Saturday 26 May 2007

Sunday


I know people are upset by this episode, and i'll probably get slammed for it somewhere down the line, but i've never been one to shy away. So, i'm jumping in with two feet. I actually loved this episode, for me it had everything I wanted to see apart from Carson's 'passing'. From my perspective there was an inordinate amount of things that the fans have requested to see in SGA, in particular how the team interact on their off duty hours, and do they spend any time together outside of 'work'? Some people have said that some episodes have felt forced when team bonding was thrust upon them.. and they are entitled to their views. For me this episode showed just how much everyone cares for each other.

The Good points
  • We had girlie talk between Teyla and Elizabeth (which some fans wanted to see)
  • I laughed my head off when Sheppard was trying to get Teyla to play golf with him and Ronon, and Ronon tried to head Teyla off at the pass, hehehe.
  • Loved the pat on the arm from Teyla to Ronon as a thank you for the heads up.
  • Then we had the Golf game *Thwack* ;o)
  • We had poor Carson, desperate attempts to go fishing and nobody wanted to go. Bless.
  • Loved that Atlantis has a chess tournamount *g*
  • We had Ronon and Sheppard fighting *fight to the death*
  • We had Rodney trying to make a date with Katie Brown and him stumbling over the marriage proposal. (very sweet)
  • We had Weir actually relaxing and enjoying herself for once.
  • We had Lorne painting.
  • We had Zelenka in the chess club playing for rations.
  • Carson holding Teyla's hand.
  • But most of all we had Carson meeting and speaking with everyone on his last ep.

PM did a great job with this, even down to the smallest details of him getting excited that he and Rodney were going fishing was so sweet. I loved the fact that Carson wouldn't leave his patient. He knew the dangers to himself, but he didn't want to risk anyone getting hurt and it just goes to show how self sacrificing the character is and would do anything to save his patients... just as Janet did in SG1 *stops self compairing the two*

What broke my heart in this was how everyone reacted differently. Teyla was at a loss for words. Sheppard's, "It hasn't hit me yet" packed a punch in my stomach. Rodney was so filled with remorse it broke my heart *sniff* especially the ending where he's packing up Carson's belongings and finds the photograph of the two of them from Duet.. *grabs a tissue* When Ronon came in to check to see if Rodney was okay I began to 'well up'. But when Rodney began feeling guilty, Ronon's simple word, 'Don't' was just enough to get my bottom lip quivering. But what sent me over the edge was the bagpipes. *sniff*

The whole of the 'gate room was deathly quiet (no pun intended) and then the bagpipes started playing. It was so serene. Then, as the camera panned around to get everyones reactions, you could feel how much they were hurting, because in a sense they had lost their friend....The ending couldn't have been more perfect (imo) it wasn't corny or cliche as i've heard some people say. You'd be surprised what you think, feel and see when someone who's close to you has died. So, I think having the last moments of Rodney alone and then the Carson and Rodney together at the very end was beutifully done. McKay is hopefully going to have lots of issues over this. And I know I seem to saying this old chestnut quite often these days, but it would be nice to see the impact this has on the characters and not brushed aside.

The Bad! Not much I have to say...

I didn't want carson to go at all, but thanks to Save Carson Beckett, we at least get to have Carson/PM back with us for a short time. I have to say *waits for the tomatoes* I don't know if I want him back. I'd like his death to have meant something, and it's a bit hard to see this ep again and feel the full impact, knowing that he's coming back. Watching it again several months down the line from when I watched it the first time, and knowing what's ahead now; I did look at this ep differently. It didn't have as much as an impact the second time around, probably because I knew that it wasn't going to be his 'Beckett's final scene' so to speak...

