SGA Year One (mostly): Fanon.
Aug. 16th, 2008 08:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
icarusSGA Year One (mostly): Fanon
The first year of SGA, fans rushed in and extrapolated from canon, filling in the blanks. The ones I can think of:
Season one:
John
- The moment John stepped through the gate into Atlantis, he felt like he'd come home.
- Atlantis responds to and recognizes John as if he were an Ancient.
- Atlantis has systems that work only for John, or better for him, because of his strong expression of the ATA gene.
- Certain systems get initialized or repaired accidentally by John. This is both good and bad. Seemingly safe, cleared rooms become dangerous when John shows up. (And John's accidental repairs drive Rodney crazy. He hates writing a report that reads like faith healing, "And lo, Sheppard leaned upon it and all was well!")
- There are piles of Ancient tech that no one can figure out because John is needed to make them work.
- John is careful not to be at the beck and call of the scientists, wary of becoming "light switch guy."
- John's hair is a source of comment, from Rodney's jibes about bringing hair gel as his personal item, to the cartoon-like way it telegraphs his mood (going flat when he's depressed).
- More than passing the test for Mensa, John has a master's and carefully hidden math talent (therefore he and Rodney playing Prime/Not Prime is mentioned all the time).
Rodney! He needs his own list.
- Rodney considered himself above the "one personal item" rule and either snuck in more, or coordinated a mass effort involving the entire science department to circumvent it.
- Rodney is oblivous to social niceties and therefore crashes John's carefully constructed walls.
- Rodney's thirst for knowledge and his personal self-indulgence plays out in the bedroom in the form of unabashed eagerness.
- Being Canadian, Rodney is much more open-minded about gay anything, or at least that's what he says.
- Um. I think everything else about Rodney is canon, actually.
Zelenka
- The ever-observant Radek Zelenka knows all that goes on in Atlantis.
- He knows about everyone's secret liasons and flat-out doesn't care. He has as much blackmail material as he could ever want. More often he ends up delivering well-timed, if impatient, advice. Ironically, he doesn't realize everyone knows about his crush on Elizabeth.
- Zelenka walked in on the marines setting up a still and showed them what they were doing wrong. He either runs it now (the resulting rotgut is famously awful) or keeps it safe from command oversight.
- Rodney doesn't know about the still. John figures it exists but deliberately doesn't look into it.
- If Zelenka doesn't run the black market, he can put you in contact with the person(s) who do (usually Peter Gorodin or later, Chuck).
- If you piss off Rodney, no one will ever find the body. If you piss off Zelenka, no one will ever find the body -- and it will be blamed on a random malfunction as he blinks innocently.
Atlantis Economics
- Atlantis has a healthy black market and informal trade network. Money is worth zilch, but coffee and chocolate are priceless.
- Goods and skills (computer repair, chocolate, macrame skills, offworld goods) are traded for basic services like haircuts and sewing buttons back on uniforms.
- Rodney snatched the DVDs, games, (and porn) out of this trade network early on, creating a database where it's all publicly available. This was largely for his own convenience, but he did have the largest collection.
- If Zelenka doesn't run the black market, then Peter Grodin is your go-to man or he at least conspired with Zelenka to coordinate and hide the "illegal" still.
- Certain people (Rodney) violated the "one personal item" rule extravagantly and are suspected of hoarding large supplies of expensive treats.
- Due to the disproportionate number of computer geeks on Atlantis they have a very sophisticated online community with skillfully hidden anonymous IDs. A lot of Atlantis' commerce is conducted through this intranet. One woman even posted for a sperm donor (it turned out to be Heightmeyer doing a study).
- John sucks at keeping his ID hidden, nor does he check his email.
Elizabeth
- Elizabeth sometimes acts like a particularly annoying Human Resources department, attempting to "foster goodwill" and "lift morale" with politically correct non-denominational holidays, parties, and dances (attendance mandatory for the command staff, yes, that includes you, Rodney). She delights in adding Athosian holidays to the list.
- The second-most popular activity on Atlantis is gossip, and Elizabeth is the worst culprit. Peter Gorodin and later Chuck are second-worst.
