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Post by Videofox on Jan 5, 2008 14:45:24 GMT -5
They probably feel that one superhero against normal human bad guys are boring and want to push heavy special effect battles to the forefront. The uninspired "Gotta have a super-powered bad guy so we can demolish the whole city!" mentality, totally forgetting or ignoring the fact that such a public display of superpowers would NOT go unnoticed and it was the "secret superhero" that was the backbone of GAH. Ehh...these types of movies nowadays don't give a flying frig about character development. The suit has always been just a tool, not a secret-identity scenario. Although I do admit that at ten years old, the suit was the star of the show for me and I didn't care if the plot was lame. Fortunately I have come to appreciate the entire show in my old age. If it is Disney doing this movie, they may forgo character in favor of slapstick to appeal to kiddies. I do have to give Disney credit for at least giving Underdog the "reluctant hero" mentality. (Sue me, I liked it!) In that respect, he will probably be more Ralph-like that their actual Ralph! Even if the movie hero does possess such a quirk, he'll get over it by the third act in order to save the world. That's why I would prefer GAH be a weekly series than a ninety-minute movie...can't cram much character development in that length of time!
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Post by mmderdekea on Jan 5, 2008 14:54:41 GMT -5
There cannot be only one suit in California is the aliens truly want to save the entire world - that makes no sense. Well, it makes sense to me! It's definitely how I will always view the show. Just Bill and Ralph alone have contact with the aliens. Mona
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Post by Videofox on Jan 5, 2008 15:04:47 GMT -5
I'm glad I don't have to worry about that when wearing my GAH hat I got off of ebay last year. Has the teardrops and everything, and it's the rounded logo. Though you can't see the three notches in the outside black ring unless you really look hard, because it's black on black. They didn't outline it with white or anything. I'd go with the heart logo "I love TGAH" shirt they've got going, though I'd add "2008" to it. The earth logo is definitely confusing and would make people think that something legit (and I use legit as in Disney, Cannell, etc) is happening. Which is when I first read the first few posts on the whole TGAH 2008 and went to the site I thought something WAS set in motion, like everyone else did. If they're going without the teardrops, that is pretty much the best way to do it and keep away from possible legalities. I have that hat! But I don't believe that just removing the teardrops would avoid legal issues. The GAH logo is too distinctive. It would probably be treated the same as if someone left off the upper right-hand triangle on the Superman "S" logo and tried to sell it. Something like that may go ignored as long as an official GAH project isn't happening...but once it begins, anyone they perceive as profiting from GAH should get their lawyers ready.
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Post by HoudiniDerek on Jan 5, 2008 18:18:38 GMT -5
I'm glad I don't have to worry about that when wearing my GAH hat I got off of ebay last year. Has the teardrops and everything, and it's the rounded logo. Though you can't see the three notches in the outside black ring unless you really look hard, because it's black on black. They didn't outline it with white or anything. I'd go with the heart logo "I love TGAH" shirt they've got going, though I'd add "2008" to it. The earth logo is definitely confusing and would make people think that something legit (and I use legit as in Disney, Cannell, etc) is happening. Which is when I first read the first few posts on the whole TGAH 2008 and went to the site I thought something WAS set in motion, like everyone else did. If they're going without the teardrops, that is pretty much the best way to do it and keep away from possible legalities. No offense, Claye, but I prefer her outfit and pictures of it to pictures of you.
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Post by MortimerWest on Jan 5, 2008 20:38:18 GMT -5
Sorry, I just read videofox's post and to answer that -
Vince (the suit wearer who has gone bad) knows the aliens will not come near him in fear of being exposed (he can make himself known to the world and cause damage to a lot (both people and places) before they ever got the suit from him - these are two things they want to avoid. If the Greenguys had a way of simply turning the suit off then there would be no need for the audition process to be as involved as I make it in the script - In my version the Greenguys watch you for a long long long time to see how atune your moral compass is before approaching you.
Charlie - our new hero, is given a suit 10x stronger than Vince's but he loses the instruction book (vince takes it when he find out Charlie has been sent to stop him) and this causes Charlie to go on the defensive.
In my script, Vince is the first time we would have seen someone totally in control of everything the suit can do, he can shift his suit to look like normal clothing (I wanted to keep the symbol on it at all times - like little dots on the tie he has on and such.)
