The demise of Stargate Universe is NOT the end of Stargate. Its just the end of certain careers.

[Overmind One]

It really pisses me off that Joseph Mallozzi is implying that "if" Stargate Universe fails, that it will be the end of Stargate. It will be the end of HIS Stargate, but the Stargate concept itself is evergreen and will outlive Mallozzi's career. Stargate was not created by TPTB, it was created by Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin, and they have already expressed interest in writing two sequels. So, what is REALLY going on with these threads and ominous predictions about the future of the Stargate franchise? These are the FACTS:

1. The studio owns the rights to the Stargate franchise and the rights of the movies. Not Joseph Mallozzi or any of the current writers or producers. They have ZERO say about its future.
2. The Stargate fanbase is still intact. We are still loyal fans of Stargate, and the reason SGU failed is because the writers stopped being fans of their own show and derailed the franchise.
3. The studio can EASILY fire each and every writer, producer, special effects guy, cameramen, and sell off ALL the sets...and Stargate can still be rebooted years from now. Proof of this can be seen in the Trek franchise, in the V franchise and the Battlestar Galactica franchise.
4. When this show is canceled, the writers and producers will no longer have their jobs connected with Stargate...unless they are called upon to write movies later. They are trying to save their jobs, not Stargate.

Having said all that, I think it shows a huge lack of character and integrity to "threaten" fans that if this show fails (it has already failed miserably), that there will be no more Stargate. The reality is that there will be no more Stargate from these writers. In my opinion, this is the best thing that could have happened to the franchise...to extricate all of the weaknesses in the writing camp. Joe Mallozzi, Brad Wright...Im looking at you.

When Stargate Universe has been canceled and its wrap-up movie finished, the current writers and producers should move on to something they like, as they are obviously no longer well-suited to write real science fiction for Stargate fans. If Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin write sequels to the 1994 movie as they revealed last year, that is an opportunity to wipe Stargate Universe from canon completely, and that would be a wise decision.

About the sequels: http://blog.moviefone.com/2009/10/15/devlin-and-emmerich-are-both-interested-in-stargate-sequels/

 

[SerenityS]

Good post. I agree!
Martin Gero and Rob Coope have already moved on. Time for the rest of them to hit the road too. Get their creative juices flowing, so to speak.

 

[Overmind One]

THIS is what he is trying to save...

Good post. I agree!
Martin Gero and Rob Coope have already moved on. Time for the rest of them to hit the road too. Get their creative juices flowing, so to speak.

I have known men like Mallozzi at various times in my life. THIS is what he is trying to save:



And ESPECIALLY this...



Its as transparent as cellophane. The end of Stargate Universe means the end of that spiffy new office, those freshly printed Executive Producer business cards, the life of walking around a production set taking pictures whilst munching on imported chocolates and hors d' ourvres of pig spleen and goat eyes. Its the end of pretentious name dropping and rude brush-offs. It may look like disaster to him, but to me it looks like HOPE!

 

[theOldOne]

Just by looking at him, one can see he's a selfish arrogant prick.

 

[Jason1983]

1. The Stargate fanbase is still intact. We are still loyal fans of Stargate, and the reason SGU failed is because the writers stopped being fans of their own show and derailed the franchise.

Well said.

 

[Aragon101]

Didn't the Mozz start off with Saturday Morning Cartoons?

 

[Overmind One]

YES.

Didn't the Mozz start off with Saturday Morning Cartoons?

YES, he did. And Saturday morning cartoons is still a quite lucrative market. There is a HUGE market for simple-minded mainstream reality shows, vapid teen entertainment like iCarly on Nickelodeon which gets 7 million viewers LIVE: http://tvbythenumbers.com/2010/10/1...ght-with-almost-7-million-total-viewers/67882

So, he has avenues to express his drama/emo/reality TV concepts. Why he experimented on the Stargate franchise is beyond asinine.

 

[SG-Rocks]

Better luck next time, dork

I've always been going to do a post on how SG needs to go back to Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin. I remember them making some cracks about the TV adaptation on one of the DVD features.

I still firmly believe something went wonky with the whole SG machine after S3 Atlantis. And Cooper bailing recently sure was a sign something was afoot. What still baffles me is how all those people involved in the show seemed to just loose it with this SGoo nonsense. Instead of being great they became terrible IMHO.

