{"id":29835,"date":"2012-07-11T11:56:37","date_gmt":"2012-07-11T18:56:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/?p=29835"},"modified":"2022-04-03T18:21:46","modified_gmt":"2022-04-04T01:21:46","slug":"eureka-a-celebration-of-excellence-part-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/?p=29835","title":{"rendered":"Eureka: A Celebration Of Excellence – Part One"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Click<\/a><\/p>\n

Hello Eureka<\/a><\/em> fans,\"Syfy<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Many of you know me from Gateworld<\/a> where the focus is on Stargate<\/a>. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

First, I would like to thank every one of the cast, crew and creators of Eureka<\/a><\/em> who made this special report possible. Many thanks also to Kenn<\/a> and Patricia<\/a> of WormholeRiders News Agency<\/a> for the privilege in posting my special report here at WHR for your enjoyment. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It is the back-end of August 2011 in British Columbia, and at both Vancouver Film Studios<\/a> and in the mountain ranges surrounding the city affectionately referred to as \u201cHollywood North,\u201d film crews are hurriedly filming scenes that will appear in the series finale of the television series Eureka<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Space<\/a>Less than a month earlier, the same cast and crew thought a different script \u2013 one that ended on a cliffhanger to lead into an expected sixth season \u2013 would be the last one produced.\u00a0 But the financial realities of the television industry, coupled with the costs involved to produce the long-running \u2013 albeit popular \u2013 property, instead closed the door on the series.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

While it leaves the airwaves on a creative high, the unexpected cancellation left the series in a lurch as the finale for the year had already been written and prepped to start filming.\u00a0 However, after massive fan outcry and co-creator Jaime Paglia<\/a>\u2019s impassioned plea to end the series on its \"Jaime+Paglia+EW+Syfy+Celebrate+Comic+Con\"<\/a>own terms, a final additional episode was commissioned to wrap up not just the cliffhanger, but the series\u2019 other loose ends and dense mythology.\u00a0 It was the final challenge for a series that has always defied the odds and been a risk-taker by nature.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The origins and fantastical stories of the fictional Oregon town have already been created and shared with its audiences.\u00a0 But to better appreciate its legacy, it is necessary to look to the past with members of the series\u2019 cast, crew, producers and co-creator.\u00a0 What follows is the true story of a little town called Eureka<\/em>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Had the initial line of thought for the series\u2019 concept held firm, the Eureka<\/em> audiences would have seen a drastically different one than what ended up on television screens down the road.\u00a0 After Paglia\u2019s writing partner and Eureka<\/em> co-creator, Andrew Cosby<\/a>, sold his first television project, the duo began brainstorming ideas for potential series ideas in the summer of 2002.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAndy and I had just written a feature film for Akiva Goldsman<\/a> and Mark Canton<\/a>.\u00a0 We had been completely focused on features.\u00a0 Then Andy got a foothold in TV and asked, if I was going to create a series, what would I want to do?\u00a0 I\u2019d grown up in this tiny town, Warrenton, Oregon, and I really loved the dynamics of those people.\u00a0 Small towns provide such a unique backdrop for storytelling and allow you to get to know the characters.\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

