I am so upset about this! Being Human is my favorite televison show right now. I saw all six episodes on BBC America and purchased the first series from Amazon UK. I love Mitchell, George, and Annie to death. I don't know why SyFy doesn't show the UK series like it did with Dr. Who and The Sara Jane Adventures.
I hate the majority of US televison shows. The actors and actresses with few exceptions are pretty and vapid. They just cannot act. Too many female characters are portrayed as fashion-obsessed airheads. The males are portrayed as douchebags.
The actors and actresses in the UK look more like real people. "Spaced" was the first televison show I could actually relate to as a female geek. I am Black and there are no Black geek characters on US televison except that horrible Urkle character from "Family Matters". "The IT Crowd" is a UK show has a Black geek character named Marcus Moss.
I hate shows like "Desperate Housewives" , "Girlfriends", and "Gossip Girl". "Ugly Betty" is the only US show I actually bother to watch.
I read they are planning to remake "Shameless" which is one of my other favorite UK shows. The very "Britishness" is what makes shows like "Being Human" and "Shameless" unique. Americans know so little about other cultures. We have to "Americanize" everything. This madness has to end! #beinghuman
As someone who didn't think that the US Life on Mars was a "dismal translation" I am willing to give this a chance rather than outright dismiss it. #beinghuman
I'm very, very tired of American producers deciding that if something is good, we should make an American version of it.
How about, if something is good, you release it in the states? Doctor Who has found a gigantic following here, so much so that BBC America has started airing things concurrently. So why can't SyFy just buy Being Human's syndication rights and air it here instead of trying to make it over again?
I feel the same way about the Americanized version of Top Gear that keeps faltering here in the states. Top Gear can't be brought over because there can be no imitation of it. It's those three hosts and that format specifically that makes the how what it is.
I haven't seen Being Human yet, but I imagine it's the same way. British networks air American shows instead of making their own versions, don't they? Aside from game shows I mean. I'm sure that they loved Stargate and Babylon 5 just as much even though it wasn't made on their shores. Can't we return the favor?
@Tomb: R.O.A.C.H.: No, I don't think so. An American remake of Dr. Who would cause a nerd uprising the likes of which mankind has never seen, and likely wouldn't survive from. #beinghuman
Ok, so I'll call bullshit on a SyFy version of Being Human being a bad thing.
First: if there's one thing SyFy can actually do in it's scripted shows, it's finding actors with some sort of unique charisma and fitting them together with unique chemistry.
Say what you want about the network's shows, but the casts have all had chemistry. We'll start with SG-1, which granted, wasn't originally pulled together by Sci-Fi, and ditto with Farscape, which was technically put together by Jim Henson studios. Both those casts had incredible chemistry, and with the exception of Richard Dean Anderson, were mostly unknown actors-- and let's admit that when SG-1 started, Richard Dean Anderson was risking has-been status.
But let's give credit where credit is due-- Battlestar Galactica. Even leaving out the rediscovery of Olmos and Mcdonnel (not to mention their unique chemistry together), consider a few names: Jamie Bamber. Tricia Helfer. Katee Sackoff. James Callis. There's a whole list of actors that BSG discovered and set on the path to promising careers.
Also, Warehouse 13 has a pretty awesome cast, and they've had chemistry from day one. The quirky chemistry of the cast is what makes the show work, as it makes the quirky nature of it's writing believable, of an entire world dominated by mad scientists and flukes of nature somehow gone wrong.
In just a few episodes, I've also been impressed by the casting of SGU. And the writing is fresh, even if the show is basically Stargate: Voyager. My main concerns about the show have more to do with wondering if the writers will give their better cast characters with enough depth to fill and round out.
Even SyFy's other shows that I don't like show amazing casting with incredible chemistry. They just have problems with plot and writing. The reason Eureka lost interest with me was that I hated it's premise, but I'll be the first to admit that it's cast has great charisma and carries the show much further than it's writing deserves. I was hooked on SG Atlantis until the writing got a bit too drawn out. From what I've seen of Sanctuary, the cast is again spectacular, but the writing is just too hooked on the 'we fight bad guys' trope. It feels like it wants to be Buffy with bigger guns.
Which brings us to Sci-Fi's problem with writing, in which case I think an American Being Human is actually well-suited to the network.
Let's admit it: SyFy's writing problem is budget.
They had to cancel the amazingly well-written Farscape because they couldn't afford the production budget of the show's costuming, set pieces, etc., and a universe that wasn't as exotically alien just wouldn't have been Farscape.
That's why SG-1 fared better; less freaky aliens, and military surplus is cheap to buy for costuming. SG-1's eventual writing problem was a reluctance to pull the plug on what was obviously the network's flagship show in favor of the untested SG-Atlantis or the more expensive BSG.
BSG fared better because it didn't require many new sets, and those that it did were cheap to replicate. It's budget problem was paying for it's amazing cast, and they finagled their way into that by strategic DVD sales and cutting the seasons in half.
SG-Universe has worked so far because so far there's only really one set that counts that isn't modern day America (aka Vancouver).
Warehouse 13 works because it's major set piece is both cheap to replicate, and most of the show takes place in modern day America (Vancouver), and it's major technical needs are a few cool looking props.
Eureka blows because it eventually settled into 'super-science breakdown of the week.' Tied to it's set and more importantly it's in-character location, it's too repetitive. Sanctuary doesn't have Eureka's location problem, but suffers from the monster of the week bit. SG-Atlantis was great until they had to start re-cycling bad-guys to live within their budget.
Being Human simply doesn't have these budget hurdles. Extreme costuming is limited. The setting would be modern day America (read: likely Vancouver again). It's a drama, so there doesn't have to be as much budget for complex action scenes or monsters of the week. There is no escalation to apocalypse, as in Buffy/Angel, that requires an ever escalating cast of bad guys to fight. In other words, it presents no major budget hurdles to feedback into the writing and moderate it towards lame.
As for 'not being British enough,' meh. Some people have a fetish for anything British, but really.. meh. British comedy isn't really all that special. I don't like either version of the Office.
And I'd question whether SyFy isn't going to be edgy enough. I mean really, they're looking to compete with shows like Mad Men, to capture some of the audience of True Blood. They got pretty edgy in BSG (seriously, how many times did we see near naked Jamie Bamber, or Katee Sackoff, or Tricia Helfer, or... list goes on. The BSG crew screwed like rabbits, in retrospect.) #beinghuman
@Jason Hubbard: If they can remake Being Human that has a cast with even half the chemistry that Warehouse 13 has, I'll be happy. Even in Sy-Fy's short lived shows like The Invisible Man and The Dresden Files, those casts just oozed chemistry. And Being Human is very much a character based program. You just made me look forward to watching this. #beinghuman
@mekki: They do find a lot of under-rated, charming actors. Shoot it in the bad part of town in Vancouver and there ya go. 3 unknowns (who therefore won't cost much), random guest stars (ditto)... as long as it's well-written, it could work.
But I fear they'll focus-group it to death. #beinghuman
I love Being Human but I'll be the first one to admit that it's a very flawed series. Frankly, it's not that good. But the characters are so well rounded that most people don't see the plot holes. (Annie walking along the street with a casserole dish. Does that mean the neighbors saw floating crockery on their morning walk? Herrick being a cop but spending most of his time turning vampires and running his gang from a funeral home. Wouldn't other cops question why one of their own boys in blue is always disappearing for hours on end off the record? Lauren is missing but she's all over town. And keeps on returning to the hospital where she is well known and yet people don't spot her?) Like I said, plot-wise, it's a bad show.
And as far as chemistry is concerned. They had none until the fourth episode. Even Tovey (aka George) has stated this. Now for a six episode show, that is not good.
So, I say. Bring it on. Though if I were redoing the show, I'd set it in Boston or Philly. Then redo George and Mitchell's initial meeting. (Outside of a diner, really? That's the best you can come up with for a vampire and werewolf?) And redo Annie's storyline because I never bought it.
As far as humor goes? Really? You don't think Americans can do dark humor? Watch Rescue Me or Dexter for some dark humor. We can do it fine. #beinghuman
I'm from Bristol, in the UK where being human is filmed and i'm not sure that America has the same sort of social classes to match the ones being put across in Being Human which completely takes the charm out of the show #beinghuman
@megaorange: Yes, we do. You can find the same thing in Maryland, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, or just about any other place on the Northern East Coast. (Okay, maybe not Connecticut.) #beinghuman
@megaorange: I always LOL when Brits say this, and they always do.
Have you lot paid ANY attention to any of our TV shows, movies, books, or news? Of COURSE we have social classes -- every society does!
Pff. And you call Americans provincial.
