We continue our international journey through fandom with our next stop in Germany! This country has a significant Stargate presence, along with one of the oldest fan sites of all, Stargate-Project!

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TRANSCRIPT
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David Read:
Hello everyone, and welcome to Dial the Gate: the Stargate Oral History Project. My name is David Read. Appreciate you joining me for this episode. German Stargate fandom is a big deal in terms of the non-English-speaking viewers. They’re pretty neck-and-neck with French speakers in terms of a non-English audience that is really big into Stargate. Other than Czech — and I can only say Czech because it’s such a big portion of Atlantis — I can’t think of another language besides French that we absolutely had to cover next. I brought together a few people from the biggest German website, Stargate-Project, to talk about their fandom, a fandom that also speaks a great deal of English as well as German, and to see where things crisscross comfortably in terms of the language, and which things may not. Particularly Stargate episode titles in German. They’re not as clever in German as they are in French about hiding some things. And a lot of plot details have been spoiled, so we’re gonna cover those for you in a little bit more detail, and we’re gonna show that in just a moment here. Let me bring in my Stargate German team.

David Read:
German Stargate fandom is the topic of the day, guys. You’re all in Germany?

David:
Yes.

David Read:
OK. Now, Carina, let’s go ahead and start with you. How long have you been a Stargate fan and what do you like about it?

Carina:
I’ve been a Stargate fan since I was a little girl. My parents watched Stargate.

David Read:
You’ve been involved through them?

Carina:
Yes. Since … like a sweet girl. It’s Stargate. It’s fantastic.

David Read:
It is indeed Stargate.

Carina:
It’s different to Star Trek or the other fandoms. I only watch Stargate, nothing else.

David Read:
Really?

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
Are you a sci-fi fan or are you just a fan of …

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
… specifically Stargate?

Carina:
Yes, sci-fi. But it’s really– Oh my God.

David Read:
You’re OK.

Carina:
It’s specifically Stargate, yes.

David Read:
Very good.

Carina:
Maybe in the series of police, but it’s special, Stargate.

David Read:
Special forces, people protecting other people, that kind of thing.

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
I totally get it.

Carina:
Every Wednesday evening we watch Stargate in German. So, this is in my brain.

David Read:
Wow, Wednesday evening. So, it was on prime time?

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
Wow. In German?

Carina:
Definitely in German.

David Read:
Very good. David, how far does your Stargate fandom go back?

David:
Actually, it goes as far back as the Roland Emmerich movie. I didn’t watch it in theaters back then, but I think I saw promotional material and the Egyptian setting got me interested. Incidentally, the free TV premiere actually was on my birthday, so I couldn’t really watch it. But I asked my parents to record it for me and–

David Read:
‘Cause you weren’t gonna be available.

David:
Exactly. They recorded it for me, and I was hooked from the beginning, and when I heard they’re making a series out of it, I was there from the beginning as well.

David Read:
All right. Very good. Nicole, how are you, Nicole?

Nicole:
Great.

David Read:
It’s good to see you. Thank you for helping me put all of this together. How far does your fandom go back?

Nicole:
I don’t know exactly. I know that probably my first episode was “Nemesis.”

David Read:
Season Three.

Nicole:
Because at the time I started watching it, it was already on, and I got it all mixed up a little and caught up on the other seasons, on the other episodes later on. But that was basically the beginning for me and I don’t know which year it was.

David Read:
That’s fair. I would need to know exactly. I wanted to gauge it, feel everybody out. Early to late ’90s for you guys, so definitely more than a 25-year love. I wanna set the context and the stage. Nicole, I’ll start with you. How much of your programming in Germany is American programming?

Nicole:
Lots of it.

David Read:
Lots of it? OK.

Nicole:
I would say lots of it. There are a lot of American TV shows, movies. To be honest, I don’t watch too many German things because it’s not what I’m interested in. Most of it is comedy or romance or crime. So, most of the time I watch American TV.

David Read:
All right. Very good. Carina, you already answered this so I’m gonna move over to David for a second because you were talking about police stuff, that was the thing that you were interested in. David, what was it for you about an American paramilitary series that got you hooked? What was your hook about it? Was it the Egyptian themes? Was it the characters? What was it that pulled you in?

David:
It wasn’t so much the military angle. It was more the Egyptian archaeological angle to it. This basically monumental science fiction. There’s this combination of sci-fi — and I’ve always been a sci-fi fan as well — and these ancient cultures, I think that’s what really hooked me. The military aspect didn’t draw me in, but I’d say I didn’t mind either. It provided the background, a fitting background, and it provided the action pieces so I was fine with it.

