The chemistry is basically what the UK version has that makes it awesome! I mean, let's face it, 20-something actors playing vampires and werewolves are kind of a dime a dozen right now. Otherwise, it's just ... another vampire show aimed at the Twilight crowd. Which is probably what they're hoping to attract. *shudder*
I... do not immediately knock US remakes (see: the Office, which I don't like but even I can see it's at least as good if not better than the UK version), but this? By syfy? No. Oh god no, no.
Why can't they just import it and air it ala BBCA?
Cheaper initially, maybe, but if it's successful they end up paying the creators a lot more. The rules for importing a show are different than syndication (which is what this should be, but can't) so it probably is better financially to try and do the show themselves.
Plus, then they get to feel all creative and cool. By stealing someone else's exact idea. Again.
Oh really? I didn't know that about imported shows vs. syndicated shows -- maybe there are reasons why American TV is always remaking stuff other than just cultural chauvinism and assuming the audience has the brains of a houseplant.
It's really frustrating that we can't get more imported TV here in the US; we have all these hundreds of cable channels, and yet outside a couple of specialty channels, we hardly have anything that isn't made here or in Canada. And even the Canadian TV doesn't really make it over here unless it's specifically geared towards the export, i.e. American market.
maybe there are reasons why American TV is always remaking stuff other than just cultural chauvinism and assuming the audience has the brains of a houseplant.
I don't really want to discount this, but there really is a lot more going on. One of the biggest reasons shows aren't exported here is because they do terribly (with few exceptions, and they all tend to be on PBS) - look at Merlin. That's an unmitigated hit in Britain, but in the US it had awful ratings. Did NBC screw it up? Sure. But the show had enough going for it that it should've worked regardless. That it didn't speaks to a lot more than just shoddy advertising by NBC. There are big differences in what the US market will bear and other countries. The fact that we get drek is, unfortunately, because drek sells. Why bother doing something smart when you're going to have to fight tooth and nail for it? Why not just make money?
Er, sorry, side tracked. Anyway, beyond the fact that our collective tastes are different from the individual pockets, part of it is licensing fees which are... well, basically, last time I looked into this, a foreign company wanting to air shows here basically had to pay a fine just for the privilege of trying. BBCA, because it's an international channel, is slightly different and they're only just now starting to get the money stuff paved - the week-long Torchwood event only aired a week later in the States, this summer, which is the absolute best transfer time, ever. And on top of the company having to pay, the people who air that show either have to pay a large amount for exclusive rights, or end up sending a big chunk of change to the actual owners of the show (creators, producers, whatever is in the contract, etc).
The margins for profits start decreasing, a lot, basically.
Whereas if you do it yourself, well, hell, you're being good for the economy! You're hiring writers and crew and actors and local producers! Who make money! And if it's a success, then you make way, way more money and don't have to pay those pesky original writers anything but a "hi, don't sue me for infringement" fee!
So... yeah. From the side that actually makes/profits from the show, it's in everyone's best interest to remake it rather than reair it. And sometimes it does work. The Office is a prime example, so is Queer as Folk plus probably others. You just have to have someone who cares about the project, instead of someone who sees "cash cow" and jumps.
Maybe they've got that in this case. I seriously doubt it, though.
Also BBC shows do tend to be very short, compared to American seasons, and Being Human especially has so few eps that it would just be a miniseries; remaking it, they can get a full-length show.
Though geeze, with a show like this, why can't they do their own version? 'fantastical creatures living a modern life' isn't a new concept; can't SyFy do their own variation? Rather than retreading one that's already been done? Is the name recognition that important?
I hope that they go the QaF route, change the names and chars and go in different directions; it does make it easier for a fan to follow...
Do they really think that a british accent is so different that making an american version makes sense instead of simply importing it? There must be economic reasons for making their own... there just have to be.
I don't know. ladycat777 said in one of the comments above that it probably *is* cheaper to make their own rather than importing it if it turns out to be a hit. Which is less depressing than straight-up cultural chauvinism ... though I imagine that plays a role too; I can totally imagine TV execs thinking that American audiences won't go for a foreign show even if they're speaking the same language!
Do they really think that a british accent is so different that making an american version makes sense instead of simply importing it?
Er, while I don't disagree that sometimes the reasons for a remake are too heavily weighted on the financial, and there are some genuinely stupid people who produce shows, the US and UK culture are not quite that interchangeable. Compatible, sure. Thank god. But look at Queer as Folk.
Directly importing that show to the US would not work except as an imported show. And there's nothing wrong with it along those lines, at all. But a lot of things that will resonate strongly with a UK audience won't with a US audience. Not because we're stupid or uninformed, but just because there are significant differences in the culture, language, laws, and references. Gay in the UK is very different than gay in the US. Similar, sure. Enough that one can watch both shows and enjoy them.
But they aren't the same at all. Our cultures are different, no matter how many similarities we can point to. And sometimes exploring those differences is worth it.
