BTW, the Dennis Farina episodes would've worked a little better if they had actually tackled new cases and they hadn't used that AWFUL set that looked like a 911 dispatch center. That set made it feel more like America's Most Wanted than it did UM, and it sapped every ounce of the sense of mystery from the show.
I hope it's fun for kids. Theres a lot of competition from youtubers. Creepypasta, chills, mystery channels, ghost hunters, etc.. provide a lot of free content. Then there's other channels on TV; old travel channel ghost series, History channel's crazy shows like ancient aliens, and Syfy's ghosthunters that will give the show a run for its money. Will it have an audience or fall into the background?
Any YouTube channels you would recommend that are similar to the original UM?
And you're right that there are a lot of shows about speculative topics, but I feel that UM was unique in the way that they covered a wide variety of stories and also in the way that they approached these stories in a sober, serious way. Shit like Ghost Hunters and Ancient Aliens just can't compare.
Heres a few YT channels: Chills, top 5 unknowns, thought2, Reignbot, Rob Gavagan, pushing up daisy's (she's more of a 90's nostalgia and games channel(, lady white Rabbit, chubby Emu (medical cases)and Criminally listed (unsolved murders and killers).
I fully agree with you about Ghost Hunters and ancient aliens. The travel channel's work was better. History of the location split with interviews is always better than guys with night vision saying, "What was that?" "Dude it's cold," and "at that moment, a shadow appeared behind (insert name here)."
And I guess we'll see how things go with the reboot. I'm hoping for good things, but it sounds like they're not going out of their way to stick close to the format of the original show.
Only one case per episode and no host? Why no host? UM needs a host!
Tbh it sounds like its completely different to the original format of the show. One case per episode and mostly reenactment. It doesn´t sound too good but I guess we will soon find out.
The original also relied on re-enactments to tell their stories so there is nothing different there.
But one case per episode is definitely different, and not in a good way I don't think. And also, the article says there's not going to be a host. How is it UM without a host?
I have my fingers crossed that it will be good, though.
Yeah but it wasn´t just reenactment. They would have police interviews mixed in. Interviews with family members or witnesses and Robert Stack with his creepy narration.
These new crime shows rely more heavily on dramatised reenactments, whereas older shows like UM and Forensic Files used them more as a background to illustrate the story being told. This revival seems to be similar. And one case per episode is a HUGE turn-off for me.
In my opinion, in order for me it to really be UM, it needs a host. Having a host to guide you through the stories was a big part of the feel of the original show. How is it UM without a host?
I also think that only one case per episode is probably also a mistake, as having 3ish cases in each episode in the original was a big part of what made the show what it was. I am a little more open-minded about this change though. Maybe it will be good to be able to take a deeper dive into each story.
In any case, there's a trailer now. I posted it in a new thread. Give it a look.
I agree that the trailer makes the show look like any number of other crime shows that have come along in recent years. I'm hoping that it's not conveying the total sense of the show.
As for Robert Stack, I loved him too, but unfortunately he is now eternally unavailable. I think I'd rather have another host who is good in their own right than no host at all.
Yeah, Shatner works well for The UnXplained, but he's too campy for UM, not to mention he probably won't be around much longer. The man is 89 years old! (Gotta give it to him though, he looks great for 89.)
Really, I think the best thing to do would be to go with an unknown. Any recognizable actor will probably pull the viewer out of the story. I suspect a lot of people didn't know who Robert Stack was when the original series ran. I sure as hell didn't.