- She relaxes fraternization regulations for everyone but herself. (John does the same.)
Don't Ask, Don't Tell
- John's official policy is "don't ask, don't tell, but especially don't tell me." His unofficial policy is he thinks you're an asshole if you stick your nose into other people's private lives. This is the military, it's a war zone, and sex is just one those things.
- Elizabeth's official policy is "we are a multinational force in another galaxy and therefore some rules and customs conflict, even internally. Therefore we must exercise greater tolerance." Her unofficial policy is that she's glad of that.
- Rodney's official policy is "we're civilians, we get to do what we want." His unofficial policy is "we're civilians, we get to do what we want, and moreover I'm Canadian, vastly superior to American backwardness, and I'm far too busy and important to be bothered with your petty moralizing."
Kavanagh! How could I forget?
- When McKay coordinated a massive sneaking-in of extra personal items, Kavanagh refused to participate
- He's often given unpleasant or unimportant tasks like cleaning the city sewage ducts
- Radek, Rodney, and John play pranks on him involving colored goo, minor explosions, or other deliberate annoyances, such as eating whatever Kavanagh labels "mine, do not touch," and leaving the empty container.
- Kavanagh was often portrayed as intolerant of other ethnicities, homosexuality, etc., etc.
Off-world Civilizations
- Pegasus societies fell into two general categories: primitive and technologicially advanced.
- You could count on primitive societies having some sort of religious rite surrounding the ancestors, ordinary for them, that spells certain embarrassment (and occasionally danger) for John and his team, i.e. ["Aliens Make Them Do It" / ritual marriage / tests of strength / drugs / Ancient device changes the sex of one or more team members / fill in the blank here].
- Frequently John (or Rodney's) ATA gene activated some device that marked them for [ritual sacrifice / ritual sex / marriage / fill in the blank here]. Yes, this was in fanon before "The Tower" aired.
- You could count on technologically advanced societies being xenophobic, dangerous, and "ethically challenged."
- John and his team are thrown into jail so many times they become virtual connoiseurs of prisons.
Early season two:
Scientists vs. the Marines
- Once Atlantis reconnected with earth, there was considerable hazing of the new recruits on Atlantis.
- The scientists can and will mess with environmental controls on personal quarters of those they deem offensive. They will pull juvenile pranks.
- An appeal to Rodney is of no use because he is their ringleader.
- An appeal to John is of no use because he thinks the military should be able to fend for themselves and good luck.
Lorne
- To free up time to go offworld, John dumps a lot of his routine responsibilities and paperwork on his XO. He calls it "delegation."
- Lorne patiently endures this, and has more or less moved into John's abandoned office.
- If people want to get something boring and routine done quickly, they go to Lorne.
- Most people don't even know John has an office.
Chuck
- After the death of Gorodin, if Zelenka isn't the king of the Black Market, then Chuck is.
-Chuck, like Walter at the SGC, knows the intimate details of everyone's activities, and is the center of all gossip on base.
-Chuck, being a Canadian, actually likes Dr. McKay, and is the only person McKay is kind too (well, kind for Rodney)
The Original Expedition
- The original expedition is almost incestuously close to one another and ferociously protective of their command staff.
- The original expedition is more adventurous and independent than the later arrivals because they were willing to make a one-way trip.
- The original expedition has odd PTSD-ish quirks -- for example, you never throw away coffee around them, even if it's cold.
- The original expedition is more loyal to Pegasus than they are to Earth, especially John, who's found a place he belongs for the first time in his life.
That's all I can think of. Did I miss any?
Note (thanks,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
mecurtin): Since the momentum for SGA really built in 2005, I usually group season one and the first half of season two together. There are problems with this, but the fandom ballOOOOOned the summer and fall of 2005 creating much of the fanon that year. Hmm. Let me reorganize this list.
The first year of SGA, fans rushed in and extrapolated from canon, filling in the blanks. The ones I can think of:
Season one:
John
- The moment John stepped through the gate into Atlantis, he felt like he'd come home.
