Which TV series reboots worked and which didnt?

appfry

Given the start of two new reboots this week that werent great, Ive been thinking that there have been a few over the last few years.
Some worked. More failed miserably.

IMO these ones worked
Hawaii Five-o
Battlestar Galactica
Roots
Doctor Who

And these were miserable failures
Charlies Angels
MacGyver
V
Knight Rider
The x-files


The rest I have either not seen yet or am indifferent. id like to hear peoples opinions on reboots that worked / didnt work

pickarooney

Doctor who was a miserable failure? Not by any objective measure surely.

Mr E

Doctor Who was/is a massive success, and X-Files wasn't a reboot (it was a continuation).

LeinsterDub

Doctor Who is entering its 10th season and has spawned 3 spin off you sir/ma'am are crazy !

Owryan

While i enjoyed the "V" reboot it spent too much time trying to develop multi layered story-lines and not enough time actually getting down to outright conflict between us and them. The story-line just got too complicated and it struggled to make any sense at times.

appfry

You are all right. I meant to put that in the success section. My bad.
Fixed it now.

Harvey Normal

Dr Who wasn't a reboot. I assume the failure columns are correct because I've never seen them.

Squeeonline

I liked V. It wasn't great but I think deserved more time than it got, especially when compared with something like The Walking Dead which just needs to end.

childsplay

Must disagree with you regarding The X Files. It was a continuation. Also, l really enjoyed how it didn't take itself too seriously and was able to poke fun at itself!

Sofa Spud

Remember watching that - did you think that the two new characters - Texans I think - were being set up for a spin off series? They had the same kind of dynamic as Moulder and Scully and were given plenty of scenes to play off each other....

pixelburp

Dr. Who isn't a reboot: it's the same universe, continuity, characters as the last iteration. The 'first' season in 2005 was a bit of a soft reboot in principle, given the show was off the air for 16 years it had to reintroduce the audience to the world; but it was definitely not a reboot in the sense that I think is meant here.

TerrorFirmer

Battlestar stands out as a prime example for me, but I wouldn't say V was a miserable failure. It had two seasons before the plug was pulled and it was actually pretty decent, I was disappointed that it was cancelled as it had huge potential.

childsplay

Sofa Spud wrote:

Remember watching that - did you think that the two new characters - Texans I think - were being set up for a spin off series? They had the same kind of dynamic as Moulder and Scully and were given plenty of scenes to play off each other....

Possibly but as an X Phile l hope not! Murder and Scully are the core of the show.

Sofa Spud

Agreed - it just felt like they got a lot of screen time as maybe a kinda test run to see what fans reaction would be like. Clearly Anderson and Duchovny have probably spent enough time trying to shake off their association with the series and probably came back for big bucks and a chance to put it to bed, but as with everything in U.S. tv, if the producers feel they can milk the cash cow a bit more, they will....

Guy:Incognito

I started watching the new Roots and turned off the first episode after about 10 mins saying I'll give it another go, but havnt bothered. Does it get good?

appfry

I was a big fan of the original roots.
I think the newer version is excellent too.

bluesfan

It's a bit unfair to have MacGyver in as a massive failure. There's only been one episode so far so it's way to early to write it off.

TheCockpitGuy

The Bionic Woman

Sudden Valley

TheCockpitGuy wrote: »

The Bionic Woman

Did it work or not ? The suspense is killing me..

Never saw a full episode but as I remember Starbuck from BSG was in it.

TheCockpitGuy

The 2007 reboot with Michelle Ryan, she was in Eastenders.

This reboot lasted 9 episodes.

youngblood

TheCockpitGuy wrote: »

The 2007 reboot with Michelle Ryan, she was in Eastenders.

This reboot lasted 9 episodes.

I actually think the reboot of the Bionic Woman was years ahead of its time
It came about at a time when there zero women superheroes either on tv or movies, it would have faired well about 2 years ago but at the time was severely hampered by the writers strike and bombed (just as it got good!)

McLoughlin

You do know what a reboot is ? Doctor Who, The X Files and Knight Rider were not reboots but continuation of the original series.

TheCockpitGuy

McLoughlin wrote: »

You do know what a reboot is ?

Knight Rider were not reboots but continuation of the original series.

The Original Knight Rider ended in 1986. The new version began in 2008. How was it a continuation 22 years later?

ixoy

TheCockpitGuy wrote: »

The Original Knight Rider ended in 1986. The new version began in 2008. How was it a continuation 22 years later?

Well this:

Knight Rider is a 2008 series that follows the 1982 TV series of the same title created by Glen A. Larson and the 2008 television movie. The series stars Justin Bruening as Mike Traceur, the estranged son of Michael Knight. The series also stars Deanna Russo as Sarah Graiman, Traceur's former girlfriend and love interest. Sarah is the daughter of Charles Graiman. Graiman, played by Bruce Davison, is the creator of a new generation of KITT (Knight Industries Three Thousand), which is voiced by Val Kilmer.

It's a continuation, even if it's more Knight Rider: The Next Generation.

CastorTroy

Sure Twin Peaks is coming back after about 25 years and it's not a reboot.

Then there are animated series:
Thundercats was good but was cancelled
Thunderbirds is still going I think. I haven't watched it but heard it's good.
Captain Scarlet lasted a season or 2 I think.
Teenage Mutant Ninjas Turtles has been rebooted twice. The new series is brilliant and still going.
Transformers as well. This has beeen rebooted multiple times.

Then there are ones based on comics, like the Turtles. We have multiple Marvel and DC characters/teams that have appeared on tv multiple times.


Edit: Other series I thought of:
Cupid. Cancelled both times. Preferred the original series but the remake grew on me as well.
Wentworth. Watched a couple of episodes, but from what I know it's mean to be pretty good and less soapy than Prisoner.
And speaking of Prisoner, The Prisoner. Original series was much better. Wasn't a fan of the remake. Though would this count since it was a planned miniseries, I believe.
I don't know if anthology series like Twilight Zone or Outer Limits would count, but have those as well

pixelburp

TheCockpitGuy wrote: »

The Original Knight Rider ended in 1986. The new version began in 2008. How was it a continuation 22 years later?

If the new show continues the plot, continuity and characters of the original, it's not a reboot. That's literally the opposite of what a reboot is about. Some do it subtler than others of course, but length of time wouldn't be a factor. Dr Who came back after 16 hears but is not a reboot, it just picked up from the previous mythology.

Battlestar Galactica is the best example here because it took the basic premise, character names and motivations, a few other details and basically rewrote the whole show. There was no actual link to the original 70s series. Arguably any reboot should always at least try this approach, because at least there's less risk of living in the originals shadow

Yamanoto

I didn't get where I am today by sitting through crud like this...

Bandana boy

Is an American take on a British show (or vice versa) considered a reboot ?

If so
Good
US office
House Of Cards
Shameless

The Bad

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_American_television_series_based_on_British_television_series

Cork Boy 53

Was this on Sky TV?I remember the original series and the sequel from the 1970s but have not seen this remake.

darkdubh

The recent line for line reshoot of an old episode of Steptoe And Son was a miserable failure.

somesoldiers

Cork Boy 53 wrote: »

Was this on Sky TV?I remember the original series and the sequel from the 1970s but have not seen this remake.

not sure if it has been aired over here yet as is only 2016. I stuck with it to the end and really enjoyed it. I hadn't seen the original though I have been called a Kunta Kinte many times
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roots_(2016_miniseries)