Cable television's Showtime has two science-fiction series on its Friday-night lineup that are derived from fairly popular movies--Stargate and Total Recall. And the network is batting .500 in using the films' storylines as guides for weekly adventures. Stargate SG-1, which has been on the air since 1997 and is also available in syndication, has quietly delivered the goods. It has successfully taken the premise of the 1994 feature--a teleportation device serves as a gateway to farflung planets--and expanded it in a logical and smart manner.

Producers Jonathan Glassner and Brad Wright, who also oversaw the successful revival of The Outer Limits for Showtime, wisely figured that if one combination of hieroglyphic-like symbols can "dial up" coordinates for one alien world (as the movie surmised), then there must be thousands of combinations that can send people to thousands of worlds. And yet, Stargate SG-1--which is also served by decent special effects--wouldn't have been around for as long as it has without the right cast. Of key importance is the lead character, Air Force Col. Jack O'Neill. The brooding soldier--originated by Kurt Russell in the film--led the initial mission through the Stargate, while also carrying the emotional baggage of having his so accidentally kill himself with O'Neill's own gun.

Because the movie's O'Neill isn't a happy enough camper for a weekly series, enter Richard Dean Anderson of MacGyver fame. He's a likable and charismatic actor who has made the character his own. He got O'Neill over his son's death and infused him with a wry sense of humor. The result gives the audience a wisecracking yet dedicated hero to root for. The supporting cast--including Michael Shanks as scientist Daniel Jackson (played by James Spader in the movie), Amanda Tapping as an Air Force astrophysicist and Christopher Judge as a sympathetic alien--backs up Anderson nicely. The adventures to strange worlds that this team of explorers undertake each week are interesting and effortlessly expand on the movie's initial premise.