During the last 7 years or so, I always looked forward to a new Stargate episode every single week of the season. I started watching Stargate when I was twelve years old. My admiration for Amanda Tapping’s character, portrayed in the show, is probably one of the reasons I choose to study Physics. If this is not a testament to the quality of the writing and acting this show has to offer, I don’t know what is.
It saddens me greatly to hear that for the first time in more than a decade, Stargate will not be on air anymore. Although every series had its strong points and faults, it always managed to capture my attention unlike any other show on television. In my opinion, the Stargate franchise is up there with Star Trek, Firefly, Star Wars. It’s in a very exclusive club in the mind of most fans of science fiction. Although all good things must come to an end, I don’t believe it’s time to give up on Stargate.
With Stargate Universe, the writers and producers made a leap of faith, and brought something new and fresh to the storytelling. I believe this is no small feat to accomplish. The fact is that Stargate Universe put the characters in the foreground, bringing up morality, values into the mix, not just great space adventure. It certainly makes for a more interesting journey.
There will always be a push back from people used to the old approach. Insert Galileo Galilei’s struggle here. This is not to condemn the criticism as pointless, as there were a few instances where the focus shifted too heavily to human drama. Every side has reasonable reasons to support their stance.
If anything, the shift in the way we consume media is at fault for the seemingly low ratings. Its audience tends to be at the cutting edge of technology trends, and advertisers are lagging in realising the potential of online distribution methods. Sticking with this series might be a leap of faith from an economic standpoint, but one that will surely pay off in the long-run. Giving up on a great show like SGU might make sense in the short-term, but how can you afford to give up on an audience that’s been there, more or less growing with Stargate, for more than 10 years?
An audience that’s still there, a community.
