It’s funny that SGU has caused such grief amongst old fans of the series (including me), that we actually care to write about it.

I stopped watching SGU 4 episodes in due to , of course, that soapy nonsense and the utter lack of sci-fi .. just like other old fans did.

What irks me (and other old fans) to no-end is the following question: Why did they have to brand this ‘show’ as a Stargate series?

Couldn’t they have easily called it something else instead???

They would have had the same ratings because the show would have been marketed as : “From the makers of Stargate SG1 and Atlantis …”

That big ancient ship could have been any ol ship. They don’t need a stargate because if the ship jumps out of hyper-space , then a shuttle could be used to explore nearby planets.

See what I mean?? It’s a soap in space, it’s not Stargate.

That’s why so many ‘old’ fans are bothered by SGU .. because it’s NOT STARGATE.

That’s also why the same ticked off fans will continue to rant about it until the show goes off the air, or changes direction to include more action and sci-fi.

Keep a bit of drama, FINE, but give us an enemy to shoot at and some technology to explore.

Gawd!!!

Then again ive see an increase in the sign ups to the SGA petition we have running. hopefully those who like SGA will get that promised movie after all if they can throw this much money to keep the lights dim and watch people fight and knock boots there must be some money left over for an SGA movie!

Yet even the JM says that there is more of this garbage in store. Sorry, but there’s nothing mature or interesting about this garbage show, apart its ‘Stargate’ title (which is hardly used).

I’m struck by the parallel between the rebooting of Stargate and the reboot of Star Trek. One production acknowledged everything that was great about the previous versions of the franchise, including the humour and unique characters and the devotion of its fan base. They took their show in a new direction while honouring what went before. SGU did none of that. They snubbed the fans, the mythology, the humour and uniqueness of the previous Stargate shows and decided that everyone would love their 90210 In Space the same way they decided – and publicly announced – that we would love the new hunk who was taking the (exact) place of that Daniel fellow.

They didn’t learn their lesson with Jonas, they haven’t learned their lesson now. I feel sorry for the actors on Universe. They are trapped in a motionless, pointless show and with every episode that airs more and more people are switching off.

40 minute build up of a 5 minute plot is a perfect summation. This show is doomed as long as the producers continue to hire themselves as writers. There is a reason such a large volume of fanfic exists for SG1 and SGA: the characters were what captured our love and the plots so often let them down, enabling us to fill in all those gaps.

Thanks.

this show must be cancelles immediately.

God Bless you O’Neill, Carter, Daniel, and Teal’c and all the rest of the best show ever, right up there with Star Trek, TOG, TNG, and even DSN, V, (Enterprise NO).

Slow in way that’s boring. Shallow in a way that is transparent. Unimaginative, cardboard plots. Besides the utter lack of Pew-Pew-Pew, There’s too much ‘we need to fix this’; and yet nothing gets done. I’m still waiting for one or two more weeks, IF they do anything with Ming-Na’s lesbian character. (which will be it’s lame ratings catcher.)

But seriously, are there not going to be any bad guys, or any interesting scientific discoveries onboard. I do like the colonel, the professor, & TJ. But, how can the ship still be flying after several hundred thousand years, come on. Ten thousand years was somewhat believeable for atlantis, but several hundred thousand, no way. It might be possible for the ancients to design materials that would last that long, but why would they go thru all the trouble & expense, unless there were some automated repair robots that were obtaining raw materials from the planets & fabricating & replacing the components & materials onboard the ship as they were failing. See what I mean about how I could write the stories better, I missed my calling in life I guess.

I went back and rewatched SG1′s early episodes and remain impressed at the way the characters and universe were sketched in so quickly, and how quickly likeable the show was (and still is). Sadly the writers of SGU didn’t create that character magic, they piggybacked onto it after about 4 years – and then killed off a lot of popular side characters while dumbing it down. Trading off the glories of others got them two spin-offs but the laws of diminishing returns have made the flaws, retreads and repetitions of the production and writing team more obvious. Nothing in SGU feels fresh or original and it’s hard to see longevity in a show where the most likeable character thus far is the pessimist who dials the gate up.

That leads to an interesting consideration. Did production skip hiring a competent military technical advisor? SG1, and to an extent SGA, portrayed convincing interactions between soldiers (and civilian contractors). But SGU appears to be written for characters whose only motivations are personal and emotional, wearing uniforms simply as costumes.

And come to think of it, those “lotta wounded” mentioned by Young in the first 30 seconds of every episode: what happened to them?

I was excited at the prospect of this series. Each episode has been one disappointment after another. Following the 10/30 “Water”, I have officially given up and hereby walk away. I was patient, I gave it a chance, but all it gave me was a load of excrement. Shame on all involved with the production of what could have been something truly great.

As to the characters, I never said they have to be likable. Darth Vader and Stormtroopers are villains, and people obsess over them. This has nothing to do with SGU not being SG-1 or SGA. It has everything to do with a lack of draw in this series.

I’m still left wanting to do what the “wanting to be more” you reference exactly is, because we haven’t seen anything more. We’ve seen plots literally ripped from the past two shows and forced conflict that even Michael Shanks (see my interview tomorrow!) called “petulant.”

If I’m missing the super cerebral element that SGU is trying to convey, I can only assume that a lot of other viewers are missing it too, because they’re commenting on these reviews, too.

“the writing just sucks”

You’re welcome to your opinion, but can’t you articulate your thoughts in a bit more of an adult way? It feels like I’m reading the rantings spotty teenager obsessing in his mothers basement.

I’d like to pick up on the character criticisms though. This isn’t SG-1, these character’s aren’t going to be written as friendly superhero’s who are whiter than white, they’re supposed to be real and interesting. Your thoughts as to what makes a good character just goes to show how far scifi has fallen, I mean since when did it become acceptable for characters to be judged not by how intriguing they are, but by how likeable they are? Science fiction is about breaking barriers and shaking things up, being progressive, it’s not supposed to be a cosy night in with some characters you watch just because they’re ‘nice’. Don’t get me wrong, I liked SG-1 and Atlantis, but they were shallow and they were popcorn fun, and I find it sad that SGU is being criticised for trying to be something more. Plenty went on in Water, though without explosions and pew pew lasers I suppose some people don’t see it…