("You" plural, not "thou" megaorange. Really would have been useful if the singular-plural 2nd person pronoun distinction had survived. We need to adopt the "y'all" construction.) #beinghuman
@Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H.: I can't say I really want to may much attention to social classes when i'm watching American TV shows as i'm a 13 year old kid, but if it is so important I will remember to keep my comments to myself next time. #beinghuman
To me this is great news! I absolutely loved the British series, but come on... only producing six episodes a year is a waste of a concept. I'm curious to see what Syfy would do with the show.
Also, there's no way Americans would accept the British accents of the original. The six episodes would be over by the time the audience figured out the slang. It's best left for BBC America.
@SNForrester: "only producing six episodes a year is a waste of a concept"
Six good episodes that do everything the writer wanted to do, as opposed to 6 good episodes, 8 passable, 4 filler and 6 that actively damage the series. (Dollhouse, je t'accuse).
That said, I'm sure you could make a decent show that stands on its own. After all, Being Human is very focused on the British Flatmate Experience, and British Horror Tropes.
There's room for an American version around the same core concept of Monsters trying to fit into society. But it'd probably end up being quite Men in Black. #beinghuman
@SNForrester: I think it's silly to assume that Americans wouldn't accept the British accents. I've watched the entire British series and I'm an American, as are a dozen of my friends who loved the series.
@SNForrester: I like the British practice of only doing six episodes a year actually. In any season there's usually only six really good episodes anyway. So why not just cut away the flotsam and just produce the really good stuff?
Maybe the fact that the original series was so good is partly because the seasons are so short. #beinghuman
@SNForrester: Quite honestly, I wish stations over here would adopt 6-10 episode 'seasons'. I think we'd wind up with a far richer landscape in terms of genre TV.
Imagine taking Heroes' budget and dividing it among 4 6-episode series. Even if three of the four are garbage, that's still a winning decision. Bring the best back for a second 6-episode season, lose the garbage, and try again. #beinghuman
@Jesse Astle: & @deworde:
I have a feeling Being Human was limited to six eps for financial reasons (due to the smaller British audience) not because the story had to be told that way. If more money was available, I'm sure the creator could have planned a longer and richer story.
I think we like so many of the British series so much is because we're always left wanting more.
@madnys: I used to think that too but these limited run series only work in Britain because they spend the rest of the year watching American long format shows! ;) #beinghuman
@shelby001: I hate to presume, but I would guess that Being Human is not the first British show you've watched. You're probably used it already.
I've watched Doctor Who, The Office, Torchwood, Merlin, Robin Hood, Jekyll, Life on Mars, Demons, and probably others I can't remember and I found the slang of Being Human a little difficult to grasp at first. For me, the British slang is part of the fun but I just don't think the average American viewer enjoys it. Come to think of it, maybe it's the slang more than the actual accent that's the problem. #beinghuman
@SNForrester: That may be true. But I can't help but think how much better Lost or Heroes would be if they had more limited runs. You wouldn't have filler shows or plots that didn't go anywhere. You'd have a contained, compact story. #beinghuman
@CarrerCrytharis: I grew up watching Benny Hill, Monty python, Red Dwarf and many other British shows, but to people who didn't it can be hard to follow. I remember people warning me that I wouldn't understand a word of Trainspotting, but when I saw it I understood it perfectly.
The issue isn't just British accents, it is any accent. A long time ago I tried to figure out why on the show Cheers, which takes place in Boston, there was only one character who sounded like he was from anywhere near Massachusetts. Cliff Claven, and the rare episode with his mother, were the only times you would hear an accent on that show. #beinghuman
@CarrerCrytharis: No, it's harder to make money off an imported series. If you sell DVDs, shirts, and whatnot, most of that profit goes back to the BBC. You only bought the rights to air the show. You didn't buy the rights to sell licensed products. Do a remake and you can keep more of the profit for yourself. #beinghuman
I was curious about the history of American remakes of British shows so I did a quick Google search. I didn't realize that some of the classic American sitcoms like Cosby, Three's Company and All in the Family were based on British shows.
This raises a larger question of why do American audiences not accept the original British version? Or maybe more accurately why does Hollywood feel they need to be reworked for us Americans? It seems like the British accept American shows, Friends for instance, as is. If the British can understand all the cultural Americanisms that are in a show like Friends, why can't we do the same for their shows? Or has America gotten to the point where we no longer have any original ideas. Perhaps that is the case, what with all the movie remakes and movies based on the toys of my childhood that are coming out of Hollywood these days.
@The Architect of Tartaros: Because the originals don't work for the US format. Network TV in the US is built on a model of syndication and ad-selling, while the BBC doesn't work that way. You can't sell a network on a show with only 4 episodes per season, or only 13 episodes total. It's not lucrative under the US business model. Dr. Who is filmed more in the US style (full-length, multi-season) and that gets shown here in its original format. #beinghuman
@small-fox: I understand what you're saying about the business format of it all. But I think networks like USA have shown that limited 12-13 episode seasons can work in the States. Or look at Torchwood's mini-season three. IIRC thats was one of BBCA highest rated weeks ever. I'd rather have shorter, well written seasons (I'm looking at you Heroes) or even a 13 episode series like Harper's Island, than all the cop and hospital shows we seem to be getting as of late. #beinghuman
@The Architect of Tartaros: I'm not saying it couldn't work, just that it doesn't work in the current model. Ad underwriters are probably not really keen on trying anything new until the current format stops working (which it likely will as broadcast itself becomes increasingly irrelevant). Lost took the shorter season to network TV, but that was and will probably remain a special case for awhile. It was a means of saving a show already in production, not the plan from the beginning. A show doesn't get made or broadcast without sponsorship, so ad makers control the format. There's probably a market for some of BBC's very short seasons (4-6 eps instead of ~16) on cable, but I don't know if there are other factors at play (license cost to ad revenue makes the original unfeasibly expensive, etc).
Also, you can't really extrapolate from a self-selected group like BBCA viewers to the average NBC viewer, and Torchwood already had a built-in fan base. #beinghuman
I watched some of the first season, but I lost interest after episode...6, I think. It was just too angsty for me. I guess that's the point, really, given the characters' predicaments. (Why couldn't there be a wacky zombie roommate?)
This won't translate well in the U.S. Most U.K. shows don't work when that's done. Why can't SyFy just show the original version? While they're at it, why not air the original episodes of Red Dwarf, as well? #beinghuman
@CodeBlue40: Give the second season a chance - it's much more even in tone and the plot was a lot tighter. Still not perfect, but much improved. #beinghuman
SyFy (blargh) actually does a number of shows I enjoy (Eureka, W13, SG1) but you are right there is something about Being Human, much like Dr. Who, that won't translate well.
I've said the same about Top Gear. I'm not a car guy by any means (or I would be over at Jalopnik) but I love Top Gear. America is arguably the strongest car culture in the world and has the diversity of locations required, but we have never had a car show get to that level (well, maybe Pimp My Ride). There is something in the way that the Brits deliver the humor (subtle, no waiting around for laughs) that just makes those type of shows work. #beinghuman
@Tracy Ham and Eggs: I'm the exact same way with Top Gear. I'm not a car person at all (I think I drive a . . . Honda? It's blue) but when I started watching Top Gear with a former roommate I couldn't get enough. I find the way they present the information is easy to understand, plus the presenters are hilarious (I'm a James May fan personally, I feel so bad for him) and the challenges they do are entertaining and just plain awesome.
I can't imagine an American version of the show I would enjoy enough to actually sit down and watch, let alone love as much as I do Brit Top Gear.
After talking it up, now I really want to go watch some Top Gear.
10/30/09
I hate the majority of US televison shows. The actors and actresses with few exceptions are pretty and vapid. They just cannot act. Too many female characters are portrayed as fashion-obsessed airheads. The males are portrayed as douchebags.
The actors and actresses in the UK look more like real people. "Spaced" was the first televison show I could actually relate to as a female geek. I am Black and there are no Black geek characters on US televison except that horrible Urkle character from "Family Matters". "The IT Crowd" is a UK show has a Black geek character named Marcus Moss.
I hate shows like "Desperate Housewives" , "Girlfriends", and "Gossip Girl". "Ugly Betty" is the only US show I actually bother to watch.
I read they are planning to remake "Shameless" which is one of my other favorite UK shows. The very "Britishness" is what makes shows like "Being Human" and "Shameless" unique. Americans know so little about other cultures. We have to "Americanize" everything. This madness has to end! #beinghuman
10/29/09
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Siffy, not so much... #beinghuman
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like i have been saying many times we need new scifi not remakes #beinghuman
10/29/09
How about, if something is good, you release it in the states? Doctor Who has found a gigantic following here, so much so that BBC America has started airing things concurrently. So why can't SyFy just buy Being Human's syndication rights and air it here instead of trying to make it over again?
I feel the same way about the Americanized version of Top Gear that keeps faltering here in the states. Top Gear can't be brought over because there can be no imitation of it. It's those three hosts and that format specifically that makes the how what it is.
