Saturday, May 31, 2008

Battlestar Galactica - Video: 'Lucy's Breakdown'

Courtesy of the SciFi Channel and HULU, 'Lucy's Breakdown.'



A rare glimpse into the all-consuming madness that is Lucy Lawless on the Battlestar set.

Battlestar Galactica - Video: Trailer for 'Hub'

Courtesy of the SciFi Channel and HULU, the trailer for Battlestar Galactica's next episode, 'Hub,' airing Friday, June 6 at 10pm on the SciFi Channel.





A misfit band of Viper pilots and Cylon rebels unites to destroy a vital enemy target.




Ben Browder / Matthew Fox - Video: Party of Five - 'M.Y.O.B."

Courtesy of HULU, Party of Five's 'M.Y.O.B.,' starring Scott Wolf, Matthew Fox, Neve Campbell, Lacey Chabert, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Alexondra Lee. Guest stars include David Batiste, Ben Browder, Randy Newman and Tamara Taylor.





As Grace grows uncomfortable staying at the Salinger's, Claudia tries to make help by volunteering; Julia and Sarah team up to stop Bailey's drinking.





Stargate SG-1 - SciFi Pi: Christopher Judge Interview Part 1

From the Australian SciFi Channel's SciFi Pi:

http://www.scifitv.com.au/Blog/2008/05/Tealc-Cuts-Loose-The-Ultimate-Christopher-Judge-Interview/

(Please follow the link for the complete interview.)

SCI FI - THE SCI FI AUSTRALIA BLOG

INTERVIEWS - Teal'c Cuts Loose : The Ultimate Christopher Judge Interview



Saturday, May 31

by Captain

Christopher Judge is instantly recognisable to Sci Fi fans. For ten years, his role as Teal'c on Stargate SG-1 has resonated with audiences the world over. But Christopher Judge the actor is no stoic Jaffa warrior - in fact, the reality could not be further from the truth.

Larger than life, quick to laugh and quick witted, he brings an air of enthusiasm to everything he does.

On a recent trip to the Southern Hemisphere as a guest of First Contact Conventions, he stopped for a moment in between a whirlwind visit to Sydney and Wellington to have a heart-to-heart chat with SCI FI PI.

He talked about pretty much everything you could imagine, from his darkest fears, the highs (and lows) of Stargate, his experience as a writer, the two new Stargate films, his upcoming new series, Rage of Angels, all the way to golf with the kids.

Surprisingly candid and approachable, this is the first part of an epic two part (possibly even three part) interview with 'the world's most recognisable black man', Christopher Judge.

Grab a cup of coffee, and read on.

**snippage**

FROM ACTOR TO WRITER


But now of course, you have the experience of being a Sci Fi writer - where they expect you to know stuff that you're making up as you go along! Fans will know that you worked on several episodes as a writer, specifically with Jaffa storylines, but this has given you many opportunities, including your new show, Rage of Angels.

CJ: "I was kind of a cut-up the first five years, and I think I was having too good a time. Brad Wright and I were always very good friends and he knew that I always wanted to go more the writer/producer route and he said to me 'why don't you get serious and write something?' anything? well, come in with a couple of pitches and we'll see what you've got.

We'd always had pitches for shows about Amazons, but they always seemed a bit like Wonder Woman type of thing, so I came up with concept of these women under one particular God who so wanted warriors that he would kill off the children until he got a boy - which lead to one of their princesses spiriting their children away and so on.

The way a normal story is written - you pitch an idea, if the writers like it, then they all sit in a room and they break the story. Break the beats, break the acts, break everything. And then you basically write the dialogue. I asked Brad - 'would you mind if I didn't do that, because I would really like a real assessment if I have a future in this or not'. And he said 'sure'.

So I actually turned it in early. Then we went on summer hiatus and I didn't hear anything from Brad or Martin Wood, who I'd also given a copy to, and also to John Smith. And nothing. So I'm just sitting there thinking 'guess I'm an actor'...