So I referenced shows like Twin Peaks <\/em><\/a>and Northern Exposure<\/em><\/a>,\u201d Paglia said.\u00a0 \u201cAndy was a big fan of those shows, along with series like The X-Files<\/em><\/a> and The Twilight Zone<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 We went through our laundry lists of old ideas to see if we could find a spark of something that would be interesting.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"andrew<\/a>What emerged was a logline for a half-hour animated series featuring a Homer Simpson<\/a>-type father raising a Lisa Simpson<\/a>-type daughter whose IQ tested so high that they were invited to move to a town where geniuses lived.\u00a0 They reassessed the concept and decided it may be better suited to a one-hour live-action format, with drama and sci-fi elements thrown into the comedy mix.\u00a0 By the end of lunch, they had the basic premise of a U.S. Marshal who stumbles onto a secret government think-tank town in the Pacific Northwest, and by helping save the day when an experiment goes awry, he\u2019s reassigned to be the town sheriff.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI went off and started developing characters and a history for the town,\u201d Paglia notes.\u00a0 \u201cAndy was shooting the first episodes of his series (for the now-defunct UPN Network) called Haunted<\/em>.\u00a0 I\u2019d go sit on set and we\u2019d kick around ideas and that\u2019s how the show and the concept that stuck were born.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The series\u2019 bible was written over that summer, and the duo prepared to shop the series around.\u00a0 With the concept being a natural fit for its target audience \u2013 and with the cable network beginning to produce its own original scripted programming \u2013 Syfy (then still \u201cSci-Fi\u201d) bought the series pre-emptively in March of 2003.\u00a0 Paglia and Cosby\u2019s joy at the sale was short-lived though, as their first roadblock reared its head.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNBC merged with Universal, and that sort of derailed getting the pilot pick-up for awhile.\u00a0 It put the pilot on hold while everyone was trying to decide what projects were going to get tossed and which ones [had a shot].\u00a0 So we thought we were done at that point.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Thankfully, fate chose to intervene as a few months later, one of NBC-Universal\u2019s new executives would read the pilot script and become enamored with it, giving the series\u2019 journey to TV screens the kick-start it needed.\u00a0 Paglia and Cosby were back on-track, and began assembling a team to help produce the pilot of a series idea conceived over a lunch more than a year earlier.\u00a0 Their next step:\u00a0 building a talented cast.\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The main characters in Eureka each had their own specialized roles to play in the structure of the series and making the concept work properly.\u00a0 To give audiences a jumping-in point \u2013 someone they could identify with within a town of super-high intellects and scientists \u2013 the character of \u201cJack Carter\u201d was born. \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

