User blog:Dorkpool/Reboots

Some time ago, I posted an idea for a Creepypasta story involving a superhero in a universe that got rebooted, except he was the only on who knew about it. This superhero would go nuts, and literally break the fourth wall, and go into the real world to to kill everyone there. The point of this story was to say that it seems like there are way too many reboots being done.

Why do I bring this up? Well, it seems like there have been a lot of movie reboots lately; The Amazing Spider-Man, Man of Steel, Godzilla, Robocop, an upcoming Ghostbusters, need I say more? I think the question here is: is a reboot always warranted?

Well, it depends to be honest. Let's talk about The Amazing Spider-Man, shall we? (Because it's not like I've done so already in many other posts) The reason this came about was for a few reasons: first, Sam Raimi, disappointed at the amount of studio meddling in Spider-Man 3 and Spider-Man 4, decided, fuck it, and quit. Most of the stars of the original Spider-Man movies decided to leave, leaving Sony with only one option: reboot. Now, the reason why they did it so soon was simply to keep the rights. There was a nasty rights dispute involving the Spider-Man movies, starting from around the 1980s. But I won't get into that. The point is, Sony wanted to keep the rights to a very profitable character. Also, they tried doing a shared universe based on Spidey, but I've addressed the flaws in that in at least two other posts. (I talk quite a bit about Spider-Man, come to think of it)

Man of Steel was done to try and reboot the franchise, because Superman Returns was a thing. And, after Avengers, it ended up starting to build a shared universe.

However, other reboots I think are simply made for one reason: money. Was anyone really begging for a new Robocop? Especially a PG-13 reboot? I don't know, but someone thought so. Or how about an all-female Ghostbusters team?

To be honest, I think there are some instances where a reboot makes some sense: The Dark Knight Trilogy is a perfect example. Quite a few years after Batman and Robin (*shudder*), Batman was rebooted in Batman Begins. Then there was the awesome sequel of The Dark Knight, and the meh ending of The Dark Knight Rises. The point is, the reboot was long enough away from the last installment that people would be more accepting of a new take. Especially when the previous installment had Batnipples.

The Amazing Spider-Man makes some sense, simply just to keep the rights. I'm aware that 1) it was a pain in the ass getting the rights and 2) Spider-Man is a very profitable character. From a business standpoint, it makes sense. From an artistic standpoint...not really.

Now, for Robocop or Ghostbusters, they would technically fall into the category The Dark Knight Trilogy do, but it feels wrong. I don't know, that's just my personal opinion.

However, let's talk about something different from movies: toys. Specifically, BIONICLE. I love BIONICLE, I admit. I love the toys and I love the story. Hell, I think I have pretty much all BIONICLE books. When it was cancelled in 2010, I wasn't really happy, but since BIONICLEStory was a thing, I was content. But for the years BIONICLE was gone, a lot of fans protested. So, Lego's bringing back BIONICLE, but, based on what I've seen, it's a reboot. This actually makes sense. By the end of BIONICLE's run, the story had become so complex that it was driving away potential customers, and continuing BIONICLE from that point, no matter how much I'd like them to (seriously, guys. Yesterday Quest and The Powers That Be weren't finished. How does it end?), wouldn't attract new people to it. So a reboot there makes sense.

(Also, to be honest, I'm really psyched for the new BIONICLE.)

However, no matter if it's right or not to reboot something, I think the main thing to keep in mind is how to react to it. I've come up with a logical way to do so. You're welcome.

First, assume that the reboot won't be completely true to the original, or its source material. I didn't when it came to The Amazing Spider-Man, and boy, was I pissed. Second, have an open mind. They're remaking something; what could they do here? And third, if you can't do numbers one and two, then don't buy/watch/read the reboot. Save yourself some anger. However, if you decide to ignore step three, don't say I didn't warn you.

So, to conclude this ramble, keep an open mind about reboots. If it sucks, you have the original. If it's good, awesome. If the reboot plagiarizes scenes from the original, and just switches characters, feel free to yell, "KHAAAAAAAN!" (I'm looking at you, Star Trek Into Darkness)