Then on the Saturday before we were to go back to work, there were three messages on my phone. And they swear they didn't talk. Brad, Martin and John each saying how much they enjoyed it, blah blah blah. Structurally, Brad definitely fixed that, but for the most part, we pretty much shot what I wrote, which I learned is not the way it always happens. As a writer, especially as a TV writer or film writer, you can't be 'married' to the work or take it personally. The whole thing, I really owe to Brad Wright. Even Rage of Angels.

We were at Martin Wood's wedding, we had gone outside for a smoke - well I was smoking - and he said, 'if this show ever ends, what are you gonna do?'. And I said 'I'd really like to star in an hour drama, not a sitcom, and have it be viable'. And he said 'you know you're going to have to write it yourself - no network is out looking for that'.

And I said 'yeah, I kinda figured that'. So the week of the 200th episode, that's when we learned we were cancelled. Four days later I had written Rage of Angels."


**snippage**

Reflecting Judge



Photo courtesy of SciFi Pi

Friday, May 30, 2008

Firefly - Video: 'Safe'

Courtesy of HULU, Firefly's 'Safe,' starring Nathan Fillion, Gina Torres, Alan Tudyk, Morena Baccarin, Adam Baldwin, Jewel Staite, Sean Maher, Summer Glau and Ron Glass. Guest stars include Isabella Hofmann, William Converse-Roberts, and Zac Efron.

While the Serenity crew is doing a job on an outlying planet, both Simon and River are kidnapped by the locals in need of a doctor.

Stargate SG-1 - Season 4 Mini-Marathon Monday June 2 '08

The SciFi Channel (US) has scheduled a Stargate SG-1 season four (one of MY favorite Stargate SG-1 seasons) mini-marathon for Monday, June 2 '08:



08:00A WATERGATE - Marina Sirtis and Tom McBeath guest stars, the introduction of the Russian Star Gate (our old Giza Stargate)



09:00A THE FIRST ONES - The introduction of Chaka (Dion Johnstone)



10:00A SCORCHED EARTH - Alessandro Juliani guest stars



11:00A BENEATH THE SURFACE - a quintessential Stargate episode



12:00P TANGENT - Carmen Argenziano, Colin Cunningham guest star, the introduction of Lt. Gen. Vidrine (Steven Williams)



1:00P SERPENT'S VENOM - Peter Williams (Apophis) guest stars, the introduction of Rak-nor (Obi N'defo)



2:00P CHAIN REACTION - Tom McBeath (Col. Harry Maybourne) guest stars



3:00P 2010 - Ronny Cox guest stars, the introduction of the Aschen



Photos courtesy of GateWorld

Michael Shanks - Highlander - Video: 'The Zone'

Courtesy of HULU, Highlander's 'The Zone,' starring Adrian Paul and Jim Byrnes. Guest stars include Michael Shanks, Philip Akin and Lorena Gale.





Duncan comes to the aid of a neighborhood plagued by crooks.





Stargate SG-1 / Battlestar Galactica - HypaSpace Podcast: Ben Browder / Alessandro Juliani Audio Interviews

From Canada's Space Channel's HypaSpace Podcast:

http://www.spacecast.com/shows_5007.aspx

HYPASPACE PODCAST

May 30 -



Battlestar Galactica's Alessandro Juliani, Lost's Mathew Fox, Stargate's Ben Browder, and All Star Superman artist Frank Quitely are all featured on the show. We share some insight's into the role of religion on BSG and Mark Askwith and Natasha Eloi discuss Natasha's visit to the Ontario Science Center's 'Facing Mars' exhibit.



Podcast Link

Stargate Atlantis - TV Squad: The Most Real Unreal Award Nominees

From TV Squad:

http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/05/30/the-most-real-unreal-award-nominees-videos/

(Please follow the link for the complete article -- and to VOTE for your favorite nominee!)

The Most Real Unreal Award nominees - VIDEOS

Posted May 30th 2008 4:26PM by Keith McDuffee



At first I was surprised at the low turnout for the call for considerations last week, but it's understandable. Most folks are going to right-out (and, likely, correctly) assume we're talking about purely science fiction shows, and when there are just so many of them, why mention what's already been mentioned a few times already?

