Send in the B Team!

Howdy folks! In honor of Stargate Atlantis' fifth and final season coming out on DVD this week, I thought I'd dedicate yet another post to my favorite show. I just finished watching season four last night, so I am ready to go for the next round of adventures. Watching the first four seasons again, however, got me thinking about all of the great characters on this series. So today I bring you my top five favorite recurring characters on Stargate Atlantis. Huzzah!

Number 5: Leuitenant Laura Cadman

(Played by Jaime Ray Newman)

Sadly, we only actually got Cadman in two episodes, both in season two. She first appeared in what has probably gone down as one of the best McKay episodes ever, Duet. While on an off-world recon mission poor Cadman was set to babysit Doctors Beckett and McKay and when Wraith darts appeared on the planet she managed to get Carson out of the way but was scooped up, along with Rodney, in the process. Luckily the rest of the recon team was able to disable the dart without destroying the beaming device. When they attempted to reintegrate Cadman and McKay however, something went horribly wrong and McKay ended up being reintegrated with Cadman's consciousness also in his mind. As you can reasonably assume, this led to all kinds of hijinks and hilarity before the situation took a turn for the worse and then the day was saved. Cadman returned later on in the season two episode Hot Zone, where we learned that not only is she an explosives expert, she can also tap dance too. Cadman made a wonderful no-nonsense foil to McKay's eccentric (and arrogant) scientist. She also managed to briefly win the heart of Carson Beckett, though we learn in a season three episode that the two weren't able to make it work. While Cadman only appeared in two episodes she makes this list because she had a huge impact on the fans and, I for one, will always remember her as an important member of the Atlantis expedition.

Number 4: Chuck the Technician

(Played by Chuck Campbell)

Unlike his SG-1 counterpart, poor Chuck never got a last name. I am not entirely sure his rank was ever even actually stated on screen, though I do believe he was a Sergeant. But nonetheless, Chuck popped up towards the end of the first season as one of the primary control room technicians and he managed to stick around for the entire run of the series. He had a friendly way about him, and as much as I hate to say it, because I love Walter, was nowhere near as much of a nerd. Everyone seemed to like Chuck--although Zelenka definitely wished he (and the rest of the gate technicians) would stop consuming food and drinks near the 10,000 year old computer equipment. Besides just being a constant presence in the background (he's listed as having appeared in 44 of the show's 100 episodes), Chuck often got to be part of the moment, whether it be a moment of humor, drama, or just a glimpse into the every day life of the expedition members. One of my favorite moments comes from the season four episode Midway, when during the smack down between Teal'c and Ronon, Chuck can be seen in the gym managing all of the bets on the fight's outcome. The guy was just always right in the middle of everything that was going on, and fans loved him for it.

Number 3: Jeannie Miller

(Played by Kate Hewlett)

The little sister of Rodney McKay (played by actor David Hewlett's real life little sister), Jeannie showed promise in becoming every bit as brilliant a physicist as her brother--until she got pregnant in college and decided to marry her English major boyfriend and put all of her efforts into her family instead. The anti-social achievement driven McKay couldn't comprehend this decision and so cut his sister out of his life, not speaking to her for four years (though as we see in season one, he never stopped thinking about her and does come to regret this decision as he grows to see the Atlantis team as his own family). Then, one day, Jeannie is struck by inspiration while playing with her daughter and writes a math proof that turns out to be a potential solution to one of McKay's current projects. The siblings are reunited and Jeannie is drafted into a position as a civilian consultant for the SGC. The road to reconciliation for the two is anything but easy, and the pair never lose their competitiveness towards each other, but their relationship is one that not only gives huge amounts of depth to the character of Rodney McKay, it also allows him the chance to grow. He starts to embrace his humanity just a little bit more every time we see him interact with Jeannie and her family. Not that Jeannie herself exists only to make McKay a better character. She is a wonderful character in her own right, a delight to watch on screen--no doubt in large part due to the casting of Kate Hewlett to play her. I had always hoped that, had the series continued, they could have found ways to make her a larger part of the series. Plus, it is from Jeannie that we learn that Rodney's first name is actually Meredith. How can you not love that?

