JMS is at the helm:
https://gizmodo.com/babylon-5-is-get...zyn-1847752907
https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/bab...ki-1235075236/
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Naw, leave it be. It was fine, living in a cosy little space in my memory - there's no need to drag out and slaughter it, just because some bean-counter's spreadsheet thinks it'll make a quid.
Just hope that SyFy have nothing to do with it...
Would have been nice if they had finished the spin offs they were working on though..
JMS is at the helm,so I do have some faith he as the original creator might do a good job!
This is a really good website if you want to look at some of the original concepts behind the series:
https://www.b5scrolls.com/
One of the people connected with that website,got hold of the original CGI assets,and re-rendered them on a modern system:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtN...zDuTq_BJ7xj_MA
Considering they are 26 years old,they still look pretty decent IMHO. There also seems to be a better master of the original series too on HBO Max:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_oFTEAU9O8
Doubt this will get anywhere, at least I hope so. The original had a stellar cast, and story and I don't see it working this day and age. It's my all time fave series, and I don't see it getting improved any by getting a modern version made. The whole season wide story thing was innovative when it came out, but all too common these days. As Spreadie said, leave it as is. Also they tried rebooting it twice, Crusade and Legend of the Rangers... the latter was a horrid mess. Plus JMS has been going on about remakes for years...
Crusade and LotR weren't reboots though, they were stories in the same universe, imho there's still a lot to tell in the B5 universe, not sure how I feel about a reboot though, the original is a classic, yeah some of the acting is a bit hammy, but over all, the whole 5 year arc thing worked, holes yeah, but as a whole piece of work it stands up,
I still have some of the original CGI ship models on a CD somewhere, I forget who it was who gave them to me, some guy I knew over ICQ in the 90s who had connections :)
I dunno.....Quote:
Originally Posted by CAT-THE-FIFTH
They said the same about Ridley Scott and the recent train wreck of Alien films... and about George Lucas regarding the recent Star Wars films....
I live in hope apparently! :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Ttaskmaster
That's worth digging out..Quote:
Originally Posted by cptwhite_uk
I love Babylon 5. I have the full box set which includes all the movies and also the Crusade spin off series.
I could get behind it given JMS is behind it. Shame that a fair few of the actors have died so we wouldn't see them again.
https://www.theverge.com/2021/9/27/2...er-bros-the-cw
Here’s the full description Warner Bros. provided to The Verge:
A few hours after we published this post, Straczynski tweeted his answer:Quote:
In a from-the-ground-up reboot of the original series, John Sheridan, an Earthforce officer with a mysterious background, is assigned to Babylon 5, a five-mile-long space station in neutral space, a port of call for travelers, smugglers, corporate explorers and alien diplomats at a time of uneasy peace and the constant threat of war. His arrival triggers a destiny beyond anything he could have imagined, as an exploratory Earth company accidentally triggers a conflict with a civilization a million years ahead of us, putting Sheridan and the rest of the B5 crew in the line of fire as the last, best hope for the survival of the human race.
IMHO,he could have done a series about the Earth-Dilgar war or the Earth-Minbari war??Quote:
To answer all the questions, yes, it’s true, Babylon 5 is in active development as a series for the CW. We have some serious fans over at the network, and they’re eager to see this show happen. I’m hip deep into writing the pilot now, and will be running the series upon pickup. The network understands the uniqueness of Babylon 5 and is giving me a great deal of latitude with the storytelling.
As noted in the announcement, this is a reboot from the ground up rather than a continuation, for several reasons. Heraclitus wrote “You cannot step in the same river twice, for the river has changed, and you have changed.” In the years since B5, I’ve done a ton of other TV shows and movies, adding an equal number of tools to my toolbox, all of which I can bring to bear on one singular question: if I were creating Babylon 5 today, for the first time, knowing what I now know as a writer, what would it look like? How would it use all the storytelling tools and technological resources available in 2021 that were not on hand then?
How can it be used to reflect the world in which we live, and the questions we are asking and confronting every day? Fans regularly point out how prescient the show was and is of our current world; it would be fun to take a shot at looking further down the road. So we will not be retelling the same story in the same way because of what Heraclitus said about the river. There would be no fun and no surprises. Better to go the way of Westworld or Battlestar Galactica where you take the original elements that are evergreens and put them in a blender with a ton of new, challenging ideas, to create something fresh yet familiar. To those asking why not just do a continuation, for a network series like this, it can’t be done because over half our cast are still stubbornly on the other side of the Rim.
How do you telling continuing story of our original Londo without the original Vir? Or G’Kar? How do you tell Sheridan’s story without Delenn? Or the story of B5 without Franklin? Garibaldi? Zack?
