it’ll probably be in a year or so. Any restaurants you’d recommend visiting?
And an SGU related question : Do any of the stargates that have been seeded on worlds have DHDs? Or are they exclusively for use of the Destiny crew?
Absolutely FAB photos…of SGU and the babies!
Loved the pics of the dogs… I just wish I hadn’t taken a sip of my soda right before looking at them. *choke*
Thanks for some answers in the Q&A:
>… look no further than the recent uproar surrounding
>Torchwood, one of the most progressive shows in this
>respect. A lot of the accusations leveled against the show’s
>creative seems downright baffling given their impressive
>track record on these very issues.
I was wondering if you’d seen any of that. Some of the Torchwood fans did freak out just a bit. I saw some “fan” posts that could be considered death threats — Good God, people, it’s a television show. I thought Torchwood really redeemed itself (after some shaky episodes) with the Children of Earth miniseries. Killed off a much-loved character (and at least a hundred other unnamed characters, which none of the nuttier fans seemed to care about, in the same incident) and had the hero do some seriously non-heroic things. But all in the service of telling a good and thought-provoking story. So kudos to Russell T Davies and the other writers…. even if I was left really depressed by the whole thing. And seriously, people accusing RTD of homophobia because he killed off a gay character….. Seriously? .
Which leads to a random question — As a writer, have you ever introduced a character who was later killed off by another writer? Do you feel that sort of attachment to a character where you get upset or at least feel a bit possessive if someone else controls their fate?
It’s a weird thing — I know they’re fictional — but the uproar about Torchwood also left me wondering about the “lives” characters develop after their creation, and how many other people are involved in guiding their direction.
Just wondering (I really need to find a job soon — all this sitting around is giving me way too much time to think.)
– KB
I noticed the other day that long time blog supporter Carl Binder was not following your dogs on twitter. Has @cpbinder provided some sort of explanation for this surely accidental oversight?
Someone tweeted the following and I would like to echo this sentiment out of kindess to those who have been victimized:
“Don’t encourage people to watch Sabotage before judging if it contains rape–it’s triggering to survivors and incredibly insensitive”
If you have the time and interest, and can squeeze this in among all the sci-fi and related commentary, I’d love to read a few of your thoughts on Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods, which is high on my to-read list. I loved Notes from a Small Island. I’m A Stranger Here Myself, maybe not so much, but then he had a lot less time to work on that. (I still enjoyed his perceptions; it’s just that I didn’t have as many dying-from-laughter moments.)
Thanks for giving info from time to time on SGU’s musical side. I’m really looking forward to hearing the theme and each episode’s score, and what’s chosen in the way of contemporary music.
You almost certainly have read this or, failing that, been made aware of it. Still, as writer, I thought you might appreciate it.
http://www.theonion.com/content/news/sci_fi_writer_attributes
Is the crew *ever* doing a great job with the sets. Can’t wait to see how everything looks as it’s filmed.
Hey, did we miss Carl’s anniversaire? Happy Birthday, Rockstar! (See pix from 8-13-09.) If you ever need a guest blog host, we would love to have Carl. 😀
Love the pix of the puppies in costumes. They are cute, even if the dogz aren’t buying it.
Speaking of costumes, there was quite a parade at GenCon this weekend. There was something for everyone, from a movie-costume-beautiful frosted blue angel, to Chewbaca w/ voice simulator, the Beast bearing a rose (from the TV version of Beauty and the Beast), storm and snow troopers, and plenty o’ pirates with a whole LOT more on view than I needed to see.
I decided to dress as me, being that I was accompanying a friend’s daughter to her Girl Scout build-a-game session. Total fun! It was my first time ever at GenCon and I had no clue what all it contained. WOW! Still don’t think I’ve heard about everything that goes on. It would be cool to go next year with a GenCon veteran who knows the landscape. I was only there one day, did the GS session and lunch w/ the young friend, watched the costume parade, played kids’ games w/ the kids, visited w/ their Mom, and roamed the exhibition hall. I wanted to buy lots of stuff, but managed to just look. 🙂
Unfortunately, as Sparrow_hawk posted, we didn’t get to say hello.Too bad! It would have been to cool to observe a role playing game with one of the game-runners. The parade of people alone was worth being there. Another surprise? They had tons of writing seminars as well. The one I sat in on featured Patrick Rothfuss, author of the best-selling The Name of the Wind. I have not read the book, but he was one very funny dude. He read some of his work aloud, his humor full of sarcasm and bite, his wit zanily off-kilter and irreverent. If any of that is written into his novel, it might be a good read.
