a REAL revival...
Posted: Mar 4th 2001, 6:05 pm
i read all this stuff about revival and its not what revival is to me. i love My So-Called Life...i watch my boxed sets all the time. i want the fabled "Lost 7" in the series. i too wish it hadn't ended the way it did.
but if it was still on TV its mystical quality i think would be absent. why are we so enamored? yes, it was probably the best written show on TV, and yes it was so close to life we could almost taste it. but i'm guessing most of us here are 20somethings and we love MSCL because it is a remnant of our childhood...preserved in amber by its cancellation. i think it would have lost its magic for us had it continued. granted i would've love to watch more episodes, but i think our eyes are bigger than our stomachs sometimes.
it really was an incredible thing...but look at where we are today..socially and culturally. looking back on MSCL even six years later, and it seems different. its nostalgic. in a word, its grunge. yes, it may only be a stylistic difference, but its what made the dichotomy of highschool in that era. what is funny to me is to see a show like MTV's Daria still in existence, based somewhat on ins and outs of our teenage lives that MSCL fleshed out so perfectly. i think Daria is great...but its still running on that mid 90's culture that is now defunct. it seems kind of funny.
of course, MSCL is for all people and all time. and the reason it achieved maximum realism is because it was written so well. the reason it was written so well is because it understood what teens were at that time. how they talk, how they dress, what they thought about...it was pretty authentic.
so how about a revival? maybe, but revival to me conotes something different. it is the old thing, yes, but it is made new. continuing MSCL in the same way shape and form just wouldn't do. it wouldn't be relavent enough, which is why the video and dvd sales of the series are poor -- as time goes by its writing remains incredible, but its icons aren't relevent. so what can we hope for? here are some thoughts that might be interesting:
-------------a new series with new characters, set in a highschool in 2001.
-------------a new series with a couple of the old supporting cast set in 2001
-------------a movie with the original cast set after highschool, possibly even leaving room for sequels.
-------------i'm not a big fan of "unauthorized books" like the one that just came a while ago, but it would be an interesting idea to start a franchise under the MSCL name, using different characters, locations, etc. (the problem with that is that there's isn't a person who owns all MSCL rights who can edit out the stuff that strays from the spirit of MSCL, like george lucas does with star wars)
------------i think it would be intersting if, in ten years, they had a revival of MSCL in which the original cast was the adult cast, and there was a new young cast.
------------also, if i can get into the school i want to and hook up with people i hope i can hook up with, i think it would be great to do independant episodes of MSCL...it would be easy enough to do, especially with the advent of digital filming which makes things a LOT cheaper because there is no expensive film to deal with. it might be cool to take some fanfic and film it independantly.
i think these are the kinds of things we need to think about or focus on if we want MSCL to live...to thrive. this would be a true revival.
---------------------------
i don't believe in making plans...whatever happens... happens.
but if it was still on TV its mystical quality i think would be absent. why are we so enamored? yes, it was probably the best written show on TV, and yes it was so close to life we could almost taste it. but i'm guessing most of us here are 20somethings and we love MSCL because it is a remnant of our childhood...preserved in amber by its cancellation. i think it would have lost its magic for us had it continued. granted i would've love to watch more episodes, but i think our eyes are bigger than our stomachs sometimes.
it really was an incredible thing...but look at where we are today..socially and culturally. looking back on MSCL even six years later, and it seems different. its nostalgic. in a word, its grunge. yes, it may only be a stylistic difference, but its what made the dichotomy of highschool in that era. what is funny to me is to see a show like MTV's Daria still in existence, based somewhat on ins and outs of our teenage lives that MSCL fleshed out so perfectly. i think Daria is great...but its still running on that mid 90's culture that is now defunct. it seems kind of funny.
of course, MSCL is for all people and all time. and the reason it achieved maximum realism is because it was written so well. the reason it was written so well is because it understood what teens were at that time. how they talk, how they dress, what they thought about...it was pretty authentic.
so how about a revival? maybe, but revival to me conotes something different. it is the old thing, yes, but it is made new. continuing MSCL in the same way shape and form just wouldn't do. it wouldn't be relavent enough, which is why the video and dvd sales of the series are poor -- as time goes by its writing remains incredible, but its icons aren't relevent. so what can we hope for? here are some thoughts that might be interesting:
-------------a new series with new characters, set in a highschool in 2001.
-------------a new series with a couple of the old supporting cast set in 2001
-------------a movie with the original cast set after highschool, possibly even leaving room for sequels.
-------------i'm not a big fan of "unauthorized books" like the one that just came a while ago, but it would be an interesting idea to start a franchise under the MSCL name, using different characters, locations, etc. (the problem with that is that there's isn't a person who owns all MSCL rights who can edit out the stuff that strays from the spirit of MSCL, like george lucas does with star wars)
------------i think it would be intersting if, in ten years, they had a revival of MSCL in which the original cast was the adult cast, and there was a new young cast.
------------also, if i can get into the school i want to and hook up with people i hope i can hook up with, i think it would be great to do independant episodes of MSCL...it would be easy enough to do, especially with the advent of digital filming which makes things a LOT cheaper because there is no expensive film to deal with. it might be cool to take some fanfic and film it independantly.
i think these are the kinds of things we need to think about or focus on if we want MSCL to live...to thrive. this would be a true revival.
---------------------------
i don't believe in making plans...whatever happens... happens.