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Expectations for this hastily re-jigged pilot to Quantum Leap were low ... but I really enjoyed it. I absolutely love that it was a continuation, and not a reboot, building on the foundations and lore of the previous show and continuing it by both paying homage and injecting some new life. The end result is an almost mystery-drama with action that fits really well as the scenes shift (though quite hastily, understandably however because of the re-jigged pilot) from the past and the present day Quantum Leap project.

That opening intro monologue (voiced by the original I believe) gave me chills!

You were never going to replicate Sam and Al (and shouldn't since this is a continuation) so the new dynamic is interesting enough for me. Minor spoilers incoming as it's hard to talk about the pilot otherwise  ***** I love the dual connection - not just their relationship, but that Addison was actually meant to be the leaper and Ben the guide. ****** That's such a cool situation that I can't wait to see developed more. You see it with Addison having more practical ideas about the escape, and in Ben's awkward approach to presenting himself as a tough guy. I really hope this is played up numerous times as we slowly see Ben grow more comfortable with talking and opening up to people.

The mystery of Ben leaping and the investigation at Project Quantum Leap already has me invested. This is the hook that will keep you watching as we learn more about the project, Sam's disappearance, and what is currently going on. The homage to the original, but allowing itself to be it's own thing, is fantastic. This is what the Charmed reboot/mid-boot/other-universe (doesn't freaking know what it wanted to be) ... should have been. Not insulting the fans by butchering the original story, but by embracing the history and spinning a new tale from it.

The Project Quantum Leap cast are all great, sans the security lady (whose name escapes me at the moment), but it's early days.

And the homages / story connected to Al and Sam were all great.

There were some negatives of course. Again, you could tell the hastily re-written parts, and there were some mightily cheap scenes (that car drive background was so awful and distracting). Also, this show absolutely needs an intro - a title card will simply not do (again, hoping that's because it was just the new pilot). The 'mirror image' effects needed a tiny bit more work as well as not having the trademark audio cue. It's so tied to the original that not having it felt quite jarring and you immediately felt like something was missing. If you are playing up the nostalgia then these small things make a big impact. I'm hoping the monologue will remain, though updated. If we get that but not an intro, I feel like I could be satisfied.

Also, (again, pilot re-write problems) some of the Project Quantum Leap scenes didn't have the best dialogue. But you could tell it was re-written hastily.

All in all though, I found this to be a great start. Did it make me think that this was prestige TV? No. But it did hit my nostalgia bone and I really enjoyed the ride. The characters and the mystery will keep me watching and I can't wait to see the training wheels come off.

I just wanted to highlight this as I've seen it mentioned a few times when discussing the concept of a crossover. The structure of a crossover back then is a lot different to how it would be structured now, in my opinion. Not only has the visual and viewer consumption landscape changed, but also both viewers and network's expectations. A crossover back then was usually quite simple - letting a character(s) briefly step into another show, usually aiding or propelling a plot forward, and then they would call it a day.

However, when talking about crossovers in today's landscape, everyone and their dog is looking to catch that MCU magic - to create that shared cinematic / television universe that you mentioned. If done now, I can't see it being that simple one-and-done structure. Networks are absolutely eager to create their own mini MCUs - with character(s) stepping in and out freely from one show to the next, all with varying degrees of relevance.

You know what I'm going to say - that very idea absolutely terrifies me on how they would apply that to Sliders and whatever other show they had rebooted / revived at the same time. That actually makes me wish for the types of crossovers that has been mentioned in this thread ... but I don't see that as what they would want to accomplish. Before the zeitgeist is over (and it doesn't look like it will be over any time soon despite so many minority but vocal outcries about the MCU's interconnected universe), that is the structure that I believe they most want to capture. To get viewers invested in every one of their shows.

Side note. It's also quite interesting that Whedon almost pulled this off himself. Buffy and Angel were one of those rare shows where the crossovers were more advanced - not only because they shared a set of characters due to the latter being a spin-off, but you sometimes had one storyline or arc continue directly into the other show. If both had remained on the same network, it has been stated that there would have been more characters going back and forth. Which would have expanded even further if the Watcher or Willow shows had gotten off the ground.

But I digress.

TLDR:

I would actually beg for the normal crossovers that you all have mentioned if the idea was to do them in a reboot / revival. But I can't help feeling we'd end up with that interconnected universe format. And I would hate it. Personally.

Now that's just childish.

I love you.

With such a wealth of endless possibilities, crossovers are the last avenue that Sliders ever needs to go down. The blatant movie of the week rip-offs from series 3 were bad enough.

