Why boredom can be dangerous
Jun. 20th, 2010 10:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
stringertheorySaw The A-Team today. Rather liked it. Now, I've never seen the original and know next to nothing about it, but the film, in and of itself, was pretty damn good. Never boring, always moving and very, very fun. And while there were a few moments where disbelief was not suspended so much as thrown out the window (dude, I'm pretty sure physics is against that), overall it was an engaging and enjoyable way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Family with cell phone and kids that would not sit the hell down, and (middle aged!) couple who would not stop playing grabass aside.
My favorite part of the movie? Murdock. I first became interested in The A-Team when it was released that Liam Neeson was involved. Once I found out Sharlto Copley was in on it as well, I was sold. Copely, so utterly fantastic in District 9, appears to be having an absolute ball in this film. I want more, just so we can watch him. The team dynamic plays out really well, too, so I think they could hold up one or two sequels.
Anywho: Boredom. DANGEROUS.
I've been continuing on my long SG-1 craving marathon (just finished working my way through season eight, about to start nine (woot!)), and was pondering the relationships on the show when something got the best of my curiosity. I've commented before on Daniel and his bionic pheromones, but the more I contemplated it, the less sure I was that he garnered the most... attraction on the show. The thought nagged at me for a few days. Then at work (as I do), I decided to write it all out. So I made a column for each of the four main characters and started scribbling down those loves, marriages, crushes, flings and unrequited possibilities the quartet encountered. This being SG-1, I of course included any Alternate Universe relationships.
Then, when I got home, I read through the seasons to make sure I didn't miss any (bless you, GateWorld), made sure I had all the names correct and all the episode titles right, added on the season/episode numbers, and scribbled them on a dry-erase board.
This is what I came up with:
From left to right: Sam, Jack, Daniel and Teal'c. Who got the most action (generally speaking)? Black Widow Sam!
SAM
Turghan ("Emancipation" 1.3)
Cpt. Jonas Hansen ("The First Commandment" 1.5)
Narim ("Enigma" 1.16)
Martouf ("The Tokra: Part 1 & 2" 2.11, 2.12; "Ripple Effect" 9.13 (AU))
Joseph Faxon ("2010" 4.16 (AU); "2001" 5.10)
Orlin ("Ascension" 5.3)
Rodney McKay ("48 Hours" 5.14; "Moebius: Part 1 & 2" 8.19, 8.20 (AU); "The Road Not Taken" 10.13 (AU))
Jay Felger ("The Other Guys" 6.8)
Fifth ("Unnatural Selection" 6.12)
Pete Shanahan ("Chimera" 7.15)
Malcolm Barrett ("Resurrection" 7.19)
Teal'c ("Unending" 10.20 (AU))
Jack ("There But For the Grace of God" 1.19 (AU); "Point of View" 3.6 (AU); "Divide & Conquer" 4.5; "Beneath the Surface" 4.10, "Moebius: Part 2" 8.20 (AU))
JACK
Kynthia ("Brief Candle" 1.8)
Hathor ("Hathor" 1.13)
Laira ("A Hundred Days" 3.17)
Freya ("Divide & Conquer" 4.5)
Kerry Johnson ("Threads" 8.18)
Sarah
Sam ("There But For the Grace of God" 1.19 (AU); "Point of View" 3.6 (AU); "Divide & Conquer" 4.5; "Beneath the Surface" 4.10; "Moebius: Part 2" 8.20 (AU))
DANIEL
Hathor ("Hathor" 1.13)
Shyla ("Need" 2.5)
Ke'ra ("Past & Present" 3.11)
Anise ("Divide & Conquer" 4.5)
Kegan ("Beneath the Surface" 4.10)
Sarah Gardner ("The Curse" 4.13)
Satterfield ("Proving Ground" 5.13)
Nesa ("Birthright" 7.10)
Leda Kane ("Icon" 8.5)
Vala Mal Doran ("Prometheus Unbound" 8.12; "Unending" 10.20 (AU))
Adria ("The Shroud" 10.14)
Sha're
TEAL'C
Shan'auc ("Crossroads" 4.4)
Ishta ("Birthright" 7.10)
Krista James ("Affinity" 8.7)
Sam ("Unending" 10.20 (AU))
Drey'auc
I wouldn't be surprised if I missed a few here and there, but I'm fairly certain I got the majority of those references, significant looks, and flat-out confessions. Some of these may be contestable - Hathor under Jack (and even Daniel), for example, or Adria under Daniel. For those with multiple appearances, I put the first time the attraction became apparent. For instance, Sam was dating Pete before "Chimera", but we, the audience, did not know about it until that episode. And while Jack and Sam were obviously attracted to each other for quite some time, they did not admit it in the show's standard reality (i.e., not an AU or such) until "Divide & Conquer". "Beneath the Surface" is on the list because even though it appeared in the standard reality, the characters were - in their minds, at least - in a different reality, thinking themselves to be different people than they actually were. And since Sam and Jack still managed to find their way to one another, it counts. The original spouses of our three boys are listed without context because their start points were before the series.
