Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Some things really shouldn't be changed

There are some things that shouldn't change, no matter how good an idea it may seem at first glance. For instance, the original Coke formula, the name of Coco Pops, and remaking the Searchers. Then again there are some things that really do benefit from a revision, such as Battlestar Galactica or the laws of gravity.

So it was with some trepidation that I heard they were going to remake The Prisoner. The original is a classic of 1960's TV that stood the test of time. I remember watching it at every opportunity while growing up (in the days when we only had 4 TV channels, so repeats were few and far between). Patrick McGoohan was The Prisoner and while the stories were often "out there", the series had this pulling power that made it unmissable.

I wondered how anyone could remake it and capture the essence of the original show? But I decided to be open minded and sat down the other night to watch the first episode of the new series. Afterwards the first thought I had was "I'll never get that hour back again!" As a remake, it was terrible. As a stand-alone series, it was probably passable.

It looks like another good idea bites the dust. I'll be taking the series off my Sky+ reminder now and if I'm stuck for something to do at that time I'll either watch some wood warp or maybe watch some paint dry: both would be far more stimulating activities!

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