Now, all that said, Being Human is not a show that particularly suffers from that issue and this is just a stupid idea all around.
But it's not so simple as me needing closed captioning when I watch Masterpiece Theater.
Our cultures are different, no matter how many similarities we can point to.
See, in my country it's not an issue. Shows are imported (from the US, from other parts of Europe, from south America, from Japan, etc. etc. etc.), they are dubbed or subtitled, and then aired. The closest I've ever seen to trying to soften the cultural blow was this summer, when they aired a bunch of Bollywood movies and they edited the musical numbers out (I was so mad, personally! I kept watching the movies specifically for the big dance-song sequences!)
They edited the musical numbers?! Um, how can it be Bollywood without those numbers!
That's like watching The Sound of Music with no music!!
Weird.
The US isn't very good at importing media wholesale. We're a lot better with movies, and we certainly consume a lot of it, as a generic mass of users - foreign films, BBC, PBS, and our newfound addiction to torrenting make it easier.
But when it comes to TV shows, the idea of watching something that 'someone made overseas' just... doesn't really fly (there are exceptions, of course, just... not a lot*). People will complain that it's not American enough.
Personally, I find this beyond stupid. I consume quite a lot of media not based in the US with enthusiasm and I'm probably better for it. But the idea of taking a show from, say, France and dubbing it for mainstream? No way.
* One of the biggest exceptions to this is stuff from Japan. We'll dub their anime and their cheesy terrible kids-turn-into-fighters shows, like Power Rangers, with great enthusiasm cause it's cheap as hell and it's easy to make a buck and nobody but kids and purists care.
Funny how we over here always think of the American and UK TV as great while they themselves aren't so sure about quality.
We import all the stuff over here (mostly the US ones) and spoil it through synchronisation while the US rips of other shows. Still, there are some genuine German shows, and there are reasons why I don't watch them...
The TV market is impressive uncreative. I am just happy, that sometimes someone is able to make a show that doesn't feel like "been there, done that".
Okay, so I know I am not a copyright law lawyer or anything else, but given the questionableness on how legal fanfic is, how is all this remake stuff (which seems more blatantly copied than most fanfic) remotely legal?
UGH (I still need to finish season one...still haven't gotten through that episode)
Okay, so I know I am not a copyright law lawyer or anything else, but given the questionableness on how legal fanfic is, how is all this remake stuff (which seems more blatantly copied than most fanfic) remotely legal?
Because they'll be buying the remake rights from the copyright holders (AFAIK, remake rights usually belong to one of the parent media corporations involved in funding the show, so the show's actual creators get no say in it, but hey ...).
Ok so, I'm the one who cut out the ending of US LoM and uploaded it to Megavideo, and it still cracks me up how *fast* the link got passed around LJ and blogs. It's like the entire collective internet said "WTF IS THIS!" all at once. Reading shocked disgust after shocked disgust was kind of hilarious. Ah, good times.
That said, US Being Human can't possibly be as bad as US LoM...right?
Hee! Well, thank you for uploading it -- I am very amused by the thought of the link spreading like wildfire around LJ to the sound of thousands of heads simultaneously meeting their desks. *g*
As less-than-impressed as I am at the idea of a Being Human remake, I think you're probably right (is it even possible?) ... and, I suppose, the BH premise is so simple (compared to LoM's very complex package of black humor and social commentary) that it would be much easier to port it to a different culture and cast without things going horribly wrong.
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But yeah, this can't end well. And I mean, seriously, the chemistry of the UK cast is OFF THE CHARTS.
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The chemistry is basically what the UK version has that makes it awesome! I mean, let's face it, 20-something actors playing vampires and werewolves are kind of a dime a dozen right now. Otherwise, it's just ... another vampire show aimed at the Twilight crowd. Which is probably what they're hoping to attract. *shudder*
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I... do not immediately knock US remakes (see: the Office, which I don't like but even I can see it's at least as good if not better than the UK version), but this? By syfy? No. Oh god no, no.
Why can't they just import it and air it ala BBCA?
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Yeah, I've wondered the same thing. I mean, that has got to be cheaper too.
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Plus, then they get to feel all creative and cool. By stealing someone else's exact idea. Again.
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It's really frustrating that we can't get more imported TV here in the US; we have all these hundreds of cable channels, and yet outside a couple of specialty channels, we hardly have anything that isn't made here or in Canada. And even the Canadian TV doesn't really make it over here unless it's specifically geared towards the export, i.e. American market.
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I don't really want to discount this, but there really is a lot more going on. One of the biggest reasons shows aren't exported here is because they do terribly (with few exceptions, and they all tend to be on PBS) - look at Merlin. That's an unmitigated hit in Britain, but in the US it had awful ratings. Did NBC screw it up? Sure. But the show had enough going for it that it should've worked regardless. That it didn't speaks to a lot more than just shoddy advertising by NBC. There are big differences in what the US market will bear and other countries. The fact that we get drek is, unfortunately, because drek sells. Why bother doing something smart when you're going to have to fight tooth and nail for it? Why not just make money?