Number 2: Doctor Radek Zelenka

(Played by David Nykl)

Where Rodney McKay was the head of the Atlantis science operations, I have always felt that Zelenka was their heart. Second in rank to McKay among the scientists (but still head of his own department), Zelenka had a much more quiet way about him. He was perfectly willing to stay at home on the base and take care of business while other scientists were out on the missions doing the actual exploring. Yet, whenever it was truly called of him, he never turned down an off-world sojourn to help save the day. He truly has done as much as McKay to keep Atlantis safe and functional, even if most of it was done in the background. Plus, even though his comments were likely to go unheard by his colleague (or untranslated, as he was quite known for going off on tangents in his native Czech tongue), Radek was never afraid to call Rodney out when he felt the other man was overreaching or just plain wrong. Also, he's quite handy to have around when the city is in lock down and you need someone to crawl around in the ventilation system in order to correct the problem.

Number 1: Major Evan Lorne

(Played by Kavan Smith)

It should come as a surprise to no one reading this blog that Lorne is my favorite recurring character on the series. I just love him oodles. But really, there are reasons for this. Much like Zelenka exists to temper McKay, I feel like Lorne was sent to Atlantis to counterbalance Sheppard. The higher ups never wanted him in charge of the expedition's military forces, so they sent in the much more steady and reliable Lorne to be his XO. Despite that, Lorne has shown that he's no Air Force or IOA pet. He continually shows loyalty to Sheppard, and his team is the first one called in when Sheppard's team needs backup or a rescue. He doesn't mind being second in command because he trusts his commanding officer. We know he's got potential for great leadership--in season four's The Last Man we see a glimpse into the future where Lorne is charge of the SGC, and in SG-1's season ten episode The Road Not Taken we see an alternate reality where he replaced Colonel O'Neill on SG-1 itself, rather than Mitchell. This guy is very good at what he does. He is also very likable--congratulating Teyla on her pregnancy and offering her reassurances when she voices her fears about pending motherhood, keeping Rodney in check when Sheppard's not around without resorting to force as many others try to do, and more. We even learn he's got a bit of an artistic side in season three's Sunday. His mom used to be an art teacher and he picked up painting from her. Aww, how sweet. Finally, despite the fact that it was totally played down once he was moved to Atlantis, he's also got an intellectual side. His first introduction in SG-1's season eight episode Enemy Mine showed us one of the reasons he was probably drafted into the SGC was his prowess in geology. So, hey, a well rounded guy.

Well, there you have it, my top five favorite recurring characters from Stargate Atlantis. Now I'm all ready for season five to get here! I just have to make it until Tuesday.

That's it from me this week, hope you all have a great one! Happy Independence Day! Stay safe out there. Go see some cheesy summer blockbuster to celebrate--I can recommend Transformers 2 or Star Trek, or even Up if you want something a little more "feel good."

Until next time,

C

Weirdest movie ever? Maybe...maybe.

So I took myself to see Land of the Lost this week. I am not entirely sure I have words to describe it, but I will give it a go. Bizarre is definitely the first one that comes to mind.

So, I was expecting something campy and silly, and just a bit dumb--along the lines of Without a Paddle, or most of what Will Ferrell does. That is not what this movie is. Okay, the original series was a Saturday morning show aimed quite directly at children. I guess the producers were trying to draw in those same, now grown, children by giving it a more "adult" vibe this time around. So what we ended up with was a (rather lame) attempt at a raunchy sex comedy. With dinosaurs. And tachyons. Um. Yeah. Big fail on the part of the movie makers here. Not only did they completely kill anything that would have appealed to a broader child or family audience, they totally did not accomplish their goal to make the transition into adult comedy. The end result is something that can only really be appreciated by boys in the 11-15 age range.

I am a little too young to have watched the original series when it first came out, but I do remember that as a kid I did watch it (in reruns I am guessing) at some point, and I liked it. I don't actually remember anything about the show itself except that I liked it and there were dinosaurs. After watching the movie, I am actually fairly thankful for the lapse of memory. I have a feeling if I had remembered enough to get most of the references and in-jokes I would have walked out of that theater quite irked indeed.

Look, I am not saying I hated it. There were a few entertaining-ish moments. I am just saying that really, if they edited it down so that it was just the story about Marshall versus the T-Rex, everyone would be much happier with the end results.

The trip to the theater wasn't a complete waste though. There was a new (to me anyway) trailer for 9. Man I am so psyched for that it isn't even funny. As soon as my mother-in-law comes back into town I am going to see if I can reserve her to babysit on September 9. I am pretty sure I can't miss this one on the big screen. Seriously, this looks like such a cool movie. Here is the description of the movie from IMDB: A post-apocalyptic nightmare in which all of humanity is threatened.

That doesn't even start to capture the awesomeness, so you should check out the trailer here. It's like some weird reverse kind of Frankenstein. You know, post apocalypse. With puppets. How does that not kick ass? I am trying to decide if I want to track down the original short this is based on before I see the movie, but I am still torn as to whether or not that will be too spoilery.