As a U.S. Marshal, Carter would stumble upon the town of Eureka by accident.\u00a0 By pilot\u2019s end, his ability to think \u201coutside the box\u201d yet retain an \u201ceveryman\u201d sensibility (in sharp contrast to Eureka\u2019s residents) landed him the job of new town sheriff.\u00a0 Paglia and Cosby found their \u201cCarter\u201d in actor Colin Ferguson<\/a>, who had just recently come off of NBC\u2019s failed attempt to remake the British comedy Coupling<\/em><\/a> for American audiences.\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was pilot season, I was going through it and this was a one-hour comedy drama, which I really wanted to do. I didn’t necessarily think it was going to happen, but this came along and I said, \u2018Oh, that’s great! That’s really the tone of what I’m thinking,\u2019\u201d Ferguson recollected.\u00a0 \u201cIt came along early in the season and it was on Syfy and I thought cable would be good because I’d done two shorter-lived network shows and I really wanted to do something that had a chance to be on the air for a little bit\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt seemed like a good thing, but it wasn’t until I walked in and Jaime [Paglia] was in the room that I knew.\u00a0 Because I usually do what I do and people go, \u2018Oh no, we don’t want that. We want no comedy, really be strong and manly,\u2019 and Jaime was like, \u2018No, no! That’s exactly what we want. We want a humor undertone to it.\u2019 So it was a perfect storm.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The majority of initial issues that Carter would need to fix came as the result of failed or faulty experiments conducted at Global Dynamics, Eureka\u2019s main employer and a government-contracted company whose charter was to harness the brainpower of the town\u2019s residents for scientific breakthroughs with both consumer and (more importantly) military applications.\u00a0 Cast in the role of Allison Blake, a liaison for the Department of Defense and a potential love interest for Carter was actress and Chicago-native Salli Richardson-Whitfield<\/a>.\u00a0 The role was one she was hesitant to initially pursue.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Eureka<\/a>\u201cAt first, I didn\u2019t read for it because it was in Vancouver.\u00a0 I love Vancouver, it\u2019s very nice, but I didn\u2019t want to be away from home.\u00a0 But it just kept coming back around and I\u2019d test for other shows and didn\u2019t get them and they kept asking,\u201d Richardson-Whitfield notes.\u00a0 \u201cThen when I saw the script \u2026 there are just not that many roles that are this challenging and well-rounded.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I really loved was that, initially \u2013 maybe I saw one other woman of color at the audition.\u00a0 But they were so open to cast me, even though I don\u2019t think the character was initially supposed to be a black woman.\u00a0 They just went with me because, when I came in, they thought I fit perfectly with Carter.\u00a0 They were blind to everything else and I really appreciated them looking at it that way.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Cast in the role of Henry Deacon, a Global Dynamics scientist and the town\u2019s \u201cjack of all trades\u201d was actor Joe Morton<\/a>.\u00a0 Morton likely had the most visibility with audiences at the time after his work in high-profile Hollywood hits like Speed<\/em><\/a> and Terminator 2: Judgment Day<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 His involvement in Eureka\u2019s pilot ended up being the result of fortuitous timing, even if the character was a bit more undefined than the rest initially.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was actually doing an episode of House<\/em><\/a>!\u201d\u00a0 Morton explains. \u201cAnd the director (Peter O\u2019Fallon)<\/a> of that episode of House <\/em>ended up being the same director for the pilot of Eureka, and he recommended me.\u00a0 At the beginning though, with the pilot, I don\u2019t \"Eureka<\/a>think they knew where he was going to go.\u00a0 [We were] playing with the idea that he was a guy with a really dark past.\u00a0 He\u2019d lived in and out of the bottle after whatever happened in his past.\u00a0 And he had been brought to GD (Global) as a way to pull himself back together again.\u00a0 He was not a team player and never really was.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Brought in to portray \u201cJosephine \u2018Jo\u2019 Lupo,\u201d Carter\u2019s strong-willed deputy \u2013 one who immediately holds an initial grudge against him since his arrival costs her the sheriff position \u2013 was actress Erica Cerra<\/a>.\u00a0 A native Vancouver actress, Cerra had already spent the last several years in guest roles on various genre series.\u00a0 It\u2019s the type of material she has always held dearly.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad was a Trekkie so I grew up watching Star Trek and you name it, I watched it,\u201d Cerra said.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m really a huge fan of anything sci-fi and fantasy oriented.\u00a0 And I love doing character stuff.\u00a0 It\u2019s really what I have the most fun with, when you get to embody a character, rather than just being yourself onscreen.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Eureka<\/a>To round out the cast, young actress Jordan Hinson<\/a> was brought in to portray Carter\u2019s wayward daughter, Zoe, and another Vancouver actor, Neil Grayston<\/a>, filled the now-unforgettable role of Douglas Fargo, then an assistant to the head of Global Dynamics.\u00a0 While the role of Fargo became much more important over the years to the series, in the beginning it was envisioned as strictly a small and recurring role.\u00a0 Grayston recalled his enthusiasm for the pilot.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI really liked the pilot script.\u00a0 It just sort of jumped off the page.\u00a0 It was one of those that I think I sat down and read it all in one go,\u201d Grayston recalls.\u00a0 \u201cI was done in like forty minutes or something.\u00a0 And then I re-read it and you could really see who the characters were and everything.\u00a0 It was nice to have something so well-written and fun.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe just wasn\u2019t a huge character in the pilot.\u00a0 And once we got [the pick-up to series], I was really only contracted to be in seven episodes, but they just kept throwing me in there and giving me stuff to do, so it was nice.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

With the script, cast and crew in place, production on the pilot commenced on Vancouver Island in 2004 with cast and crew traveling to locations by float plane and staying in hotels.\u00a0 The strength of the pilot finally earned the series an initial eleven-\"Eureka<\/a>episode order to join the two-hour pilot creating a first season of twelve episodes.\u00a0 The pickup came almost a full-year after production of the pilot, with the first season episodes being produced in 2005.\u00a0 Almost a full four years after their initial brainstorming lunch, Paglia and Cosby\u2019s vision for the series was fulfilled as the pilot episode aired on Syfy on Tuesday, July 18, 2006.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It was an untested format and a gamble for the network, a genre-series without the normal trappings of planets, stars, aliens and spacecraft.\u00a0 In addition, the cast and crew were unaware of whether or not the series would connect with audiences as the entire first season was completed prior to the airdate of Eureka\u2019s<\/em> premiere.\u00a0 Their answers would arrive much sooner than anyone imagined.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