That remark from JRD always hits me. It really could have been. It should have been. Such a shame.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILHq4MFctmI

Warning. Very quick and dirty trailer. But I was bored.

The idea of watching the interplay between a rebellious teenage daughter who, not only back-talks her father, but is on par with his intelligence (and is generally a lot more street smart) would be ace! But I'm also not sure that I'm completely in love with the idea of Quinn and Rembrandt accidentally getting caught up in events again. Or the thought of not giving the newbies a chance to shine without this massive backstory or veterans looming over everything.

So I'd probably twist it a little.

With the window of opportunity now resurfacing, I'd rather Quinn and Rembrandt contemplate - and quickly discard - the idea of leaving since this is now their home. However, his daughter (both curious and smart) activates the timer and sets off with her companion(s), also grabbing her Dad's video recordings of his adventures that he had stashed away in the safe.

This would both allow the newbies to take center stage and have the oldies be interspersed throughout the adventures as Quinn and Rembrandt start from scratch to try and rebuild the timer and track his missing daughter. The video journals would allow Quinn to feature in many episodes (possibly spouting key survival points about Sliding and the timer) and it could also serve as a vehicle for Sabrina if she didn't want to commit fully. Her counter-points to Quinn about what she deems crucial about Sliding would be fun.

Mid season, or close to the end, would then see Quinn and Rembrandt actually slide out, able to track her trail and see either the benefits or the fallouts of the worlds that his daughter has been on (reusing sets and saving some money) before reuniting on a world in the finale.

But that's just a random thought I had. Them all sliding out at the same time would obviously work, but if we are going to ignore the latter seasons, then you might as well just give the new people a chance to shine first and foremost and interweave the 'backstory' and the old cast bit by bit.

My heart can't take this. Please let this be so!

Ok ... that's pretty cool.

This evening I went down the rabbit hole that is YouTube trying to see if there were any hidden fan films or projects done that I hadn't come across yet. Hit a brick wall, and was about to give up before I found this little number:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EiAxj_QO1k

No problem at all. I loaded the script up onto my Kindle and that was a really enjoyable read during the afternoon.

And thank you for the additional insights into the development of this. Very intriguing. I see now some of the seeds that you attempted to plant in the background in order to be explored in future episodes, like the 'Luckiest SOB Alive' sticky-note comment for Gibbs.

Some of those concepts presented I couldn't say if I would personally love them or not, both the style of how it was executed and having meaningful / significant payoff, plays a huge role in the outcome of concepts ... but I do know that I would have at least enjoyed the ride!

Have you written anything of your own? I would love to read more of your work.

Despite the fear of the last sentence, everything you mentioned before is exactly why I want a total reboot.

Really miss this show. I think it's time for a rewatch.

It is absolutely a ridiculous concept, but you might need to re-read that thread if you believe that my only issue with it was because of a multiverse traveling building. There were various - much of them significant - reasons why I disliked it. And yes, on many objective and measurable levels which can define 'good writing', it falls far short. You don't have to agree with that, but that's fine. Opinions and all that. Not everyone agrees that the Wizard of Oz is the definitive young woman's coming of age story, but you'd certainly raise some eyebrows in pretty much any serious literary circle if you try to say otherwise.

But this is all by the by. I'm not going to get back into the discussion, as I don't care about Parallels to even want to talk about it again. So, back to the subject at hand?

Didn't Jerry say in an interview last June that Torme was gunning for a reboot? Could just be the same 'thoughts in the wind' discussions going back and forth.

Shit. When you put it like that ... that is so incredibly sad. And true.

Completely agree about the discussion about what Trek used to represent.

This is really surprising. I wonder what form this would take? Would he command a new ship and crew?

There are always exceptions to the rule, but there is a serious underlining reason why it is generally not done. I absolutely would not be upset if they pulled a 'wrong slider slid' scenario ... but that is side-stepping the point at hand.

There is an unspoken pact made between the person who reads/watches/plays a piece of work and the creator of said work. Outside of some obvious exceptions - and they are usually blatant exceptions - that pact states that we will happily go on a journey with a creator in order to explore the worlds, characters and the situation that you have created, regardless of the innate fact that we know full well that no harm will ever come to the main characters of this story. We will create a suspension of disbelief. There may be hundreds of instances where these character will be thrown into mortal danger, and though we know that they will 99.9% of the time always come out of it in one piece, we happily embrace any and all suspensions of disbelief specifically because it is the journey that the creator wants us to go on, that is of critical importance above all else.

