MovieChat Forums > Stargate: Atlantis (2004) Discussion > Top 10 things wrong with this show.

Top 10 things wrong with this show.


1. They complain about Wraith being really hard to kill... well how about just of COUPLE of those 50 shots you put into his thick breastplate, could be directed at his head instead?! I hate it when they care more about what's easy to do on TV than being just a bit logical. Sure it would take more to watch them heal headshots but only shooting into a thick breastplate? WHO does that?

2. Atlantis is high tech, it automatically locks Down all doors when a virus is detected and it can even open the doors to people in hazmat suits... the things is, as high tech as it is, any guy with a pocket knife can pry open the doors.... geeeez.

3. They have the same rifles as the "Loyalists" on Fringe. ;)

4. You do this one...

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...okay, I lied. I'll list 1 thing. ...the way they made the Wraith look. It's horrible. They should've never made them look like cheap Marilyn Manson knockoffs. The same goes for the ridiculous vomit-faced football player wraith warriors. The Wraith concept? Awesome. The Wraith physical appearance? A total joke. Biggest mistake of the show. Okay, I'll list one more: the other mistake of the show: casting Torri Higginson as Dr. Weir.

Okay, I'll give in lol ....

4. The appearance of the Wraith.

5. Torri Higginson as Dr. Weir.

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Well, I think they have good varied ideas so far (in season 1 mind you) but it seems the target audience might be around 12 or something, or whomever wouldn't notice the *facedesks* I mentioned. :)

What's wrong with Higginson? :)

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by - erik-29-381626 on Mon Jun 3 2013 23:52:25

Well, I think they have good varied ideas so far (in season 1 mind you) but it seems the target audience might be around 12 or something, or whomever wouldn't notice the *facedesks* I mentioned. :)

What's wrong with Higginson? :)


My comments started out with not wanting to nit-pick inadequacies in the show, yet I remembered a couple things that really stand out about it that I believe were just down right bad choices on behalf of the producers. So, I added to your list. And now you question why I added to the list. I think that maybe you should just go ahead and create your own list of 10 things wrong with the show, or don't question why others list things with which you might disagree. If your intention in this thread is to open up a specific list of 10 topics to discussion, you should mention that in the original post. As it is, you present this thread as simply a list of things wrong with the show. Case in point:

1. They complain about Wraith being really hard to kill... well how about just of COUPLE of those 50 shots you put into his thick breastplate, could be directed at his head instead?! I hate it when they care more about what's easy to do on TV than being just a bit logical. Sure it would take more to watch them heal headshots but only shooting into a thick breastplate? WHO does that?

2. Atlantis is high tech, it automatically locks Down all doors when a virus is detected and it can even open the doors to people in hazmat suits... the things is, as high tech as it is, any guy with a pocket knife can pry open the doors.... geeeez.

3. They have the same rifles as the "Loyalists" on Fringe. ;)

4. You do this one...

And, getting back to the original point:

4. The appearance of the Wraith.

5. Torri Higginson as Dr. Weir.

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I'm just curious, that's all: You think she is a bad actor? Very wrong for that role? Something else?

You shouldn't get angry by being asked harmless questions online. :)

Like I said, just curious.

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Read this thread (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0374455/board/nest/199898697) in which the previous poster has stated their reasons for disliking Higginson. I don't agree with him (her?) but they have a right to their opinion and the thread I linked to was not hard find...

That is why you kind of got a snarky reply from that poster who has always stated that they dislike Torii as Dr. Weir.

To add to your list:

6. Too much emphasis on finding ZPMs and not enough about the Ancients.

7. Lack of a well mapped out multi-year story arc for the show to set it apart from SG-1. Every year the show had stories that contradicted earlier stories.

Redhooks

"You don't get something for nothing, you don't get freedom for free." Neil Peart

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One shouldn't have to look to other threads for the continuance of a topic brought up in this one.

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And one shouldn't have to rewrite their comment on a topic if it is more than one paragraph. By me posting the link to the thread where the other poster gave his comments, I was helping the OP with their question about why the poster doesn't like Higginson's portrayal of Weir.