- Atlantis responds to and recognizes John as if he were an Ancient.
- Atlantis has systems that work only for John, or better for him, because of his strong expression of the ATA gene.
- Certain systems get initialized or repaired accidentally by John. This is both good and bad. Seemingly safe, cleared rooms become dangerous when John shows up. (And John's accidental repairs drive Rodney crazy. He hates writing a report that reads like faith healing, "And lo, Sheppard leaned upon it and all was well!")
- There are piles of Ancient tech that no one can figure out because John is needed to make them work.
- John is careful not to be at the beck and call of the scientists, wary of becoming "light switch guy."
- John's hair is a source of comment, from Rodney's jibes about bringing hair gel as his personal item, to the cartoon-like way it telegraphs his mood (going flat when he's depressed).
- More than passing the test for Mensa, John has a master's and carefully hidden math talent (therefore he and Rodney playing Prime/Not Prime is mentioned all the time).
Rodney! He needs his own list.
- Rodney considered himself above the "one personal item" rule and either snuck in more, or coordinated a mass effort involving the entire science department to circumvent it.
- Rodney is oblivous to social niceties and therefore crashes John's carefully constructed walls.
- Rodney's thirst for knowledge and his personal self-indulgence plays out in the bedroom in the form of unabashed eagerness.
- Being Canadian, Rodney is much more open-minded about gay anything, or at least that's what he says.
- Um. I think everything else about Rodney is canon, actually.
Zelenka
- The ever-observant Radek Zelenka knows all that goes on in Atlantis.
- He knows about everyone's secret liasons and flat-out doesn't care. He has as much blackmail material as he could ever want. More often he ends up delivering well-timed, if impatient, advice. Ironically, he doesn't realize everyone knows about his crush on Elizabeth.
- Zelenka walked in on the marines setting up a still and showed them what they were doing wrong. He either runs it now (the resulting rotgut is famously awful) or keeps it safe from command oversight.
- Rodney doesn't know about the still. John figures it exists but deliberately doesn't look into it.
- If Zelenka doesn't run the black market, he can put you in contact with the person(s) who do (usually Peter Gorodin or later, Chuck).
- If you piss off Rodney, no one will ever find the body. If you piss off Zelenka, no one will ever find the body -- and it will be blamed on a random malfunction as he blinks innocently.
Atlantis Economics
- Atlantis has a healthy black market and informal trade network. Money is worth zilch, but coffee and chocolate are priceless.
- Goods and skills (computer repair, chocolate, macrame skills, offworld goods) are traded for basic services like haircuts and sewing buttons back on uniforms.
- Rodney snatched the DVDs, games, (and porn) out of this trade network early on, creating a database where it's all publicly available. This was largely for his own convenience, but he did have the largest collection.
- If Zelenka doesn't run the black market, then Peter Grodin is your go-to man or he at least conspired with Zelenka to coordinate and hide the "illegal" still.
- Certain people (Rodney) violated the "one personal item" rule extravagantly and are suspected of hoarding large supplies of expensive treats.
- Due to the disproportionate number of computer geeks on Atlantis they have a very sophisticated online community with skillfully hidden anonymous IDs. A lot of Atlantis' commerce is conducted through this intranet. One woman even posted for a sperm donor (it turned out to be Heightmeyer doing a study).
- John sucks at keeping his ID hidden, nor does he check his email.
Elizabeth
- Elizabeth sometimes acts like a particularly annoying Human Resources department, attempting to "foster goodwill" and "lift morale" with politically correct non-denominational holidays, parties, and dances (attendance mandatory for the command staff, yes, that includes you, Rodney). She delights in adding Athosian holidays to the list.
- The second-most popular activity on Atlantis is gossip, and Elizabeth is the worst culprit. Peter Gorodin and later Chuck are second-worst.
- She relaxes fraternization regulations for everyone but herself. (John does the same.)
Don't Ask, Don't Tell
- John's official policy is "don't ask, don't tell, but especially don't tell me." His unofficial policy is he thinks you're an asshole if you stick your nose into other people's private lives. This is the military, it's a war zone, and sex is just one those things.
