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Will Sam Beckett Return Home? NBC Orders Quantum Leap Reboot Pilot

Tosk said:
The second ep was an improvement over the first, but I still find this 50/50 approach really short-changes the Leap drama. Nice "cameo" tie-in to the original QL pilot Genesis, though!
Astronaut Samantha Stratton is only alive thanks to Sam.
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On Ep 2 specific
  • Yay for Space-Hero Ben and being the team glue (at PQL and on the Space Shuttle) - very likeable - loved how his team-and straight talking speech made the injured Commander come around.
  • liked the Shuttle story (even if probably TV-fied down and not accurate)
  • probably all ground control stations would see the shuttle close to Mir-station on sensors/radar and could contact Mir to wake them up.
  • the Shuttle jump > Mir bump into wasn't well done - should at least have shown trusters firing on the "EVA backpack" for accelerating/decelerating - even if the science doesn't add up otherwise)
  • liked how some of HQ team (techie and security "team-glued in Ben's together spirit" - roping in the hologram and Magic boss later)
  • the Hologram-Lady (sorry haven't memorized her name yet) character was a bit improved vs the pilot and the techie wasn't annoying and actually likeable too.
  • Also liked the security lady telling Magic to easy off a bit.

bad/groan/facepalm
  • super secret tech basement with a door in the living room with big windows. Why not go down the regular stairs to the basement ...
  • she was expecting them, but didn't prevent access or shut it down.
  • the smoke booby traps - but didn't burn the house down?

General
too little time leaping bother me, even if I know one reason is to prevent overuse of lead cast.
Hopefully they balance swings towards a 70 leap - 30 HQ or so.

  • Ben wanted to leap to a specific point/location in time for reasons unknown
  • Ben came from Korea (> possible Sam/Al Connections, could he be a son of one of them?)
 
Susan Diol now ranks with Charley Brill (Arne Darvin) and Bully Mumy (Anthony Tremont) as "longest gap between portrayals of the same character." (SF division.)

And is it just me or did the techie guy drop a normally censored expletive?
 
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Tosk said:
The second ep was an improvement over the first, but I still find this 50/50 approach really short-changes the Leap drama. Nice "cameo" tie-in to the original QL pilot Genesis, though!
Astronaut Samantha Stratton is only alive thanks to Sam.

He actually Leapt before his birth three times. The Civil War one, and then two which took place while he was still in utero.
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I did not pick up on the "Tie-in". Nice spotting.
 
1987SpaceGuy said:
  • liked the Shuttle story (even if probably TV-fied down and not accurate)
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Some liberties were taken, but they did consult with NASA:

https://www.space.com/quantum-leap-atlantis-space-shuttle-history
  • the Shuttle jump > Mir bump into wasn't well done - should at least have shown trusters firing on the "EVA backpack" for accelerating/decelerating - even if the science doesn't add up otherwise)
Click to expand...

As I mentioned, those didn't seem to be standard equipment in the '90s. Although it seemed implausible how fast Ben's impact with the station was given that he was propelled purely by his own leg muscles.

  • the smoke booby traps - but didn't burn the house down?
Click to expand...

I presume the basement room was on fire, and it would've spread to the house in time. I trust that Magic and Jen called the fire department.


too little time leaping bother me, even if I know one reason is to prevent overuse of lead cast.
Hopefully they balance swings towards a 70 leap - 30 HQ or so.
Click to expand...

They said in an interview that it would be at maximum 40% present day, usually much less. So far it seems to be a pretty high ratio of present-day stuff.

  • Ben came from Korea (> possible Sam/Al Connections, could he be a son of one of them?)
Click to expand...

Huh? Al and Sam's brother were in the Vietnam War. Going by the wiki, only two episodes mentioned Korea, "The Americanization of Machiko" (where Sam leapt into a Korean War veteran) and "Rebel Without a Clue" (in which Diedrich Bader's character was a Korean War vet and another character had lost a son there).
 
