Expedition Leaders...

[sgamadison.livejournal.com]

Who was the best?  Who was your favorite?

What storyline do you think we would have seen if Torri Higginson had been willing to come back (not that I blame her--heard a very interesting interview with her over that)?  Was killing Elizabeth so soon after killing Carson a mistake for the show?  What storyline, if any, would you have liked to have seen for Elizabeth in general?

Was Sam Carter the logical choice for expedition leader?  Did they utilize her character properly?  Do you think Sam as expedition leader bore any resemblance to Sam as we knew her in SG-1?  Was it possible to introduce a character such as her, that essentially could overrule and upstage both John and Rodney, and still use her well?  What storyline would you have liked to have seen focus on Sam?

Was Woolsey a logical choice to replace Sam?  Was he a good choice?  Do you think John and Rodney and the rest of the expedition would have 'corrupted' him in the end?  Do you think he would go back with Atlantis to Pegasus?  What if Atlantis was 'stolen' by the expedition and returned to Pegasus.  Would he go then?

Who do you think would have made the best expedition leader?  Who would you like to see as the next expedition leader?

Comments

[artemis-prime.livejournal.com]

I never appreciated Elizabeth until she was gone. She had been a grounding presence for the expedition and a good contrast to John, especially in the first season. She was strong-willed and intelligent, but sometimes seemd unwilling to listen to opposite viewpoints (re: her confrontations with Halling in S1). Actually, that whole Earth vs Pegasus traditions and beliefs would have been a wonderful avenue for the writers to go on. I think Elizabeth could have been kept even after becoming a Replicator. Wouldn't that have made for some good drama to have the enemy within the walls of Atlantis?

Sam was a likeable character, but I didn't really get anything from her. She was just "there". As others have pointed out, there wasn't any conflict with Rodney. But what I really disliked about having Sam in command was that there was no longer any conflict with Sheppard. He had to do what she wanted because she was his superior officer. End of story (they showed military conflict with him and Caldwell).

Woolsey was someone I was all set to dislike, but The Seed changed my mind. When he spoke of his little dog and the pain he felt from his divorce, well, he sold me. Atlantis was a new life for him, scary and wonderful as that would be. Part of the new life is taking on new challenges and maybe becoming more personable would be one of them. I liked how he listened to both sides and came to reasoned conclusions.

Had the writers more creativity, I'm sure that this discussion wouldn't be happening :)

[sgamadison.livejournal.com]

She was strong-willed and intelligent, but sometimes seemd unwilling to listen to opposite viewpoints (re: her confrontations with Halling in S1).

That scene didn't quite work for me. I could appreciate her 'I don't have time for this right now approach' but it felt like she was actually forbidding Halling to carry on his ceremony without her and she seemed very disrespectful of his beliefs. I don't it would have take much to fix the scene. A slightly different wording or delivery perhaps. If she'd laid a hand on Halling's arm and said, "I realize this is a rare opportunity for your people to observe a ritual that is very important to you. I respect and honor that. But among my people, as long as there is still a chance of survival, we never give up searching for a solution. What you're asking me to do here feels like you are asking me to give up. I can't do that."

I agree with you, they introduced Sam without really thinking through the ramifications of it. In order to make it appear that she wasn't trampling on anyone's toes, they had to make it look like no one had any problems with her--which is why her summary removal (despite knowing *why* AT left) felt like it came out of nowhere. TBH, it felt like she was being removed because someone thought she *wasn't* doing a good job, no matter what everyone said around the briefing table. It's funny, you can know that Amanda Tapping left because Sanctuary got picked up (and she really needed to put Sam Carter behind her and move on to another long-term character, I'm sure), but it still felt like someone somewhere was unhappy with her!

I was ambivalent about Woolsey. I was prepared to see more conflict between him and SGA-1 then we got and I was worried about that--concerned that it would sideline the team and detract from the main characters. Hah. That happened anyway and Woolsey had nothing to do with it. I thought the changing into suits in the evening was a bit too quirky for Woolsey as a character, but then I couldn't really see him in casual clothing either, so I guess not.

I liked him up until Inquisition. Frankly, I rather disliked *everyone* in Inquisition and when I am feeling paranoid, I wonder if on some level, that wasn't the point. :-) But yeah, uptight man missing his Yorkie? That made him human to me.

Had the writers more creativity, I'm sure that this discussion wouldn't be happening :)

My initial reaction was to nod along with you here but I think the writers had a lot of creativity. They had poor follow-through. Sure, they had budget constraints and time constraints but some of the things I've been hearing about the way the show was run just seem weird to me (like the lack of actor-runthroughs). They would come up with a great idea and slap it down on paper, willfully ignoring even major plot holes and coming up with ways of patching the hole instead of really fixing it. Even when it wasn't possible to bring a certain actor back for a specific part, they could have mentioned that person in conversation. A single line here or there could have gone a long way to solving some of their continuity issues.

Ooops, speaking of time, I'm going to be late for work again... :-)

[kimboosan.livejournal.com]

I think the writers had a lot of creativity. They had poor follow-through.

From what I've seen and read about the show, I think you nailed it here. Creativity was on the mark - the characters, the setting, the villains were all top notch. The banter between the characters was great. Ronon in particular was an excellent master stroke of character introduction, what with everything his history implied. But follow through? SUCKED. I'm a continuity whore in most of my fandoms, but in SGA I just have to hold my breath. :( And their choices on character arc for Carson, Elizabeth, Ford and even Teyla just stinks of rank amateurism.

[sgamadison.livejournal.com]

I'm a continuity whore in most of my fandoms, but in SGA I just have to hold my breath.

I'm thinking SGA has to be kinda painful for you at times. :-) They had a relatively small stable of regular writers and they still couldn't decide how to portray their characters sometimes...