August 22, 2012: Cos & Effect! Days of Stargate Atlantis Past! Submersion! Mailbag!

Oooh, only two days to Cos & Effect, the big cosplay con going on at UBC this weekend.  It’s not just another anime con, promising a wide array of costumes – and plenty of blog fodder.  Check out the details here: http://www.coseffect.com/

Akemi is raring to go, Oppan Gangnam Style!

Our trip down SGA memory lane continues with…

SUBMERSION (318)

I always loved episodes possessed of horror elements: our heroes, trapped somewhere, being hunted by some otherworldly creature.  In this case, they’re stranded aboard a wraith ship on the ocean’s floor, being stalked by a mightily pissed off wraith queen.  This is one of those rare opportunities in which Weir gets in on the action as well, joining the deep sea exploration of the presumably derelict ship.  It’s also great to see Teyla kick ass – even if it is Ronon’s ass she’s kicking.

The one behind-the-scenes incident that I recall involved those unwieldy underwater suits McKay and Sheppard wear to access the neighboring ship.  Because of the mechanics, it was always a big song and dance getting the actors in and out of the things.  The suit would be prepped, they would crawl in, then the suits would be locked, effectively sealing the actors inside.  It was an equally big song and dance to unlock the suits and open them again so, once locked, there was nowhere to go but forward – onto set and shooting.  Well, it just so happened that Joe’s suit experienced some sort of malfunction.  The resident suit expert hopped inside and made the necessary adjustments.  The director was losing time and was eager to start shooting so, the second the guy had finished fixing the suit, he jumped out, Joe jumped back in, and the suit was sealed.  Unfortunately, also sealed inside the suit with Joe was a wicked bout of gas the fixer had released.  My fellow producer, John Smith, relayed the story over lunch, describing Joe’s muted, wild-eyed reaction after which John, in all seriousness, solemnly assured us: “But it wasn’t malicious.”  The very notion that anyone assumed malice on the part of the farter made it even funnier.

Mailbag:

anneteldy writes: “Yesterday, I reported to the nursing home facility that while I was in the hospital, someone helped themselves to the cash I had on hand in my room. $132 gone.”

Answer: Well that truly sucks.  And doubly so for the fact that the nursing home made you feel as though you’d been in the wrong. Hoping things pick up for you this week.

Ponytail writes: “The most emotionally devastating moment in Stargate history for me was the cancellation of Stargate Atlantis. Second was Ronon’s wig in season 5.”

Answer: Ah, the wig.  Years of sporting the dreads began to take their toll on poor Jason, so the decision was made to cut his hair.  We ended up working the haircut into the show (the head shaving sequence in Broken Ties) but since the first episode of season 5 picked up on events from the season 4 finale, we had no choice but to wig.  On the bright side, at least we used his real hair.

Patricia Stewart-Bernard writes: “When Atlantis was not renewed, I had a thought that the same thing might have happened – that certain well known actors were negotiating their contracts a lot higher than the franchise could afford. After all, it is not unheard of for actors who attend conventions, and who are told over and over by fans about how awesome they are, to get swelled heads.  Opinion Mr. Mallozzi?”

Answer: The Atlantis cast already had deals in place for season 6 so the cancellation had nothing to do with contractual issues.

Ivon Bartok writes: “ ‘Sharks Fin Soup’ though, should be banned. It’s tasteless, and offers nothing but a dish eaten for “cultural” reasons. People used to “head hunt” for cultural reasons, but they saw the light. Yes… I just compared shark fin soup to head hunting.”

and

dasndanger writes: “Joe, while I agree with most of your ‘unapproved reply’, I have to disagree with you 110% (if not more) on shark fin soup.”

Answer: If you’ll re-read my comment, you’ll see it is not a defense of the right to eat shark fin soup.  Rather, I am pointing out that most people eat it for cultural and textural reasons rather than simply for show’s sake.  And, for what it’s worth, I no longer eat it.

Jason writes: “Any word on more Stargate Soundtracks…?”

Answer: Sorry, I haven’t heard anything.

Jason also writes: “Oh and I had heard that David Hewlett had bought a good chunck of the SGU sets. Is there some truth to this? “

Answer: That would be a question for David.  It’s news to me.

Tam Dixon writes: “ Did Paul M. decide to end his role or was it a plot twist decided by the writers?”

Answer: It was a creative decision by the writing staff.

Tam Dixon also writes: “I noticed that Teyla was talking about approaching a “love interest”. Was Rachel Luttrell pregnant or considering a pregnancy at that time?”