I figure it may undergo a total rework and of course a movie has been mentioned. But we can't discount that episodic science fiction may be finished for television. With such fractured audiences the race for the gutter has become outright desperate. And the writer strikes for scripted shows didn't help.

SGoo also made the incredible mistake of casting off the military connection with the show. You won't see anyone walking around a F-16 in some stones scene. And depending on how badly they burnt those bridges you may not see them in the imaginary movie projects either.

These current SGoo jerks sure ran roughshod over the fans on this one but I'm sure it will be back in some form down the road. Start with a tabula rasa just like Lost in Space did. Re-invent the gate. Make it glowing orange and square or something. The Stargate intellectual property is just too valuable to discard.

 

[Overmind One]

These idiots did the same thing that the earlier Trek movies did and what Batman did.

I've always been going to do a post on how SG needs to go back to Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin. I remember them making some cracks about the TV adaptation on one of the DVD features.

I still firmly believe something went wonky with the whole SG machine after S3 Atlantis. And Cooper bailing recently sure was a sign something was afoot. What still baffles me is how all those people involved in the show seemed to just loose it with this SGoo nonsense. Instead of being great they became terrible IMHO.

I figure it may undergo a total rework and of course a movie has been mentioned. But we can't discount that episodic science fiction may be finished for television. With such fractured audiences the race for the gutter has become outright desperate. And the writer strikes for scripted shows didn't help.

SGoo also made the incredible mistake of casting off the military connection with the show. You won't see anyone walking around a F-16 in some stones scene. And depending on how badly they burnt those bridges you may not see them in the imaginary movie projects either.

These current SGoo jerks sure ran roughshod over the fans on this one but I'm sure it will be back in some form down the road. Start with a tabula rasa just like Lost in Space did. Re-invent the gate. Make it glowing orange and square or something. The Stargate intellectual property is just too valuable to discard.

Whats wrong with the ORIGINAL stargate design? I hated that they changed it for Atlantis, and then again for Universe. That is always a big mistake, to change certain elements just to change them. In Star Trek, they at least started with a faithful design of the original NCC 1701 Enterprise in the original Star Trek: The Movie. Then, they destroyed it for good. NCC 1701-D stayed intact until the movies started coming out, and then they were going through the alphabet again with NCC 1701-E. In Batman, they kept changing the Batmobile design, his outfit, the Batcave, etc.

They should go back to the ORIGINAL Stargate design (which is what I believe Emmerich and Devlin will do if they make sequels). Keep that unchanged and then create stories around it. There is no need to change the design of the gate IMHO.

I do think that any new future series made from either the new Trek or any future Stargate should be well thought out and have continuity with its roots and canon. With a new Stargate movie sequel, we have an opportunity to wipe Destiny and all of the SGU universe from canon, whilst keeping SG-1 and Atlantis lore intact. Or, they could start from the end of the sequels, if they ever get made.

 

[OCgatergal]

I guess I'm not as optimistic. I feel it's over.... My best hopes are that the original creators make Stargate 2.

 

[Overmind One]

But you are RIGHT!

I guess I'm not as optimistic. I feel it's over.... My best hopes are that the original creators make Stargate 2.

You are right, it IS over. But what is over, is the involvement of the writers of Stargate that are currently in place. This franchise in its current incarnation is over. But why the sad face? It WILL be revived later by somebody, and the reason I know this is because of its demonstrated ability to spin off long-running, well-loved serialized programs as well as full length movies. Its just that somebody DIFFERENT will be doing the writing. That usually means a change in style, in tone, but still staying true to the core premise of the show which is established by the movie(s).

There is awesome fan fiction out there to draw from. Emmerich and Devlin are still alive and wanting to do sequels. Amanda Tapping is a Producer (hint hint). Joe Flanigan wants to direct (hint hint). There are so many hopeful avenues for a reboot...no way is this the end of Stargate. It will only go into stasis for a few years.

 

[MetalFoldingChair]

SGoo also made the incredible mistake of casting off the military connection with the show. You won't see anyone walking around a F-16 in some stones scene. And depending on how badly they burnt those bridges you may not see them in the imaginary movie projects either.

