Michael Shanks and SGU

[Hyndara]

Wow, that's an open statement. And yes, I can't see him anymore in SGU. Not after this open words.

Yes, somedays I know exactly why I like MS ...

 

[Mr. A]

Yeah, right.

Sorry, but he probably wasn't invited back after his last appearance tanked in the ratings. And now that SGU is sinking it's easy to join the critical crowd...

 

[SerenityS]

Wow, that's an open statement. And yes, I can't see him anymore in SGU. Not after this open words.

Yes, somedays I know exactly why I like MS ...

Although there are no direct quotes from him here, I believe the author is extrapolating from his con appearances and the fact that Hewlett and Picardo are going to be on an episode of SGU later on in the season.

He has been pretty snarky about SGU during his con sessions, and encourages the dissatisfaction with the direction the show has taken. At the same time he has also encouraged people to watch it to see what they think (which is reasonable, I guess). He's not quite as politically incorrect as Joe Flan, LOL.

I doubt RDA will be appearing either, (or even in an SG1 movie, for that matter) given that MGM screwed him out of 1.2 million dollars with the bankruptcy.

 

[Licia]

Shanks has been openly (& specifically) critical of SGU for quite a while. You may not have seen this old interview from last year.

http://girlmeetslightsaber.blogspot.com/2009/10/michael-shanks-talks-sgu-santuary-and.html

He basically doesn't like the writing & characters.

 

[Mr. A]

It is different. I mean, it's a completely different taste palate than the previous Stargate incarnations. It's more realistic. The characters are much more dimensionalized. The visual of it is far more aesthetically pleasing and stunning. The camera work is more interesting. The visual effects are amazing. I mean, we had some great visual effects on SG-1. But these are just feature as far as I'm concerned. From the shots I've seen. The acting is wonderful. The actors are really commiting. You can tell. And there's some wonderfully drawn characters there.

I just had a little...I just watched the first three episodes, and I just had a little issue with some of the drama. I felt it was somewhat forced, and I just mean from the perspective of...the characters come across more...in order to create the tension, the mistrust, or the angst between some of the characters, it seems to lack logic, where the arguments have come across sometimes as, like, petulant children, not responsible adults engaged in discussions about actual issues. The was that, when they were squabbling over something simple, the voices seemed to be a little more heightened for the sake of creating drama than they should be, as opposed to how people would react more in that kind of situation to another adult as opposed to yelling at you because it says we're supposed to be yelling at each other.

I had a little problem with that aspect of the drama, but again, I am not the expert because I've not sat down and watched every episode. I've seen aspects of the first three and the later part of, I believe, "Light". So, again, I was blown away by the physical aspects of the show and really transported. When I watch it, I'm really transported to the world that they've created. It's really three-dimensionalized. I'm just not quite buying all of the mistrust elements and the tension elements just yet. But I think they're one strong story from hooking me and turning the corner on that. And I've also found that I haven't quite gotten attached to the characters as much as I probably should be. But that might be intentional as well. They're much more dimensionalized therefore, they're not completely likable, they're not completely unlikable. And there's a little bit of mystery to it. So it keeps you coming back saying, 'where are they going with this'. That's not a bad thing. Dole it out slowly. So yeah, I've liked it for the most part, but I've just had some issues with some of the creation of the drama.

So criticizing one aspect of SGU in between giving it high praise on all other terms ("more realistic", "more aesthetically pleasing", "camera work more interesting", "acting is wonderful", "better characters", "one strong story from hooking me", "liked it for the most part"etc) now counts as "being openly critical of the show"???
That sounds more like CYA for every possible direction the show might go...

 

[MetalFoldingChair]

So criticizing one aspect of SGU in between giving it high praise on all other terms ("more realistic", "more aesthetically pleasing", "camera work more interesting", "acting is wonderful", "better characters", "one strong story from hooking me", "liked it for the most part"etc) now counts as "being openly critical of the show"???
That sounds more like CYA for every possible direction the show might go...

Yes, Shanks is definitely walking a fine line between his artistic sensibilities and his need to pay the rent. He points out some glaring flaws but tries to couch his words in feather pillows so as not to offend. I do agree with his assessment of the forced drama (who doesn't?) but find it funny that he claims the acting is so good then claims the drama is forced and not believable. A big WTF on that.

Ever since I saw Shanks take a bit part in an episode of "Supernatural" I knew he wasn't above taking anything to pay the rent and artistic sensibilities be damned. He also did one of those horrible SyFy (SciFi) produced movies about a giant snake which was beyond cheesy. I also suspect it really eats at him to have Daniel Jackson now be a papparazzi photographer instead of a archaeologist. So, if TPTB were dangling a paycheck in front of Shanks to make more appearances on SGU something tells me his assessment of it would be a bit more friendly.

 

[Rac80]

Yes, Shanks is definitely walking a fine line between his artistic sensibilities and his need to pay the rent. He points out some glaring flaws but tries to couch his words in feather pillows so as not to offend. I do agree with his assessment of the forced drama (who doesn't?) but find it funny that he claims the acting is so good then claims the drama is forced and not believable. A big WTF on that.

Ever since I saw Shanks take a bit part in an episode of "Supernatural" I knew he wasn't above taking anything to pay the rent and artistic sensibilities be damned. He also did one of those horrible SyFy (SciFi) produced movies about a giant snake which was beyond cheesy. I also suspect it really eats at him to have Daniel Jackson now be a papparazzi photographer instead of a archaeologist. So, if TPTB were dangling a paycheck in front of Shanks to make more appearances on SGU something tells me his assessment of it would be a bit more friendly.

Hey hubby is still waiting for MS's "Artic Blast"-- the poor man's day after tomorrow, to hit the scifi channel!

 

[Fizz]

Eh, I guess he doesn't like it much at all but is trying to be diplomatic due to loyalty to the franchise, possible next guest slot/movies and it's coming out as a confused mess as he tries to walk that line. I don't blame him for not openly bashing or burning his bridges, the only one who's really done that is Joe F, the only one who's also basically pubicly said "never again with this TPTB, no way".

And yeah, I doubt we'll see RDA again, unless the SG-1 movie is a go ever and he needs to get back some of that cash. It's probably not worth it for SGU and he does seem to have a couple of other bits in the pipeline. I suspect we'd have heard by now if he had a signifcant guest role in any S2 ep.

 

[SerenityS]

Eh, I guess he doesn't like it much at all but is trying to be diplomatic due to loyalty to the franchise, possible next guest slot/movies and it's coming out as a confused mess as he tries to walk that line. I don't blame him for not openly bashing or burning his bridges, the only one who's really done that is Joe F, the only one who's also basically pubicly said "never again with this TPTB, no way".

And yeah, I doubt we'll see RDA again, unless the SG-1 movie is a go ever and he needs to get back some of that cash. It's probably not worth it for SGU and he does seem to have a couple of other bits in the pipeline. I suspect we'd have heard by now if he had a signifcant guest role in any S2 ep.

RDA's already announced for two cons, so guess he's trying to make a bit of cash now. I don't think he or Shanks will be in SGU this season, I agree.

 

[Licia]

I don't blame him for not openly bashing or burning his bridges, the only one who's really done that is Joe F, the only one who's also basically pubicly said "never again with this TPTB, no way".

The Flan is also the one who's the least dependent on anyone for a paycheque (he doesn't need to work unless he wants to), so he's in a position to be able to say exactly whatever he wants & not worry about any fallout.

It wouldn't surprise me one bit if we got more specifics from folks like Shanks post-SGU being canceled (I'm assuming its a question of when, not if).