Shows Worth Rebooting
I’d open up with a hackneyed joke about how reboots are getting out of hand, but honestly, we’re so deep into this reboot renaissance that even that gag itself has become dated. Much as we might protest the continued resurrection of beloved properties, it’s clear our collective wallets feel differently, as the trend continues to press on. So I have decided to steer into the skid, as it were. If we can’t seem to stop ourselves from rebooting old properties, then I say we at least give those second chances where they’re better needed.
Instead of attempting to milk a beloved classic long after the initial magic has faded, why not take a crack at bringing back some shows that had fans and interest, but just couldn’t manage to catch hold due to marketing, time-slot, budget, or just being before their time. Those fans might actually be glad for their property to get some attention, especially if it means more content. What sorts of shows you ask? Well, if you were wondering…
Big Wolf on Campus
Some of you may have caught this odd gem back in the late 90s when it aired, but for those unfamiliar with the show you can read a detailed breakdown on my Does it Hold Up entry. Big Wolf on Campus was in the vein of Buffy clones that were all the rage at the time, set apart for the comedic tone it’s low-budget almost demanded. So what makes this a good candidate for rebooting? To start off with, it fills a niche that’s in need of new content. While we had a ton of these programs back when it aired, nowadays the airwaves are lean for this sort of supernatural slice-of-life show, especially with long-running programs like Supernatural, and even newer start-ups like Wynona Earp, coming to an end.
Another point in it’s favor is that humor-wise, Big Wolf turned out to be decades ahead of it’s time. Murton Dingle, played by Danny Smith, is a big old box of meta-references almost as much as he is commentary. It’s a supernatural show with someone who is an expert on both occult lore and media, with lots of pointing out of tropes and parallels as are common in comedies of today. Past that, most of the general structure needs very little tweaking; while the Stacey character wouldn’t really play today, Lori was surprisingly modern, and the town at large is full of intentionally ridiculous characters, making them oddly timeless.
The trickiest part for this would be the budget. A large chunk of Big Wolf’s charm came from the fact that they had so little money for effects, they were never going to be able to make an actual scary monster for Tommy to fight. That forced the team to be creative, either adding fun twists to classics to cover for their makeshift costumes, or creating new threats whole-cloth, purposely coming up with antagonists that could be cheaply brought to screen. It’s this very spark of necessity that added something special to the show, forcing creativity to cover where cash could not. While I do think a reboot would be better served with solid effects, I’d want them to keep that uniqueness of the original.
Oh, and Danny Smith would have to come back as an older Murton. It’s not Big Wolf without the owner of the most over-decorated room in TV.
Wonderfalls
I had to truly struggle with some inner-debate on this one, because there are no shortage of Bryan Fuller shows I would like brought back. But Dead Like Me had a sense of closure with the movie, so that one isn’t as needed, and as for my truest love, Pushing Daisies… it comes down to logistics. I’d never want to see it recast, the chemistry was too perfect, but many of the stars have gone on to have successful careers. Bringing them back together, and dealing with the implied time gap, it feels like a recipe for Arrested Development Seasons 4 and 5. Besides, the true point of this is giving a second chance to shows that needed it, and Pushing Daisies is generally recognized for how amazing it was.
Wonderfalls tends to get left behind in the discussion of early Fuller shows, which is curious both because it directly ties in to Pushing Daisies via the Muffin Buffalo Easter Egg, and reuses the outstanding Lee Pace, albeit in a smaller capacity. Since I don’t have a whole blog on Wonderfalls, a quick rundown: a college-aged woman, Jaye, feeling adrift in life works at the souvenir shop at Niagara Falls. One day, the knick-knacks start to speak in short sentences, giving her a vague directive. Soon realizing their instructions lead her to help people, she balances this new strange aspect of her life against not letting anyone think she’s lost touch with reality.
The setup is fairly evergreen, there’s nothing about that idea connecting to the period where it was written, and has a good balance of the semi-mystical against daily life. Recasting would be tough, and also potentially unnecessary. Because it was so well-cast, and the dynamics between the characters so good, it might be interesting to just do a time-jump and pick up with them down the line. There would inevitably have to be some new inciting incident, Jaye needing to teach someone with similar yet not quite the same gifts (the show already established she is not the only one who gets visions) or perhaps some aspect of her powers manifesting after so long. It might be expensive to get Lee Pace back given that he’s boarded the Marvel train, but you never know.
If this one did go the full restart method though, that would easily work as well, so long as it was once again cast well. Moving the same concept up a few decades presents just as stable a base, however what grows from it will be wildly different, as the new character has the struggles appropriate to her generation. It would absolutely need to have Bryan Fuller at the helm to work, but given how passionate he is about his past projects, that might actually be the easiest part of all this.
Alright, that’s enough out of me for this entry, what about you folks? Let me know what shows you feel like the world has forgotten that could do with a fresh coat of reboot-paint and another chance to stroll across the stage.