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Post by Ms Boku on Jan 5, 2008 21:40:54 GMT -5
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Post by Ms Boku on Jan 5, 2008 21:44:14 GMT -5
Here is the best one. "William Katt? Anyone, anyone? The Greatest American Hero. And who's 'supposedly' playing the 'Hero' in the remake...the director of 'Bill and Ted's Greatest Adventure'. You can't make this stuff up people."
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Post by Videofox on Jan 6, 2008 0:38:38 GMT -5
Sorry, I just read videofox's post and to answer that - Vince (the suit wearer who has gone bad) knows the aliens will not come near him in fear of being exposed (he can make himself known to the world and cause damage to a lot (both people and places) before they ever got the suit from him - these are two things they want to avoid. If the Greenguys had a way of simply turning the suit off then there would be no need for the audition process to be as involved as I make it in the script - In my version the Greenguys watch you for a long long long time to see how atune your moral compass is before approaching you. Charlie - our new hero, is given a suit 10x stronger than Vince's but he loses the instruction book (vince takes it when he find out Charlie has been sent to stop him) and this causes Charlie to go on the defensive. In my script, Vince is the first time we would have seen someone totally in control of everything the suit can do, he can shift his suit to look like normal clothing (I wanted to keep the symbol on it at all times - like little dots on the tie he has on and such.) Very cool, Mortimer...thanks for sharing! If it doesn't get sold, we'd love to see it in fanfic. I always figured the greenguys did more than just watch potential heroes... My version would also include elements of the "alien abduction" phenomenon, in which the greenguys would take potentials and study them (biologically and psychologically) and then returning them after wiping their memories. Sometimes the memory wipe takes, and sometimes it doesn't. In classic GAH terms, it worked on Ralph, but maybe not entirely on Bill...which would explain his subconscious fear of the greenguys. He may not have actual memories of such an abduction, but something about them definitely creeps him out whenever he encounters them. ;D None of this would actually be shown on my main characters, but hinted at through a recurring character who was abducted and rejected by the greenguys...but definitely remembers the experience and has become obsessed with them. Anyhoo...was Vince a post-Ralph or post-Holly replacement? Just wondering if you were on the pro-Holly side or not. And if you can tell us, did you mention Ralph and Bill and what happened to them? Inquiring minds want to know! Which leads to another possibility...how many other suit wearers have there been? Twenty years between JJ and Ralph would allow for one or two others, depending on their longevity. It's been 25 years since GAH went off the air... If there was no Holly, how long did Ralph keep the suit? Plenty of time for several other replacements...all depending on how long they held out. Some might be able to handle the pressure better than others. This is why I prefer a TV series to motion pictures...far too many facets to explore!
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Post by MortimerWest on Jan 6, 2008 2:04:27 GMT -5
I wish I could post the script in fanfic- but it's owned by Disney and Cannell.
Hanging out with Cannell we talked about why the aliens would pick one man over another. The studio at some point asked if the hero could be a cop and we both felt that was a wrong choice. It was and had to be an everyman who simply IS better than most. We talking about OH GOD and how the John Denver character's true qualities were shown when he was first approached by God. He was willing to go along with it. He thought it was a joke, but he never "disbelieved" or wrote off that there was NO WAY it was God. By the time God approached him, he was almost convinced anyway. I thought alien abduction was too personal and intrusive.. when we meet Charlie his car is broken down and he pushes it into a gas station. He sees another person across the street doing the same thing and takes the time to help them too. He laughs when things are bad and always sees a positive in everything, except Vince, who his x-wife is dating and his son is now looking up to. And here's the weird part - Vince is liked by EVERYONE ELSE. He's rich, powerful and close to running for office. (He's like the anti-christ), in fact I wrote his character with Sam Neil in my head -- the young Sam Neil from Final Conflict and Charlie was sort of like John Denver. There is an exchange when Vince has Charlie captured. He's just revealed to Charlie that he has a suit of his own and he tells him something like --
VINCE You thought you were the first? They've been doing this for years, Charlie. Before me it was a girl named Hathoway and before her a school teacher named Hinkley, but none before had vision like I do.
