How can there even be a US Torchwood? It doesn't make sense... Unless it's an undercover unit plotting the downfall of the USA and an end to its world dominance. Oh yeah, that could work...
US Torchwood cancelled for now
- Thread starter 23skidoo
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The idea was to make it a "globetrotting" Torchwood, using Hollywood resources (i.e., standing sets and backlots) to stand in for various locales around the world. As an old Alias fan, I can tell you it doesn't always work so well ("funny, I never knew Moscow had so many broad streets, sunny days, and earthtone stucco warehouses.")
It was actually pretty foolish to market Torchwood to Fox in the first place, considering the the similarities to Fringe (which isn't exactly burning up the ratings.) I hope they shop it around to Showtime or some other cable network. That's the place to be, anyway - more creative freedom, fewer execs stabbing the panic button every five seconds.
"Comfortable" sci fi is the kiss of death on American TV nowadays. Sci fi can survive only in a niche milieu anymore, where being "uncomfortable" and appealing to a couple million people works, but trying to target mainstream tastes on network TV flops, even if you end up with a much larger audience.
Look at FlashFoward and V - the approach is too mainstream and they are both failing in the ratings. But Caprica on Skiffy seems quite secure, despite (or because of?) being far less accessible.
"Comfortable" is for police procedurals on CBS. Sci fi needs to shoot for the BSG/Caprica approach on Sci Fi (or basic or premium cable, which are sticking their toes more and more into sf/f lately).
Also, the trend is away from American remakes of foreign scripted shows (reality TV being a different animal altogether). There have been too many failures. Hollywood has finally learned its lesson?
They should do their own original shows (and AMC already is - that zombie show). Not sure if there's any actual sci fi in the works at HBO or Showtime, but there should be.
Or everyone could slam the brakes on doing ANY more sci fi shows with law enforcement figures in the lead! It's crazy that practically every sci fi show nowadays needs to be build around some sheriff or FBI agent.
Yep. And FlashFoward and V both have law enforcement leads. There's also Eureka and Warehouse 13. Skiffy is debuting Haven this summer with yet another cop lead character.
Yep. And FlashFoward and V both have law enforcement leads. There's also Eureka and Warehouse 13. Skiffy is debuting Haven this summer with yet another cop lead character.
Uh, actually...
"Torchwood - outside the government, beyond the police. Tracking down alien life on Earth and arming the human race against the future. The 21st century is when everything changes. And you gotta be ready."
...pretty much sums it up pretty simply.
And I'm not saying Fringe today is very Torchwood like. It's taken its own path, but the first half of season 1, the stories could have easily been made as Torchwood episodes -- even some of the backstory which could have been tweaked to involved Jack's shadowy past, or even The Doctor.
That said, I agree a Fringe/TW/DW crossover would rock -- assuming it was the REAL Torchwood (with Barrowman and Eve Myles and hopefully certain other characters brought back from the dead) and REAL Doctor Who (with Matt Smith and Karen Gillan ... though a crossover with Paul McGann would be ultra-cool).
I think there's also very low confidence that an American Doctor Who would choose an acceptable actor as the Doctor. They might surprise and cast someone like Tony Head, but they'd be more likely to cast someone like Matthew McConaughey...
Alex
I don't know, it always worked on Mission: Impossible.
Right.... so, they'd still be based in Britain, and just be sent out on missions overseas. Is that the idea? I don't see how it could be Torchwood otherwise...
Incidentally, I have no idea what Fringe is, so I'm finding some of this a little hard to follow. Does it show over here?
The only way Doctor Who or Torchwood should ever be produced in connection with the US is if Hollywood Money was going to Bankroll it. (With complete British Creative Control)
But it's all bollocks, isn't it?
Actually watching the show, you quickly learn that our heroes:
1) Are not really Torchwood, they're just a small local franchise of what used to be a much larger venture.
2) They're not outside the government, in fact they report to it.
3) I'm not quite sure what "beyond the police" is supposed to mean. They deal with things that are outside the police's jurisdiction, but then again so does the fire department.
4) They are tracking down alien life on Earth. Well actually, they usually stumble onto it. And only if by "Earth" you mean "South Wales".
5) "Arming the human race against the future"? They are not arming anyone but themselves, and they have absolutely no clue about the future.
6) "The 21st Century is when everything changes"? It sounds very cool. It's also completely meaningless.
What are we left with?
"What's left of Torchwood - independent-minded local civil servants. Stumbling onto alien life in South Wales. And that's pretty much it".
