So I received my new, replacement credit card the other day. The one with the chip. This time, I made a point of immediately signing the back and memorizing the pin number before promptly misplacing it. I spent about an hour looking for the damn thing and eventually discovered it in the side pocket of my sweat pants. No idea how it got there. Oh, that outline I couldn’t find before leaving for my Tokyo trip? Whereabouts still unknown. However, I do vaguely recall looking for an out-of-the-way place to hide it just in case my place was broken into while I was out for the day. Unlike some people I know, I have different passwords for different accounts, thus ensuring better overall security and at least two instances a day in which I have to go through the trouble of re-setting the passwords I’ve forgotten. You know how some mother’s had cute nicknames for their kids growing up? Like Princess or Junebug or Speedy or Cheechee Bean? Guess what my mom used to call me. The Absent-Minded Professor. A bit of a mouthful but, apparently, apropos. My father, on the other hand, was far more diplomatic, eschewing the nicknames for the occasional muttered: “He’d forget his head if it wasn’t screwed on.” All this to say, do not depend on me to watch your stuff or drop something off for your or babysit your kid. There’s a better than average chance I’ll lose whatever it is you’re entrusting me with.
Wha-wha-wha?! December 20th? Already? But I haven’t finished my Christmas shopping yet! This means I’m going to have to brave the holiday crowds and, really, next to kiwis and crocs, there’s nothing I hate more than having to join the masses of shiftless procrastinators and last-minute scramblers. Like myself. I refuse to hit any of the major shopping malls after last year’s debacle in which I drove into an underground parking lot, followed the overly optimistic “MORE PARKING!” signs to its lowest levels, drove around for fifteen minutes looking for a spot, then got fed up and went to leave – only to end up in a traffic jam of idling vehicles seeking to escape as well. I spent almost two hours that afternoon NOT shopping. I refuse to do it again. Instead, I’ll only be shopping at easily accessible shops like the nearby hardware store, Swedish bakery, or McDonalds. Hope my sis enjoys her malt loaf.
Mailbag:
duneknight writes: “yeah Joe, would it kill you to talk about a movie that just got released?”
Answer: I’ve got nothing to say on the subject. Haven’t seen it.
susanthetartanturtle writes: “How is data transferred back to Earth from Destiny?”
Answer: Crewmembers use the stones to visit Earth where they are debriefed by Homeworld Command.
Thornyrose writes: “And Pain sounds deliciosuly grusome.”
Answer: Oh a couple of scenes come to mind.
Arctic Goddess writes: “1) That sweet potato that Greer ate in “Justice”. What was it really? It looked almost like playdoh. But I know you wouldn’t feed the actors playdoh.
2) If Destiny is supposed to seed the galaxies with star gates, wouldn’t it be kind of like the railroad where you can’t use a train to get further west until the railroad is actually built? In other words, why would the Destiny be traveling around to planets it’s already been to and seeded if it’s dropping Star gates?”
Answers: 1) I believe it was an actual sweet potato with purple food dye.
2) The Destiny isn’t seeding the galaxies with stargates. It’s following the seeder ships that have done so.
PG15 writes: “Nice! Thank goodness I’ve saved the snippets of info you’ve revealed about episode 17.
So now the question is, which one is it? Is it one of the first 5 that are already under way?”
Answer: It’ll fall somewhere between the sixth and tenth slot.
Moe writes: ”
1. How much in advance do you write? Say you are at episode 2. How many further episodes are completely planned out at such a point?
2. Do you always have a plan/plot for an entire season, or do you make it up as you go along?
3. Do you have complete freedom in what you write, or does anyone (e.g. the network) give some guidelines?
4. You have more than one writer. How do you decide who writes which part? Do you just brainstorm and whoever has the best idea writes the script?
5. Are all the dialoges completely written out or do the actors have some creative room while acting? How much of a dialog comes from an actor rather than a writer?
6. Now that the atlantis base is on earth, does this mean I get to rent an apartment there?”
Answers: 1. It really depends on how fast the other writers write. All five of us headed off with scripts in November (episodes #1 – 5). Whoever is done first starts on the next script.
2. We have a general idea of where we’re going and where we want to end up.
3. Writing is a communal exercise. We, the writing team, come up with the story ideas and write the scripts, but the network provides input at various stages of pre-production, production, and post-production.
4. Usually, the person who comes up with the story idea writes the script. Otherwise, it’s a matter of preference. The individual writers script the stories that appeal to them.
5. Yes, all of the dialogue is scripted. On occasion, an actor may request a line change or may even improvise a line here or there but, for the most part, it’s all written beforehand.
6. Sure, but the rent is pricey.
Hugh writes: “Why do they make the breaks so long? I understand you can’t keep churning out episodes but with a break as long as 4 months the tension of the cliffhanger with have disappeard and some people (casual watchers) might forget about show and not tune in every week.”
Answer: Alas, not my call. That’s a network decision. I believe it’s part of their strategy to have all-year original programming.
Ravenfur writes: “1) How long is a standard 1 hour television script normally? Is there a standard number of pages, or does it change with every script?
2) How many times do you see an episode before it is deemed finished and sent to TV?”
Answer: 1) Depends on the show. I’d say, on average, about 50 pages. 2) Maybe 5-6 times.
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