MovieChat Forums > Stargate: Atlantis (2004) Discussion > Things that ruined the show IMO

Things that ruined the show IMO


Rewatched SGA - while I have to say, earlier episodes were better.. I picked up on why I stopped watching it during the fourth season. I think Ronan and Keller totally killed it but there were other little things that continued frequently when they should IMO, have found a better way for the characters to interact.

- Rodney always complaining/arguing with everyone - I like him, A LOT, but they overused David Hewlett and neglected other characters.

- Teyla's pregnancy was inappropriately inserted in several episodes - I'm female and WE GET IT! SHE'S PREGNANT! Then there are the excessive touchy-feely conversations with any* other woman she next comes into contact with on Atlantis. Seriously? NO woman I know DOES this! Sure, we have ideological discussions about the what ifs and exchange medical information, but we do NOT discuss our pregnancies ALL the damn time or expect every female to get JUST as worked up about it as we do (having a child requires a load of responsibility, it's not all fun and games). I also think it's important to consider that not ALL women are the same; Teyla came across as forcibly exuberant and forcibly upset w/the notion of leave. Like men, we have this thing called, "pride" and/or varying "personalities." BTW, deliverance by Rodney? I was like, they must be high, seriously??

- Ronan is a walking stereotype. Why is everything he does accepted, somehow understood by the rest of the team as "silent tough guy" behavior? I couldn't identify it in such a way.. I thought he was sulking like a child. Actually, I felt it was pretty insulting to have both Teal'c and Ronan utter two sentences per episode. Ronan sure grunted a lot more... and inferred practically zero connectability or depth. I know his background, but even he couldn't sell it. A runner? Here's this story of a well-trained, methodical military guy, and then you give him such lame lines and provide him the story equivalent to one of a drug pusher? This fell flat, IMO. Jason's usually a confident person, I've noticed Jason saying at conventions he was confused as to why Ronan was so angry all the time. I think it's fair to say, he was just a blip on the radar anyway with nothing to contribute to any of the scenes except for the standard "let's just shoot it" line. We were left always wanting more from this character...

- Teyla was too conservative to be on this team. Something was just rather dull about her - aside from her Type A personality. The only time she initiated an opinion or contributed to the team, was with either maternal like mannerisms or took a position as "the woman" in Atlantis. Honestly, if your television show's characters are addressed as dismissively sexist, then the audience won't like hearing about it simply because you addressed it. PERHAPS they should have given her (and frankly, the women on SGU) more interesting emphasis - like in the first two episodes. Giving her a backseat was awful. Have you met the men and women in space? They MUST work well together, checking the squabbles (bordering on gender-based views) at home. They could have left a lot of the political motives out on SGU as well - Camille. *cough*

- ALL of the characters complain too much. Carson initially rubbed me the wrong way - extremely whiny. Shepherd could really take a scene nowhere fast, usually lead to arguing with Rodney - over a repetitive conflict mind you, "I can't make this thing go faster, why must I explain all this science stuff to you all!" Seriously, they should have ended up dead repeatedly! Has no one in the writing staff ever** taken/passed a science class (with an A+)?? You can NOT chat and work with PHYSICS and equations simultaneously! I don't care if you're a genius! My math and programming was better than average - but you have to IGNORE the babbling noise around you so you may concentrate - higher IQ doesn't equate - streamline calculating!!! This is a personal pet peeve of a few of my coworkers, the constant interruptions during our work from people EXPECTING us to drop what we're in the middle of to address their story of the day that they simply MUST tell us.. *jaw drop*.

- And for the love of Christ - Jewel Staite or whatever her name is - KELLER??? Just hell no - if we could combine all whining done over the course of SEVERAL seasons - it sounds like ONE simple sentence uttered from HER mouth.. I can't believe how difficult it is for me to watch her scenes?? Unbelieveable... I really don't get how they could have cast her except for some Firefly related reason - because she is SO drabby - please tell me someone didn't actually think she was *gorgeous??* You know what, let's say she's a 4, 5, or 6 even, but even with that beach-wave hair, I still found her utterly atrocious! The lack of medical skill should have been obvious - their chief medical officer JUST graduated?? You can NOT accumulate skill in ANY medical field - especially in regards to research, in such FEW years.. And wtf? She didn't even come across as an extraordinary person (it still doesn't work that way on ANY planet that I know of)?? And I'm sorry to say, but there is something specifically GRATING about her voice! Oy!

