The best show you're not watching: Sanctuary
Or, as 01100100 so eloquently put it, 'why this show is awesome even though it's made by some of the gate people and I always figured they would be incapable of making a show this awesome'. ;)
At first glance, Santuary might look a little, well, bad. They mainly have CGI backgrounds instead of sets, and the budget is limited, and sometimes is shows.
However, other times the CGI is seamless, and you get scenery you just wouldn't get with ordinary sets.
Also, any former fan of any of the Stargates will recognize a) props, b) sets and c) actors. There are actors who have had minor roles in those shows who've gotten bigger parts in Sanctuary and really gotten a chance to shine.
While it's generally darker than the Stargates, it's very cheeky too, and doesn't take itself too seriously. There is occasionally some cheese, but the show gets better and better as it goes along. As tafkarfanfic puts it, if you watch the good stuff first, you'll love it enough to be fond of the cheese.
But, a picture says more than a thousand words.
Will
This is Will. He starts out as a bit of Daniel clone; ridiculed for his theories as an archaeologist forensic profiler, fired from his old job and now mocked by his peers the cops he works with.
Cops like Lorne Joe Kavanaugh.
He turns into more of his own character, though. He's a lot more open than Daniel, more prone to show emotion, and he's a bit more lighthearted. But then again, even though he's got skeletons, his past isn't quite as dark as Daniel's.
Most importantly, he gets contacts. ;)
Helen
This is Helen. She's 157 years old (wait, S2, 158) and still looking good.
She has an alarming tendency of calling gross things "gorgeous".
As we all know every older-than-normal character does, she's met a lot of cool famous people.
Yes, my name's Helen, and I *am* freaking awesome.
While she's mainly a scientist, she still kicks ass and takes names.
Ashley
This is Ashley, Helen's daughter.
She's probably the most angst-free of the bunch, as she's satisfied with her life and her job.
She also kicks ass.
She's all cool and all "it's just a scratch, dude, whatever".
Henry
This is Henry.
Henry is ♥
He has pierced nipples. I approve.
He's the resident tech guy who starts out as a supporting character and then gets a more fleshed out storyline.
Big Guy
This is Big Guy.
Helen saved his life once and since then he's stuck around.
He's sort of part of the family, but he's especially protective of Henry.
Awesome recurring characters
John Druitt
This is John Druitt.
John has history with Helen, as he was her fiancé.
(pic included due to love of the expression on Helen's face)
Then stuff happened and John turned into an infamous bad guy and, understandably, Helen dumped him.
Nikola Tesla
This is Nikola Tesla.
He has history with Helen too, as you can tell from his freaky moustache and glowy flashback face.
He's a vampire, and proud of it, though he thinks the myths surrounding vampires are appalling.
He's fabulous, and he knows it.
James Watson
Last, but certainly not least, there's James Watson.
Not only is he played by PETER WINGFIELD \o/
But he is AWESOME!
He and Druitt are close, though their friendship have been somewhat hampered due to the whole Druitt being a bad guy thing lately.
I can't talk about a lot of the most awesome stuff in the show, because that would spoil it and take away some of the awesomeness, so, you know, just watch it.
At first glance, Santuary might look a little, well, bad. They mainly have CGI backgrounds instead of sets, and the budget is limited, and sometimes is shows.
However, other times the CGI is seamless, and you get scenery you just wouldn't get with ordinary sets.
Also, any former fan of any of the Stargates will recognize a) props, b) sets and c) actors. There are actors who have had minor roles in those shows who've gotten bigger parts in Sanctuary and really gotten a chance to shine.
While it's generally darker than the Stargates, it's very cheeky too, and doesn't take itself too seriously. There is occasionally some cheese, but the show gets better and better as it goes along. As tafkarfanfic puts it, if you watch the good stuff first, you'll love it enough to be fond of the cheese.
But, a picture says more than a thousand words.
Will
This is Will. He starts out as a bit of Daniel clone; ridiculed for his theories as an archaeologist forensic profiler, fired from his old job and now mocked by his peers the cops he works with.
Cops like Lorne Joe Kavanaugh.
He turns into more of his own character, though. He's a lot more open than Daniel, more prone to show emotion, and he's a bit more lighthearted. But then again, even though he's got skeletons, his past isn't quite as dark as Daniel's.
Most importantly, he gets contacts. ;)
Helen
This is Helen. She's 157 years old (wait, S2, 158) and still looking good.
She has an alarming tendency of calling gross things "gorgeous".
As we all know every older-than-normal character does, she's met a lot of cool famous people.
Yes, my name's Helen, and I *am* freaking awesome.
While she's mainly a scientist, she still kicks ass and takes names.
Ashley
This is Ashley, Helen's daughter.
She's probably the most angst-free of the bunch, as she's satisfied with her life and her job.
She also kicks ass.
She's all cool and all "it's just a scratch, dude, whatever".
Henry
This is Henry.
Henry is ♥
He has pierced nipples. I approve.
He's the resident tech guy who starts out as a supporting character and then gets a more fleshed out storyline.
Big Guy
This is Big Guy.
Helen saved his life once and since then he's stuck around.
He's sort of part of the family, but he's especially protective of Henry.
Awesome recurring characters
John Druitt
This is John Druitt.
John has history with Helen, as he was her fiancé.
(pic included due to love of the expression on Helen's face)
Then stuff happened and John turned into an infamous bad guy and, understandably, Helen dumped him.
Nikola Tesla
This is Nikola Tesla.
He has history with Helen too, as you can tell from his freaky moustache and glowy flashback face.
He's a vampire, and proud of it, though he thinks the myths surrounding vampires are appalling.
He's fabulous, and he knows it.
James Watson
Last, but certainly not least, there's James Watson.
Not only is he played by PETER WINGFIELD \o/
But he is AWESOME!
He and Druitt are close, though their friendship have been somewhat hampered due to the whole Druitt being a bad guy thing lately.
I can't talk about a lot of the most awesome stuff in the show, because that would spoil it and take away some of the awesomeness, so, you know, just watch it.