However, there are limits to that suspension of disbelief.

When you take away that journey, when you begin to say that death doesn't matter, or even what you thought you saw with that character doesn't matter, then there is a subconscious detachment that takes place. You may very well state that it wouldn't matter personally for you, but it is something that happens on a subconscious level. You take away death, you take away even the fake peril from that pact between creator and viewer, then nothing matters. At what point then does a viewer begin to ask that, if they no longer like a particular aspect of that journey, that they want that changed, since if death doesn't matter, nothing matters. Forget even rules of the world that you have created, if death is something that someone can easily come back from, then everything is fair game. Suspension of disbelief is well and truly shattered.

There may be joy at the 'real' Arturo now ... but where does that lead? I don't like Action Man Quinn compared to the original. Do we then say that there was a real Quinn still sliding out there and I want him back? I detest the character assassination of Head-In-A-Jar Wade. Can I just wipe that entire journey clean, pretend it didn't happen, and pick up a sub series 3 Wade? Can I seriously, and easily, just wipe out series 3-5 as just 'fake alternates' and embrace a series 6 in the shape of the 'real' series 3?

The moment you tell an audience that the journey doesn't matter, that it was a dream, a coma, the wrong character slid -whatever reasoning you want to come up with - you make a huge impact in that suspension of disbelief and, whether you are conscious of it or not, create a divide between the work and the viewer. Hand-waving death in the fashion mentioned here, and ignoring entire character stories and arcs, is a suspension of disbelief one step too far.

On a side note, there is also an entirely separate discussion that could be had about wiping out 3 seasons worth of content, including all of the hard work put in by actors, writers, crews and everyone else contained within that, but that's a whole other discussion to be had.

I would have easily have lapped up TF's 'slice of life' (or slice of slide lol) style comic adventures in order to expand on characters or worlds within the show. As much as my gut wants everything to be nicely wrapped up, a continuation comic would have been extremely difficult to pull off for various reasons, number one being that so few fans can even agree on what a written story continuation would be composed like, let alone something in a visual medium. There is just no pleasing everyone there and you could end up doing a lot more damage than good. I just don't think it would have worked.

However, I have absolutely adored the new Power Rangers comics, how it has woven an insane amount of depth into the show's loose fabric whilst also maintaining what makes the show so special. It is pretty much a Reboot, since it flies in the face of show continuity all the time. I personally would have loved a Sliders comic, in that vein, back then or right now.

I hear you, but the same question can be said for any form of reboot or adaptation ever.

Ultimately, there is an incredible amount of power in brand recognition, in an already established IP from which to work with. It is something that is more prevalent now than it has ever been. Imagine having a pre-built sandbox from which to work from and play in? It comes complete with it's old fans, with what knowledge is already present in the general populace, its place on the net (including merchandise, former sites, and fan contributions), combined with the power of nostalgia and the potential for new profit - and all with less work than if you had to build it completely from scratch. Is it really a surprise that everything is getting rebooted nowadays? It is more than just a distinctive lack of fresh concepts and ideas, it is because of the latent power contained in something that is an already established brand.

Now, we can argue just how 'powerful' the brand of Sliders is, but that's kinda besides the point. For all the parties involved in such a take when something is rebooted, it is material from which to work from, a fresh take on a concept that can be presented to an entire new generation or audience whilst also grabbing those old fans. Some work, some don't, but that's the machine as it is at the moment.

To go back to the original point, to just take the old actors and start from ground zero ... it just would never work, for anyone involved.

EDIT:

TemporalFlux made a contributing point there about the power and value of a brand. Sliders isn't enough in itself or the cast involved to command something like a straight continuation or soft reboot. But a completely new take? It might be worth it for some parties.

This is the only way it would work.

Here's hoping they look into all the issues with the pilot.

Jerry doesn't own the rights to the property. He doesn't have a real choice in the matter.

This, right here, is the heart of Sliders. Just like Stargate, the mythos and exploration of worlds is important, but not moreso than the characters and the group dynamics employed within it. They are what make that exploration intriguing. Their journey. Their friendship. How they handle adversity and a crisis. How far they will stretch their morals to tackle an issue. This is the heart of Sliders - THEY are the heart of Sliders - something that we shouldn't deny new viewers.

I know a lot of people want some form of direct continuation, but honestly, there is no point bringing back the property just to try and muddle through the confusing mess and bring it to an 'end'. Fan fiction has done that brilliantly. Seriously, go read some of them out there. There are lots of good stories. But unfortunately, most of them are just that - endings. Very few continuing the story after they have made all kinds of out there attempts to retcon or fix the show's problems.