I should probably watch it with the complaining myself here yet I refuse to express myself any other way when it comes to Keller. SHE was the killer to the show for me. SHE was inserted into EVERY episode, EVERY scene, it felt like slow brain death... I couldn't believe it during rewatch, she had SUCH a power over my being able to watch a SCI-FI show and bummer... It's not that I don't possess a disposal mechanism - dispose of anything short of horrific and/or story killing arcs. It's just seriously irritating to have these sci-fi shows inserting their fantasy woman into every scene. I mean you lost this viewer and many more that season, them fantasy women won't save a show apparently, especially when they're not really that fantasy based! She came out more like whiny Mary Sue, IMO. Give me more of those Dutch's (Killjoys). If they want an esteemed woman, just give us a woman who isn't motivated by her weakness and frailties all the time - it is super condescending to us 'chicks.' Not to mention everybody's hair should be UP anyway..including Ronan's. Having your hair down like that is going to SERIOUSLY compromise your peripheral vision in combat!

- FYI, my 'women friends' don't pull that constant "focus on me, me, me" like that! It's rather insulting to your female viewing audience, no? I figure this is some sort of weird (way TMI method) writer/male response reconfiguration as "ooh, soo, you're a damsel in distress are you? Well now, maybe a guy *nuck nuck* like me, can totally RESCUE you!" In other words, there is a shortage of people who can truly understand you in your oh so precious moments (which are far more intelligent in nature so let's magnify your* hot issues, unlike the other women and their irrelevant and 'less hot' issues), let me be here to get close to you and maybe you'll find me worthy of dating!*, especially if you're gonna be all blonde like that. Woah ho ho now" *insert creepy writer smile*

Anyhow, watching 'Vegas.' Personally, I think they should have let Joe Flannigan be the "magnet." They would have been better off! He was lead, and they let him drop off the radar in terms of character arc.

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The last thing I would say about Teyla is that she had an A-Type personality. She was way too laid back. Her pregnancy wasn't the best, but lemons-lemonade. I loved that Rodney delivered the brat. If it had been anyone else, it would have been boring.

I also wouldn't really agree about Ronan. He wasn't entirely a stereotype. He was far too much of a smartass. It was nice to see an actual personality, rather than Teal'c stoicism.

And I actually liked Keller's development.

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So basically everything about the show is what ruined it.



No Sitcoms! No Sports! No Reality!

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Rodney was the primary reason this show had been so difficult for me to watch during its initial run, and to rewatch now. I can't think of a whinier bitch to have the center of attention in every single episode of a show.


The first transport is away... hey!

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Rodney's character is the same reason I couldn't like Atlantis too
He was just too over the top and annoying
I disliked him before I watched Atlantis though, not sure if anyone remembers, but he was in SG1 for a short period, he was basically a sexist pig towards Carter and while the shows producers didn't seem to continue along that line of having him like that in Atlantis, I just can't stand him in Atlantis.
Couldn't really stand Shephard either though, for the same reasons I didn't really like O'Neill in SG1, over the top, gung ho guy with stupid quips/jokes that weren't funny and just made me cringe.
Ronan just seemed so out of place in the series, he rarely said anything, only beating aliens up, or giving moody stares at people, he just seemed completely pointless.

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You made mistake watching whole tv show.

Now that being sad,i think you are lying because no person i know would watch tv show,in which you hate main characters.

Why did you watch it?Because of story?Story is made of characters you hated,and everything is about characters you hate.

When i saw you complaining about Rodney's sexist joke towards Carter ,i realized you are frustrated little meaningless person.

Tv show is written by writers and acted by actors.

You watched both tv shows,SG1 and Atlantis,i can't even begin to imagine how painful must have been watching all those episodes...i almost feel sorry for you..(almost)

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Now that being sad,i think you are lying because no person i know would watch tv show,in which you hate main characters.


I defer to a writer who addressed this in terms of her literary work but the same applies to TV for me:

Interviewer: I wouldn’t want to be friends with Nora, would you? Her outlook is almost unbearably grim.

Claire Messud: For heaven’s sake, what kind of question is that? Would you want to be friends with Humbert Humbert? Would you want to be friends with Mickey Sabbath? Saleem Sinai? Hamlet? Krapp? Oedipus? Oscar Wao? Antigone? Raskolnikov? Any of the characters in The Corrections? Any of the characters in Infinite Jest? Any of the characters in anything Pynchon has ever written? Or Martin Amis? Or Orhan Pamuk? Or Alice Munro, for that matter? If you’re reading to find friends, you’re in deep trouble. We read to find life, in all its possibilities. The relevant question isn’t “is this a potential friend for me?” but “is this character alive?” Nora’s outlook isn’t “unbearably grim” at all. Nora is telling her story in the immediate wake of an enormous betrayal by a friend she has loved dearly. She is deeply upset and angry. But most of the novel is describing a time in which she felt hope, beauty, elation, joy, wonder, anticipation—these are things these friends gave to her, and this is why they mattered so much. Her rage corresponds to the immensity of what she has lost. It doesn’t matter, in a way, whether all those emotions were the result of real interactions or of fantasy, she experienced them fully. And in losing them, has lost happiness.


