News has broken about NBC remaking the murder mystery series, Murder, She Wrote. This time around, Octavia Spencer, who won an Oscar for her role in The Help, will star as Jessica “J.B.” Fletcher, mystery writer and angel of death*. A few changes are being made to the series, beyond having an actress younger than Angela Lansbury was when she played Jessica. First, instead of the main character being a widow who wrote mysteries to supplement her income and getting a break, the new JB Fletcher will be a hospital administrator in her day job. With Jessica having a regular job, she won’t be able to travel around as much as in the original series. Second, Jessica will be a self-published author instead of going through a publishing company. This reflects the huge changes in the publishing industry since the original series left the air.
The usual question when anything is remade is, “Why do a remake?” In this case, NBC is still rebuilding after the fiasco of moving Jay Leno to a 10pm time slot, losing five dramas including the long-running Law & Order. NBC is still rebuilding, trying to regain the lost audience, a tough chore when the options available are almost boundless. The network has already cancelled one remake, Ironside, after three episodes, replacing it with Dateline for the most part in the time slot**.
The difference, though, between Ironside and Murder, She Wrote is familiarity. The original Ironside starred Raymond Burr, who was better known for Perry Mason. The old series, while falling one short of having 200 episodes over eight seasons, never received much syndication beyond the 70s; Murder, She Wrote lasted twelve seasons with 284 episodes, plus came out when syndication was far more established with the 500 channel cable line up looming. Murder, She Wrote had a larger impact, and, having ended its twelve season run in 1996, is better remembered. NBC may be counting on people wondering about the differences between the original and the remake to get a decent number of viewers for the pilot episode.
There will be complaints. With the Internet and social media, people have many places to vent about a series sight unseen. There are three areas of contention that I can see. First, Jessica has a day job. The original series was more an anthology series featuring whodunits, and with JB Fletcher being a successful author able to live off her royalties, there was no need to anchor her to any one location. If one episode needed her in LA one week and the next week’s show needed her in Miami, the script writers could hand wave her being in both cities as being on a book signing tour. Or she could visit friends and relatives anywhere in the world*** for any number of reasons. The new Jessica Fletcher, though, has a day job – hospital administrator. The new Jessica can’t gallivant around the country. Being self-published, she can’t yet live off her royalties. Book tours would either be self-funded or virtual. However, being at a hospital means that she would see the bodies that come in, giving her a chance to notice that the odd death isn’t of natural causes. This also means that, in a large enough city, she’s not going to be the harbinger of death. In the original Murder, She Wrote, everywhere JB Fletcher went, someone died, to the point where people could call her Entertainment’s most successful serial killer.
The second area of contention is the choice of actress in the new series. As mentioned about, Spencer is an Oscar winner. However, Angela Lansbury was much beloved in the role. It may be difficult to separate her from JB Fletcher. I’d have called it unremakable, alongside Columbo, for the same reason; the lead character and her actress have become one and the same to many viewers. Spencer will have to bring her own interpretation to the character and hope that people are willing to accept her version.
The third issue is tone. Remakes tend to go in one of two directions, the comedic approach or the dark and gritty approach. The original Murder, She Wrote was light fare. Sure, there was at least one body per episode, but to have a murder mystery, there needs to be a murder. At the same time, Jessica made the rounds, talking to suspects and investigating the crime scene, giving the viewers a way to solve the mystery alongside her. The end reveal showed the clues, letting viewers know that there wasn’t anything pulled out of thin air. The new series needs to keep the mystery aspect, keep the viewers following for clues. The level of gore might be raisable, thanks to shows like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and still remain light entertainment.
This isn’t to say that the show will be bad. Nothing has been filmed yet. The show can still succeed or fail on its own merits. NBC needs to have a deft touch with the new series, to bring in fans of the original, while still satisfying new viewers. Best of luck!
* Everywhere Jessica went, someone died. Her hometown of Cabot Cove, Maine, was probably happy to see her leave for a book signing; it gave the townsfolk a breather from waiting for the next murder.
** Also coming up in the Ironside timeslot, a live version of The Sound of Music.
*** World being, for the most part, the Lower 48 States with maybe a detour into Canada. Maybe.
Thanks for the feedback people sent in – and it turns out a few genertors DID have a formatting bug. Any generator with a single dropdown-box control was apparently prone to a formatting malfunction. I think I’ve corrected it at this time. Be sure to take a look at the beta site, http://www.pageofgenerators.com/.
So now the next question is when to launch and I’m targeting November. I just have to figure out when because things are a bit busy – and the holiday season makes it both easier and harder to do.
