stargate universe

All you 'Stargate Universe' fans out there: haven't you always wanted to know what the cast thinks about the communication stones? Or what they would bring with them if they were really trapped on the Destiny? What about their favorite sci-fi shows?

Most of the cast of 'SGU' assembled in Toronto to celebrate the mid-season finale, and TV Squad was fortunate enough to catch up with them. (Bonus points to any reader who can spot the error in the background of the videos.)

['Stargate Universe' – 'Resurgence']

One of the things I love most about 'Stargate Universe' is how the show manages to bring me to the edge of my seat with carefully crafted suspenseful moments -- like the build-up to the space jump in last night's mid-season finale.

The scene probably didn't do much for most viewers, but watching Greer leap from the edge of the shuttle to a hole in the side of a dark alien ship, wearing a space suit that may or may not be broken, was enough to make me squirm in my seat.

It just worked. The cinematography, special affects, set design, music and lighting all came together for an exciting scene that reminded me of some of the best horror/sci-fi films of all time, like 'The Thing,' 'Dark City' or, of course, 'Alien.' 'Resurgence' only got better from that point on ... until the episode ended abruptly with Destiny caught in the middle of a crazy space battle.

['Stargate Universe' – 'Visitation']

This week's episode of 'Stargate Universe' left us with more questions than answers as Dr. Caine (Tygh Runyan) and friends returned to the Destiny.

But was that the real Caine, or was that a "shadow" of the real Caine created by a super alien race and sent to Destiny for some unknown purpose?

More troubling questions about Caine and the returning crewmembers followed their appearance: How did they get here? Why can't they remember anything? And why are they all dropping dead faster than a swarm of mosquitoes caught in a giant bug zapper?

['Stargate Universe' – 'Malice']

It was hard trying to stay away from spoilers and promos for this week's episode of 'Stargate Universe' after last week's cliffhanger ending. Really hard. Mostly because you, lovely readers, decided that it was okay to post spoilers for this ep in the comments of my last recap!

But, hey, it's cool. You're free to discuss 'SGU' however you want to on this site. I read your predictions and spoilers and hoped -- prayed! -- that all of you were wrong or misinformed, because what you were predicting was just so ... sad. Unfortunately, you were right, and the worst thing that could have happened actually did happen last night.

['Stargate Universe' – 'The Greater Good']

Rush's secret is out. And so, apparently, is Destiny's.

So lemme get this straight: The Ancients built Destiny to search for God? As Rush explained it to Young, the ship was designed to explore space after the Ancients found evidence of a "structure," or a transmission, which was created by someone or something possibly before the dawn of existence. Life before life.

And discovering this structure and the being(s) responsible for creating it could lead to a new level of understanding and power that man has never experienced.

'Stargate Universe' has come a long way since it premiered last October. Now in its second season, the Syfy series has mostly ditched the tedious slow-burn plots that marked the first half of its freshman year for more action, adventure and space madness (CGI aliens! Space pirates! Starships that frak with your mind!).

But not everyone is a fan. 'SGU' still struggles with low ratings and with fans of the previous, sunnier 'Stargate' shows who, for whatever reason, aren't happy with the series' darker tone and character-based plots.

TV Squad got a chance to chat with David Blue, who plays slacker-genius Eli Wallace on the show, recently about 'SGU''s ratings vs. its DVR numbers, the angry fans and, of course, what we can expect from the rest of the second season.

['Stargate Universe' – 'Trial and Error']

Sometimes 'Stargate Universe' hums along like a well-oiled machine, delivering episodes that flow naturally from one to the other and telling an epic tale about flawed people living on the edge of space. And sometimes we get episodes that bring the overall story to a halt, like last week's puzzling stand-alone ep, 'Cloverdale.' This week, 'SGU' offered a mix of the two styles with an ep that centered on Col. Young (Louis Ferreira).

Young was suffering from 'Groundhog Day' syndrome as he relived the same event over and over again but was powerless to change the outcome. His recurring nightmare always ended with the Blue Meanies either blowing up the ship or taking it over. He just couldn't win.