The list of nominees follows, along with your chance again to vote for the Reader's Choice award amongst them.

Battlestar Galactica (Sci Fi) --

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Fox) --

Supernatural
(CW) --

Stargate: Atlantis (Sci Fi) -- Along with the BSG set visit, I had the
pleasure of checking out the sets of Stargate: Atlantis. Watching an episode and seeing a Puddle Jumper flying along on-screen, the same one I saw last year made of wood, is just awesome. Unfortunately SG1 didn't qualify for this award, as it didn't air this past season.

Heroes (NBC) --

So, there you have 'em. go ahead and cast your vote for the Reader's
Choice and we'll be back next week with a list of all the winners.

Sanctuary - Amanda Tapping - Audio Interview

From Sanctuary Fans:

http://www.sanctuaryfans.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=541&Itemid=34

(Please follow the link to download the audio interview and/or read the transcript.)



Sanctuaryfans talks to Amanda Tapping

With GABIT fast approaching, we sent our intrepid crew of Sanctuary fans over to spend some time with Sanctuary's leading lady, the ever fab Amanda Tapping.

Grabbing questions submitted by the fans from the forum we threw them at Amanda and here's what she had to say. Click Read More to read a full transcript of the Interview.



A brief excerpt:

SF.com: Since Sanctuary’s pilot is being retooled how different will it feel compared to the webisodes?

AT: "It’s a good question, and I think actually it will feel quite different. I mean, we still want to keep the same graphic novel feel to it. We still want to keep the same, sort of darker elements, but it won’t be as sinister in places and the back stories of all the characters will be a bit broader. Because we are able to take the first hour of webisodes and repurpose it into a two hour, so the witches story becomes a completely different episode, it gives us a lot more freedom. A lot more back story on Will. A lot more back story on Magnus, on Ashley. We don’t give as much away in the pilot. Which for those of you blessed fans who have been following us on the web, will know all the story anyway, but we’re not using as many of the flashback in our first two hours. They’ll come in later. And it’s going to be physically brighter, a little bit, for broadcast. I mean, the web, depending on what you watched it on, the compression was pretty tight, so sometimes it looked really, really dark and you just can’t have that on broadcast television, so we’re brightening it up. And I think the vis effects, as proud as I am of our team for getting stunning visual effects in twelve days, we’ll have five months so they’ll be a lot more polished."


**snippage**

Audio link

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Stargate Atlantis - NEW Photos - Search & Rescue

With many thanks to Andreas from GateWorld Forum, for the MGM publicity stills from Stargate Atlantis' fifth season premiere, Search and Rescue, which airs Friday, July 11 at 10pm on the SciFi Channel. (Please follow the link below for full-size, high-resolution format of these photos.)

http://forum.gateworld.net/showpost.php?p=8316097&postcount=1

Col. Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping) and Dr. Jennifer Keller (Jewel Staite)



Kanaan (Patrick Sabongui)




Dr. Rodney McKay (David Hewlett)



Capt. Alicia Vega (Leela Savasta)



Richard Woolsey (Robert Picardo)



Samantha Carter



Sam Carter and Richard Woolsey



Rodney McKay



Lt. Col. John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan) and Ronon Dex (Jason Momoa)


Ben Browder / Matthew Fox - Video: Party of Five 'Misery Loves Company'

Courtesy of HULU, Party of Five's 'Misery Loves Company,' starring Scott Wolf, Matthew Fox, Neve Campbell, Lacey Chabert, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Alexondra Lee. Guest stars include Ben Browder, Scott Grimes, Lela Ivey and Tamara Taylor.



A fire lands Grace at the Salinger's just as Julia moves out to escape a domineering Charlie; Will arrives home unexpectedly to find Bailey's been drinking too much.





Stargate - Agent DVD Online: Vote for Stargate as best DVD franchise

From Agent DVD Online:

http://agentdvdonline.com/

The Greatest Franchise on DVD Ever!




They form the engine that drives pop culture. Lucrative film and TV franchises not only establish the grounds for huge box office potential, but also build substantial fan bases and set new standards for entertainment. These multimedia franchises can stem from a variety of sources, from original stories to novels, comic books, video games, and even theme-park rides.

