Ten one hour episodes of re-imagined Time Bandits!!!!!!
I'd be super pumped if I wasn't equally dreading how much they could fu*k this up. (See LOTR prequel trailer, etc.)
https://www.theilluminerdi.com/2022/04/26/time-bandits-peter-dinklage/
https://www.indiewire.com/2018/07/time-bandits-tv-series-apple-terry-gilliam-1201988626/amp/
Terry Giliam is still the executive producer.... so maybe there's still hope.
Wow! I loved the original. I dread what a mess they could make of it though.
@Grumpy Gnome
I swear I must have watched it 20 times as a kid on cable.
@JTam
Loved that movie with a passion back to the days... Hope the tvshow is going to be as good as the original film.
I'll give it a chance - I've gotten kinda pessimistic over the years, but every now and then I discover some real treats in modern fantasy, horror, and sci-fi. The original movie was great fun, I have some fond memories of both "Time Bandits" and "The Adventures of Baron Von Munchausen"!
"Brazil" and "12 Monkeys" were a little darker and it doesn't seem quite right to call them "fun", but these are also favorites in their own dark way.
Gilliam had an amazing imagination and talent, and I can't think of anything I've eve seen from him that wasn't a treat to watch. I guess he's entitled to produce a stinker after all these years, but I have trouble imagining him signing off on a complete disaster.
Seems like the Willow series was hot garbage:
LOL at the last two comments. 100% true.
This trend of taking solid fantasy franchises (LOTR, Willow) and turning them into a dumpster fire does not bode well for a Time Bandits series.... But we will see.
The Willow tv series was watchable. Not great like the movie but watchable. An interesting discussion about it here...
https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/807824.page
... looks like a Time Bandit TV series will need a strong hand from Terry Gilliam to work well in my opinion. He needs to be given the control that Neil Gaiman has had.
@Grumpy Gnome @JTam I enjoyed the Willow series... Though its very much aimed at today's young in its message and chosen style... which was a bit off-putting for an old guy like me when I started watching it, but it wasnt egregious enough to turn me off of the show. I love the movie... but maybe because there is only teh one movie, and I never read any of the books, I didnt really feel like it had gone against the vision of Willow I had in my head. My favorite chraracter was Prince Graydon and he really was the least powerful but also least annoying character, but I didnt hate any of the characters. Even Princess Kit (who was my least favorite) wasnt THAT bad... Overall it was a fun watch... I liked all the covers they played especially Enter Sandman and Black Hole Sun. I never finished the new Game of Thrones (after the cast change), never finished Rings of power, never finished Wheel of Time... but i did finish this series...
@William Redford the books are post-film merch in any case. Also, while I've heard a lot of whining voices over the series, the aggregate reviews are favourable. I loved the original film, but any continuation (as opposed to a remake) has to deal with a cast 35 years older. It can't be the same story.
As far as Time Bandits goes... if Gilliam is involved, I trust it.
"And you're a robber too. How long have you been a robber?"
"Four foot one."
"Good lord! Jolly good. Four foot one? Well that-that-that is-is- a long time, isn't it?"
Time Bandits is a long time favourite of mine. The story telling and humour is superb and the cameos (Cleese, Connery etc) are all spot on. Modern classic film with some brilliant ideas. The final battle against Darkness (Warner) would also make for some great mixed-era / genre skirmish gaming.
I saw the movie, found it a little disappointing, why? Because the various stories where too short, I just tought that a tv serial would've been more apt to deepen either the story and the characters, so it's a good thing that they'd choose this way, also if they're a little too late.
P.s. Willow the serie wasn't so bad, at least for the last episodes, my critics are about a too slow pace for the early episodes, and yes, some of the female characters were really annoying, expecially the princess and her lover.
@Alessio De Carolis Good comment! That is one huge advantage a series has over a movie - they can take the time to explore characters and their backgrounds / relationships in more detail. Villains can be given more screen time to show why they are the way they are, instead of being bad "just because ".
It is my biggest gripe with new versions of shows like Docto Who. We used to get 6 to 8 episodes per story, with decent development of NPCs and their world. Now it is shoe-horned into 1 or maybe 2 episodes that race to a half-assed conclusion at break-neck speed.
@William Redford Whatcher, I`ve never seen Game of Thrones either, or finished Wheel of Time.
@JTam Another show axed, as I said the first episodes were too slow, but the last one were an improvment, they should've tried at least another season, if a totally awful idiocy as Batwoman had 3 (!) seasons, why don't try? After all Babylon 5 was saved by a better 2nd season and a change of leadership (B. Boxleitner's Sheridan was one of the best sci-fi commanders, with DS9's Sisko)
Dissapointed, It wasnt the greatest show ever, but for what it was it was good. And they set it up for at least 2 more seasons... that will now never be.
I'm pretty firmly in the "no more remakes, please" camp. I'm tired of them. Make something new, dammit!
Anyway...Taika Waititi's either super-hit or super-miss for me. What We Do in the Shadows is one of the greatest things ever made, both the movie and the series (first two seasons, anyway; haven't seen the third).
But his Thor movies...🤮. Ragnarok was passable for a one-and-done viewing, but Love and Thunder...hoo, boy.
Terry Gilliam is my favorite director hands-down, and he's a persnickety old coot; I think if he thought this sucked, he'd have no problem saying so. If it's got his blessing, then maybe there's hope. Fingers crossed.
I probably still won't watch it, though.
@Benjamin Hayward "AAAR Ben" more indisisive than me on that one, I know that feeling too well. So little time, so much "Crap" who want`s to waist the one thing we can`t buy or steal, "Time", Cyber Pint on me , go watch Second season "Shadow and Bone" . Now thats a winner worthy of our time. Cheers Geoff.
@William Redford Now there was a communication from Disney's producer, it seems that after all a second season of Willow will be done, only seems that they 're writing the plot, so (perhaps) they'll make it next year.
