The old one drove a beat up Camaro convertible, this one drives a shiny new Mustang coupe. The old one yelled a lot at people. This one doesn't seem to even talk much.
Actually, Carl drove a Mustang in the old series, too. A yellow/gold '66 convertable, if memory suits me.
Also, in the movie just before the TV series, Carl was a bit more flippant, as well as a ladies man. Obviously, he was a bachelor in the old series, a successful one inthe movies, but not so much in the tv-series.
Personally, I think the new show is ok, although different take on the Kolchak Papers.
Kolchak does seem to half-smile a lot, but I think it's more Townsend's take on 'knowing the truth' than it is 'being happy'. Sort of cocky, I'd think.
Anyhow, I'll give the show a handful of episodes and see how it'll go, my only fear is that with only so many takes on the topics being around, Night Stalker and Supernatural will be inadvertently stepping on each other's toes, a lot.
Although, I think Night Stalker was after a shapeshifter, not a black dog, in the pilot. I come to this mainly from the commends of carried off and how the 'coyote' would show up after an obvious homnid sighting, IE: a shadowy figure in a window or near a construction site.
I thought it was okay, but some things didn't make sense. The ending seemed to come out of nowhere (ie, rushed).
Spoilers:
I mean, sprayable stuff that magically tracks people/critters who walk in it via a PDA? And no one, but those dog things happens to walk in it? What about lizards or birds or tumbleweeds?
Seems awfully convenient. Deux Ex Machina sort of stuff.
I mean, why wasn't that cave searched by police? Seems kinda obvious. One case , then another with a missing child and a similar MO. Why not search the area where previous cases occured...
Doesn't Kolchak seem awfully chipper most of the time, for a guy who recently lost his wife and unborn child? (Though sufficiently broody when talking about her case). I'm not sure when it happened, but it had to have been within a year, since those new Mustangs are well, new. And why wouldn't Gabrielle Union's character (whose name I forget) have heard about the case, since in this day and age, every time a pregnant woman gets killed mysteriously, it's on the news everywhere.
And wouldn't she have known the cop at the crime scene (and vice-versa), if she had been covering crime in the city for 4 years?
Still, I thought it was okay, but I think it would have been better if it weren't a "remake" of the Night Stalker. The new Kolchak is far different than the old one. The old one wanted the truth printed no matter what. The old one was kinda frumpy , while the new one is seemingly rich (his house is pretty fancy) and stylish. The old one drove a beat up Camaro convertible, this one drives a shiny new Mustang coupe. The old one yelled a lot at people. This one doesn't seem to even talk much.
And really, the name doesn't fit. I mean, the "Night Stalker" part, really fits vampires more than mysterious doggies.
OTOH, you now have other characters than just Kolchak. Both of whom are pretty good (and in Ms. Union's case, easy on the eyes). And the choice in cars is much better, though he should really also have a convertible. They are much better for monster hunting because you can simply jump in them when you have to flee. (Obviously they offer less protection, but most nasties can go through a glass window easy enough, so it's not that much of a factor)
I'm not sticking up for the show, I thought it was ok but I like the Bumbling Carl from the original more then a straight faced guy.. here is my take...
The Original Kolchak drove a mustang I think that's why it was done...
The Original Kolchak Appeared in the News room during one scene and his hat appeared in the New Kolchak's house.
As for a sprayable tracking device by PDA/GPS.. Got me on that one I know they can spread radioactive dust around to track people/money/items but not with a PDA/GPS.. Still stumpped on how you not track, people/bugs/lizards/cats/dogs or the wind for that matter that you didn't want too..
Yes Night Stalker does sound like a vampire theme name, but the original dealt with vampires only once I think. Carl however did track Aztecs, Werewolves, a Dream Monster, a Senient Machine, in the original.
Only time (and viewers) will tell if this one will catch on...
It was originally a made for TV movie, "The Night Stalker". In that, it was a reference to a vampire.
And in that, Kolchak had a light blue late 60s Camaro. Definitely not a Mustang. Maybe when the show started up a couple years later, he has a Mustang, I dunno, since I've mostly seen just the ends of the episodes. The original made for TV movies I saw just this weekend, when I borrowed them from the library. (The TV show comes out on DVD this tuesday, I think. The 4th, the TV movies came out a couple months ago). Actually, come to think of of it, I don't think he drove anything in "The Night Strangler" (the 2nd made for TV movie with Kolchak), except at the very end, and you couldn't see what sort of car it was.
