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July 18, 2020: Got questions? Leave them in comments section!

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Last night, I took part in the Exoplanets of Stargate panel.  Tomorrow, it’s the Sound Space panel:

A significant part of storytelling is the soundtrack. Music can conjure up a place, a culture, and a time. In this session, writers and musicians discuss how sound can be used to invoke space and advance a story.

Of course, since there is no air in space for sound to travel through, space is silent so I expect this panel to be fairly short.

Prior to that, I will be doing an AMA.  For those who won’t be able to join, how about a mailbag?  It feels like forever since I’ve fielded your queries.  So, if you have a question for me, just post it in the comments section and I’ll respond on Monday.

Yesterday’s film-themed question…

Tonight’s film-themed question…

Amazing people with whom I have worked…

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23 responses

  1. egal Avatar
    egal

    a while back you tweeted that you gave your old stargate behind the scenes box to mgm

    is there any news on that?

    Reply
  2. Joanne Verbeek Avatar
    Joanne Verbeek

    Anymore word or progress on the TimEscape project?

    Reply
  3. Gforce Avatar
    Gforce

    Question: any further news on the Nick Cutter horror adaptation?

    Reply
  4. Ian Davenport Avatar
    Ian Davenport

    But there’s an Air In Space Museum…
    (sorry…)

    Reply
  5. ALISA Avatar
    ALISA

    Hi Joe
    Last year you started posting season 4 of Dark Matter to give us a little closure to how the show would have gone. You made it to episode 3 and I was wondering if you were going to continue posting how the season would have progressed. I was so sad to see the show not get picked up for season 4 and 5. There were so many question left unanswered and I know you wanted to give us those answers but sadly the network did not let that happen. Also do you think you will get a second season for Utopia Falls.

    Reply
  6. Amybeth Gregory Avatar
    Amybeth Gregory

    My questions are Stargate Atlantis questions- you may or may not be able to answer.
    1. Why was the Destiny shaped in the form of Thor’s hammer? The Ancients had their own civilization separate from the Asgard. So why so Asgardian?
    2. What prevented the Ancients from using Destiny? & it wasn’t Ascension bc they were still around in physical form for Atlantis & to flee to Earth.
    3. How far ahead had the writing gone? Did anyone actually write about who the makers of the drones were? (Us? Replicators?) or whether the crew wakes up from stasis?
    4. Was there an end point written re: the meaning behind the message in the fabric of the universe or were you all still up in the air (no pun) about what it meant?

    That’s all. Lol. Having surgery Tuesday so I hope you answer one of these so I can think about it while drifting off when the Versed IV takes me….

    Reply
    1. ego Avatar
      ego

      We all live in a simulation

      haha :’D

      Reply
  7. Rick Avatar
    Rick

    Will a lot of the actors from SG1, Atlantis and Universe be returning for major/minor roles in the new Stargate series?

    Reply
  8. Al Avatar
    Al

    I’m rewatching universe now. Are the planet builders the same race that left the pattern in the background radiation?

    Reply
  9. Kevin Avatar
    Kevin

    I hope you can answer this, but can you tell me what the third Stargate SG-1 movie, the one about O’Neill, was going to be about?

    Reply
  10. Anna Plumner Avatar
    Anna Plumner

    Along with the music/soundtracks of the Stargate franchise in particular, and how it is used in the storytelling, symbolizing space, time, and culture, I’ve always been amazed with how well the Stargate franchise uses other symbols and patterns in the storytelling, like the symbolism of the set decor, costumes, spaceships, graphics, everything. Of course there’s math & geometry in music and soundwaves, too. Even though you don’t hear many fans discussing the meaning of these symbols, it’s a huge part of what makes GREAT storytelling.

    I don’t know who came up with the original designs, but whoever it was, they were BRILLIANT. The Stargate franchise uses nature’s geometry, many types of symbols & shapes in every visual aspect possible. When I first recognized this in Stargate SG1 and Atlantis, I began to research some of the geometric shapes used, and some of them are even related to sound. The geometric shapes used in Stargate aren’t only just “Art Deco”, but they represent so many things in nature, Egyptian history, math, etc. For instance, a common decor theme seen on the Stargate itself is the Egyptian Lotus, yes, the Stargate has flowers on it! Those lines of little curves with larger curves surrounding them with a “stem”. The Gate’s iris also represents circle/curve geometry, and there’s spirals everyehere in Stargate, like the visuals of the wormholes. The crystal tunnels made by the Tok’ra are exactly like the tessellations of a turtle’s shell. Even the wraith have their own symbols of math & geometry; their hive where the Wraith are grown is a Voronoi math diagram.

    Symbols and metaphors of all kinds are essential to great storytelling, and the Stargate franchise is an excellent example of how it should be done. It’s said that human thought is based on symbols.

    Reply
  11. Fuchsia Avatar
    Fuchsia

    Hi there, will you be doing a list of your top 10 horror novels? I am looking for some good recs! I enjoyed reading “The Destroyers” from your thriller/mystery list. My favourite genre is horror/gothic/supernatural. Thanks Joe!

    Reply
  12. Nathan Dionne Avatar
    Nathan Dionne

    Oh gosh, I’ve been holding on to a few good questions waiting until you did another one of these. Lets hope I can remember them.

    When you first joined Stargate, did you ever look back at older episodes and think how you might have done anything differently? And were you a fan of the show and had been watching it before you joined the production?