Er, sorry, side tracked. Anyway, beyond the fact that our collective tastes are different from the individual pockets, part of it is licensing fees which are... well, basically, last time I looked into this, a foreign company wanting to air shows here basically had to pay a fine just for the privilege of trying. BBCA, because it's an international channel, is slightly different and they're only just now starting to get the money stuff paved - the week-long Torchwood event only aired a week later in the States, this summer, which is the absolute best transfer time, ever. And on top of the company having to pay, the people who air that show either have to pay a large amount for exclusive rights, or end up sending a big chunk of change to the actual owners of the show (creators, producers, whatever is in the contract, etc).
The margins for profits start decreasing, a lot, basically.
Whereas if you do it yourself, well, hell, you're being good for the economy! You're hiring writers and crew and actors and local producers! Who make money! And if it's a success, then you make way, way more money and don't have to pay those pesky original writers anything but a "hi, don't sue me for infringement" fee!
So... yeah. From the side that actually makes/profits from the show, it's in everyone's best interest to remake it rather than reair it. And sometimes it does work. The Office is a prime example, so is Queer as Folk plus probably others. You just have to have someone who cares about the project, instead of someone who sees "cash cow" and jumps.
Maybe they've got that in this case. I seriously doubt it, though.
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Though geeze, with a show like this, why can't they do their own version? 'fantastical creatures living a modern life' isn't a new concept; can't SyFy do their own variation? Rather than retreading one that's already been done? Is the name recognition that important?
I hope that they go the QaF route, change the names and chars and go in different directions; it does make it easier for a fan to follow...
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Er, while I don't disagree that sometimes the reasons for a remake are too heavily weighted on the financial, and there are some genuinely stupid people who produce shows, the US and UK culture are not quite that interchangeable. Compatible, sure. Thank god. But look at Queer as Folk.
Directly importing that show to the US would not work except as an imported show. And there's nothing wrong with it along those lines, at all. But a lot of things that will resonate strongly with a UK audience won't with a US audience. Not because we're stupid or uninformed, but just because there are significant differences in the culture, language, laws, and references. Gay in the UK is very different than gay in the US. Similar, sure. Enough that one can watch both shows and enjoy them.
But they aren't the same at all. Our cultures are different, no matter how many similarities we can point to. And sometimes exploring those differences is worth it.
Now, all that said, Being Human is not a show that particularly suffers from that issue and this is just a stupid idea all around.
But it's not so simple as me needing closed captioning when I watch Masterpiece Theater.
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See, in my country it's not an issue. Shows are imported (from the US, from other parts of Europe, from south America, from Japan, etc. etc. etc.), they are dubbed or subtitled, and then aired. The closest I've ever seen to trying to soften the cultural blow was this summer, when they aired a bunch of Bollywood movies and they edited the musical numbers out (I was so mad, personally! I kept watching the movies specifically for the big dance-song sequences!)
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That's like watching The Sound of Music with no music!!
Weird.
The US isn't very good at importing media wholesale. We're a lot better with movies, and we certainly consume a lot of it, as a generic mass of users - foreign films, BBC, PBS, and our newfound addiction to torrenting make it easier.
But when it comes to TV shows, the idea of watching something that 'someone made overseas' just... doesn't really fly (there are exceptions, of course, just... not a lot*). People will complain that it's not American enough.
Personally, I find this beyond stupid. I consume quite a lot of media not based in the US with enthusiasm and I'm probably better for it. But the idea of taking a show from, say, France and dubbing it for mainstream? No way.
* One of the biggest exceptions to this is stuff from Japan. We'll dub their anime and their cheesy terrible kids-turn-into-fighters shows, like Power Rangers, with great enthusiasm cause it's cheap as hell and it's easy to make a buck and nobody but kids and purists care.
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It's kind of win-win.
If it's good then yay!
If it's bad then I get to make fun of it.
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*shows pooter your icon*
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We import all the stuff over here (mostly the US ones) and spoil it through synchronisation while the US rips of other shows. Still, there are some genuine German shows, and there are reasons why I don't watch them...
The TV market is impressive uncreative. I am just happy, that sometimes someone is able to make a show that doesn't feel like "been there, done that".
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UGH
(I still need to finish season one...still haven't gotten through that episode)
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Because they'll be buying the remake rights from the copyright holders (AFAIK, remake rights usually belong to one of the parent media corporations involved in funding the show, so the show's actual creators get no say in it, but hey ...).
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That said, US Being Human can't possibly be as bad as US LoM...right?
At least we can make fun of it, if it is?
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As less-than-impressed as I am at the idea of a Being Human remake, I think you're probably right (is it even possible?) ... and, I suppose, the BH premise is so simple (compared to LoM's very complex package of black humor and social commentary) that it would be much easier to port it to a different culture and cast without things going horribly wrong.