SyFy Seeks The Next Big Space Opera, To Replace BSG and Farscape by Haken

GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

SyFy Seeks The Next Big Space Opera, To Replace BSG and Farscape

POSTED BY: HAKEN
UPDATED: Monday, July 13, 2009 07:52
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VIEWED: 5135
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Thursday, July 9, 2009 12:12 AM

Likes to mess with stuffs.

Syfy president David Howe wants a new space-opera, along the lines of Firefly or Farscape, by 2011.

Read more here:

http://io9.com/5309356/syfy-seeks-the-next-big-space-opera-to-replace-
bsg-and-farscape?skyline=true&s=i

You would think that it would make more sense to simply bring back Firefly. Casting might be an issue, but Howe has till 2011. I'm even open to the idea of bringing in new characters and continuing from where 'Serenity' ended so that continuity is kept.

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Thursday, July 9, 2009 1:16 AM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

SyFy is an NBC/Universal property, so is Serenity, at least as far as I know they still have movie rights. As to tv rights, that might still be up to FOX, but weirder deals have been made between studios before.

The ideal solution is to produce either a movie or short mini-series of Firefly/Serenity, something that could be done while the actors are on hiatus from any regular series gig they currently have.

Why reinvent the space opera when you already have the best one ever created?

wo men ren ran zai fei xing.

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Thursday, July 9, 2009 1:18 AM

AURAPTOR

America loves a winner!

Well, there are two less main characters to worry about, if there's a budget issue. By *2011, it'll be 5 yrs since SERENITY, and I'd suspect lots had happened on board.

How interesting would it be with just Mal, Zoe, Jayne and Kaylee on board ?

* I know it'll be 6 years, but from the time they start filming, in order for it to be released in 2011, I suspect, it'll be somewhere in 2010. Just an off the cuff guess.

The T.Rex they call JANE!

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Thursday, July 9, 2009 1:47 AM

FILLYGIRL

Operative: "Its worse than you know..." Mal: "It usually is."

Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:
Syfy president David Howe wants a new space-opera, along the lines of Firefly or Farscape, by 2011.

Read more here:

http://io9.com/5309356/syfy-seeks-the-next-big-space-opera-to-replace-
bsg-and-farscape?skyline=true&s=i

You would think that it would make more sense to simply bring back Firefly. Casting might be an issue, but Howe has till 2011. I'm even open to the idea of bringing in new characters and continuing from where 'Serenity' ended so that continuity is kept.

F*x would DIE before they brought FF back, hopefully they'll die soon.

Chaplain of the 76th Independant Battalion

Do not bother dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

...it's worse than you know...Operative
...it usually is.....Mal

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Thursday, July 9, 2009 2:06 AM

BROWNCOAT1

May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one.

Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:
Syfy president David Howe wants a new space-opera, along the lines of Firefly or Farscape, by 2011.

You would think that it would make more sense to simply bring back Firefly. Casting might be an issue, but Howe has till 2011. I'm even open to the idea of bringing in new characters and continuing from where 'Serenity' ended so that continuity is kept.

You'd think, but that would take thinking outside the box. Not sure SyFy has it in them.

I'd be okay with a continuing of Joss's story in the 'verse even if it meant another ship and crew. Is Joss locked in exclusive with Fox currently though? We all know Joss won't let anyone else touch Serenity so it would have to be him at the helm, but if he's contractually obligated to Fox would he be able to even entertain the idea?

__________________________________________
Holding the line since December '02!

Richmond, VA & surrounding area Firefly Fans:

http://www.richmondbrowncoats.org

Color Officer / Battalion O.I.C.

http://76thbattalion.homestead.com/index.html

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Thursday, July 9, 2009 3:29 AM

PIZMOBEACH

... fully loaded, safety off...

Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:
Syfy president David Howe wants a new space-opera, along the lines of Firefly or Farscape, by 2011.

You would think that it would make more sense to simply bring back Firefly.

If Firefly has done well in it's rebroadcast runs then it has a chance - you have to know that they know the viewer numbers, and it's not like it would be an emotional decision.

Having said that, it would be a bit of an ego hit for a network exec to choose something that has already been done, it's like saying, "I run this channel and have all of these paid creatives and we can't think of anything new, we just do reruns."

It starts with the numbers though...

Scifi movie music + Firefly dialogue clips, 24 hours a day - http://www.scifiradio.com Now available on your iPhone

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Thursday, July 9, 2009 5:37 AM

NE0VEN0M

If Fox is never going to do anything with its rights, why can't they just sell it, make a profit and give it to a company who's willing to go in SOME kind of direction, whether that's re-airing the original episodes, trying to resurrect the series as it was, making a spin-off set in the same verse? It could be a win win for both parties if Fox can make money from the sale, and the new company can make money from the new material.

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Thursday, July 9, 2009 3:24 PM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

Quote:
Originally posted by ne0ven0m:
If Fox is never going to do anything with its rights, why can't they just sell it, make a profit and give it to a company who's willing to go in SOME kind of direction, whether that's re-airing the original episodes, trying to resurrect the series as it was, making a spin-off set in the same verse? It could be a win win for both parties if Fox can make money from the sale, and the new company can make money from the new material.