Though Daniel had his fair bit of romance (including Nesa's adorable crush), he's behind Sam by one. Sam, with 13, is the winnah. She also wins with the number of marriages/engagements and number of AUs. Girl has seven AUs pop up (three of which are confirmed to involve Jack) and six known hitches-or-about-to-be-hitches (two with Jack). And, lest we forget, she also has the most deaths: six to Jack's one, Daniel's three, and Teal'c's two.
Six out of 13. Black Widow is an apt name, Sam.
Seriously, give me a bit longer, and I'll know all these episode titles and numbers by heart. It's a bit ridiculous.
I think my next comparison will be to see who "died/appeared to die/sort of died but came back/was thought to be truly and completely dead" the most times. My money is on Jack. One word: "Abyss".
My favorite part of the movie? Murdock. I first became interested in The A-Team when it was released that Liam Neeson was involved. Once I found out Sharlto Copley was in on it as well, I was sold. Copely, so utterly fantastic in District 9, appears to be having an absolute ball in this film. I want more, just so we can watch him. The team dynamic plays out really well, too, so I think they could hold up one or two sequels.
Anywho: Boredom. DANGEROUS.
I've been continuing on my long SG-1 craving marathon (just finished working my way through season eight, about to start nine (woot!)), and was pondering the relationships on the show when something got the best of my curiosity. I've commented before on Daniel and his bionic pheromones, but the more I contemplated it, the less sure I was that he garnered the most... attraction on the show. The thought nagged at me for a few days. Then at work (as I do), I decided to write it all out. So I made a column for each of the four main characters and started scribbling down those loves, marriages, crushes, flings and unrequited possibilities the quartet encountered. This being SG-1, I of course included any Alternate Universe relationships.
Then, when I got home, I read through the seasons to make sure I didn't miss any (bless you, GateWorld), made sure I had all the names correct and all the episode titles right, added on the season/episode numbers, and scribbled them on a dry-erase board.
This is what I came up with:
From left to right: Sam, Jack, Daniel and Teal'c. Who got the most action (generally speaking)? Black Widow Sam!
SAM
Turghan ("Emancipation" 1.3)
Cpt. Jonas Hansen ("The First Commandment" 1.5)
Narim ("Enigma" 1.16)
Martouf ("The Tokra: Part 1 & 2" 2.11, 2.12; "Ripple Effect" 9.13 (AU))
Joseph Faxon ("2010" 4.16 (AU); "2001" 5.10)
Orlin ("Ascension" 5.3)
Rodney McKay ("48 Hours" 5.14; "Moebius: Part 1 & 2" 8.19, 8.20 (AU); "The Road Not Taken" 10.13 (AU))
Jay Felger ("The Other Guys" 6.8)
Fifth ("Unnatural Selection" 6.12)
Pete Shanahan ("Chimera" 7.15)
Malcolm Barrett ("Resurrection" 7.19)
Teal'c ("Unending" 10.20 (AU))
Jack ("There But For the Grace of God" 1.19 (AU); "Point of View" 3.6 (AU); "Divide & Conquer" 4.5; "Beneath the Surface" 4.10, "Moebius: Part 2" 8.20 (AU))
JACK
Kynthia ("Brief Candle" 1.8)
Hathor ("Hathor" 1.13)
Laira ("A Hundred Days" 3.17)
Freya ("Divide & Conquer" 4.5)
Kerry Johnson ("Threads" 8.18)
Sarah
Sam ("There But For the Grace of God" 1.19 (AU); "Point of View" 3.6 (AU); "Divide & Conquer" 4.5; "Beneath the Surface" 4.10; "Moebius: Part 2" 8.20 (AU))
DANIEL
Hathor ("Hathor" 1.13)
Shyla ("Need" 2.5)
Ke'ra ("Past & Present" 3.11)
Anise ("Divide & Conquer" 4.5)
Kegan ("Beneath the Surface" 4.10)
Sarah Gardner ("The Curse" 4.13)
Satterfield ("Proving Ground" 5.13)
Nesa ("Birthright" 7.10)
Leda Kane ("Icon" 8.5)
Vala Mal Doran ("Prometheus Unbound" 8.12; "Unending" 10.20 (AU))
Adria ("The Shroud" 10.14)
Sha're
TEAL'C
Shan'auc ("Crossroads" 4.4)
Ishta ("Birthright" 7.10)
Krista James ("Affinity" 8.7)
Sam ("Unending" 10.20 (AU))
Drey'auc
I wouldn't be surprised if I missed a few here and there, but I'm fairly certain I got the majority of those references, significant looks, and flat-out confessions. Some of these may be contestable - Hathor under Jack (and even Daniel), for example, or Adria under Daniel. For those with multiple appearances, I put the first time the attraction became apparent. For instance, Sam was dating Pete before "Chimera", but we, the audience, did not know about it until that episode. And while Jack and Sam were obviously attracted to each other for quite some time, they did not admit it in the show's standard reality (i.e., not an AU or such) until "Divide & Conquer". "Beneath the Surface" is on the list because even though it appeared in the standard reality, the characters were - in their minds, at least - in a different reality, thinking themselves to be different people than they actually were. And since Sam and Jack still managed to find their way to one another, it counts. The original spouses of our three boys are listed without context because their start points were before the series.
