Let me start by saying that I think it's too early to be judging the series as a whole. We're only two episodes in, and we have no idea how the series will evolve with time. As a result, I've just decided to write down my impressions of the pilot episode ("Air" Parts 1 and 2.) Let me also say that I heard people calling this "Battlestar Galactica" and "Star Trek: Voyager" before the series even started.
Well, in my opinion, there is almost no resemblance to "Star Trek: Voyager" aside from basic plot. But OMG did they clone a LOT of BSG.
Overall, I found Part 1 to be somewhat enjoyable, whereas Part 2 was kind of boring.
PART 1 IMPRESSIONS...
THE FIRST 20 MINUTES - This is what really interested me in the episode. We're not sure what has happened, but people start flying through the Stargate and slamming into walls. Amid the chaos and confusion, we get some general exhibition, and it's sufficiently satisfying to draw me in. It actually seems like an original show at this point which is just using elements of BSG. I also enjoyed Eli's introduction during this portion of the program.
THE CHARACTERS - I found that I only really liked Eli, and Dr. Rush. Both of them are interesting and well-played by the actors. Eli is interesting because of his personality, back-story, and reactions to new situations. He is really the outsider looking in, and he provides some subdued comedy in the pilot. He does not come off as a clone of any other character. Dr. Rush is interesting because of his personality, and the way he is played. This character could've easily become a Gaius Baltar clone, but they succeed in giving his character a unique and interesting personality that doesn't come across as a copy of anyone else. As far as the rest of the characters go... I can't even remember their names (with the exception of Chloe, because her name is repeated like a bijillion times). None of them really do anything for me. And, this may be just me, but I couldn't really tell the other main actors from the extras and the secondary characters in the pilot. There are just so many people, and none of them are really developed. I wasn't sure who, besides Rush, Eli, and Chloe, I should actually focus on.
THE SEX SCENE AND BSG CLONING - The sex scene was gratuitous and comes out of NOWHERE. This was the point where I thought, "Ok. Now you're not just going for BSG style, you're ripping them off." I mean, you have a guy in a black undershirt having sex with a woman in a small room with shaky-cam. That's just Stargate's impression of BSG. As far as BSG cloning is concerned, a clone of an original series does not necessarily make the clone bad, depending on how they handle it. The problem comes when you just rip-off the original. I could ignore the shaky-cam, the dark-lit sets and the similar music, but at the sex scene, it just threw me out of the story and I just started noticing similarities between the two series. The space battles at the end did not have a "Stargate" feel to them. They do a shaky-cam zoom away from the Lucian Alliance ship as the ships fly out which reeks of BSG. Hopefully, they will lose the BSG crutch as time goes on, and form a new, original style all their own.
THE STORY - For the most part, the story was OK, but I didn't really find the situation for how they got to the Destiny convincing. Dr. Rush just didn't seem obsessed enough to risk the lives of everyone on the base to go to an unknown place. This could be just that I don't have a feel for his character yet, but it just didn't seem a good enough reason to get to the Destiny.
OVERALL - Part 1 was OK. I really liked the first 20 minutes, but I was thrown off by the sex scene, and couldn't really get back into it after that. I just kept finding similarities to BSG and I got distracted by the story. It wasn't really bad, it just didn't make me go "wow". It seems at this point like they're trying to use BSG as a template until they find their footing.
6/10 - Some good elements, but at this early stage, it did a little more copying than I would've liked, and it hasn't found its footing yet.
Well, in my opinion, there is almost no resemblance to "Star Trek: Voyager" aside from basic plot. But OMG did they clone a LOT of BSG.
Overall, I found Part 1 to be somewhat enjoyable, whereas Part 2 was kind of boring.
PART 1 IMPRESSIONS...
THE FIRST 20 MINUTES - This is what really interested me in the episode. We're not sure what has happened, but people start flying through the Stargate and slamming into walls. Amid the chaos and confusion, we get some general exhibition, and it's sufficiently satisfying to draw me in. It actually seems like an original show at this point which is just using elements of BSG. I also enjoyed Eli's introduction during this portion of the program.
THE CHARACTERS - I found that I only really liked Eli, and Dr. Rush. Both of them are interesting and well-played by the actors. Eli is interesting because of his personality, back-story, and reactions to new situations. He is really the outsider looking in, and he provides some subdued comedy in the pilot. He does not come off as a clone of any other character. Dr. Rush is interesting because of his personality, and the way he is played. This character could've easily become a Gaius Baltar clone, but they succeed in giving his character a unique and interesting personality that doesn't come across as a copy of anyone else. As far as the rest of the characters go... I can't even remember their names (with the exception of Chloe, because her name is repeated like a bijillion times). None of them really do anything for me. And, this may be just me, but I couldn't really tell the other main actors from the extras and the secondary characters in the pilot. There are just so many people, and none of them are really developed. I wasn't sure who, besides Rush, Eli, and Chloe, I should actually focus on.
THE SEX SCENE AND BSG CLONING - The sex scene was gratuitous and comes out of NOWHERE. This was the point where I thought, "Ok. Now you're not just going for BSG style, you're ripping them off." I mean, you have a guy in a black undershirt having sex with a woman in a small room with shaky-cam. That's just Stargate's impression of BSG. As far as BSG cloning is concerned, a clone of an original series does not necessarily make the clone bad, depending on how they handle it. The problem comes when you just rip-off the original. I could ignore the shaky-cam, the dark-lit sets and the similar music, but at the sex scene, it just threw me out of the story and I just started noticing similarities between the two series. The space battles at the end did not have a "Stargate" feel to them. They do a shaky-cam zoom away from the Lucian Alliance ship as the ships fly out which reeks of BSG. Hopefully, they will lose the BSG crutch as time goes on, and form a new, original style all their own.
THE STORY - For the most part, the story was OK, but I didn't really find the situation for how they got to the Destiny convincing. Dr. Rush just didn't seem obsessed enough to risk the lives of everyone on the base to go to an unknown place. This could be just that I don't have a feel for his character yet, but it just didn't seem a good enough reason to get to the Destiny.
OVERALL - Part 1 was OK. I really liked the first 20 minutes, but I was thrown off by the sex scene, and couldn't really get back into it after that. I just kept finding similarities to BSG and I got distracted by the story. It wasn't really bad, it just didn't make me go "wow". It seems at this point like they're trying to use BSG as a template until they find their footing.
6/10 - Some good elements, but at this early stage, it did a little more copying than I would've liked, and it hasn't found its footing yet.