I once worked for a company whose employees came up with an unofficial motto, and I think it would apply to FOX and almost any other network too.

If it makes sense, don't do it.

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Friday, July 10, 2009 12:19 AM

HAKEN

Likes to mess with stuffs.

Quote:
Originally posted by pizmobeach:

Having said that, it would be a bit of an ego hit for a network exec to choose something that has already been done, it's like saying, "I run this channel and have all of these paid creatives and we can't think of anything new, we just do reruns."

LOL. Considering the numerous rebooting and re-imagining of television series and movies from the 70's and 80's that we've been seeing lately, it's probably not that much of a stretch for the studio execs.

Maybe some of these paid creatives aren't that creative after all. No doubt some are schooled in the idea of "let's bring back what we liked as kids, but slap lots of CGI and hot babes on it to make it new again" as a means of creating new television series and movies.

As a side note, one has to admit someone isn't completely sane when a studio spends $170 million on making "G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra." That budget could have paid for 4 Firefly movies with change leftover.

If one removed all the CGI from this G.I. Joe trailer, all that's left is a comedy--and not a very good one at that, but I digress.

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Friday, July 10, 2009 4:07 AM

PIZMOBEACH

... fully loaded, safety off...

Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:
Quote:
Originally posted by pizmobeach:

Having said that, it would be a bit of an ego hit for a network exec to choose something that has already been done, it's like saying, "I run this channel and have all of these paid creatives and we can't think of anything new, we just do reruns."

LOL. Considering the numerous rebooting and re-imagining of television series and movies from the 70's and 80's that we've been seeing lately, it's probably not that much of a stretch for the studio execs.

Heh - I should have said, "should be."

Skiffy's David Howe is at least thinking that way:

" We don't want to do something that is the same old. You don't want it to feel recycled. So that's the challenge of doing that. I'm a huge fan of Firefly, and shows that take that idea and take that part of the genre and reinvent it in a whole new way. I'd love to find our version of, not specifically Firefly, but similar to what Joss [Whedon] tried to do with that in terms of, "lets recast the Western in space." Love that idea, and I love that show. What's another way to approach that?"

I get the feeling that he specifically mentions Firefly and NOT doing Firefly, because he hoped he could forestall Browncoat mailings. How naive - get the mail bags ready!

Scifi movie music + Firefly dialogue clips, 24 hours a day - http://www.scifiradio.com Now available on your iPhone

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Friday, July 10, 2009 5:28 AM

ZZETTA13

So they’re looking to make a Firefly show that ain’t Firefly? A space western, Come on!

The browncoats have told them time and time again what we want to see back on television. They had a chance to get Firefly the first time around and blew it. I realize that many of these folk aren’t the same people that made those decisions back then but I really don’t want a show that is a copy of Firefly. I think that’s what we’ll get…..and what happens to copies……they are compare to the original. Most of the time they are never even close.

Within the last couple of months I’ve introduce two coworkers to the Firefly verse ( this makes 6 coworkers total). They both loved the series and the last fellow devoured it in no time flat. I am constantly hearing them having discussions about the show without me being involved at all which tells me my goal of bringing FF to the masses is gaining speed, momentum and is moving forward. The last guy even requested to borrow my collectors edition of Serenity several times and was disappointed when I’d forgotten to bring it to him.

FF is still creating new fans so any copying of the show just seems lame to me. I want FF back, not a copy! The Sy/Fy people have played around long enough. I guess I would rather have nothing than a cheap imitation. Also if Firefly were to be reintroduced back into the si/fi fanship I think the pilot would have to be very bold and different ( with all the same characters of course). I don’t think that it could simply just take up where it left off (OIS).

Maybe a pilot episode centered around Inara. Something that would really dig deep into her past without revealing any true secrets. I think Joss and Tim could write an episode that way, leaving plenty of mystery to my favorite Companion. Also Book’s past wouldn’t be a bad place to start either. The mysteries of those episodes alone would generate plenty of new interest and give the hardcore FF fans what we’ve all been craving for years.

Anyhow, I do know a creator and some writes and actors that could pull it off. Even if it were only a mini series to start off with.

Z

PS: I’ve been talking up the show to another coworker and I think with him hearing other people talking about it he has become curious. My last two coworkers that were introduce to the show were not science fiction fans……..but they are firefly fans now.

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Friday, July 10, 2009 9:29 AM

FOLLOWMAL

TV movies would be awesome and a good starting point. They could judge the ratings and interest by that just like they did with BSG.

It would be shiny to have the original crew back. I think all of us think that...but I could deal with a new crew and ship set in the 'Verse. I've been through 2 incarnations of SG and I'm along for the third when it starts and happily. I bet I can adjust to new folks and new adventures in the 'Verse as well. Maybe our crew could guest star?!

On that note, I'm not holding my breath. It would really surprise me if they brought Firefly or Serenity back whole. It's more likely they'll try to re-imagine it. If they pull it off and it's good I'll watch. If not, I won't.