Ever watch a documentary on Hitler or some other brutal ruler? If so you watched a narrative with a grossly detestable figure as the main character. It's not much different with fiction. You lose the appeal of absorbing real world history but you still have the attraction of exploring humanity in all its different possibilities, even the worst ones. I don't know about you, but I just like when a character can prompt in me a real emotion and I usually get that from the characters that make me hate or feel sorrow.

For example, Senator Kinsley in SG-1 was so ignorant that I hated everything that came out of his mouth to such a degree that I felt as though I would like to punch him and I loved that the writing and the actor's performance got that out of me. If he was the main character of his own show I would absolutely watch it to see all the harm he caused and fume about it.

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You can NOT chat and work with PHYSICS and equations simultaneously

It bothered me in the begining, but it was just the easiest way to tell the audience what is going on. They kind of had to do it.

Ronon-I don't share your concerns, however when I compare him to Ford, I think I would rather Ford stayed.
Keller-the character wasn't perfect, but it was the actress that didn't deliver. She came off snotty to me. My big pet peeve was her age, what was she, 25, maybe??It irks me that every female character has to be young and hot and even if it doesn't make sense. The rule obviously doesn't apply to men.
One good thing was that her relationship with Rodney was more casual and drama free(if I remember corectly).
Now, Teyla- hated the whole baby drama, baby cuddles, baby uncles, baby holding. I don't care! And hated even more the tension between her and Sheppard, with the undercurrent of jealousy?bleh, either get them together or not, isn't it too late to make them one true love when a lady has a child with another dude? That is why I am glad that the movie didn't happen. Romance at that point and a badly executed one was sth I could do without.
As for the character sometimes I liked her, sometimes I didn't, she was ok I guess, maybe, except "we are proud Athosian people" nonsense.

Anyhow, watching 'Vegas.' Personally, I think they should have let Joe Flannigan be the "magnet." They would have been better off! He was lead, and they let him drop off the radar in terms of character arc.

When it comes to Joe Flanigan-yes he(and Wier and Beckett)was my favourite, but I have my doubts if he could pull it off. The further we went the more clownish his portrayal became-good example his face off with Larrin.

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Since Sam was front and center for a lot of season four, it's actually my favorite -- I enjoyed the female power dynamics present between her, Jennifer, and Teyla. I liked it that they had an outgoing female who relied on hunches, and was often right, intuitively, in the series for awhile (your dreaded Keller).

There's only a handful of episodes in the entire series I find dull -- "Vegas" is one of them.

Ah well, different strokes for different folks.

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I think they made a mistake when they wrote out Rainbow Francks. They underutilized him in the first season. I thought he was great as the wraith blood fiend. They never even resolved his story line though. They just dropped him. I think they wanted to kill him off in the first place but couldn't because of something in his contract. Ronon was a fairly shabby replacement for Ford and basically just a stand-in for Teal'c. Later on the show runners did a similar thing to Torri Higginson because they had Amanda Tapping with one year left on her contract after SG-1 ended, though I never liked Higginson's Dr. Weir, I much preferred Jessica Steen in that role even though she declined the offer to play Weir on Atlantis. And I do think Amanda Tapping was a great addition to the show.

Teyla was like a low rent version of J-Lo, just a zero on the charisma scale. Moving on...

Hewlett carried the show on his shoulders, if it weren't for him it would not have been great. Picardo as well was a great part of the show.

But, what bugs me the most about Atlantis was the whole "Michael" story line. It bothered me from the beginning when they put him in a military uniform and lied to him about his identity. It just makes no sense whatsoever that they would do that. There were tons of civilians on that base, why would they not tell him he was a civilian? You don't put your enemy in military clothing and give him a rank just because he has amnesia. So, basically I thought it was pretty stupid from the start. But, then it just goes on and on. Michael just keeps coming back and the situation is worse every time. It was just so contrived. I think there was a certain lack of creativity in some areas.

As with SG-1 or most series for that matter my favorite episodes are stand alones or monster of the week episodes. The story arc stuff gets pretty bad in Atlantis. Probably not as bad as the Ori though...nothing could be worse than that.

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