Stargate: Universe

Post by **GORDON** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 11:04 pm

Just watched the opening couple shows.

Apparently a bunch of people 'accidentally' get gated onto a space ship "billions of light years from Earth." That exact quote is sort of funny because a few minutes earlier they established the ship had been traveling just shy of the speed of light "for about 100k years," and then they look at a map and say "We are billions of light years from" the point of origin. Ooooo k. Someone doesn't understand the correlation between a light year and the speed of light. Not a promising slip.

Anyway, the camera work seems to be trying really hard to be Battlestar Galactica. I can't really describe why, but the vibe is almost exact. Lots of closeups from odd angles. Feels very gritty. Very dramatic. Not a lot of humor.

This isn't your dad's SG1.

DoctorChaos · Post by **DoctorChaos** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 1:00 pm

Doesn't get much better. I'm surprised the stereotypes didn't put you off immediately. It did me, but I watched the entire season and was disappointed.

Post by **GORDON** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 1:30 pm

DoctorChaos wrote:Doesn't get much better. I'm surprised the stereotypes didn't put you off immediately. It did me, but I watched the entire season and was disappointed.

Only watched the 3 "Air" episodes so far. I assumed they were setting up characters to have an arc... I figured that everyone who was coming off like a prick now would be somehow redeemed by the end of the season. I mean... surely there was SOME reason these characters who seem like nothing but assholes were chosen for their excellence in that off-world assignment...

Or maybe not.

Also they seem to have another Rodney McKay but instead of manic and arrogant this guy is morose and arrogant.

Then they have the overweight video gamer who cracked the mathematical puzzle in the video game... ugh.

And I swear to god the cinematography... if these people didn't come directly from the production offices of BSG, then they are a perfect imitation. So far this show is Battlestargate: SG1.

Edited By GORDON on 1285090290

Post by **TPRJones** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 1:44 pm

Yeah, it doesn't change much. What you are seeing now, is pretty much what you will be seeing later on, too.

I still watch it, but mostly from inertia. It's not very good.

Post by **GORDON** » Wed Sep 22, 2010 11:18 am

Starting in to the spoilers a bit, her....

Lou Diamond Phillips is going to start banging the other colonel's wife pretending to be him, isn't he.

Post by **TPRJones** » Wed Sep 22, 2010 11:49 am

Do you want me to answer that?

DoctorChaos · Post by **DoctorChaos** » Wed Sep 22, 2010 11:50 am

It's more of a soap opera than that. You brought up a good point. Why are a bunch of screwups working on the gate project?

Post by **TPRJones** » Wed Sep 22, 2010 12:07 pm

They were the smart people needed to get it working. There was never any plan for those people to be going through. I have no problem with this particular point.

The whole game thing to find the smart kid bit was admittedly a bit dumb. Okay, a lot dumb.

Post by **TPRJones** » Wed Sep 22, 2010 12:45 pm

New Season 2 Trailer:

WARNING! THIS TRAILER HAS SPOILERS FOR SEASON ONE ALL UP IN IT'S BUSINESS. WATCH WITH CAUTION.

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I guess the main reason I keep watching is because John Scalzi is involved as a consultant on the program. I keep hoping that will make it better than it has been so far.

And really, it's not bad. It's just not as great as it should be. Yet.

Edited By TPRJones on 1285173964

Post by **GORDON** » Thu Sep 23, 2010 11:23 pm

Just watched "Life," jebus what a downer show. And I am going to insist that this show is trying to be BSG, what with the focusing on interpersonal issues while stuck on a big spaceship with an uncertain future. Even the music has the same Bear McCreary vibe, but with fewer war drums. But you know what made BSG watchable, at least to me? At least once every other show you had some kickass spaceships flying around shooting at each other. This show aint got that. At all. Not even a little bit. The thing I hated most in BSG was all the angst; SG:U is almost nothing but angst.

I wont stick with a straight drama... IN SPACE.

Also, somewhere they changed the original story... now they have "FTL" faster-than-light drives, the ship has been traveling "the better part of a million years," and they are "billions" of light years from earth. Either I misheard them speaking in the first couple episodes, or someone on the production teamtold them their initial figures were all stupid.

Post by **GORDON** » Thu Sep 23, 2010 11:24 pm

Oh, when does season 2 start? Assuming I don't give up on it entirely, I'll set the DVR and then I'll be all caught up.

Post by **TPRJones** » Fri Sep 24, 2010 3:57 pm

I think it starts this week.

SG has had FTL drives ever since about season five or six of the original series. We got it from the ... I can't remember what they are called. The grey aliens. That's not a change to the backstory.

Post by **GORDON** » Fri Sep 24, 2010 4:41 pm

TPRJones wrote:I think it starts this week.

SG has had FTL drives ever since about season five or six of the original series. We got it from the ... I can't remember what they are called. The grey aliens. That's not a change to the backstory.

Well yeah, they got their hyperspace engines from the Asgard. But the Ancient ship that they are on in SG:U... I am pretty sure in episode one the thing could only fly just shy of the speed of light. And there was even another Ancient ship from a later time period in SG:Atlantis that could only fly just shy of the speed of light, so there is precedent.

I think they fucked up their numbers, and now they are correcting it mid season and claiming they actually have FTL drives.

Post by **TPRJones** » Fri Sep 24, 2010 5:11 pm

Ah, I don't remember that part. Although it does need to be some sort of FTL-ish sort of drive, because if it's just doing 99.999% of C in real space then time dilation would play havoc with communications with Earth.

Post by **GORDON** » Fri Sep 24, 2010 5:14 pm

TPRJones wrote:Ah, I don't remember that part. Although it does need to be some sort of FTL-ish sort of drive, because if it's just doing 99.999% of C in real space then time dilation would play havoc with communications with Earth.

They aren't communicating with earth... they are using those magic ancient body-swapping stones. Those things work between galaxies in real time as it is, so I don't think relativistic pressure will matter to them.

Post by **TPRJones** » Fri Sep 24, 2010 8:53 pm

Sure it would. At "just under light speed" you can get insane time differences. You could spend years on Earth and only a few moments would pass on the ship. That would be noticeable.

Post by **GORDON** » Sat Sep 25, 2010 12:35 am

So would your mom.

Post by **TPRJones** » Sat Sep 25, 2010 2:06 am

A few moments with my mom does indeed feel like years. She's relativistic like that.

Post by **GORDON** » Sat Sep 25, 2010 2:34 am

Anyway, interesting move leaving the dick scientist "stranded" on that planet with nothing there except for a.... most likely a fully functional alien space ship.

DoctorChaos · Post by **DoctorChaos** » Sat Sep 25, 2010 11:24 am

That was awesome! He had and does have it coming. It was good in the colonel showed some stones. I was under the impression the FTL was faster than light but didn't use hyperspace. It becomes an important point later.

One thing I don't understand. The Ancients originated in another galaxy but launched Destiny from the Milky Way to chase the gate seeding ships. Destiny was going to be used as a short cut to the other gates in far off galaxies, but the Ancient ascended. Wouldn't it make more sense to just plot out which gates you needed to go to to cross galaxies, instead of requiring an entire planet to power the 'ninth' chevron? Or should I just suspend disbelief?

I guess I miss SG-1 where they at least attempted to keep the science reasonable.