- Elizabeth's official policy is "we are a multinational force in another galaxy and therefore some rules and customs conflict, even internally. Therefore we must exercise greater tolerance." Her unofficial policy is that she's glad of that.
- Rodney's official policy is "we're civilians, we get to do what we want." His unofficial policy is "we're civilians, we get to do what we want, and moreover I'm Canadian, vastly superior to American backwardness, and I'm far too busy and important to be bothered with your petty moralizing."
Kavanagh! How could I forget?
- When McKay coordinated a massive sneaking-in of extra personal items, Kavanagh refused to participate
- He's often given unpleasant or unimportant tasks like cleaning the city sewage ducts
- Radek, Rodney, and John play pranks on him involving colored goo, minor explosions, or other deliberate annoyances, such as eating whatever Kavanagh labels "mine, do not touch," and leaving the empty container.
- Kavanagh was often portrayed as intolerant of other ethnicities, homosexuality, etc., etc.
Off-world Civilizations
- Pegasus societies fell into two general categories: primitive and technologicially advanced.
- You could count on primitive societies having some sort of religious rite surrounding the ancestors, ordinary for them, that spells certain embarrassment (and occasionally danger) for John and his team, i.e. ["Aliens Make Them Do It" / ritual marriage / tests of strength / drugs / Ancient device changes the sex of one or more team members / fill in the blank here].
- Frequently John (or Rodney's) ATA gene activated some device that marked them for [ritual sacrifice / ritual sex / marriage / fill in the blank here]. Yes, this was in fanon before "The Tower" aired.
- You could count on technologically advanced societies being xenophobic, dangerous, and "ethically challenged."
- John and his team are thrown into jail so many times they become virtual connoiseurs of prisons.
Early season two:
Scientists vs. the Marines
- Once Atlantis reconnected with earth, there was considerable hazing of the new recruits on Atlantis.
- The scientists can and will mess with environmental controls on personal quarters of those they deem offensive. They will pull juvenile pranks.
- An appeal to Rodney is of no use because he is their ringleader.
- An appeal to John is of no use because he thinks the military should be able to fend for themselves and good luck.
Lorne
- To free up time to go offworld, John dumps a lot of his routine responsibilities and paperwork on his XO. He calls it "delegation."
- Lorne patiently endures this, and has more or less moved into John's abandoned office.
- If people want to get something boring and routine done quickly, they go to Lorne.
- Most people don't even know John has an office.
Chuck
- After the death of Gorodin, if Zelenka isn't the king of the Black Market, then Chuck is.
-Chuck, like Walter at the SGC, knows the intimate details of everyone's activities, and is the center of all gossip on base.
-Chuck, being a Canadian, actually likes Dr. McKay, and is the only person McKay is kind too (well, kind for Rodney)
The Original Expedition
- The original expedition is almost incestuously close to one another and ferociously protective of their command staff.
- The original expedition is more adventurous and independent than the later arrivals because they were willing to make a one-way trip.
- The original expedition has odd PTSD-ish quirks -- for example, you never throw away coffee around them, even if it's cold.
- The original expedition is more loyal to Pegasus than they are to Earth, especially John, who's found a place he belongs for the first time in his life.
That's all I can think of. Did I miss any?
Note (thanks,
mecurtin): Since the momentum for SGA really built in 2005, I usually group season one and the first half of season two together. There are problems with this, but the fandom ballOOOOOned the summer and fall of 2005 creating much of the fanon that year. Hmm. Let me reorganize this list.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 03:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 03:54 am (UTC)-If Peter Grodin, he's very witty and intelligence and is annoyed by Rodney, but secretly respects him and everyone but Rodney knows.
-If Peter Grodin, he conspired with Zelenka to coordinate and hide the "illegal" still.
-If 2nd Chevron Guy, he is nameless, but cute and has a small following, so he is named Chuck (remember, he wasn't named until S3).
-If Zelenka isn't the king of the Black Market, Chuck is.