Lulu better get to wear a French maid or bride costume, and let Baby Brie be the pumpkin head this year. I’m just sayin’…. 😀
Although I’m not a frequent question poser or commenter here on your blog Mr. M.. I am a devoted daily reader.
For the October BOTMC might I suggest Storm Front (The Dresden Files, Book 1) by Jim Butcher. While the series was used as the basis for a short lived TV show, the books are far more entertaining. They are also a fast, light read and I was totally hooked within the first couple chapters. I am starting book 7 of the series now.
Just wanted to offer it up a suggestion.
By the way the pups look totally ready to go Trick or Treating on Halloween.
Gina
I admit I wasn’t too crazy about SGU the more I heard about it. In fact, I was downright pissed at how badly season five of SGA was done in addition to the premise of the new series.
Despite all that, I was still going to watch SGU.
Well, Joe, all that changed when I read up on this certain episode that sounded more like a bad scifi B-movie. Lesbian body swapping.
Then it got worse. It was just another shortcut to get the lesbian hooked up with a man…only it was without her permission…which is RAPE. Deny it all you want, but when a woman’s body is used for intercourse without her consent it is rape. There is no ambiguity.
In the past, I liked how you and the other creators handled women, but up until the last few seasons of SGA and what’s ahead on SGU, I must say that you and your buddies are treating women as if they are barbie dolls.
You do what you want with them as if you’re living out some teenage fantasy that you continue to drag around in hopes of finding some outlet.
It’s bad enough that women have to put up with a lot of crap in your male-dominated field, but it’s even worse when it plays out on the screen in front of us.
You can defend all of this to your heart’s content. You can laugh it off and say I’m being overdramatic…or even hysterical (which is actually what Hippocrates termed for women who weren’t getting enough sex in his opinion)
You have no idea what it is to be a woman or to put up with the crap that we are expected to deal with from men…even when they don’t realize they are being assholes.
This episode should be dropped from the lineup. It’s offensive and repugnant on so many levels. Women, lesbians, the disabled, and victims of rape have been cheapened here. I wish you could see that.
Heee, the dogs are so cute! And the sets are gorgeous! Love the bar! 🙂
Count me as one of those who was furious about Torchwood’s character death — not just because I loved the character (& the ship), but because they’d *already* killed off two other cast members (and another ship of mine) the season before! I mean, enough already — if I want endless tragedy, I’ll watch the news! XD Don’t get rid of all my reasons to watch, ya know? The one character besides Jack that’s still around is the one I liked the *least*! *headdesk*
Accusing RTD of homophobia is pretty ridiculous, though (as are the death threats! Crimony!) — he did Queer as Folk, for frith’s sake! I remember people saying similar things about Whedon, years ago — yes, killing Tara off was upsetting and arguably cliched, but the man did fight to get the network to allow Tara and Willow to kiss, so homophobia wasn’t likely the reason he’d killed her off ….
Speaking of positive depictions of the disabled in sci fi TV, for those who might be interested in other examples, one of my all-time fave shows, Extreme Ghostbusters, featured a character who was a parapalegic, a college kid named Garrett. I remember one episode, he and his teammates were talking about what they wanted outof the future, including having kids; Garrett said it might be fun to play basketball with a son, get him his own little chair … Another character pointed out to Garrett that he might have a kid that could walk, to which Garrett replied, after a slight pause, that he supposed he would love the kid anyway. *G* Sure, Garrett’s condition proved prohibitive once in a while, mostly when fighting (or arriving at a location with no ramp), for realism, but his comrades had their own issues. He was just as effective a member of the team as the rest, was never ashamed of his condition, and he was by far the most fearless. 🙂
Hey Joe,
What do you think will happen if I remove the Health Safety tag from my keyboard that, in all of its CAPS and exclamation mark fury says, “DO NOT REMOVE THIS TAG!”?
Other than preventing them from being sued, I wonder what mystical power it has that makes it such an important part of the existence of my keyboard.
How come Stargate does not feature laser weapons when it already exists in 2008 and is being used in aeroplanes, ships, etc. Please click on link : –
http://www.irconnect.com/noc/press/pages/news_releases.html?d=154600
It is being produced by Northrop Grumman Corporation and it looks like a box not like a laser gun, but hey as long as it works right and it has beams for destruction or stun.
Pretty cool if you ask me, I wonder if Stargate Universe will be uptodate on technology breakthrough or are we still going to see a radio controlled toy being pushed through the Stargate. And not the Honda Asimov or the Hitachi robot.
Bubba and the SGU shots are my favorite tonight. Always fun to hear about Japan.
I think I’ll take a pass on commenting the on rest. The others above have more than expressed many of my thoughts.
Mr.Mallozzi and to all other SGU producers/writers:
You have my full support in the content of “Sabotage”.
