Well, this seems to have been the special "helenka" evening on sga_squee. ::turns away and shnuffles from the feeling of utter loneliness::
I hope others will join me in the squee for this episode throughout the night and day because there were so many remarkable moments.
I also may have gotten carried away with my comments (just a titch, just a tad) because I figured out how to watch the DVD in a partial window, so I could switch between the word doc and it seamlessly.
And there's just one final comment from me for tonight ('cuz I need something called sleep, too). Once again, I'm astounded by the fluidity of David Hewlett's facial expressions and how good he is at coming up with just the right one. I really, really, REALLY cannot imagine anyone else playing the originally intended role (um ... of Dr. Ingram?) because I think even TPTB had no idea (what else is new?) of how to flesh out the character until they decided (at the last minute, natch) to have DH reprise his SG1 character ... with more humanizing aspects. And that's worth a huge *****SQUEEEEEEEEE*****
Sorry you were alone the other night, but you have given me a wonderful batch of comments to read. 38 Minutes remains one of my all-time favorite episodes. This was the episode where I said to myself, "Okaaay, this Stargate Atlantis show could be a good one if they keep this up." Yes, the whumped!John face was great! LOL
I agree that DH really showed his stuff here. If you just look at his lines alone, I feel he's shown almost as much of a whiner and complainer as Kavanaugh. But David's worried looks at Sheppard and his expressions throughout convey a wide mix of emotions. Of course it shows he is scared to death, but you can also see Rodney's mind working on the problem, as well as his fingers working on the wiring.
Every time I see this episode, I'm reminded of Joe Flanigan's comments that when they filmed it, he thought this might be the end of his acting career. Here he was for most of the episode in the back of a jumper set, laying down, with this fake bug on his neck. Of course this was early in the filming and they so far had no idea that the reaction to the series would be good. He had never played in any SF series previously and didn't know if this stuff would go over at all.
I also had forgotten how they had written Ford's character as very competent and smart. I remember the later Ford, and it overshadows this earlier version too much.
And a lovely team scene to end the episode as well. It shows they've bonded very well already, since they've cheated death together a few times now.
::giggles:: Well, I was an only child, so I learned to entertain myself quite easily. Having a terrific imagination helped, and I didn't even have to build a non-working nuclear bomb either.
Looking back at both the Flan's and Hewlett's acting abilities, I believe TPTB got way better than they (TPTB) deserved. It can be difficult to convey a subtle but clear range of emotions. Usually it's either over-the-top soap opera crap or wooden-faced stereotypical macho.
Actually, I'm getting confused by Ford's personality switch. He goes from "Hurts like hell" before he hurls himself backwards with a whoop through the Stargate in the pilot to being by-the-book in this epi. I'm sorry, PTB, but could you please decide WHO you want Ford to be?
Anyway, it may be late, but thank you for stopping by to chat with me!
and I didn't even have to build a non-working nuclear bomb either.
LOL!
I agree that TPTB got better actors than they deserved/wanted. In fact, that seems to have been the problem. Joe said he had NEVER done a show before that did not have read-throughs. But when he asked for them, they had a couple and TPTB apparently got pissed-off that the mere AC-TORS questioned parts of the script. Or that they wanted some continuity in their characters. (Michael Shanks had some of the same problems with TPTB, I heard.) So read-throughs were dumped very early on.
It is amazing that so much good stuff came from such a flawed process. Possibly because of great directors and actors who really cared about the product. Brad Wright is a good writer--witness this episode and The Shrine to name a couple. If he could just check his ego occasionally--to learn about writing women characters for example--he could be a great one.
Ooooh. Uppity AC-TORS and their unreasonable demand to put out a credible product. I suppose TPTB thought that sufficient green-screen could excuse a lot of other inadequacies.
And, yeah, continuity certainly wasn't a priority. As I've noted elsewhere, why the hell was McKay WRITTEN as such an ass (or should that be "boob") on his guest role on SGU, staring at Lt. James's rack ... as if he'd never seen a pair up close and personal before in his life. ::sighs in frustration::
And it would be a marvel to see Brad Wright grow up to become a real boy director who has insight into the authentic lives of realistic characters (including women). Just because it's SF is no excuse.
I'm sorry you were on your own for the rewatch. I still feel bad about that. This is much more fun when someone is on with you. It was a great episode, and I like seeing them after I've just watched the whole series - it's like I can see patterns developing in these early days, and learning things that come to fruition much later.
I don't think you got carried away. I enjoyed reading all of your comments about the episode. It got me rewinding more than once, trying to pay a little bit closer attention to the details you noticed.
David Hewlett is incredible. He does put everything his character is thinking in his expressions - which says so much about his abilities as an actor, but also says something about the character he's developing, even in these early days. It's one of his girlfriends that mentions how Rodney doesn't have a filter on his mouth, so she never has to guess what he's thinking - he's an open book. Well, we see that in his expressions as well. Very impressive that he worked so much out about this man he's playing so quickly.