I agree. The lack of anything genuinely military in SGU is striking. Having some overweight actor walk thru a hospital in tight fitting camo fatigues is hardly military. Neither is the obvious lack of military training or structure shown by the soldiers, namely Scott, when handling weapons, etc. They seem to be lacking in any sort of military consultation. It's obvious there's some weird anti-military political correctness at work here. As it is I'm still surprised that guns of any sort are shown at all on this show. It's only a matter of time before the guns are replaced with walkie talkies.

Also, the Wray/Young -- civilian/military conflict on SGU is a complete rip off of the Adama/Roslin situation on BSG. He represented the military and she represented the civilian population, yada yada yada. Did the writers really think we all had such poor memories that we wouldn't notice that they stole that whole idea? For that insult alone someone deserves a kick in the taco.

These current SGoo jerks sure ran roughshod over the fans on this one but I'm sure it will be back in some form down the road. Start with a tabula rasa just like Lost in Space did. Re-invent the gate. Make it glowing orange and square or something. The Stargate intellectual property is just too valuable to discard.

Like Trek or Dr. Who I think Stargate needs to rest a bit and catch its breath. Someone is sure to come along a few years down the line and breathe new life into it. It has a proven track record so of course it will get another chance at some point -- after a nap.

 

[Spaceman XIII]

It really pisses me off that Joseph Mallozzi is implying that "if" Stargate Universe fails, that it will be the end of Stargate. It will be the end of HIS Stargate, but the Stargate concept itself is evergreen and will outlive Mallozzi's career. Stargate was not created by TPTB, it was created by Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin, and they have already expressed interest in writing two sequels. So, what is REALLY going on with these threads and ominous predictions about the future of the Stargate franchise? These are the FACTS:

1. The studio owns the rights to the Stargate franchise and the rights of the movies. Not Joseph Mallozzi or any of the current writers or producers. They have ZERO say about its future.
2. The Stargate fanbase is still intact. We are still loyal fans of Stargate, and the reason SGU failed is because the writers stopped being fans of their own show and derailed the franchise.
3. The studio can EASILY fire each and every writer, producer, special effects guy, cameramen, and sell off ALL the sets...and Stargate can still be rebooted years from now. Proof of this can be seen in the Trek franchise, in the V franchise and the Battlestar Galactica franchise.
4. When this show is canceled, the writers and producers will no longer have their jobs connected with Stargate...unless they are called upon to write movies later. They are trying to save their jobs, not Stargate.

Having said all that, I think it shows a huge lack of character and integrity to "threaten" fans that if this show fails (it has already failed miserably), that there will be no more Stargate. The reality is that there will be no more Stargate from these writers. In my opinion, this is the best thing that could have happened to the franchise...to extricate all of the weaknesses in the writing camp. Joe Mallozzi, Brad Wright...Im looking at you.

When Stargate Universe has been canceled and its wrap-up movie finished, the current writers and producers should move on to something they like, as they are obviously no longer well-suited to write real science fiction for Stargate fans. If Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin write sequels to the 1994 movie as they revealed last year, that is an opportunity to wipe Stargate Universe from canon completely, and that would be a wise decision.

About the sequels: http://blog.moviefone.com/2009/10/15/devlin-and-emmerich-are-both-interested-in-stargate-sequels/

Yup, Joseph Mallozzi is just a stupid nobody, he thinks he's important but he sucks at what he does and he doesn't even understand business.

If Startrek can get a reboot then so can SG. Give SG a few years rest and new writers who actually understand what works and what doesn't, and SG will rise again, what Mallozzi believes has nothing to do with this reality.

Fuck Mallozzi. He's now officially a loser and even the most die hard SGU fans know it.

 

[podbaydoors]

I'm with OCgatergal on this one. I do feel like it's over.
I would be interested in seeing a new movie by Emmerich and Devlin, but what about the characters who only exist in the series, such as Carter and Teal'c? While I love the scifi end of things it's only part of the magical equation that drew me in to this series.

I totally agree about the lack of a real military feel to SGU, but I have to say the original movie was pretty stereotypical in its own way regarding the military- basically the kind of shallow PC cynicism that is so commonplace in the entertainment industry. Other than putting people in uniforms, SGU simply ignores the military.

IIRC, Wright is the only one still remaining from the original PTB. I think his emotional investment goes past ego. My own personal opinion is that he will want to wrap this up in some kind of positive way, and I do think he's pushing hard for that SG-1 movie. It may be too late to go back to the "classic Stargate" (which is what that movie was intended to be) and economic conditions may not allow it. But we'll see.