I’m also sure that someone has made you aware of Darren’s article at Gateworld today – and I completely agree with him.
SciFi should challenge us to think about all aspects of humanity. Showing challenging material is essential to SciFi and if done well, serves the purpose of the core of science fiction.
I want to applaud the writers/producers of SGU for bringing controversial issues to the table, and whether we like them or not as a society is exactly the point. Continue to make us think, to wonder, to examine the human condition and you will forever have a fan with me.
Joe. You are seriously messed up. Such indulgences! It’s amazing your dogs still speak to you. I mean…look at me. *I* have self-restraint. I WANT to dress my husband up like Elric…or Todd…but I don’t. As they say, just because we can do something doesn’t always mean we should… 😉
And I really didn’t mean for that to sound like I just compared Mr. Das to a puppy dog… 😛
Anyhoo – you ALL will be happy to know that I have a new ‘crush’ – a new diversion – and it’s like…a real guy, and he’s NOT green or pale!! Okay. So maybe he is a LITTLE pale…but he’s British, so that explains that.
I discovered Laurence Fox (actor and husband of Billie Piper) in the British detective series Lewis, (‘spin-off’ of Inspector Morse), as DS James Hathaway. He’s a very stoic character, and y’all know how I like those stoic, broody sorts. 😀
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/dasNdanger/LaurenceFox.jpg
Oh, and it doesn’t hurt that he sort of looks like John Picacio’s Elric:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/dasNdanger/elricjp2.jpg
😀
NIce vid – I’m really enjoying this series. I loved Morse, and shed a tear when it ended. Now finally I have something to fall back on.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6H17inC0bQ
(And yes – he has no hair. I’ll deal. Besides, I have a good imagination, and paint shop. 😀 )
das
Salut Joseph!!!
Vous allez bien? Moi super, depuis que j’ai changer d’oreiller je dors comme un bébé, comme quoi il ne faut pas grand chose pour passé une bonne nuit!
Ahh, merci pour les photos! J’adore ce style de déco!! Je suis sure que les scripts que vous avez écrit doivent vraiment génial!
Les costumes de vos chiens sont superbe! Allez vous utilisez les même pour le prochain Halloween?
Passez une bonne journée! Bisou!
Ha ha i quite like the princess picture is hilarious.
She doesnt look to impressed however.
Joe your cruel, but its funny 🙂
It’d be nice if SG:U went out on more international locations once in a while. Was very impressed with Robert Cooper and the team did with Vegas on SG:A. And likewise, the location work oop North for Continuum (I think) was equally welcome. I realise that cost, logistics and time are limiting factors, but it’s a small price to pay for not having every planet look like Canada or the US which was always my quibble with the original Stargate and many other sci-fi shows.
Lexx (being an international co-production) managed to do a bit of travelling, going from Canada to the UK, to South Africa and beyond. Even Doctor Who managed to get to go to Dubai.
Well, one can hope that SG:U gets to go travelling a bit further than usual.
Have I missed something? Where in the sides, the apology, or Mr. M’s blog entry/comments does it say Rush actually has sex with Perry/Camile? Everyone seems to be assuming he will. It’s completely possible he says no.
Mr, M wrote: This past association [of Perry and Rush], built on understanding and mutual respect, is the seed for any potential affection in this story, not biological drive or missed opportunity. [emphasis added]
Anne Teldy
Interesting that you would use Torchwood as an example.
From the impressions I have heard personally, they are known to have a *bad* track record on it.
As to the current fray from SGU ….. if I am still watching the show then, I will watch the episode in question. However, I found Brad and Rob’s comment about it being an on-going aspect of the show to be disquieting – and not in a good way.
If there is a last minute beam the whole building into space to avoid blowing up the city “fix” to explain the situation in that episode, it will have a worse effect on your DVD sales than the economy has had.
Me revoila! Je me posé une question!
Comment faite vous pour choisir le nom des personnage de sgu? au hasard?
Moi j’ai une idée de prénom pour un personnage secondaire de sgu!! ….. ANAIS !! lol…bah quoi il est joli mon prénom? ça donne un petit coté exotique ^^ (bon je vous laisse réfléchir à cette hypothése =)
….mais je vous conseille mieux d’appeler Anais une extrarestre, ça serai plus logique 😉
^^
Mr. Mallozzi,
Thank you for answering/clarifying my questions. I understand your position now!
Hope all is well. 🙂
Russell T. Davies homophobic?
The man’s openly gay, and has been fairly vocal about it. (And as someone pointed out, he created Queer As Folk).