I could also say that what does it matter to you over a year later what was said in an old thread? It was directed at the OP and no one else.

Redhooks

"You don't get something for nothing, you don't get freedom for free." Neil Peart

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by - erik-29-381626 on Tue Jun 4 2013 07:16:57

I'm just curious, that's all: You think she is a bad actor? Very wrong for that role? Something else?

You shouldn't get angry by being asked harmless questions online. :)

Like I said, just curious.

Check out the link Redhooks provided, I elaborate on my opinion of Higginson as Weir. You did not make me angry, I was addressing how your thread appeared to be simply a list, not an open discussion disagreeing with what others list, based on your original post. It doesn't really matter. Maybe you should rename the thread, "100 things" so the list can go on but, then again, SGA is a fun show, it might take some of the fun out of it to focus on the negative aspects of it. Or maybe not.

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8. Teyla

9. Leaders all behaving the same, no change in attitude and feel regardless of who was in position.

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Sure we can make it 100 instead of 10. ;)

But these lists are (usually) meant to be fun, pointing out big mistakes or silly things that make no sense, like shooting 50 times at a thick breastplate instead of the head.

A list of things wrong that aren't explained, is just not fun for others to read.

Like if the list just says:

1. Dr Weir
2. Plot
3. Leaders
4. Wraith

etc. with no explanation, that's simply boring. :)

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OK

8. Teyla

9. Teyla's speech

10. Teyla's people

11. Teyla's voice

12. Teyla's child

13. Teyla's hair

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ha ha ha wait she has a child? :D

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Yeh she will have one in season 4 and will be part of a very ridiculous arc.

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What season will Jewel Staite join them? That's why I suffer through this... although they have some good ideas from time to time, when they're not shooting a wraith in the chest and wondering why it's so hard to kill them.

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I believe Jewel joins around season 3's end.

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In addition to joining the cast at the end of season 3, she has a guest starring role in season 2 where she plays a young Wraith.

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Really? :D

Well, season 3's end..... dammit.

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Teyla, absolutely.

Not the actress or the character, per se, but the representation of the "indigenous peoples".

In certain kinds of series/films, the native people are shown as so wise, so knowing, so morally correct, always smarter than the newcomers about people in general, to the point where they can put no foot wrong.

Ronon to a lesser extent, probably because he got less dialogue.

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It wasn't 10 seasons long

The last episode

Dr weir

Every wraith except Todd

The power situation got old

Dr Kelley's personality. Not the actress.

Commander colia(whatever)

The geni were mega annoying




I was looking at a fly then peter killed me


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Unsure on what to choose as my option. Though to be honest I was 21 when it aired and 30 now, which may explain why I audibly groan when watching anything post-season 2, because some of the cheese is just too cheesy to deal with.

- Jewel Staite
- Teyla and her frickin' "MY PEOPLE!" rants
- The episode Harmony
- Rodney McKay partially ruining the show due to his prominence cos the writers thinking THAT is the fella we fans "identify" with. Yeah right.
- Carbon copy SG-1 episodes
- Joe Flanigan's.......................'acting'.
- That chick from Season 1's The Eye with the "THEN END IT!!" line. The worst actress I have ever witnessed, including hardcore pornography.
- And the fact that Shepard didn't plough Dr Weir like an arable farmer. What can I say! I'm a shipper and an old romantic in one.

IMDB - Because some trolls need more than just a bridge

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Jewel Staite... haven't gotten to her yet but I assume she's not the adorable and beautiful Kaylee but this stick-thin-something.

Never seen SG-1 so I don't notice the cheap knock-offs (luckily).

I DID realize the DVD said "12" as minimum age, it should also say "13" as maximum I think. ;)

Funny how some Wraiths take 3 shots to the chest and go down while others need 200.