Thanks for the space.com QL related link.
It bothers me less now ;)

Christopher said:
Huh?
Al and Sam's brother were in the Vietnam War. Going by the wiki, only two episodes mentioned Korea, "The Americanization of Machiko" (where Sam leapt into a Korean War veteran) and "Rebel Without a Clue" (in which Diedrich Bader's character was a Korean War vet and another character had lost a son there).
Click to expand...

Maybe Sam or Al did something there (off screen) or their leaps somehow changed history/led to Ben being born?
It's just a hunch of mine, doesn't mean it's right or gonna happen.
 
1987SpaceGuy said:
On Ep 2 specific
  • Yay for Space-Hero Ben and being the team glue (at PQL and on the Space Shuttle) - very likeable - loved how his team-and straight talking speech made the injured Commander come around.
  • liked the Shuttle story (even if probably TV-fied down and not accurate)
  • probably all ground control stations would see the shuttle close to Mir-station on sensors/radar and could contact Mir to wake them up.
  • the Shuttle jump > Mir bump into wasn't well done - should at least have shown trusters firing on the "EVA backpack" for accelerating/decelerating - even if the science doesn't add up otherwise)
  • liked how some of HQ team (techie and security "team-glued in Ben's together spirit" - roping in the hologram and Magic boss later)
  • the Hologram-Lady (sorry haven't memorized her name yet) character was a bit improved vs the pilot and the techie wasn't annoying and actually likeable too.
  • Also liked the security lady telling Magic to easy off a bit.

bad/groan/facepalm
  • super secret tech basement with a door in the living room with big windows. Why not go down the regular stairs to the basement ...
  • she was expecting them, but didn't prevent access or shut it down.
  • the smoke booby traps - but didn't burn the house down?

General
too little time leaping bother me, even if I know one reason is to prevent overuse of lead cast.
Hopefully they balance swings towards a 70 leap - 30 HQ or so.
Click to expand...
I really like these past 2 episodes...maybe a little quick, but i DO like that there is conflict n the team, but ultimately, they all really do respect each other. i think they COULD have stretched it out ... not getting TOO melodramtac, but using at least part of the seaosn to build out the conflict and then resolution.

Raymond Lee does a really good job as an extrmely likeable hero -- definitely in the vein of Scott Bakula, while being distinct.

Mason Alexander Park also does a good job of showing sincere care and respect of his colleagues in between his sarcasm
  • Ben wanted to leap to a specific point/location in time for reasons unknown
  • Ben came from Korea (> possible Sam/Al Connections, could he be a son of one of them?)
Click to expand...

Not sure why point 2 would be considered a spoiler... but i will go with it, and give my hope.thought on it

  • Korean histroical dramas are a big thing there....so it would be awesome if they did a whole episode (or 2!) on the set of a finished drama, and filmed an episode set back then.... with maybe some jokes on his bad accent (speaking in Korean), and maybe some referneces how his watching Korean dramas as a kid have big differences with reality
 
Incidentally, why can't Americans get Japanese pronunciation right? We always insist on stressing the "U" syllable even though Japanese usually does the opposite. They kept saying David Tamura's name as "tuh-MOOR-uh," when it should be more like "TAH-moo-ra," almost rhyming with "camera." It's like pronouncing "Bakula" as "buh-KOOL-uh." (I was gonna go with "Dracula," but then I remembered what thread I'm in.)
 
I don't care for the new Saga Sell. It does the job adequately. It just lacks the emotional spark. Also miss Deborah Pratt doing the narration and I miss a talking Ziggy. Hoping they restore Ziggy's vocal interface.

In fact, the show lacks the spark of the original. I think it's because of the 50/50 split. But also there isn't much character drama in the leaps... it's just plot. It doesn't feel about anything like the original was.

I'm enjoying the show and love the cast. It was nice to see Susan Diol as Beth again. But I just feel it's missing something.
 
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It occurrs to me that since Susan Diol previously played Beth Calavicci in episodes airing in 1990 & 1993 but set in 1969, that means that in her appearance here, she was playing a character maybe 20-odd years older than she is, assuming she and Beth were around the same age in the original episodes. Which would put Beth in her early 80s, so she's looking pretty good for her age.

But then, hey, Ernie Hudson is 76 and he could pass for maybe 10-15 years younger, so I guess it's possible.
 
