http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/08/21/stargate-atlantis-canceled-kind-of/ Stargate Atlantis canceled, kind of Well, this is just all kinds of disappointing, and a little surprising. Season five of Stargate Atlantis will be the end of its run on Sci Fi. That's a surprising bit of news considering that ratings are actually up for season five, compared to season four. Unfortunately, the economics of making the show are catching up with it. As the show goes beyond season five, salaries go up, and the exchange rate bonus of shooting in Canada isn't what it once was. It might mark the end of the series, but we will hear more from our friends in Atlantis. The network has ordered a two hour movie and says the show will live on as a network franchise. I'm not sure if that means they hope to do more movies, or they are just confirming that they will continue to fill out the schedule with copious SG-1 and Atlantis reruns. The movie will be written by Atlantis showrunners, Joe Mallozzi and Paul Mullie. As you would expect, there are no details about casting or the story at this point.While the end of the series is a surprise, the movie deal isn't. Given the success of the SG-1 movies, it seems a logical step for the Atlantis team to take. It just seems a little bit too soon. With Stargate Universe still in the offing, I suspected we would see something like the changeover from SG-1 to Atlantis, where the pair ran together before Atlantis moved into the number one spot. Those involved are saying the expected things. A statement from Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper, co-creators of SG-1 and Atlantis, said, "The successes of the two original Stargate movies The Ark of Truth and Continuum have shown us the opportunities that the movie format offers. We have plans for both SG-1 and Atlantis to remain vital as we expand the franchise." Over at Sci Fi, Thomas Vitale, VP of Programming and Original Movies, adds, "We share in the producers' enthusiasm to move forward in this direction and we look forward to a strong and continued relationship on Stargate Atlantis in this new format." He neglected to add, "But make sure to tune in to wrestling on Tuesday night!" Off topic, maybe, but seriously, what the hell? Why is that show there? There have been a couple bumps along the way, but I think Atlantis is going to go down as a great success. The show will hit 100 episodes before it's all said and done, and that's a pretty big accomplishment. I'll look forward to the movie, and with any luck it will be successful enough to make way for a couple more.
another show I like bites the dust.. .just my luck. The list of shows I like but got cancelled way too soon is looooong. guess I'll have to start watching big brother or gouge my eyes out... I think gouging my eyes will be less painfull.
I hope SciFi has something great coming up - if they fill its time slot with reruns or wrestling, I might have to kill somebody.