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The Wraith's healing factor is directly related to the time since feeding. If they've just fed they can heal almost anything in a flash.
Also...the military fellas shoot Wraith in the chest because they are trained to aim for the centre-mass of an opponent's body. Every new viewer *ALWAYS* asks why they never shoot for the head...it's a much smaller target.

IMDB - Because some trolls need more than just a bridge

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Obviously it's a smaller target but I think anyone with half a brain who saw an enemy get up 5 times in a row, after being shot in his BIG THICK chestplate, would aim for the head.
We even see soldiers firing POINT BLANK into the chest, don't tell me they couldn't hit the head from 15 inches away with an automatic rifle? Most would at least TRY but again, budget often dictates special effects and head shots would be a LOT more expensive (or simply look really bad).

The feeding = healing is too inconsistent but hey, it's a sci fi show and perhaps all Wraith aren't the same, age could also be used to explain it so it's not a big issue for me.

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-Everyone speaks english
-Gravity and atmosphere is exactly same in all planets they go (well almost every planet). In reality it's almost impossible find two planets that have same gravity.
-Stupid, annoing, lame one liners and jokes
-the cast
-missing multi season story arc

Edit:
and got to add one more thing. Time. Months and years are same in throughout universe. When earthlings refer to time or someones age everyone magically knows how time is measured in earth.

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Yeah, I also wondered why all the different peoples all refer to the Wraith as Wraith. No primitive people call them ghosts or demons or anything, everyone calls them Wraith. :)

-And Rodney pausing his work to tell everyone how busy he is: "We all die in 20 secs if I don't do this now, so don't interrupt me, I'm very busy!" ...well then stop talking and do it?!

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Same thing about "Ancients".
Everyone knew the Ancients as Ancients which is kind of strange.

At first thinking that wraith are actually hard to kill (S1 E1-5) only to later realize that rambo Ronon can kill around 20 on his own (episode where he was captured and let go again).

Wraith soldiers running. Looked like they had spaghetti for feet.

Wraith having superior technology, but not being able to pick up a Puddle Jumper on their radar that cloaks 10m before reaching the hive ship.

Almost every filler show is about last second saves. I don't know numbers that big to count the times Atlantis or Pegasus was saved 1 second before inevitable doom.


But I still liked the show in general, good watch.

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Well to defend it, they actually did say the ancients had superior tech but the wraith one by sheer numbers.

The puddle jumper is ancient tech so their cloaking is just that good. :)

Yeah, I enjoyed it too, saw all 5 seasons, although sometimes cursing at the stupidity. :)

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Butaai

Actually, if you study the problem a bit, you would see that life needs certain conditions to thrive, aka planets similar to Earth. Several such planets were found throughout the Galaxy already, but we don't know if they have life on them yet.

The English problem has been discussed to death: it's better off.

About time, how did you figure that one out? Aside from everybody using the terms days, generation, years, months, there is no indication they have the same length (although, given what i said about similar planets, it might be quite possible that days have +a few hours compared to earth days).

@the guy above me:

They are also refereed to with other terms but i can't remember them now.

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Actually, if you study the problem a bit, you would see that life needs certain conditions to thrive, aka planets similar to Earth. Several such planets were found throughout the Galaxy already, but we don't know if they have life on them yet.


Also it helps that most planets that have Stargates on them were specifically selected by the Ancients. While it is unlikely that Stargate worlds would exactly match Earth's gravity, there's no reason that they couldn't have found a few thousand in an entire galaxy that were close enough to what they were used to that there wouldn't be a noticeable difference from the perspective of a TV viewer (and thus the difference to people traveling to those worlds would be minimal). On top of that, they were said to have terraformed a number of planets to make them more suitable for human life. So if they found a rocky world in the Goldilocks zone of its solar system and it had the gravity requirements that they desired, they would have been able to make it habitable by doing things like making changes to the atmosphere and introducing plant life.

