Yeaaah! Patriots lose! Patriots lose!!! Wide Receiver Wes Welker was the one looking mighty light on his feet on that final drive, first taking that monster hit, then dropping a sure touchdown pass. Ah, well. There’s always next year. As for this year, I’m holding out hope for a Jets-Packers Superbowl. Or, at the very least, a Steeler-less Superbowl.
Okay, things to get done this week: break issues 3 and 4 of the comic book series, get to work on that pilot script I was supposed to finish before I left for Tokyo, do my banking, box and garage things lying about the house that in all probability I won’t be using anytime in the near future (ie. that straw sunhat), steam clean the carpet in preparation for movie matinee with the gang, movie matinee with the gang, make arrangements with my accountant, clean my home office, clean my work office, find out about what the future holds re: Stargate. And I’ll probably squeeze some reading and a few work-outs as well.
I’d also like to go back over my vast behind-the-scenes photo archive and see if there were any pics I may have missed. Like maybe this one –
Or this one –
Or this one –
Or even this one –
To be honest, after 4+ years of daily blogging, I’m not exactly sure what I’ve uploaded.
Mailbag:
Quade writes: “Well here is something more dissapointing than Stargate being cancelled, I didn’t win the lotto.”
Answer: Clearly, you didn’t want it badly enough. You need to try harder next time.
Lisa R. writes: “Had a question for you. What do you think of Allen Steele?”
Answer: Haven’t read him yet. Recommended?
Jeffrey writes: “I do have to laugh at the assumption, though, that of course I’m a disgruntled SGA fan out for revenge.”
Answer: Never said you were out for revenge – just, obviously, someone with an axe to grind.
Jeffrey also writes: ” As far as costs go, your telling us in truth that inflation, increasing dollar parity, and rising production costs account for the entire increase in budget that SGU received?”
Answer: Most of it, yes. It doesn’t take a genius to see the truth in this.
Jeffrey also writes: ” I’m trying to be realistic about the facts as they are, trying to see the best way forward for Stargate in the future.”
Answer: Actually, it sounds like you’re trying to skew the facts to bolster your particular agenda which is, in fact, a step back for the franchise. You can go on about how Atlantis’s numbers were better than SGU’s and thereby conclude Universe performed poorly in comparison and I could, just as easily, compare SG-1’s superior numbers to Atlantis’s ratings and conclude SGA performed poorly in comparison. I think this is a simplistic approach that doesn’t take many things into account (like the rise in online viewership and DVR use) but there you have it.
Deni writes: ” If the Harsesis child had all the knowledge and the secrets of the Goa’uld, would one Goa’uld have only half?”
Answer: Not sure I understand the question. Is the assumption that a singular goa’uld would possess all the knowledge of goa’uldom?
@iom666 writes: “Why was the SGU shooting happening so far ahead of the air date ? I mean there is easily 6-9 months difference. I understand season 1 was done shooting before the pilot even aired, this is insane !”
Answer: It’s not as simple as just shooting the episode, editing it together, and releasing it. Many layers of post-production are added before we can call it a finished product, from sound and color correction to music and visual effects (which necessitate some significant lead time). Also, we always started production at the beginning of the year because we were always a summer show. In fact, when Stargate: Universe was picked up by the network, we were told we would be premiering in July – only to be moved to the fall.
@iom666 also writes: “When is too late too late ? In other words, what is the point of no return, when actors/crew would be committed to other work and could not come back for a season 3? Are we there yet ? And if we are, is this totally irreversible ?”
and Alex writes: “Are the SGU actors all still game for a third season or DVD movie etc? Is there an inherent risk of them getting attached to new projects the longer the show is in limbo or are they contractually obligated for a certain period of time?”
Answer: It really depends on what we’ll be moving forward with be it a third season, a mini-series, or movies. There will admittedly be issues with some actors, again depending on if and when we finalize a plan and schedule, but they shouldn’t be insurmountable.
Bailey writes: “You probably know this, given my past posts, but I would have rather had one season more of Atlantis!!”
Answer: I would have liked another season of Atlantis as well and, way back when (as I’ve mentioned in previous posts), Brad and Robert were prepared to wait on Universe and launch it after SGA’s sixth season (presuming it got that sixth season pick up), but the network made a big push as it was very eager to premiere SGU in 2009.
DF writes: “Well, whenever Syfy actually decides to air the rest of the season…they are going to air it right?”
Answer: Alas, I have no idea what the network has planned for the back half of season 2.
Alli Snow writes: “I just finished reading The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss and really enjoyed it.”
Answer: So did I. The second book in the series comes out this Spring.
Tenacious D. writes: “Oh my god. Any of you guys seen Berserk? It’s an anime.”
Answer: Yep. http://josephmallozzi.com/2010/05/23/may-23-2010-lets-talk-anime/
Jay writes: “I always find it kinda interesting to watch all the Atlantis support in the questions. The reason I started reading this blog so may years ago was because I enjoyed watching a writer defend your show against angry fans when they apparently hated everything you did on Atlantis. Well, when it was on the air at least. Now that it’s gone apparently it was perfect, and SGU is the real problem.”