Now with this out of the way – unless someone finds anything else (do let me know) – my next concern more before/in the new year will be a community. Disqus is fun and all for one-offs, but right now I’m debating a mailing list, a message board, and http://elgg.org/ which I saw at Trilobyte studios. The Disqus comments are nice, but also have their issues and aren’t as intimate (I’m not planning to get rid of them).
Oh and new generators? Yeah, I seriously have to revive some of my ideas it’s been ages since I did one – and the new framework makes them easier to do – and easier since I just reviewed a lot of code.
So thanks to everyone for the feedback and help.
Steven Savage is a Geek 2.0 writer, speaker, blogger, and job coach. He blogs on careers at http://www.musehack.com/, nerd and geek culture at http://www.nerdcaliber.com/, and does a site of creative tools at http://www.seventhsanctum.com/. He can be reached at http://www.stevensavage.com/.
AMC working on Walking Dead spin-off.
The spin-off of the TV series adapted from the comic is slated for a 2015 debut. Robert Kirkman, who created the original comic series, will use the spin-off to expand the world of /The Walking Dead/.
The Final Girls to star Jamie Lee Curtis.
The series will be a drama featuring a group of girls who survived horror stories as the sole survivor. The name comes from the trope where the last character to reach the end credtis of a horror movie is usually the well-behaved girl. Curtis herself played one in Halloween.
Stephen King nervous about reaction to The Shining sequel.
Doctor Sleep follows Danny Torrence after he has grown up. King hopes that people think that the book will be better than The Shining, reflecting the experience he has gained since the original book was published.
A Wrinkle in Time adapted as a graphic novel.
Madeleine L’Engle’s classic children’s novel has been adapted by Hope Larson as a graphic novel.
Star Wars adapted to, wait, Shakespeare? Really?
Verily. In an effort to help students grasp Shakespearean plays, Ian Doescher wrote William Shakespeare’s Star Wars. After Doescher sent in the first act, Lucas Films encouraged him to continue. “True it is, that these are not the droids for which thou search’st.”
Commissioner Gordon to get prequel series.
The announcement came on the same day that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. premiered. Fox managed to outbid Warner Bros. TV on the series, which will focus on the time Gordon spent as a detective on the Gotham City Police Department. Bruno Heller, creator of The Mentalist, will helm the show.
Dark Horse announces Firefly/Serenity continuation comic.
Firefly is seeing a resurgence lately, with tabletop RPG, boardgame, and now a new comic. A release date and a writer have both not been set.
Constantine may be developed for NBC.
NBC has ordered a script based on the DC Comics character John Constantine. A pilot has still has yet to be greenlit.
Lost Three Stooges film found!
A copy of the seventeen minute short “Hello, Pop!” has been discovered in a shed in Austrailia. The short was thought to be lost in 1967 in a fire.
Voice work begins on Thunderbirds Are Go!
A remake of the Supermarionation TV series will be a mix of puppetry and CGI. David Graham will reprise the role of Parker, Lady Penelope’s driver. Lady Penelope will be played by Rosamund Pike.
Live action Cruella de Vil movie in works.
Glenn Close, who played the puppy-fur-loving villain in the live action 101 Dalmations and 102 Dalmations is the executive producer of the movie. Disney also has a live action Cinderella in the works.
CBS to adapt The Songs of the Seraphim novels.
Angel Time is in development with author Anne Rice signed on as executive producer. Vampires are not involved.
ReBoot rebooted.
Rainmaker Entertainment, who bought Mainframe Entertainment, has announced a reboot of the CGI animated series ReBoot. Rainmaker renamed its TV division to Mainframe Entertainment in conjunction with the news on the 20th anniversary of the creation of ReBoot.
There was much rejoicing.
Walter White’s obituary runs in Albuquerque newspaper.
Fans of Breaking Bad paid for an obituary for lead character Walter White after the series finale.
Harrison Ford open to Blade Runner sequel.
The adaptation of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep may have a sequel. A script is in the works.
Yep, the next generation of Seventh Sanctum is here, and ready for you to test at one of my experimental domains!
http://www.pageofgenerators.com/
I’ve been through my own beta testing, but I’m looking for:
- Any bugs.
- Any formatting/compatibility issues.
- How it works on mobile.
So let me know!
Steven Savage is a Geek 2.0 writer, speaker, blogger, and job coach. He blogs on careers at http://www.musehack.com/, nerd and geek culture at http://www.nerdcaliber.com/, and does a site of creative tools at http://www.seventhsanctum.com/. He can be reached at http://www.stevensavage.com/.
Some time back, I reviewed Spider-Man, the Sam Raimi helmed adaptations of the comics. Since then, the movie series has been rebooted, turning the new movie, The Amazing Spider-Man into an adaptation and a reboot at the same time.