There was an interview with Marc Cherry (also openly gay, and creator of Desperate Housewives) where he said (I’m paraphrasing SLIGHTLY):
“There’s a lot of pressure when you create a gay character, because everyone sort of has his own agenda when it comes to that — everyone has his own idea about what the character should be like. So, in the end, you just have to be true to yourself and create the character you want to create.”
And then I have to ask: what’s the difference between a gay and a straight character? Sure — a gay character may have a few more societal obstacles to over come, but in the end: THEY’RE ALL JUST PEOPLE/CHARACTERS. Whether or not they’re gay or they’re straight or they’re white or black or whatever, doesn’t affect WHY they might die (unless of course, there’s a storyline which involves that sort of thing; and even then: that’s no being homophobic or racist or something, it’s telling a story…).
Just sayin’.
At this point I’m waiting for the Joe Mallozzi Bracket and Bracketology of Tokyo Restaurants! My restaurant buddy and I have a hard enough time figuring where to go on our dinner adventures I can only imagine what you are going through at this time! Good Luck!! And I’ll look forward to the pictures and critiques!
Also, I’m digging the wall art behind the bar/buffet area. As much as I loved the set design on Atlantis, I love the Universe design much more! It’s more utilitarian than Atlantis but I think that is what makes it more appealing. Very functional.
I love Lulu the Pumpkin!
Oh, hey, now those are some SGU pictures I like the look of. And, look, the mess even has an Ancient Starbucks, complete with first iteration of an espresso machine! I love that little bar thing.
Drldeboer writes: “October BOTMC, I’d like to recommend The Seeds of Change anthology edited by John Joseph Adams”
Answer: It looks like a great book, however I believe it’s a hardcover (I prefer to stick with paperback editions to keep the cost down for those interested in taking part) and we’ve already had fab editor John Joseph Adams join us for The Living Dead anthology.
Thanks and oh crap, that means I missed him!!!?? Now must search.
So, how about a Dresden (Jim Butcher) book? You’ll really like it, and not “hard” reading, as I’ve seen some pleas for a lil less “thinking” for a change 😉 I’m very happy with the characters, reading Blood Rites right now a, you guessed it, vampire book. Agh! But BOTM should start with book 1 Storm Front.
DD
Joe –
For Mystery Science Theater 3000 geeks, there will be a live event at theaters across the US this week (8/20) with the guys now from Rifftrax doing their best to ham it up for the Ed Wood masterpiece, Plan 9 From Outer Space. Info at Rifftrax.com.
RE: Doggie pics – where do you draw the line?
iamza Oh, hey, now those are some SGU pictures I like the look of. And, look, the mess even has an Ancient Starbucks, complete with first iteration of an espresso machine! I love that little bar thing.
Was thinking the exact same thing!
@Wolfenm – thanks. I actually have been watching this controversy for some days now and trying to put my finger on what I thought was the ultimate problem. Oh, yes, there are problems on the attitudes the casting sheet showed towards the disabled, towards lesbians (and ohmygod, I STILL can’t believe the having a lesbian’s body have sex with a man didn’t ring lots of bells for everyone at Bridge to begin with!), and the amazing insensitivity about rape.
I don’t know what they’re going to do in the end, but I do know that if they decide that they have to go edgy and super dark to try to be like BSG, that will be it for SGU for me.
I’ve seen a lot of commentary across the internet about how great BSG was; a lot of people would like to go to the mat with the most negative version of the ideas that have become so controversial. Well, you know, I don’t really think that BSG was all that good. Oh, it was shocking, and no one on the entire show had a reliable conscience, and there was a lot of very bad behavior that people who were supposed to be main characters got away with. But the set up was different from Stargate, the people were different, and the modern BSG and its spinoffs aren’t going to be in production for 15+ solid and profitable years.
It’s not creative to condone rape and brutality, and it’s not creative to have everyone smoke on a starship with limited resources. Not to mention many other things. For me, those things got in the way of the underlying story. Truth is, I watched it even though I didn’t like it because I got caught up in the story and closed my eyes (literally) to the things I hated about it. There were things that I did like. But I won’t watch Caprica or any of the other upcoming things that still won’t last as long as Stargate. I’ll never buy the dvd’s or any merchandise, and I won’t watch another of their shows.
Hmm, in contrast, I’ve bought an amazing amount of Stargate merchandise, and I actually have two complete sets of SG1 dvd’s (bought all the single season sets and then the ten season box set). And never mind my autograph collection. Or my fancy Stargate watch. Or the jewelry.
But BSG wasn’t Stargate. If it is felt that one has to go so dark that main characters are committing very nasty and personal crimes, hey, I’m out of there. I still have SG1.
Also @ Wolfenm, I agree with you about Torchwood. Besides, RTD is openly gay. Killing Ianto wasn’t about homophobia; it was about tragedy, terrible, gut-wrenching tragedy.