When the ratings for Eureka<\/em>\u2019s premiere came in, no one was prepared for the success it had become.\u00a0 It was the number-one series for the evening on cable, topping all other programming on any other network.\u00a0 In the end, more than four million people would tune into the premiere, making it the highest-rated series premiere in Syfy\u2019s history, a record that still stands today.\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI had been managing my expectations about how well we\u2019d do,\u201d says Paglia.\u00a0 \u201cBut it wasn\u2019t until Mark Stern<\/a> called and told us the numbers and put it into context that we really realized that we may be on to something and that people were connecting with it.\u00a0 We were making it in a vacuum.\u00a0 Such an insular environment.\u00a0 We just didn\u2019t know.\u00a0 And it took awhile to sink in.\u00a0 The first \"Mark<\/a>[San Diego] Comic-Con that we went to, we had a panel and there were about 2500 people in the room, standing-room only.\u00a0 And one of the first questions that came to us was \u2018When did you know you were a hit?\u2019 and I responded \u2018Right now!\u2019\u00a0 It was a surreal experience.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The rest of the first season of the show was mostly intact from the pilot, with the exception of one major casting change.\u00a0 After the season pick-up was approved, actor Ed Quinn<\/a> was brought into the series to play \u201cNathan Stark,\u201d the new head of Global Dynamics and ex-husband of Allison Blake, immediately creating an antagonistic dynamic with Carter and the basis for a \u201clove triangle\u201d subplot that would carry on for the first few seasons.\u00a0 It was a role he almost didn\u2019t play.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe casting process was pretty crazy. Eureka<\/em> had been picked up to series, but they were casting the role of\u00a0 \u2018Nathan Stark\u2019 during pilot season.\u00a0 I had just tested for an ABC show, so I almost didn’t go on the audition for Eureka<\/em>,\u201d Quinn recalls.\u00a0 \u201cWhen I did not get that show, I ran over to Eureka<\/em> last minute. By the time Eureka<\/em> wanted to test me, I was already testing for another ABC show (Men In Trees<\/em><\/a>) in first position (meaning that one took preference contractually). I went from my network test at ABC to the Sci-Fi Channel building and waited for my attorney to call and tell me whether or not I got the ABC show. When I didn’t, I went up to the Eureka<\/em> test. The rest is history.\u201d\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

