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 Posted: Fri Oct 03, 2008 9:05 pm
So, we had a pretty nice opening episode tonight. Great intros, great setup, great writing, but something was still amiss for me, personally. I think it comes from having seen the extremely short-lived web series beforehand; there were many script changes between the web and TV versions of Sanctuary. I doubt I'll be able to list them all, but I shall try.
First off was the intro of the entire episode. They switched out one scene for another (even if that scene had been woven into the original intro to begin with). Most of the lines were verbatim between the versions, so I wasn't really put out by this at all. It still rang of a forced, unwanted rewrite, though.
Next up is Will Zimmerman's introduction. Okay, since when did he become Shawn Spencer of Psych? In the original version he was a hospital shrink who worked with the criminally insane (or unstable criminals, at the very least). Here he's a hyper observant forensic psychiatrist (they even used the same highlight editing that they use in Psych whenever Shawn notices some minor detail). I'm not really upset, exactly, but I do ask, why the change? It worked out flawlessly before, especially with David Hewlett's portrayal of the literally-psychotic Larry Tolson (the character originally accused of the murders). Sure, I can understand the rewrite if they couldn't get David back in time for filming, but still it came across as forced to me. And no, for those that know me, I am not just ranting on this because I'm a David Hewlett fan. sweatdrop
Seeing Alexi escaping in this version was actually what I found to be a neat addition. I wouldn't have thought of using that extra appendage he has as an escape rope. Writer kudos to Damian Kindler for that one. That was a good rewrite.
Also, there was a piece of the story that was replaced that I actually liked better than the original. In the web series, Will feared Abnormals because Bigfoot had snuck into his room at night when Will was a kid and scared him silly (silly enough for fifteen years of therapy, in fact). I feel that this version's take on Will's childhood scarring made a whole lot more sense. We recover from being spooked, but not from as great a trauma as almost being eaten alive. The added coolness of Helen being present at the scene also was to my liking.
And now the biggest bit that irked me from the TV premiere: Helen and John's secret. I loved the original version to pieces; Helen explaining why John was the way he was and how they had gone from lovers to dire enemies. I also loved the confrontation scene between Helen, John and Ashley in the web series (Ashley finds out in that version). They made a fantastic literary reference to Twelfth Night in the web version, which was unfortunately missing from this one. It also made more sense for Helen to say the line about "underestimating John's determination" in the web version where she wasn't expecting him at all (no shield, even). The TV version also left out a plot device that I found pretty neat: Helen pictured with various greats of history in frames all over the house. Her initial reunion with Will wasn't the same between series, either. I laughed madly at the original version (Bigfoot flushes Will out of his shower at home, Will passes out and awakens in the Sanctuary). I know, it wouldn't have made as much sense in this TV rendition, but I still miss the comedy factor. No good drama is complete without some levity. Otherwise it loses its lifelike quality.
So, that's my take on the premier. What have you Sanctuarians got to say?
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Posted: Sat Oct 04, 2008 11:20 am
My question is, "What happens to the the story thread about the boy?" It just disappears. Is he left alone in the cell-like room?
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Posted: Sat Oct 04, 2008 11:27 am
Thanks for reminding me. That's another difference I was disappointed in. In the web version Helen says that she got him into a special school. Also, in that version it was Alexi who was used as the "blunt instrument" in John's plan to put Helen in a tight spot. It was then that Will fully gained Alexi's trust, because in the web version Alexi had been mildly poisoned by John's influence about how to act when one is different.
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Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 4:42 pm
I wonder why they changed it?
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Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 6:04 pm
I'm still in the dark on that, but trying to find out. The production blog is no longer in service, which pains me.
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Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2008 1:44 pm
I was saddened that there was no David. But now he is free to come back and do a bigger/better part.
I also like Will's back story better than webisode version. Even if there was no flushing toilet scene..
I knew that they had rewritten some stuff but I wasn't expecting the whole thing to be pretty much rewritten.
Is the website back up again?
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Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2008 2:14 pm
It is, but it isn't. The website's overhaul was so extensive that it's a shadow of its former self. Same URL, though.
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