Thoughts on the Darkness of Bionic Woman v. Battlestar Galactica
SyFy Portal reported last week that Bionic Woman is intended to be dark, but not nearly as dark as Battlestar Galactica. Although both shows are reimagined versions of classic 70s shows, and both shows focus on the dark implications of merging human beings and technological advancements, Bionic Woman will not go to the very dark places BSG has in its first three seasons.
“That’s not really the style of show you would want to do with someone like Michelle Ryan, who is so appealing and winning and charismatic. You don’t want to put her in ‘Taxi Driver,’” executive producer David Eick said. “That being said, it’s a darker show than the old ‘Bionic Woman,’ and I think that’s a good thing. Darkness doesn’t mean depressing. This is meant to be an exciting show with a lot of optimism and hope.”
This makes sense, partially because Bionic Woman is on a major network and does not have the freedom that Battlestar Galatica enjoys on the SciFi Channel. It also explains some of the decisions the producers of Bionic Woman have made this summer, such as the controversial recasting Jamie’s younger sister to move away from the goth-loving handicapped girl depicted in the pilot.
I just hope that this is not a nice way of saying the show will not be as intelligent as its premise. The scifi shows that have developed a following in the past few years are those that are not afraid of complicated story lines, complex characters, and trusting the audience to make connections that are not explained on screen. These qualities are missing from the preair pilot, based on Ryan’s review.
In the modern television landscape the joy of audience discovery cannot be underestimated, and Lost and Heroes have demonstrated how much fans love to dissect episodes and theorize what is to come in the future. It is hard to generate that kind of following and buzz, however, if the stories are so obvious that they leave nothing to speculate about.
Bionic Woman, Battlestar Galactica, NBC, network, cable, dark, technology, 70s, classic, David Eick, Michelle Ryan, Taxi Driver, SciFi Channel, Lost, Heroes
August 28th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
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