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Without seeing a single scene from the new series, fans have already begun labeling "Stargate: Universe" with tags reminiscent of "Star Trek: Voyager" and "90210."

But if there are to be any comparisons between the latest Stargate outing and another series, consulting producer Joe Mallozzi says it might be one that involved Edward James Olmos.

"On the one hand, ['Universe' is] something that fans of the Stargate franchise will enjoy because there are all those familiar elements for them," Mallozzi told About.com. "There's still going to be adventure. But on the other hand, it's going to be a little bit more -- I don't want to use the word 'space opera,' but it is more relationship-based, it is more arc-driven. It's less monster- or situation-of-the-week."

It also means less walking through a Stargate only to find yet more extras from the local renaissance festival. At the same time, however, the show will be careful not to make it impossible for new viewers to step in midway through.

"That's one of the things that Stargate did well in the past, and even though we still will be arc-driven, we will always take pains to ensure that first-time viewers will always be able to jump on at a certain point and get caught up fairly quickly, and be able to enjoy the show from there," Mallozzi said. "I want to liken it to something on TV, but I can't really. I guess you can liken it to 'Battlestar Galactica,' in that it's science-fiction and it's more arc-driven, but in terms of tone, in terms of situation, in fact in terms of the story, it is very unlike 'Battlestar.' I'd say it's more 'Lost' than 'Battlestar,' but even then I'm reluctant to make that comparison."

"Universe" has received some backlash from fans, but Mallozzi admits the new show didn't get help with its announcement coming on the heels of the "Stargate: Atlantis" cancellation, where he was one of the showrunners. Mallozzi said he didn't learn about SciFi Channel's cancellation of the show until they were shooting the 16th episode of the fifth season, and they already had the final episodes mapped out, including "Vegas" and the finale, "Enemy at the Gate."

The finale episode "happened to fall on the hundredth episode, so we wanted to do something special for the episode. We wanted to do something we would come full circle," Mallozzi said. "And that would serve as a springboard for the opening two-parter for Season 6. So we thought, why don't we bring Atlantis back to Earth? As a hundredth-episode celebration, it worked, but also in retrospect as a series finale, it worked as well."

While some fans may have called for the finale to be a two-parter, Mallozzi said the finale, in his eyes, worked fine to cap the series, leading into a telemovie.

"I know a lot of people say this could have been a two-parter or that could have been two parter," he said. "It's just that I've seen two-parters from the other shows that really in my mind feel lore like one-and-a-half parters. I would rather make one fast-moving, jam-packed episode than a two-parter that's flabby."

Filming for "Stargate: Universe" is expected to begin this summer, prepping for a late fall release on SciFi Channel.

For more of About.com's interview with Mallozzi, click here.

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