phoenix hawk, a.k.a. Pete Collins (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} nobledragoon423) wrote,@ 2008-08-23 03:20:00 |
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So, apparently, hot on the heels of Atlantis's cancellation, MGM and Sci Fi have given the go-ahead for a new Stargate show, Stargate Universe.
You would think I'd be ecstatic. I am not.
Atlantis has had its ups and downs. But overall, it's showing signs of getting better. After the big cast shake-up from season one, it's taken this long for the characters to fit together. And apparently, I'm supposed to exchange that for...what? A story pitch that sounds eerily familiar, but overflowing with wishful thinking? Promises for a better show and whisperings of dollar signs under your breath? Way to fail, Sci Fi and MGM.
I went through something like this already. Enterprise was just getting better. And it got killed. When Season Four of Enterprise was over, I found many more hits than misses with that year's episodes. I hope I don't find that to be the case this time. Tell me their case was justified. That they're putting a merciful bullet to the head of a dying beast. Otherwise...they're taking my cake and handing me a wad of Monopoly money in exchange. (And we all know how much I love cake.)
Now that I've been all melodramatic, I'll get a little more serious...but no less parochial in my views. Some of the words chosen to describe the show and its appeal suggest that this will be one of those new-fangled science fiction shows aimed at a younger audience. Possibly with less sci-fi and more drama.
I'm afraid that what I'm going to be shown is a teenage/young adult soap opera. With some guns and maybe some really great special effects. (This reminds me of the parody of the "younger, edgier SG-1" from the episode "200.") I'm sorry, but I've had my fill of that kind of show. Those of you who hear me rant about my television preferences know what shows I'm referring to.
That said, I shall return to being melodramatic. Only good writing can salvage the maneuver called "selling out." Returning to Enterprise, look at how the first two seasons turned out. Lack of good writing did not make up for the shortcomings (and some selling out) that it inherited.
The premise of the new show--"stranded with little hope of returning home in a new world of wondrous technology and new discoveries"--sounds a lot like how Atlantis started out. And then the writing of the story turned it into...something else. Something it probably wasn't supposed to be for at least two or three years. But it's okay. This one will be younger, edgier, more fraught with peril. Because living in fear of impending annihilation isn't perilous enough. Because knowing that, despite your overwhelming confidence or arrogance, your teammate may not return home with you whenever you step through the Gate isn't sufficiently exhilarating.
Yeah. This will be totally cool.
You would think I'd be ecstatic. I am not.
Atlantis has had its ups and downs. But overall, it's showing signs of getting better. After the big cast shake-up from season one, it's taken this long for the characters to fit together. And apparently, I'm supposed to exchange that for...what? A story pitch that sounds eerily familiar, but overflowing with wishful thinking? Promises for a better show and whisperings of dollar signs under your breath? Way to fail, Sci Fi and MGM.
I went through something like this already. Enterprise was just getting better. And it got killed. When Season Four of Enterprise was over, I found many more hits than misses with that year's episodes. I hope I don't find that to be the case this time. Tell me their case was justified. That they're putting a merciful bullet to the head of a dying beast. Otherwise...they're taking my cake and handing me a wad of Monopoly money in exchange. (And we all know how much I love cake.)
Now that I've been all melodramatic, I'll get a little more serious...but no less parochial in my views. Some of the words chosen to describe the show and its appeal suggest that this will be one of those new-fangled science fiction shows aimed at a younger audience. Possibly with less sci-fi and more drama.
I'm afraid that what I'm going to be shown is a teenage/young adult soap opera. With some guns and maybe some really great special effects. (This reminds me of the parody of the "younger, edgier SG-1" from the episode "200.") I'm sorry, but I've had my fill of that kind of show. Those of you who hear me rant about my television preferences know what shows I'm referring to.
That said, I shall return to being melodramatic. Only good writing can salvage the maneuver called "selling out." Returning to Enterprise, look at how the first two seasons turned out. Lack of good writing did not make up for the shortcomings (and some selling out) that it inherited.
The premise of the new show--"stranded with little hope of returning home in a new world of wondrous technology and new discoveries"--sounds a lot like how Atlantis started out. And then the writing of the story turned it into...something else. Something it probably wasn't supposed to be for at least two or three years. But it's okay. This one will be younger, edgier, more fraught with peril. Because living in fear of impending annihilation isn't perilous enough. Because knowing that, despite your overwhelming confidence or arrogance, your teammate may not return home with you whenever you step through the Gate isn't sufficiently exhilarating.
Yeah. This will be totally cool.