What caught my attention in this episode, was surprisingly not Carson's death (as I knew going in that this was going to happen), but it was cleverly scripted so that all the cast had sufficient lines, and character development.... something that has been out of sync, in certain episodes. So did it take PM's leaving to bring this to the foreground? Were there too many 'main cast members' to give good character develpment for? I honestly don't know. We've been afforded the good grace of having stand alone type episodes for each of our characters, and for me that has worked very well. In between those eps, we've also been afforded the opportunity of having some very good team eps such as, Vengeance, Phantoms and Tao of Rodney. Irrespective of what I think, you will always have people having a good whinge that their favourite character hasn't had sufficient development. It's the whole Oliver Twist analogy; when a person's character has a chance to shine, it leaves people always wanting more, and more. While that's not necessarily a bad thing, the problem occurs when they don't get that on a continued basis and can leave them bitter and twisted; which unfortunately can create tension amongst the fanbases. Is it logical? Nope, but then when are emotions ever logical.

So has the tension begun to rise after this ep? Heck no. It started at least 4 months ago now. Fans of PM have stated that they are boycotting season 4, some people are now harranging individuals for liking the new doc; Doctor Jennifer Keller; purely on the basis that she has 'replaced Carson'. I've seen posts from individuals saying that they can't stand the new actress, Jewel Staite because of this! Now personally, I don't think it's a slight on JS or her acting abilities. I honestly think that it would'nt matter who took over, some fans will find a way to 'dislike that character' however great they are, because for those types of fans, that character/actor has essentially 'taken over' from someone they loved. It hasn't just happened with JS, it's also happening with Carter/AT. So, I say to those people who won't even give the individual a chance... get some perspective, or don't watch, but have a modicum amount of decency and at least be honest with regards to why you feel like that. I may not agree with you, but at least you're not hiding behind some misguided guise that, that's not the reason you're unhappy. Have the courage of your convictions. But some fans need to realise that we don't have access to all the information. As nice as it would be that we understand why certain decisions are made, we will never know. So, we have no choice but to put our trust in TPTB and have a little faith that everything will work out. And *fills her glass half full* I for one am feeling very postive about Season 4. ;o)

Friday 18 May 2007

Playing catch up








I know, I call myself a fan and can't even keep up with reviewing SGA alongside the US *hangs head in shame* Maybe subconsciously I didn't want to trash my favourite TV programme and that's what stopped me from writing my thoughts? Hmmm. No, in all fairness it wasn't that bad, but for me it just lacked a certain je nais c'est qua.

The stage was set with the team in the commissary. McKay was trying to get his team to think long and hard about an ethics question, the more common of which is, who would you save? One member of your family or a thousand strangers. Great character moments there for all of the team, and it kind of let us see how their minds worked. People have been delving into this for years trying to ascertain how someones mind works by answering those types of questions. And as i've said before, while i'm all for learning what makes people tick. Personally I don't think it's a question that can be answered until that person has to face that scenario. We all say in the midst of discussion, 'Oh there's no contest' it would be the thousand strangers. Really? When confronted with this kind of ethical question, we have the luxury of time to sit and analyze (to death usually) ;) every single scenario of how we would react. When in reality a lot of people in those situations rely on instincts... But with that said, if they really don't like the family member, then I guess it's not that hard a decision to make. :P
Anyway I digress...again!

Back to Atlantis. So in 'The Game' it's very much a Shep/McKay episode with Teyla and Ronon 'tagged on'. I do love my Shep/McKay banter, don't get me wrong. And after watching this ep, it definitely feels like Sheppard and McKay are siblings, lol. I was just a tad disgruntled with how the ep turned out. For me I was bored, there didn't seem to be the angst or the jeopardy that has become embedded in SGA on a regular basis. So for me, I didn't enjoy this ep as much as I had hoped. I love the action, and the perilous situations our team gets themselves into on a regular basis. This, though was very much a light-hearted fluffy type of ep without much 'consequence' and so for me, alas it fell a bit flat. Sorry.
What I did enjoy;
  • Commissary scene
  • McKay/Shep sibling rivalry

  • Weir telling the boys off, and their not taking it seriously. (Loved Shep pulling a face at Rodney) *giggles*
  • Shep sending a crate of lemons to Geldar
  • Baden and whats-her-face acting like McKay and Shep (See what I mean about the ep holding my attention, lol) Sorry to the actress.
  • Lorne and Zelenka fighting
  • Ronon and McKay working together. (Tangent note: Ooh and I notice that Ronon isn't wearing his wraith finger anymore. Could this possibly be because McKay healed Ronon's runner wounds and as such 'healed' Ronon's issues as a runner?)
So there ya have it. Short, sweet and straight to the point... *looks at the long winded post* Well, nearly. :o)