While Stark would be initially annoyed with Carter, the duo would eventually build a mutual respect for each other.\u00a0 The dynamic and snappy dialogue between the two would become a mainstay that fans loved.\u00a0 Quinn is quick to point out why it worked so well.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cColin and I had \u2018chemistry.\u2019\u00a0 He and I are really good friends, and when we get on set together, something clicks.\u00a0 Chemistry is something every show wants, every show tries to manufacture, but to get it… well, you gotta get lucky.\u00a0 And in Season One, that relationship was given a lot room to grow.\u00a0 It was really fun, and I think that came through on screen.\u00a0 It was so cool when the audience responded the way it did,\u201d Quinn said.\u00a0 \u201cThat being said, I give a lot of credit to Colin.\u00a0 He’s a comedic genius.\u00a0 He knows innately how to turn a joke.\u00a0 He sets jokes up perfectly.\u00a0 Sure, I’d hit the punch line, but at lot of the time it was his reactions that were comedy gold.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The rest of the first season would continue to find a very strong audience, and Paglia is quick to point out some of the episodes that he felt were done the most justice \u2013 by balancing both the emotional and scientific aspects with equal weight.\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was really a fan of \u2018Many Happy Returns\u2019 and doing something different with the idea of cloning,\u201d Paglia said.\u00a0 \u201cA woman finds out that her ex-husband cloned her, and had a child with that clone.\u00a0 And now her ex-husband and her clone have died, but they had a son who is [now orphaned].\u00a0 It\u2019s biologically hers, but she\u2019s never met him before.\u00a0 It brought up interesting issues, like emotional attachments and obligations and whether she should have any.\u00a0 It was an interesting character story.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe finale, \u2018Once In A Lifetime\u2019 also remains one of my favorites.\u00a0 We wrote it under such deadlines, prepping the episode three days before the first draft of the script was done.\u00a0 But I think it\u2019s ultimately the episode where we found the right balance between real, emotional, character-driven drama and keeping the humor that\u2019s sort of the signature of our show.\u00a0 Colin and Joe just really brought it, especially in the episode\u2019s final minutes.\u00a0 It\u2019s the episode we used as a benchmark for what we could do when we went into Season Two.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The series would return to screens almost precisely a year later for another thirteen episodes, with the season premiere again being the most-watched program on all cable networks for the day.\u00a0 But it did so without the partnership with Cosby, who had opted to move onto other projects, leaving Paglia with the creative reins for the foreseeable future.\u00a0 But the series wouldn\u2019t miss a beat, with both critical approval and fan momentum continuing to rise.\u00a0 But while Paglia cites several episodes as ones he loves, he\u2019s not above criticizing an episode or two if he feels it didn\u2019t live up to its potential\"Joe<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf we had more time, we could have done a better job with \u2018Primal,\u2019 which was the \u201cmultiple Stark\u201d episode.\u00a0 It was actually a story that we had thrown out, but when we needed to fill a slot last minute, we brought it back to life and re-broke it in record time,\u201d Paglia recalls. \u201cWe\u2019ve always had this rule within the series bible where we wouldn\u2019t cross the line between science fiction and magic.\u00a0 And I think that episode crossed the line.\u00a0 The suspension of disbelief was just too much, at least for me.\u00a0 It\u2019s one I wish we could have done differently.\u00a0 But ironically, it\u2019s a fan favorite.\u201d\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Also a fan favorite was a recurring character who would eventually become a series regular \u2013 slacker genius Zane Donovan, portrayed by Niall Matter<\/a>.\u00a0 The character, who would become a love interest for Cerra\u2019s \u201cLupo,\u201d was meant to bring an \u201cX-factor\u201d to the series, someone who would shake up the mix of personalities \u2013 a conceit that Matter was happy to oblige.\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I got the breakdown for Eureka<\/em>, I read the character description of Zane and I just thought, \u2018This is me! I\u2019m that guy!\u2019\u201d Matter remembers.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not like Zane didn\u2019t want to give back in the beginning.\u00a0 He stole money and then he donated it.\u00a0 He was always someone who wanted to give back.\u00a0 He just didn\u2019t necessarily agree with authority.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been there!\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The series would continue to flourish and end Season Two on a high note.\u00a0 Syfy took notice and rewarded the series with an extended episode order for Season Three, granting Paglia and company eighteen episodes instead of the typical thirteen.\u00a0 But any sense of complacency the series might have felt was about to disappear, as the theme of Season Three \u2013 not just behind the scenes but within the series itself \u2013 would focus primarily on one thing:\u00a0 change.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Season Three of the series was very much a transitional season on many fronts, both behind-the-scenes and in front of the camera.\u00a0 With eighteen episodes to play with, the decision was made to make the year more story-arc driven than in previous years, with two major subplots occurring in either half of the season.\u00a0 And the \u201cmystery of the Artifact\u201d plot-thread, one that had been in play since the series premiere, was essentially abandoned.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Also retired from the series was the character of Nathan Stark \u2013 actor Ed Quinn<\/a> would take his leave from the show after only a handful of episodes at the beginning of the third year.\u00a0 But contrary to some speculation, the decision to remove the character from the series was always story-based and not precipitated by any other issues.\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe felt like we were treading water a bit with the love triangle with Carter, Allison and Stark.\u00a0 And we didn\u2019t want to,\u201d Paglia said.\u00a0 \u201cThere are only so many ways that you can have a main character saying \u2018Carter, you\u2019re stupid\u2019 before you go, \u2018OK, this dynamic is starting to wear thin.\u2019\u00a0 So we brainstormed what to do to shake things up and have emotional ramifications that would carry forward and change things.\u00a0 \u201cAnd killing a main character is one of the best ways to do that.\u00a0 We also wanted the audience to know this was a show where anything can happen and that we weren\u2019t afraid to take those risks.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

While some fans were put off by the character\u2019s departure, it still allowed for a changing of relationship dynamics with other characters, which Ferguson found refreshing.\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe missed Ed [when he left].\u00a0 But one of the strange strengths of this show is its additional characters and ability to bounce back,\u201d Ferguson said.\u00a0 \u201cIt opened other avenues.\u00a0 And a show that goes down because they lost a person was going to go down anyway.\u00a0 You have to be stronger than one person.\u00a0 And we have a great ensemble.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