I actually wasn’t going to watch Children of the Earth because I’m kind of tired of the Dr. Who/Torchwood aliens taking-over-humans-and-marching-them-in-lock-step thing. But I was sucked in with the first couple of minutes and watched the whole thing as it aired. It was incredibly well done.
Did it destroy Jack’s character? I don’t know. What he did was terrible, but he also saved billions of lives. That is moral ambiguity, really, even if what he did was awful. He didn’t do it for himself, either, or for personal or sexual gratification. He didn’t rape anyone. He murdered. This was very bad, but it was morally ambiguous because he didn’t do it for himself and he did it to save billions of lives. The personal sacrifice was terrible.
What it points out to me is that Torchwood is its own show, as BSG is its own show. As is Stargate.
And oh, yes, I can walk away from Stargate Universe if this episode turns out to be foul. As I recall, TPTB at Paramount in charge of Star Trek decided to remake Star Trek in the image they wanted, after three more or less successful spin-offs of the original, TNG, DS9 and Voyager. They came up with the piece of garbage that is Enterprise. I gave it a shot and then this long time Star Trek fan walked away. Now, when they did the new film, they made lots of changes, but it was also clear it was an AU. People could live with the changes, but I don’t think that they changed the ultimate spirit of Star Trek – as they had in Enterprise.
No one has ever called Enterprise successful.
One of my best friends tells me that I am more obsessed with and love Stargate more than I do Star Trek – and she thinks more than I’ve ever loved Star Trek. Well, I was really into Star Trek for a very, very long time. And I did and do love it. But I really, really love Stargate. I love those characters, I watch the SG1 reruns nearly every day (I have been working late a lot this summer, so I’ve missed quite a few).
But I will walk away from SGu if they try to go BSG on me.
(And oh, yes, I saw something somewhere on the net that indicates that Wray, while in the disabled scientist’s body, has sex/makes love with her partner back on Earth. That’s rape, too, if that’s the case. It’s also a good way for a character that I am predisposed to like to be destroyed for me).
I don’t know what is going to happen. I wish this controversy, and the need for it, hadn’t come up. But this I do know: going dark and being nasty for titillation or because one thinks it’s edgy isn’t creative, IMO. It’s pandering.
Mary
just as you are preaching about animal cruelty and you go and torture your dogs like that!!!
The only thing Khula wears is a hankerchief around her neck after the groomers. Otherwise she just pulls it off. My sister has been dressing up Jersey since she was a puppy so she is used to wearing sweaters and such and doesn’t mind them at all.
Joe, I understand if you can’t/won’t print this.
@AnnTedly This part of the casting sides (which I found at afterellen) is what’s worriesome:
S
P
O
I
L
E
R
[Sorry, Wolfenm. I’ll have to draw the line at posting excerpts from an unreleased early draft of a yet unproduced script.]
Even if they go no further, it leaves a bad taste in the mouth. All I can hope is that Rush, though it’s suggested here that he shows no hesitation, will perhaps realise it’s wrong and stop soon after, before anything more happens. I mean, even knowing it’s Eleanor in there, how can he look at Camile’s face and still use her body like that? *Unless* they, at the time, think there’s no hope of the women ever swapping back. (And even then, I should think it would take a while not to get weirded out by it, that there would be hesitation on his part. But maybe this ep covers a large expanse of time?)
Thing is, if TPTB could just confirm that such is the case, I think a lot of us would be mollified. It all comes down to that singular detail of the context of the scene — or else, if the context *is* what we fear, that they do still think swapping back is possible and Camille has not given consent, then the resolution, which would *have* to be Rush backing down before doing the deed. Because even if he did sleep with her and felt horrible after, that doesn’t make up for the fact that he was willing to go through with it in the *first* place — if he’s the sort who really would be appropriately bothered by the act, how *could* he have gone through with it in the first place? Was he drugged/drunk off his ass?
As other have said, I don’t want to get invested in watching a lead character only to have him turn out to be a rapist and then have to continue watching him (or having wasted watching in the first place if I quit), so I’d rather know before watching the show at all (which I guess makes it a lucky thing for me that the sides were leaked, cause if I went in unknowing and reached a point I couldn’t stomach, I’d be way more upset then). But I guess if they assuage our fears (saying we’ll be relieved by the end doesn’t really help, as we all have differing opinions of what would make something acceptable & what wouldn’t, the Lucius Lavin scenario being proof of that) or it would spoil the episode. :/
Jelly’s expression is one of “I thought he liked me…”
Quade1 wrote: “just as you are preaching about animal cruelty and you go and torture your dogs like that!!!
