Buck Rogers (Forked Thread: Lorraine Williams did... what?)

[Dire Bare]

The Sci-Fi channel recently tried to do a Flash Gordon reboot, and it was not very successful. The point I need to make is, not all franchises can handle a "reboot", nor should all older properties be "re-imagined".

I don't think the franchise itself has anything to do with it -- rather, it is the talent of the creator and their ability to extract the core concepts, and the commitment of the producers to keep the quality of the stories high.

I'll agree with Murph here. It's not that the Flash Gordon property wasn't a good choice for a reimagining, but rather that it was done so poorly. SciFi's (or SyFy's now, I guess) Flash tv show failed because it sucked, not because Flash Gordon isn't relevant anymore. I can't tell you how excited I was for that show, and then was just stunned at how bad it was . . . not even "fun" bad, but fall asleep on the couch bad . . .

 

[Erik Mona]

That Sci-Fi (ahem)... SyFy show would have been a lot better and lasted a lot longer if it had stayed more faithful to the original subject matter. It was a laughable disgrace that didn't even deserve to air as long as it did. Just terrible.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

The Sci-Fi channel recently tried to do a Flash Gordon reboot, and it was not very successful.

Mostly because it centered on the exotic world of Canada-standing-in-for-Maryland. The creators also were apparently unaware that pulp heroes aren't the stars of adventures without any apparent adventure and that are paced like funeral services.

We'll never know if the Flash Gordon concept could have worked, because the execution was so terrible.

 

[Knightfall]

I owned some of the Buck Rogers XXVC sourcebooks and actually liked the Inner Worlds book. I also owned The Belt and Hardware.