I haven't seen Being Human yet, but I imagine it's the same way. British networks air American shows instead of making their own versions, don't they? Aside from game shows I mean. I'm sure that they loved Stargate and Babylon 5 just as much even though it wasn't made on their shores. Can't we return the favor?
10/29/09
The pilot/prototype eppisode thing was a lot more fun, imho.
Its certainly no "Jeykll" #beinghuman
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First: if there's one thing SyFy can actually do in it's scripted shows, it's finding actors with some sort of unique charisma and fitting them together with unique chemistry.
Say what you want about the network's shows, but the casts have all had chemistry. We'll start with SG-1, which granted, wasn't originally pulled together by Sci-Fi, and ditto with Farscape, which was technically put together by Jim Henson studios. Both those casts had incredible chemistry, and with the exception of Richard Dean Anderson, were mostly unknown actors-- and let's admit that when SG-1 started, Richard Dean Anderson was risking has-been status.
But let's give credit where credit is due-- Battlestar Galactica. Even leaving out the rediscovery of Olmos and Mcdonnel (not to mention their unique chemistry together), consider a few names: Jamie Bamber. Tricia Helfer. Katee Sackoff. James Callis. There's a whole list of actors that BSG discovered and set on the path to promising careers.
Also, Warehouse 13 has a pretty awesome cast, and they've had chemistry from day one. The quirky chemistry of the cast is what makes the show work, as it makes the quirky nature of it's writing believable, of an entire world dominated by mad scientists and flukes of nature somehow gone wrong.
In just a few episodes, I've also been impressed by the casting of SGU. And the writing is fresh, even if the show is basically Stargate: Voyager. My main concerns about the show have more to do with wondering if the writers will give their better cast characters with enough depth to fill and round out.
Even SyFy's other shows that I don't like show amazing casting with incredible chemistry. They just have problems with plot and writing. The reason Eureka lost interest with me was that I hated it's premise, but I'll be the first to admit that it's cast has great charisma and carries the show much further than it's writing deserves. I was hooked on SG Atlantis until the writing got a bit too drawn out. From what I've seen of Sanctuary, the cast is again spectacular, but the writing is just too hooked on the 'we fight bad guys' trope. It feels like it wants to be Buffy with bigger guns.
Which brings us to Sci-Fi's problem with writing, in which case I think an American Being Human is actually well-suited to the network.
Let's admit it: SyFy's writing problem is budget.
They had to cancel the amazingly well-written Farscape because they couldn't afford the production budget of the show's costuming, set pieces, etc., and a universe that wasn't as exotically alien just wouldn't have been Farscape.
That's why SG-1 fared better; less freaky aliens, and military surplus is cheap to buy for costuming. SG-1's eventual writing problem was a reluctance to pull the plug on what was obviously the network's flagship show in favor of the untested SG-Atlantis or the more expensive BSG.
BSG fared better because it didn't require many new sets, and those that it did were cheap to replicate. It's budget problem was paying for it's amazing cast, and they finagled their way into that by strategic DVD sales and cutting the seasons in half.
SG-Universe has worked so far because so far there's only really one set that counts that isn't modern day America (aka Vancouver).
Warehouse 13 works because it's major set piece is both cheap to replicate, and most of the show takes place in modern day America (Vancouver), and it's major technical needs are a few cool looking props.
Eureka blows because it eventually settled into 'super-science breakdown of the week.' Tied to it's set and more importantly it's in-character location, it's too repetitive. Sanctuary doesn't have Eureka's location problem, but suffers from the monster of the week bit. SG-Atlantis was great until they had to start re-cycling bad-guys to live within their budget.
Being Human simply doesn't have these budget hurdles. Extreme costuming is limited. The setting would be modern day America (read: likely Vancouver again). It's a drama, so there doesn't have to be as much budget for complex action scenes or monsters of the week. There is no escalation to apocalypse, as in Buffy/Angel, that requires an ever escalating cast of bad guys to fight. In other words, it presents no major budget hurdles to feedback into the writing and moderate it towards lame.
As for 'not being British enough,' meh. Some people have a fetish for anything British, but really.. meh. British comedy isn't really all that special. I don't like either version of the Office.
