Warp Section

Forever Geek is reporting the Saturn Award nominations today.  Much to my surprise Superman Returns received 10 nominations.  I have yet to see it, and from what my friends are saying about it, I think I can still wait.  X-Men III, yeah that was good.  Of course Pirates of the Caribbean was good.

The nominees for the 2007 Saturn Awards have been announced, with Superman Returns leading the pack with 10 nominations. Other nominated films include: X-Men: The Last Stand, Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, Casino Royale, Mission: Impossible III, Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest and Stranger Than Fiction
Source: Superman Returns leads 07 Saturn Award Nominations at Forever Geek

Forever Geek picks their favs for the winners.  For the animated category I have to agree with Scanner Darkly.  That was one freaky film.

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Back when it looked like Stargate SG-1 was going to be cancelled, there were rumours of a third Stargate series to come out around the same time as Atlantis, but SG-1 was continued and we got the Ori plot.

Now that SG-1 is dying off, it seems like that second spin-off will come to fruition.

It looks like it is currently in the concept phase, with no doubt multiple ideas on how the whole thing is going to run. Another galaxy? Another enemy? It will be interesting, though it will never be better than the original Stargate: SG-1 in my opinion.

Sadly, we will have to go a year without having two Stargate shows, as it looks like it should premiere sometime in 2008 or later.

I guess I’ll have to get my ‘gate fix from buying the SG-1 dvd box sets as well as watching Atlantis.

via GateWorld

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Warning: Heavy Spoilers and plot details for Season 8 of Stargate SG-1.

With twenty episodes on the five DVD’s, the Stargate: SG-1 season eight box set is much like the other box sets. The special features include “SG-1 Director Series”, “SG-1 Beyond the Gate” Series, Featurettes and Photos, as well as audio commentaries on selected episodes, so really nothing too fancy. I wish it came with more extras, but that’s because I am greedy.

Season eight is the last season where Richard Dean Anderson, or Jack O’neill leads the SG-1 team, and that is the reason I bought it. It helps that it has a few decent episodes during the season including one of my favourites, Citizen Joe.

In season eight, they deal with the replicator threat, as well as Anubis in his half ascended form. We also watch as Daniel Jackson dies again.

Being a big Stargate fan, I would suggest getting every DVD box set, but if you have to skip one, I’d say this is one of the ones you could probably skip. The later seasons of Stargate have not been able to get back that feeling of exploration and struggling against a more advanced enemy, as humans start building their own spaceships able to take on the Goa’uld. Even with the Ori threat which comes into play starting in season nine, it is never the same. Season eight is that transition period, and it felt almost like they expected the show to end at this point.

The character development is limited, other than Teal’c, who changes by leaps and bounds, as he grows in his hair and tries living off base. My friends loved him better as the sexy bald guy, but I can understand why Christopher Judge got sick of shaving his head.

Tidbit:

In the season 8 episode, “Avatar”, Teal’c informs SG-1 that he plays Def Jam Vendetta, alluding to the fact that Chris Judge was a voice actor in that game.

via Wikipedia

Season 8 Episode List:

• New Order (Part 1)
• New Order (Part 2)
• Lockdown
• Zero Hour
• Icon
• Avatar
• Affinity
• Covenant
• Sacrifices
• Endgame
• Gemini
• Prometheus Unbound
• It’s Good to Be King
• Full Alert
• Citizen Joe
• Reckoning (Part 1)
• Reckoning (Part 2)
• Threads
• Moebius (Part 1)
• Moebius (Part 2)

You can pick up the box set at some movie rental stores, as well as most places that sell DVD movies.

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I have seen Fred Willard just about everywhere, as he has been in all sorts of television shows from Roseanne, to Lois and Clark, and coming soon we will see him in Stargate: SG1 playing Vala Mal Doran’s father.

