We asked Browder if he'd ever appear on Stargate Atlantis, and he hauled producer Brad Wright over to help answer the question. Wright wouldn't make any promises, but did say he hoped to feature Browder in another direct-to-DVD Stargate movie soon.

When we asked Browder how he feels embodying heroic archetypes like Farscape's Crichton and Stargate's Mitchell. He was super modest: "I let someone like Brad write it, and I just say the words. My job, in a lot of ways is the easy job... my job is just the fun part. I get to go out and do the boy stuff and do the fun stuff, I don't think I think about the heroic archetype. That's something the writers take care of, and the directors and the editors."

Browder had some practice being villainous when he was being mind-controlled by Scorpius in Farscape. Would he like to play an out-and-out villain sometime? Yes, he said. "I think it'd be a lot of fun. Now, wearing prosthetics on a full-time basis — that's not fun."

We asked Tapping about the difference between the gadget heavy Stargate and the more low-tech setting on Sanctuary, and she said Sanctuary is much more "steampunk." Actually, the making of Sanctuary is much more high-tech, because it's entirely shot in greenscreen. But there's less technobabble and fewer gadgets, because her character is 157 years old, and she borrows from all different eras. She said it's a bit weird to be shooting in greenscreen all the time, and she gets a "green chromakey headache." But the good news is that the show's art department shows the actors a really good representation of what the scenes will look like when they're done, so they know what they're reacting to.

In Sanctuary, Tapping plays Dr. Helen Magnus, who protects the "abnormals" (the mutants that society has deemed deviations, but who may actually be the next step in human evolution.) So she's sort of like Professor X from the X-Men, except not bald, "and hopefully prettier," she said.

And she confirmed that she'll be in at least a couple more episodes of Stargate Atlantis this season, plus a third direct-to-DVD Stargate movie.

In Stargate Worlds, you'll be able to form a squad of online friends, or venture out into the Gate-verse on your own. You can also decide whether or not you want to be a good guy or a baddie (myself I'd rather be a soldier over a System Lord). The game will be released December 30, 2008.

The panel was moderated by the show's producer Martin Gero, and included Jewel Staite, Joe Flanigan (John Sheppard), Robert Picardo (Richard Woolsey) and writer Brad Wright. Your questions are below.

From IO9's wraithfodder: What was the most difficult episode to film in season 5 so far?

Joe Flanigan: "Search and Rescue." It was the first show we came back to. I was back in the thick of it. There were a lot personal things going on and then I got my stride back after my first paycheck.

Jewel: My most difficult episode so far has been "Tracker." Once again I am kidnapped in the woods and filthy and crying and in peril. I don't know what Carl [producer/writer Carl Binder] has against me.

Joe Flanigan: [interrupts] Or for you.

Jewel Staite: I just read another one that Carl wrote, and again I'm kidnapped in the woods.

Richard Picardo: We did an episode that is a war crimes trial and Woolsey has to defend Atlantis in court . Woolsey has 9 pages of dialogue.

What kind of development is Woolsey going to get?

Richard Picardo: We find out that he was divorced and that the wife got the dog in the divorce. And that was his only other emotional connection. He's a briefing guy, a theorist, and he has to reinvent himself. It's intesting to play a character who knows all the rules but has to break them. And it's fun to play a character who is kind of a dick.

What do you think about your character so far Joe?

Joe Flanigan: It's actually kind of interesting. The character's evolved a lot. He's much more of a team player. And he flies spaceships better than he did in the first year.

Robert, were you worried about replacing Samantha Carter?

Joe Flanigan: You do make a hot female lead.

Robert Picardo: I'm not replacing her. I'm simply providing a bald middle aged male alternative.

If Stargate Atlantis is canceled for Stargate Universe, can you give SGA to another station?

Joe Flanigan: Having SG-1 and Atlantis on at the same time was actually great. It's like having two restaurants on the same street. You think it might not work but they actually both give each other business.

If any of you could switch roles with any other characters, who would you chose?

Joe Flanigan: I would play Robert Picardo kidnapped in a forest with Jewel.

Robert Picardo: I'd play Jewel's character, mostly because I'm already familiar with the medical jargon already.

Jewel Staite: I'd like to be Teyla for a day. Because she's hot. I like her outfits, she's hot.

Who do we get to see this year?

Martin Gero: Michael Shanks (Dr. Daniel Jackson) will be back on the franchise. Dr. Beckett will be in for 4 more episodes and Amanda Tapping (Samantha Carter) will be coming back this year as well.

