“A long time ago, we used to be friends…”
If you’re of a certain age (ie ancient) and a fan of US TV teen drama, you’ll be familiar with Veronica Mars.
Teenage girl in high school (played by Kristen Bell) moonlights as a private investigator solving the murder of her best friend in a wealthy California community. It was snarky, smart, and quickly gathered a reputation for having a central character who was strong, independent, funny – and female. Hurrah.
The show ran from 2004 to 2007 and then became one of those shows that people in their 30s remember fondly, and wishing they still made them like that. I think we have a point, and not just rose-tinted glasses. I don’t think anyone is going to be wistfully remembering Hollyoaks in the year 2023.
But this week brought AWESOME news. The actors and writers of Veronica Mars have teamed up to launch a kickstarter project where they invite regular people to chip in money, and if they raise $2m, they’ll make a movie of Veronica Mars. How amazing is that? And they reached more than 50% of their target in just one day, showing how loved that show was. After 36 hours, they’re currently $0.5m over their budget *excited face*
I say, why stop at Veronica Mars, though?
There are loads of TV shows I’d pay good money to see revived on the big screen. Like…
Party of Five. Oh, how I loved Charlie, and his tormented, wood-loving ways, and Julia, with her succession of beautiful boyfriends and awesome hair. Did Julia end up with Griffin – although that might be problematic, I’ve a feeling the actor who played him keeps ending up in jail at the moment due to domestic disputes. Ah well, maybe that one’s best left as a beautiful memory.
Felicity. Oh, I adored Felicity and the not-at-all-cliched story of a girl who moves to New York and has to choose between two incredibly handsome men. On the upside, this show was made by JJ Abrams, who is basically a God who can do no wrong in my book. Also – both men from this show have aged incredibly well. Scott Speedman could easily take a break from hanging out with vampires, and I think Scott Foley could easily take a break from Scrubs and Grey’s Anatomy. Although we’d have to agree to forget about the original, stupid, four-episode finale to the show.
My So-Called Life. If ever there was a TV show that ended too soon, it’s MSCL. I would pay awesome amounts of money to see what happened to Angela Chase, the only teenage girl on TV who reminded me of an ACTUAL teenage girl, complete with moods, and insecurities, and random irritation with that fact that the universe had saddled her with parents and siblings. The only unfortunate issue would be Jared Leto – unspeakably beautiful at 18, less so at 35. It’s tricky because you wouldn’t want Angela to end up with Brian, would you?
Gilmore Girls: This show about a single Mum and her daughter was one of my all-time favourites well before I was a single Mum to a daughter. It’s a witty, pop-culture packed show set in a dreamy New England small town, featuring an incredibly smart, wise-cracking Lorelei Gilmore, raising her daughter. And it includes lines like: “Always carry a book, you never know when you might need it.” What’s not to love?
Do you agree with my choices? What TV shows would you resurrect and bring back to the big screen?
