Medium is based off Afterlife, which was a fairly good six episode series shot in Bristol.
But yeah, whatever. To be fair, most great speculative fiction has thrived off the mixing of noir-ish detective stories. Need I point out X-Files and Bladerunner? Surely you can think of more. I get the point of watering genre fiction down, but the best shows are almost always molds and mixes of more than one genre.
@deruberhanyok: Proving it is the interesting part. What sort of case can they make that wouldn't get laughed out of court?
"Yes, your honor, we arrested this man in a nursing home for a murder he committed 50 years ago, based on the testimony of a ten-year-old who claims he remembers being killed by defendant in his previous life."
So, you take "Pushing Daisies," "Medium," and "Law & Order:SVU" and churn it into horrific shit chowder. That sounds great. I don't want to watch the show, but man! I wish I could have seen the pitch meeting that got this hellbrew green-lit. That must have been some brilliant Jedi mind-trick shenanigans.
Assuming this is sci-fi, it seems to be another attempt to have sci-fi without having sci-fi, like Quantum Leap. Create a sci-fi premise that places the characters in settings familiar to the audience. That way, you don't have to pay to build the future and you don't alienate any sci-fi-averse viewers.
@Jes St.Lawrence: agreed. the only sci-fi part of Quantum Leap was the hologram sidekick. The rest was the same-old drifter-changes-lives-wherever-he-goes... storyline from the Run for Your Life and The Fugitive through those angel shows (like Highway to Heaven).
I think you forgot to mention Wizards First Rule (Legend of the Seeker) which just got picked up for a second season, Game of Thrones which is being developed by HBO and Red Mars which is being developed by AMC.
@Space2099: among the more frightening phrases you will ever hear is "Developed For Television"...the late 'Dresden Files' being a perfect recent example.
Legend of the Seeker is no better than Xena and Hercules
Game of Thrones, unless it gets the kind of time, attention and money that Rome got, will be just as bad...
episodic television is a fundamentally different beast compared to a book or a movie...
Weird, I was totally having this exact conversation with my friend yesterday. Once again, it' annoying to see that film/television can't seem to find any new material, but on the other hand it seems great for the fans who want to see great adaptations of their favorite works. Another friend of mine and I were talking about the state of the screenwriting industry and how badly writers get fucked there. Her brother is a screenwriter who has sold a few scripts (none of which have been developed into a film) and how he lost almost all control of how his work is adapted when he sold them. It seems like the best way to maintain creative control is for people to write novels and then adapt them to film.
07/01/09
Wouldn't be surprised if M. Night "What a twist!" Shyamalama-ding-dong was involved...
06/30/09
But yeah, whatever. To be fair, most great speculative fiction has thrived off the mixing of noir-ish detective stories. Need I point out X-Files and Bladerunner? Surely you can think of more. I get the point of watering genre fiction down, but the best shows are almost always molds and mixes of more than one genre.
06/30/09
These people are going to be running around arresting senior citizens? And that's the basis for yet another crime show with a twist?
06/30/09
"Yes, your honor, we arrested this man in a nursing home for a murder he committed 50 years ago, based on the testimony of a ten-year-old who claims he remembers being killed by defendant in his previous life."
"Case dismissed."
06/30/09
It's not sci-fi enough to destroy anything except a career or two.
06/30/09
Only if there were an iota of science in the concept of reincarnation.
06/30/09
06/30/09
06/30/09
Feh.
06/30/09
06/30/09
06/30/09
06/30/09
06/30/09
Long answer: No.
06/30/09
01/27/09
01/27/09
01/27/09
01/27/09
Legend of the Seeker is no better than Xena and Hercules
Game of Thrones, unless it gets the kind of time, attention and money that Rome got, will be just as bad...
episodic television is a fundamentally different beast compared to a book or a movie...
01/27/09