#i love this show dearly

[thetriggereffect]

Nothing About the Stargate Is Intelligent

Don't get me wrong, I love all three Stargate shows, and I regard them as some of the best science fiction on television.

But the Stargate itself is a mass of technobabble whose operation is not just ridiculous, but impossible. And I don't mean technically, I mean logistically.

A standard Milky Way Stargate has 39 glyphs. Each glyph represents a constellation. A standard Stargate address involves seven of these glyphs-- six of them identify the location in three dimensional space, and the seventh is the point of origin.

This is several entirely distinct flavors of stupid.

Constellations are not points. One of the stars in Orion's belt, for example, is more than a thousand light years from either of the others.

Even if this weren't the case, the Stargates are millions of years old. Stellar drift has changed the constellations in the ~10,000 years that mankind has been aware of them.

You only need three points to identify a location in three dimensional space. Requiring a second position for each axis does nothing except for drastically limit the locations that can be addressed.

If every address requires the same seventh symbol at a given gate, there's no reason not to make the gate automatically supply it.

If you can identify the point of origin with a single glyph, why can't you identify the destination with one? (There is actually a bit in the original movie where Daniel tells the natives, "we're from here" and shows the symbol that corresponds to earth and they get it.)

Also, if the point of origin is one symbol.... there can be a maximum of 39 total gates. There is no such limit in the shows.

Of course, there is also the magic eight-symbol address that somehow, despite being made up of coordinates in the milky way galaxy, points to the Pegasus Galaxy. Or the nine-symbol address that can only be dialed from one gate (that apparently isn't even in the right place, affecting its ability to dial), which points to Destiny, which doesn't even have a fixed location.

And while we're on the subject of Destiny, how does THAT gate work? If the glyphs on a gate are constellations, how does that work on a ship that moves between galaxies?

How does dialing even work? The whole spinny thing is just our gate, because we don't have a DHD, but, like... why does spinning it even work? And how is it that, by the end of the show, we've developed the technology to build our own gates, but we're still dialing the main gate with the equivalent of a hotwire?

That's not even getting into the physics of the "wormhole" itself, or, rather, the lack thereof.

An incoming wormhole spits out a vortex that, in a violation of all known laws of physics, completely destroys everything it comes into contact with.

Unless it's the iris, which is just really close to the event horizon.

Or you just bury it, but that seems to have only worked the once.

The iris that we built, because the ancients who created them didn't seem to think anyone would need to be able to lock the goddamn door (until they got to the Pegasus Galaxy).

The iris that nonetheless seems to be completely integrated into the gate so seamlessly that you can't see the mechanism or where the parts go when not in use.

Wormhole travel is one-way. Except, of course, for radio waves.

It is an explicit plot point in several episodes that an object passing through a stargate is de-materialized as it passes through the event horizon, and is not re-materialized until (and unless) the entire object passes through.

Which begs the question-- how can you step through? Once your front foot is through the horizon, it can't bear weight. How is your back foot lifted up?

[tillywunderwing]

The Good Place is such an amazing show (i say, rewatching it from the start for the first time in a while). from a moral teaching standpoint obviously, but also i really admire the narrative construction of the first season as well.

spoilers ahead obvi

sometimes in shows or movies it can feel like things are just Happening to the characters with no real reason for it, besides for the characters to then have something to React to. which can end up feeling very forced in terms of how the writers are making the characters behave

and in The Good Place you almost have that. but then you find out the truth, and suddenly it’s all so plausible.

take for example, s1e5. a marriage counselor and a PI show up at the door of a squabbling couple who are actively lying about who one of them is. in any other sitcom—and even in this moment, going in blind—this is just suuuch a conveniently ill-timed coincidence, right? and it might come off as cheap that way—it’s hugely improbable and feels inauthentic

but with the gift of hindsight it’s like. all of that just totally falls into place. yes, it was conveniently the worst thing that could have possibly happened to those characters at that time, because it was SPECIFICALLY CANONICALLY ENGINEERED that way.

im not being exceptionally articulate but there’s something really fascinating to me about a story premise that manages to not only neutralise what would otherwise be a plot hole, but actively weaponise it. i have a few friends who stopped watching The Good Place after a few episodes, and i guess i can see why because it does come off as cheap storytelling if you don’t Know, but with the gift of hindsight the whole thing is just. so brilliant.

(except of course you can’t explain that to anyone who hasn’t seen The Good Place without spoiling The Good Place, and spoiling The Good Place is cardinal sin)

[lemontartyellow]

What if I rewatch the IWTV pilot. What then

[ponfarrtimeatthevulcannightclub]

I came up with the most gut wrenching idea for a koisenu futari fic after rewatching it with a friend but I'm probably never gonna get around to writing it

[greykolla-art]

Unstoppable villain, meet immovable agent of friendship!

I was wondering in what circumstances Charlie would just OFFER her soul to Al.

And he would short circuit as all his manipulation plans become unnecessary.

Cause Charlie cares about her friends and if they need help she won’t hesitate.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Wrapping up the season with a redraw (Jan 2024)!

Thank you all for these last 6 months, I have loved making so many people laugh from my silly comics B*)

[thisnerdetteoverthere-blog]

Do you have not just the exact words, but the exact intonation of one sentence from a show, movie or WHATEVER just STUCK in your head FOR NOR SPECIFIC REASON

… yeah me neither

[bugging-around-town]

I’ve been wanting to just sit down and draw the entire welcome home cast :~) just for fun!

Goodness I draw Frank so often- oh man

[alternative versions and the original drawing (by Clown!) under the cut :)]

[lovelydrusilla]

the mentalist feat. text posts made by @nelliecrains on twitter (to quote nicola coughlan "i'm not calling it X, that's a dumb name"), found on pinterest

[gravegrime]

I managed to scrap a little time together to doodle at least something for the final season of Hilda (even if I don't have time to watch it yet lmao)

This show has carved out a very special place in my heart!

I want to do something nicer for her eventually but alas that will have to wait till the new year with how busy I am~

[dindjarism]

Holliday Grainger as Lucrezia Borgia THE BORGIAS | 1.01 The Poisoned Chalice

[sirbloop]

Daughter phoenix rise ☀️

[frostedpuffs]

i need adrienette to be closer than ever actually. they're both traumatized af i want them attached at the hip and a little obsessed w each other. i want them slightly unhealthy and codependent. they've been through so much shit together and now that they have each other i want them to sink their claws in and never let go

[kimtaegis]

LILACS BY THE SEA a music collection curated for @cordiallyfuturedwight Lilacs (Kayla) Playlist • Sea (Seokjin) Playlist song notes

cr. mahoneysuga, rawpixel, bts-trans, Diana Zviedrienė

[peocokruu]

Oscar François De Jarjayes

[seance]

THE MUSKETEERS 10TH ANNIVERSARY REWATCH / fave episodes [3/?] ↳ SEASON 1, EPISODE 8 / the challenge