SciFi Remakes

[qos]

I went to see Master and Commander yesterday -- which I recommend for those who like a strong dose of authenticity in their adventure films -- but what made the big impression on me was the trailer for the Sci-Fi channel's remake of Battlestar Galactica as a miniseries. To say the least, I was boggled by the changes they made to the story. To me, it looked more like someone crossed Babylon-5 with Voyager (particularly Seven of Nine) than the Galactica I remember.

So this morning I paid a visit to imdb.com and browsed the listing. I don't usually read the User Comments section, but I did today, and found this particularly amusing and cogent paragraph. (For the record, I loathe what George Lucas has done to the Star Wars universe in Episodes I and II.)

ChadGent2001 wrote: A bit off topic, but as far as I'm concerned they did remake the Star Wars universe. Have you seen the prequels? Lucas forgot what he wrote twenty years ago and didn't bother renting his own movies and now we got stuff that makes no sense when connected to the old films. The difference is the new BG is trying to be more serious and aim for an older audience, while the new SW is trying to be more stupid and is aimed at kids who have to wear bicycle helmets 24/7 and ride the short bus to school.

I'm willing to give the new BG a chance, but it will be as its own story, not as a "remake" of the 1970's Galactica. In the meantime, as my schedule permits, I'm going to be watching the original Galactica series, which I just purchased on DVD. True, the original series never lived up to the grandeur of its vision, but its heart was in the right place. Now, I find myself wondering what JMS (creator of Babylon-5) would have done with Galactica.

Comments

[aerden.livejournal.com]

I am very eager to see the new Battlestar Galactica. To me, this is BG the way it should have been done. It is much edgier and seems to be written a lot more intelligently, at least, from the few trailers I've seen. I am quite looking forward to it.

I Really Hate that the new Starbuck is female, though. Okay, I'll be even more honest. What I really hate is that Starbuck is no longer played by Dirk Benedict. (g) If they wanted to have a femal Viper pilot, couldn't they have just used Athena? *whines*

Anyway, I was quite impressed with the other changes I saw.

[qos.livejournal.com]

Hi Aerden -- thanks for dropping by!

After reading your comment, I made another quick visit to imdb.com to check something. Do you realize that while they changed the genders of Starbuck and Boomer, and made the featured Cylon a beautiful blonde woman, they have eliminated the characters of Athena, Cassiopeia and Serina?

Why couldn't they have retained those characters but made them more modern? Athena in particular was never allowed to show her full potential strength as an officer and a warrior.

[aerden.livejournal.com]

They got rid of Cassiopoeia? Ack! I adored her.

I am really sorry to see Athena not there; I liked her a lot, and you're right; they didn't do nearly as much development of her as they could have. They've done more with Hoshi on Enterprise than they ever did with Athena. *s8igh*

Hm...*innocent look* I wonder if they'll ever redo that classic episode, but with the female Starbuck inviting two guys out to dinner for the same evening, switching back and forth between them both...?

Chantal (EWG)

Cassiopeia

[qos.livejournal.com]

The producers of the original series chickened out where Cassiopeia was concerned. In her first appearance, she has been attacked because she's a 'socialator,' despite, as she tells Apollo and Starbuck, the fact that in her culture it's an honorable calling, blessed by the elders. But as soon as the series gets underway, she becomes (for all practical purposes) a nurse.

My MA thesis in Comparative Religion was about the sacred prostitute, and to me, Cassie is a character whose roots were in that idea/archetype: simultaneously promiscuously sexual, blessed, and a healer. But of course that could not be explored in primetime in the 1970's. (I've written some fiction in which she continues to function as a priestess. . . ) Of course, it would have been too much to hope that the new producers would have picked that particular minor detail to elaborate on in this version.

Re: Cassiopeia

[aerden.livejournal.com]

I always thought that aspect of Cassiopoeia was fascinating. I missed it, the first time she appeared, but it was brought out pretty fully in the episodes featuring Commander Cain. I would have liked to have seen it developed further, too.

Chantal

Re: Cassiopeia

[qos.livejournal.com]

You remind me of just how long it's been since I've actually watched the original episodes, Chantal. I have a visual memory of Cassie and Cain talking, and a sense of both Starbuck's and Sheba's jealousy, but I can't remember more of the details.

I'm looking forward to watching the episode again, as soon as I finish the papers that are due in the next couple of weeks.