This week we have Ken C's ep '"The Ark" shown the other tonight in the US. What I found interesting is that SGA seems to be putting in certain subtle threads along the way. Such as in ToR we have Rodney and Ronon bonding, and in the next ep, we have them working together. Then we have this weeks dilemma of 'saving one member of your family or one thousand strangers' which was nicely picked up from 'The Game'. Now whether this was supposed to work out like that or it was just happenstance, we might never know, but I have enjoyed these consistent elements. It shows the writers are picking up the threads and tying them in. Nice.
I enjoyed the Ark for a variety of reasons, but mostly because it had Shep with a blow torch... and let's face it, a man with a blow torch is very sexy! Shallow, but true :o)
What interested me the most, is the unique situation that Sheppard and the team were put into with regards saving Teyla. It was clear from the onset that it was a 'no brainer'. Even though it was technically a suicide mission, Sheppard couldn't leave Teyla behind, because it goes against everything that he is. I do wonder where this sense of camaraderie comes from, and hope it is explored further on down the line.
I also enjoyed the fact that in this ep, Sheppard and McKay were separated for the most part, yet were still able to keep the banter that fans love. It just goes to show, that both do not always need to be joined at the hip to maintain that aspect of the show, which people love.
There were a few things that I enjoyed this ep, but I promise to keep them brief. Yeah for Rachel getting some good dialogue.
Okay so what did I love?
  • McKay's 'Time for the how screwed we are report'
  • Ronon and Shep whump and fight to the death :o)
  • Teyla's scenes
  • Ronon's little revelation about claustrophobia
  • McKay telling Shep not to go on the suicide mission
  • McKay explaining to Lorne that they don't leave anyone behind.
  • Sheppard with the blow torch. *has a fangirl moment*
  • Infirmary scene
Okay, so i've rambled on long enough, next week it's Sunday *sniff*

Monday 14 May 2007

Patience is a virtue.

They say that when on a quest, one apparently has to overcome many obstacles that crosses their paths. The journey, so i'm told, can involve the person being tested to their limit. Or involve overcoming certain obstacles, thus building their character, along with, (I hope) enjoying little adventures en route. Oh how true that is. I think today was such a test...of my patience. Given the long journey ahead, I envisaged that this would be the first barrier I would have to overcome, and i'm sure my patience will continue to be tested for many months to come.

Oh before I start, you might want to go and grab yourself a cup of coffee as i've gone off on a tangent again!

You'll be pleased to hear that the girl in our 'office', seems to have quietened down. So much so we don't hear a peep from her these days. I wonder if she was also on a quest? I sincerely hope if that is the case, that her own quest in finding her conscience, has been successful. I can only hope that I to can be as successful as her. ;o)

So, as for my quest, today's lesson revolved around patience. Work has been whumping the crap out of me, and will be for the foreseeable future. My boss has decided that even though we have ten times more work to deal with than any of the other ten departments, that I can carry the load all by my lonesome. He has, in his infinite wisdom decided to take away one of my staff who assists me with the day to day running of the business. Subsequently, that person has now been transferred elsewhere. Nice! This must be payback for the whole 'clothing attire' business. So, given the amount of work to be done, I asked him (as diplomatically as I possibly could) if he wanted to stick a broom up my ass, so that I could sweep the floor as well... ;o) He simply rolled his eyes, telling me that i'm being overly dramatic again... Now I wonder where he gets that idea from. *cough*

Moving swiftly on...

