Enough with remakes and reboots--studios need to realize that whatever made them cult hits or popular originally can't be replicated and 99% of the time not be superior to what came before.
Remakes have been around since the beginning of Hollywood. This is nothing new. It's an old tired argument.
You simply can't capture lightning in a bottle twice--it really just underscores how vapid and creatively bankrupt Hollywood has become. I mean just look at all the films/tv shows made or talked about being made in the last ten years--Bionic Woman, Knight Rider, A-Team, 90210, Melrose Place, Hawaii 5-0, Charlie's Angels, Nightmare on Elm Street, Star Trek XI, The Rockford Files, Dallas, Wild Wild West, Halloween, Friday the 13th, Lethal Weapon, The Three Stooges, Karate Kid, now the Lone Ranger. The only one that worked was nBSG.
So, a few examples out of how many movies that Hollywood produced?
And how are you defining "worked?"
90210 and Melrose, as I recall, are being renewed--could be wrong.
Hawaii 5-O, renewed.
Charlie's Angels--1 successful movie, spawned a not as successful sequel, and now a TV show... let's see what happens.
The Karate Kid--VERY successful, especially worldwide.
STXI--very successful, sequel coming.
Personal opinion aside, if they made money, by Hollywood's standard, they are successful.
Studios need to realize that younger viewers don't care. Those of us old enough to care don't want some resurrected corpse parading around like it was the original--you don't have the same actors, the same writers, the same point in time that the original effectively captured as a point in our lives.
That's why there's such a thing as advertising. So, younger viewers can be told what's it about, and maybe become interested.
I don't want to see a corpse either. That's why I don't expect to see the same actors or the same point of view of something from 50 years ago. It's called reinvention.
Why not try coming up with something that hasn't been done before and create a series that will be remembered as fondly as some of these shows in two decades rather than cribbing.
It's like you don't watch TV or see movies. Avatar. West Wing. Two examples of totally original things.
Hollywood does both. In some cases, they are going to take intellectual property that already has name recognition (Like Harry Potter) and produce that. Are you upset they make Harry Potter?
You can't risk 200 million dollars without SOME sort of name recognition or built in audience.
It's about name recognition and money. Creativity is not a priority.
I agree. That's why tv and films are in absolute horrible shape as far as being solid entertainment.
Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Castle, Modern Family... to name a few.
TV isn't in any more of a horrible shape than it was 10 years ago. In fact, I would argue the diversity of the kinds of shows has only increased.
With channels like IFC, Showtime, HBO, AMC, A&E, producing new original content.
Writers don't even try to tell a good solid story--all they worry about are crafting expansive VFX laden action sequences with a lot of 'plosions.
That is the summer blockbuster experience.
Film is NOT the writers medium. It's the directors. Films go under so much rewriting before it even hits the filming stage, then gets changed on set, and then again in the editing bay.
To lay the weakness of Transformers at the feet of the writers is wrong.
I've come to almost loathe the advent of CGI technology since it has become a convenient crutch. I miss models and on location shoots. I miss imperfections--everything is too slick, flashy and shallow but I guess that is appropriate given that seems to be the target these days. VFX and action should enhance a story not be a substitute for it. And in the rare instance of the writers trying to tell a story they just recycle a similiar one we've seen before and was executed better.
Film is not a writers medium. There are plenty of original film scripts out there... walk down Sunset and throw a rock, someone will have their Zombie Space Opera.
Studios don't want to produce a 200 million dollar picture on a totally original idea unless MAYBE that person is James Cameron.
So, to recap:
1. TV isn't in such a horrible shape, and Hollywood (both film and TV) does produce original material--for whatever reason people seem to bemoan Hollywood's lack of originality.
2. Don't blame blockbusters on the writers. A film writer has as much power as the grip. Blockbusters are directors and studios. They want your money.
Those are two very interesting actors, and I'm very curious to see how they play off each other. 