['Stargate Universe' – 'Cloverdale']

Last night's episode of 'Stargate Universe' offered a bit of a departure from the show's usual ultra-serialized storytelling style. Instead of watching the Destiny crew dealing with the ongoing problems and challenges of season 2 -- Rush's attempts to control the ship, taming the Lucian Alliance prisoners, drowsy aliens -- we got a stand-alone story about Lt. Scott and his trip to Oz the town of Cloverdale.

Unfortunately, 'Cloverdale' wasn't exactly a jaw-dropping sci-fi mindfrak like 'Time,' last season's stand-alone episode. At times, the tone, pacing and story here felt like they were lifted from a cheesy sci-fi anthology TV show, like the '90s version of 'The Outer Limits' or (gasp!) the UPN remake of 'The Twilight Zone!'

['Stargate Universe' – 'Pathogen']

This week's poignant and compelling episode of 'Stargate Universe' (directed by Robert Carlyle) was a nice change of pace after last week's solid but slow-moving hour.

'Pathogen' was light on action and heavy on character drama, but it offered strong performances, smart pacing and some expert tender storytelling.

Eli and Wray visited Earth while the rest of the crew dealt with Chloe's metamorphosis and the release of the Lucan Alliance prisoners. Everyone was nervous about the prisoners walking the ship, but it turned out that our heroes could be facing an even bigger threat from one of their own.

['Stargate Universe' – 'Awakening']

'Awakening' was full of exciting discoveries as Destiny came across an Ancient seeder ship and its otherworldly inhabitants. But the episode's brutally slow pacing and tranquil tone dulled the excitement of discovery.

It's a problem we've seen before on 'Stargate Universe.' Sometimes the show simply comes off too slow, gloomy and bleak, even when exciting stuff is happening.

['Stargate Universe' – 'Aftermath']

A man can't run an Ancient starship alone. That was the key message of this episode of 'Stargate Universe.'

After a terrific and fast-paced season 2 opener, the show returned to the slow-burn storytelling style of early season one, but 'Aftermath' offered more memorable moments and a more compelling storyline than most of those early eps did.

['Stargate Universe' - 'Intervention (3)']

Similar to last April's standout mid-season premiere, the season 2 opener of 'Stargate Universe' delivered plenty of suspenseful edge-of-your-seat moments and emotional character drama.

The premiere wrapped up last season's swell of cliffhangers, but it also left us with a million new questions, most of them concerning TJ (Alaina Huffman) and the fate of her baby.

Season 2 opened with a close-up shot of TJ waking up in a strange room far away from all the action on the ship. It felt like an odd call, at first, to start the episode in a quiet new locale instead of where we left off last season -- with most of our heroes either about to get shot or fried by a killer pulsar blast on The Destiny. But the opening served to remind us that character takes priority over plot on 'SGU.'

Of all the 'Stargate Universe' characters struggling aboard the Destiny, David Blue's Eli is arguably the person who's changed the most. Over the course of the first season, we watched him grow from introverted computer geek into one of the more vital members of the ship's crew. We left Eli at the end of last season's cliffhanger finale as he and injured shipmate Chloe were stranded in an undiscovered part of the Destiny.

TV Squad caught up with Blue – who's actually a lot taller (and slimmer) than he looks on TV – and chatted about season 2 of 'Stargate Universe,' what's in store for Eli, and what he thinks about the constant comparisons to 'Battlestar Galactica.'

The 'Stargate' franchise heads into uncharted territory with season 2 of 'Stargate Universe,' premiering Tue., Sept. 28 at 9PM ET on Syfy.

Flying into the unknown is nothing new for the venerable sci-fi brand, which got its start more than 15 years ago with the feature film starring Kurt Russell and James Spader.

It's a tech geek team-up as 'Eureka' uber-nerd Fargo (Neil Grayston) visits computer hacker Claudia (Allison Scagloitti) on tonight's episode of 'Warehouse 13.'

The Syfy crossover -- which continues with Friday's episode of 'Eureka' -- was inspired by Grayston and Scagliotti's real-life friendship, the pair told reporters recently.

"Our chemistry plays so well in life that I think our respective show runners and the good people over at Syfy realized what a commodity it could be to blend these shows," Scagliotti said during a conference call on Monday.