So yeah, mine was a continuation of the show. I have to say, Cannell liked the fact that I was going to make mention of Holly - he liked the pilot that was made... I told him how I felt.
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Post by Videofox on Jan 6, 2008 11:51:05 GMT -5
I don't mind the concept of a female suit wearer...I just had a problem with how they handled Hinckley's exit! Sheds a bad light on humanity to suggest that every suit wearer (like JJ) ends up corrupted. Couldn't one just decide to retire on his/her own when they feel they've done their part? (That's how my version of Ralph did it...he has several kids with Pam and decided to retire in the early 2000s to concentrate on them now that they've grown up.) Funny you should mention the cop thing. My hero, Eric, tried being a police officer for a few years thinking he could help people, but realized arresting them wasn't really helping in the way he wanted to help, especially the kids. He leaves the force to go into social services instead. This brings in a recurring cast of young people similar to Ralph's classroom, providing subplots that may or may not require suit intervention. (I would like to develop these plots into a fanfilm series, but if that doesn't work out then I will start a fanfic series.) I also have reservations about the alien abduction concept, but I picture it as very benign and not very intrusive at all...inspired by the sleep chambers seen in the "Vanity" episode. (I know, I know...bad example, but that's the imagery I want to suggest). But I figured this would be how the greenguys get the DNA scans to program the suit to only work on the one it's intended for. After the Beck fiasco, I figured they became very very particular about who they chose from now on. I also had the idea that the greenguys have multiple potentials on their list, and when a crisis arises to warrant a new suit wearer, they pick the one closest to the upcoming event. (Such as choosing Ralph, who just happens to be in the same city where the plot against the President was to unfold). I hadn't decided yet if the recurring character I mentioned earlier, who remembers his initial experience with the greenguys, is someone who actually would qualify as a suit wearer, or was rejected for whatever reason. Since he becomes obsessed with the aliens and goes a little crazy in the process, probably not. I just thought that would make for an interesting character to write. I just saw a preview for a new superhero comedy with Will Smith called Hancock, which looks awesome. Starting with My Super-Ex Girlfriend, then with the recent Underdog and now Hancock, it looks like superhero comedies are becoming the norm. If that's the case, then any new GAH movie probably wouldn't stand out that much. Hopefully it won't fall into some sort of formula and really become the breakout movie from the trend.
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Post by MortimerWest on Jan 6, 2008 17:18:24 GMT -5
A new GAH movie wouldn't stand out - you're right. I think they should put it back on tv with a new cast... at least that's what I told someone in a meeting before the strike.
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Post by MelMac on Jan 6, 2008 18:28:16 GMT -5
I'm glad I don't have to worry about that when wearing my GAH hat I got off of ebay last year. Has the teardrops and everything, and it's the rounded logo. Though you can't see the three notches in the outside black ring unless you really look hard, because it's black on black. They didn't outline it with white or anything. I'd go with the heart logo "I love TGAH" shirt they've got going, though I'd add "2008" to it. The earth logo is definitely confusing and would make people think that something legit (and I use legit as in Disney, Cannell, etc) is happening. Which is when I first read the first few posts on the whole TGAH 2008 and went to the site I thought something WAS set in motion, like everyone else did. If they're going without the teardrops, that is pretty much the best way to do it and keep away from possible legalities. I have that hat! But I don't believe that just removing the teardrops would avoid legal issues. The GAH logo is too distinctive. It would probably be treated the same as if someone left off the upper right-hand triangle on the Superman "S" logo and tried to sell it. Something like that may go ignored as long as an official GAH project isn't happening...but once it begins, anyone they perceive as profiting from GAH should get their lawyers ready. While I understand their reasoning, the "S" bit in Superman and complaints tends to get a bit extreme. A school here was asked to stop using it a while back on their sports uniforms. But, I understand why the school chose to put it on their uniforms - it's easier than writing "Schulenberg Shorthorns." The colors also are black and orange, and best I remember - they NEVER sold shirts for the general fans to wear that used the "S" logo. That case they just had the school's name and mascot (the latter usually just the name, but sometimes the mascot). But, I do feel that there's a risk here with selling the shirts because even with the teardrops, people know this is the suit emblem, and do agree with you videofox on the possible problems with them if/when a new series or movie does occur. Mortimer, I like the idea with Vince's outfit still having something stuck from the suit showing in morphed form. I do something similar in my Aidan series where she can morph the suit but it stays the same colors and the emblem is always in a prominent place. She also has the power instead of being able to turn invisible on her own volition (she can't). In this case - Aidan's only turned invisible completely three times - only once with her trying (briefly), other two times because of things not by her choice (but not long and not in a dangerous scenario).