David Read:
Carina, how big would you say is Stargate in Germany? Does it have a small following or does it… Was it a pretty big thing?

Carina:
I think it’s a pretty big thing. Yes.

David Read:
Why do you think that is? I asked the French fans this. And they gave a very interesting answer which was that the film had French funding and French backing. Roland Emmerich, I’m pretty sure, is French, so there were a lot of connections back to the movie. But they were all hooked on Richard Dean Anderson and MacGyver and there’s a lot of French MacGyver fans. What would you say in terms of Germans getting hooked on this? Because outside of the English-speaking world, Germany and France are probably the biggest tent poles of interest in the foreign language fandom.

Carina:
I think the part of Richard Dean Anderson, that he plays MacGyver, is a big part of it. Some of the serious … it’s start in German or other types of franchise, of music, TV series, or other things. It’s a really good thing for Germany. I think that makes Stargate a big thing in Germany. And some people love Stargate still now.

David Read:
We’re sitting here in 2025, I sure hope so. Nicole, what do you think it is that’s captivated your country about this show? And still many of them.

Nicole:
I think probably also Richard Dean Anderson because he was MacGyver and he was really big as MacGyver here in Germany. I also think that it’s different. It’s not Star Wars, it’s not Star Trek and I think it’s special, it stands out and although, of course, it’s with a US background, it’s more like–

David Read:
It’s more relatable.

Nicole:
More relatable, yes.

David Read:
It’s because it’s now.

Nicole:
It’s now, it’s here and it’s kind of us. The interesting thing is that there was this time where people seemed to lose interest, but in the recent years it came back so strong. Also here in Germany, there are podcasts, there are costume groups, so it’s amazing how it came back so strong after this dip.

David Read:
After being away for so long? Are German Stargate fans ready for another series?

Nicole:
Definitely.

Carina:
Definitely.

David Read:
Yeah? All right. Nicole, finish your thought. You were about to say something else.

Nicole:
I don’t know what it really is that attracts Germans about Stargate specifically. I think it has to do with Richard Dean Anderson, with the concept of Stargate, and Roland Emmerich, of course, is German.

David Read:
Roland is German?

Nicole:
Yeah.

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
The film had French funding but Roland is German. Got it. All right. That’s a fair point.

Nicole:
Maybe that’s something. I know the Stargate movie wasn’t that big in the beginning but it has a really strong following now.

David Read:
That makes a lot of sense. What about Atlantis and Universe? Did you guys watch that? Were they also shown the same way or are we just exclusively talking about SG-1 over there being big?

Nicole:
No, they are all big, I think.

David Read:
They were all considered? OK.

Nicole:
Universe was …

David Read:
Because it only got two seasons.

Nicole:
… a little bit difficult but–

David Read:
If it had 5, 10 seasons, it would have had the fandom as well. Have you all seen Atlantis and Universe?

David:
Yes.

David Read:
Very good.

Nicole:
Yes.

David Read:
Who wants to tell me about Stargate-Project and its history with German Stargate fandom?

Nicole:
I think it has to be me.

David Read:
Who founded, Nicole?

Nicole:
It was founded by three students. That’s one thing, because nowadays many people think that my sister and I founded it, but it was three other people. We took over around 2013. We are now the ones who do all the content and the news articles. We do the editing in chief, so to say.

David Read:
Did you buy it or was it transferred to you? I’m curious.

Nicole:
No, it was more or less transferred to us. We didn’t buy it.

David Read:
You did or you did not?

Nicole:
Hm?

David Read:
You did buy it or you did not buy it?

Nicole:
No, we didn’t buy it. It was transferred to us. We were, so to say, the last ones around.

David Read:
Don’t forget to turn the lights off when you leave.

Nicole:
I think David was with us at the time but most of the team was gone and we sticked around and kept it alive.

David Read:
So, you have say over everything at this point?

Nicole:
Yeah. Most of it. Content-related, that’s us.

David Read:
Very good. Can I take a look at the website?

Nicole:
Yeah, sure.

David Read:
Let me pull this up here. You guys should be able to see. So, this particular branding has been around for five, six years now at this point? I’m pretty sure it was– How far does it go back?

Nicole:
Maybe a bit longer, I’m not sure. I’m bad with dates.

David Read:
OK, very good.

Nicole:
Don’t ask me about years.

David Read:
That’s fair. So, how often do you try to publish news? Do you try once a day if there’s enough content?

