# Stargate Universe, "Time" (open spoilers)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [November 13, 2009, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503 "2009-11-13T23:19:59Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 11\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![duality72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duality72/32/3910_2.png) [@duality72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duality72)\
**Post date:** [November 16, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/21 "2009-11-16T19:53:08Z")

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> [@Max\_the\_Immortal](#):
>
> I’m also starting to like Rush more and more.

Was it just me, or was it strongly hinted that Rush is after…

the secret of Ascension? Seems like a good motivation for him. He may be cold and calculating at times, but he’s not out to harm anyone. He absolutely can’t stand letting go of the Ancient tech, though, when he hopes to gain immortality out of it.

For being a bad guy/foil, it just seems like things are playing out in a very “human” way for him. Agree with someone last week who said that Rush is playing out a lot more like what Baltar in the new BSG should have been.

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**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\
**Post date:** [November 16, 2009, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/22 "2009-11-16T20:30:53Z")

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Lt. James needs a couple of promotions, then we can call her “Major Boobage”. 😃

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**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\
**Post date:** [November 17, 2009, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/23 "2009-11-17T02:19:58Z")

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> [@duality72](#):
>
> Was it just me, or was it strongly hinted that Rush is after…
> 
> the secret of Ascension? Seems like a good motivation for him. He may be cold and calculating at times, but he’s not out to harm anyone. He absolutely can’t stand letting go of the Ancient tech, though, when he hopes to gain immortality out of it.
> 
> For being a bad guy/foil, it just seems like things are playing out in a very “human” way for him. Agree with someone last week who said that Rush is playing out a lot more like what Baltar in the new BSG should have been.

Yeah, I have a feeling that’s why he’s so obsessed with the Ancients and Destiny. Maybe he’s got a terminal illness?

I also loved the bonding over Butch Cassidy. Too bad they won’t remember it.

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**Author:** ![Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8491ac/32.png) [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fake_Tales_of_San_Francisco)\
**Post date:** [November 17, 2009, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/24 "2009-11-17T21:16:06Z")

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> [@Picard\_Kills\_Kirk](#):
>
> \<stargate nitpick\>
> 
> If I remember correctly, in SG-1 and Atlantis, traveling through time was a very difficult operation which required mega super computers to calculate the exact time to enter/open the stargate. Tossing not one, but two keno’s through and getting the right time seems a little far fetched, based on what I remember of the rest of the stargate shows.
> 
> \</nitpick

The first time solar flare time travel is explored is when SG1 go back to the 60’s (I think the episode is called 1969). It is established that it depends on the exact time when you travel through the solar flare (probably the time when the wormhole is established). When SG1 manage to get back they enter a Stargate Command that is many years into the future, and Cassandra, now an elderly woman takes them back to their original time. She explains that they travelled through too late, which sent them far forwards instead of roughly where they needed to be.

So yeah, actually throwing them through at the right time made the episode completely unbelievable to me, based on established Stargate logic. It was bad.

I really want to like SGU, it just seems badly written and has none of the charm of the original show. But I’m watching now, and I’m a huge Stargate fan, so I find myself just sort of…doing it religiously.

Episode 5 was the worst so far though for me. I couldn’t help but imagine myself as a character in the show pointing out to everyone that the ship will just power up from the sun. Why else would it send itself into it if it didn’t have solar power or something? Pretty damned obvious, even Colonel O’Niel would have worked that one out.

(Just watched the episode now, airs a bit later in Britain.)

Edit: Oh, and I found it strange that Rush didn’t mention that Daniel Jackson ascended before. Pretty sure it’s common knowledge how many times Daniel has died.

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**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\
**Post date:** [November 17, 2009, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/25 "2009-11-17T21:32:08Z")

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> [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](#):
>
> Episode 5 was the worst so far though for me. I couldn’t help but imagine myself as a character in the show pointing out to everyone that the ship will just power up from the sun. Why else would it send itself into it if it didn’t have solar power or something? Pretty damned obvious, even Colonel O’Niel would have worked that one out.

That’s because you’re looking at it from a viewer’s perspective. They have to survive at the end of the episode, so obviously they’ll survive going into the sun.

Never mind that I don’t think the humans have ever encountered a technology that could withstand entering a star or would have reason to think the ship they’re on could.

