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you only run a show twice....
Be on the road for a week, and what happens? A fannish timeloop, it feels like.
1) Doctor Who
The announcement that RTD will produce not only the next Doctor Who anniversary special but also the next seasons is on the one hand a blatant BBC confession of being in a panic and/or unable (unwilling?) of hiring a completely new showrunner. (I had seen on twitter in the weeks leading up to this that JMS was interested, which would certainly have been an intriguing mix, but I presume they decided the "American!!!!" backlash wasn't worth it. (Or maybe he withdrew because of point 2.)
Otoh, I do feel cautiously optimistic and looking foward to this. It's been 12 years, more than enough time to, to coin a phrase, regenerate, and also, I loved what RTD did in the last five years or so - the various miniseries - Years and Years, A Very Englsh Scandal and It's a Sin were all fascinating must-watchs for me, and I also dug his version of Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream. All these projects were different from each other, and each showed a creative mind on top of his game, with his flaws kept under control (possibly because the miniseries format and the limited budget meant there was no room for self indulgence). All of which could mean he's able to approach the Whoverse with new stories, not simply a rerun of his previous highlights (and lowlights).
Moreover, the man has a tendency to bring in actors he's worked before. Personally, I'm holding out for Lydia West who was both in Years and Years and It's a Sin (either as a Companion or a guest star), Ben Wishaw (guest star), and Nathaniel Curtis (guest star or Companion).
Characters he may or may not bring back: Here I'm hoping for Clyde and Rani from the Sarah Jane Adventures. Possibly also Luke. One or all in an episode would be lovely. And speaking of SJA, so sadly cut off due to Elisabeth Sladen's death, he was able to bring back Jo Grant for a two parter there, so maybe he can lure Katy Manning into the main show as well?
Not looking foward to: the inevitable rehash of the Moffat vs Davies fandom wars - which usually ignore that the two of them are in a mutual admiration society - but I just won't read any of the posts marked to be about that tiring subject, and I should be good. BTW, perhaps the most damming thing said about the Chibnall era is that no one seems to be writing "Chibnall vs RTD and/or Moffat" posts.
2. Babylon 5
So JMS has announced there will be a complete B5 reboot/reimagining (the way the Ron Moore headed BSG was a reboot of the Lorne Greene BSG, or the JJ Abrams movies were a reboot of the TOS Star Trek) , to be financed by the CW and headed by himself. My first instinctive reaction to hearing this was "Do not want". Because B5 isn't Star Trek or BSG, thought I, but thinking about further, I realised what I mean is that I don't feel possessive about the TOS version of ST, and have no feelings at all about the few pieces I've watched of the original Battlestar Galactica, so of course I didn't mind the way I do the idea of a rebooted Babylon 5. Also I wonder whether JMS said yes because of his ongoing bad situation with Warner Brothers and their non-marketing of B5.
Then again: It's been decades for him, he says he does it to answer the question "if you could do it all over again, what would you do differently from today's pov?", and I can't imagine he'd want to do anything not feeling creatively challenging to him. Also, I can imagine several of the arcs which had to be aborted because of rl circumstances (actors leaving, near cancellation a season early) feel like they want to be written out. (Though please, no Ivanova/Byron. Susan had a lucky escape there.)
(On a more silly note: maybe President Clark will now be a former reality tv star whose campaign motto is Make Earth Great Again.)
But...but...but... the actors. Most of all Londo, G'Kar and Vir. Right now, I cannot imagine anyone else playing these roles. Undoubtedly, I'll come around if someone gifted does - but right now? I'm fretting.
1) Doctor Who
The announcement that RTD will produce not only the next Doctor Who anniversary special but also the next seasons is on the one hand a blatant BBC confession of being in a panic and/or unable (unwilling?) of hiring a completely new showrunner. (I had seen on twitter in the weeks leading up to this that JMS was interested, which would certainly have been an intriguing mix, but I presume they decided the "American!!!!" backlash wasn't worth it. (Or maybe he withdrew because of point 2.)
Otoh, I do feel cautiously optimistic and looking foward to this. It's been 12 years, more than enough time to, to coin a phrase, regenerate, and also, I loved what RTD did in the last five years or so - the various miniseries - Years and Years, A Very Englsh Scandal and It's a Sin were all fascinating must-watchs for me, and I also dug his version of Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream. All these projects were different from each other, and each showed a creative mind on top of his game, with his flaws kept under control (possibly because the miniseries format and the limited budget meant there was no room for self indulgence). All of which could mean he's able to approach the Whoverse with new stories, not simply a rerun of his previous highlights (and lowlights).
Moreover, the man has a tendency to bring in actors he's worked before. Personally, I'm holding out for Lydia West who was both in Years and Years and It's a Sin (either as a Companion or a guest star), Ben Wishaw (guest star), and Nathaniel Curtis (guest star or Companion).
Characters he may or may not bring back: Here I'm hoping for Clyde and Rani from the Sarah Jane Adventures. Possibly also Luke. One or all in an episode would be lovely. And speaking of SJA, so sadly cut off due to Elisabeth Sladen's death, he was able to bring back Jo Grant for a two parter there, so maybe he can lure Katy Manning into the main show as well?
Not looking foward to: the inevitable rehash of the Moffat vs Davies fandom wars - which usually ignore that the two of them are in a mutual admiration society - but I just won't read any of the posts marked to be about that tiring subject, and I should be good. BTW, perhaps the most damming thing said about the Chibnall era is that no one seems to be writing "Chibnall vs RTD and/or Moffat" posts.
2. Babylon 5
So JMS has announced there will be a complete B5 reboot/reimagining (the way the Ron Moore headed BSG was a reboot of the Lorne Greene BSG, or the JJ Abrams movies were a reboot of the TOS Star Trek) , to be financed by the CW and headed by himself. My first instinctive reaction to hearing this was "Do not want". Because B5 isn't Star Trek or BSG, thought I, but thinking about further, I realised what I mean is that I don't feel possessive about the TOS version of ST, and have no feelings at all about the few pieces I've watched of the original Battlestar Galactica, so of course I didn't mind the way I do the idea of a rebooted Babylon 5. Also I wonder whether JMS said yes because of his ongoing bad situation with Warner Brothers and their non-marketing of B5.
Then again: It's been decades for him, he says he does it to answer the question "if you could do it all over again, what would you do differently from today's pov?", and I can't imagine he'd want to do anything not feeling creatively challenging to him. Also, I can imagine several of the arcs which had to be aborted because of rl circumstances (actors leaving, near cancellation a season early) feel like they want to be written out. (Though please, no Ivanova/Byron. Susan had a lucky escape there.)
(On a more silly note: maybe President Clark will now be a former reality tv star whose campaign motto is Make Earth Great Again.)
But...but...but... the actors. Most of all Londo, G'Kar and Vir. Right now, I cannot imagine anyone else playing these roles. Undoubtedly, I'll come around if someone gifted does - but right now? I'm fretting.