Nicole:
Yeah. As much as possible. David does a lot of the news of the new stuff. That’s what we try to do, to keep up with as much as possible and also with the other projects of the actors and everything. So, we try to keep it all together for Stargate fans.

David Read:
OK. Wow. David, what is it like keeping up with news on a franchise that has been dormant for over a decade? What do you do? What are some of the tricks up your sleeves to keep everything fresh and interesting?

David:
It can be difficult and a bit daunting. Sometimes you really have to look for stuff. But it’s a team effort, really, doing the online research and things. It’s pretty much online research on websites related to film and TV series, entertainment industries, and the franchise sites also.

David Read:
So, you keep everything in a larger context of the show then?

David:
Yes.

David Read:
Because the things surrounding the show, like the actors and things going on with Amazon and MGM, are what you can keep track of?

David:
Yes. As I said, sometimes it’s a bit difficult. Sometimes there’s not really anything to write at all because there’s just no news. But we try to keep it fresh and post something daily. For example, I’m also writing reviews. Other people on the team do as well.

David Read:
What kinds of reviews?

David:
My focus especially is the Star Wars content on Disney+. New series and stuff. I’m writing reviews for that because I’m following that as soon as the new episodes drop.

David Read:
And that’s a part of Stargate-Project?

David:
Sometimes we call it Distant Worlds. Sometimes we look at other franchises to keep the content fresh and broaden the horizon a little bit.

David Read:
I’m looking over here, I’m trying to find anything like that. Where would I find that?

David:
There should be articles–

David Read:
So, here?

David:
Yes, the last one. The last thing I wrote was the Andor Season Two review. I am Sci_Fi-Dave.

David Read:
That makes a lot of sense. There we go. Sci_Fi-Dave. Awesome. Wasn’t there an English button that translates to English? Maybe I’m thinking of another website, but I swore there was a way to see some of this in English, or am I wrong, Nicole?

Nicole:
We have most of the interviews in English as well.

David Read:
‘Cause that’s how they started.

Nicole:
Other content we don’t do because it’s just too much work.

David Read:
There we go. This is what I’m thinking of. That’s perfect. Very, very nice. The thing that is advantageous for you guys, that I think you have an advantage on a lot of us, is that when the cast and crew come to you, it’s a vacation for them and a destination. It’s not just, “Well, we’re going to Milwaukee to do a convention.” It’s like, “Do I wanna spend a week in Europe on someone else’s dime?” “Yes!” So I think that you guys have an advantage in many cases where, as long as you’re near one of the major cities relatively or willing to drive like four or five hours, you have greater access to a lot of the folks who are part of production than someone like myself. Stargate conventions, they’re either gonna be in Chicago, if they happen at all, or Vancouver. And a dedicated Stargate convention pretty much never happens in the United States anymore. But at least over there, you have a reasonable shot at still getting connected with some of these people because who wouldn’t like to go to Germany on someone else’s … if given the opportunity? But at the same time, it continues to be relatively popular. Carina, do you take part in Stargate-Project at all?

Carina:
I’m the podcast host of Tauri Talk.

David Read:
Of what talk?

Carina:
Tauri Talk.

David Read:
Tauri Talk!

Carina:
Tauri Talk.

David Read:
Where would that be? Where would I find that? Is it on here? Podcast.

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
I’m having an easier time reading the German than I am reading the French, let me tell you that right now, if it will load for me. All right. Let’s have a look here. Tauri Talk. So, how long has Tauri Talk been going?

Carina:
I took it for what we call Season Two. Nicole started the first and then they had no time.

David Read:
So four years ago. So you picked up in Season Two?

Carina:
No. Season Two started in fall, over one and a half years ago.

David Read:
I’m looking here.

Carina:
Maybe.

David Read:
Episode One said April 17th, 2021.

Carina:
Yes. That is the start with Nicole.

David Read:
I see. So there was a bit of a break?

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
I see. Wow. Look at this.

Carina:
For over two years they searched over social media, and I called, “Hi, I’m here. I can help you,” and now I’m one of two hosts for the podcast, Season Two we call it.

David Read:
Now, Nicole referred to a sister. Are you the sister?

Nicole:
No. Yvonne is my sister.

David Read:
Got it.

Nicole:
The one in some of the …

David Read:
Got it.

Nicole:
… YouTube videos.