The episode we can expect to see him in is entitled “Family Ties”. I wonder if he will get to meet his granddaughter, you know the supreme evil overlord of the Ori army? So far it looks like we will have to wait until late May or sometime in June of 2007 to find out. Don’t you hate winter breaks?

If nothing else, we know that at least he and Vala will meet, and I wonder what type of personality he will have? Maybe he will already be converted by the Ori? I could make things up all night. The episode will be very interesting, or very cheesy and sometimes with the Stargate writers, you don’t know what you are going to get.

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As of the end of this season we will no longer be seeing Dr. Carson Beckett, also known as the actor Paul McGillion as a regular character.

Executive producer N. John Smith confirmed last week at Collectormania that Dr. Beckett will be leaving, but not killed off. He will disappear in the second half of the current season. It is also hoped that he will return for future episodes much like Aiden Ford, actor Rainbow Sun Francks did during season two.

“I think each character is beginning to find the different layers and sometimes the darker side of the characters,” McGillion recently told Eclipse Magazine. “I can tell you one thing for Beckett as a character in the second half of the season, there’s a lot of major plot lines that are developed throughout with Beckett in mind and I think the fans will be in for some big surprises.”

I don’t want him to leave. I think he has some great wit and personality. I was really enjoying his character, and that he has been given more and more on screen time. If you feel like I do, check out the Save Carson Beckett website and show your support.

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Season 3, Episode 12

Another episode of Stargate: Atlantis has made its way to Canadian television. This time we bring back a “character” from a past episode that helped save McKay’s life: a whale-like creature.

NOTE: If you live in another country and don’t know how to illegally download the episode, you might not want to read this yet.

Doctor Carson Beckett, Ronon, and Sheppard return from an expedition on the Atlantean planet in a jumper. They find that the navigation is off, and they have to visually find the Atlantis base.

Walking through the corridors of Atlantis, Teyla sees a ghost, that mumbles something, but Ronon, who is with her, sees nothing.

McKay gets all excited at the appearance of his friend, the whale-like creature which is circling Atlantis. After looking at the scanners, they realize there is more than one whale out in the waters, actually many whales are converging on Atlantis.

Later they realize that the whales are putting off a frequency that has a negative effect on people. They are causing the ghost-like figures to appear and they are trying to relay a message. It takes a while but as usual McKay figures it out. The whales are letting the Atlantis base know that the sun is going to release a wave of plasma and radiation that will head for Atlantis. It happens every once and a while, and last time the Atlantis base extended its shield, saving most of the planet.

The problem is though that the base does not have enough power to extend the shield, thus all animal and plant life on the planet will be destroyed if they can’t come up with some brilliant plan.

This is where the episode takes a huge turn away from what I consider the stereotypical “Dr. McKay will fix it”, and it ends up that Sheppard is the one to come up with the brilliant, though dangerous plan.

They take the Daedalus and position it between where the explosion is going to happen on the sun and the planet. They use the Atlantis ZPM to increase the ships shield power. They then deflect the explosion thus saving the planet and everything on it. The whales stop circling Atlantis and everything is great.

The episode is pretty much your standard fare for Atlantis. I think the areas of the plot that deal with the whales is a little silly but otherwise it is a decent episode. I don’t feel like they are in any real danger though, and that is where much of the excitement of the series comes into play.

I give Echoes a 3 out of 5.

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Season 3, Episode 11

The second part of The Return recently aired on Canadian television, and thankfully I live in Canada. I hate how the season starts later but I love the shorter break.

NOTE: If you live in another country and don’t know how to illegally download the episode, you might not want to read this yet.

As quickly as the ancients came, they were brushed aside by the human-form Replicators or at least that’s basically where we are when the episode begins. We see Major General Jack O’Neill and Richard Woolsey hiding in an area of the station without life sign detectors, scrounging for food. Replicators have taken the Atlantis station over.