So as my staff member has now left *sigh* and in such a short space of time i've had everyone and their mother come and see me today, or people phoning me.... every two minutes. It's got to the stage where people are even queuing at my desk! I'm thinking of getting one of those machines they have in the supermarket. You know the ones I mean, where they grab a ticket and wait until their number is called... it could come in handy. ;o)

So as the quest for shirtless Shep comes ever closer to fruition, *cough*in my dreams *cough* I've been attempting to go a different route to spice things up a bit. And I have to say i've had lots of fun with it along the way :o) As some of you know, Zach (from attack of the show) is quite the fan of Stargate Atlantis. So much so, that he wrote a lil rap number and posted it onto you tube. Great video and lyrics, and quite catchy. To cut a long story short, (don't die of shock, I do short occasionaly) ;o), he begged to get a bit part on Stargate and succeeded. With a trip to the set, David Hewlett obviously wanted to get in on the act and in response to Zach's rap, came up with his own little ditty and a hilarious shuffle step, which was subsequently leaked ;) on to you tube. In response to the leak, David sent a heartfelt apology to his fans. *sniff* Tissue anyone?

As i've always loved poetry, and the whumping crew were losing their squee (due to the long wait of S4), I decided to spice things up a lil bit, and did my own rap...sorta, but you'll be pleased to hear it hasn't been posted on to you tube. Instead I posted it to Joe's blog. Poor Joe, he does suffer for his craft ;o) But, in my defence, a quest cannot be interrupted once it has begun. So i'm very sorry Joe, you might have to suffer a little longer :o) Anyway, as you can imagine, being an extremely serious individual, and not wanting to embarrass myself or my long-suffering family in public, there was no mention of hot, sweaty or shirtless Shep at all...not even one line.

*cough*

Before I leave you for the night, I would just like to say this one thing if I may. For the long suffering readers of Joe's blog, and in the words of David Hewlett... I offer this heartfelt apology.

I sincerely apologise for my actions. Not just to those who have had to endure my ramblings on Joe's blog, but to everyone I have offended with talk of hot, sweaty and semi nekkid Shep. *waves to anon* Please believe me when I say, I have no idea what came over me when I wrote the 'rap' lyrics. I just hope that you can forgive my actions. I say this to you now because I had so much fun, I shall be repeating the torment until my quest has been successful. :o)

And maybe next time there might be a lil rap video for you.... *shakes head at the thought of how bad this could be* Remind me again why I even contemplate doing these things?

*thinks about Shep's chest to get her through this part of the quest*

Will it bring me one step further in my quest? One can only hope! And if Joe, thinks I should go forth, then all hope is not lost ;o)

Friday 11 May 2007

Quests

*hangs head in shame* I've been kinda remiss about updating my blog...i'm sorry, but it's really not my fault, work is extremely busy at the moment. Personally, I think my manager is secretly keeping me busy to stop us having our 'little chat'. Which is fine...I can wait for the right moment. Teasing has no time limits and neither do quests.. :o)

*cough*

It started out like any other day, tantrums in the post room; lots of 'staff' airing their grievances about some changes 'management' were making. And to be honest it did get on my nerves a bit. All that constant bickering about who was flirting with who in the 'office'. Some people didn't want anyone flirting/dating and pairing off at all, (if it ever got to that stage), yet some were determined to see their favourite couple get together. I don't have to tell you what office politics are like, so I'll leave it up to your fertile imaginations. Anyway, I wasn't too sure if the boss was getting a bit ticked off with the constant bickering, but one never knows, he's elusive like that and lays his cards very close to his chest. *tries not to think of a certain person's chest*

No, not the 'boss' get your dirty minds out the gutter!

Are your minds out the gutter? Yes? Shall I continue? So, my gut instincts tell me that he is quite happy for us to handle things ourselves, most of the time. But! I have to say, he did surprise me slightly by intervening.... sort of. So subsequently things quietened down and everyone was back on track discussing what they had for lunch, who they saw at work and what their plans were for the fall; I expected it to last at least a week. Silly me, how wrong could I have been. It was the calm before the storm... okay so i'm being overly dramatic again, but c'mon you lot expect this now ;o)

Anyway where was I? Oh yes, calm before the storm. Things were going great until a new person joined us in the post room. For some reason, known only to her, she became insanely jealous of us. Not all of us mind you, just a select few. Now at first I simply shook my head at her misgivings, and really, people like that are just out to cause some kind of trouble. So I laughed with the others, but unfortunately.... *cough* this person... I tell you what, to protect her identity i'll call her, Anon. ;)