Jewel, what's the difference between this character and Kaylee from Firefly?

Jewel Staite: There's a lot less shiny. I miss my shiny. I don't miss the ruffley dress, I don't miss that dress. It's a lot harder I have to look like know what I'm doing. On Firefly the prop director would bring over a box of scifi tools and say, "Okay, pick one," and Joss would say "Okay, now go fiddle over there."

Any other Firefly crew coming to Stargate?

Jewel Staite: I want Nathan Fillion to play a Wraith. Just cause I'd like to see him go through the make up [crowd goes nuts].

What are you excited about for your character this year Jewel?

Jewel Staite: I would like to see her make a choice already, and she does. So I'm very excited about that.

What's the difference between Stargate and Firefly?

Jewel Staite: This one doesn't get canceled.

What happened to Dr. Weir one?

Brad Wright: Oh...next question. Oh, she got lost in a city.

Martin Gero: I don't know what you're talking about, they look remarkably similar to me.

Is SG-1 Ben Browder coming over?

Martin Gero: I would love to, but we're in a personal feud [jokes]. So, not that I know of yet?

From the looks of it, this could be Atlantis' best year. All they need to win me over is a Cameron Mitchell cameo and I'm all set. (Sadly, I'm not holding my breath. At the Stargate Continuum panel Ben Browder jokingly complained that he's the only member that hasn't been on the show yet.)

Photo by Mike Huang

You could be seeing the recut Stargate pilot in the next few months. "I was at the final mix the night before last," Wright revealed. "It's an MGM thing now, [as to] when they want to release it."

So why did Wright feel that the SG-1 pilot needed a re-cut? "The reason I did it was because I was watching the pilot...and I thought, 'Man we can do better than this.'" The visual effects some of them were kind of shaky. And I wanted to get rid of some of the bad dialog I wrote 12 years ago. So I did. And mainly it was to incorporate Joel Goldsmith's score, brought back the way it should be. Hopefully the fans won't kill me for it, I think it's going to be great."

Besides talk of possibly destroying classic scifi there was a Stargate party going on, atop of the San Diego Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum. Many of our favorite 'gaters were there, and we got to pester them with the things you all wanted to know, like if Richard Dean Anderson thinks Colonel Samantha Carter looks hotter with short hair or long hair.

Cliff Simon (Ba'al):

Have you given any thought to the new character you're going to have to become, the person that Ba'al has been living in for 2,000 years is now free?

I've given it a lot of thought. I hope Brad Wright does. He could be a very interesting character. He could be worse than Baal, as far as being a bad, bad human being. He could be a really great guy. We don't know. I've thought about it for down the road and the future.

What's the attraction to Qetesh? She's so vicious. I would have hoped Ba'al was smarter than that.

She's beautiful. What else can I say? He's vicious too. Can you imagine them together? I've been saying, Guys, let's write an alien love scene, come on, come on. No, she's evil and she's actually a real adversary for Ba'al.

Ben Browder (Lt. Colonel Cameron Mitchell):

Continuum gives you a lot of screen time, what did you think when you read the script?

I called Brad Wright and I thanked him. I said thank you, you've given me some great things to do.

I have a lot of fun stuff to do. I get to put on prosthetics, I get to go to the arctic, I get a few quiet character moments. I just thought Brad did a great job with the script.

What did you think of yourself in all that make up?

Wasn't me. That was my grandfather. I actually thought they did a really nice job with the prosthetics.

Chris Judge (Teal'c):

Do you think you could be reappearing on Stargate Atlantis any time soon?

I really don't know. The time depends on what goes on with my other projects. It's just the timing issue. If I'm available I'd love to go there. I think there will be — I don't like to rehearse anything. I don't like to rehearse dialog or fight scenes or anything. But we rehearsed this fight scene, and it just showed me that Jason's in his mid twenties and I'm not.

Do you ever catch yourself saying indeed?

Ummmm, no because... You just want me to say, "indeed." Well, um, no....indeed.

Richard Dean Anderson (Major General Jack O'Neill):

What was your favorite part of being in Continuum, being with the cast or the plot?

Filming in Antarctica. Getting a chance to go to the Arctic. I've never been North of Alaska.

Samantha Carter: short or long hair?

Whatever she feels is appropriate?

Seriously...come on?

You want to know what I think? I guess whatever she feels most comfortable in. I'm stepping into a trap [laughs]. As a guy if I pick a side suddenly..oooh chauvinist. What about a buzz cut?