Comments | nialla42: The chickens are coming home to roost.

nialla42

The chickens are coming home to roost.

Nov 07, 2010 23:15

TV by the Numbers: Are Angry ‘Stargate: SG1/Atlantis’ Fans Partly To Blame For Lousy ‘Stargate: Universe’ Ratings?

I love his take on it, which is summed up by saying "Executive producers and show creators can (and do) play 'Fan Excuse Bingo' too" then uses the latest Brad Wright Quote of Gold, then adds, "Bingo!" The comments are interesting, ( Read more... )

stargate

Comments 16

gategrrl November 8 2010, 13:59:58 UTC

Cooper finally moved on, right? I didn't think he was particularly good, either, and I still find it weird how for a long time HE was villified and now he's a-okay (at least amongst those who adore Vala/Daniel).

They've already repeated the same old stories, the repetition is horrific. So is the new show. I think Wright knows how hard it is to start up a new show without some sort of brand name behind it. Good luck, Brad.

I'd like to see the franchise come back--under the original creator, frankly. I'd love to see his version of the Gateverse, and it sure would be more interesting IMO. But I'd miss Teal'c. Wouldn't miss anything else about the show version. Let it all go dormant for a while. Or, let it die, like Blake's 7.

nialla42 November 8 2010, 15:16:21 UTC

Cooper sort of slunk off into the night. I got the impression it was the writer's producer's pool was getting too full, and his focus was on the SG-1 movies, IIRC. I guess he's been off the canvas long enough and his ex-cohorts are still spewing, so he's sort of forgotten ( ... )

or_mabinogi November 8 2010, 14:18:24 UTC

Watching it won't make a difference, because I don't count in the ratings, but if it turns out good, then I can catch up on DVD later.

I did that with Drive, but I kind of figured it would be canceled early anyway since it was on FOX. Since The Inside and Firefly before it I just didn't expect a Whedon/Minear production to survive. Add Dollhouse to that list, but I still haven't seen a single episode yet. One day. (And now I hear Whedon may be in jeopardy with his Avengers movie. The man is cursed.)

I can imagine a re-invention of the Stargate franchise, along the lines of the Doctor Who reinvention. But, like Who, it should probably be laid to rest for a few years. After a hiatus and a change of showrunners it could be interesting to see how it could be reinvented.

nialla42 November 8 2010, 15:34:16 UTC

Who has a built-in way to restart the franchise, but I think Stargate does as well. All it takes is a new team. Perhaps start from an alien perspective of them finding us instead of the more colonialist leanings of the current setup where mostly white folk save the noble savages? Two (or more) alien worlds on relatively equal footing trying to explore other worlds could be interesting.

I think a change in showrunners is vital to seeing the franchise succeed. Though it would also make me leery of just how much change they'd want to do. Would they recast the existing characters a la Star Trek reboot, and of course not have the pesky USAF consultant around to tell them Sam/Jack just wasn't going to happen as long as both of them were active in the same chain-of-command ( ... )

reedfem November 8 2010, 15:17:31 UTC

Heh, I'm getting a 404 error for that link. Wonder if that's our fault too...

nialla42 November 8 2010, 15:37:20 UTC

It's working now, but it probably was our fault. Everything's our fault, including all 404s, ever.

brihana25 November 8 2010, 15:19:27 UTC

I was reading somewhere last night - can't remember where, but I know it was linked out of all this mess somewhere... sgusucks.com maybe? - that if MGM goes into Chapter 11 and their creditors get percentage ownership in return for the money they're owed, those movies might actually get made after all. I'd be interested if they were more along the lines of Ark of Truth, following on the actual plot/mythologies from the show than like Continuum, which really didn't have much of a point in existing in the first place, since they erased the whole thing by the end, anyway ( ... )

nialla42 November 8 2010, 15:56:10 UTC

Sometimes Chapter 11 can save the bacon of a company enough to allow further operation to bring in money to pay off debts, so it's possible the movies might get made ( ... )

hsapiens November 8 2010, 18:05:39 UTC

I'm sorry that Stargate has sunk to this level but it seemed destined to happen so long as MGM kept the same insular boys club in charge of the franchise. It has so much more potential but...eh.

Absolutely no sympathy from me for the tantrum throwing toddlers writers/producers. They've spent YEARS telling their audience that they're too old and too female and thus, they can watch if they really want to but that their concerns are irrelevant in how the show will be written. They've been rude and condescending to anyone who offered critical feedback, be they actors, fans, or critics.

They're crap writers when it comes to women and minorities. If it isn't a white male or tits, it's beyond their sophomoric ken. Even when it's pointed out over and over and over, they utterly fail to grasp that all those non-white, non-male folks are people, too.

Must be hell to be the misunderstood, tragically way smarter than everyone else, visionary geniuses that they are. (cue the violin music)

I NEED a Willow, "Bored Now" icon for this comment!

nialla42 November 9 2010, 15:44:20 UTC

I think the reason MGM kept the same boys club for so long is because from their POV, it was cheaper. "Experienced" writers/directors/production staff that do more than one job means you don't have to hire as many people. Plus they supposedly know how to run things well because they're always involved with all aspects of showrunning. From my POV, it just led to complacency and burnout which bled through onto the screen ( ... )

hsapiens November 9 2010, 17:42:46 UTC

When SG-1 ruled the Sci Fi roost, it was hard to argue that these guys were poison. And, to be fair, Brad & Cooper penned some excellent episodes -- and Mollozzi was half the writing team of fandom's favorite episode. They aren't entirely hacks but they're writers, not show runners. I wish someone at MGM had been paying attention but I'd guess two successful shows on Sci Fi was all they needed to know they had proven quantities. Maybe if they'd noticed that as soon as Stargate was up against something deeper like BSG rather than MOTW movies that the ratings weren't quite so impressive then they could have headed this disaster off...but probably not. They're studio types and so copying the popular formula with their own franchise and writers who had the writing depth of a shallow puddle makes sense in their world ( ... )

nialla42 November 10 2010, 23:28:36 UTC

They aren't entirely hacks but they're writers, not show runners.That's a very good point that shouldn't be forgotten. They're supposed to be the folks who come up with the script ideas. Too often when they're also given all the tasks of showrunning, I think a lot of ideas are shot down simply because they think it would be difficult and/or expensive to do ( ... )