But of the many franchises out there, which is the greatest? Agent DVD is taking that question to the fans with a new online tournament giving fans a chance to vote for their favorites until a winner is chosen. Final results will be revealed in Agent DVD magazine's annual issue distributed at San Diego Comic-Con International.

The Finalists


http://tinyurl.com/3o3ez6

Star Wars
Star Trek
Indiana Jones
James Bond
Lord of the Rings
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Batman
Superman
Spider-Man
X-Men

Stargate
Now a staple of sci-fi TV, Stargate boasts the longest-running American sci-fi show in “Stargate SG-1,” plus spinoffs “Stargate Atlantis” and the animated out-of-continuity “Stargate: Infinity.” Plus there’s the original 1994 feature film, and two direct-to-video sequels to “SG-1.”

Ghostbusters
View Askewniverse
Hannibal Lecter
Nightmare on Elm Street
Jaws


VOTE at:

http://tinyurl.com/4r5ry4

The Invisible Man - Video: 'The Lesser Evil'

Courtesy of HULU, The Invisible Man's 'The Lesser Evil,' starring Vincent Ventresca, Paul Ben-Victor, Shannon Kenny, and Eddie Jones. Guest stars include Idalis DeLeon, Spencer Garrett, Jeff Graham and Monica Louwerens.

Allianora tells Darien that the Agency is planning to kill him and asks him to switch allegiances to her secret organization.


Stargate Atlantis - TV Zone Magazine # 229 - N. John Smith Interview

From Visimag:

http://www.visimag.com/acatalog/VI_DIRECT_Catalog_TV_Zone_2008_261.html#aT229

TV Zone #229, June 2008
(Reference #T229)
Scheduled publication date May 30 2008

Cover Feature: Stargate Atlantis




Exclusive Interviews...

Stargate Atlantis Producer N John Smith gives us a preview of the other surprises to come in the imminent Season Five

Doctor Who (2000s) League of Gentlemen star Steve Pemberton on guest-starring in the latest series

Reaper Star Bret Harrison reflects on how his character Sam is becoming a better man... thanks to Satan!

CSI: Miami Actor Rex Linn reveals why he’s astonished to find himself becoming a show regular

Bonekickers Director James Strong introduces the BBC’s new action-drama

Psych Actor James Roday reveals the full extent of his contribution to the cult show


Plus...

Thunderbirds A picture showcase of International Rescue’s return n two new adverts


Regulars

Deep Thought The big issues assessed: this issue, as Doctor Who fans panic over a slip in the ratings, we wonder if they’ve noticed the sunny weather, and that it’s affecting every other series as well…

Primetime Fear Itself We preview a new anthology series of creepy tales

Diamond Mine This issue, our look at the greats of television unearths the cases of chain-smoking gambling addict Dr Eddie ‘Fitz’ Fitzgerald, the Cracker…

With 25+ regular and bang up-to-date TV reviews, and merchandise reviews…

and much more…

Go to Web edition

http://www.visimag.com/tvzone/t229_display.htm

Price: $7.99

~~**~~**~~

An excerpt from the N. John Smith interview:

http://www.visimag.com/tvzone/t229_feat01.htm


(Please follow the link for the complete interview excerpt.)



The Fifth Element

Executive producer N John Smith discusses the upcoming storylines in the fifth season, as Teyla goes undercover and Woolsey takes charge…

It’s a Friday afternoon in May at Bridge Studios in Vancouver, British Columbia and the weekend getaway is looming, but there is still work to be done on the Stargate Atlantis set before the cast and crew can head home for a quick break – or some line learning, just as likely. Christopher Heyerdahl, who portrays the show’s resident Wraith Todd, heads back to Stage 2 for his next scene, along with another actor who is making his début as Atlantis’s first bald Wraith commander. Close behind them is Rachel Luttrell, looking quite unlike her usual style as Teyla. It is all in aid of the fifth season episode The Queen, where she disguises herself as a Queen Wraith to gain the confidence of the enemy and, in doing so, carry out a plan that could change the Wraith’s feeding habits and help save Humankind.

