25 Years ago today, Stargate SG-1 gave new life to a then three-year-old movie, which original creators Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin struggled to decide if a sequel should be made. They sold all rights to MGM, and they handed development to Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner to reimagine.
This series started on Showtime, a speciality network which wanted something unique to boost viewership, but eventually, moved to SciFi (now SyFy) before being picked up by local stations. I remember when Chek TV (now Chek News) showed it, because Victoria, BC a ferry ride away to Vancouver, where the series was made.
The History and Personal Thoughts
Honestly, I consider Stargate SG-1 its own entity. The early seasons delivered a lot more than just a weekly Ancient Alien inspired tale every week. It was serialised storytelling in the style of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and the grander arcs–especially concerning Sha’re (Daniel’s wife)–spanned multiple seasons than just one. But this shift wouldn’t be embraced until after the second season. What made this series special was the camaraderie between the stars, Richard Dean Anderson, Michael Shanks, Amanda Tapping and Christopher Judge. It also had many guest stars who are the who’s who of Canadian genre television programming. From Gary Chalk to Matt Frewer to Barclay Hope in later episodes or newer series, I was sold.
Any relation to the movie is explained with the episode “Point of View.” Alternate realities exist. Also, we heard Jack emphasising, “That’s O’Neill, with two ‘L’s!”
Continue reading “Stargate SG-1 Celebrates 25 Glorious Years! And What’s Next?”
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