While the season was always envisioned as having two separate halves, the production of it was also split, as the Writers Guild of America strike in 2007-2008 forced production on additional storylines to cease after the finished scripts had been completed.\u00a0 Faced with an incomplete series order, Syfy made the decision to air only the first 8 episodes of the season in the summer of 2008.\u00a0 With the strike completed, production on the rest of the season\u2019s episode order was finished and the remaining episodes aired in the summer of 2009.\u00a0 By that point, Syfy had already rewarded the series with a fourth season order of twenty more episodes that were already well into production.\"Chad<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Plot lines in the back half of Year Three also mirrored the concept of change.\u00a0 Allison Blake would discover she was pregnant with Stark\u2019s daughter and give birth before the season would end, a plot device meant to work around actress Salli Richardson-Whitfield\u2019s real-life pregnancy.\u00a0 Fans hoping to see a budding romantic relationship build between Carter and Allison were forced to wait longer as \u201cDr. Tess Fontana,\u201d played by Jaime Ray Newman<\/a>, entered the picture as a potential \u2013 and ultimately failed \u2013 love interest for Carter.\u00a0 And series regular Jordan Hinson would leave the series as a permanent member at season\u2019s end when Zoe leaves for college.\"Eureka<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

After what was a somewhat tumultuous season marked by some large shifts in both plotlines and production, you might believe the series was ready to take a breather, relax and rest on its laurels for a while.\u00a0 But as the series entered Season Four, it would do the unthinkable.\u00a0 It\u2019s one thing to \u201cpress the reset button\u201d on a series, and another thing to hold that button down indefinitely.\u00a0 Accustomed to challenges, Eureka<\/em> chose the latter.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The Season Four premiere would find Jack Carter nursing a broken heart and getting ready to enjoy Founders\u2019 Day, a festival celebrating the town\u2019s origins.\u00a0\u00a0 By the end of the show\u2019s first episode, any notion viewers had for where the season\u2019s journey would take them were completely obliterated as a time-traveling accident to 1947 \u2013 combined with some meddling with the timeline \u2013 returns them to a Eureka far different from the one they left.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Eureka<\/a>\u201cCamp Eureka was an idea I\u2019d wanted to do since Season One, but we put it on the backburner because we wanted the show to earn it.\u00a0 You want to get to know characters before you reveal secrets about them or turn things on their head,\u201d Paglia said.\u00a0 \u201cSeason One was too soon.\u00a0 Season Two was still too soon.\u00a0 And Season Three, with the strike and other production issues, it would have been cost-prohibitive since we wouldn\u2019t be using standing sets, props and costumes.\u00a0 Period episodes are a huge challenge.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n\u201cOriginally, the Season Four order was going to be for 22 episodes.\u00a0 We were going to do a two-hour movie, and then twenty episodes.\u00a0 Bruce Miller<\/a>, who was co-showrunning with me by this point (after joining the staff as a consulting producer mid-way through Season Two) suggested maybe now would be the right time to do this idea,\u201d Paglia said.\u00a0 \u201cAnd even though the order dropped to twenty, we got attached to this idea, and we had a slightly bigger budget for the season premiere that we thought could maybe pull it off.\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

We had always planned that when they returned from [the 1940\u2019s] there would be some small change.\u00a0 And in discussing what that would be, like the Archimedes statue, or the d\u00e9cor in Caf\u00e9 Diem, it hit us:\u00a0 \u201cWe don\u2019t have to limit ourselves to changing one thing.\u00a0 We can change anything.\u00a0 We can change everything!\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