Even though it's not as much fun playing alone (and I'll let that slip with its obvious double-meaning, lol), I still enjoyed myself, because it's forcing me to pay attention (something I believe many TV shows would prefer their audiences NOT do).
I'm looking forward to tonight. Schedule is all clear.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2011-06-25 05:23 am (UTC)I hope others will join me in the squee for this episode throughout the night and day because there were so many remarkable moments.
I also may have gotten carried away with my comments (just a titch, just a tad) because I figured out how to watch the DVD in a partial window, so I could switch between the word doc and it seamlessly.
And there's just one final comment from me for tonight ('cuz I need something called sleep, too). Once again, I'm astounded by the fluidity of David Hewlett's facial expressions and how good he is at coming up with just the right one. I really, really, REALLY cannot imagine anyone else playing the originally intended role (um ... of Dr. Ingram?) because I think even TPTB had no idea (what else is new?) of how to flesh out the character until they decided (at the last minute, natch) to have DH reprise his SG1 character ... with more humanizing aspects. And that's worth a huge *****SQUEEEEEEEEE*****
no subject
Date: 2011-06-26 05:18 pm (UTC)I agree that DH really showed his stuff here. If you just look at his lines alone, I feel he's shown almost as much of a whiner and complainer as Kavanaugh. But David's worried looks at Sheppard and his expressions throughout convey a wide mix of emotions. Of course it shows he is scared to death, but you can also see Rodney's mind working on the problem, as well as his fingers working on the wiring.
Every time I see this episode, I'm reminded of Joe Flanigan's comments that when they filmed it, he thought this might be the end of his acting career. Here he was for most of the episode in the back of a jumper set, laying down, with this fake bug on his neck. Of course this was early in the filming and they so far had no idea that the reaction to the series would be good. He had never played in any SF series previously and didn't know if this stuff would go over at all.
I also had forgotten how they had written Ford's character as very competent and smart. I remember the later Ford, and it overshadows this earlier version too much.
And a lovely team scene to end the episode as well. It shows they've bonded very well already, since they've cheated death together a few times now.
no subject
Date: 2011-06-27 03:22 am (UTC)Well, I was an only child, so I learned to entertain myself quite easily. Having a terrific imagination helped, and I didn't even have to build a non-working nuclear bomb either.
Looking back at both the Flan's and Hewlett's acting abilities, I believe TPTB got way better than they (TPTB) deserved. It can be difficult to convey a subtle but clear range of emotions. Usually it's either over-the-top soap opera crap or wooden-faced stereotypical macho.
Actually, I'm getting confused by Ford's personality switch. He goes from "Hurts like hell" before he hurls himself backwards with a whoop through the Stargate in the pilot to being by-the-book in this epi. I'm sorry, PTB, but could you please decide WHO you want Ford to be?
Anyway, it may be late, but thank you for stopping by to chat with me!
no subject
Date: 2011-06-27 05:06 am (UTC)LOL!
I agree that TPTB got better actors than they deserved/wanted. In fact, that seems to have been the problem. Joe said he had NEVER done a show before that did not have read-throughs. But when he asked for them, they had a couple and TPTB apparently got pissed-off that the mere AC-TORS questioned parts of the script. Or that they wanted some continuity in their characters. (Michael Shanks had some of the same problems with TPTB, I heard.) So read-throughs were dumped very early on.
It is amazing that so much good stuff came from such a flawed process. Possibly because of great directors and actors who really cared about the product. Brad Wright is a good writer--witness this episode and The Shrine to name a couple. If he could just check his ego occasionally--to learn about writing women characters for example--he could be a great one.
no subject
Date: 2011-06-27 01:10 pm (UTC)And, yeah, continuity certainly wasn't a priority. As I've noted elsewhere, why the hell was McKay WRITTEN as such an ass (or should that be "boob") on his guest role on SGU, staring at Lt. James's rack ... as if he'd never seen a pair up close and personal before in his life. ::sighs in frustration::
And it would be a marvel to see Brad Wright grow up to become a
real boydirector who has insight into the authentic lives of realistic characters (including women). Just because it's SF is no excuse.no subject
Date: 2011-06-30 04:29 am (UTC)I don't think you got carried away. I enjoyed reading all of your comments about the episode. It got me rewinding more than once, trying to pay a little bit closer attention to the details you noticed.
David Hewlett is incredible. He does put everything his character is thinking in his expressions - which says so much about his abilities as an actor, but also says something about the character he's developing, even in these early days. It's one of his girlfriends that mentions how Rodney doesn't have a filter on his mouth, so she never has to guess what he's thinking - he's an open book. Well, we see that in his expressions as well. Very impressive that he worked so much out about this man he's playing so quickly.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-01 05:50 am (UTC)Even though it's not as much fun playing alone (and I'll let that slip with its obvious double-meaning, lol), I still enjoyed myself, because it's forcing me to pay attention (something I believe many TV shows would prefer their audiences NOT do).
I'm looking forward to tonight. Schedule is all clear.