ReBoot

To be honest, while I certainly am excited by the prospect of having some say in the whole Reboot revival project, even I have had my qualms about fan-interaction and opinion. Fan input is a big deal; it can make a show, and it can break it.

 

It's sort of a two way deal; where I think producers need to be aware of the fan base opinion, at the same time the fans need to be aware of what the producers themselves are thinking and facing.

 

ReBoot was not a Star Wars phenomenon. It's not cultural icon that everybody is familiar with. This means that, if the series is going to be turned into something successful beyond the original fan base, the story can't simply pick up from where the series left off and assume that everybody who sees it will watch or re-watch the original ReBoot TV series to understand what's going on. Even if it does address the show like a sequel, it must appear to new audiences as though it is the foundational story.

 

In order for this to happen, the fans must accept some changes and new directions with the entire thing. There's been a lot of controversy over everything from plot to artwork to the smallest details.

 

Fans need to decide what elements they can and cannot forsake, while the producers must decide what elements they must and must not forsake. The part of me that pretends she is a producer recognizes the need to make upgrades, changes, and adjustments in order to make the project successful not only for old fans but for potential new ones as well. The fan in me wants to see a story that stays true to the original creation, and does the original series justice.

 

It’s kind of like the Harry Potter books vs. the Harry Potter movies. Many fans of the series will bash the movies for not including enough of the book, or not doing the books justice. But despite their criticism we see that the movies are widely successful regardless of the books. The same can be said of Lord of the Rings. Perhaps that trilogy is a better example. How many people saw and enjoyed the movies that actually read Tolkien’s novels? A lot. I never read them, but I adore the movies. I’m also the Harry Potter fan that didn’t read the books until after I’d already seen the first four films. I look back and see what the movies lacked, and sometimes that disappoints me until I remember how much I really enjoyed the movies beforehand, and how well they drew me in despite my ignorance. The fact is, just because something is different does mean it is bad or that it will be unsuccessful.

 

Of course, the entire problem with comparing this ReBoot project to Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings is that the latter were not remakes— rather, new illustrations of the same story, while the ReBoot pitches are either remakes—no— “reimaginings” of the original story, or loose sequels. We’re not about to go through the story fans loved all over again; fans are getting something new, whether connected to the original or not.

 

And of course, this makes things hard for everybody. Producers have a lot of examples to point to in terms of how they approach the entire thing, and where their views might vastly differ from those of fans. For instance, look at the reimagining of Battlestar Galactica. Other than the basic premise, which in itself has been altered to some extent, the series is an entirely different world from what people knew back in the late 70’s and early 80’s. Like ReBoot, the show was a cult classic, with a fan base that maintained itself throughout the decades. When fans heard that they were making a brand new series, they began to worry. When they heard that famed-character Starbuck would be a girl, many threw a tantrum. And when they saw the actual series and saw Starbuck’s character and performance, many applauded. Beyond that, many new fans were drawn in to the franchise, and the new series was all the hype among many groups for many different reasons.

 

When I read through the pitches, I saw that ReBoot had the potential, through these stories, to go through the exact same process. Right now fans sit around and frown at some of the pitches—particularly the ones that don’t connect back the continuum of the series; but Battlestar Galactica fans did the same thing. The difference is that fans have a say in ReBoot, and they don’t have to just “wait and see” and appreciate whatever comes out in the end.

 

A big difference between Battlestar Galactica and ReBoot, however, is the Battlestar Galactica ended. The final object of the story was achieved. Meanwhile ReBoot left people on a cliff-hanger. That of course makes a huge difference with fans. Fans not only want more ReBoot, but they also want closure. But again, this brings us back to the earlier issue: the closure and continuation fans want may not be enough to make the project successful. Look at Serenity, the sequel movie to the Firefly TV series that, like ReBoot, never saw a real conclusion to all of its story-threads. Serenity certainly got some good reviews, but many people felt that it was difficult to appreciate because much of the movie’s depth was rooted in the TV series that people (beyond the fans) never saw. In the box office it wasn’t even able to match the cost of production, which is always a bad sign for a movie. Nobody wants that to happen with ReBoot, especially not the people putting their money, time, and effort into it. Fans may stamp their feet and scream at certain changes, but we need to realize what’s at stake.

 

On the other hand though, even if it’s not necessary, I think it’s important for producers to take a look at what the fan community is saying to some extent. It helps a lot when original fans of the series have enough confidence in the new production to raise the hype about it to friends and get the word out. I’m having a little Transformers moment here, because I know that was how a lot of it went down among people I know. Of course, as I have said before, the amount of voice that fans have in this ReBoot project is practically unheard of, and while it seems great on one hand, it also means lots of emotional tantrums. Fans start to think “You gave us a say; why didn’t you do what we said?” Even though there is all this coverage about how fans are at the heart of everything, there are plenty of industry examples to show that fans aren’t necessarily needed (Battlestar Galactica) to make something great, and sometimes catering to them too much can hurt the overall success (Serenity).

 

I suppose that, in the end the entire point of this is to say that ReBoot has the chance to make right with the fans and be a commercial success, drawing in new people. But it’s going to me that everybody has to realize where everybody else is coming from. Producers have to be strong, but not closed-minded. Fans also must be understanding, even if strongly opinionated.

 

On a personal level, (yes, there is a personal section to this horrifically long—whatever this is), I’d like to see ReBoot be what Serenity couldn’t be, while at the same time refraining from becoming the complete makeover that Battlestar Galactica was. Not that I don’t adore what was done with Galactica, but as a fan of ReBoot and the difference it its circumstances, I do want someone in the production process to think of me (as the fan) when they create the whole thing. Perhaps another big difference here is that, where the original Galactica is some 25 years past, ReBoot was a relatively recent phenomenon, and is comparatively fresh in many people’s minds.

 

Artistically, I’m sensing that what a lot of people want to see is something like what was done with Final Fantasy VII and the sequel movie Advent Children. At the very least, I know that’s what I want. In my user blog on Zeros 2 Heroes I talked about how key visual nostalgia is to the fan base. Final Fantasy: Advent Children was visual nostalgia done right.

 

As far as story, I hope to see something that is a continuation of the original series, but still new enough and revolutionary enough that people who never knew ReBoot in its early years will be able to fully appreciate without having to worry about “what came first”. This was the mistake Serenity made, and this was the result of the kind of movie Advent Children was meant to be. I was disappointed the Advent Children could not receive a real theatrical release in America, but I also recognized that beyond visuals there really wasn’t anything there for anybody who’d never played the game or wasn’t familiar with the world, characters, and story. But I suppose that a sequel was really all Advent Children was trying to be, so I’m okay with that. Serenity, to me, tried to be more than a sequel, but it had a hard time doing so. Whatever happens to ReBoot at the end of all of this, I want it to be what it is intended to be.

 

ReBoot was acclaimed all those years ago because of the fact that it was a revolution in TV animation. Now I’m hoping that the revivals will be acclaimed for a different revolution: one where everybody gets a hearty piece of what they love, without holding the entire thing back; something successful that everybody can enjoy— new fans and old.