It would be done against greenscreen now. A video made the rounds recently from a Hollywood f/x house that shows how just much of the outdoors filming on shows like Grey's Anatomy, Monk, Ugly Betty, even some sitcoms, is done on a soundstage, against greenscreen, and then composited in post. The days of going on location -- or even going onto the studio backlot! -- are passing away.
Personally i always preferred Dead Ringers explanation of Torchwood.
Torchwood...we're beyond the Government, outside the United Nations, second left over the fly-over, straight on at Budgins, right at the lights then first left by the Kwik-Save...We're the most famous secret organisation in the world.
Away from? I've heard of at least 3 remakes of British Dramas being made this year.
Shameless by HBO
Skins by MTV
Torchwood would be number 3 but I'm sure there's another one it's just not coming to mind right now.
I think that's more than any other year I can think of recently.
The deleted scenes on the DVDs for S3 of Doctor Who have an extended version of the scene where Jack says good-bye to the Doctor and Martha. Jack says "the 21st century is when everything changes, and you have to be ready." The Doctor then asks "what is that supposed to mean?" Jack anwers "hoestly, I don't know. It just sounds good."
I thought it was amusing.
Before we found out where he heard it in "Fragments," I assumed Jack was just being motivational. I mean, you can say that about anything.
The 20th Century is when everything changes.
The 19th Century is when everything changes.
The 18th Century is when everything changes.
The 15th Century is when everything changes.
The 14th Century is when everything changes.
The 11th Century is when everything changes.
The 20th Century is when everything changes.
The 19th Century is when everything changes.
The 18th Century is when everything changes.
The 15th Century is when everything changes.
The 14th Century is when everything changes.
The 11th Century is when everything changes.
I would have liked a US version that was set in the same continuity as the UK version - like the way the CSIs have been set in different cities (except here a different country, obviously) but within the same universe. But is it essential? No. And was Fox the right channel for it? Again, no.
As long as Real TW returns, this is no big loss.
As long as Real TW returns, this is no big loss.
I agree with some of the other posters that if anyone in the US does a version of Torchwood it needs to be on Showtime who in the past did pretty well with sci-fi like Stargate SG1 and Lexx just to name a few.
It can be the american branch and Jack can show up to help out and then go back to England for season 4.
It can be the american branch and Jack can show up to help out and then go back to England for season 4.
Oh yeah. Hollywood has a long history of not demanding every last iota of control over stuff they finance.
I don't actually watch the show. I'm more interested in the TV biz end of this thread. But the idea of a group of extra-governmental vigilantes taking it upon themselves to "protect" humanity from "evil" alien visitors has a downright sinister ring to it. Kinda like a sci fi version of what's going on in Arizona now, except not so public.
Imagine if that shit were being done in secret. Brrr....not that that would be a bad thing. I love shows that present main characters who are far from squeaky clean and challenge the preconceptions of the audience about what is "right" or "wrong" anyway. By what right to these people decide which aliens are bad, or what constitutes protecting humanity? What guarantees do we have that they won't abuse their power? Because in real life all groups without oversight abuse their power. Just human nature.
But of course I know that's not anything to do with Torchwood, which I'm sure adheres to the perspective that the good guys are generally justified. I'm just dreaming up some very different sci fi series I would like to see.
If it has any meaning at all, it's a sinister one. Or would be, in a different series.
Two shows out of the avalanche of new pilots that are made every season is a very small number. And show ideas often get kicked around without ever seeing the light of day. Odds are, one or both of those will go the way of the Torchwood remake.
There have been years where there there were definitely more, and on major networks. Compare that number to the number of pilots with a law-enforcement angle. There must be something like 20 of just that one genre alone (although I expect less than half of those to survive to series).
EDIT: I remembered which remake series you were thinking of: Being Human. I think skiffy has probably passed on it. They're launching Haven this summer and have picked up a couple other pilots. They don't have a lot of timeslots for drama because their stupid "reality" shows are sadly doing well and they've gotta make room for wrestling.
And they were threatening to do cooking shows too.That just goes to show how much stuff gets talked about and never sees the light of day.
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Well Shameless has a cast, with a pilot being made already. William H Macy, Allison Janney and Emmy Rossum are in 3 of the major roles.
skins was subject to a bidding war between CW, MTV and another network so I don't think it'll just disappear either, but I suppose it could still.
I still can't remember what the third one is, but as I said that's still more British remakes in one seasons than I can remember recently. The other I guess would be Life on Mars and 11th Hour...
Oh yeah. Hollywood has a long history of not demanding every last iota of control over stuff they finance.
Of course, I didn't say it was likely, just the way it SHOULD be.