Anyway, Anon started attacking my friends, and just so you know, I can't stand by and watch this sort of thing... my eye starts twitching and really, it's not pretty. :p So, myself and a few others rallied round our friends, trying to be supportive in our own tactful way and she backed off for a short time. Sometimes, simply by standing up to them, makes them lose their 'edge'... sometimes. ;o) With that period of grace, it allowed me to reflect why she was like that. Was it some deep seated fear within her, a touch of insecurity, or was she just a bit nuts? So never one to back down from a challenge. I sought the help of some friends. We got together and had a discussion of why people are like that, and what it was that drives them forward. Usually though feelings like that can bring emotions of past hurt to the surface and I did wonder if I was stirring up more trouble by suggesting a 'get together' so to speak :D. As the meeting gathered momentum, people from other departments joined in and we had a nice long chat. It was just like therapy only cheaper ;)

So that is where my quest began...and not a shirtless Shep in sight.

Oh right, that's part II ;)

Thursday 3 May 2007

Boobs, Basking and Short shorts

Chatterboxes are prevalent in our office, and that's how we like it. The work can be stress full, so a little humour goes a long way. My boss is the complete opposite to me and my co-manager in terms of management style. While I don't necessarily agree with him all the time, I do follow his orders like any good employee, but it doesn't mean that I can't have a little bit of fun along the way. :o)

I'll hold my hand up and say that I am one of those people that can be a little irreverent and er...cheeky shall we say, and have on a couple of occasions got on my bosses nerves. I can assure you, I don't mean to be pedantic, but sometimes I just can't help myself; especially when it involves unusual orders about clothing attire in the summer months. Coincidentally we were discussing boobs, bra sizes and the like over the whump thread, (don't ask) ;o). So I had to laugh at the timing of an email received today from senior management. Apparently, our PTB have decided that they have nothing better to do than dictate to us how we should dress in the up and coming Summer months. While i'm all for professionalism and the need to look smart in front of clients, I... struggle, shall we say about dictating what a person should and shouldn't wear. It should be noted though, that when in the office we are normally a little more casual than most places, but not overtly so. But I was surprised to find in my inbox an email relating to dress attire in the up and coming months, and the importance of my co-manager and I to enforce and embrace these changes.

It does make me wonder what on Earth 'the powers that be' were thinking when they came up with this lil gem, and I had to giggle very inappropriately at their choice of wording. Suffice to say that staff would from this point forward, not be allowed to wear clothes that were classed as 'revealing'. My staff have dirty minds, and have the pen chance for being quite vocal...I have no idea where they get this from! ;) But I like those qualities in people, for me it just means they're passionate. So given this, I knew from the onset that questions would be asked regarding what would be classed as 'revealing', and surprisingly enough, this 'request' from management was not just for the ladies of the team.

So with this in mind, I discussed the email in great lengths with my co-manager. After working together for nearly seven years, we tend to know how each other thinks, and it has to be said that we are like an old married couple. We have our ups and downs, but 99% of the team we're on the same wavelength and this time was no exception. So we began discussing how to make our manager squirm... he's not very comfortable discussing body parts, which we find hilarious. So with that, we felt it necessary to commence 'operation squirm'.

Walking over to his office I sat down, and with all seriousness I said, "We need to talk." A shocked expression befell him at my unusually solemn appearance. Concerned, he asked me if this was a personal matter, of which I informed him it wasn't. The relief that washed over his face was nearly enough to make me drop the facade...nearly! ;o) Asking what the problem was, I informed him that my concerns related to the email he sent out regarding clothing attire, and that I needed clarification on a few things. Trying to keep a straight face, I watched him begin to shift uncomfortably in his seat. This was going to be fun.

"Just what do you mean by revealing? Are you talking about boobs, cleavage, too short shorts?" I asked him in my own subtle way.