The main characters of Atlantis steal a puddle jumper and gate to Atlantis where for some unknown reason, the Atlantis gate’s forcefield doesn’t engage. Sheppard drops a bomb and pushes the jumper through the walls running away from the central command station thus blowing up many of the Replicators and slowing down any plans they might have.

General Landry, after realizing that the Atlantis team has stolen the jumper and returned to Atlantis gets all steamed up and decides to cancel their I.D.C. (an identification device to have the SGC open the iris).

The Atlantis team has a “plan” to take back the base, and continue to move out into space. They pick up the replicator they dumped in orbit back a few episodes ago.

The Replicators realize that the Atlantis team contacted someone on the base, and begin hunting for O’Neill and Woolsey. The Atlantis team on the puddle jumper try to add programming to the frozen, low-powered Replicator that they took from space. It is a program to freeze the Replicators for several hours, but the transmit power from their low-powered Replicator is limited and the jumper does not have cloaking abilities any longer, meaning they have to pilot close to Atlantis uncloaked so they can transmit the freeze virus.

On approach they are seen and drones are fired at the ship. Dodging them the best he can, Sheppard flies through the city. After a while giving up and going under water. Once inside the under water jumper bay, they realize there are problems with the bay, and then the ship begins to leak water in. Leaving the Atlantis team stuck in their ship.

Sheppard then has to ask O’Neill to go to the override switch, which unfortunately is under water, and is a dead-man’s switch, meaning that he has to hold the switch open until the water is pushed from the ship storage bay. He holds it open, almost leading to his death, unfortunately though it leads to his and Woolsey’s capture by the Replicators.

McKay raises the frozen Replicator’s power levels as much as possible, leading to him waking up, and McKay having to destroy the Replicator. This, unfortunately, means that they no longer have a plan to secure the Atlantis base. McKay does some technobabble basically saying that the weapons that the team brought won’t work after a while as the Replicators will adapt.

The Replicators are fixing up Atlantis to turn it into an interstellar ship, while the Atlantis team tries to rescue O’Neill and Woolsey, as well as setting C4 charges on the shield emitters.

The Atlantis team are then captured and their C4 is removed from the emitters. The shields come online and a wave spreads through the station rendering all the Replicators inert. McKay reveals that the plan was deception and that the shields were turned into an anti-Replicator energy wave.

An interesting little side note is made once everyone is saved. Jack mentions that next time they are looking to save his life, that they should bring Carter with them. Could this be a small hint at the Samantha Carter series crossover like we recently mentioned or just a coincidence?

Best Line: O’Neill after hearing the Atlantis team’s plan - “That sounds more like a plan F. As in we are…”

While a decent episode, I have to admit, the whole thing with the Ancients ended pretty quickly. I was really hoping that we’d learn more from them, and as for the Replicators, I really hope we are done with them.

I give The Return, Part 2 a respectable 4 out of 5.

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The rumours have been floating around for some time now that someone from Stargate SG-1 would probably move from the now canceled show over to Stargate Atlantis. Amanda Tapping, better known as the character Samantha Carter, has told fans this weekend at the AT2 event in England all the interesting details.

Tapping signed a contract for two additional years of Stargate last year, thinking there would be an eleventh season to the popular show, but Sci-fi canceled the series and the studio has decided to keep Amanda around to fulfill her contract on the other Stargate show.

Amanda said that she knew that if SG-1 did not make it to season eleven that they might option her for Atlantis, and she is excited about that.

“I think that this is a potential for a bit of fun. More than Carter and McKay. I think that this is a potential for a lot of fun.”

Will we see Samantha Carter constantly, or only as a guest star? That is still unknown, but I wonder how this will shift the group dynamic we have all come to love. Don’t get me wrong. I hate to see my SG-1 team going into the cancellation bin after they are done with their direct to DVD movie projects, but I have come to accept Atlantis as it is, and really don’t like when the two shows cross over.

Amanda also said that she is producing and starring in a new science fiction project, currently seeking funding. I look forward to checking that out when it comes out, though I almost hope she is typecast as the brainy, but tough chick, no matter what project she attaches her name to because Carter was just such a fun and interesting character.