Answer: The longer a series is on the air, the more fans will find something to object to. Also, the longer a series is on the air, the more likely fans are to assume ownership of it. Stargate has produced 17 season of television and two movies so, yes, it will have accrued plenty of fan entitlement and criticism over the years.
feanor writes: “Well it’s bad that SGU has been cancelled and maybe the entire francise may come to an abrupt end. But think about it. It’s not the end of the world. The sun will shine tomorrow and there are better things to do then complain about who did/didn’t do what. In the end … it’s just TV.”
Answer: True. While I’d love to see Stargate continue in some form (and chances are it will), the reality is all good things come to an end.
Merced writes: “Was the bashing of SGA as bad in it’s time or was it pretty much the same as with SGU?”
Answer: In my 11+ season with the franchise, there wasn’t a year that went by when there wasn’t some form of organized online criticism against a certain aspect of a particular show.
Flappo writes: “I have just rewatched the episode Sabotage. I have noticed that the repair robot pushes the damaged FTL Section away. Did the crew left this part behind or did they take it with them?”
Answer: Nope. It’s gone.
Flappo also writes: “How are the dogs?”
Answer: Great. They’ve been enjoying afternoon naps and occasional walks. Also, the NFL Football playoffs.
Robert writes: “Apart from your excellent work on the Star Gate franchise,
Is there any current or past Sci fi show’s you would like to or would have liked to have worked on. ?”
Answer: I greatly enjoyed shows like Farscape and Firefly, but given the opportunity to work on another SF project beside Stargate, it would be the series Paul and I are developing now – due tofirst be released as a comic book in early 2012.
Elliott writes: “Anyway, I was just wondering, assuming everything does go according to plan and SGU is back in production, what form would that take? A third season? A movie? A miniseries? Or is it too early to say?”
Answer: Too early to say but, ideally, all of the above.
Brandon Williford writes: ”
Have you ever come across a book that you’ve really wanted to read but it took a few times to get into it?”
Answer: Yep. And plenty of books I’ve given up on after many repeated attempts.
Asdasdg writes: “So, making the assumption that the Ancients might of had other ships out in the Pegasus galaxy that were manned (example: Aurora) at the time of the evacuation, it is possible that an Aurora class ship actualy came to our galaxy to settle on Earth. But, someone (say Janus) decides to conceal it using technology similar to the Tech used to conceal Merlin’s treasure stash on Earth. Is it possible that such a ship could exsist only waiting to be discovered by Earth?”
Answer: Sure, it’s possible.
Asdasdg also writes: “What aditional Secrets could Destiny house?”
Answer: What secrets indeed? Hopefully, you’ll have the opportunity to find out.
flo writes: “SG1 was about discovering the galaxy, and dealing with a much more powerfull enemy, while at the same time, discovering the ancients and humanity’s true origin.
Then Atlantis saw humanity claiming their legacy as the ancient’s “children”.
Finally, in SGU, they had the potentiel to go even farther than the ancients ever went. I really wish we will see in some form what the whole “message in the fabric of the universe” is all about one day.”
Answer: Well said!
Moriel writes: “1. This was bugging me since the first day I saw G36 in the Stargate franchise. It might have been asked before, but since when US Military personnel use the G36? AFAIK it was never issued and only 2 police forces in the US use it at all. So in that sense the M4/AR15/M16 should be used universally, unless the Stargate program doesn’t like standart issue stuff.”
Answer: Well, the Stargate program IS special. Also, a lot of the weaponry is dependent on actor preference.
“2. Do you have a simple recipe for a quick vegetable salad?”
Answer: Not really. I do a (somewhat) simple salad of lettuce, avocado, dates, walnuts, green onions, crushed garlic, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and truffle oil.
TheSGC writes: “Do you have any predictions for the Super Bowl?”
Answer: Rooting for the Packers.
max writes: “Seeing that Science Fiction series are dying left, right, and center, do you have any plans to move onto a different genre (read as more mainstream) for writing or directing?”
Answer: We have several different genre scripts ready to go.
Zee writes: “I am just wondering if perhaps, looking soley at the ratings for the 3 shows, there would be more interest from fans in a continuation of SG1 or SGA than for SGU. Would those numbers enter into the decision on which series to attempt a follow up on?”
Answer: If the ratings were a level playing field, then that might into the decision-making process, but they aren’t so they don’t. If ratings were the sole measure regardless of when the show aired, then they’d still be making Gunsmoke movies.
Drew writes: “That got me thinking, since you talk about and/or photograph your collegues and friends a lot on your blog, do they get recognised in the street like that often? How do they feel about it, is it weird and odd or are they cool with it? Do you get random people saying “Hi” to you? Any funny stories about it?”
Answer: Funnily enough – yes, they have been recognized. I think they found it weird but flattering. I don’t get much “Hey, aren’t you that guy who produces Stargate?” reaction when I’m out and about but, surprisingly enough, I have been recognized. Once in Montreal, in the dead of winter, in the middle of the night, on an all but deserted street. Weird.
Sean D. writes: “Is there any connection between the 146 elements mentioned in SG1 and the number 46 mentioned in SGU (beyond the obvious sharing of 4 and 6 
)?”
Answer: Not that I know of. But Brad or Robert may say differently.
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