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Re-thinking Re-imagining (or B.S. Galactica)
Joseph Nanni on why re-imagining classic SFF television series
is enough to shrivel the soul of any true fan. Hmmm. Battlestar Galactica
anyone?
Most of the concepts were warp speed ahead of the limited budget that brought them life. ‘Battlestar: Galactica’ was an exception. The producers spent money and they even enlisted the effects magic of John Dykstra who helped put the fire in the X-Wing fighter. I didn’t have to stretch my already limber imagination when I saw the glimmering Cylons, so shiny and seductive, driven by a mechanical mind operating behind that floating red eye. Maybe that’s why ‘Battlestar: Galactica’ is one of those lingering embers of sci-fi television that still burns in my mind. All I know is I tolerated the space orphans and, ‘My dad’s the commander’ sub-plots just to hear that robotic battle cry ‘Cylon raiders attack!’ It was right up there with ‘Exterminate!’ It was fun. Remember? Well, the producers of the new Battlestar mini-series seemed to have forgot. Last weekend was the Canadian premiere of the relatively new ‘Battlestar: Galactica’ mini-series which aired early in December on the Sci-Fi channel in the US. I was eager to see it, not because I was expecting to have some old magic rekindled but because it had generated so much controversy in the sci-fi community. They warmed up with a short behind-the-scenes special, which included interviews with the cast and producers and several apologies and explanations as to why they deviated from the original. My favourite line explained how the new version has the essence of the original because it is about people. It’s about humanoids really but I’ll accept people, too. It was a soft sell and relatively straightforward look into what we were about to see. With all the hoopla around the re-imagining, I don’t blame them for walking softly. It certainly lowered my expectations and set my criticism on ‘stun’. I wasn’t as mortified as so many die-hard fans seem to be. Sure, it wasn’t the Battlestar I remembered but getting back the old magic is near impossible, ask George Lucas. Actually, I thought the special effects were excellent. The space battles, while smoothly choreographed, still had a sense of chaos and the Caprica locations and space vessel interiors transported me to a place by way of a mix of blue screen and CGI. The drama was high. There were a lot of people having sex, the acting was pretty good and, who knows, maybe there were a bunch of kids sitting in front of the tube having their imaginations sufficiently fueled. I’ll give it all of the above. I’ll also give all of the above to ‘Farscape’ and ‘Stargate: SG1’, two shows which infuse the genre with energy and ideas. The new Battlestar doesn’t and it doesn’t pay any mind to the old show either. The only concrete reference to the original series is a shot of a museum/gift shop containing props from Battlestar’s past, which only confuses things. Are they suggesting that the old series is part of their history? The brief pass over an old Cylon shell just reminds us what not to expect. The new Cylons have been reduced to a couple of CGI exoskeletons. There’s no intimidating metallic armour but there is a cut to a long wiry hand accompanied by a dramatic hit in the musical score which tells us it’s dangerous. A new ‘sexy’ Cylon named Six of Twelve sound familiar - accompanies them. These more advanced Cylons take human form so they can infiltrate humanoid society and bring it down from the inside. Not a bad plan but not very exciting to watch either. Just imagine a re-imagining of ‘Doctor Who’ where Davros has developed a humanoid travel machine for the mutated minds of the Kaleds. I think there would be some sort of armed revolution on the steps of the BBC. Another thing that irked me was how the producers cut corners. I’m not talking about cheap looking costuming or the mix of digital and analog devices in the ships technology, but rather the computer printout paper that had all four of its corners cut off to make it look futuristic. This type of propping is one of the hallmarks of ill-conceived, careless Science Fiction. If you have a good idea then maybe people will overlook your hardware store propping so that you don’t see the plunger, you just see the Dalek. There’s no need for me to point out further deviations. We all know about Starbuck by way of Pink and Adama’s new family tree. The big question here is why? Why bother going all that way to make a new series under the banner of ‘Battlestar: Galactica’ if you’re not going to include any of the elements that made the original what it was? And when I say original elements, I’m not talking about Vipers. The producers seemed so proud that they used the original Vipers. The original series had a lot more going for it than just frackin’ Vipers. There was something about the disco era art direction, the earnest delivery of the drama and the innocence of the comedy. These may seem like ephemeral details but they were part of the charm, part of the fun, part of what captured the imaginations of so many fans and held it through the show’s cancellation, syndication and up until its re-imagining. If you’re going to play in this genre you have to have a firm grasp on what it is that draws a person to a show like Battlestar and respect those that have kept it alive all these years. Let’s face it, generally, SF/F/H is on the fringes of every media from books to film and to stay alive you need the support of a dedicated fan base. So, why when you have this all-important group, would you risk alienating them? Are they looking for a lucrative merchandising deal? No wait. They removed all the cool things that they could have merchandised. Unless they’re planning a series of action figures featuring ‘Bed-Head Baltar’ or ‘Colonel Tigh With Booze Swilling Action Arm’. Maybe they thought that removing some of the more fantastic elements and adding more tension and drama would ‘age-it-up’ to appeal to wait...wait...that makes no sense, thirty somethings would already remember the show and we all know how much thirty somethings hate to be reminded of their childhood. If you’ve just joined me, this is the sarcastic part of my article. It’s not the first time re-imagining has ruined a good idea for a new generation. Tim Burton completely missed the point with ‘Planet Of The Apes’ and thus failed to create a franchise. He ignored the sense of frustration we felt from a world turned upside down, the obstinacy of the orang utans, the innovations in make-up, all the elements that carried the original through a slew of sequels and a TV series you know, the things that captured fans’ imaginations. On the other hand, ‘Star Trek’ and ‘Star Wars’ have built empires by paying attention to the people that support them. What a novel idea. On the other side, sometimes not even fan enthusiasm can save a series. It didn’t help ‘Farscape’ or ‘Doctor Who’ but let’s hope when they get another shot the producers remember why these properties are still on the table, why fans spend their lives celebrating them, resisting ridicule, why they have conventions, websites, why they have revivals in the first place? Battlestar veteran actor Richard Hatch, not the naked guy who won ‘Survivor’, had a good idea to continue the series where it left off. He put himself and his wallet on the line to make a trailer and he gathered the support of fans behind him. If the producers of the new ‘Battlestar: Galactica’ were worried they couldn’t capture the old series then maybe they should have done what ‘Star Trek’ did and ask what happens next five series later and they’re still exploring the possibilities of their seemingly endless universe. That seemed to work. If you’re reading this and are hard at work resurrecting an old property, on behalf of myself and fellow fans, I offer these few words of advice: listen, understand and if you’re not sure where to take it then go back to the source. It’s hard to recapture old glory and it’s easy to drop the ball on any production but if Disney can turn a theme park attraction into a decent blockbuster, the possibilities are endless. And when in doubt, cut the melodrama and break out the Cylons! Joseph Nanni Article: Joseph Nanni (c) 2004 comments - all rights
reserved
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OTHER CONTENT - March 2004
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When
I was a kid in the late seventies, my imagination was set ablaze
by ‘Star Wars’ and continually stoked by television shows like ‘Doctor
Who’, ‘Space 1999’, ‘The New Avengers’, ‘Buck Rogers’, ‘The Martian
Chronicles’ and ‘Battlestar: Galactica’.
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