David Read:
There is a lot of content here. Very good. So one of the things that I am really thrilled about what’s happening on YouTube in particular, we’re starting to see more and more text translations. So I know a lot of French fans watch my show. It’s not dubbing. Dubbing is just beginning. But the subtitles. And as long as you have a relatively clear voice, except for the Stargate terms. It doesn’t really translate the Stargate terms well, because it doesn’t understand what they are. But when someone says a Stargate term, generally they’ll know what they’re talking about. Zat’nik’tel, it’s really kinda hard to confuse. That should be probably the same in most of the languages. But these social media websites are allowing us to connect with one another across language, and it’s really helpful. How many of you were aware of Dial the Gate before Nicole talked to you about this? Did you guys know what it was? Is that good?

David:
Yeah.

David Read:
So you were aware of what was happening?

David:
Yep.

David Read:
All right. Very good. At least I’m getting into Germany a little bit. I really think that that’s gonna continue to move forward in a positive direction as AI continues to get more entrenched, more a part of our day-to-day life. Because just recently I heard a demo last week of one of the French Stargate videos and it was an AI voiceover of a conversation in French into English. And was it bad? Oh, it was bad. But it was like 95% there in terms of accuracy, in terms of being correct, in terms of what people were saying. It was only one voice so when two people were talking, it was the same computer voice either way but it was completely understandable. And that’s where we’re heading. There’s going to be more options for people to be able to translate automatically some of this content rather than people going in and spending money on dubbing into specific languages like I’m sure MGM had to in order to be understood by either German fans who didn’t speak English or didn’t want to listen to it in English. Have you all watched the show only in German or, because you speak English, have you– How much of the show have you guys watched in English? David, have you watched any of it in English?

David:
Yes. And actually I started with the regular TV program, which was dubbed. Although, I dare to say it was actually a pretty good dub.

David Read:
That’s what I’ve heard, the German and the French are pretty good dubs.

David:
Yep. But especially recently, and when I’m watching the DVDs and things, I’m sticking to English nowadays. I’m hardly watching any German Stargate episodes.

David Read:
Why? Just a personal preference?

David:
Personal preference, that’s one aspect, but it’s also kind of– How can I say this? Sometimes I actually like English a bit more than German. Sometimes it just sounds better in my opinion.

David Read:
And you’re also getting the absolute intention of the actors when they’re speaking.

David:
Exactly.

David Read:
Not only are you getting them talking and the lips syncing correctly because it’s them …

David:
Exactly.

David Read:
… [but] you get their intensity every time. Whereas with the dubbing, you hope it translates in terms of the words that are being switched around.

David:
Exactly. And I also remember … It was on a German convention. David Nykl was there and he actually … The hosts made him listen to his German dubbed voice. And the actors who attended were all in conclusion, “OK, it might be better to have subtitles but have the original voiceover. Dubbing might not be the way, actually.”

David Read:
With certain characters.

David:
And I think that also kind of struck a nerve maybe in me. It just feels closer to the original performance, so I just prefer it now.

David Read:
For Stargate Atlantis is there– Who among you is a huge Stargate Atlantis fan? Nicole?

David:
No, I would–

David Read:
OK, you would say as well? I’ll come back to you, Dave. Nicole, when Zelenka is speaking in Czech, how is it handled?

Nicole:
He’s also speaking in Czech.

David Read:
Okay, so the guy who’s dubbing it will also speak in Czech?

Nicole:
Yeah.

David Read:
Very good. That is crazy. Carina, do you watch, in English or in German?

Carina:
Most of the time in German. Sometimes I switch to English but the German subtitles sometimes are so horrible.

David Read:
The subtitles are horrible?

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
Really? Explain. Tell me more. I want details.

Carina:
I watched series in English to learn English. Most of this I understand. And then you take the subtitles and they speak something and he wrote something different and “What? Why do you subscribed this not?” [sic] And they take [sic] in the subtitles somewhat that they didn’t. And you hear it clearly and you say, “Hey, what? What’s this?”

David Read:
Someone wasn’t paying attention?

Carina:
Yes.

David Read:
Or didn’t care enough?

Carina:
This is sometimes so horrible. Or they cut some words completely out.

David Read:
I would think the subtitles would match the German translation and you’re saying they don’t.

Carina:
Sometimes I think …

David Read:
Scandalous.

Carina:
… there’s a school kid there, they wrote it.

David Read:
It’s that bad?

Carina:
Sometimes I think so, yes.