Finally, I'll close with something else that occurred to me this week. Over the last year or two I've been hearing bits and dribbles about how Pixar is making an adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' Mars series. This is the guy that wrote Tarzan in all of its original glory. He is a pioneer of science fiction and has been one of my favorite authors since I was in junior high at least. People may roll their eyes at Tarzan because it's been made so campy over the years, but those people just haven't read the books--because Tarzan is actually pretty dang awesome. As is John Carter, the central character of the Mars books.

So now the John Carter movie is finally in full production and I've been getting all kinds of news about it on the web, and I have been getting very excited about the upcoming movie. I noticed something this week that gave me pause though--this film is actually set to be Pixar's first live action film. I had somehow missed that until now. I started to get concerned, because really, with all of the different aliens and landscapes and such, this seems like a perfect film to be all CG. But I gave it some more thought and realized that "live action" is really just going to refer to the more human characters and the rest are probably still going to be largely CG. If anyone can blend the two seamlessly (and with all of the advances in CG over the last few years that's really not a question) without making it a distraction, Pixar should be up to the task. They have never produced anything that has disappointed me, so I am putting my faith in the trend continuing.

But once I started thinking about things that could go wrong with this adaptation, a whole new set of worries came to mind. The first book in the series, A Princess of Mars, was published in 1912. Burroughs shaped the landscape and cultures of Barsoom (the natives' term for the planet) based on the time's current beliefs about Mars. Most of those beliefs have long since been proven wrong. Mostly I am thinking of the "canals" or waterways scientists used to think covered the planet's surface. So now I am starting to wonder how Pixar is going to deal with those discrepancies. We know that the surface of Mars is nothing like it is described in this series. Are they going to update it? I almost hope they don't, and honestly am not sure how they could--the geography of the planet is indeed quite central the the stories. But will a modern audience accept such a fantastically wrong representation of the red planet? It seems like it's going to be much easier for them to handle all of the people and critters running around than the state of the planet itself. So yeah--see people, this is why adaptations aren't always good things. Sigh. I guess I'll just have to hope that Pixar places its trust in the audience's willingness to suspend disbelief and that, in turn, that hope is a justified one.

Anyhoo, that's all I've got for this week. I think I am going to catch the new Transformers flick this week, so hopefully next weekend I'll have my thoughts on that for you.

Till then, peace!

In a galaxy far far away...

The Pegasus Galaxy, that is.

That's right, I caved and I decided it was time to rewatch Stargate Atlantis. Even though I've got a few other sets of DVDs coming (starting with Burn Notice season two this week), I decided to gear up for the release of SGA season five at the end of this month with a nice Atlantis marathon.

Good stuff.

I am hip-deep in season two at the moment. Sadly, I started it yesterday and will probably finish it today. What can I say, my husband is out of the country for three weeks, and while I have been keeping plenty busy during the week, I decided I needed to just take this weekend off, and so what did I end up doing? Watching a whole lotta' Stargate. :o)

But back to season two. The last time I "rewatched" the series was when Skiffy ran marathons leading up to the last half of season five returning from hiatus. This was just after I stopped working. But, in between them skipping around a bit and me needing things like, you know, sleep, I didn't see every episode. I missed most of season two. I had forgotten just how truly awesome this season is. For one thing, the show really started to find its stride. For another, a very lot of important things happen in this season that set the tone for stuff throughout the remainder of the series. We learn more about the Wraith, we learn more about why the Ancients really lost the war...Sheppard pulls a Zack Morris and kisses, like, every female lead on the show. I mean seriously, all kinds of stuff going down. We also really start to feel at home with these characters. This is where the beauty of McKay starts to shine through--up 'til now he was brilliant, sure, he was amusing, yeah, but he wasn't so truly human. He didn't really start to grow and learn from his mistakes (or even make real true mistakes) until this point. I mean, Trinity. 'Nuff said.

On a more personal note, season two is when I actually dove headfirst into the Stargate universe (not to be confused with the upcoming new series). I enjoyed season one immensely, but actually missed a lot of the second half due to my wedding that spring. Then for Christmas later that year, my husband got me season one on DVD (really, I blame my Stargate obsession all on him). After watching the first season again and catching up with what I'd missed, I met season two with brimming enthusiasm. I finally caved in during season two of SGA and decided to watch SG1 as well. This triggered my getting all eight available seasons of the mother show on DVD. This is also when I found Stargate fanfiction. I've been clean of that particular habit for almost two years now (and don't think that now that I don't work I am not completely tempted to surf back on over to Wraithbait and see what I've been missing in my absence--I fight it only because I know that it would suck all of my time up and I would never get anything else done again ever), but my love for the Stargate universe is still going quite strong.