    There were a number of planets and races, especially in the early show, that felt like they should have been revisited but never were. Like the giant aliens Daniel Jackson’s grandfather stayed with, or the fish guy that wanted to know “What fate Omoroka?”, among others. Was there any particular reason to your knowledge that some of these places were never brought up again in the show?

    Now for the big question, the one I most want answered. During Stargate Atlantis, was the idea of somehow having a Goa’uld take a Wraith host ever discussed? (I mean if the Trust got one in Colonel Caldwell it wouldn’t have been too big a stretch for it to happen) Because that would have been one formidable enemy. Unless the Wraith’s natural mental powers and healing abilities would have prevented a Goa’uld from taking over?

    I think I had a fourth question but I can’t remember it now, so I guess this will do. Thanks for doing these.

    Reply
  13. Ruben A. Hilbers Avatar
    Ruben A. Hilbers

    Ancients vs Daleks. Who would win ?

    Reply
    1. David Issel Avatar
      David Issel

      The Daleks are determined to eliminate inferior races. The question is, would they find the Ancients to be inferior?

      Reply
  14. The Old Payroll Tax Lady Avatar
    The Old Payroll Tax Lady

    Hi Joe, Would you have killed off the Asgard had SG-1 been renewed for another season or had a plan to resurrect them in season 11? I always felt that had SG-1 continued that the team would have eventually found Thor’s DNA stored in a freezer someplace.

    Reply
  15. TheOtherOne Avatar
    TheOtherOne

    How did the Exoplanets of Stargate and Sound of Space panels go? I tried to find them but maybe I was too late. I hope you managed the zoom thing OK.
    I’ve been to something similar I think, in London last year, called Space Rocks. It was an exciting mix of scifi and official NASA/ESA peeps chatting about life, the Universe and everything. I even bought a piece of Mars – a teeny weeny chip from a meteor, but it’s still from another planet!

    I do have a question for your Q&A but Alisa has already pipped me to the post. I know you are really busy with all those projects you mentioned the other day, but is a virtual Dark Matter episode in the pipeline anytime soon, please?
    I still miss our Raza Crew so much. If we don’t ever get a resolution on TV would there be a chance of ending the Dark Matter story as it started, in comic form?

    Reply
  16. Dr Z Avatar
    Dr Z

    My question is about the casting of Melissa O’neil in DM. She was so brilliant and perfect for the role that I still can’t believe she had done virtually no acting before that. It must have been a brave decision to cast her ( and a brilliant one). So who made the decision and were there any other big contenders for that role?

    Reply
  17. shinyhula Avatar
    shinyhula

    Any updates on a live action Masked anthology?

    Reply
  18. David Issel Avatar
    David Issel

    How is COVID-19 affecting productions?

    Will everyone be wearing masks in next year’s shows?
    – like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1V6a2EeNwU

    Will everyone be filming their own parts from the comfort of their own homes (under lockdown)?
    – like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYfqgI2fwdw
    – or: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFUZM5ZZuHQ

    or

    Will everyone be expected to get tested daily and live together in a bubble?
    – like some sports are doing?

    or

    Is everything on hold until a vaccine is approved?
    – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RV2xlCHPclc

    I can’t even imagine how this whole thing complicates TV/Movie production
    – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asouPYvrUtY

    Reply
  19. paloosa Avatar
    paloosa

    I’ve wanted to ask this question for years about McKay in Stargate Atlantis. He on occasion in a story would say “Oh, thank God”. I always thought he was probably thanking himself based on his ego. 🙂 But I’ve been curious, was this scripted and if so why would McKay say it. If not, was it an ad-lib? Is it just a phrase, or something about his personal beliefs we didn’t get to see much of?

    Reply
  20. Ian Avatar
    Ian

    Who was the most influential when it came to the new tone and direction in SGU. I love SGU, curious if everyone wanted to change style. Or if there was a driving force?

    Reply
  21. Jim Schoettler Avatar
    Jim Schoettler

    My wife and I just finished binge watching Dark Matter. Really enjoyed it, and of course were disappointed that it was not given a proper conclusion. Thanks for posting the virtual episodes; your skill putting these together in a really compelling fashion is amazing and you are very generous to spend time doing it. I hope you are given the opportunity (and funding!) to do a mini-series, movie or other conclusion some time in the future. You deserve the chance to finish such a rich story.

    Here’s a question for you (and the sci-fi TV industry generally): Having followed more than one sci-fi series that did not have a proper ending due to cancellation, I am finding the experience a bit frustrating. Certainly, it makes one think twice before investing time in a series. I recognize the renewal of a show is all a matter of dollars and cents but, in that vein, I wonder if giving a show a proper ending would (in addition to rewarding fan loyalty) also make a show more attractive for future licensing to streaming services in the years after cancellation. If it does, do you think a show’s writers and producers should keep in their back pocket some kind of short order series ending episode that could be filmed while cast and crew are still under contract to ensure they can put a show to bed once it is clear the show is going to be cancelled? That way the show can be packaged as a complete story for future binge watchers for years to come (like the various Star Trek shows, Battlestar Galactica, etc.) I suspect cancellation does not always occur so neatly that things can be planned perfectly, but I wanted to ask. It’s like reading a half written book.

    In any case, thanks for your efforts to share your ideas about how the Dark Matter story would have played out. It’s very kind of you to do it. I hope SyFy channel and others take note.

    Reply

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