And I'd question whether SyFy isn't going to be edgy enough. I mean really, they're looking to compete with shows like Mad Men, to capture some of the audience of True Blood. They got pretty edgy in BSG (seriously, how many times did we see near naked Jamie Bamber, or Katee Sackoff, or Tricia Helfer, or... list goes on. The BSG crew screwed like rabbits, in retrospect.) #beinghuman
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But I fear they'll focus-group it to death. #beinghuman
10/29/09
And as far as chemistry is concerned. They had none until the fourth episode. Even Tovey (aka George) has stated this. Now for a six episode show, that is not good.
So, I say. Bring it on. Though if I were redoing the show, I'd set it in Boston or Philly. Then redo George and Mitchell's initial meeting. (Outside of a diner, really? That's the best you can come up with for a vampire and werewolf?) And redo Annie's storyline because I never bought it.
As far as humor goes? Really? You don't think Americans can do dark humor? Watch Rescue Me or Dexter for some dark humor. We can do it fine. #beinghuman
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Have you lot paid ANY attention to any of our TV shows, movies, books, or news? Of COURSE we have social classes -- every society does!
Pff. And you call Americans provincial.
("You" plural, not "thou" megaorange. Really would have been useful if the singular-plural 2nd person pronoun distinction had survived. We need to adopt the "y'all" construction.) #beinghuman
10/30/09
10/29/09
Also, there's no way Americans would accept the British accents of the original. The six episodes would be over by the time the audience figured out the slang. It's best left for BBC America.
10/29/09
Six good episodes that do everything the writer wanted to do, as opposed to 6 good episodes, 8 passable, 4 filler and 6 that actively damage the series. (Dollhouse, je t'accuse).
That said, I'm sure you could make a decent show that stands on its own. After all, Being Human is very focused on the British Flatmate Experience, and British Horror Tropes.
There's room for an American version around the same core concept of Monsters trying to fit into society. But it'd probably end up being quite Men in Black. #beinghuman
10/29/09
10/29/09
Maybe the fact that the original series was so good is partly because the seasons are so short. #beinghuman
10/29/09
Imagine taking Heroes' budget and dividing it among 4 6-episode series. Even if three of the four are garbage, that's still a winning decision. Bring the best back for a second 6-episode season, lose the garbage, and try again. #beinghuman
10/29/09
I have a feeling Being Human was limited to six eps for financial reasons (due to the smaller British audience) not because the story had to be told that way. If more money was available, I'm sure the creator could have planned a longer and richer story.
I think we like so many of the British series so much is because we're always left wanting more.
10/29/09
10/29/09
I've watched Doctor Who, The Office, Torchwood, Merlin, Robin Hood, Jekyll, Life on Mars, Demons, and probably others I can't remember and I found the slang of Being Human a little difficult to grasp at first. For me, the British slang is part of the fun but I just don't think the average American viewer enjoys it. Come to think of it, maybe it's the slang more than the actual accent that's the problem. #beinghuman
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The issue isn't just British accents, it is any accent. A long time ago I tried to figure out why on the show Cheers, which takes place in Boston, there was only one character who sounded like he was from anywhere near Massachusetts. Cliff Claven, and the rare episode with his mother, were the only times you would hear an accent on that show. #beinghuman
10/29/09
10/29/09
This raises a larger question of why do American audiences not accept the original British version? Or maybe more accurately why does Hollywood feel they need to be reworked for us Americans? It seems like the British accept American shows, Friends for instance, as is. If the British can understand all the cultural Americanisms that are in a show like Friends, why can't we do the same for their shows? Or has America gotten to the point where we no longer have any original ideas. Perhaps that is the case, what with all the movie remakes and movies based on the toys of my childhood that are coming out of Hollywood these days.
10/29/09
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Also, you can't really extrapolate from a self-selected group like BBCA viewers to the average NBC viewer, and Torchwood already had a built-in fan base. #beinghuman
10/29/09
This won't translate well in the U.S. Most U.K. shows don't work when that's done. Why can't SyFy just show the original version? While they're at it, why not air the original episodes of Red Dwarf, as well? #beinghuman
10/29/09
10/29/09
I've said the same about Top Gear. I'm not a car guy by any means (or I would be over at Jalopnik) but I love Top Gear. America is arguably the strongest car culture in the world and has the diversity of locations required, but we have never had a car show get to that level (well, maybe Pimp My Ride). There is something in the way that the Brits deliver the humor (subtle, no waiting around for laughs) that just makes those type of shows work. #beinghuman
10/29/09
I can't imagine an American version of the show I would enjoy enough to actually sit down and watch, let alone love as much as I do Brit Top Gear.
After talking it up, now I really want to go watch some Top Gear.