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- how it ended ( bit of a rush)
- no movie to tie up whether or not all the wraith survive.
- what happened with Todd ?
- the coalition what happened with that?
- No one on earth saw Atlantis land at San Francisco, so not one tv camera, amateur camera, binoculars or anyone with a telescope spotted Atlantis before it hit Earths atmosphere?
- Rodney has to save the day 99% of the time ( approximately)
- With all the tech that SG1 found they couldn't think of much for Atlantians to find and have trouble with !
- waiting for Picardo to say "please state the nature of your emergency" yes I know wrong show but some people you see in one show and thats all you think of them as that character. ( tell me you don't o it with any star trek actors or star wars character!
- ONLY 5 SEASONS
- last episode seemed very rushed
- what do Atlantian partners do whilst their partners are off saving the galaxy/ universe.
- going through these message boards at 5am in the morning
- still being awake after watching last 1/2 of season 5 and thinking thats how they ended it!! ( yes thats a repeat but still....)

Which came first the virus or the anti-virus!

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Dr. Weir came across more as a schoolmarm than a leader.

Ronan, me hunt wraith, ug ug!!!!

The Lanteans not leaving instructions on how to build ZPM's.

Bringing to much of SG-1 foes into the show, i.e. replicators, Asgard, etc.

And exactly how much hair gel did they bring to Atlantis for Sheppard's hair???

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Asgards were friends!

Which came first the virus or the anti-virus!

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Weir had the entire expedition on her shoulders. She also was too valuable to allow into the field so never understood decisions made under fire. Before she died she was starting to get it. Those bozo's should not have left her floating in the cold dark.

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- Keller (worst whiny character ever introduced in SG, give the girl some balls)
- McKeller
- McKay becoming the center of the show. He's ok with the team, but it got ridiculous towards the end.

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Here's my version:

1. Wraith
2. Weir
3. Teyla
4. Teyla's people
5. Weir
6. Carson's accent
7. Wraith
8. They (and SGC) being the only ones with a shield on the gate
9. Terrible CGI sometimes
10. Ronon

I'll update the list if something new comes up while watching it (again).

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Just fyi, we actually saw/heard about a few more shielded gates during Sg-1 (see below). So you might have to update your list to include the Wraith/Weir one more time.

Erebus:

RAK'NOR: "The Stargate on Erebus is impenetrable."

TEAL'C: "How so?"

RAK'NOR: "A force field, much like your iris, blocks the Erebus Stargate, making attack or rescue through it impossible."

JACKSON: "Someone must get through it somehow."

RAK'NOR: "We believe a signal must be used to power down the force field, but we have no way of knowing what that signal is."


Quote taken from "Orpheus" (season 7, episode four).

Tartarus:

DAD: We've confirmed that Anubis has a base on Tartarus. A powerful sensor array prevents anyone from approaching the planet unnoticed. The Stargate on Tartarus is inside the structure and has a powerful force field protecting it.

HAMMOND: We need to know how Anubis created this new soldier, confirm what we believe his intentions are and if possible, stop him. Any ideas?

CARTER: Even if we could defeat the force field, we have to assume the Stargate would be heavily guarded.

TEAL'C: We must gain access to the planet by somehow temporarily shutting down the sensor array.

CARTER: I agree. The question is how?

SEL'MAK: I will walk through the Stargate.

HAMMOND: Selmak?

SEL'MAK: Yes.

HAMMOND: Come again?

SEL'MAK: I will wear the armour of Anubis' assassin. According to your account on Ramius' planet, it passed through the force field trap.

BRA'TAC: But at what physical cost? We have no way of knowing.

CARTER: The force field around that Stargate has got to be more powerful than the one we used.


Quote taken from "Evolution: Part 2" (season 7, episode 12).

Dakara:

TEAL'C: The rebel fleet guarding Dakara has fallen to the forces of Anubis. Bra'tac and the remaining rebel ships will not arrive in time. (Sam comes in and joins them.) Anubis now controls the weapon.

O'NEILL: Well then, we find the biggest damned nuke we can and we shove it right through the Gate now.

TEAL'C: Anubis will certainly have the Gate shielded. The nuke will not arrive in one piece.


Quote taken from "Threads" (season 8, episode 18).