Also, one of the major benefits of season two: The arrival of Major Lorne. Huzzah! Ah, I am enjoying all of my Lorne-y goodness.

So, for the next few weeks I expect to be fully submerged in Stargate awesomeness again, and I will enjoy it while I can. I have two SGA novels in my reading pile, and I think those may have just gotten bumped up to the top of the queue now that I am in that mindset again. I do truly miss this show, but at least there's the promise of more television movies to come. Now, if only they could figure out a way to get McKay on Stargate Universe, that would be nerd heaven.

Well, I bid you adieu. Until next time.

C

Go see Up.

Seriously, just go. It is incredible. It is funny and sad and scary and dark and happy and just plain entertaining.

There's a talking dog, an adorable spastic kid, a grumpy old man that could put Walter Matthau to shame, and a crazy fun exotic bird.

Not to mention an old man fight that is just brilliant.

So yeah, go see it. It's worth your time, I promise.

Also, on the 3D or not decision--I saw it in 3D and while some effects were kind of nifty that way, there didn't really seem to be anything going on that would feel less if you just see it in a regular theater. So, that's totally a judgement call on your part.

Anyhoo, I've said my piece. Seriously, what are you waiting for? Go see it! :o)

Ciao,

C

One thing I'll definitely give the Brits...

(Warning! This post contains mucho spoilers about the latest episode of Primeval to air on BBC America!)

There's a very common saying among science fiction television fans: "In scifi, no one is ever really dead. Finding ways to come back from beyond the grave is certainly a cliche of the genre. Sometimes it can be really well done, and often it is just really cheesy or annoying. More often that not it can have the effect of completely negating some very powerful character moments and development within a series.

It also has a tendency to lessen the tension of pretty much any life-or-death situation your main character may find themselves in. The average viewer is sitting there thinking to herself, "Well, I know this looks bad, but there's no way they're getting rid of that actor any time soon, so clearly they're going to find some way to pull it out of the fire..." You know nothing too bad or final can really happen to your favorite character because they are the lead and as such aren't going anywhere.

Yeah this is just as common in mainstream shows as it is in sci-fi and fantasy, but the difference in the genre shows is that the characters just as often do die...and then they come back somehow. Heck, I think every main character on Stargate SG-1 has died at least once, and there were a few returns from the beyond on Stargate Atlantis as well. [Sidebar: Stargate Universe is claiming that death will be a much more permanent state of existence when it happens on the new series--it should be interesting to see if they live up to that promise and how well they make use of it.]

While British genre shows certainly aren't immune to this phenomenon--think Owen in season two of Torchwood, or the Doctor's regeneration capabilities, to name a couple--I have found that almost as often as they kill someone and then bring them back, they are just as willing to kill off someone and leave them that way for good. And I'm not talking random red-shirts here, I am talking series leads.

A prime example would be the short-lived but incredible Hex. Yes, my favorite character, Thelma, could fall under the umbrella of the amazing not-dead dead people--she is killed in the first episode and then hangs around for the rest of the series as a ghost. (Though I am inclined to feel this is not such a copout because really we never get to know her as a live person--her character was intended to be a ghost from the start.) But the main character from the start, the character all of the events of the show (including Thelma's death) are built around, is Cassie. Then, in the episode before the season finale, she gets killed dead. Cassie's gone. Bye bye, so long. And wonder of wonders, the show doesn't fall apart. The characters deal with what has happened and move on, and the show's focus shifts to another character and her life and adventures in the aftermath of what has gone before.

So I have to say that even though I am sad to see some very talented actors leave the cast of Primeval, I am also very impressed at the way they've managed to express how truly dangerous the characters' situation really is through the use of some very well planned deaths. At the end of season two we lose the character Steven. His death opens the door for all kinds of changes around the ARC and among the characters. His death has really meant something within the universe of the show--it is hardly meaningless. More recently, in last week's episode the actual main character, Cutter, is shot dead by his wife. We're only what, three episodes into the new season? And this is also another very meaningful death within the show, you can already tell one episode later. There were relationships in place or developing between Cutter and other characters, and you can see how each of them is dealing with the loss. This also sets in motion a lot of things that I feel will have repercussions throughout the season.

Yeah, I miss Cutter already, he was a loveable character. He wasn't the main character without reason. But still, the fact that now we, as an audience, know that no one is safe from the dangers of anomaly chasing is one that makes me even more eager to watch the show and see how the story plays out.