**snippage**

..."Scheduling around the Wraith is always a bit more difficult only because of the prosthetics. Our actors start getting into make-up at three in the morning, we shoot until seven or eight at night, and then it takes them another hour to get out of everything. So it can get pretty tiring, especially for Rachel, who has to look after her baby, but, again, it’s almost over. These seven-day episodes go by pretty quickly. At first you wonder, ‘What’s going to be hard about this one?’ but then all of sudden it’s done and you’re like, ‘What the heck were we worried about?’ It’s a pretty polished machine around here and our crew doesn’t waver at anything you might throw at them. Whatever, it is, if you think it’s a potential problem, they’re like, ‘We’ll show you,’ which they do, and things go smoothly.”


by Steven Eramo
Read the full interview in
TV Zone #229

http://www.visimag.com/tvzone/t229_display.htm

Battlestar Galactica - Video: Rekha Sharma Q&A - Part 2

Courtesy of the SciFi Channel and HULU, Rekha Sharma Q&A - Part 2.

Rekha Sharma answers fans' queries from the SciFi Channel's Battlestar Galactica's Forum in this special Q&A series.



Stargate Atlantis - NBCU: SciFi Channel Announces Summer Lineup

From NBCU:

http://www.nbcumv.com/release_detail.nbc/scifi-20080529000000-scifichannelannou.html

SCI FI CHANNEL ANNOUNCES SUMMER LINEUP

Published: May 29, 2008

SCI FI CHANNEL ANNOUNCES SUMMER LINEUP OF HIT SERIES!

Lineup Includes Season Premieres of Scare Tactics, Stargate Atlantis and Eureka And New Episodes of Ghost Hunters International


New York, NY – May 29, 2007 – This summer, SCI FI Channel features the returns of some of cable's hottest shows! On the reality front, viewers can look forward to all-new investigations with the team from the immensely popular Ghost Hunters International as well as the return of the hilariously irreverent Scare Tactics, hosted by comedy superstar Tracy Morgan. The Stargate legacy continues with the premiere of the fifth season of Stargate Atlantis, and SCI FI's record-breaking hit series, Eureka, will return at the end of July with its highly-anticipated third season.



Returning Series Premieres

Ghost Hunters International (New Episodes Premiere July 9, 2008 @ 9 PM) - SCI FI's newest hit reality series will return to the Channel this summer with seven new episodes as part of its first season. After debuting in January as the highest-rated reality telecast in the Channel's history, Ghost Hunters International averaged a 1.6 Household rating and over 2 million total viewers over its seven-episode run this winter. A spin-off of SCI FI's immensely popular Ghost Hunters series, Ghost Hunters International features a squad of real-life "ghost-busters" – ordinary people who investigate and attempt to debunk claims of otherworldly activity. The new team travels the world to different cities each week in pursuit of the truth behind bizarre supernatural claims. The success of its record-breaking debut season cemented Ghost Hunters' place as the #1 paranormal franchise in cable!

For their first round of investigations, the International crew took on some of Europe's most haunted locales, including Chillingham Castle in England and the forgotten underground city of Mary King's Close in Scotland. This summer, the team heads back out to Europe as well as to some notoriously haunted hotspots in New Zealand and South Africa.

Ghost Hunters and Ghost Hunters International are produced in association with Craig Piligian's Pilgrim Films and Television (American Chopper, Dirty Jobs, The Ultimate Fighter). Piligian and Thomas Thayer, along with Rob Katz and Alan David, serve as executive producers.



Scare Tactics (Season 3 Premieres July 9, 2008 @ 10 PM) - An all-new Scare Tactics returns to SCI Fin this time with host Tracy Morgan of 30 Rock and Saturday Night Live. The frighteningly funny hidden camera show premieres with two back-to-back brand-new episodes on Wednesday, July 9 @ 10 PM ET/PT.

Set up by friends and loved ones, unsuspecting victims are placed into elaborately staged scary situations involving film-quality special effects, makeup and stunts. The horror hoaxes are skillfully designed to tap into the wildest fears of the prank's prey. Viewers laugh along with the hilarious reactions of the show's "stars" as they are caught off-guard and on-camera.



