MY BEST FRIEND'S WEDDING (ABC, in development)
THE ORIGINAL: A New York-based restaurant critic attempts to sabotage her best friend's impending nuptials to a wealthy younger woman after realizing she's in love with him, too. Wackiness, including a fake engagement to her gay BFF as an attempt to make her straight BFF jealous, ensues! The 1997 romantic comedy starred Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Cameron Diaz, and Rupert Everett and was a success at the box office.
THE NEW SHOW: Set in New York, www.tv.com/news/my-best-friends-wedding-series-abc-144492705020/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://www.tv.com/news/my-best-friends-wedding-series-abc-144492705020/">the potential single-camera half-hour comedywould pick up where the movie ended and follow Roberts' and Everett's characters in New York City. No one knows what exactly they'd be doing, but the movie's producers, Jerry Zucker and Janet Zucker, are reuniting with writer Ron Bass to executive produce and write the series.
HOW NECESSARY IS THE REBOOT?: Instead of calling this a sequel to My Best Friend's Wedding, let's call it what it really is: an attempt to bring Will and Grace to ABC. There's an audience that would eat this right up, but the problem with this particular sequel is that outside of the characters' names and the behind-the-scenes team involved, there's no real connection to the film; ergo, there's no need to call it a sequel. I mean, the best friend of the title was the Dermot Mulroney character, not Everett's character, for crying out loud. Call us when you've figured out the plot and we can revisit the necessity of the connection. On its own, though, it's fine. — Kaitlin
NECESSARY-NESS GRADE: C+
FANTASY ISLAND (ABC, in development)
THE ORIGINAL: A man and a little person wear fancy white clothes and welcome visitors to the titular island of fantasy, where host Mr. Roarke (Ricardo Montalbon) fulfills guests' fantasies through supernatural forces, trickery, and other black magic (actually we don't know, but something is going on here). The guests are frequently also served up moral lessons as their fantasies are not always what they thought they'd be, which sounds like a rip off of paying customers if you ask us. Mr. Roarke's background was also a recurring question, as details indicated that he might be immortal or not of this world.
THE NEW SHOW: Well, let's get this out of the way right now: there is no island in ABC's new version, which feels like a dealbreaker considering the island landscape was one of the original's draws and the show is called FANTASY F*CKING ISLAND. In www.tv.com/news/fantasy-island-reboot-revival-abc-144467987761/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://www.tv.com/news/fantasy-island-reboot-revival-abc-144467987761/">ABC's monstrous version, Fantasy Island is the name of a San Francisco-based company that indulges clients in their greatest dark, intimate, or outlandish fantasies. How's "de plane" gonna land on the business? And the Mr. Roarke character will be turned into a lady, because this is ABC and it's all about that female demo.
HOW NECESSARY IS THE REBOOT?: Maybe rename this thing Fantasy Island, LLC or something because this is a case of false advertising. How does making it a business make the show any better? It's worse, way worse. We hope a client walks through the door and says their fantasy is for all these dumb revivals to stop happening. — Tim
NECESSARY-NESS GRADE: F
THE A-TEAM (TBD, in development)
THE ORIGINAL: A group of four military specialists accused of a crime they didn't commit pack it into a van and hit the road, using their individual skills to help people along the way as they try to clear their names. The cast included Mr. T, which is awesome.
THE NEW SHOW: Pretty much the same as the original (four Special Forces ops framed for something they didn't do help people out), except the plan is to to turn two of the guys into females! Ms. T!?!? And of all the reboots in this list, this is the one that specifically pointed out that there would be a humor element in it. Now we're talking!
HOW NECESSARY IS THE REBOOT?: A bunch of badasses in a van is always sweeeeet, and while the gender swap isn't surprising and pretty predictable, the idea that humor will be a part of this finally shows that someone out there knows that revivals are kinda corny and should be campy. Why not? — Tim
NECESSARY-NESS GRADE: B
THE NOTEBOOK (The CW, in development)
THE ORIGINAL: Set in the south in the 1940s, a wealthy young woman from the city falls in love with a local country boy while on vacation and the two embark on an idyllic summer love affair, which is cut short when she's forbidden by her family from seeing him. Years later, after she's already engaged to another man, they reunite. The story, based on a novel written by Nicholas Sparks, was adapted for the big screen in 2004 and starred Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams.
THE NEW SHOW: The potential drama, executive produced by Sparks, www.tv.com/news/the-notebook-series-the-cw-143932608044/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://www.tv.com/news/the-notebook-series-the-cw-143932608044/">would follow Noah and Allie and explore their blossoming romance in the '40s. It would reportedly tackle racial politics, economic inequities, and the effects of World War II, but likely wouldn't include the parallel Alzheimer's storyline that was set in present day in both the book and the film.
HOW NECESSARY IS THE REBOOT? Personally, I never really understood the allure of The Notebook, but plenty of women love it, and there's a timelessness to the story and its idyllic depiction of romance and true love. It's an ideal choice for The CW, which is still watched mostly by young women, but the difficulties lie in crafting a romantic period piece on a week-to-week basis, especially when there's no gimmick involved. I mean, Reign isn't exactly a hit for the network, despite the fact it's currently in its third season, but it could appeal to those Hart of Dixie fans who miss the heck out of Wade Kinsella. There will always be women who are swept away by the selflessness and charming personality of Noah and so we'll likely be forced to talk about The Notebookfor the rest of our lives anyway, so if you can't beat 'em, half-heartedly join 'em, I guess
