Writer for classic BG comic ongoing named!
Man, this thing can't see print fast enough for me!
http://www.newsarama.com/forums/show...threadid=65554 |
Well spotted......this is great news. They seem to understand what osBSG is. They are fans themselves, and we all know what kind of devotion and care that can bring !
I have high hopes......... |
here's the text of the article, it's a press release from Dynamite. Thanks so much for finding it JLHurley. You're right about it not going to press fast enough. :D
Jewels Quote:
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Wait--there's more! An interview with the writer!
http://www.comicbookresources.com/ne...em.cgi?id=7040 |
Seems mostly good.
He seems to respect the Original show, whilst acknowledging its weaker parts. The first comic book arc's story is set right at the end of Sagaof a Star World Part II. I would have liked him to have continued after Hand of God....but it seems this comic series may be the adventures we never saw during the timeframe the filmed episodes happened. |
Here is a copy of the interview at Comic Book Resources with the writer for the new comic series. The interview was written by Jonah Weiland.
When the new "Battlestar Galactica" series debuted on the SciFi channel, it caught a number of people by surprise. The series starring Edward James Olmos was a huge success, quickly becoming the highest rated show on the SciFi channel and DVD sales have been through the roof. The show has garnered great critical acclaim for its writing and performances, but the show would be no where without the original, classic series to inspire it. In September of 1978, the original series, which we'll be calling "Classic Battlestar Galactica," debuted on ABC Television. Created by TV legend Glen A. Larson, the series starred Lorne Greene as Commander Adama and ran only for a total of 36 episodes, but lived on over the years in syndication. Not only was the series a hit with fans, more importantly it spawned fandom that's lasted almost 30 years now. Obviously, without this original series the new SciFi series would not exist. With interest in both series running high, Dynamite Entertainment stepped in and announced that comic series based on both the new and classic series were planned. The writing chores on the new series are being handled by writer Greg Pak, whom CBR News recently spoke with. Today, Dynamite Entertainment announced that the previously "Classic Battlestar Galactica" series would be handled by writer Rick Remender, who's recently been wowing readers with books "Fear Agent," "Strange Girl" and "Sea of Red." CBR News spoke with Remender about his plans for the series and what the original series meant to him when he grew up. All right, so you'll be writing the tales of "Classic Battlestar Galactica." We're talking old school sci-fi now! Like most everyone our age, you were a fan of the series when it originally ran on ABC. Talk about watching the show as a kid, what it meant to you at the time and what the show means to you today? Basically, what's your relationship been with "Classic Battlestar Galactica?" Ha! Well I don't know about old school, I'd say the original is more like middle school. Fair enough. We're willing to concede that. Yeah, I was a fan of the show to be sure. I think as a kid in the mid seventies all you could think about was "Star Wars," so when "Battlestar Galactica" showed up it was on. Though the series is very different from "Star Wars" in many aspects, it's hard to argue that it's at least mildly derivative. However, as a kid I recall recognizing that the designs of the ships, though similar, were in a lot of ways cooler. The mechanical designs for "Battlestar Galactica" tend to fall somewhere between "Star Wars" and "Star Trek," or they did in the late seventies when the show was on the air. "Battlestar Galactica's" machinery is a bit sleeker than the original "Star Wars" and a bit more industrial than the original "Star Trek" -- a perfect medium. As for what it meant to me -- I recall feeling for the plight of the characters a bit more than I did for Captain Kirk or Luke Skywalker. Only in that it's more desperate and the stakes higher. The convoy in "Battlestar Galactica" is all that's left of humanity and if they make a wrong turn-- bye-bye human race. That connects on a few levels and it's the core to the drama of the series. While it's been a long time since I've seen the show, there are certain episodes that remain ingrained in my memory. One episode in particular has never left my psyche, an episode that found a number of ships in the convoy on fire and it was bad. For some reason I've never been able to shake that memory. What about you? Any particular episodes that stuck with you? Well, the bug people from the pilot who captured humans and put them in a hive to be used as food left some very powerful visuals on my six year old psyche. There was an elevator that was rigged to randomly select guests of a casino and bring them down to hive town. I think it was the idea of an elevator that took you to your doom. Scared my punk ass but good. Funny thing how your mind changes things when you're a child. I recently watched that episode for the first time in twenty-seven years and it was... dated. The monsters were designed well, but they didn't move very realistically and the outfits were pretty clearly costumes. In my mind it had become something very different. Allright, let's move on from memory lane and move into the present by talking about the comic you're writing. How'd you end up as the writer of "Classic Battlestar Galactica" for Dynamite? Last year, when promoting "Fear Agent," we got to know the guys over there. They thought I had the right kind of chops for this brand of Sci-Fi and asked me to write a pitch up, they and Universal approved it and off we went. Sounds simple enough. So, let's talk about the book itself. I understand your first story arc will last four issues. What kind of plans do you have story wise for the book? Which characters do you plan on working into the story? I'll be using all of the original cast. The first story arc focuses on Starbuck and Boomer in a survival situation. The two are stranded on one of the twelve original colonies soon after it's been over run by Cylons in the great betrayal that costs humanity its solar system in the beginning of the series. I'm doing what I can to develop these two and their bond a bit while placing them in an extremely unfriendly environment with Galactica herself at stake. I have big plans for Baltar the Betrayer, Colonel Tigh, Commander Adama and Apollo as well in future arcs. There are so many interesting characters on the stage this stuff will write itself. I'd like to get into the Cylons a bit more as well and look closer at their culture and motivations. What makes "Classic Battlestar Galactica" such a compelling draw for you? And why do you think the show has had such long-lasting appeal? It all comes back to the high concept. That these refugee humans will one day find Earth and populate it, if they can survive a civilization of robots bent on annihilating them. It has all the attractive elements of the original "Terminator" and "Matrix" films. I plan on tossing in a dose of the alienation and grit of HBO's "Deadwood" and the high adventure of the old EC Sci-Fi comics in an attempt to try and draw out a few things I get from the series on a gut level. I like the idea of keeping the major motivations of the characters as basic as survival. Finally, in terms of presentation, will the characters your writing be the same ones from the TV series? Will they look like the characters we saw on television, or have the actor's faces not been licensed as well? We're working on artistic direction now, but you'll be recognizing some familiar faces when we're all done. |
Some of the comments have me a bit worried. Rick Remender, the writer, plans to do a four issue story arc where Starbuck and Boomer are marooned on one of the original colonies shortly after the Cylon attack. When did they have time to get marooned? Presumeably they were too busy with the evacuation to get lost on Tauron or Scorpia. This sounds similar to a plotline that appeared on gino.
