I know, I know. You’re sitting there, re-reading yesterday’s blog entry, thinking to yourself: “Surely rebooting the franchise wouldn’t be that big a deal. The longtime fans who invested so much in those 17 seasons of television history – the characters, the technology, the worlds created for SG-1, Atlantis, and Universe – would get over it. Eventually. Wouldn’t they?” To be honest, I don’t know. Fans can be fickle, passionate, and vociferous. Also incredibly loyal. It would be akin to, say, informing fans of the NFL’s New England Patriots that they were getting a new coach…none other than Harry Redknapp who managed Tottenham Hotspur from October 2008 to June 2012! He also had great success with AFC Bournemouth and West Ham United, so there’s no reason to doubt he won’t be great calling the shots in New England. Unfortunately, terms of this new deal will require that Brady, Gronk, Edelman and other Patriots players never again set food on the field – or be publicly referenced hereafter. Finally, touchdowns will only be worth 4 points, field goals 2, we’ll be going 5 downs instead of 4, and the game will be overseen by three officials: a line judge, a referee, and grandmaster oortsman.
I mean, I don’t know. It could be great. But the purists may balk.
On the other hand, how could one possibly create a brand new series that is accessible to first-time viewers yet simultaneously rewarding to long-time fans? Hmmm. Let me think about this for five seconds. Wait! How about you introduce a protagonist who knows nothing about the Stargate program and becomes the conduit through which the home audience learns about the gate network? Maybe they’re a young soldier or a scientist or young anthropologist who joins a team on a visit to a top secret facility. There, to their amazement, they are introduced to Stargate Command, the workings of the intergalactic stargate network, and then informed they will be making a trip through the gate to an alien world. The base commander, General Carter, orders the technician to: “Dial the gate, Walter.” The gate is dialed, a wormhole is established, and the young team step through the event horizon.
When they step out the other side, they find themselves on an alien world where they embark on their first exploratory mission. Not telling what they find or what complications ensue. There are so many possible ways for the series to go but it’s fairly easy to do so without burdening the story, these new characters, with heavy mythology. The mythology exists to support the narrative, but need only come to light gradually. Perhaps they’ll learn that the gate network was built by a race known as the Ancients. Maybe they’ll discover that Earth has outposts in various galaxies including the Milky Way, Triangulum, and Pegasus. Somewhere down the line, there may even be an episode in which the young team embarks on an op accompanied by a veteran of the Stargate program – an anthropologist, a Czech science officer, an overbearing but brilliant scientist with an aversion to citrus. Who knows?
My point is the existing fandom is not only a great audience base for any future series, they’re a fantastic resource for spreading the word and getting other potential viewers onboard early. They’re a passionate bunch and, when excited about a show, they will make their voices heard.
Don’t believe it? Well, stay tuned.
Thanks to stopitcharlesgetoutofmyhead for all the nifty gif and video work!
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