Stargate Atlantis (Season 5 Premieres July 11, 2008 @ 10 PM) - As Stargate Atlantis moves into its fifth action-packed season, the team of intrepid explorers continue to face peril and uncertainty from within the vast reaches of the Pegasus Galaxy.

The series promises to keep things exciting by introducing a powerful new race, welcoming new cast members and forging new alliances, all while delving deeper into the mysteries of the Pegasus Galaxy. The new 20-episode season will include the series' benchmark 100th episode.

Robert Picardo, known to fans as the International Oversight Committee rep Richard Woolsey, joins the Atlantis cast and assumes command of the Atlantis expedition. Reluctant to step into Colonel Samantha Carter's shoes, Woolsey must deal with new responsibilities and find his way among the crew. The team, led by Lt. Colonel Sheppard (Joe Flanigan), Dr. Rodney McKay (David Hewlett), Teyla (Rachel Luttrell), Ronon (Jason Momoa) and Dr. Jennifer Keller (Jewel Staite), must adjust to his unique leadership style.

Fan favorite Paul McGillion, returns for five episodes to reprise his role as the beloved "Dr. Carson Beckett." Amanda Tapping ("Colonel Samantha Carter"), and Stargate SG-1 star Michael Shanks ("Dr. Daniel Jackson") will also appear as special guest stars this season.




Eureka (Season 3 Premieres July 29, 2008 @ 9 PM) – A small town with big secrets, Eureka is a community of geniuses assembled by the government to conduct top-secret research. What they've unwittingly created is a place where anything imaginable can happen… and does.

With Jack Carter (Colin Ferguson) now firmly installed as Eureka's sheriff, there's still much he doesn't know about the goings-on at top secret research facility Global Dynamics, but each time havoc is unleashed it usually leads Carter back to the lab.

Season three delves deeper into the classified, inner-workings of Global Dynamics and continues to explore the intertwined personal relationships of Eureka's colorful and quirky residents. New among the townspeople this season is Eva Thorne, aka "The Fixer" (Frances Fisher, Titanic), whose mission is to clean up Global Dynamics.


Joining Fisher for season 3 are returning stars Salli Richardson as Allison Blake, Joe Morton as Henry Deacon, Ed Quinn as Dr. Nathan Stark, Jordan Hinson as Zoe Carter, Erica Cerra as Deputy Jo Lupo, and Neil Grayston as Douglas Fargo.

Eureka is a SCI FI Channel presentation and is produced by NBC Universal Cable Studio.

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Highlander - Video: 'An Eye for an Eye'

Courtesy of HULU, Highlander's 'An Eye for an Eye,' starring Adrian Paul and Stan Kirsch. Guest stars include Philip Akin, Terry Arrowsmith, Sheena Easton, Andrew Kavadas, Callum Keith Rennie and Eric Schneider.

Richie must face his first Immortal opponent when he opposes an Immortal Irish terrorist who is one of Duncan's former lovers.

Stargate Atlantis / SG1 - SciFi Channel's SciFi Friday May 30 '08

The SciFi Channel's schedule for Friday, May 30, 2008:

5:00P STARGATE ATLANTIS UNDERGROUND



6:00P STARGATE SG-1 UNNATURAL SELECTION



7:00P STARGATE SG-1 THE SCOURGE



8:00P SARAH JANE ADVENTURES, THE THE LOST BOY - PART 1



8:30P SARAH JANE ADVENTURES, THE THE LOST BOY - PART 2



9:00P DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 4 THE POISON SKY



10:00P BATTLESTAR GALACTICA SEASON 4 SINE QUA NON



11:00P DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 4 THE POISON SKY



12:00A BATTLESTAR GALACTICA SEASON 4 SINE QUA NON



01:00A STARGATE SG-1 ORPHEUS - Tony Amendola (Bra'tac), Obi Ndefo (Rak'nor), Neil Denis (Rya'c) and David Richmond-Peck (Jaffa Commander)



02:00A STARGATE SG-1 REVISIONS



Stargate photos courtesy of GateWorld