GateWorld Podcast: Misdirected Emotion?

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• Thanks for another good podcast.
  I don't think I agree with a fair amount of what you said, and the Lost references were "lost" on me as I gave it up after the second season.
  But thanks nonetheless, I always look forward to the podcasts.

• You can have the best writers in the world, the director can be great, the set production top notice but if your actors suck it is all for nothing. And vice verse. If all the elements are not there it just won't work. Actors get mad love because they are the face we can see, but you only need to look at the fan love given to Lucas, Roddenberry, Abrams and others to see that fans care for and adore the production team!

• I admit that I go for the actors and their chemistry first, the writing is secondary to that. Joe Flanigan and David Hewlett carried me through the most horrendeous, most stilted SGA episodes (Brain Storm, Irresistible, Trio etc.). If I didn't love them first, some of the writing would have turned me off pretty fast.

• The writers and producers don't get a lot of credit because most of the Atlantis cast wanted more from their characters and were regularly shot down when trying to work with the writers. The actors did the best with what they had and have been always polite and generous to the fans.

• I have to go with Imitation Tofu above. Look what happened to poor Tori Higgenson. She practically begged TPTB for more of just about everything from her character. More lines, more backstory, more involvement, etc. What did she get for her troubles? She was unceremoniously let go from the show! Who's idea was it to kill off Paul McGillion's beloved Dr. Beckett? Only after fierce fan clamoring did the producers reluctantly agree to bring him back. Jewel Staite expressed an interest for having her character, Dr. Keller establish a relatinship with Jason Momoa's character, Ronon Dex. This began to develop but was shot down. Why? Probably because the actor expressed an interest. Nooooo, can't have that.

  It boils down to this: There is generally one person in the production team who sets the tone for the entire series. In the case of Star Trek it was Gene Roddenberry. In the case of Stargate, it was Richard Dean Anderson. Notice how the trek writing took a nosedive when Roddenberry died. Notice also what happened to the wonderfully loose and familial atmosphere on the set and in the writing when Rick was setting the tone. Once he left as an executive producer, so did his influence on the franchise. And it's showing in certain actions.

  To wit:

  1) The SciFi ( SyFy :-P ) Channel suits have *waaaayyyy* too much say in the Stargate storylines. Look how their influenced the last episode of Season 4 of Atlantis, "The Last Man". The writers were forced to add an inappropriate "cliffhanger" ending to an otherwise well-constructed narrative. The "Disneyization" of the original SG-1 Pilot to remove elements (such as nudity) that the new regime (Brad Wright) didn't like. Who among the fans asked for this?!? Brad, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. The franchise doesn't exist as an outlet for your ego. Let's see ... what else ... Oh yes, the early and and completely cancellation of Stargate Atlantis. The "Battle Star Galactica-zation (90210)" of our beloved Atlantis's replacement series. Who asked for this? Not the fans. But TPTB's attitude seems to be "This is what you're getting whether you like it or not! We'll pick up the BSG Fanbase." How's that working out for ya, guys? Whose idea was it to issue DVD/BluRays of an incomplete freshman year of SGU. In my opinion, this was done as a "trial balloon" to see if the show is getting any traction since the Neilsen numbers don't integrate the VCR and DVR watchers very well. Oh, and HELLO? Friday nights?!? Do you think that we're all just nerds who have nothing better to do than stay at home and watch TV all weekend. Stargate has NEVER gotten the love from SciFi.

  In conclusion, I don't know who you're all producing and writing the show for but it's certainly not the fans!

• Just remember, there are two sides to every story. Don't take one person's word over another's just because you've seen that person on screen and think you know the content of their character. Pardon the pun.

• @David Read what you say is true. However, I submit that it is also true that if you are getting the story from someone you have a good working relationship with, they will also shade the facts to work in their favor. And you will tend to believe them because you do like them.
  No one will ever know the real story, except the involved parties, and even then I'm sure each side feels justified in their positions and does not understand how the other side can be so shortsighted.
  Just human nature.

• I didn't get a chance to listen to the podcast, but my attention was caught by the title of this post.

  I would think that sometimes the writers are forgotten and sometimes the writers make actors stars. For example, the Whedon fan base and all the new blood they introduced to entertainment.

• That's a good example, and for some reason we didn't end up talking about those writer-producers who are just as big of "superstars" as many actors -- Joss Whedon, JJ Abrams, etc. It's interesting to me that it differs from writer (or producer) to writer. Some are beloved by fans of their shows, while others are demonized (e.g. Berman and Braga).

• obviously its not the writers as they have mostly the same people for sga sg1 and sgu
  sg1 and sga are great while sgu sucks