Mallozzi's Stargate Memories (May 31, 2011)
Mallozzi's Weblog Link
More SG-1 eight season reminiscences…
SACRIFICES (809)
What actor and, in this case, writer Christopher Judge planned as a raucous episode (tentatively titled My Big Fat Jaffa Wedding) ended up being a fairly serious and touching affair. Onscreen anyway. Behind the scenes, we were busy regretting the decision to write horses into this script. I mean, it looked like a good idea on paper with the potential for plenty of humor, but we forgot to take one thing into account. Horse shit. Turns out nothing kills comedy like one of your four-legged guest stars dropping a steaming pile in the middle of your gate room.
Lesson learned!
ENDGAME (810)
My writing partner Paul had an idea: the Stargate is heisted from the heart of Stargate Command. That was the easy part. The challenge was coming up with a story that explained who took, why, and, most importantly, how? Well, worked out a nice little Trust/N.I.D./rogue elements of the N.I.D. angle that worked very well. A fun episode all around although the one thing I remember about it was the reaction of some fans to the scene in which O’Neill leads the rescue team into the warehouse. He finds both Daniel and Carter bound to chairs and goes to Sam - which outraged some Daniel supporters because they felt it showed a lack of compassion for DJ. I’d argue he went to Carter first because she was the first one to stir and, besides, if he went to Daniel first would it have necessarily meant a lack of compassion on his part for Sam?
GEMINI (811)
Amanda gives a doubly delicious performance as both Sam Carter and her evil twin in this episode that sees the return of Replicator Carter. It was a very satisfying episode, especially for Amanda who imbued her dual performance with subtle nuances that really set the two characters apart. It was a grueling shoot but, as always, she was a total professional, never once complaining. It’s episodes like this one that remind me how terrific Amanda was to work with.
PROMETHEUS UNBOUND (812)
We finally got the opportunity to cast Claudia Black, and it was in a role that she seemed born to play. Robert Cooper took Damian’s solid first draft and injected it with a humorous spin that essentially formed the basis of the Vala character we would come to know and love. To be honest, I wasn’t convinced at the script stage as I thought the humor might have been too broad, but all doubt dissolved the moment those dailies started coming in. Wow! As far as eighth season episodes went, this one was probably my favorite for its comic elements and the terrific onscreen chemistry between Claudia and Michael.
Season Eight Episode Guide
More SG-1 eight season reminiscences…
SACRIFICES (809)
What actor and, in this case, writer Christopher Judge planned as a raucous episode (tentatively titled My Big Fat Jaffa Wedding) ended up being a fairly serious and touching affair. Onscreen anyway. Behind the scenes, we were busy regretting the decision to write horses into this script. I mean, it looked like a good idea on paper with the potential for plenty of humor, but we forgot to take one thing into account. Horse shit. Turns out nothing kills comedy like one of your four-legged guest stars dropping a steaming pile in the middle of your gate room.
Lesson learned!
ENDGAME (810)
My writing partner Paul had an idea: the Stargate is heisted from the heart of Stargate Command. That was the easy part. The challenge was coming up with a story that explained who took, why, and, most importantly, how? Well, worked out a nice little Trust/N.I.D./rogue elements of the N.I.D. angle that worked very well. A fun episode all around although the one thing I remember about it was the reaction of some fans to the scene in which O’Neill leads the rescue team into the warehouse. He finds both Daniel and Carter bound to chairs and goes to Sam - which outraged some Daniel supporters because they felt it showed a lack of compassion for DJ. I’d argue he went to Carter first because she was the first one to stir and, besides, if he went to Daniel first would it have necessarily meant a lack of compassion on his part for Sam?
GEMINI (811)
Amanda gives a doubly delicious performance as both Sam Carter and her evil twin in this episode that sees the return of Replicator Carter. It was a very satisfying episode, especially for Amanda who imbued her dual performance with subtle nuances that really set the two characters apart. It was a grueling shoot but, as always, she was a total professional, never once complaining. It’s episodes like this one that remind me how terrific Amanda was to work with.
PROMETHEUS UNBOUND (812)
We finally got the opportunity to cast Claudia Black, and it was in a role that she seemed born to play. Robert Cooper took Damian’s solid first draft and injected it with a humorous spin that essentially formed the basis of the Vala character we would come to know and love. To be honest, I wasn’t convinced at the script stage as I thought the humor might have been too broad, but all doubt dissolved the moment those dailies started coming in. Wow! As far as eighth season episodes went, this one was probably my favorite for its comic elements and the terrific onscreen chemistry between Claudia and Michael.
Season Eight Episode Guide