David Read:
One of the things that I’ve always loved about the Star Trek franchise is that the subtitles are exactly correct because there’s a lot of Star Trek terminology. Lot of techno babble and everything else and when people speak in Klingon or there’s an alien language, especially the Klingon, it’s correct. The Klingon is correct right down to the spelling so that you can go online and poke in the subtitles and put it in there. Not so much for Stargate. And I can speak specifically about Atlantis because I’ve seen it through about three or four times, and the last time I watched it on my iPhone. And for whatever reason, the software that I watched it on burned the subtitles into the file, so I couldn’t turn them off. I had a portable version of the episode to take with me to work. And every 10 or 15 minutes, a word would come along and it was clear that whoever did the subtitles was listening by ear. They didn’t have the script in front of them to compare it to and it’s like, “Wait, that’s not what they said. That’s what it sounded like, but that’s not what they said.” And I’ve been meaning to go back through and rewatch the show the same way and write all of those down and say, “OK. When you guys next publish another version, fix these.” Because it just drives you nuts. It’s like you were saying, it’s some… I don’t know if this will translate. People are doing it half-assed. Do you know what that means? They’re not really trying. It’s like, “It’s done. It’s Stargate. Who cares?”

Carina:
Exactly how I feel.

David Read:
You’re right! It’s so frustrating. Is that the best you could do? Really? Or are you just pushing the product out the door and saying, “Next please?” Nicole, how do you feel about that? And which do you watch?

Nicole:
Most of the time actually in German because I still have to do lots of work on the episode guides and encyclopedias so it’s better to have the German context, of course, for working on a German website. So, when I watch it for fun, I usually watch it in English. I watched Universe I think only in English. Most of SG-1 I watched in German so it’s hard for me to compare both versions. I know that the German dubbing is pretty good.

David Read:
The dialogue, yeah.

Nicole:
But with Atlantis sometimes it was like, “Why?” In the later seasons it often became problematic to see if it’s a Wraith Hive or a Wraith Cruiser or they started to mix everything up.

David Read:
In terms of the words?

Nicole:
Yeah. So, that was sometimes a bit tricky, but most of the time we can be pretty happy with our dubbing.

David Read:
I would think in terms of the French as well. With German I would think that you’re very precise, a very precise culture. It’s like, “This is not this way. It is this way. Why are you not going to the trouble of– If you’re doing it, do it correctly.” Dave, any thoughts on the dubbing?

David:
As I said, I think for Stargate, the dubbing in general is pretty good. But Atlantis in particular, the original voiceover, the actors were allowed to keep their accents. David Nykl, Paul McGillion, and this is something that gets completely lost in the dubbing. SG-1 tried a little bit but then again with the US Air Force angle and stuff, and the secrecy, it kind of made sense to not go international, really. But with Atlantis they really opened up.

David Read:
You were gonna get more accents because you had a lot of international folks.

David:
And this gets completely lost, but still, in general, the dubbing quality is pretty good. I can’t say much in regards to the subtitles because I don’t really use them, so I don’t have to say anything in that regard. But the dubbing, in general, pretty good. Sometimes they try with the accents a little bit, but it mostly gets lost and that’s the downside of it.

David Read:
I think that that’s really interesting because I would think that you have Scottish Germans. There are some Germans who are from Scotland I would think. So, wouldn’t their German have a Scottish accent? Or does it not play like that at all? Because I would think that would make sense. If you’re gonna have a German speaker, have a German speaker with a Scottish accent because Canadian English, British English, Scottish English, every one of these has its own style. For Canada it’s all, “Oh, y’know. Yeah, yeah. Goin’ out in the mornin’, eh?” But I would think that some of that would translate, or maybe not.

David:
I don’t know. It might depend. I think there are a lot of different German accents actually in the different regions.

David Read:
Like America.

David:
It might even depend– Exactly. It’s probably the same everywhere.

David:
But it might also have to do with how long of a time you actually spent there. You might take on more and more of a local accent than use your original accent the longer you live in a place. I don’t know. I always try to speak proper British English because that’s what I learned and I spent a few years in England.

David Read:
That’s what you picked up.

David:
Exactly.

David Read:
It never would have occurred to me, though, how important it is for a character’s ancestry that it come through the dialect that they’re speaking. That does not translate when it’s in a different language, or how a company would have to go out of its way to make sure to keep that intact in some way in the product that’s being made. Because unless Carson is talking about his Scottish mother, it’s not gonna… you can’t look at him and say, “He’s Scottish.” It’s not gonna come through. He’s a white guy.

David:
No. You see the country’s flag on his patch, but that’s about it.