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Post by Videofox on Jan 7, 2008 17:30:09 GMT -5
I would hazard a guess that a suit's morphing ability would have to come with some kind of sacrifice...maybe a time limit, or consumes so much energy that other powers may not work while the suit is morphed. This would force him to still go out in the embarrassing cape and tights instead of going around morphed into something less outlandish.
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Post by MelMac on Jan 7, 2008 17:46:20 GMT -5
I would hazard a guess that a suit's morphing ability would have to come with some kind of sacrifice...maybe a time limit, or consumes so much energy that other powers may not work while the suit is morphed. This would force him to still go out in the embarrassing cape and tights instead of going around morphed into something less outlandish. That is an interesting idea, and the time limit is quite funny. In my version of the power - the suit only does two things when morphed - turn back to its normal self and give the wearer protection from mind control. She can't fly, use telekinesis, get holographs and there's no protection from hazards such as bullets. The other downside - it must be complete in order for the person to morph the suit, meaning if something is missing or removed, the suit will not morph back. Makes you wonder if they would've considered the possibility of using this suit power if the show had at least a proper third season, possibly in the fourth season.
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Post by HoudiniDerek on Jan 8, 2008 23:25:28 GMT -5
A new GAH movie wouldn't stand out - you're right. I think they should put it back on tv with a new cast... at least that's what I told someone in a meeting before the strike. That is actually what the script I wrote years ago did.
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Post by Videofox on Jan 10, 2008 17:52:54 GMT -5
I had played around in the past with making my new hero's partner a member of some other organization besides the FBI, trying to avoid "cloning" the original series as much as possible (while keeping the spirit intact). However, I find that working for almost any other organization could severely limit plotline possibilities. Local cop? Not many "saving the world" opportunities there. Waste of the suit. Department of Homeland Security? Created for anti-terrorism but engages in law-enforcement and emergency response activities with other organizations. Would be broad enough to carry the series. DEA? This kind of show can't just be about one thing. CIA? They operate on a more international scale. Like Bill said, we need to sweep out our own tent before we go trying to clean up others. BATFE (formerly known as ATF)? This branch does provide a wider scale of plot bunnies than most other branches. U.S. Marshals? I'm not too familiar with the details of their duties, but they seem to be more on the court/legislative side of things (after criminal events have already occured) which may not mesh with the suit's intended role of preventing bad things from happening. To those who may know more about their organization, how would this play as a suit-partner occupation? It seems to me that the greenguys would prefer the FBI since their duties are quite broad in their scope, providing access to lots of different problems and not limiting the suit wearer's effectiveness. Or, if The Powers That Be decide to bring back a GAH as a CIA-based show in order to open up the entire world as a source of new adventures, how well do you think that would be received? Would that be the next logical step? "I Spy" with a suit?
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Post by MelMac on Jan 10, 2008 20:24:33 GMT -5
I don't know. CIA might work too, but there's a certain panache about using the FBI for the reasons you mention. They are everywhere, and can open up a variety of stories in regard to what the suit can be used for.
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Post by Videofox on Jan 12, 2008 15:27:23 GMT -5
Never mind the US Marshals...that idea's been taken. I just saw a preview last night of a new USA Network TV series called "In Plain Sight," a comedy-action-drama series featuring two US Marshals (one is named Marshall) that are a male-female team. From the preview, it looks like it might actually be good and funny. It is nice to see more comedy-adventure shows adding to the mainstream, such as Psyche, Reaper, and Chuck. Gives a new GAH more reason to return.
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Post by HoudiniDerek on Jan 12, 2008 22:41:07 GMT -5
CHUCK is awesome. PSYCHE is pretty good according to my sister.
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Post by Lauren on Jan 20, 2008 1:22:14 GMT -5
"Psyche" is a great show, especially paired with "Monk" it makes for a great night of TV viewing.
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