His reference to Deadwood as a stylistic touchstone also gives me pause. I can't really think of another show (Well, OK, gino) that is more unlike the original Galactica. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens. Let's hope for the best. |
Ouch, this guy is clearly not doing his homework if he's going to come up with a plotline like that. I fear we are in for the work of a guy who only views Galactica from the standpoint of "guilty pleasure" and who is ultimately way off base on the matter of just where this series stood when it was cancelled, character and story wise.
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I don't think this spells doom at all.
It is not impossible that whilst helping to co-ordinate the exodus, Starbuck and Boomer run into troubles. It has always occured to me that after taking the colonies with a Fleet ff basestars, did the Cylons really let a Battlestar and Fleet of small ships wander out unnoticed ? There IS room for this storyline here, and it will help flesh out this area of the story. I hope he develops his own adventures whilst sticking to the continuity of the original series. |
"It has always occured to me that after taking the colonies with a Fleet ff basestars, did the Cylons really let a Battlestar and Fleet of small ships wander out unnoticed ?"
Well...actually, yes. In Saga, we have first the scene of Baltar on Caprica where the centurion reports to him that prisoners have reported tales of a handful of survivors making their way out, but under circumstances not yet known to them. And then there is Flight Leader Serpentine's report to Imperious Leader of how the survivors escaped aboard the Galactica. The information came from torturing prisoners with a false promise of sparing their lives, and didn't stem from any awareness of what had happened until long after the Galactica was gone. But even if you can implausibly squeeze this storyline in, this is still the ultimate case of launching the series off on the wrong foot because it means a drawn out story set within the series rather than moving things forward after "Hand Of God". I'm not particularly interested in seeing what amounts to variations on a prequel being the launching point. Not trying to rain on anyone else's parade, that's just my own from the heart reaction. |
I am very surprised a Battlestar could wander in, and back out with 220 ships slowly moving behind it, without a massive Cylon Force in the same system not noticing. Your references to the show may be correct, but it is an element of the show I find implausible.
Any Cylon that came across suvivors would kill them. The Colonies have Cylons, Survivors, and Colonial Warriors at the same time in roughly the same place, so the storyline is plausible. For all we know the arc could be an intense fast-paced story set over just a few hours. I'd rather someone flesh out what we have (as Sandy is doing well with Exodus) than write things after The Hand of God which we may not agree with, and a future filmed Continuation would contradict.....leave after HoG for an animated Continuation. Then 25 years later for a live action Continuation. I don't see this as a prequel, as it happens during(not before) the series timeframe. I see it as 'unseen adventures' which is what I hoped the comics would be. I hope when you read the finished comic, you will enjoy it Eric. |
We'll just have to disagree on this point. "Unseen adventures" set within the series is as much a cheat from my standpoint as a prequel would be, because what interests me is seeing a new attempt at telling the story post-HOG. I've seen one okay effort before that went sour after a bit (Max Press), one awful effort (Hatch's novels), and I want to see a new fresh approach to this angle.
I am well aware that many of us have our own post-HOG visions. Heck, I've been doine one for the last two years in the VS project here, but I'm always interested in seeing a new one, if done properly. But a fixation with things that do not advance the storyline and characters forward just doesn't interest me, and if this comic book is going to fixate itself with that for its storytelling, then all I'm going to end up doing is throwing up my hands in disbelief at the bad luck string of "official" Galactica projects once again. |
I would much rather see an adventure that takes place after "Hand of God". Shoe-horning an adventure before the colonials leave the colonies seems to be rife with dangers. Why chance violating continuity just to get Starbuck and Boomer together? It seems clear that they are long-standing friends from the first episode. We really don't need a tale that cements the relationship. As for telling a gritty tale...there are enough gritty tales in the world. Battlestar Galactica was a tale of high adventure. The characters courageously faced a dire situation with grace and dignity. They didn't grovel in misery, they got on with their lives. My hope for the comic series is that they translate the Battlestar Galactica experiance to a comic form. I hope they will not try to reshape the original series into gino's mold.
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