Though Daniel had his fair bit of romance (including Nesa's adorable crush), he's behind Sam by one. Sam, with 13, is the winnah. She also wins with the number of marriages/engagements and number of AUs. Girl has seven AUs pop up (three of which are confirmed to involve Jack) and six known hitches-or-about-to-be-hitches (two with Jack). And, lest we forget, she also has the most deaths: six to Jack's one, Daniel's three, and Teal'c's two.
Six out of 13. Black Widow is an apt name, Sam.
Seriously, give me a bit longer, and I'll know all these episode titles and numbers by heart. It's a bit ridiculous.
I think my next comparison will be to see who "died/appeared to die/sort of died but came back/was thought to be truly and completely dead" the most times. My money is on Jack. One word: "Abyss".
no subject
on 2010-06-21 07:02 am (UTC)*flails*
no subject
on 2010-06-21 10:26 pm (UTC)I'm sorry - is it sacrilege to have never see the original? Is this some sort of pop culture ritual I must pass?
'Cause if so, we probably shouldn't start in on all the other things I haven't seen...
(Also also: WOOOO, NZ! (HAHAHA, Italy!) *long distance chest bump* That match was ridiculous.)
no subject
on 2010-06-21 07:12 am (UTC)By compiling Stargate facts and stats on a whiteboard, and then posting a picture of said whiteboard on the internet, you've officially crossed some kind of nerd threshold, and I fear you may not be able to return to normal society.
You know, like in Season One Episode 20, where Daniel goes through the alien mirror into the parallel universe (for the first time) and Apophis is...
no subject
on 2010-06-21 10:54 pm (UTC)When I spent days researching tedious details that no one else would even know about for my Dragon*Con Sam costume (because it HAD TO BE ACCURATE).
When I visited GateWorld just to look up one character's name and emerged several hours later, utterly disoriented and rather info-overloaded.
When I found myself making references no one else understood - even other SG-1 fans.
When I wrote stories (http://stringertheory.livejournal.com/149441.html).
When I started seeing things (http://stringertheory.livejournal.com/143940.html).
Because I am STILL holding out for another SG-1 movie (Please? Please? I've been ever so good!)
Actually, it's S1E19, "There But for the Grace of God" (E20 is "Politics", one of their money-saving clip shows, where the team has to justify the SGC's budget by recalling past missions). And that was more an alternate society than an "abnormal" one.
*narrows eyes* You were just testing me, weren't you?
no subject
on 2010-06-27 03:51 am (UTC)Actually, that may be a good thing. Like many other 80s TV series it's best viewed through a haze of nostalgia. Actually watching it again will probably be depressing.
Every single episode can be summed up thusly: Someone desperately looking for help goes to a clandestine and shadowy meeting with a mysterious stranger, who, after listening sympathetically, whips off his false mustache/wig/glasses/etc and reveals himself to be Hannibal Smith in disguise and declares "You've just hired the A-Team."
Then there is a short sequence while he picks up Face (usually from dodgy place with girls) BA (from a mechanics shop etc) and Murdock (from the loony bin) Then they set off on a wild, highly improbable half-hour mission where things explode, silly stunts are performed, Murdoch is insane and BA is scared of flying.
That pretty much sums the whole thing up. Nobody remebers the details of the missions, just the antics of the team. The movie was pretty much a slightly-serioused update of the TV series.
But personally, I think the new BA was a big improvement on the original.
no subject
on 2010-06-27 03:13 pm (UTC)On the other hand, I absolutely LOVED Murdock in the movie (he's so much freakin' fun!), and Hannibal is, of course, the shiz (how could he not be, played by Liam Neeson). I think it could be fun to have a couple more with these actors in these parts, but it would depend quite heavily on what kind of scripts were written.