"Use your discretion," he told me a little too quickly as if not wanting to have this conversation with me. You'd think he'd realise by now that that word isn't in my vocabulary. ;o) Then without warning he got up from his seat saying that he had forgotten that he had an urgent meeting and was sorry to end our 'little chat' so abruptly... was it something I said? *puts on her most innocent expression* Oh well, there's always Monday. ;o)

So for me, if the boys want to do a diet coke break in the office ala Jason Mamoa style, my boss would probably have a coronary. But as my boss has now left things to my discretion, I imagine the 'diet coke breaks' will be starting as from Monday! ;o)

Now if only Joe M can get Joe Flanigan to do a diet coke break ad..... shirt off, hot, sweaty and basking in the sun or ala Jason Mamoa style, complete with pictures I might add...

*waves to the gutter*

*dives in*

:D

Tuesday 1 May 2007

Murphy's Law







It's apparently one of the more constants in the universe, 'whatever can go wrong, will go wrong'. While i'm more than inclined to think that I make my own destiny rather than it be set out for me. I have to say after yesterdays, not so good, very crappy, bad day... the Murphy's Law thing applied in spades. But as i've always said, when life kicks you in the ass, kick back.

Families and friends are great for picking you up when you fall down now and again and I've always wondered if they appreciated how much a difference they realise they make? So with those thoughts prevalent this week, I decided to watch some fluffy Stargate Atlantis in advance of the airing in the US. And this weeks ep is all about, family, friendship and feeling the luff! Coincidence? I think not :o)

Tao of Rodney is for me one of the best eps of the latter half of season. I know a few people thought the episode involved too much Rodney, but not for me. I love his snarcastic attitude that we see on a regular basis. But there are times however, when events take a turn for the worse and we see a different side of someone; the vulnerable side. It's not normally a side we see of McKay, but this episode reflects how much he cares for his team, and they in turn care for him. Those great little bonding moments showed us just how far McKay has come in the last few years. His 'mask', which he wears as a shield has protected him from showing how he feels. Whether this comes from some deep childhood trauma in which he was hurt by someone, we might never know. But gradually over the course of the episode, we see his 'mask' slowly slipping. He allows his friends to see the gentler side of McKay and for me it's very endearing. Up until this point we knew so little about our characters insecurities, so it was nice to see a brief glimpse into what makes our characters so loveable.

If I went into detail about what I loved about this ep, i'd be here all day. :o) Suffice to say, there were a lot of great insights, not only for McKay, but we also had the opportunity of seeing what mattered to most of the team. I say most, because we still didn't see what was on Sheppard's mind. Shame on you PTB for not giving us a hint! Anyway I digress...

My favourite parts were the character moments, and Rodney's attempts to make a difference before he died;

  • McKay approaching Zelenka and telling him that he respected him and apologising for being snarky.
  • McKay hugging Ronon to heal his scars, and Ronon patting him on the back (not knowing what he was doing).
  • Ronon's reaction to McKay when he tells him that the scars are healed. *sniff*
  • The memorial tea ceremony with Teyla and Rodney serving her.
  • McKay and Elizabeth moment when Rodney called her on saying she loved him *giggle*
  • Everyone at his bedside telling him they luffed him *sniff* with Carson feeling guilty he couldn't help his friend.

Saving the best for last :o)

  • Sheppard teaching McKay how to meditate and McKay finally admitting to Sheppard that he didn't know how to be himself. So simple, yet so effective.

Although i'm more of an action girl, and like to see our Heroes kick ass on a regular basis. Every now and then it's important to sit back and reflect at how far our characters have come, and the effect their presence has had on other people, and it's something i'd like to see built on with all the characters. Not just in terms of character development, but to show that when push comes to shove, that their life and subsequent actions has made a difference to someone elses. And that those feelings are reciprocated. The last thing i'd like to see is the show getting all mushy on a regular basis, but if it's a choice between choosing an action ep, or a fluffy ep, like this. Then, to be honest i'd take either. With that said though, i'm more likely to favour the ep that has hot, sweaty and nekkid Shep any day of the week. And if that means our wonderfully heroic character has to die for us to see that, then i'm fine with that... on the proviso that McKay saves him at the last minute ;o) So then we can have a nice little infirmary scene at the end. Well, turnabout is fair play after all :o)