sf/f TV development news - 2013

[RJDiogenes]

Sindatur wrote:

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I think what Christopher was saying is that the XFiles they were solving were often causing them to go up against the Gov't covering stuff up, whih is the opposite of SHIELD who would be doing top secret stuff and doing the covering up

Ah, I see. I'm just thinking of government agency investigating spooky stuff versus spy organization dealing with SMERSH or something.

Christopher wrote:

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Oh, come on, plenty of superheroes/villains cross over into the paranormal: Dr. Strange, Blade, Werewolf by Night, Madame Web, you name it. Heck, Thor is an actual deity, at least in the comics.

Blade and Jack Russell aren't superheroes. I don't know who Madame Web is. Just because a character appears in a comic book doesn't make them a superhero. There's a world of difference between a concept inspired by James Bond and a concept inspired by Carl Kolchak. I highly doubt that SHIELD will be a "paranormal" series.

[Christopher]

You're arguing against yourself. The fact that not everything in the Marvel Universe is superhero-related is exactly the point. SHIELD is obviously not a "superhero" series specifically. We've been explicitly told that the show will stand largely apart from the movies, and not one of the characters established so far is a superhero of any sort, or even a previously established comics character. It is not a superhero show. It's a show about government agents dealing with security threats that would arise within the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- a universe that we already know includes a mix of alien and supernatural phenomena as well as all sorts of advanced weird science. So it stands to reason that SHIELD will face a variety of non-superhero-related crises which will surely arise from a mix of technological, paranormal, and extraterrestrial causes. The similarities to Weird Desk are obvious. No, of course they're not exactly alike, but the point is that they're similar enough in genre and approach that ABC felt they might compete for viewers.

[Temis the Vorta]

Christopher wrote:

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It's worth pointing out that these glib comparisons to old shows are just part of the TV-pitch vocabulary

True, but it's not just the pitches that are corny and outmoded. Reading about a "hactivist" character set off a red alert in my brain, envisioning some cliche come to life with greezy hair, pimples and pizza boxes in the corner. And of course, zero social skills. I would love it if he were totally contrary to type, maybe he has fantastic fashion sense and votes Republican? Anything to be fresh and different.

[Temis the Vorta]

Some SyFy news... Top contenders for pickups, nothing in space...

Moore’s Helix, from Sony Picture TV where Moore is under an overall deal, is about a team of scientists investigating a possible disease outbreak at an Antarctic research facility.

The Almighty Johnsons is an adaptation of the New Zealand fantasy comedy/drama series created by James Griffin and Rachel Lang and produced by All3Media’s South Pacific Pictures. It centers on Axl Johnson, who on his 21st birthday discovers he and his family members are reincarnated Norse gods.

[RJDiogenes]

^^ That doesn't sound promising for RHW.

Christopher wrote:

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You're arguing against yourself. The fact that not everything in the Marvel Universe is superhero-related is exactly the point. SHIELD is obviously not a "superhero" series specifically. We've been explicitly told that the show will stand largely apart from the movies, and not one of the characters established so far is a superhero of any sort, or even a previously established comics character. It is not a superhero show. It's a show about government agents dealing with security threats that would arise within the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- a universe that we already know includes a mix of alien and supernatural phenomena as well as all sorts of advanced weird science. So it stands to reason that SHIELD will face a variety of non-superhero-related crises which will surely arise from a mix of technological, paranormal, and extraterrestrial causes. The similarities to Weird Desk are obvious. No, of course they're not exactly alike, but the point is that they're similar enough in genre and approach that ABC felt they might compete for viewers.

So they're taking advantage of the success of Avengers, an over-the-top superhero action movie, by spinning off a shadowy, creepy spook show? Even if there are no superheroes involved-- which is odd enough-- SHIELD is still James Bond on crack. There may be alien invaders popping up, but it will likely be more like Independence Day than Paranormal Activity.

[Christopher]

I don't understand why you're so ferociously resisting this idea. You haven't even seen the damn show, so it's not like you're actually qualified to make assumptions about what it will or won't be. So why can't you just wait and see instead of being so pointlessly stubborn and argumentative? I'm done wasting my time trying to reason with you. When the show actually premieres, you will find out what it's like.

[RJDiogenes]

Well, see, if you look back, you'll notice that I'm not ferociously resisting anything. I just made an offhand joke and you went off on one of your defensive rampages again.

[Christopher]

"Defensive rampage?" Hardly. I have no reason to be defensive when I have no personal stake in this. I was simply trying to clarify the facts and explain to you why Weird Desk was more similar to SHIELD than the glib X-Files comparison would suggest. But as so often happens on the Internet, we ended up talking past each other or not hearing each other.

Frankly, text communication sucks. It's not how we evolved to interact. Without nonverbal cues, misunderstandings become inescapable and it's all too easy to perceive hostility or negativity where none was intended.

[Kegg]

RJDonner&Blitzen wrote:

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^^ That doesn't sound promising for RHW.

That is unfortunate. I guess I can cut down to just Defiance in the list of new SF&F programs I'm looking forward to.

I see The Almighty Johnsons advertised a lot on Syfy - the original, presumably - but it never looks that interesting.

[Temis the Vorta]

So does that leave Starz's Incursion as the only prospective space adventure series on the horizon, even possibly?

[RJDiogenes]

^^ As far as I can remember, unfortunately.

Christopher wrote:

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Frankly, text communication sucks. It's not how we evolved to interact. Without nonverbal cues, misunderstandings become inescapable and it's all too easy to perceive hostility or negativity where none was intended.

That is certainly true.

Kegg wrote:

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That is unfortunate. I guess I can cut down to just Defiance in the list of new SF&F programs I'm looking forward to.

Very unfortunate. The guy is a great talent. If given the chance, he could create something in the same league as Star Trek, Stargate, Babylon 5, Farscape, Firefly....

[Greg Cox]

Christopher wrote:

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It's worth pointing out that these glib comparisons to old shows are just part of the TV-pitch vocabulary, a shorthand for conveying the genre the show belongs to, and shouldn't be taken as a literal indication that the creators intend to copy the specifics of the shows being referenced. For instance, Gene Roddenberry pitched Star Trek as "Wagon Train to the stars," because Wagon Train was a successful television show that had the kind of format and tone he wanted to emulate, and saying that was a quick-and-dirty way of conveying that to the network execs because they'd know what kind of show it had been. But ST was a very, very different show from Wagon Train.

As a veteran of countless sales conferences, marketing meetings, and pitch sessions, I'll cop to using this kind of shorthand all the time. Like Christopher says, it's a quick-and-dirty way to get an idea across to a room full of jaded sales reps . . .

"It's THE HUNGER GAMES with elves . . ."

"It's TEN LITTLE INDIANS meets HARRY POTTER."

"It's LES MISERABLES in space . . . ."

In reality, of course, those are usually wild over-simplifications of very interesting, complicated stories, but when you only have two minutes (or less) to present a pitch, you can't get into detail about the book's nuanced exploration of the social implications of genetic engineering, not to mention the heroine's complicated, morally ambiguous relationship with her undead clone . . . .

"It's like BLADE RUNNER, but with vampires."

[Temis the Vorta]

"It's LES MISERABLES in space . . . ."

With Ben Browder as Jean Valjean? SOLD!

[Greg Cox]

Vorta Claus wrote:

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With Ben Browder as Jean Valjean? SOLD!

Works for me!

And Claudia Black as Javert!

[Kegg]

But then who does Wayne Pygram play?