ALL SCI-FI

[Pow]

I'm not suggesting that Addison be permanently replaced, Bud, as the QL hologram accompanying Ben on his adventures.

My suggestion is that since the hologram technology allows anyone to appear to Ben in any timeline, it could be fun to have some of the other QL support team join him once in a while, especially if they have expertise or interest in a particular situation Ben is in. They could partner with Addison, or fly solo.

It would be fun to see the different interactions they'd have with Ben. Also, Addison is smart & strong but she can hardly be well versed on everything that Ben will encounter. I know she has that nifty gizmo she carries that can interface with the QL master computer Ziggy for key information. However, sometimes Ben will require assistance from individuals with firsthand experience that only they are able to give human insight and knowledge to.

It would give the other actors that remain at the QL headquarters a chance to get out & strut their stuff, as well as flesh out their characters.

[Bud Brewster]

[Bud Brewster]

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This is what I found online about this series.
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Find out how Quantum Leap stacks up against other NBC TV shows. Quantum Leap has been renewed for a second season which will debut on October 4, 2023. Stay tuned for further updates.
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Well, we'll see in October if the series finally starts living up to the original.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

The WGA went on strike back in May and SAG joined 'em in July.

In order for the networks to provide brand new episodes of any series in the fall they must start shooting in June so that there will be a stockpile of fresh episodes by September & October for the various series debuts.

It is now August 6 and the talks between the studios & networks with the WGA & SAG are still stalled.

Sorry to break it to everyone (including little ol' me), there AIN'T gonna be a new fall television season this year. And I always loved looking forward to the Fall TV Guides announcing the new and returning shows with profiles about them each. Not that I ever like to wish my wonderful summers away.

[Bud Brewster]

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Well, folks, the good news is that Quantum Leap just aired episode 7 of season 2, and it's a real winner!

Ben leaps into a young woman in a 15th century Salem-like community, and he's branded as a which when he uses CPR to save an unconscious man. A rebellious and free-thinking woman is also branded as a witch, partly because she doesn't believe in the tragic superstitions of the time. She teams up with Ben to escape from jail before they're both executed.

The story is a fine condemnatory of the ignorance and stupidity which has plagued mankind for centuries — and still does today, especially in third-world countries which have hidebound customs and illogical cultural requirements.

The biggest obstacle to mankind's progress is . . . mankind himself.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

QL returns with brand new episodes on Tuesday, January 30, 2024 at 10:00 p.m.

[Bud Brewster]

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Thanks for the reminder, Mike! I'm looking forward to it.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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The February 6th episode of Quantum Leap is a deliberate Indiana Jones style adventure which takes place in the 1930s. Three sisters (one of whom is Ben) inherit a map from their late father which supposedly leads to priceless treasure in Mexico.

One of the sisters is an attractive woman who constantly complains about the hardships of the journey (the way Kate Capshaw did in Temple of Doom.

The trio enter a cave and find the skeleton of treasure hunter (like the early scene in Raiders).

After finding a chest which presumably holds the treasure, there's a scene where the group flees from a torrent of water (like in Temple of Dome).

The thing I didn't care for in the episode was a ten-minute discussion by the characters about the sister who is transgender. The scene was obviously intended to promote the social awareness of transgender rights.

I realize its a important issue, but sermons about social issues aren't entertaining, especially in the middle of an adventure.

But overall the episode is enjoyable.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

I found this a disappointing episode.

The whole plot device of hey, kids, the real treasure is family, made me want to gag. Scarlett Johansen & Colin Jost (husband & wife) did a hilarious take off of that theme in a 2023 Super Bowl commercial. The joke in the commercial being that Alexa can read your mind and reacts. At their home, Scarlet comes into their living room in order to re-enact a scene from a play she's in, playing the parts of a father & his little boy for Colin.

SJ: Son: "But what about the gold papa? Father: Can't you see my son that the treasure all along was you."

CJ: When does the show open?"

SJ: March 8 (with a big smile on her face).

Alexa: Setting reminder to fake your own death on March 8.

Colin Jost hurriedly attempting to shut-off Alexia, as Scarlet has a stunned and angry expression and says to Colin, "What the . . ." before the ad jumps to the next scene.

That hilarious sketch put me in mind of this episode of QL.

Like you, Bud, I could have lived without the whole transgender subplot. I realize this is an important discussion to have, I also realize other television series deal with it & its a relevant issue. I just didn't need to see it on QL that night. Let other TV shows feature it. I'd have preferred the Indiana Jones adventure for this episode be what this episode was all about.