I think what may be the coolest thing about these deaths is the fact that they aren't all played up. This isn't some big publicity stunt. "Tune in this week to see who won't make it out alive!" No, this is just part of the story, and usually a part the audience doesn't see coming. As opposed to the American shows I am used to where really killing a character off is rarely done without some advance notice or big hyping in the weekly promotions. That in itself can cheapen a character's death, even when it is permanent. Of course, for all I know, when the Bristish shows air across the pond they do the same darn thing but BBC America just doesn't bother with the hype, but for some reason I doubt it.

While I can't complain when a character I really like manages to cheat death or come back from her cute little goth clutches, every once in a while it is really nice to see that there are real consequences for the actions taken by the characters in a story--that the perceived danger really and truly is just that--dangerous. I do, occasionally, like there to be a little bit of a point to my fluff. Go figure.

Some random thoughts on this week's Primeval episode:

I adore how cat-like the G-Rex was in its movements and attitude. Seeing him chase after all of the vehicles on the runway was extra amusing for it.

While the G-Rex was running up on the plane, I kept waiting for the pilots in the cockpit to turn around and go, "Oh my God! What is that!" until I realized that, oh yeah, airplanes don't have rearview mirrors. Huh. Sucks to be them, doesn't it?

I am really enjoying how the show is steering clear of all of the most common dinosaurs and prehistoric eras for the most part. With the exception of the velociraptors (which are freaking awesomely done), we are getting to know a nice wide variety of prehistoric critters. It's nice to know that the creative team isn't just throwing darts at a Jurassic Park poster to figure out the next beastie.

Is it completely wrong that when the news crew was all hanging out in front of the anomaly that we knew a G-Rex was about to come out of, I was sitting there hoping to myself that it ate them all? I mean seriously, freaking vultures. Once upon a time I wanted to be a journalist when I grew up--that used to be a respectful profession. Now, in this age of overinformation, not so much.

As much as I hate to see Cutter go, I am almost glad his anomaly predicting system went with him. While I do hope the series revisits that sometime down the road, having that and Connor's anomaly-sealing device would just take all of the fun out of it I think. For the moment, it's a race of time to see if the team can get to the anomaly and seal it up before anything bad comes out. And of course, a matter of if the device works every time or not.

Well folks, I think that just about does it for me. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and I will catch you on the flip side!

Peace out,

C

Can the conjecture just stop now, please?

Wow, the internet has its evil days, that is for sure.

Awesome: Dollhouse got renewed for a second season.

Not Awesome: Dollhouse's renewal has somehow made someone think this means we're going to get more Firefly.

Look, I would love to see more Firefly, but at the same time, it's really not going to happen. The whole cast has moved on. Joss has moved on. Fox has definitely moved on. The only people who haven't moved on are the fans, and the rumor-mongers.

Apparently someone somewhere at Fox made a comment to someone in the media that Dollhouse's renewal was in part due to the success of Firefly on DVD. That media someone then ran with the idea that this meant Fox would totally be willing to make some more Firefly--at least some television movies that could then be released on DVD and make Fox more money.

Okay, yes, in theory this is a really cool idea, but it is just that, an idea. Someone floated up a test balloon and then it just started popping up everywhere online. I just wish that they would stop saying it like it is a probability and stick with presenting it as "Wouldn't it be cool if...." Trust me, the minute any sort of official deal does go down that will give us more Firefly on any kind of screen, the internet is going to catch on fire anyway. As it is, what's going on now is just cruel and annoying. People are getting their hopes up and the backlash is going to be bad.

Sigh. Maybe I am just not looking at this correctly. Maybe the die-hard insistence of the fans that we can and will get more Firefly one day is in the true Browncoat spirit. The war is definitely over but they're still out there fighting. Sigh. I guess Mal would be proud at least. Or not. He seems like a no-nonsense kind of guy. He'd probably be the first to call these people on their bullshit and point out that, as awesome as it is, it really is just a television show. There's no life or death on the line here, and there's not really a greater principle at the root of things.

Can we not just embrace the current and new projects coming from Joss and allow him to move forward, thus taking us with him? This insistent urge to pigeon-hole him to past projects and not let him close the book on them is starting to worry me.

I know in these hard times that old and familiar franchises and stories are a comfort to the masses, and they're usually easier/cheaper to make for the entertainers. But I'm really starting to get tired of "old old old" and I want some "new new new." Isn't hardship and challenge supposed to spur creativity, not destroy it?

Okay, end rant.

Laters y'all,

C