David Read:
Yes. I forgot about that. That’s absolutely right. One of the interesting conversations that I had with the French team, I was like, “I need to remember this so that I can bring this up when I have the Germans on,” is episode titles and episode names. I don’t know if you know where I’m going with this, but some of them reveal more than they would have in the English version. For instance, one of the ones that Brad Wright loves to bring– Staffel, that’s right. I remember that word. One of the ones that Brad Wright loves to bring up is “The Death of Sha’re.” And I love here that you have in italics here, the English name [“Forever in a Day”]. That’s kind of perfect. But Nicole, are there any German episode titles that you think reveal too much or they could have gone with something else or that this just doesn’t translate?

Nicole:
Yeah, I think there are a few.

David Read:
Give me some examples while I’m floating around.

Nicole:
It’s like with Sha’re’s death, we have “Kolya’s End.”

David Read:
Instead of “Coup d’État?”

Nicole:
Instead of “Irresponsible.”

David Read:
“Irresponsible” is “Kolya’s End?” Oh my God, seriously?

Nicole:
And we also have “The Second Gate” for “Touchstone,” which also gives away why they are there and who went there by watching.

David Read:
Didn’t know that. We weren’t positive about the second Stargate at that point. Let’s look at that. It’s so sick that I know exactly where to go.

Nicole:
We had a series of articles about spoilery titles.

David:
I remember.

David Read:
Can one of you send me the link to that so I can put it in the description below?

Nicole:
Yeah, should I do it now?

David Read:
No, not right now. Soon. At some point here. Any others that stand out? “Friend or Foe,” I’m guessing. “Freund oder Feind.” [“In the Line of Duty”] OK, that’s good. I like that. “The Invasion, Part Four.” [“The Serpent’s Lair”] Really? Was that a shorthand for it? “The Invasion, Part One” [“There But For the Grace of God”] Was it always called that, “The Invasion, Part One” through “Four?”

David:
I think so.

David Read:
Wow, ’cause it is a four-parter. It really is. That’s fantastic. And that’s a really easy way to cheat having to name something different again and again when you can just call it that. Very good. The Friend in the… What would this be? What was…?

Nicole:
“The Foe in His Body.”

David:
“The Enemy in His Body.”

David Read:
“The Foe in His Body.” [“The Enemy Within”] Interesting. OK, very good. What’s this one?

David:
“Betrayed and Sold” [“Emancipation”] would be the literal translation.

David Read:
Interesting. I could do this all day long. I guess I need to pony up to ChatGPT and ask it. Let’s see what they did for “The Fifth Race,” which is probably my favorite. “The Fifth Species.”

David:
Because race in German is a tricky term.

David Read:
I’m sure it is. All right. I remember that “Sha’re’s Dead” or “Sha’re’s Death” was always one of the big ones. I was like, “That’s not possible.” And I looked it up and was like, “Ooh, OK.” That would really suck. Some things don’t translate well. And some things, I think, in some cases, you could make an argument that the translations in your language might even be better than even the English ones. At least when I was looking at some of the French versions, there were a couple that’s like, “That’s a more clever title than the English one is,” ’cause it has more layers to it. But that’s a lot to look back on and think about. Is there anything else that you want fans from other languages to see that you guys have? There’s an extensive database here that is arguably, in some cases, bigger than GateWorld.

Nicole:
We have a huge franchise section. We have lots of photos of all the collectables that we have.

David Read:
What would be collectables?

Nicole:
Merchandise.

David Read:
Maybe I should click on Merchandise. Let’s look at Funko Samantha Carter.

Nicole:
And we try to add as many photos as we can. Of course, we are also having trouble with time sometimes.

David Read:
Set aside to do them?

Nicole:
Yeah, because [to] do the photos, edit them, upload them, write reviews for the merchandise and everything, that’s quite time-consuming.

David Read:
Of course it is, absolutely. For sure. Nicole, are these your photos mostly?

Nicole:
Some. Most of them are from my sister. And most of the franchise section is what we have at home. We have some photos from people who helped us out with merchandise that we don’t have. But we tried to collect a lot of it ourselves, and lots of the photos are ours.

David Read:
Very good. I remember I got the toys out of their boxes and I took so many photos of the toys for GateWorld. I think I must’ve spent an entire weekend taking hundreds of photos. It looks like someone in the German fandom was not willing to remove the characters from their blister packaging. So you get what you get in these shots. And I don’t blame them at all. That’s really cool. Look at that. Some of the exclusive stuff. You guys did exactly what I did — or whoever did this — sat it on a white linen tablecloth. There is a lot of feature film content. When the film came out, at least in the States, you had everything from comic books to complete birthday party sets with hats and cups and plates and everything else. So someone could have a kid Stargate birthday party. And it looks like this is the English version. Did any of that come into German merchandise? The Stargate toy line, for instance, the feature film toys, were there German versions of the toys or was that only released in the United States?

