What you say is quite relevant and interesting. Actually I was thinking about what Disney did with SW and the fact many fans were extremely disappointed by the sequels. Meanwhile Lucasfilm announced the creation of several TV shows like The Mandalorian that I found quite entertaining when I discovered it, and most of all much more faithful to the universe than the two terrible episodes directed by JJ Abrams (the other one from Johnson was at least interesting and beautifully shot despite several disturbing elements). I must admit Jon Favreau really captured the essence of the original trilogy to put it into a 2019 show, which was not easy at all.
The case of Bond is a little bit similar in some way. We will see during this decade what has been done and what they forecast. I'm not naive, a part of me knows it is very unlikely to have the classic Bond back in the new movies, but I still have hope concerning another kind of product. I am clearly not a fan of TV shows, but if it's the price to pay to get some stories directly based upon the novels by Gardner and Benson for instance, why not after all ?
The Mandalorian was probably the best SW spin off ever - I do wonder though if they're milking it a bit too much with a third series. I've not even bothered watching the last 'official' SW film - was put off by episode 8 and the terrible Han Solo film (do they purposely make films so that they can also release a computer game tie in?).
As much as I don't think you could make a good story within a 45-50 minute tv episode, I do think a Bond tv series could work, a little like The Saint did with Moore or even better, The Prisoner. However, it must have a finite life - I think this is what's best about older series - they knew when to call time (Blakes7 for instance - 4 series, The Prisoner, 17 eps, and even truly classic comedies such as Fawlty Towers, 2 series, Porridge, 3 series etc).
If Eon/MGM/Amazon were to go down this route, then they could make some fantastic shows, as long as they get the right people on board and as you rightly point out, big name directors/producers don't necessarily mean good results.
"If Eon/MGM/Amazon were to go down this route, then they could make some fantastic shows, as long as they get the right people on board and as you rightly point out, big name directors/producers don't necessarily mean good results."
That's my point. I would even say it's the opposite. I prefer good craftsmen like John Glen and Martin Campbell to big name directors like Mendes and Fukunaga. I expect from Broccoli and Wilson (or more likely his son who is said to pick up the torch) to hire brand new screenwriters. Purvis and Wade have done their time. I don't know if Maibaum's heirs exist but I'm pretty sure there are talented people who could imagine modern spy stories featuring Bond and MI6 dealing with original issues in the spirit of Fleming's work, like Michael France did for instance.
Comments
What you say is quite relevant and interesting. Actually I was thinking about what Disney did with SW and the fact many fans were extremely disappointed by the sequels. Meanwhile Lucasfilm announced the creation of several TV shows like The Mandalorian that I found quite entertaining when I discovered it, and most of all much more faithful to the universe than the two terrible episodes directed by JJ Abrams (the other one from Johnson was at least interesting and beautifully shot despite several disturbing elements). I must admit Jon Favreau really captured the essence of the original trilogy to put it into a 2019 show, which was not easy at all.
The case of Bond is a little bit similar in some way. We will see during this decade what has been done and what they forecast. I'm not naive, a part of me knows it is very unlikely to have the classic Bond back in the new movies, but I still have hope concerning another kind of product. I am clearly not a fan of TV shows, but if it's the price to pay to get some stories directly based upon the novels by Gardner and Benson for instance, why not after all ?
The Mandalorian was probably the best SW spin off ever - I do wonder though if they're milking it a bit too much with a third series. I've not even bothered watching the last 'official' SW film - was put off by episode 8 and the terrible Han Solo film (do they purposely make films so that they can also release a computer game tie in?).
As much as I don't think you could make a good story within a 45-50 minute tv episode, I do think a Bond tv series could work, a little like The Saint did with Moore or even better, The Prisoner. However, it must have a finite life - I think this is what's best about older series - they knew when to call time (Blakes7 for instance - 4 series, The Prisoner, 17 eps, and even truly classic comedies such as Fawlty Towers, 2 series, Porridge, 3 series etc).
If Eon/MGM/Amazon were to go down this route, then they could make some fantastic shows, as long as they get the right people on board and as you rightly point out, big name directors/producers don't necessarily mean good results.
"If Eon/MGM/Amazon were to go down this route, then they could make some fantastic shows, as long as they get the right people on board and as you rightly point out, big name directors/producers don't necessarily mean good results."
That's my point. I would even say it's the opposite. I prefer good craftsmen like John Glen and Martin Campbell to big name directors like Mendes and Fukunaga. I expect from Broccoli and Wilson (or more likely his son who is said to pick up the torch) to hire brand new screenwriters. Purvis and Wade have done their time. I don't know if Maibaum's heirs exist but I'm pretty sure there are talented people who could imagine modern spy stories featuring Bond and MI6 dealing with original issues in the spirit of Fleming's work, like Michael France did for instance.