Saturday, June 02, 2007

You are on The Global Frequency


The Global Frequency insignia

*sigh*... I wish...

As far as good story ideas go The Global Frequency is one helluvan idea... and there are those really , really, good ideas that sometimes the writers just... mess up... but there's non of that AT ALL... in Warren Ellis' comic books... zip!

Sketch from the first Global Frequency story

The Global Frequency (see Wikipedia entry) is like '24'... only on a global scale... and better... better than 24 I mean...

I'd read the collected books (collected in two volumes) by Warren Ellis and I was blown away... I mean the guy had written it as one WOULD write a TV series... and imagine my excitement when in 2004 Warner Bros. commissioned it for a series... I was one happy... well I was ecstatic... BUT... I had jumped too soon... the series never came about (apparently the big shots at Warners thought it sucked - their word, not mine) and they iced it...

First issue cover

BUT... it didn't stop there... it 'leaked' and found it's way on several peer to peer (I think the technical term is p2p) networks... I held out hope for a DVD release... HEY! It was a good idea and i didn't want to screw Mr. Ellis out of the money that he justly deserved!!!!

I'm still waiting... but the waiting has got the better of me... so I finally 'acquired' the 'leaked' copy... and it's GREAT! Not as good as the comic mind you... Warren Ellis left no plot holes, used great dialogue, extremely talented artists and provided a consistently gritty narrative... it was... to put it simply... 'an illustrated book' that felt like a movie... it engaged you on that level... the comics I mean...

Cover for Volume I of the two collected editions

The 'leaked' pilot episode of The Global Frequency isn't perfect (unlike the comics) BUT it coulda been... over time... it shoulda been given a chance... some bits were downright corny... some bad dialogue... but mostly... it was above most of the 'adventure' stuff we see on television these days... on the same level as 24... only not as dark... some good characters from the comics... some additional characters that you would need for regular TV... it was good...

My wife and I watched 'the only episode of The Global Frequency there was ever gonna be' and we were left wanting more... but... that's the way the cookie crumbles...

At least she's got my collections to go through...

And I've got... errr... ummm... can't think of a good series on telly... oh yea... gotta get cable... soon...

Cover for Volume II of the two collected editions

and I also need an actual telly...

2 comments:

Peter said...

Man, it does suck when good stuff is canned because "the board" doesn't think it's gonna fly...feels like the time when UPN canned Enterprise after 4 seasons because they think it wasn't profitable enough.

Unknown said...

Yea... and now that you mention it... I DID watch 3 seasons of Enterprise... up until the last episode of season 3 in fact... that where they stop the probes but get kicked to World War 2? there's a 4th season?!!?! How come I didn't know this... HASSAN!!!!