Now I'm going to have to borrow it again to make sure what he drove.
It was originally a made for TV movie, "The Night Stalker". In that, it was a reference to a vampire.
And in that, Kolchak had a light blue late 60s Camaro. Definitely not a Mustang. Maybe when the show started up a couple years later, he has a Mustang, I dunno, since I've mostly seen just the ends of the episodes. The original made for TV movies I saw just this weekend, when I borrowed them from the library. (The TV show comes out on DVD this tuesday, I think. The 4th, the TV movies came out a couple months ago). Actually, come to think of of it, I don't think he drove anything in "The Night Strangler" (the 2nd made for TV movie with Kolchak), except at the very end, and you couldn't see what sort of car it was.
Now I'm going to have to borrow it again to make sure what he drove.
When she asked where the real story was, I was expecting him to show her his secret Blog, where all his true stories are posted for those who know where to look.
If this wasn't trying to be "The Night Stalker" I might like it more, but as a remake it failed. But since it really does not have any competition for me, I'll watch it till they cancel it.
And why wouldn't Gabrielle Union's character (whose name I forget) have heard about the case, since in this day and age, every time a pregnant woman gets killed mysteriously, it's on the news everywhere.
Kolchak should constantly be at odds with his boss, Vincenzo. Kolchak should be "in your face" with his beliefs about werewolves, ghosts, vampires, etc., not caring that other people thought such views were ridiculous.
We might see more of him being at odds with his boss. I think about his secretiveness... maybe it's just because the original show was done in a different time. I think Vinchenzo was a lot more tolerant of Carl because he'd have had trouble getting anyone else. Today you mouth off to your employer like Carl did to Tony sometimes, and 15 minutes later you'll be on the sidewalk holding a cardboard box with all your stuff in it.
Maybe; we'll see how it goes. You can rarely judge things by just one episode.
Just the fact that he self censored himself turns me off on this series. He is mad that the FBI agent is sitting on this information or destroying evidence, because he wants to get at the truth. But everyione else, screw 'em. They don't need to know this information. He should just join the FBI if he wants in but still to keep it a secret.
But of cource that did not work out too well for Mulder.
In the modern update, he should be a reporter for the Weekly World News, who no one beleives his wild stories of the Batboy are real. Now that show would have had some legs.
I didn't have high hopes, but I did have middling hopes. Unfortunately I felt very let down on those. Maybe Kolchak has a comprehensible mission, but it sure didn't come out. One was enough for me, as I only watch shows I rate very highly.
In the modern update, he should be a reporter for the Weekly World News, who no one beleives his wild stories of the Batboy are real. Now that show would have had some legs.
That was a show called The Chronicle, put out by (I believe) the Sci Fi channel a couple of years ago. It was a little more strange than what you would have expected. For example, they had a pig-boy doing archives in the basement. Still, it did a good job of being a modern update of The Night Stalker, since it had some of the same irreverent attitude. I remember finding it enjoyable, when I caught it.
I just watched the new version of Night Stalker, and I've got mixed feelings. It was all right, but I found it too much like every other X-Files rip-off show. I didn't find the plot particularly engaging, and the characters were unlikable. In fact, I was sort of hoping they'd kill off Perry (Gabrielle Union's character) just to show that they were willing to surprise you. Kolchak didn't have the attitude that made the old show fun; he seemed like a prettyboy, more than the old, argumentative, experienced reporter that I liked.
Supernatural is very much the same show, but I actually like those characters. I'll watch both, for now, but I can't see getting too excited about them. Supernatural I'd enjoy quite a bit more if they added some recurring characters, or made it more than just a Freak of the Week show. I'd be surprised if they managed to make it through the whole season, or even half a season, with just those two guys as characters.
I'm interested in the overplot of Night Stalker, because it's got something that I've used in a game before - the idea of (spoilery!)
pregnant women being targeted, and their babies being stolen. It's really dark, and quite horrific, but the fact that the idea showed up made me curious as to where they're going with it. (Although I'll be irritated if it's a demon-worshipping cult making tieflings who are immune to the cult's disruption of magic, since that was the plot I used. Somehow, I'd be surprised.)