It's really sad to look back and see the massive screwups they've made with this franchise, and I agree with SGRocks that something went wonky long ago. It is probably too late to save it in its current incarnation, but I'm not sure I'll be a big fan of any reboots. What's done is done.

 

[Joelist]

We should remember what it took to bring back the Trek franchise from the state of "death coma" Enterprise left it in.

It took a completely fresh team (Orci and Abrams) who made the 100% correct call that the only way to bring it back to life was a reboot - there was just too much canon to try to adhere to. And the way they did it was very clever, preserving the canon while at the same time giving them a clean slate for scripts in the future. It also helped that the plot is pretty logical and well written.

They also realized that "dark and gritty" was not really needed. What was needed was well written and well acted characters people could root for - and the ST movie delivered on that.

Likewise, Stargate probably needs fresh faces to sift the wreckage after SGU gets canned and work out the best approach to get it off the ground again. While I appreciate Emmerich and Devlin's work in Stargate, I keep remembering that their more recent work has delivered some of the worst SciFi turkeys ever (Godzilla, 2012, The Day After Tomorrow). I'd rather get a REAL fresh face involved, and preferably one who has cred with working with the military.

 

[Illiterati]

If (Ha!) it fails it'll be the end of Stargate?

That's funny, considering that 2 out of the 3 have been good shows.

As Meatloaf would say "2 out of 3 ain't bad".

 

[podbaydoors]

We should remember what it took to bring back the Trek franchise from the state of "death coma" Enterprise left it in.

It took a completely fresh team (Orci and Abrams) who made the 100% correct call that the only way to bring it back to life was a reboot - there was just too much canon to try to adhere to. And the way they did it was very clever, preserving the canon while at the same time giving them a clean slate for scripts in the future. It also helped that the plot is pretty logical and well written.

They also realized that "dark and gritty" was not really needed. What was needed was well written and well acted characters people could root for - and the ST movie delivered on that.

Likewise, Stargate probably needs fresh faces to sift the wreckage after SGU gets canned and work out the best approach to get it off the ground again. While I appreciate Emmerich and Devlin's work in Stargate, I keep remembering that their more recent work has delivered some of the worst SciFi turkeys ever (Godzilla, 2012, The Day After Tomorrow). I'd rather get a REAL fresh face involved, and preferably one who has cred with working with the military.

Yes, the way they were able to start over with ST 2009 was absolutely brilliant. I was extremely skeptical going in to that and really only did it because my daughter wanted to see it. If something similar could be worked out for Stargate, I'd be all for it.

I also agree with your assessment about Emmerich and Devlin. In addition, their work has always been more focused on the action and less on the characters and concepts. While I like a great space battle every now and then, the WOW!! factor is fun but in the long run just doesn't matter that much to me. I prefer a more clever approach than one heavy on CGI.

As Overmind pointed out, though, there's still some good talent around who know what the real Stargate is all about. MGM could hire TPTB of Sanctuary!

 

[Overmind One]

I did like the Atlantis gate.

I agree that changes shouldn't just be made just because, but the Atlantis gate is AWESOME. And, it IS the same basic design with the same principles behind it as the Milky way gates, although the DHD controls in the city are understandably of ancient design as opposed to the SG-1 military base. So, that change WAS necessary because we're talking about the operating system used in the city of the Ancients, and not an underground military bunker where decades were spent trying to figure out how to turn the thing on, and then more decades went by before anyone really figured out how to use it by integrating its functions with Earth technology.

I like the original gate, but the Atlantis gate is my favorite. The design changes are really, really minimal-- to the point where complaining about them is like saying that the original idea behind the car was destroyed because cars now come in different colors and some are convertibles even-- It's not that big of a deal.

Oh, dont get me wrong...I liked the Atlantis gate, but to me it was a major change from the original gate that I was introduced to in the movie, and the SAME gate design was used in the SG-1 series. In 10 years, I got used to that gate. They changed lots of stuff for the Atlantis gate, but it is the same basic design. They took out the spinning bezel within the ring that reminded me so much of an old style telephone dial, they put lights in the gate symbols too. But the biggest change was the spinning bezel within the ring. It didnt matter, because it totally matched everything else in Atlantis and I fell in love with the show within the first 5 minutes

Now, the SGU gate (to me) is just ugly. And that's the gate that really looks different--and it functions differently without any real reason. Like, why does it need to spin??? Why don't the planets have DHDs on them where the gates are??? Why were the DHDs hand held remotes back then and now on all of the planets (in Pegasus and Milky Way galaxies) they're the size of a desk?? That makes no sense. Oh, and the gate's ugly.

