Anyone watching Night Stalker tonight?

[Desdichado]

I thought it was an absolute waste of time. The show has absolutely nothing to do with the original other than the name and that he's a reporter. It's basically just another weak X-Files knockoff. They kept nothing of what made the original show what it was. I was extremely disapointed.

I think it's resemblence to the older show is completely irrelevent to how good the new one is or isn't.

I thought the pilot was a little bit weak, but not because it was different than the original. And I actually am optimistic that now that the pilot is out of the way they can settle into a better routine.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

I found it mediocre. If I'm sitting in front of the TV when it's on again I may watch it, but I'm not going to make much of an effort to see it.

I've never seen the old show, so I'm not comparing it to anything. The plot wasn't much, the characters were weak, and the whole thing seemed bland.

 

[Rackhir]

I think it's resemblence to the older show is completely irrelevent to how good the new one is or isn't.

I thought the pilot was a little bit weak, but not because it was different than the original. And I actually am optimistic that now that the pilot is out of the way they can settle into a better routine.

If it's an updating or remake of an older series then it is. The old show was loved and influential for a reason. Changes have to be made, since obviously it isn't the same time, place or even actors, but if you change things they at least should be for the better or some reason. If an orange soda is marketed as new and improved, I don't expect the flavor to be grape.

The original Kolchak was a frumpy wrinkled old bachelor reporter just trying to get by. Now he's this young, hansome (he played Lestat in Queen of the Dammed), married (well his wife did die), crusader for truth and justice. None of these changes seem to have been made for reasons other than you can't have anyone on TV who couldn't win a modeling competition and to steal ideas from The Fugitive and X-Files.

The new Battlestar Galactica is probably the best example I've seen of how to take the elements of an old show and work it into something new, different and better. The character of the president was one of the major changes, but it at least adds something to things and the conflict between the military and civilian authorities has given a lot of depth and interest to the plots.

By contrast the Gabriele Union? character seems to have been provided solely so there's a hot woman on the show and to play Sculley to Kolchak's Mulder. Ah, Minor Spoiler


One of the best moments in the original series for me was when Kolchak was trying to track down and kill a Rackhasha, which would appear as the person the victim trusted the most. Kolchak of course as a grizzled old reporter trusted no one. So he was thrown for a loop when he ran into the secretary for the office (who was the Rackasha in disguise) and realized perhaps he wasn't quite so cynical and distrustful after all. It was a great use of a secondary character. I just don't see that kind of imagination behind any of the characters or the plot.

 

[Elf Witch]

As a fan of the old show I was a little worried about the new one. Every time they bring back a show I loved like Dark Shadows, BattleStar Galatica they change it so much that it is not the same show.

Yes this show has changes it has been updated for the times Kolchak is not in this fight alone any longer. He dresses better and he while I will admit that Stuart Townsend is easy on the eyes he is no Darren Magavin.

But the feel of the show is the same Kolchak knows the truth he wants to find the truth the only difference is that this Kolchak knows that it is futile to try and print the truth without a lot of evidence to back it up. He is not giving up the fight he is just going about it a little differently than the other Kolchak.

No one can play Kolchak like Darren did and it would be boring to try I think it is good that Stuart is making the character his own a different Kolchak.

I am looking forward to see how the show develops.

BTW in the TV series it was a blue mustang I know this becasue I used to own the same car mine was a hard top but I bought it becasue it was like the one Kolchak drove. It was my very first car.