That idea set in motion a flood of story possibilities, many of which had already been bandied about in the writer\u2019s room.\u00a0 Co-showrunners Paglia and Miller had put together a largely new writing\/producing staff between seasons, bringing on former NBC\/Universal Studio production executive Todd Sharp<\/a> as a co-executive producer, along with co-EP\/writers Eric Tuchman<\/a>, Amy Berg<\/a>, Ron Milbauer<\/a> & Terri Hughes Burton<\/a>, and Jill Blotevogel<\/a>, co-producer Paula Yoo<\/a>, story editor Eric Wallace<\/a>, staff writers Kira Snyder<\/a> and Ed Fowler<\/a> (and later, John Herrera & Nina Fiore<\/a>).\u00a0 The team quickly mapped out the arc for the season.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"EUREKA<\/a>
\n\u201cWe always felt like we wanted Fargo to eventually grow and become the head of Global Dynamics.\u00a0 We had wanted to find a new love interest for Henry.\u00a0 We were at a point where we felt like it would be interesting to finally put Carter and Allison together,\u201d Paglia said.\u00a0 \u201cAnd we really wanted to get Jo into GD so that she could have her own domain and be her own boss.\u00a0 And we said \u2018Wouldn\u2019t it be great to just have it all happen in one fell swoop?\u2019\u00a0 And have the characters struggling to figure things out, without being able to tell anyone.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\nThey brought the proposed storyline to Syfy, and the network loved the idea.\u00a0 But the inevitable question of when things would revert to normal came up.\u00a0 When Paglia and Miller said, \u201cThey don\u2019t,\u201d it raised eyebrows.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a serious discussion,\u201d Paglia recollects.\u00a0 \u201cThe network felt like it may be something that would hurt the franchise.\u00a0 But we reasoned through it with them\u2026that our audience has been so completely loyal and has followed us through three different time-slots on three different nights after nine-month hiatuses.\u00a0 They believed they could handle this, too.\u00a0 And we were extremely lucky that our execs supported us.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Actor James Callis<\/a>, whose brilliant work on the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica <\/em><\/a>had won him many fans, was brought in to play \u201cDr. Trevor Grant,\u201d one of Eureka\u2019s founders and co-inventor (along with Albert Einstein<\/a>) of the Bridge device that brings the Eureka<\/em> gang to the past — and Grant into the future.\u00a0 In addition, the Season Four premiere introduced Tembi Locke<\/a> to the series as \u201cDr. Grace Monroe.\u201d\u00a0 Initially someone that Henry meets briefly in passing, he returns to the altered Eureka to find that he is married to her.\u00a0 Locke finds the character extremely gratifying.\"Tembi<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGrace really leads from her heart.\u00a0 Her intellect certainly has its place.\u00a0 It\u2019s what has gotten her where she is professionally and it\u2019s what Henry really [learns to] love and enjoy about her,\u201d Locke said.\u00a0 \u201cBut she is also really heartfelt, which is why the arc of them having the difficulty in their relationship and then having to find their way back, I could really put my hooks into that.\u00a0 I love that as an actor.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Season Four also introduced two other new recurring characters to the series:\u00a0 \u201cDr. Isaac Parrish,\u201d portrayed by Wil Wheaton<\/a> of Star Trek: The Next Generation <\/em><\/a>fame, and \u201cDr. Holly Marten,\u201d played by geek goddess Felicia Day<\/a>.\u00a0 Both served to enhance storylines for Douglas Fargo with Marten envisioned as a potential love interest and Parrish being an adversarial nemesis in both matters at Global and in Fargo\u2019s budding relationship with Holly.\u00a0 Actress Ming-Na<\/a>, fresh off a two-year stint on Stargate Universe <\/em>was also brought in to portray \u201cSenator Michaela Wen,\u201d a character whose arc would last well into the next season.\"EUREKA<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

What was a matter of necessity in Season Three became a matter of choice for Season Four as Syfy took the series\u2019 fourth year and stretched it out over two separate summers, airing the first half in 2010 and the latter half in 2011.\u00a0 In the back half of the season, Fargo and Zane would unwittingly launch themselves into outer space, and their solution to get home would later launch a new intiative for Global Dynamics — conducting the first manned mission to Titan, Saturn\u2019s largest moon.\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The construction of the ship that would carry them (the Astraeus<\/em>), preparations for the trip, and the disasters Carter would need to avert as a result, would guide the storylines through the end of the season.\u00a0 Though same-day ratings for the series had begun to decrease by this point (as DVR numbers grew), the series was still a juggernaut for the network and a Season Five renewal was handed down early on, well before the summer 2011 episodes of Season Four had aired.\u00a0 While viewers were just getting back into the groove that summer, production was already very much underway on Eureka<\/em>\u2019s fifth \u2013 and what would be final \u2013 season. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

We will be back with part two of my Eureka special report soon!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/object><\/p>\n

\"WormholeRiders<\/a>Thanks to Kenn<\/a> and Patricia<\/a> for image and audio embeds for this special Eureka<\/a> analysis. And thanks to you for stopping by WormholeRiders News Agency!<\/a> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Please feel free to leave a comment here, click an icon below to share this interview or you can visit and follow me on Twitter<\/a> by clicking on my avatar to the right.<\/span><\/span>\"Click<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Regards. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Chad Colvin<\/a>
\n<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hello Eureka fans, Many of you know me from Gateworld where the focus is on Stargate. First, I would like to thank every one of the cast, crew and creators of Eureka who made this special report possible. Many thanks also to Kenn and Patricia of WormholeRiders News Agency for the privilege in posting my…<\/p>\n