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Season 4, Episode 13
Original Airdate: September 22, 2000

A funeral is being held for Dr. Jordan and Daniel Jackson is standing outside the proceedings. I always wonder if any other archeologist other than Daniel could have figured out the Stargate.

Despite the circumstances, running into Dr. Steven Rayner and Dr. Sarah Gardner, Daniel seems happy. The scientist died because of the “Curse of Osiris”.

Steven is not happy to see Daniel though, and leaves. We then find out that Daniel used to be with Sarah. Daniel got with a lot of girls in the series, didn’t he?

Because Daniel Jackson is away, the rest of the SG-1 team gets a vacation.

I hate how Carter looks with her hair this short. Jack O’Neill is my favorite character in the whole show. You will see me saying that fairly often, mostly because in his absense, I miss his comedy style.

While leaving with Teal’c, O’Neill makes many funny remarks about the SGC needing him and how he will not be able to be reached once he starts fishing.

Finding a burial container, Daniel makes the startling revalation that their are Goa’uld symbols on it. He tells Carter, and then of course they cut to commercial.

I swear, I should just buy all the DVD box sets of the series. I love watching SG-1.

We get to watch as poor Teal’c is stuck fishing. Not to actually catch fish of course, but to particpate in the act of fishing. When Daniel call for a translation of the symbols, T’ealc almost cries to come back to the Stargate Command.

Inside the case, is a Goa’uld symbiote, which means there is one on the lose, as another container should have been witht he first. Steven says it was destroyed in an explosion.

Later they figure out that there might be a Goa’uld out there, and Sarah finds evidence that Daniel’s original theory that Egyptian society is much older than we think is true. If only she knew the whole truth.

They go to hunt down Dr. Rayner, who they think is a Goa’uld, and might have an amulet, as he has gone to Egypt.

Steven finds a Goa’uld hand device by using the amulet.

When they finally show him in the cave, iit ends up being that Sarah is Osiris, and using the hand device she is able to push Daniel and Carter out of the way, and then activate a small ship and leave.

Best line: “[after being released from Osiris’ hand device] I think I’m gettin’ used to that thing.”

I give The Curse a 2 out of 5.

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Season 4: Episode 9
Original Airdate: August 25, 2000

People need to be moved as the planet is being terraformed and once complete it will not support the Enkaran people. Moving them is also difficult as the planet they need is very specialized to the Enkaran physiology.

The aliens terraforming the planet are sulfer based life forms rather than carbon based life like we are used to.

The residents of the planet don’t wish to leave though, feeling as they are always being pushed aside to new planets. They were taken from their home planet a long time ago by the Goa’uld.

Lotan, a biomechanical robot created to represent the ship. SG-1 talks to Lotan about what is going on. Jack O’Neill is hilarious in this episode as he can’t understand why the ship can’t just stop transforming the planet.

The Gadmeer are the ones who created the ship, and they put everything into making it so they could recreate their society at some point. It can only terraform one planet, and once it starts, it can’t stop.

I know it is a little bit cold to think this way, but if they let the Gadmeer society be re-created, they could have an ally. While they were peaceful, and thus their weapon technology might not be the greatest, they could have advanced propulsion systems, and their terraforming technology could be very useful for humanity.

Daniel goes to try to talk the aliens out of terraforming the planet, while O’Neill orders Carter to conver a Naqahdah generator into a bomb to blow up the ship.

In the end Lotan, with guidance from Daniel Jackson find the Enkaran homeworld in the ship’s database and the ship helps the Enkaran people get back to the planet of their ancestors.

A good episode for Daniel Jackson as you get to see his problem solving abilities which are the focus of many episodes. Again this episode does not focus on the main plot line of the show, but its a nice deviation and a decent episode to watch.

I give Scortched Earth a 3.5 out of 5.

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