The SGU gate...:puke:, that is one ugly puppy. I think they were trying to go with space-Gothic with the arch shapes in the ring. And I absolutely HATE the fact that the entire gate needs to spin within a base to operate. No DHD except for a hand held device? How does that hand held device "talk" to the gate? Radio? Light? Subspace? It doesnt even look related to the Ancients (and neither does Destiny).

Just my opinion though...

Cheers.

P.S.

And Mallozzi knows that there's a countdown clock attached to SGU. I can tell by his blog. He'll sometimes write about having to write for that show like it's a chore and how he can't wait to work on the "other projects" that he's got going. Carl Binder and the girl from Wayne's World (something Carrere is her name) pitched a pilot show to networks, and he was thinking about leaving at the end of last year. The only person that looks to be fighting to keep their job right now is Brad Wright when he did that desperate looking video interview right before the premiere of SGU's season 2. That's what I'm seeing anyway. Brad was the main guy, and he's going to take the main hit. Sorry to say that it'll be well deserved.

As always, a very astute observation. Wright is most likely not in a good state of mind. He is still involved in the show and Cooper is gone. He and Cooper are the ones who basically gave birth to this slug and he is most likely feeling very stupid and guilty about now. Men like Mallozzi never apologize. They only make excuses and look for scapegoats.

 

[Overmind One]

I agree!

Yes, the way they were able to start over with ST 2009 was absolutely brilliant. I was extremely skeptical going in to that and really only did it because my daughter wanted to see it. If something similar could be worked out for Stargate, I'd be all for it.

I also agree with your assessment about Emmerich and Devlin. In addition, their work has always been more focused on the action and less on the characters and concepts. While I like a great space battle every now and then, the WOW!! factor is fun but in the long run just doesn't matter that much to me. I prefer a more clever approach than one heavy on CGI.

As Overmind pointed out, though, there's still some good talent around who know what the real Stargate is all about. MGM could hire TPTB of Sanctuary!

Let me say that I have been a die hard Star Trek fan since I was a 6 year old kid watching the Original Series live on TV. I waited a decade and saw my show reborn in a movie, and then the next thing I knew it was a new show on the air. I have seen every episode of every Trek show at least twice. Well, Enterprise was my SGU for Trek, before SGU became my SGU for Stargate (does that make sense?).

Anyway, the Stargate movie was not all action! I think that the original Daniel Jackson and his story, and Jack and the SGC had some good drama. The CGI was decent, but no more than needed for the film IMO. I really believe that if Emmerich and Devlin want to write a sequel or two, then they should not attempt to include the canon from the SG-1 or SGA series. Like they did for the new Trek movie. They need to start with the first stargate which was discovered and move from there. OR, they could use one of the movies to re-discover Atlantis and that would pave the way for a new Atlantis series. Unfortunately, that would have to overlook the introduction of baddies like the Ori and the other alien species that the Taurii have encountered during SG-1. It also means no earth starships with beam weapons and hyperspace technology. The Stargate franchise stole them from Trek anyways

 

[A Nonny Mouse]

I think Stargate is over. But you know what? I don't care. I'm done with Stargate for the time being. These gobshites (TPTB) who ruined Stargate with their unimaginative, boring crap should be on the dole queue where they belong.

I agree with A4L - reading Mallozzis blog I definitely get the impression he is try to distance himself from it as well. When it's done I think he'll take himself off to Japan permanently. And good riddance. I do wonder how many of his hangers-on will still read his blog when SGU is finally gone. I wouldn't be surprised though if, for a while after, he reveals all sorts of tid-bits and inside stories to try to keep his blog numbers up. That man does love an audience, doesn't he?

Lay Stargate to rest for a few years and then hopefully it could be bought back by someone with imagination and drive. As well as Star Trek, Doctor Who was out in the wilderness for many years and now look at it - it is the Guinness book of records as most successful sci fi show ever.