The history of Spider-Man was covered in the previous review, but a brief recap of Amazing Fantasy #15 wouldn’t hurt. Nebbish, nerdy Peter Parker, a high school student, was bitten by a radioactive spider during a field trip. The venom interacted with Peter’s blood, giving him the proportional strength and agility of a spider and a preternatural sense for pending danger. As he learns how to handle his powers, he uses his knowledge and skills to create web-shooters; wrist-mounted devices that shoot out artificial webs. Peter then patrols the streets of New York as the Amazing Spider-Man.
For the movie, The Amazing Spider-Man, the writers returned to the classic stories instead of using Marvel’s Ultimate universe. The difference, beyond the source of Spider-Man’s powers*, is the love interest. The Raimi film used Mary Jane Watson, who, prior to One More Day, was Peter’s wife in the main line comic. However, early Spider-Man stories had Peter paired with Gwen Stacy, a fellow geek. The new movie explores their relationship, especially in light of the job Gwen’s father has, a police captain looking for the new spider-themed vigilante terrorizing New York. And, as in the comics, Spider-Man’s foe is someone that Peter has gotten close to; this time, the classic villain, The Lizard who is Gwen and Peter’s mentor, Dr. Curt Connors.
As mentioned previously in Lost in Translation, superhero comics tend to intertwine, making it hard to adapt everything the character has been involved in. Thus, the concept of various related-but-separate universes, such as the DC Animated Dini-verse and the Marvel Cinematic Universe of The Avengers. While Marvel Studios was busy with The Avengers Initiative, it had to work with Sony, owner of Columbia Pictures, to get the Daily Bugle into a shot in The Avengers**. Right now, Sony has the rights to Spider-Man and related characters, so cameos by other characters other than Ghost Rider is unlikely.***
The Amazing Spider-Man/ holds up on its own as a movie, without needing prior knowledge. All the characters are introduced, Spidey’s origin is shown again. This time around, the writers remembered that Spider-Man doesn’t just fight; he talks at his opponents. The comic version of Spider-Man always maintained snappy patter, in part to psych himself up and in part to keep his opponents off-balance. The rebooted version also had the patter, the insults, the taunts. The nature of the threat kept with the theme of runaway science that appeared in the comic; the Lizard looked to change the residents of the city into his subjects.
The movie does represent the core of Spider-Man well; the responsibility, the dangers of misusing science and radiation, and the heart of the character. Allowing the movie to create a new cinematic Spider-verse, separate from the prior Raimi films and from the Avengers-verse, allowed the filmmakers to explore what placing the duties of a superhero does to a teen.
Next week, the October adaptational news round out.
* Genetically altered spider versus radioactive spider. Both reflect the fears of the era the comics were created in.
** Ultimately, the shot wasn’t used.
*** Ironically, Spider-Man made guest appearances in every new Marvel title to establish that the book belonged to the overall universe and to bring attention to the title.
This past weekend, October 11-13, 2013, saw Can*Con 2013, the 33rd Conference on Canadian Content in Speculative Arts and Literature, held in Ottawa, Ontario. This year, Can*Con also hosted the Aurora Awards, celebrating the best in Canadian science fiction and fantasy. Can*Con is small compared to media conventions such as Anime North, Toronto FanExpo, and the San Diego ComicCon, but the size helped focus the direction of panels towards readers and writers of speculative fiction.
The conference had three panel tracks plus a special events track. The panels were aimed at authors both published and aspiring and at readers. Fan works, webcomics, graphic novels were also part of the mix; Can*Con acknowledged the breadth of formats available on paper and the web for speculative fiction. The special events track included the Auroras plus readings by guest authors and pitch sessions held by Canadian publishers. Friday and Saturday evening featured concerts and filking*.
There was a small dealer’s room with tables piled with books where authors and publishers sold their works. The diversity of the wares went from comics and graphic novels to anthologies to novels both light and dark.
The Aurora awards took place Sunday. The winners were:
Robert J. Sawyer – Lifetime Achievement Award
Best Novel – English**: The Silvered, Tanya Huff[link]
Best YA Novel – English: Under My Skin: The Wildings Vol. 1, Charles de Lint
Best Short Fiction – English: “The Walker of the Shifting Borderland”, Douglas Smith, On Spec #90
Best Poem/Song – English: “A sea monster tells his story”, David Clink, The Literary Review of Canada, July/August
Best Graphic Novel*** – English: Weregeek, Alina Pete
Best Related Work – English: Blood and Water, edited by Hayden Trenholm
Best Artist – Erik Mohr, cover art for Chizine Publications
Best Fan Publication: Speculating Canada blog, edited by Derek Newman-Stille
Best Fan Filk – Kari Maaren
Best Fan Organizational: Randy McCharles, Chair and Programming, When Worlds Collide, Calgary
Best Fan Related Work: Ron Friendman, conception and delivery of the Aurora Awards voter package.
