No, I’m not referring to some technical glitch, but simply the past few days in the Stargate universe (wait for the pun). Last Thursday, we reported (on my birthday of all days!) that Stargate Atlantis had been canceled. SCI FI Channel also announced that they would be making a tele-movie, but still, one of my favorite series was cancelled.
One of the benefits of that though, was the opening for Brad Wright and Robert Cooper, co-creators of Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis to begin work on the third Stargate series.
And it was announced late last week, that SCI FI Channel and MGM Television Entertainment had reached an agreement to begin production on Stargate Universe (pun achieved!).
“SCI FI has enjoyed tremendous success with Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis and we’re proud to be the home of the new Stargate Universe,” said Mark Stern, Executive Vice President, Original Programming for SCI FI & Co-Head Original Content, Universal Cable Productions. “Universe will continue the Stargate legacy of vibrant storylines and compelling adventures, but will re-invent the format in a whole new way.”
As for what the story is going to be about in Universe?
After unlocking the mystery of the Stargate’s ninth chevron, a team of explorers travels to an unmanned starship called the Destiny, launched by The Ancients at the height of their civilization as a grand experiment set in motion, but never completed.
What starts as a simple reconnaissance turns into a never ending mission, as the Stargate Universe crew discovers the ship is unable to return to Earth, and they must now fend for themselves aboard the Destiny.
The crew will travel to the far reaches of the universe, connecting with each of the previously launched Stargates, thus fulfilling the Destiny’s original mission. Challenges will arise though as the ship comes into range of Stargates placed centuries ahead of the Destiny and the crew is unable to control the ship’s navigational schedule. If someone is left behind, there is no way to go back for them, adding to the drama of encountering new races, enemies and adventures.
“In Universe, we plan to keep those elements that have made the franchise a success, such as adventure and humour, while breaking new ground in the relationships between mostly young and desperate explorers, thrust together and far from home,” said Wright and Cooper. “Above all, we believe the Stargate itself remains an enduring icon with infinite potential as a jumping off point for telling stories.”
Stargate Universe will debut as a two-hour movie event on SCI FI. Following its premiere, Universe will assume a regular hourly slot in Summer 2009.
This is the news I’ve been waiting to hear. I’ve been a huge SG-1 fan, and although Atlantis has been on the whole dissapointing I’ve tried to stick with it. Hopefully this won’t turn out to be another half-assed spinoff and will really come into it’s own as a show (although I’m sad to finally say goodbye to Daniel, Jack, Sam, and Teal’c)
This sounds like Sliders.
Yeah but sliders wasn’t so bad. yeah Atlantis is just what you would watch while waiting for sg-1 and battlestar. It had some good episodes but overall it was severly lacking. Universe looks like a fresh take at least, I’ll definitely give it a watch and see how it goes
At lest Stargate will continue
Although I’m getting that Voyager vibe
Star trek voyager anyone?
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