Nicole:
I don’t think so. I think they were only released in the US.

David Read:
Interesting.

Nicole:
I think they weren’t released in Germany as German versions. All of it, I think, is completely in English.

David Read:
Who the heck is that? Is that supposed to be Sheppard?

Nicole:
Yeah, I think so.

David Read:
Ugh. OK. A for effort, I suppose. Very good. There’s so much here to mine. Gatepedia. Stargate Infinity. How many of you have seen Infinity? Who’s seen Infinity? Raise your hand. Wow!

David:
The only Stargate series I did not watch.

Nicole:
Someone had to write the guide.

David Read:
The only one you haven’t watched. Nicole, did you finish it?

Nicole:
Yes.

David Read:
My next question was gonna be, “What did you think?” And then it’s like, “I don’t need to ask that question.” I’m getting ready to do a major re-watch of Infinity. I’ve seen the first several episodes. I’ve never seen it all the way through myself. But I’m gonna. So, I’m going there for sure. We’re getting ready to do a couple of Dial the Gate episodes — at least one — on Stargate Infinity. And I’m looking forward to it for now. But we’ll see how I feel when we get to the end of it. So, you have a complete episode guide. Is this working? It’s not working, Nicole.

Nicole:
No, it’s only this. It doesn’t work. I don’t know why it is a link. It shouldn’t be a link.

David Read:
But you completed them though?

Nicole:
Yeah, we just uploaded the small descriptions because the episodes aren’t that long.

David Read:
OK. So this is what you have.

Nicole:
That’s all we have.

David Read:
Got it. Understood. There’s really no reason to have a link there then. Come on, Nicole. But very cool. I’m grateful that it exists because it’s something that you can give to your kids and say, “Here’s a look into this world. Don’t accept what you’re seeing as part of what I’m gonna show you later, but at least it exists.” Unfortunately I don’t know any parents who have done this Stargate process with their children, but it’s nice that it exists. And if I had kids, I would. Especially when they’re four and five, ’cause I’m not gonna show my four, five, six-year-olds Stargate. Maybe eight. But maybe some of you started younger, so very cool. Amazon and MGM come to you and say, “Nicole, Stargate is in your hands. Do what you want with it next.” What would you do?

Nicole:
I would continue on what was before. I would continue probably with a new team, but with guest appearances from the old cast. And I would try to stick to what was done before but also try to get new viewers. I think that would probably be the thing that most people would do.

David Read:
So continue in a new series but not necessarily continue Atlantis and Universe?

Nicole:
No, not really. You could continue the story of them in a new show and also start from a new …

David Read:
New beginning.

Nicole:
Start from a new beginning. And I think this could work for both the audiences that were there before and new audiences. So, I think you could continue the concept. But I would probably go for a new team.

David Read:
David, I’ve given you the same choice.

David:
Difficult.

David Read:
Got the whole Stargate world in your hands.

David:
Feels like China in my hands, to be honest.

David Read:
The plateware, not the country.

David:
Exactly. I don’t know. I think the really difficult choice is I probably wouldn’t go with a complete reboot because what was there before, especially with TV series and the whole universe that was created, it’s so beloved and so rich already, to completely depart from that might be a mistake. So, I think there should at least be some sort of a legacy sequel maybe, which could work. Or maybe the next generation approach, with a concept that puts the Stargate into the future for maybe a few decades. It could age in real time maybe even. And you might still have some legacy characters that could show up. And it would basically do what Nicole mentioned with a new team. There’s also probably the logistics issue because when you look at actors like Jason Momoa, who are busy without end, it seems, and have a new project every week–

David Read:
He would do it, but he wouldn’t be cheap.

David:
Probably. So it’s difficult. I would probably go with a legacy sequel, to be honest. Build on what was there but try something fresh at the same time.

David Read:
Carina?

Carina:
I would open my fan fiction and say, “Yes, here I have the book.”

David Read:
Here you go. Do this.

Carina:
Yes. Exactly. Now, I would like new members of SG-1 but with some flashbacks from the last years what the original Stargate SG-1 members do. So, is Atlantis back in Pegasus?

David Read:
Where is it?

Carina:
Is Sam and Jack, [are] they together, yes or no? The original questions. So, that’s what I think. Maybe with a new team, with a younger team, but the original, done with it.

