Stargate Addiction

I am addicted to Stargate. I had heard of the movie that originally came out in 1994 and I think I saw it on TV once or twice. So when I saw Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis listed on Hulu I thought I would see what it is all about.

The first season of Stargate SG-1 aired in 1997 but I was immediately impressed with the feel of the show because it didn't strike me as very dated. The TV series follows 4 main characters who comprise the team SG-1 on their exploration missions to other worlds through a wormhole device named the Stargate. Click here for a more comprehensive explanation.

There are several things I like about this show. First, the stories are great. Granted, they have a lot of possibilities with the setup - they can create any sort of world they want to and that opens up all sorts of opportunities for conflict and plot. But the writers have come up with some really creative stuff. There is some structure which provides continuity, however. They have a core group of characters that we see in each episode (SG-1 team). They also established a antagonist in the form of an alien race whose main goal is to see the end of the human race. So these things form a baseline for most of the episodes.

Second, the characters are so much fun! You might think that with so many seasons of SG-1 the characters would grow static and boring, but I haven't gotten bored yet. You really get attached to the members of the team which makes the stories even better.

I haven't started watching Stargate Atlantis yet, so I can't give an informed opinion about that offshoot series. But I have become a quick fan of the new Stargate Universe series that just barely started. I highly recommend you check out the pilot. They did a good job of giving the basics so you don't have to watch all the previous Stargate shows to know what's going on. But you should anyway...

Wanna know more? Here's the official site. Totally disagree with me? Leave a comment and tell me why. Agree with me? Leave me a comment and tell me why. Have a TV show recommendation? Bring it.

Chillin'

So I've totally been slacking on the whole post thing but I'm sitting here at home by myself watching a chick flick and felt like jotting some things down.

I'm watching Twilight for the second time, and I like it better this time, too. It's been cloudy today and it made me realize how much I miss that kind of weather. I like a cold rain every once in a while because it makes me reflective and cozy. I'm more prone to feel like writing when I feel cozy and thoughtful.

I've been slacking a bit on reading recently. I read a novel on WEbook.com by Rob Hansen called Sonnet Harbor. I finally finished it last night and it was really good. I'm hoping it gets selected for publishing because I think it was really well done. The characters are sincere and I liked the story a lot. Check it out and let me know what you think.

I've also been spending some time watching Stargate SG-1 on hulu.com. They have season 1 and season 2 posted right now so I got to start from the beginning. I love the stories - they are such great sci-fi plots. And the characters are growing on me now, too, although I thought they were a little cheesy at first.

So now I think maybe I'll do some writing and then get back to the book I've been reading on and off the last little while. The Chronicles of Amber have been highly recommended so I thought I'd give them a try. I'm only a little way in but I'm intrigued.

What have you been reading recently? Find anything fun to read or watch?

Classic 'Frasier'

I absolutely love this show. I know they're not filming anymore, but even the re-runs are still so fun. When we lived in St. Louis they would come on at 11pm which was too late for us when we're getting up at 5:30am. But out here in Arizona they run at 9 so my husband and I are excited we get to tune into Frasier once again.

Seinfeld was funny and Friends was entertaining, but nothing compares to Frasier, in my opinion. It's witty and smart and funny all at the same time. And such great characters! Let's be honest, who doesn't like Frasier? Okay, I've met like two people that said they didn't really go for it, but they don't count...

We own the last season on DVD and we've been wanting to get the previous seasons but now that my husband's back in school getting his MBA he doesn't really need that kind of distraction. But it's still on my wish list!

So what's your favorite comedy TV show?

Eli Stone on ABC

This is becoming one of my favorite TV shows on right now. Eli Stone is on ABC and I love the premise of this new show. Eli is a successful lawyer for a big prominent firm in San Fransisco and engaged to one of the partner's daughter. All that changes when he discovers he is having visions of warning supposedly caused by an aneurysm in his brain. But through his powerful position at the firm he is able to help some very deserving people find justice. Of course, he struggles with the idea that he's getting these visions from God and his job is put in jeopardy when he periodically bursts out in song and dance (some of my favorite scenes).

I like this new twist on the lawyer plot and I love the stories the show portrays. And I love Victor Garber as the head of the firm as well as James Saito as the acupuncturist who helps Eli interpret his visions.

If you get a chance, head over to abc.com to check out some of the episodes - the most recent one is great. Let me know what you think.

'Jericho' on CBS

I got a couple of comments on the last post I did about a TV show, so I thought I'd try another one. Recently I've been watching Jericho because they had the whole first season posted on CBS.com. I really like the premise and they had some great episodes in the first season. They just started the second season and it airs on Tuesdays. The second season has been really intense, probably because they only have a few episodes before wrapping up the series. I got drawn into the characters and their secrets right away and I love the plot, especially this season.

Anyone else a fan of this show?

'New Amsterdam' on Fox

I remember seeing commercials for this new show on Fox last Spring and being really interested in watching. I had just finished reading Forever by Pete Hamill and it was impossible not to miss the correlation. A man is given immortality and lives for 400 years in New York until he can find his soul mate. I heard that although it is obviously inspired by the book, Pete Hamill was not involved in the script and he has decided not to press charges. I find that rather admirable in today's litigious society, but I wish that he could get some credit. But that's not really what this post is about.

I watched the series premier on Fox the other night and I was sadly disappointed. I really liked the book and I think it was smart to make it into a TV show, but they did a horrible job. They made the mistake of trying to infuse the show with the same sense of majesty and magic that the book holds but instead it turned out kind of cheesy. Hamill's character has this wonderful deep melancholy that comes from all his years of witnessing people come and go in his town. New Amsterdam tried to convey the same thing in the main character John Amsterdam but it falls painfully short. I think it might be because they tried to make the show adventurous by making Amsterdam a detective, but it was too hard to do both the action and the brooding so it fell short on all counts.

I may continue to watch it in the future just because there's nothing else on, but one would be better served by just reading the book in this case.