This one was okay. It feels like more of a standard military style thriller with some science fiction thrown in than anything else, honestly, like what you'd find in NCIS or JAG, and that's not a compliment. It's like they're taking to demystifying the whole concept and making it more a run by numbers affair. I might be wrong, but that's how it feels after the second episode. I'm sincerely hoping it improves.

Hell, I didn't even feel like they were in space at any time, as they were so focused on what was taking place outside the chamber. A little of that is okay, but there's so much we don't really get to experience Ben's side of actually leaping into a human being at some point in the past and seeing those years in his eyes. It's almost a minor detail.
 
Amaris said:
Hell, I didn't even feel like they were in space at any time, as they were so focused on what was taking place outside the chamber. A little of that is okay, but there's so much we don't really get to experience Ben's side of actually leaping into a human being at some point in the past and seeing those years in his eyes. It's almost a minor detail.
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I dunno... I liked the moments where Ben and Addison took a moment to look around in awe and drink in the experience of being in space (or virtually so in Addison's case).

But yes, so far this feels more like an action show than a historical drama. That's troubling.
 
Here's something that's nagging me with this week's episode. As I recall from the premiere, Ben's Leaps are unauthorized, and at the moment everyone at the Quantum Leap Command (or whatever) is trying to keep it a secret from their superiors. Yet this week, upon learning the astronaut Ben Leapt into died on that mission and that the report on his death was classified, they put in a request to NASA to see the file which is granted more or less right away. Shouldn't a time travel project which isn't supposed to be running yet requesting classified files regarding someone who died close to twenty-five years ago raise one hell of a red flag to the higher ups at the Pentagon? Furthermore, assuming NASA isn't read into what Quantum Leap is, what reason do they have to grant them access to a classified file to begin with?
 
The Wormhole said:
Here's something that's nagging me with this week's episode. As I recall from the premiere, Ben's Leaps are unauthorized, and at the moment everyone at the Quantum Leap Command (or whatever) is trying to keep it a secret from their superiors. Yet this week, upon learning the astronaut Ben Leapt into died on that mission and that the report on his death was classified, they put in a request to NASA to see the file which is granted more or less right away. Shouldn't a time travel project which isn't supposed to be running yet requesting classified files regarding someone who died close to twenty-five years ago raise one hell of a red flag to the higher ups at the Pentagon?
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Ahh, but once Ben saves the astronaut, history changes, and the Pentagon and NASA wouldn't remember that Tamura had ever died. At least, that's the way it theoretically should work, though so far the new show seems to be ignoring the idea of the timeline shifting in the present.


Furthermore, assuming NASA isn't read into what Quantum Leap is, what reason do they have to grant them access to a classified file to begin with?
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I'd think that's intrinsic to the nature of classified projects -- people outside a project aren't allowed to know why it's requesting certain information. It just goes with the territory.

Indeed, they may not even know the name of the project. They probably just know that a high-ranking government official named Herbert Williams requested the info and has the clearance to do so.
 
Susan Diol appeared on the QL podcast.

1. The intention of having her working on a car was that it was Al's car and she feels close to him when working on it. This didn't make it to the final edit. :(
2. She had to audition to return to play Beth.
 
E-DUB said:
Well, that seems kind of silly.
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It's not unheard of. Sometimes, the actor who previously played a character is not who the current production staff are looking for, just like why Brian Brophy wasn't even considered for coming back as Bruce Maddox in Picard's first season. Other times, production staff want to weigh their options. And there are times where the decision is made to bring back the previous actor anyway, but due to some arcane SAG rule, they have to hold auditions anyway as a means of "the forms must be obeyed."

This sort of stuff goes on in Hollywood all the time.
 
Addison and Ben are engaged and from a present were virtual sex is common and ubiquitous.

Sam's wife Donna had to watch the man she promised to God to be faithful to, make out with a string of floozies and younger versions of herself, week after week, without breaking anything valuable.

Addison has needs.

Although when her needs reach a boiling point that she is not willing to take care of herself... Ben could be sporting the appeance of almost anyone, even Jim Henson or JFK.

Comedy gold.
 
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