January of next year sees the release of Stargate Destiny, a ship based virtual series. Set to be the second fully active virtual series, I got chance to sit down with creator Geoff Hill who was kind enough to answer a number of questions I had about this upcoming series. Season One is set to premiere on the 17th of January, the first in a season of 20 episode. You can also visit the Stargate Destiny homepage and forums.

Elite Anubis Guard - First off, thanks for agreeing to this interview. I know you must be busy, premieres not to far away, must be hectic at the Destiny office. Well, could you tell us a little about yourself? Hobbies, interests, etc.

Geoff Hill - Well, I’m 16 years old, and I live on the west United States coast. I’ve played the violin for just over four years, and I really love it. I can see a future in music for myself. I love just about anything Stargate, and I also enjoy video games every once and a while as well. Obviously, I like to write for Stargate: Destiny as well. As for TV shows I like, I stick with Stargate, Lost, and 24.

Elite Anubis Guard - For those out there who don't know anything about Stargate Destiny, can you give us a quick lowdown on what the series is about?

Geoff Hill - Well, Destiny is basically a ship-based virtual spin-off of the Stargate universe. It takes place in the same universe as Stargate: Horizon, so you’ll often see us referring to certain aspects of that show in the scripts. The pilot takes place in 2013, and follows the crew of the XC-314 Destiny, a ship whose mission is the exploration of the Orion galaxy, nearly 20 million light years from earth. While the crew searches for the last legacies of the Ancients, they also encounter a rather cool enemy, if I say so myself, and a great new ally as well.

Elite Anubis Guard - So tell us why you decided to do Destiny. What inspired you?

Geoff Hill- Well, for a long time, Destiny was just an idea, and I had never really intended to do a lot with it, but it was because of Stargate: Horizon that I really went on with the show. So, because of this, I always like to give a thank you to Alex Rubit.

Elite Anubis Guard - Quite a few people like the idea of a ship based series, did that have any influence on the setting of Destiny?

Geoff Hill - Well, for a long time before even announcing Destiny, I had been a member of the GateWorld forum, where, every once in a while, someone would bring up a thread about “would you like the next spin-off of SG-1 to be ship-based?”, but I don’t really think that people really influenced me on it, no. It’s just that I myself have always liked the idea of a ship-based series for Stargate. And what I think makes Destiny great is that it equally incorporates the usage of the Stargates, as well as space exploration on a ship.

Elite Anubis Guard - What sort of process goes into making the stories?

Geoff Hill - Well, often times, it just starts with a simple idea. Often, I’d talk with my production team about possible story ideas for a long time, and once in a great while, we’d get one that was a winner. After that, it goes to an outline, which sometimes, against the wishes of my co-producer, I don’t always bother to do. But I admit, outlines do help. With an outline, you know what has to get done in each of the five acts, and while you’re writing the actual script, you just fill in the main ideas, and pad them with details.

Elite Anubis Guard - The series is named after the ship featured in it. What can you tell us about the Destiny?

Geoff Hill - Well, the Destiny is basically the latest, most advanced model of ship in the ISGC’s fleet. It has a crew of about 500, and is commanded by Brigadier General Peter Barrows. It has a compliment of several wings of F-308 fighters and four X-09 transport craft, which you’ll see used many times throughout the series. You’ll obviously learn a great deal about it in the pilot episode, but I’ll say that it is not only a great exploratory vessel; it can also serve as a formidable battle platform. It, like many earth vessels, has both human and alien technologies as well.

Elite Anubis Guard - With Horizon being the only virtual series currently available, do you feel yourself under pressure to compete?

Geoff Hill - No, not at all. Alex [Rubit] and I actually often speak over the internet, and I would say we have a very professional relationship. I don’t feel that competition is necessary, after all, I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for Stargate: Horizon.

Elite Anubis Guard - Can you tell us a little about some of the upcoming episodes?

Geoff Hill- Well, some plot information of the first five episodes has been released, but I guess I could give a little more information on some of the later episodes. One of my favorites in the first half of the season will be episode 1.08 – “The Farm”, where we’ll get to encounter a race from another Stargate spin-off, and our team will have to find out how to deal with them. Another one of my favorites is episode 1.07 – “I Think, Therefore…”, which has a lot to do with virtual reality, and has some parallels to a later episode of SG-1’s season six. And as for the mid-season two-parter, I’ll just say that I’m looking forward to seeing how that one turns out. It has a very nice cliff-hanger I think.