Read More “Eureka: A Celebration Of Excellence – Part One”<\/span> »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":29874,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[397,388,296,243,194,103,271,75,199,247,279,285,105,201,340,248,111,354,249,313,325,301,250,3,208,209,251,216,217,219,253,255,256,257,333,326,258,346,226,276,16,229,171,358,328,172,261,376,385,116,361,265,338,349,24,266,347,290,377,70,329,241],"tags":[509,506,479,457,426,411,473,407,429,323,475,413,492,459,478,498,460,482,485,480,461,398,433,434,435,416,437,438,440,465,441,466,489,467,468,497,490,501,476,417,493,446,275,392,448,422,499,487,470,502,504,234,451,500,471,491,496,403,472,494,477,455],"class_list":["post-29835","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-a-celebration-of-excellence","category-alexandra-la-roche","category-amy-berg","category-andrew-cosby","category-anna-fricke","category-as-the-wormhole-turns","category-bear-mccreary","category-brenda-lowry","category-bruce-miller","category-chris-parnell","category-christopher-gauthier-celebs","category-christopher-jacot","category-colin-ferguson","category-craig-engler","category-dave-foley","category-debrah-farentino","category-ed-quinn","category-edward-james-olmos","category-elias-toufexis","category-ellie-harvie","category-eric-tuchman","category-eric-wallace","category-erica-cerra","category-eureka","category-felicia-day","category-gary-morgenstein","category-gateworld","category-ira-steven-behr","category-jack-kenney","category-jaime-paglia","category-james-callis","category-joe-morton","category-jordan-hinson","category-kavan-smith","category-kevin-mundy","category-kim-poirier","category-matt-frewer","category-matthew-hastings","category-maureen-granados","category-mingna-what-are-they-doing-now","category-nbc-universal","category-neil-grayston","category-niall-matter","category-paula-lindberg","category-paula-yoo","category-peter-kalamis","category-rick-maguire","category-robert-w-egami","category-roger-cross","category-salli-richardson-whitfield-what-are-they-doing-now","category-space-channel","category-stephen-lovejoy","category-stephen-welke","category-steve-kaplan","category-syfy","category-tembi-locke","category-todd-sharp","category-trevor-jackson","category-troy-rudolph","category-universal-studios","category-wallace-shawn","category-wil-wheaton","tag-a-celebration-of-excellence","tag-alexandra-la-roche","tag-amy-berg","tag-andrew-cosby","tag-anna-fricke","tag-as-the-wormhole-turns","tag-bear-mccreary","tag-brenda-lowry","tag-bruce-miller","tag-christopher-gauthier","tag-christopher-jacot","tag-colin-ferguson","tag-dave-foley","tag-debrah-farentino","tag-donovan-stinson","tag-edward-james-olmos","tag-elias-toufexis","tag-ellie-harvie","tag-eric-tuchman","tag-eric-wallace","tag-erica-cerra","tag-eureka","tag-felicia-day","tag-gary-morgenstein","tag-geoff-boucher","tag-george-lucas","tag-ira-steven-behr","tag-jack-kenney","tag-jaime-paglia","tag-jamie-ray-newman","tag-jeremy-carver","tag-joe-morton","tag-jonathan-potts","tag-jordan-hinson","tag-kavan-smith","tag-kevin-little","tag-kevin-mundy","tag-liz-goldwyn","tag-marie-avgeropoulos","tag-mark-wilson","tag-matthew-hastings","tag-maureen-granados","tag-mingna","tag-mirror","tag-neil-grayston","tag-niall-matter","tag-paula-lindberg","tag-paula-yoo","tag-rick-maguire","tag-robert-w-egami","tag-roger-cross","tag-salli-richardson-whitfield","tag-sam-witwer","tag-space-channel","tag-stephen-lovejoy","tag-stephen-welke","tag-steve-kaplan","tag-syfy","tag-tembi-locke","tag-todd-sharp","tag-trevor-jackson","tag-wil-wheaton"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29835","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=29835"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29835\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30298,"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29835\/revisions\/30298"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/29874"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=29835"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wormholeriders.net\/eureka\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=29835"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https: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