Takeaways from the convention: Canadian speculative fiction authors, published and aspiring, would do well here. The panels are informative, there’s a chance to network with other authors, with publishers, and with fans. Fans can easily mingle with writers; panels existed for fan activities. The convention was open and welcoming, and small enough to be intimate. I will be returning.
* The singing of popular songs with the words changed to a more geeky version. The name is derived from folk music.
** The French Aurora Awards ceremony will be held at Boréal in Montreal.
*** Four webcomics were up for Best Graphic Novel – English.
To put it simply – the site is now migrated to the new Bootstrap-wrapped design. As far as I can tell it’s done, completed, and ready for testing. Well more testing, migrating over the generators required I validate each, and now my head is filled with random.
Next up I’m going to take a little bit of a break because . . . well yeah, this has been my spare time for about a week and a half, and I haven’t had much of that. Then there’s going to be some testing, and finally, migration. Just remember after the migration I’m really going to need feedback!
If there’s one concern I have it’s that right now the site’s appearance on phones is kinda “meh.” It works, but the branding is off and the control panel scales too big. Admittedly I don’t think that’s a huge deal, but still I’d like to make it better.
Now let’s take a look at the site! (more…)
Last week, I reviewed Doom, a movie that adapted its source well for the most part but still fell flat. If the parts that didn’t work were fixed, what would happen?
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.
Okay, a bit of a stretch. Scott Pilgrim and Doom are in two different genres of movie. Doom went with a cross between horror, science fiction, and action. Scott Pilgrim isn’t as easy to define.
Before I get too far ahead, the background. Scott Pilgrim started, as creator Bryan Lee O’Malley puts it, as a “manga-influenced comic”. O’Malley wrote six manga-inspired graphic novels featuring the titular character as he tries to win the girl of his dreams, Ramona Flowers while still dealing with the rest of his life, his current girlfriend Knives Chau, and the other people in his band, Sex Bob-omb. Complicating things are Scott’s sister Stacey, his roommate Wallace, and life in Toronto. Oh, and Ramona’s seven evil exes. Through the six volumes, Scott must defeat Ramona’s evil exes in order to stay with her.
The movie adaptations, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, is a partial adaptation, like Blade Runner was. The graphic novels take place over the course of a year; the movie treats the time as malleable, with most of the events taking place in a snowy April. The core arc of the graphic novels, Scott dealing with Knives, Ramona, Ramona’s evil exes, and maturing, was kept; the rest had to be removed to keep the movie under two hours. However, that parts that were adapted are taken directly from the comic. “Taken” might not be the accurate word. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World may be the most accurate adaptation reviewed in Lost in Translation. Scenes that do appear in the movie appear exactly as the did in the comic, sound effects and titles included. The comic was the storyboard for the movie. The DVD extras includes a gallery that shows a side by side comparison of a panel in the comic and its corresponding scene in the movie.
Helping with the accuracy of the adaptation was the location for filming. O’Malley used real locations in Toronto in the comic. Edgar Wright, director of this movie and the Cornetto Trilogy, decided that Toronto should play Toronto, something that the city seldom plays. The fight at Casa Loma was filmed at the real Casa Loma, complete with the scaffolding up for the refurbishment the building was undergoing. The Pizza Pizza beside the Goodwill does exist.
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World didn’t fare well at the box office, though. Both the comic and the movie can be described as a slice of life fantasy coming of age with video game elements. The movie really didn’t fit into any one slot. It’s a video game movie not based on a specific video game*. It’s a romance, but from the man’s point of view. It’s a comic book movie, without superheroes. The audience needed to know about video games, especially the fighting genre of games, comics, metafiction**, Toronto, television sitcoms, and music. Universal’s marketing department must have gone mad trying to figure out what approach to use to advertise Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. The movie is seeing a better reception through DVD, though, becoming a cult hit.
The lack of reception, however, does not take away that Scott Pilgrim vs. the World may be the best adapation reviewed here at Lost in Translation. The director kept to the plot of comic, consulting with the creator to ensure that the original vision reached the screen.
Next week, The Amazing Spider-Man.
* There is a video game based on the movie, though.
** Scott Pilgrim vs. the World has shout-outs to the idea of it being a movie and the nature of movies. To quote Scott, “They make movies in Toronto?”
