3 TV Reboots: Yay or Nay?

In the post-modern age of consumerism and nostalgia, reboots have become common place in our culture. If done properly, they can add new chapters to a franchise, update and modernize a story, and introduce new fans to a world that fans have come to know and love. That is, if they are done properly. If they aren’t, they can feel like a cheap rip off of the original. It can isolate old fans, and confuse new ones. That being said, here are some new/current reboots that are happening, and whether they should be watched or not.

Star Trek: Discovery

Star Trek: Discovery is one of two new CBS All Access Star Trek shows. It first aired in 2017, and currently has two seasons, with a third in production.

This series is a prequel to the original series that aired in the 60’s. It follows Micheal Burnham, Spock’s adopted human sister, and her adventures aboard the scientific research vessel, the USS Discovery. From that initial premise, the show delves into things like Klingon hierarchy and consciousness splicing, Tartigrades and ‘warp’ travel, the Mirror Universe, and Time Travel

The story that Discovery tells is incredibly interesting and absolutely fun to watch…but if you try to explain it out loud to your friend, it sounds a bit insane and all over the place. Especially if they’ve never seen any Star Trek before, and don’t know what the Mirror Universe is, for example. I personally have extremely particular taste when it comes to this franchise, but I still enjoy the new story with this new group of characters. But I understand if not everyone can get on board with some of the more…out there plot points.

My Verdict: YAY!

HBO’s Watchmen

Watchmen is a new series on HBO that is inspired by Alan Moore’s comic, and the movie by the same name. The series aired this year, 2019, and, at the time of writing, has four episodes aired. That being said, I do have a conclusive opinion of it.

The series is a sequel, set 34 after the events of the original works. The story mainly focuses on the masked police force in Tulsa, and their fight against the extremist group, the Seventh Kalvary. However, there’s a million other things going on within this basic story line, such as baby squid falling from the sky, Adrian Veidt harvesting clones and torturing them, race and police riots, and Silk Spectre’s slow spiral into insanity. And this is all within 4 episodes.

Until they introduced Laurie back into the series, It honestly didn’t feel like a Watchmen show. There were nods, such as the police force using Archimedes, Owl Man’s flying craft, and the Seventh Kalvary dawning Rorschach masks. Laurie helps the series feel like its from the same universe, but her character is wildly different than it was at the end of the original movie. The show often leaves me with more questions than answers, and instead of feeling like I’m learning all the pieces to the puzzle, I just get more and more confused every episode.

My Verdict: NAY

Westworld

Westworld is yet another HBO series based on a novel by Micheal Crichton and a movie. The series premiered in 2016, with 2 seasons, and a third one in production. Though the novel and the original movie didn’t become particularly well known, the series took off in popularity.

The series follows the events that occur in a fictional high-tech immersive theme park called Westworld, where guests are granted the ability to relive the wild west. Everything in the park are robots, so guests can do…whatever they want. As the series goes on, it becomes even deeper, and touches on aspects such as disjointed timelines, the philosophical idea of life and death, and what it means to be alive if you’re not human.

This a series that’s very hard to watch casually. There are so many twists and turns that if the audience doesn’t pay very close attention, they’ll miss. That being said, the show does provide all the puzzle pieces and answers the questions it presents, unlike Watchmen. Some of the biggest twists I figured out just from remembering and connecting very specific details together. Each season has a change in genre and tone as well that help keep the audience on their toes and anticipating what exactly will happen next.

My Verdict: YAY!

Are there any reboots you love or love to hate? Leave them in the comments below: