Stargate Universe Off To Good Start: Ep. 101 Review
October 3, 2009 by Desiree Washington
Filed under Entertainment, Film & TV, Reviews, Sci-Fi-Fantasy-Horror
“Stargate Universe”, which premiered Friday night on Syfy, offers a refreshing new take on the popular family oriented military styled action franchise, “Stargate.” “Stargate Universe” or “SGU” updates special effects and incorporates camcorder style shots, which contribute to the new series feeling more realistic and grittier than its predecessors. The soft-focus effects of “SG1” and “Stargate Atlantis” have been replaced with crisp detailed effects ready for any high definition viewer.
“SGU” succeeds, at least in this first episode, in achieving its creative team’s stated goal of incorporating well-established “Stargate” mythology without relying on it too much. The premiere episode, “Air,” mines familiar “Stargate” themes of adventure and exploration, while focusing mainly on the socio-political strife among the main characters. “Air,” sets up an interesting situation. A team of explorers locate a stargate that was configured to dial nine chevrons or instead of the usual eight. The explorers want to know where the nine-chevron address leads. When their peacetime mission suddenly transforms into an emergency evacuation, the team must decide whether to head back to Earth or risk their lives, and the lives of innocent civilians, to complete the mission.
What makes “SGU” immediately engaging is that the storyline unfolds quickly. Early on, viewers learn enough about most of the characters to decide fairly rapidly whom they relate to and whom they like or dislike. But not all characters are easy to read, and that ‘hook’ will compel me to tune in again
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I have to be honest … I thought the SG-U premier was the WORST episode of any Stargate program I have ever seen. The writing was immature, the dialogue unrealistic, the characters more suited to a soap opera, and the gratuitous sex scene completely out of place (again, more suited to the soaps).
It was as if this episode were written by committee (of not very talented writers). There were a few (a very few) moments where things looked promising (the opening scenes with “General O’Neil” were vintage Stargate humor. The general idea of the series is intriguing and could have formed the basis for a truly spectacular premier. But this drivel will go down as a most forgettable beginning to what I hope will prove to be a far better series that what has been displayed by this bomb.
Unanswered is the gnawing question: with so much talent from both the preceding series, why would whoever is in charge of this “mission” put together THIS crew?
Well, there is one positive note. The series can only get better.
You pretty much nailed it, Bob. The thing that kept people coming back to the SG shows was the witty writing that didn’t take itself too seriously. So far this one looks to be a sad cross between Battlestar Galactica and Lost In Space. It needs to find its way back to the Stargate Universe in a hurry.
Wow. I must not be as discerning. I actually loved every minute of the show and I’m hating that it’ll be a week or more between episodes.
I will definitely admit that a few scenes and lines caused me to grit my teeth, and I’m already on the “Kill Doctor Smith” bandwagon against Dr. Rush, but I like what happened, I love the problems they’re faced with, and I truly enjoy the fact that these AREN’T the best, brightest, and most experienced crew.
They’re scientists, administrative staff, and a few soldiers who weren’t prepared for this kind of event. I was expecting something like the (abysmal) ST: Voyager. And I feel that Universe is delivering something far greater.
They react to problems with common-man solutions, the ‘tech’ staff (of which I seriously hope they introduce some more support people) aren’t confident super-geniuses, there’s a lot of anger and fear causing people to make bad decisions or stop others from solving the problem right away.
I’m loving it. It’s not SG-1, it’s not Atlantis, but I think it’ll be a great show in a new & different style.
Gentlemen, Gentlemen, Gentlemen—-I could have written a better script on the back of a napkin—-Yes, I am a Stargate afficionato, and I own the complete Stargates series for both SG1 and Atlantis, and now you have to spoil it all by producing a copy cat series that is a combination of Star Trek Voyager and Battlestar Galactica—-please, please, please, turn the Space Ship around before its too late. I agree with Bob Webster above, it’s hardly a family oriented series with the unnecessary sex scene inserted in the SGU series premiere.
How about some refreshing ideas like meeting the “Ferlings” identified in the SG-1 series, but never encountered—-maybe they had to move to another Galaxy to escape annilation by the same forces who forced the evacuation—lets hear some more about them and maybe the hostiles who attacked the planet in the SGU opening—-And insert a little more realism in the characters and not be so ridiculous to suggest that a genius video game player is going to walk right inn and solve linguistic and mathmetical obstacles that the characters face before the ships air runs out…..or as the Chief Scientist stated “the ship knows what we need…..” and that’s why it stopped at the planet to pick up supplies—-if this was true then why didn’t the ship seal off the air leak instead of the Senator, who had to die doing it????
OK, OK, OK, I’ll stop and give the next show another chance, however if the first show is an indication of how good the series is going to be, I won’t be collecting it—-also drop the camcorder shots ideas and need to get grittier—-and I’d suggest continuing the earlier Stargate show format of a complete show using the Stargate with a complete mission every show with a smaller team of people not a Startrek Voyager gaggle of people trapped in another universe—-that’s been done before and it didn’t last for very long.
So in summary, go back to the drawing board put your thinking caps on, and give us an exciting NEW series to comment on, and not another StarTrek Voyager or Battlestar Galactica.
Thanks for the opportunity,
Starburster
Wow! SGU’s first episode was really cool. Sure, it has elements of Star Trek and BSG, but I think that’s a good thing. SG-1 and Atlantis were both too PG. SGU raises the bar to appeal to adults and teens who like more complex character development. Don’t get me wrong; I like SG1 and Atlantis. But they were scripted for sheltered 7th-graders IMO. I watch them when I want something light to zone out to. You can’t zone out with SGU because the characters aren’t watered down versions of people with complex motives.
Why do people keep citing the sex scene? It’s a sex scene! Get over it! Seriously, do they blush when someone says ‘butt’? What’s worse is they stop watching the show then and there and then come online and pour their vinegar all over the place.
So it’s dark, gritty and edgy. Big deal. If you wanna go watch Teletubbies, go right ahead, but don’t ruin SGU for the rest of us.
For those who say they’re such diehard fans of SG and BSG but hate SGU, a question. What other sci-fi show will you watch if SGU fails? Virtuality?! That one has a sex scene in the pilot too btw. Shiver and hide.
The problem I, like most people, had with the sex scene wasn’t that it was sex. The problem was that it was thrown in just to get more “mature” viewers to watch. There was no development of plot or character in having that sex scene, no point at all.
As for ‘dark, gritty and edgy’, try ‘annoyingly dramatic, pointless and boring’. Watching a bunch of nobodys argue with each other over nothing instead of DOING something is not what Stargate was. And don’t even get me started on the dozen or so plot holes, or that God awful “new” camera work where it feels like a drunk 12-year-old is holding the damn thing.
SGU is going to fail, and fail hard, unless it does a complete 180 and gets back to what the fans want. I watched SG-1 and SGA because that’s what I liked. If people didn’t like it, then there wouldn’t have been Stargate shows on the air for the last 12 years. Don’t mess with what works.