So even the weekly posting is in jeopardy. Monthlies, start worrying.
Reposting here since the /r/Stargate post didn’t pick up.
This is something I wanted to share with /r/Stargate and see what the feedback would be. I read through comments at a previous discussion
and listened to the whole podcast episode. I probably am not going to
win any awards here but just wanted to share my 2 cents. Disclaimer: I
am just a SG fan, no affiliation with anyone. I am not even from Canada,
but I plan to visit it this Summer/Fall.
–
studios are large corporations, who excel at corporate double-speak
(CDS). TV/film studios are doubly so. It makes sense that what they’re
saying and “what they’re really saying” are two different things.
–
keep in mind that three things coincided here – wrap up of Travelers and
availability of a large creative crew, a downturn in interest in SG
franchise (after an abomination of a SG:O, which to my surprise holds a
4.8 star rating for the Stargate Origins: Catherine release and 4.0 for
series proper) and a chance to invite Brad Wright to the podcast. If you
listened to the podcast – he’s clearly talking over landline phone, so
it’s just a schedule window where he can dedicate an hour to
participating in the podcast. I.e. – not like a huge convention or
event. Just people talking.
– if I can decipher the CDS that Brad is using – he is saying he is a little upset that the studio went ahead with plans for Ronald Emmerich reboot. Dude officially said he wants the SG-1/A/U out of the window and studio was running with it for some time. Don’t know if I remember correctly – there were talks about a three-movie deal that would bury the canon for good. For someone of Brad Wright caliber, it must be throwing piss in his face. I’d remember I was mighty upset too, but I am a sucker for continuity.
– once they have reconsidered and Emmerich was out of the picture (at least, officially) – that’s what he calls “they’ve reconsidered”. Which means the canon is not out of the window, which means the “acknoledgement” of “hours and hours” of his contribution. Which is what he is, apparently, happy with.
– the “we’re talking” can literally mean anything in CDS. It could mean – they are calling him daily, but he purposefully not picking up the phone. Could be the other way around. Could be they’re working on a schedule of meetings to actually sit down and brainstorm what can be done with this IP.
– from the studio management point of view, I think I understand the dilemma. On one hand, the overall landscape of the TV shows has changed. You have Game of Thrones, you have House of Cards, you have Better Call Saul, Orange Is The New Black – huge hits based on original material. And there’s definitely a different mood in those shows, they are more intense, there’s more drama, more of everything, really. And then you have reboots of old top-level shows, like McGyver, Lethal Weapon, Lost in Space, Star Trek: Discovery, that are not doing as good. So the problem is – how to make a powerful show, but not alienate existing fan-base (which is what almost happened with SG:O). How to please existing fans and get new ones invested in the show. It’s a serious problem and someone’s got to solve it. And, to me, Brad Wright is a much better solution than Emmerich – because Independence Day 2 isn’t anywhere near Independence Day the original and because Brad Wright has a lot of experience catering to the audiences that like SG-like shows.
– one more thing Brad had mentioned was that he’s working with many new people in addition to people from Stargate teams. What I think he’s saying is that things have moved on and there’s very little chance we can see same cast/ensemble we saw in SG. Individually certain people can appear, occasionally, but not as a rule.
– and now, the most important question – because everything else could be resolved with enough money, experience, patience, and ass-kissing (just like anything else in the corporate world) – what would the show be about? If it’s a prequel – we aren’t capitalizing on the canon, because it didn’t happen yet but it’s already limiting us should the show run for more than a season. If it’s a sequel, like “20 years later” – then we’ll get either a Star Trek or BS:G, depending on if we’re winning or losing to bad guys. The interesting idea (don’t hate me, I am just thinking out loud here) would be along the lines of the original rebooted Star Trek – where things are positioned in another “dimension” or “reality” so you can start fresh while still capitalizing on the canon. Same way, like ST brought over Spock – new SG can bring over Teal’c or Harriman 🙂 They can even pull a GoT here and consistently kill off characters as they live (and die) through dangers of missions of Stargate Command. Or not. But this ultimately need to feed both the old fans (do not break the existing canon but give me something new and fresh) and new fans (give me something I will like given the current show landscape/competition).
– the last, but not least – SG is one of the very few franchises that has aged well. SG-1 launched 22 years ago yet, despite the crappy resolution of first 7 seasons, you can still watch it today and not be distracted by sub-par special effects or things that don’t make sense to you anymore. Another few years aren’t going to do a significant amount of damage to the property, so MGM can sit on it a little longer and assess more options.