😆
Best post in the last three days! I love when hypocrites are exposed… 😉
No worries. You’re in good company, Joe…we are all guilty of a little hypocrisy now and then. It’s just that most of us don’t post pictures to prove it… 😀 See, I’m with Jay Leno on this…animals should not be dressed up! Of course…that Lulu does make the cutest little pumpkin – EVER! Awwwwwww! 🙂
das
Well I’m glad to hear sabotage is looking better. I think it could be a good script if it is handeled correctly, I just hope rush and Perry don’t have sex, I don’t think it would help you guys our in any way. Also just curious, when does sabotage start filming cause how do you rewrite an episode and start shooting it like two days after your done? Doesn’t it affect prep?
Oh and another question.
When will the premier be totally finished, like, you will start sending out copies to press screners?
Thanks so much,
Major D. .Davis
I liked Enterprise. 🙁
(As a fan of TV — it was a fun show; as a fan of Star Trek — well, it wasn’t Trek; the thing that most got me was the title sequence (again, as a fan of TV I liked it, but as a fan of Star Trek, all I could ask was… “Where’s Jerry Goldsmith and orchestra?!”).
That all said… the finale was… not the best choice.
artdogspot wrote to Joe, “RE: Doggie pics – where do you draw the line?”
But dogs are so cute all dressed up with really no place to go.
My last dog had several sweaters, shirts, a warm-up jacket, and a pair of shoes (she hated those). She had about 30 different bandanas, one for every occasion and her halloween costume. She had to have one because Halloween was her birthday.
My first dog I had was a 125 pound Saint Bernard/Irish Setter mix. I was too young and broke to buy him his own clothes, so he just wore my dad’s shorts and shirts!! Ha! He looked great! (He didn’t think so)
My new puppy is growing so fast she does not have too many clothes yet. She has already outgrown a little T-shirt, and has a black and hot pink shirt just waiting for a little cooler weather. You can bet she will be finely dressed. I think I want a yellow rain coat for her.
Just have fun. They are not around forever.
Oh those poor dogs, lol, they are cute.
So where’s Ashleigh these days? Is she laying low? No zany antics?Pranks? Tell her I said “Hey”. thanks
First, one day you’ll fall down a well, slip on ice or something equally as dire and you’ll call to your dogs to get help. They’ll stare at you and laugh and then you’ll suddenly realize, they’re getting even for being put in ridiculous costumes, and worse, publicized all over the web. 😉 *cough*
Second, more importantly, how will the abrupt departure of MGM CEO Harry Sloan effect, if at all, the production of the Stargate SG-1 / Atlantis movies?
Link:
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118007405.html?categoryid=13&cs=1
Thank you.
No prob, Joe, totally understand. 🙂 Thanks for printing what you could of it, that was nice of you!
Ya know…I’m kinda-sorta glad I’m a ‘gypsy’ fan. I go wherever I can find what I’m looking for. If a show disappoints too much, I’ll move on and find something to replace it. The hard part about SGA for me was that I loved the Wraith, which are characters specific to that show…not just characters, but a species specific to that show. I can never find them anywhere else.
However, I can still find satisfying characters elsewhere (as my previous post here shows). So, I don’t get hooked on shows that much, and can easily move on. SGA was an exception, but only because of the Wraith. I don’t think my liking – or disliking – SGU will be that much of an issue. Either I’ll enjoy it, or I won’t, but most of the issues I had with SGA will be non-existent, since – I assume – the new show will not focus on the extermination of an entire sentient species.
Unless, of course, SGU tries to be too much like ST:Voyager, with Janeway’s god-complex thing going on and all.
So, in the meantime, I’m just gonna avoid SGU spoilers and discussions, and wait and see what happens. Seems silly right now to get too upset over things without even seeing one single episode.
My biggest problem with the show is pure shallowness on my part – I don’t think there’ll be any male characters that I’ll find attractive. Age doesn’t matter, but I do prefer young, and I do prefer angsty…but I also like a certain physical appearance, as well (heroin chic, preferrably – thin, bony and pale). I usually have to ‘fall in love’ with a character in order to stay hooked on a show. However, I love NCIS without such an attraction to a character (though I admit to having a special fondness for both Abby and McGee). Best bet so far with me and SGU is David Blue – I’m HOPING he’s the ‘McGee’ of the show…that lovable fella that you look forward to seeing each week, just because he makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside.
Fingers crossed! 🙂
das
I’m hoping you post your completed Tokyo restaurant list when you’re done. I’ll need to dig into them myself to see if there are any I’d venture into at the end of the year. I’ll be in Japan later next month, but it’s a super quick 6 day trip, and I’m only 1 night in Tokyo. I head straight over to Osaka the morning after I arrive.
