FLASH - Uggghh!
Word has gotten out that SciFi Channel’s attempt at reviving Flash Gordon is no more. The confirmation came not from an official announcement (fans of the Dresden Files will tell you SciFi doesn’t do those) but from an offhanded comment from the channel’s president admitting the revival sucked.
SciFi President David Howe told Variety the network didn’t treat the iconic hero the way he deserves to be treated. Howe didn’t rule out a future attempt at fixing Flash but said it wouldn’t happen now.
I’m not really sad about this one. I watched it a time or two but it never became appointment TV for me. I don’t remember it being particularly good or particularly bad, I just don’t remember it. That’s never a good sign for a show. Even a show like Baywatch can generate some buzz just by how bad it really is.
Here’s what I would have done: a Black Flash Gordon. Before Battlestar Galactica launched, all the talk was about a female Starbuck. Not all of it was positive, actually most of it wasn’t. But in entertainment there is really no such thing as bad publicity. Thousands more people would have tuned in just to see what the fuss was about, including a lot of African-Americans who might have never given the show a glance otherwise.
Their origin for Flash was a well-known track star. I’m not going to go off on any ill-advised “Jimmy The Greek” tangent about what race produces the best athletes. But even a cursory view of the Summer Olympics will show a very culturally diverse group. I’m not saying there aren’t blond-haired, blue-eyed track stars but for whatever reason, they are in the minority these days.
I am not advocating casting the nearest Black actor/rapper. I’m really not advocating casting any more rappers. I wouldn’t recommend trying to make Batman, Superman or Spider-Man African-American. I hated it when Marvel realized there were no major Black characters in Daredevil and opted to make the villainous Kingpin Black. Thanks for the favor, guys, thanks for the favor.
People know Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent and Peter Parker are White. The average teenager these days likely hasn’t even heard of Flash Gordon. With a character that hasn’t been relevant to pop culture in better than 20 years, it would have been a good time to take a risk. Hey David call me, we’ll have some coffee, we’ll talk.
SCI FI Photo: James Dittiger
Tags: Batman, Daredevil, Flash Gordon, Spider-Man, SupermanRelated Stories
POSTED IN: SCI FI Channel
1 opinion for FLASH - Uggghh!
John
Apr 2, 2008 at 1:41 pm
yes , this show was a disappointment. I mean the movie is a cult classic because of the cheese factor and great soundtrack by Queen. They tried to make him all serious and it it sucked big time. I am fan of the movie and the campy serial, i watch that all the time on public access channel( is that correct). GOOD RIDDANCE TO BAD FLASH GORDON.
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