There's a scene where two of the sisters go to a wall in order to read postings in the cantina that shows previous treasure hunters. They tell the third sister to stay by their bag at the bar with their father's map & keep an eye on it. Naturally, that sister strolls away from the bar to join the other sisters at the wall. Gasp, when they return to the bar we see the all important bag has been stolen! Lazy ass writing.

The reveal that their father's friend, who is also his lawyer, was behind it all. Yawn.

Once they return home after their discovery of the box with their father's cornball message, Ben miraculously puts it all together, and runs to the wall safe. Daddy left 'em all a fortune in gems, diamonds, whatever. Groan.

As Ben & Addison talk just before he leaps out at the end of this episode, we get no information from her as to what happened to the sisters afterwards. Al always updated Sam about the fates of the people Sam was involved with and how their lives unfolded. I've noticed that this new QL show will neglect that from time to time with their episodes. That bugs me.

Naw, this QL isn't on my Top Ten List.

[Bud Brewster]

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Agree, on all counts.

It started out promising, and I began writing my post while watching the edisode, having fun identifying the obvious similarities to the Indiana Jones movies. By the time I got the Transgender Awareness Lecture, I revised the post to be less enthusiastic, because it just wasn't holding interest.

I was glad they actually did find a treasure, but I couldn't help wondering how all the gems were kept in place behind the wooden wall segment. Seemed like a dumb way to hid a bunch of jewells. No bags or boxes? Just loose and waiting to pour out?

Hopefully next week's episode will be better.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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Good news!

The episode that aired on 2/13/24 was much better than last week's "Transgender Awareness" lecture. This week's episode told a real story that was every interesting and skillfully presented.

The bad guys in this episode are the makers of a weed killer like Round Up, which we now all know turned out to be a cancer-causing chemical that was responsible for the serious health problems for thousands of people.

I was impressed.

This is what made the original Quantum Leap so good. Sam Beckett fought to set things right because (apparently) God allowed things to go wrong in His univerese, and He couldn't fix the problems Himself!

That was always the flaw I saw in this show. If God makes mistakes, he damned well ought to fix them!

This new version of the series doesn't address that issue either, so we just have to keep wondering why a super-high-tech science experiment seems to be at the mercy of a hypothetical supernatural being who constantly screws up and needs help fixing His mistakes!

That's one aspect of this series I'd have ditched in the planning stages of the original series.

In my humble opinion, if God isn’t really omniscient, omnipresent, and all-knowing — then He’s just a bumbling super-being who rambles around the cosmos just for fun, meddling in the lives of the life forms which inhabit the universe.

Frankly, the current fate of mankind and the current condition of our planet seems to favor that interpretation of the concept we call God!

But hey, I could wrong! Right?
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

Someone on one of the QL Facebook sites posted a fun question: Who would you have Ben leap into that is a character from another television show?

Ben is sitting behind the wheel of a limousine and hears a voice behind him say "Let's roll, Kato."

Ben is standing by an isolated lake when he sees an Invaders spacecraft fly into the water.

Ben is in some kind of courtyard at night when he sees a man rush up to him. "Tony, we've landed at the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg in July of 1918." This isn't from a television series, it's just an idea I came up with as someone interested in history.

Ben is laying on a lawn in a park. He has some aches and pains. As he slowly gets up he realizes that there are three other people doing the same thing as he is doing. Two men and a woman. One man walks over to Ben and asks him "So Q-ball, how long are we stranded on this Earth?"

Ben is suddenly standing in some kind of sophisticated futuristic looking control room. There are a number of people in uniform busily performing at their duty stations. Ben sees a viewscreen directly ahead of him, on it are the elaborate looking ruins of a sunken city. An officer says to him "Captain, do you really think that the SeaQuest has discovered Atlantis?"

Ben is standing on the rooftop of a building. He has on a red pair of tights. A man with a desperate look on his face says "C'mon Ralph! Go an intercept that mysterious drone up there so we can see what it is!"

[Pow]

Sad to report, the new QL has been canceled.

[Bud Brewster]

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Mike, somehow the fact that I'm hearing this from you makes it hurt a bit less.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

Thanks Bruce. I'm disappointed with this news. Yes, the series had its share of flaws, but the cast was appealing and they managed to produce some very good stories and exciting action during its run.

The premise of having a brilliant scientist not only hurtling back through time, but possessing the body of an individual from that era, is thrilling because the protagonist can be placed into ANY kind of situation that a creative & imaginative writer can dream up! Just how many science fiction shows can offer that up each and every week? Perhaps one day we'll see yet another QL reboot?