David Read:
Let’s say a reboot is the only option. Reboot. Will you guys watch?

Nicole:
Yeah.

David Read:
Will you watch?

Nicole:
Yeah.

David Read:
Will you watch for that?

David:
Probably.

David Read:
Probably?

David:
Probably.

Carina:
Yeah.

David Read:
Nicole? You’ve gotta cover it unless you’re willing to hand Stargate-Project off to someone else.

Nicole:
I would love the continuation but I would go for a hard reboot if it has to be a reboot. I would go for a hard reboot and would say, “No Jack O’Neill and no Daniel Jackson. Just take the Stargate and make something completely new.” I don’t like how they mix up things with soft reboots, like Star Wars, Star Trek. They all go and mix it up. And I don’t like that concept. So, either continuation or a hard reboot.

David Read:
What you were suggesting was kind of a soft reboot earlier. If you look at Jurassic World, the first film doesn’t really have a lot of legacy characters. I can’t think of any legacy characters in it. But by the third one, the legacy characters were all there. Now, the third Jurassic World film I cannot stand, but they were all in it, and it didn’t delete the original continuity. I don’t know what we’re going to get, but I know we’re gonna get something sooner or later. And I know it’s probably going to be dividing us in terms of our expectations of what we want. But for me as long as it has that thing in it, I will definitely watch, at least the first several shows, give it a fair shake. But I know that there are a lot of people who are threatening not to. If it has no connection to what came before, they’re just not interested in it. The same argument was made for Battlestar Galactica when Ron Moore went back and did his new one in 2004, and there were a lot of people who were like, “We’re not gonna check this thing out.” And a lot of those people have since tucked their tail between their legs and admitted that they were wrong or just quietly shut up about it and enjoyed it anyway. New art can elevate old art in ways that the old art didn’t even reach before. I think for the original Battlestar Galactica, that was relatively easy. I think for Stargate that will be harder, especially with someone like Richard Dean Anderson who has such a personality. How do you outdo that when the whole franchise humor kind of hangs off of it? It’ll be interesting to see what they do next. Who thinks humor is the most important thing that needs to be there in a new series? All right, there.

David:
Definitely.

David Read:
Followed close second, in my opinion, by wonder and a desire for new adventure. Nicole, I appreciate you bringing everyone together.

Nicole:
Thank you for having us here.

David:
Happy to be here.

David Read:
I know you guys are tired. I know that’s unfortunate that I set it awfully late, but I really appreciate you guys taking the time and getting a peek into the German world of Stargate fandom over there. It wasn’t as different as I expected. I think that I had my expectations set from the previous group that I had talked with, and didn’t really consider how much would translate across into your country through having an audience that largely speaks English anyway. And even if they don’t watch the show in English, they at least understand what’s going on because they can switch over to it and see it really quick and then go back. That makes a lot of sense. But I really wanna thank you guys all for taking the time to join me in exploring the franchise through your culture. So, thank you so much.

David:
You’re welcome.

Nicole:
You’re welcome.

David Read’s Automated Zoom Voice:
Recording stopped.

David Read:
Does it say that in English or in German over there?

Nicole:
In English.

David Read:
Thanks so much to my German team of Stargate fans for helping me out with this episode. There wasn’t as much different as I was expecting. And I don’t know why that surprises me considering I knew going in that they were all gonna speak English, and so a lot of concepts would translate to them. And so there wasn’t much to talk about in terms of that. And I guess that’s probably on me, but I really appreciate them taking the time, especially at 9 and 10 o’clock at night, to have that conversation. If you enjoy Stargate and you wanna see more content like this on YouTube, click the Like button. It does make a difference with the show and will continue to help us grow our audience. Please also consider sharing this video with a Stargate friend. And if you wanna get notified about future episodes, click Subscribe. And clips from this episode will be released over the course of the next few weeks on the Dial the Gate YouTube channel. My tremendous thanks to my moderating team. They help me get these episodes off the ground every week. Antony, Jeremy, Kevin, Lockwatcher, Marcia, Raj, and Jakub. My producers, Antony Rawling, Kevin Weaver, and Linda “GateGabber” Furey. And Frederick Marcoux over at ConceptsWeb who keeps DialtheGate.com up and running. My tremendous thanks to you all. We have more than a few episodes heading your way, but I’m going a little bit lighter this summer on content. At least that’s the goal. We’ll see what happens here. Keep it on DialtheGate.com for all of those details. My name is David Read for Dial the Gate. I appreciate you tuning in, and I will see you on the other side.