Elite Anubis Guard - How about the people working with you? Can you tell us a little about those?

Geoff Hill - Well, currently, we have a writing staff of four, including myself, all of whom are working on their own episodes. I really enjoy talking with each of them about their work, and how their episodes are coming along, and I hope that they will stay with us later into the season. They’re all great to work with. We also have two artists working on SGD, but I’m afraid to say that I have not really heard from either of them in a while.

Elite Anubis Guard - Can you tell us about the episodes currently being worked on? What sort of progress are you making?

Geoff Hill - Okay, I’m currently doing 1.03, which is turning out to be pretty interesting, and sees our team put to the test right away. Aaron Percival has already completed 1.05 - “Treasure Trove” is working on 1.08, which I mentioned is one of my favorites, Adrian Curtis is doing 1.04 “Behemoth”, and Brian Weinberger, 1.06 “Lost, But Not Forgotten”. All of these episodes are turning out pretty well so far, and I can’t wait until they start premiering.

Elite Anubis Guard - What sort of things can we expect from season 1? Space battles? Exploration? Shipping?

Geoff Hill – Well, I’m not exactly sure about how much shipping we’ll be doing, but I can say that we will have our fair share of battles. In fact, there is a great one in “Providence, Part 2”, and more to come. We will also be doing a lot of exploration, like I mentioned, both through the gate and by ship (no, not that kind of ship, starship!

Elite Anubis Guard- Every Stargate show has an enemy. What can you tell us about the enemy in Stargate: Destiny?

Geoff Hill- Well, it took me a long to really make a well-developed enemy. Even the other day, I was just coming up with new information on them. The name of the enemy in Stargate: Destiny is the Malecathi, and they are very, very powerful. In fact, we will learn just how powerful they are 1.04, so watch out for that. I just have to say that I quite like how they’ve developed over the months.

Elite Anubis Guard - The characters? I'm sure we all want to read about the character, tell us about those. Who are they, what makes them tick?

Geoff Hill- Well, we have five main characters, who will appear just about every episode, and five recurring characters, of whom we will probably see on or two in each episode, but not all together. I won’t go into the background of the recurring characters much here, but I suppose a brief little character synopsis is in order. The star of the show is Lt. Col. Alexandra Hemmingway, who plays both the executive officer of the ship, as well as the leader of Orion-1, making her the first female SG-team leader in a Stargate spin-off. Commander of the Destiny is General Peter Barrows, who is practically in love with his command, and has been vying for one for quite some time, since being introduced to the Stargate program in 2001. Also on the lineup, we have Commander Tenyris Nalar, who is from the planet Talloran, nearly all the way across the galaxy from where we find him. Grateful for his rescue from the Malecathi, he serves as a guide to Orion-1. You will be seeing some very interesting scenes with him and one of our recurring characters, Lieutenant Morgami Onnotal, his first officer. Lieutenant Takeshi Hasegawa, another one of the main characters, is like the chief engineer onboard, and knows just about everything regarding Stargates. He accompanies Orion-1 as well. Last but not least, we have Jonas Quinn, who I’ll talk about in a moment here.

Elite Anubis Guard - Jonas? Why did you decide to feature Jonas in the series?

Geoff Hill – Well, ever since watching SG-1’s season 6, I’ve always liked Jonas’ character, and how he’s about halfway between Daniel Jackson and Colonel, well, General O’Neill. I’ve always wanted to see him have a real lasting role, and I thought that if I could bring him back here, I would, and I’ve received a lot of positive feedback about putting Jonas in. I just hope I can keep him up to the expectations of fans. You’ll find out how and why he’s accompanying the Destiny crew in the pilot.

Elite Anubis Guard - Will you be doing a season 2 if the first is popular? Have any ideas for season 2?

Geoff Hill - Yes, I should hope so. I am often told to “keep my head in the season” by two of my team members, but nonetheless, I sometimes do think of possible season two stories, but it’s so far away that I’d rather not give any away. I will say, thought, that the season finale is very much a prelude to season two, even more so than in other series’

Elite Anubis Guard- Well, thanks for taking the time to answer these questions. Any last comments?

Geoff Hill – Sure, no problem. I’d just like to make sure everyone knows that the premiere is January 17, 2006. Be sure to visit our new website, www.stargatedestiny.net for continuing information, and the episodes as they come out. I have a feeling that this is going to be a very good first season. Thanks a lot.