I think the test of a good series/franchise is how well it evolves with the times. For me, Trek from 1987-2005 or whenever it finally died, was trying really really hard to avoid evolving (DS9 notwithstanding), and there’s really only so many times you can do the same trick without either boring your audience or learning a new trick. Trek steadfastly refused, which is kind of odd when you think about it: that a show that’s so utopian, so humanistic, so secular, so idealistic, so classically 1960s Liberal should end up so conservative and staid about itself. I mean, why? It’s not like that *has* to happen. Doctor Who never had that problem with re-invention, right?

The SG franchise has always tried harder, and been more inventive.
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I’m also glad, like you mention, there were a multitude of villains. I didn’t like Apophis, so if I had to deal with him for 10 seasons with no reprieve, I might have quit right there. As it stood, I enjoyed the other Goa’ulds more (especially Anubis), and the Ori the most.

Best of all, though, ‘Gate has that certain dash, you know? That ‘get out there and swash yer buckle’ kind of thing, an excitement about what it’s doing, something that Trek hasn’t had since, what, 1969 or so?
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The whole use of religion on the show felt all too often like a gimmick without texture. Sure, they did a sometimes decent job of portraying it out in the rest of the galaxy (the Goa’uld enslavements, mostly), but the supposedly huge roots of it all in our own world hardly ever had any actual resonance, reason or effects. Except for the few little details that would handily allow Jackson to figure a key plot point out when needed, of course.

But I guess it has to do with the old syndrome of “everything on TV seems fine, until you see them talk about something you actually know things about”. I am sure someone deeply interested or experienced with the US Airforce would have an insane list of complaints too. Not to mention someone who actually understand advance physics.

With B5, I agree it was weakened tremendously by network meddling towards the end. But the thing is, B5 took a little over one season to hit its stride, shed most of the weak-feeling one-offs and focus on plot and (in admittedly few cases, but considering the age of the show, I think it is impressive even so) character development. SG1 did not start properly impressing me until the odd episode in s4, and not consistently doing so until s6. That is longer than B5′s entire lifespan, and so B5 feels to me a much more consistent and well-made show when viewed as a whole. No offense, again, to SG1, who as I said deeply impressed me with their ability to build on themselves every year. But that does not change that I loved over 3/5 of B5, and only something like half of SG1 – and unevenly distributed at that.

Finally, on BSG and SF. You are right, certainly, to some extent, but, BSG did definitely know and take advantage of its SF status. The questions of identity they spent entire arcs on, and not to mention the basic premise of human life on the brink of extinction and all the ethical issues arising from it, these were both major themes that could only have been explored in SF or fantasy. In its early seasons, though, I agree that at least compared to SG1 it was more of a political/military drama in space. By the end, however? I think s4 of BSG made every bit the use of its genre that SG1 did. In fact, the two shows would probably be my poster examples for good use of the SG genre’s possibilities. (Whereas Babylon 5 for the most part just as well could have been set on Earth, with no SF at all).

SGU cannot compete with later seasons of SG1, and while it picked up steam towards the end, I do not think the season as a whole could even compete properly with the better portions of SGA. However, it shows a lot more promise to me. Blatant BSG-rip-off though it is, it just caters a lot more to what I want in a show: it is serialized far more than its two planet-of-the-week-predecessors, its characters seem to genuinely grow and change by the insane events they have to live through, and as I said I think several of its principal cast is a lot more textured right out the gate than any characters on the previous shows were.

Completely agree with your final comment, Beej. Once they started dipping into the established mythology but used it in their SGU-milieu, the show really went from “occasionally okay” to “wow, I am enthused! When is the next episode?!” I wonder how audiences not familiar with the other SG-shows feel about those episodes though. I hope they feel the same way, but… long-established mythology is always a risk.

But yes if you can see the Behind the Scenes you will see especially the one on the Season 7 set ‘Michael Shanks – beyond the gate’ on disc 1.

Kriss

The end of SGU’s first season really hit its stride, and I think S2 is going to be fantastic. They finally set up some good stories that tie into the normal SG mythology without falling back on tropes and plots that have to be rehashed.