I liked BSG, grew to love it and more than the old BSG at that...so let's see what they do. They might surprise us all. What a joy that would be.

http://www.kidsneedtoread.org/

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Friday, July 10, 2009 9:41 AM

FOLLOWMAL

Quote:
Originally posted by fillygirl:]
F*x would DIE before they brought FF back, hopefully they'll die soon.

Eeep, I hope not. Bones and DollHouse will disappear and whatever else new that they're cooking up for 2009-2010. LOL

I disagree. I think Fox would bring back Firefly and any other show that we loved if it made them enough money. Money is their thing, not fan's hearts. Firefly didn't get enough viewers while on, no matter how you slice it. It was a given that it would be canceled. We're so very lucky that we got the movie to close up some of the story lines as well as it did. :)

Neither one of them did well. It's a small fandom. *sigh* But I think it has grown some with the release of the movie to cable and tv and I think it could grow more with another show or even showings of the old eps on daytime rotation on SyFy.

My daughter wishes they'd sell the rights to syndication. Like Star Trek, seeing Firefly on frequently can only grow the fandom.

http://www.kidsneedtoread.org/

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Friday, July 10, 2009 3:14 PM

DEWRASTLER

First, as much as I love Firefly I don't see it coming back as a series. Direct to DVD, hopefully, but no series. SyFy should scrap the 'original' movies and make Firefly movies (seriously, I just saw an ad for an original movie called "Sand Serpents" about giant worms that travel underground and eat people. I thought that was called Tremors).

As for an original Big Space Opera, I always thought it would be cool to take a cue from Joss and use our past as a guideline. Instead of after the Civil War, I would go back to before the American Revolution. I would have a show about the settlement of Mars, some 100 years or so after it was terraformed, and the events leading up to a possible uprising and revolution.

________________________________
People who don't care about anything will never understand the people who do

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Friday, July 10, 2009 6:17 PM

FOLLOWMAL

Quote:
Originally posted by Dewrastler:
First, as much as I love Firefly I don't see it coming back as a series. Direct to DVD, hopefully, but no series. SyFy should scrap the 'original' movies and make Firefly movies (seriously, I just saw an ad for an original movie called "Sand Serpents" about giant worms that travel underground and eat people. I thought that was called Tremors).

I just saw the commercial for that. Dune-like much? Ugh..

Quote:

As for an original Big Space Opera, I always thought it would be cool to take a cue from Joss and use our past as a guideline. Instead of after the Civil War, I would go back to before the American Revolution. I would have a show about the settlement of Mars, some 100 years or so after it was terraformed, and the events leading up to a possible uprising and revolution.

I think that's a cool idea too! Have you tried writing something like this?

http://www.kidsneedtoread.org/

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Saturday, July 11, 2009 3:20 AM

DEWRASTLER

Quote:
Originally posted by FollowMal:
Quote:
Originally posted by Dewrastler:

Quote:

As for an original Big Space Opera, I always thought it would be cool to take a cue from Joss and use our past as a guideline. Instead of after the Civil War, I would go back to before the American Revolution. I would have a show about the settlement of Mars, some 100 years or so after it was terraformed, and the events leading up to a possible uprising and revolution.

I think that's a cool idea too! Have you tried writing something like this?

I would, but I have trouble coming up with storylines. I have a list of ideas that would make cool stories, and even have events and places I want them to go. I can come up with event A and event B and event C, I just am not really good at connecting them into a coherent story. Maybe I just need to actually practice it, usually I'm to busy to try and sit down and write anything.

But thanks for liking the idea.

________________________________
People who don't care about anything will never understand the people who do

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Saturday, July 11, 2009 5:33 AM

FOLLOWMAL

Quote:
Originally posted by Dewrastler:
I would, but I have trouble coming up with storylines. I have a list of ideas that would make cool stories, and even have events and places I want them to go. I can come up with event A and event B and event C, I just am not really good at connecting them into a coherent story. Maybe I just need to actually practice it, usually I'm to busy to try and sit down and write anything.

But thanks for liking the idea.

Two suggestions. If you don't mind?
1. Write anyway. Even if it's just snippets.
( Diana Gabaladon, one of my favororite writers writes this way, then she strings them together and fills in the blanks between, like building something. )
If you have a talent for coming up with ideas that's such a blessing. :)

2. Ask for help from fic writers already established within the fandom. They often write from ideas given them by a contest or others.
It might be cool to collaborate?

Anyway, I think your idea about this is brill and would be fun to see and read. :)

ETA: I wanted to clarify why I suggested to write in snippets so added the bit about Diana Gabaldon.

http://www.kidsneedtoread.org/

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Saturday, July 11, 2009 8:05 AM

MUTT999

Whether it's Universal, NBC, SyFy, Fox, I don't care! I think direct to DVD is the way to go. Pay $19.99 for a 60 (90?) minute episode a few times a year, hell yes! It beats whatever is happening now, which is nothing!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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Monday, July 13, 2009 7:52 AM

ANDREWT1000

Hey, They could make my novel into a TV show!
It's unashamedly space opera!

Speaking of shameless,

http://www.myspace.com/andrew_t1000

If you want, read the first 5 chapters in my blog!

lol

;-)

Shiny! Let's be bad guys!

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