I have only recently gotten into watching Farscape and have come to enjoy it quite a bit. Within the last few days I have noticed commercials for Stargate SG-1 and was very surprised to see John Crichton (Ben Browder) appear ia a scene. I thought this odd until, shortly thereafter, who do I see but Officer Aeryn Sun (Claudia Black) as well.
Both? In another Sci-Fi series together?
So my question to long-time fans is how did this come about? Which came first? Are they the same characters in both and somehow brought together?
Any insights would be much appreciated.
On an aside, how would you compare the two series? I like Farscape but SG-1 just doesn’t seem to have the same appeal. Incorrect first impression or accurate insight?
After Farscape was deservedly cancelled, Claudia Black and Ben Browder were available and were hired by Stargate. The characters have no connection with the previous show other than having the same actors.
They’re different characters in a different series. If I were a consipracy theorist, I’d say folks wanted the star power from Farscape to bring ratings to Stargate…
FWIW, they did a good job in seperating Browder’s new character from Crichton.
The wife’s still a little miffed that she’s older than Claudia Black.
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Man I hate this message!
Lost my last reply.
Anyway, thanks for the insights. How do you think the series com pair. I know little-to-nothing of SG-1 other than the concept. Is there intelligent writing/humor, witty dialogue, strong characters and believable situations. Is it generally worth trying to get up-to-speed on with a limited TV viewing window?
After Farscape was despicably and undeservedly cancelled the fans revolted, threatening a holy war against all responsible until they at least got a decent finale to the series. Which they did.
Recognizing the fiercely loyal fan-base both Claudia Black and Ben Browder have, and Richard Dean Anderson wanting off the SG-1show to spend more time with his family and Stargate needing some fresh blood anyway, it worked out perfectly.
Stargate’s a great show. Start at the beginning. By now, it’s really made for the loyal fans, and they don’t seem to care that much about what average couch potato Joe-American Nielson-rater thinks. Which I really respect them for.
My husband and I are loyal SG-1 fans. The addition of Ben Browder and Claudia Black was a shot in the arm for the show. Really perked things up. I barely miss Richard Dean Anderson. He’s going to be making a few appearances this season, but the show does quite well without him.
I’ve never watched SG-1 but based on what I read in TV Guide this morning next week’s episode sounds interesting - characters from SG-1 made up as characters from The Wizard of Oz and Farscape.
Thanks for the tip! I’ll go program the DVR and be sure to see this one.
Thanks again
You barely miss him because you were weaned off of him throughout season 8. Those of us who caught up to most of the show in a summer still think the show was a lot better with RDA as the lead and producer. I really miss ol’ MacGuyver.
IMO, Farscape and SG-1 are very different shows: both are kind of cult-y with long story arcs that make it hard to know what’s going on if you haven’t been following the show, but I think the writing in Farscape was better and the characters/storylines in each show are very different.
Quite frankly, Ben Browder and Michael Shanks are the only reasons I’m still watching SG-1. It’s all about the eye candy for me now. The “separation of church and state” story with the Orii feels too soapboxy to me more often than not, and I’m not sure how many more times I can watch them gate to the same damn planet (agrarian, English-speaking, humanoids, etc.). I’ve seen a few epsiodes this season, and will be sure to catch the one that williamweigand mentioned (thanks!), but it’s no longer the must-see-TV for me that it has been for the past 5-6 years (I discovered it a few seasons in, but quickly became a fan).
Are you talking about this coming Friday’s episode, or the special 200th episode on August 18th? I think that’s the one that’s going to be crazy. Christopher Judge said it’s a “love letter to the fans” and I saw a brief commercial where it looked like they were dressed up as Star Trek characters.
I loved Farscape so much. Sigh. I wish SciFi didn’t air so much good other TV so I could boycott their network for yanking it so wrongly.
But try as I might I cannot get into Stargate. I have friends that LOVE it. I tried, just to see Ben and Claudia together again, and while they are great together and the chemistry is lovely, the show just doesn’t do it for me, so its not nearly the same. Wish I could really love it though.
Sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner…Yes, it is the 200th episode on the 18th. I’d quote the description from TV Guide but have forgotten the exact procedures for quoting stuff (other than other posts). I’ll just mention that Richard Dean Anderson is supposed to have a cameo in it.
Thanks very much. I now have the DVR set up for the whole series and I think the first I’ll see is one tonight. I look forward to the 18th and the 200th so maybe I can get at least a little up to speed by then.
Thanks.