The original Babylon 5 was ridiculously innovative: the first to use CGI to create ships and characters, and among the very first to shoot widescreen with a vigorous 5.1 mix. Most of all, for the first time, Babylon 5 introduced viewers accustomed to episodic television to the concept of a five-year arc with a pre-planned beginning, middle and end…creating a brand new paradigm for television storytelling that has subsequently become the norm. That tradition for innovation will continue in this new iteration, and I hope to create additional new forms of storytelling that will further push the television medium to the edge of what’s possible.
Let me conclude by just saying how supportive and enthusiastic everyone at the CW has been and is being with this project. They understand the unique position Babylon 5 occupies both in television and with its legions of fans, and are doing everything they can to ensure the maximum in creative freedom, a new story that will bring in new viewers while honoring all that has come before.
Onward!
Mentions Sheridan, no Sinclair though, who was pretty integral to the Earth-Minbari war and the overall Earth Minbari storyline, as well as the whole B4 thing....
I wish I didn't agree with that, but I do. Even with JMS.Quote:
Originally Posted by Spreadie
B5 is probably my favourite sci-fi series of all and I'd be reluctant to even give a reboot a try, lest it ruin the original for me. Strangely enough, I nearly bought the original series on DVD only a few weeks ago, despite having it recorded from TV.
If they do some new spin-offs, great. Reboot? Nah, don't think so.
Recently ripped and watched through the first 4 series (own the box set of the entire thing). I'm not sure I could enjoy a reboot. The actors where exceptional well cast and I just don't think anyone could replace them in my mind (given how many of them have died since making original series trek look well represented in comparison!).
I'll never forget using Vir to help get my through my electronics exams (Voltage = Current x Resistance - V=IR).
Ooh, I'd love to see those.Quote:
Originally Posted by cptwhite_uk
I'll try and dig them out Spreadie if you're interested
Me me me me me, I can lay hands on Amigas still so would be interesting to have a play with some of the old stuff.Quote:
Originally Posted by cptwhite_uk
Didn't they already make a reboot..and call is Star Trek Deep Space 9? :D :D
Joking apart I think they should leave well alone - I re-watched all of B5 fairly recently and really enjoyed it - I don't think I could stomach watching a modern CGI heavy reboot of the same story. Another spin-off - yes - but I generally despise reboots and it's incredibly rare for them to work out successfully.
However it's the "in" thing at the moment isn't it. Not a good time to be a TV fan over the age of 20!
I really wish they covered the Dilgar War or the Earth-Minbari War,because these are key events on the B5 storyline which are only touched on during the main series. The Dilgar War was why the Earth Alliance became a major power despite being massively technologically behind - they used superior tactics over a more advanced foe(who was being manipulated by the Shadows). But it then lead to the arrogance,that Earthforce would have no problems dealing with the more competent Minbari,which lead to the Earth-Minbari War.Quote:
Originally Posted by Spud1
Also there would be plenty of pew-pew to keep people interested in it - everyone likes a bit of pew-pew* right?
Will stuff get blown up?Quote:
Originally Posted by CAT-THE-FIFTH
I used to like Stargate SG1. They knew how to blow stuff up.
One thing that's been nagging me recently is the fact that it's CW, the home of teen drama... so wonder how much the network execs will have on the input to story etc... if I remember, one of the reasons Crusade was cancelled was because the network didn't have much faith in the spin-off...
You know, you blow up one sun and suddenly everyone expects you to walk on water...
Don't. I'm not sure my mind can take the SG1 reboot as well :( Kind of sad that I want them to abandon that idea again! Similarly though, another spin off show could work really well. Maybe something from the Goa'uld perspective could be really interesting for example. Loads of lore left to explore!Quote:
Originally Posted by [GSV]Trig
It's next on my re-watch list when I can be bothered to get the DVDs from the loft :)
SG1 was great! :DQuote:
Originally Posted by DanceswithUnix
SG1 is being rebooted?? But it won't be the same without Macgyver!Quote:
Originally Posted by Spud1
It's been an on again-off again thing for a while, ever since the other spin-off movies were cancelled...but yes has been confirmed as in pre-production again now. Apparently Michael Shanks is going to be in it as Daniel again, which is going to be confusing on it's own ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by CAT-THE-FIFTH
Agreed on Macgyver though ;) The show lost a lot of it's edge in the later seasons when he was all but written out of most scenes.
Yeah RDA wanted to spend time with his daughter which is fair enough, now she is older though I wonder if he could be tempted back...
Theres plenty of stories to be told in the SG universe, and including Universe...
There was a story I read many many years ago where Jack actually ascended...
The poor guy is 71, let him retire :DQuote:
Originally Posted by [GSV]Trig
Edit: Now, what does the daughter look like with a mullet ;) :D