Answer: I can’t answer for Rachel.  Paul and I only learned of the pregnancy after assuming the show running reins for the show’s fourth season.

sylvia writes: “@Joe – have you had, do you like – moon pies or whoopie pies?”

Answer: Yes and yes and yes and yes!

LJ writes: “How are things looking on the L.A. front? Are you moving to the U.S. soon? And what about the Dark Matter project? Speaking of which, when do you anticipate another DM comic coming out (please say soon!)?”

Answer: Paul and I are pitching ideas and developing some projects. Next week, Paul will swing by my place with his white board and we will start to break some of the pilot ideas we have before sitting down to write them.  Any decision on L.A. won’t be made until 2013.  2012 is dedicated to writing, developing, and taking it a little easier.  I was on a Dark Matter-related conference call only a few hours ago.  Fingers crossed.  As for new issues of DM – well, the trade paperback collecting the first four issues will be released in October.  Depending on how it sells…

bailey writes: “OK, question: How long do you usually hold a grudge? Because you seem very, very good at it! “

Answer: Ah, it really depends on the situation.  If it’s a disagreement that stems from a mistake or misunderstanding, not long at all.  If the other person is being a jerk, then a  really long time.  Reeeaaaallly long time.  Why?  Have you done something to get on my bad side?

gforce writes: “… if you had to give up one of your favourite foods, and I mean NEVER have it again, what would it be?”

Answer: Hmmm.  I could probably go without pizza.  Maybe.

Deni writes: “How’s Jelly doing these days?  Lulu? Bubba?”

Answer: The gang is great – and full of energy, even Jelly (the old lady).

Anonymous J writes: “ell, I think I agree with the main point of the Time article, although I think he made it very poorly. Let’s face it, most of us *can’t* tell the difference between high quality and just ok – and I’ll maintain that whether it’s food we’re talking about, or writing or music or the color on a new tv. A lot of us overpay for a difference we can’t detect.”

Answer: Okay, but the title of the article implies that Luxury Foods Aren’t Worth It not Luxury Foods Aren’t Worth It to many people.  I, for one, can’t tell the difference between a very good wine and a great wine, but I can tell the difference between a fantastic North American steak and a comparable wagyu, or great North American sushi and the sushi I eat in Japan.  The article read like a bait and switch.

Anonyous J also writes: “But two people died (Carson and the standing-much-closer-to-the-bomb soldier) where one had been in danger (tumor guy), and only one of them got this great big over the top send off (they lose people every week, but I guess they only pull out the stops for those whose names are in the credits – yeah, yeah, redshirts) that glossed over his role in his own death and that negated his actual show history.”

Answer: I expect they held funerals for every member of the Atlantis expedition that died in service but we – the viewer – only saw Carson’s funeral because we were more emotionally invested in his character.

Anonymous J also writes: “Nobody ever complained about him – really? Never? Nobody thought the retrovirus was a bad idea? He was head of a department and never pissed anyone off? Oy.”

Answer: It’s not as if Carson went rogue, developing the retrovirus on his own.  It was a project sanctioned by the Atlantis command.  Also, there’s a difference between disagreeing with someone and complaining about them.  The latter goes to character and is far more personal.  He probably did piss some people off over the course of his time on Atlantis, but clearly not to the point where someone would raise the point at his funeral (“Yeah, he was brilliant and all but that time he cut in front of me in the mess line…what an asshole.”)

Anonymous J also writes: “And I still have no idea what the point of that last scene with McKay was. I’m not even sure the writer had a point in mind.”

Answer: I believe it afforded McKay (and, by extension, the audience) the opportunity to say goodbye.

Misty: “…was there ever any question raised in the writer’s room about how Lucius treated people, specifically, his ‘wives’?”

Answer: The consensus in the writers’ room was that Lucius was a creep, taking advantage of anyone he could to further his own ends.

JeffW writes: “As for a mailbag question, I did comment awhile ago about whether there was any discussion about keeping one of the Ancients around as an arc or recurring character (instead of having them all killed by the replicators).”

Answer: No, no serious discussion was ever given to having an actual Ancient reside on Atlantis.  If it had come up, I probably would have argued vehemently against it.  I was never a huge fan.

Airelle writes: “Joe I have a friend from Taiwan who just lost her mother, do you know what would be the proper way to express condolences, I know the customs are different and I would not want to offend.”

Answer: Hi, Airelle.  Unfortunately, I can’t help you here.  I’m unfamiliar with Taiwanese customs.