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Thanks for the useful info. I updated the list:

1. Wraith
2. Weir
3. Teyla
4. Sam Carter
5. Weir
6. Carson's accent
7. Wraith
8. Teyla's people
9. Terrible CGI sometimes
10. Ronon

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Terrible CGI was rare. I could take or leave Sam and Teyla's people, but the rest of your list, I love -- most especially Carson's accent!


Saulisa

Logic is our best defense against The Experts.

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1. Keller
2. McKeller (rodney and carsons makeout session was more believable than anything bw McKay and Keller)
3. Teylas accent
4. Under-developing weir
5. Carter
6. Carson's death
7. Bringing carson back as a tease (why bring him back to use him so little?)
8. Michaels defeat (he started out as such an interesting character, they eventually butchered it)
9. Cardboard cutout indigenous ppl
10. Sg1 knockoff villains (come on writers! What were u getting paid for?)

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All of your examples of shielded gates are from SG1, so those are strengths of SG1, not strengths of Atlantis, so I think that the original list of things that are dumb on Atlantis can still stand with the shield issue.


"Jack go to the liquor store and findeth the Jack of Daniels so that ye may be sh*tfaced!"

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The part about having to update the list was a wise crack and not intended to be taken seriously. My point in posting about gates from the Milky Way (which I clearly acknowledged were examples from SG-1) was just to provide information that the other poster appeared to be unaware of since he brought up the SGC gate as the only other one that was shielded. If he meant of the gates that appeared in Atlantis those were the only two to be shielded, his statement was true. However, I thought he might have meant overall and it seems that he did since he didn't say otherwise in his reply to my post.

Although if one wants to have a serious discussion about why there's a lack of shielded gates in the Pegasus galaxy versus the Milky Way, I would point out that there's not much opportunity for that technology to exist in the Pegasus galaxy - The Wraith aren't big on shield tech to begin with (we've seen them utilize a primitive force field only once) and they don't have much need for it. When awake they mainly live in their ships, traveling from planet to planet, with little cause to protect any particular planet except the rare base or grounded ship. When asleep they seem (albeit based on a grand total of two examples) to depend on the fact that humans are too primitive to reach their chosen locations for landed ships. Hence spacegates and the practice of landing ships far away from the gate are sufficient to deter most attacks.


SHEPPARD: This ship is nowhere near the Stargate. Approaching it undetected by foot is impossible.

-Quote from Underground

It's not the best solution as the Satedans were able to attack some sort of installation, but since they're spread out so much throughout the galaxy it makes it difficult to do any real harm to them (a single attack here or there doesn't hurt them much in the grand scheme of things).

Meanwhile, if humans are so primitive that those methods keep them from doing real damage to the Wraith, it's not like they're likely to be advanced enough to shield their own gates. If they are they're well hidden and have been for some time, so it's unlikely that they would be found during the course of the show (although there were hints to more advanced groups out there). For those not hidden, they get wiped out (like the Satedans) whenever they advance to the point to become even a minor nuisance. Plus there's not a whole of motivation for them to devise a method to protect a gate as it doesn't protect them from the Wraith who obtain most of their food by physically traveling from planet to planet by ship.

So if they're looking for a viable method to protect their planet from the Wraith over the long haul, that's not it. It only works for Atlantis when it is underwater, protected by a full powered shield, or its location/existence is unknown to the Wraith. Random human planets that have been dealing with the Wraith culling their worlds for generations are unlikely to have any of those luxuries.

Finally, the Ancients seemed to keep their gates outside of their installations and depended on a city or outpost's shields as viable protection against Stargate related incursions. Since Atlantis chose to land on water and never relocated to a ground location (perhaps because cityships need an outpost to serve as a landing platform and since Atlantis moved to the Pegasus galaxy, rather than being built there, no such place existed upon arrival and they simply came to like being ocean based while rebuilding their civilization) they're the exception that need an in-house gate and hence needed a gate specific shield.

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Dont Know what number we are on but the 5 or 6 someone got captured episodes every season.

Keep calm and Carry on

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