-Chuck, like Walter at the SGC, knows the intimate details of everyone's activities, and is the center of all gossip on base.
-Chuck, being a Canadian, actually likes Dr. McKay, and is the only person McKay is kind too (well, kind for Rodney)
-Chuck is secretly John and Rodney's lovechild from the future that came back to either ensure his conception, or stop it.
Those are the ones I remember.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 03:57 am (UTC)What, Rodney doesn't rate a fanon paragraph of his own? He would be insulted! For him, I would say it's fanon that he has a huge stash of chocolate and coffee hidden away.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:10 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:10 am (UTC)-He's a prick.
-When McKay was coordinating massive sneaking of extra personal items, Kavanagh refused to participate
-Both Rodney and Radek don't like him, and so they "burn" his good lab, and stick him with the sucky one that doesn't let him do anything useful
-He's often made to clean the sewage ducts of the city
-Because he's so unlikable, Radek, Rodney, and John often play tricks involving colored goo, minor explosions, and deliberate misspellings/bad grammar in reports/conversation
-He's intolerant (of other ethnicities, homosexuality, etc)
-He deserves everything that happens to him
I'm pretty sure all but the "prick" part evolved from fanon.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:22 am (UTC)This is an element of fanon that I believe to be contrary to TPTB's intentions, and possibly is directly contradicted by canon, too, though I've mentally edited canon so I'm no longer sure.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:36 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:39 am (UTC)Rodney
- Rodney is oblivous to social niceties and therefore crashes John's carefully constructed walls.
- Rodney's thirst for knowledge and his personal self-indulgence plays out in the bedroom in the form of unabashed eagerness.
What else?
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:39 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 04:43 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 05:16 am (UTC)(I totally just remembered Bates, but the only fanon thing I can think of is that "Actually, despite the appearance of hatred, Bates is actually deeply in love with Teyla.")
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 05:18 am (UTC)(And actually, Chuck was in S1. Though I guess the, what, two episodes after Peter died doesn't really count, does it. Heh.)
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 05:46 am (UTC)And for John, I would say the whole math genius fanon. And him and Rodney always playing prime/not prime (yes, it's mentioned like once in canon, but I count it as fanon because of the way it became this Huge Thing in fanfic).
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 05:57 am (UTC)I thought of a couple of things-- Cesperanza making Douglas Adams references in her fic before they did it in canon; and as mentioned above, John's math degree(s). I've read so many times that John has a Master's degree in math!
Also, when Zelenka's pigeon hobby came up in the show (S4, "Quarantine", I think), I could have sworn I'd read it in fic somewhere. But maybe that was my imagination, or deja vu or something.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 06:07 am (UTC)The piano teacher story is from the SG-1 ep "48 Hours" where Rodney was first introduced. He overshared with Sam (again).
Also, when Zelenka's pigeon hobby came up in the show (S4, "Quarantine", I think), I could have sworn I'd read it in fic somewhere. But maybe that was my imagination, or deja vu or something.
That one I hadn't read, but there was a flood of penguin fics. That's another side of SGA fanon: the crack, which the fandom quickly became known for. (SGA was a drunken luau of a fandom.) There's a reason for this, actually, having to do with the interaction between the SG-1 and SGA fandoms and how SG-1 writers were recruited through the crack-y
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 06:26 am (UTC)Personally, I think John understanding the firing mechanism for the Doranda weapons suggests either mechanical or electrical engineering. Officers do have to have an advanced degree in the Air Force, so we know John has to have a degree in something.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 06:32 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 06:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 08:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 08:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 02:47 pm (UTC)I supppse a canon primer would be an SGA wiki? I've found the BSG wiki to be useful, on occasion.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 02:58 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-18 02:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-18 03:19 am (UTC)::uses Rodney icon::
no subject
Date: 2008-08-18 04:32 am (UTC)Ooops. Thanks.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-18 06:07 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-18 07:34 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-20 08:33 pm (UTC)...And now I want to read the stories where John has a master's in Russian literature or psychology or religion or business.
no subject
Date: 2008-08-22 06:42 pm (UTC)