To make the property commercially viable again, you need a complete reboot with fresh faced actors playing the fab 4. It is the only real way. The show had too many problems to handwave away and continue it as it was. And simply ignoring those issues is just as deadly.

But if The Powers That Be did allow Jerry to be a part of it, I can't see him taking on the Arturo role - he just doesn't have it in him. I agree with the Quinn Snr / Jnr thing that could be done - allowing him to still have his place within the multiverse. So Mr Mallory almost perfected sliding and got himself lost in the process. Years later, Quinn Jr completes his work and goes searching for his/her father. That allows Jerry to have a recurring role, still be a 'Quinn' and have a significant impact on the story and events - but allows the fab 4 to be seen and embraced by a new generation of viewers and fans.

Woah, someone else who remembers that show! Lol.

I really enjoyed watching VR.5 with the awesome Anthony Head. It's such a shame it didn't last as I thought the premise was pretty cool.

Holy crap that was a great interview and very insightful. It's nice to know that the cast really weren't onboard with the changes and felt pretty much like we did. It's such a shame, as everyone feels that the show could have gone on to be something incredible. So sad. And yeah, I don't blame him for not seeing season 5 - I've not watched it outside of its original airing.

Woah, Tracy called him? That bodes well that this was some serious thinking about rebooting the show.

However, with JRD on Shannara Chronicles, and everyone scattered, I can't see it happening with the original cast outside of cameos. It's got to be a new cast.

As you know, I didn't like it ... but it would be nice to have something to help for my Sliders fix, so we'll see...

*Puts on deep voice*

The time is almost at hand...

I wish I had been around at the time to see this. I remember watching this abortion of an episode in shock that they could actually do what they did.

That was a nice mini-essay Intangirble. Though I'm not one to care much about the behind the scenes shenanigans of the shows I watch, this kind of thing I do find a little fascinating as it can have an actual impact on the show itself, as you have beautifully detailed here. Sliders definitely feels the most meta and self aware that I have come across, but there have been minor circumstances in other shows that jump to mind.

Charmed kinda goes without saying. The off-screen tension between Shannon Doherty and Alyssa Milano was clearly visibly even from day one, and (without knowing the details) it's hard not to believe that the tension between the on-screen siblings wasn't something that would have immediately wrapped up in the first season, but either the writers or higher-ups could spot the tension between the actresses and so played it up as much as they could, knowing that there was a spark there that simply couldn't be manufactured in any other normal circumstances. Honestly, they must have been running round the office in glee when they brought Alyssa on board after the pilot's actress didn't pan out. There was literally zero tension - manufactured or otherwise - there.

The Tribe has a really great instance of this, but with a bit more meta and self-awareness thrown in. The show began with a powerful position of not talking down to children and seriously tackling all manner of teen subjects, but by the jumping-the-shark 4th season, post-apocalyptic survival was suddenly thrown aside for technology, virtual reality, advanced laser weapons, and food manufacturing capabilities. In the blink of an eye, the audience were suddenly talked down to like babies in a way that hadn't been done before - full of insulting euphemisms and the like. Network interference had been forced on the show to make it more 'child friendly' and you could immediately see the impact. By the 5th season - after a lot of outcry on forums and the like - you got this amazing scene with the lead character ranting at the antagonist concerning the use of all the nonsense and euphemisms in telling her that the person she loved was dead:

"Say it. Go on, say it! 'Deleted', Bray. Killed. Murdered. Butchered. Destroyed. Assassinated. Graphic enough, for you?! Or should we stick to your quaint little euphemism?!"

It's hard to know whether the stance behind it was the writers saying 'yeah, yeah, we know we've been talking down to you' or whether it was the opposite form of 'does hearing the words make you feel like you're not watching a children's show?' It's really hard to say, because of all the behind the scenes and network agendas, but it was an excellent meta moment in the show.

There are some other instances, but those two pop first into my mind. It does begs the question, whether these inclusions were instigated by the writers wanting to mirror the off-screen tension in order to build a better performance for the actors, whether the writer unconsciously included it, whether the writers sneakily included these in without the higher-ups spotting, or if indeed it was a decision from the higher-ups to spark things a bit more.

Anyway, like I said, I'm not knowledgable about the behind the scene events of shows, and I tend to stay away from them in order to separate characters from the actors, but it is fascinating subject indeed.