Thursday Movie Picks #268: TMP Television Edition - Revivals and Reboots
Hello there and welcome to Thursday Movie Picks a weekly series where you share your movie picks each Thursday. The rules are simple: based on the theme of the week pick three to five movies and tell us why you picked them. For further details and the schedule visit the series main page here.
This week's Thursday Movie Picks is TMP Television Edition - Revivals and Reboots
So this is a little tricky. What are revivals and reboots? Are they remakes? I don't think they are so I came up with my own definitions for myself to differentiate them.
Remakes - I think there are two types. One where it is remade from a series from a different language to another. The essential story at least at the start is the same but changes are made to reflect the cultural differences. So examples for these are Ugly Betty, The Bridge, The Office, etc. The second type of remakes are those that are remade for a brand new generation of audience so while there might be changes like making the characters more diverse, it is very much like the first type of remake where the essential story is the same and the changes are made to fit the current cultural landscape, so examples are Charmed, MacGyver, Hawaii Five-O, etc.
Revivals - Revivals have been so popular recently. I would define it as a series that is revived years later with the same characters now older often with the same cast reprising their roles. Examples are Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, Twin Peaks, The X-Files, etc.
Reboots - Reboots are perhaps the rarest of the three, at least I think so. A reboot is a new series that takes the story right back to beginning of the original series, however while the basic story is the same with the same original characters, something major is changed. Perhaps changing the perspective from which the story is told or changing the overall tone of the story. The only example I can think of is my pick for today so read on.
Now that the definitions are out of the way, here are my picks and my choices were really limited since I really haven't seen a lot of Revivals and Reboots:
90210 (2008 - 2013)
This is a somewhat weak pick for a revival, but like I said I had very few to choose from. Set several years after the original series, it follows mainly a new bunch of teens in Beverly Hills. However, some of the original cast like Jennie Garth and Shannen Doherty played their original characters in several episodes. I think I saw the first season in its entirety, but watched it on and off for the second. Overall it was an ok series, just not something I made a point to keep up with.
Heroes Reborn (2015 - 2016)
Five years after Heroes ended they tried to revive the series with Heroes Reborn. It takes place in the same world a few years after the original series with a few of the original characters coming back. I only saw about half of the season, it was so boring and those episodes had characters running in circles asking where's Claire which was just so stupid. I don't think she actually showed up by the end of the season. Anyway many of the major characters from the original series did not make an appearance which is quite an indication of the quality of this series. So yeah I think it's a complete waste of time, skip it.
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018 - )
This is my only reboot pick. Sabrina, the Teenage Witch is a comic books series part of Archie comics and the 1990s TV series follows that in tone, it was a half hour light teen comedy. A few years ago a new Sabrina comic book series came out called Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, I have not read the new comics so I don't have an opinion on it, but I have seen the TV series Chilling Adventures of Sabrina which I suppose is an adaptation of the new comic book, and it is vastly different from the 90s TV series. It now has hour long episodes and while the gist of the story is the same, with the same characters and the first season starts somewhat at the same place as Sabrina is turning 16, it is now darker more of a horror drama and though it is set in the present day, it has a very 50s and 60s retro look. I thought the first season of this was very inconsistent, some of the episodes were absolute bore. The second season is better, but it is far from being a series that I'd eagerly wait for a new season.
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Labels: Thursday Movie Picks, TMP Television Edition
Brittani Burnham August 30, 2019 at 3:24 AM
Heroes should be taught in film school on how you can have an absolutely amazing first season in television,then completely shit the bed in season 2. Shows get bad eventually but I've never seen one do that as quickly as Heroes did.
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is an inspired pick!
Wanderer September 6, 2019 at 3:32 AM
Heroes - Right! How did they bungled up the second season and still managed to run for four seasons and get an equally terrible revival is just mind boggling.
I never watched the original 90210 and will skip this although it is sad about Luke Perry. I never watched Heroes either but I always like Sabrina, the teenage witch for some reason even though it was hokey.
If you are not into teen soaps...which I think what the original 90210 is...then the revival is not for you either. Anyway I don't think Luke Perry reprised his role in the revival, I only remember seeing the original female cast like Garth and Doherty reprising their roles.
I'd recommend the first season of Heroes, it is one of the best superhero TV series season ever.
I grew up on the 90s Sabrina TV series. It was cute.
joel65913 August 31, 2019 at 10:42 PM
I've seen a few episodes of both the original 90210 and Sabrina but wasn't a devoted fan of either so never bothered with the newer versions. Heroes never interested me when it was on, I'm not positive I even knew they did any kind of extension.
They seem to revamp everything nowadays so picking three was a cinch.
Hawaii Five-O (1968-1980/2010-?)-The elite branch of Hawaii's police force…the Five-O…headed by Steve McGarret (Jack Lord), his faithful assistant Danny Williams (Dan-O) (James MacArthur) and their squad fought crime on the big island for 12 years kicked off by propulsive classic opening music. In 2010 the concept was updated but kept basically the same with Alex O'Loughlin & Scott Caan taking over for Lord and MacArthur and is still running today.
Dallas (1978-1991/2012-2014)-Life in the oil business and Southfork ranch specifically centered on the Ewing clan headed by Miss Ellie (Barbara Bel Geddes) & Jock (Jim Davis), their sons-the ruthless J.R. (Larry Hagman) and good guy Bobby (Patrick Duffy) and their wives Sue Ellen (Linda Gray) and Pamela (Victoria Principal) as their spar and manipulate everyone and each other for 13 incredibly successful years. In 2012 a new version premiered following J.R. & Bobby's sons John Ross and Christopher (Josh Henderson & Jesse Metcalfe) as they wheedled and cajoled like their Pappies. Not nearly as successful it only lasted two years but was a decent redo.
The Odd Couple (1970-1975/2015-2017)-In 1970, two years after the successful Jack Lemmon/Walter Matthau theatrical film, Tony Randall and Jack Klugman premiered as neat freak Felix Unger and major slob Oscar Madison who tried to live together without killing each other when they separate from their wives. They did so humorously for five years. In 2015 a new version premiered with Thomas Lennon as Felix and Matthew Perry as Oscar which limped along for two years. The difference was Lennon & Perry were talented actors playing parts whereas Randall & Klugman were ideal fits who were perfection in the roles, better even than Lemmon and Matthau in the original film.
They definitely do. Stick with a winning formula I guess. I've not seen any of the originals that you picked so didn't bother with the new ones either.
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