I’ve been curious to know, though: Do you always look for restaurants with eclectic or non traditional offerings, or do you also enjoy the best of everyday dishes? For instance, I’ve never tried foi gras, but truffles have made their way to my plate now and then, and although I enjoy the truffles, when I’m in Japan I don’t think I’d be spending as much time looking for truffle dishes as I would the place that serves up the most fabulous okonomiyaki. I know your time there is limited, but just wondering if it’s all about the exotic and different, or is there room on your plate for everyday offerings?
Ponytail – I respect your right – and Joe’s – to dress up your dogs. I assume they are into it. Some dogs love that kind of thing.
Our dogs (both gone now – an Old English Sheepdog and English Setter) were way too big for that.
But if we did not take our 100 lb. sheepdog, Connor, for at least one ride in the car everyday – he bugged and bugged and bugged us until we gave in. So, we bowed to his “force of nature” personality everyday and kept him happy – as the loving dog owners that we were. We even had a cheap, beat up old car just for them. So, no clothes – just a car – that’s all.
Ah, those poor innocent dogs… adorable. Although I have to admit, I was digging around in the guest room dresser and found Cricket’s princess costume. Had a good cry over that and got a bit teary today.
Been skipping many of the comments, plan to revisit them after the episode airs. In the meantime, the Curmudgeon Cafe is wide open and giving away free steaming cups of Shut the Fuck Up. The stench of soapbox is making me sneeze.
Oh dear, did I offend anyone? Good.
I love little dogs all dressed up as long as the dressing up is confined to special occasions like Halloween. Dressing dogs up every day would be just too weird. We have over 400 pounds of dogs at our house (a St. Bernard and two Newfoundlands) and, frankly, dressing them up even for special occasions would be financially prohibitive…not in terms of fabric yardage but in terms of having my arms reattached. I’d like to send them to Hogwarts but I think they ate it.
“Besides the three Part Pilot (“Air”) will we ever see The Icarus base in any of the other episodes in the first season?
@maggiemayday: 🙂 I’ll second that!
artdogspot – I take my dogs everywhere with me but receive a lot of criticism from those that I really don’t care what they think, because I drive a BMW and how dare I use a car such as that to take dogs places. Note: these are non-dog owners. Dog owners ask me where I got the back seat dog rugs from and then continue down the street walking their dog.
When a BMW employee gave me a look of disgust as he saw a beefy Ralph and happy Jack with their heads out of my car I said, “IT’S A CAR FOR CHRIST’S SAKE! I care more about my dogs than my car!” He mumbled that no wonder BMW didn’t want to do the repair work on my engine under warranty. My eyebrows did this – ö (yes, my eyebrows have left my face and are now hovering in the upper parts of the atmosphere). Last time I checked, dogs don’t cause mechanical failure.
Incidentally, that employee no longer works for the company. He informed me he was embarking on a career in real estate. I asked him if he has any political ambitions? He looked at me strangely. I figured, car salesman, real estate agent… politician seemed like a natural progression.
By the way, the BMW is being handed back in and I’m getting a Holden. Not so much enjoyment for me to drive, but the extra space will be great for the dogs 🙂
You know who else we’ve been missing for a while?
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.
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Marmalade McWraith…. McWRAI-AI-AI-AI-AI-AITH!
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Marm,’ are you going to the Con in October? A group of others are planning to. Hope you have just as great a story to tell as at the last one. 🙂
Anyhoo, we miss your comments here.
Thanks also to Anne Teldy, Sulien, and Trish for coming back. Please stay! 🙂
@maggiemayday Thanks, but my mother always told me you get what you pay for, and nothing worth having comes free. 🙂
@Jes: You have my dream dogs…lucky you! Newfies and St. Bernards in Florida don’t mix, but what I would give!
@Narelle from Aus: Ah yes, those pesky engine problems dogs cause. An old friend from high school got in touch with me a couple of days ago, told me he’d become a veterinarian, then told me I need to get rid of my dog, Elway, because of the epilepsy. He told me to put him to sleep and stop spending money on a lost cause, and was actually laughing the whole time. Needless to say, this dipshit has been blocked from everything. Probably still pissed off because I wouldn’t sleep with him 30 yrs ago;) These jerks are everywhere!
Narelle – we would have driven our dogs in a BMW or a Jag if we could have afforded it. Amazing how some folks just can’t deal with messing up their “stuff”. Boy, do I miss the “stuff-master” George Carlin sometimes. The BMW dude is certainly on the “politician” career path. Don’t vote for him unless he promises cars for every dog. And he better make ’em BMW’s.