Even if someone did raise the suggestion, which I agree might have been better writing, events would still have played out the same way, because they couldn’t take the chance. They would still have sent a contingent off in the shuttle so that not everyone would die if the guess was wrong.

I strongly disagree that it doesn’t have charm. I can’t attest to the writing as I don’t trust myself to analyze it that well, but I’ve been greatly enjoying it despite the general lack of Richard Dean Anderson. Young, Rush, Greer, and even Eli are all interesting characters.

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**Author:** ![Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8491ac/32.png) [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fake_Tales_of_San_Francisco)\
**Post date:** [November 17, 2009, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/26 "2009-11-17T21:49:27Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> Never mind that I don’t think the humans have ever encountered a technology that could withstand entering a star or would have reason to think the ship they’re on could.

Oh yes they have. Don’t you remember when SG1 [blew up a sun?](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exodus_(Stargate_SG-1)) I’m fairly certain most shields in the Stargate universe can withstand a sun (Asgard and Goa’uld, and definitely Ancient who are more advanced than either race).

I suppose they did make a thing about Dr Rush knowing all along, which in my opinion he most certainly must have, but I find it hard to believe the other scientists who were working in the Stargate program weren’t aware of things like that.

I said it doesn’t have the charm of the original, not that it doesn’t have its own. These characters mean nothing to me right now. Stargate for me was mostly about history than sci fi though back when I really enjoyed it.

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**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\
**Post date:** [November 17, 2009, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/27 "2009-11-17T21:55:42Z")

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> [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](#):
>
> Oh yes they have. Don’t you remember when SG1 [blew up a sun?](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exodus_(Stargate_SG-1)) I’m fairly certain most shields in the Stargate universe can withstand a sun (Asgard and Goa’uld, and definitely Ancient who are more advanced than either race).

I must admit I didn’t see a lot of SG-1 episodes, so some things slip by.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8491ac/32.png) [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fake_Tales_of_San_Francisco)\
**Post date:** [November 17, 2009, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/28 "2009-11-17T21:59:22Z")

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> [@Bosstone](#):
>
> I must admit I didn’t see a lot of SG-1 episodes, so some things slip by.

I just got a little bit obsessed with it at one point I guess. 😃

[This](http://stargate.wikia.com/wiki/Shield) seems to confirm my thoughts on shields in the Stargate universe.

> [@](#):
>
> The Goa’uld have shields which, while impressive, are nowhere near comparable to those of the Ancients, Asgard, and Ori. The shields carried on a Ha’tak vessel are capable of resisting naquadah-enhanced nuclear warheads, and if at full strength can remain in the corona of a star for up to ten hours without danger of crew exposure to dangerous levels of radiation

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Laudenum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Laudenum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laudenum)\
**Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/29 "2009-11-19T12:54:11Z")

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> [@WarmNPrickly](#):
>
> I didn’t feel cheated when they did it though. It only worked out because there were multiple “resets”. It was more similar to Groundhog day than a Star Trek “reset”. There are some interesting consequences too. The audience now knows that Eli’s mom has HIV, but the crew does not.

Actually, if you watch the webisodes, you can see that they recover both kinos, so they probably do know.

Even if you don’t watch the webisode, chances are they found both anyway.

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**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\
**Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/30 "2009-11-20T21:23:07Z")

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> [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](#):
>
> The first time solar flare time travel is explored is when SG1 go back to the 60’s (I think the episode is called 1969). It is established that it depends on the exact time when you travel through the solar flare (probably the time when the wormhole is established). When SG1 manage to get back they enter a Stargate Command that is many years into the future, and Cassandra, now an elderly woman takes them back to their original time. She explains that they travelled through too late, which sent them far forwards instead of roughly where they needed to be.
> 
> So yeah, actually throwing them through at the right time made the episode completely unbelievable to me, based on established Stargate logic. It was bad.

How do you get that they “threw them at the right time”? They just need to throw them into the past, a day a week a year a century, who cares. It just sits there until the next loop starts and they find it. No precision time travel needed. This is supported by them only finding a skeleton in the one loop, rather than a corpse. Clearly that kino had been there while.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stargate-universe-time-open-spoilers/517503/31 "2009-11-21T03:09:28Z")

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Where is tonight’s thread?

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