the kind of "edginess" I personally would like to see in a new Dark Shadows is not that of increased death of violence. One could hardly exceed the original for that.
It's hard to imagine that they could. It certainly seems as if at least half the characters in almost any given storyline were wiped out by the time it concluded.
Victoria Winters could not remain curiously asexual and have that work.
One of the things I liked most about the '91 series was the change they'd made to Vicki in that regard. She was just as passionate about Barnabas as he was about her.
I would opt in general for drama rather than melodrama--not least because it was when DS was dramatic that it also proved most compelling.
Exactly. For me, DS was always its most interesting when it dealt with the truer-to-life conflicts between the characters as opposed to a predominance of plot over characterization. Of course the supernatural elements were great, too - but to me they were most effective whenever they sprang from the characters' relationships rather than when they were being imposed upon them.
I am not a fan of Smallville but I have some friends who are and I've seen a few episodes. Purists may whine, but that show certainly has done a good job of redefining its plots and the like--much as the different film versions of Dracula have each tried to find their own mythology, their own unique slant. The result has been success, measured in the only way that really matters--the stories are welcomed by the audience. Not every single detail by every single viewer, but as a whole. Grown-ups know better than to expect everyone to agree with them.
Again we agree. And one of the things I most enjoyed about the 2004 WB DS pilot was how it was a mix of both old and new twists. And perhaps that was due in no small part to the fact that Mark Verheiden, who has been heavily involed in the evolution of
Smallville, was also involved in the DS pilot.
Just my opinion, but for me, by the end of season one, Next Gen was a great example of how this can be done. Unfortunately, it got stale and mechanical early in season four and stayed that way. Fortunately, Deep Space Nine then came along, and got better and better every year, honoring and respecting the original Trek, but forging its own way, and becoming its own special story.
I was a big fan of ST:DS9 myself, but the interesting or perhaps disappointing thing about it is that it was the least successful ST spin-off in terms of ratings, and from what I read, in general, it seems to be the one that's held in least regard by a good many ST fans. I'm not quite sure why that is because it ranks quite high for me.
But, of course, that's not a discussion for this forum.