JES – my sister has always had Newfies. You would be in traction and the poor-house if you tried to dress them up.
maggiemayday – I’ll stop into the curmudgeon cafe if you promise not to throw steaming cups of stuff at me. Deal?
I don’t usually endorse the dressing up of dogs (they’re entitled to their dignity too) but my Husband on the other hand, loves it. Such as getting Jack back in touch with his lost dog origins. So not PC Nathan 😐
Ah Poutine, something I read David Blue is not fond of. Neither am I. Give me french fries and ketchup anyday!!!
Hey Joe,
Were you in such an excited hurry to get those costumes on the dogs that you couldn’t be bothered to take the tag off of Lulu’s costume? Or did you pull the old wear it once and return it routine?
-G
The dog pictures are the best!
Tam
@iamza I’ll have to introduce you to the concept of a community based on a gift economy. Yes, there are things worth having which come for free.
Cute pics of the dogs all dressed up! It seems like they tolerate that sorta thing. My kitty Mookie, has a santa claus outfit and he despises it, but once a year around Christmas time I’ll put him in it. When he had his first christmas when he was ~6mos. he enjoyed it alot more. Hes 2 now.
And while I’m here, I might as well say that I don’t think that precedent is as good a predictor of things to come as some may think it is. People learn from their mistakes. But that’s just my opinion. I’ll judge the ep when I actually get to see it.
It’s the first time i’m commenting here and i just wanted to say i absolutely LOVE the Destiny sets. They look fantastic.
The first pic of the mess kinda reminds me of Barbie’s doll house or something.
JES –
We have over 400 pounds of dogs at our house (a St. Bernard and two Newfoundlands) and, frankly, dressing them up even for special occasions would be financially prohibitive…not in terms of fabric yardage but in terms of having my arms reattached. I’d like to send them to Hogwarts but I think they ate it.
LOL! Thanks for two excellent quips. Still grinning. . . .
My dog rides shotgun with me in my car. Whenever someone sits in her front seat, I put a towel down for them to sit on. Hummm. Is that suppose to be the other way around?
salut joseph!!!!!
Vos chien sont vraiment craquant dans leurs costumes xd!!
Le mess, par contre est plutot banal, mais dans le style vieillot du destiny.
Les questions:
1)Etes vous bilingue francais?
2)A quoi sert le chevron sur le sol?
3)Combien de temps durera chaque websode?
4)Y aura t’il un alien allié qui rejoindra l’equipage?
merci!!!
Ya know something? We dressed Sebastian up as Bat Dog one Halloween. It was the BEST dog costume EVER!!!
It even had a special weapons tool belt. It was most certainly an Adam West type Bat Dog costume. Which made it all the more awesome-er.
We’ve only had Ziggy for one Halloween, less than a week after we got him. We felt it cruel to dress him up so soon. And Annabelle did NOT like being Bat Girl Dog. Not at all.
So maybe the Ziggster will be Bad Dog this year! 😆
Ya know something else? It’s really, really hard to find a costume that will fit a Great Pyrenees. *sigh*
Trish 😀
Holy cow! That’s supposed to read “So maybe the Ziggster will be Bat Dog this year”. *sigh* He’s already Bad Dog. Which requires NO costume. 🙄 Just ask my feather pillows.
Ziggy loves wearing all of Allie’s hats so I have high hopes for this Halloween. I wouldn’t dress him up if he didn’t love it.
@ Narelle – 😆 Hilarious!
Hey…I dressed up like a French maid once… a VERY long time ago (the only reason I’m posting this is because you’d never recognize me now based on this pic! 😛 )
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v54/dasNdanger/frenchmaid.jpg
Still…I never, EVER dressed up a dog or a cat! (Well, except that time we put mom’s wig on the dog… 😛 )
das
What color is the outside surface of the Destiny?
Will the Destiny’s crew paint the walls brighter colors?
I’m loving the oxidized exotic metals look (and other metal surface conditions) of the Destiny’s interior surfaces – or is that supposed to look like faded paint?
The palette of colors just happens to coincide with some rarely seen metal surface chemistries.
I have been a solid fan of the SG franchise but I have finally hit the point where I will never watch another show produced, written or in any way involves any of you guys.
I would rather gouge out my eyes then watch SGU. I don’t trust you to produce a show that remotely is about what interests me or any of the legions of fans who have made you all very wealthy men.
Trot out all the pretty looking pictures you want, I know that this is going to turn out to be yet another piece of trash …much like last season of SGA.
Don’t be surprised when SGU tanks because you’ve long since stopped listening to anything the fans say. We didn’t want another version. But you all were clearly bored and wanted something else and so screw all of us. Well, what goes around comes around… and SGU is going to show that you guys made a really bad call by ignoring what we said.