By MICHAEL HINMAN Source: SyFy Portal Mar-28-2008 It's easy to be guilty by association. I know that because one time when I was like 8 years old on the mean streets of Johnsonburg, Pa., a bunch of my friends thought it would be great to start throwing rocks.
So they did, and they ended up hitting someone's mom, who obviously got angry and called our parents. I didn't throw a single rock, but my dad looked me straight in the eye and told me that it didn't matter if I threw a rock or not. I was still guilty by association. In Hollywood, there's no such thing as being guilty by association. Instead, like everything else in the world of television and movies, it's the exact opposite. You're not guilty by association, but you can gain success and acclaim simply by being associated with something. Sometimes, I wonder if that is what's happening with David Eick. Don't get me wrong, I really do like what Eick -- who is an executive producer with "Battlestar Galactica" -- has done, and I agree with him on many things he says during his numerous interviews. Eick has achieved a lot of attention thanks to the critical success of "Battlestar Galactica," and maybe a lot of it is deserved. But then I see the episodes that Eick has written, like the very forgettable episode "Hero," and I'm not sure if I have the same confidence the industry has given him. And then I see "Bionic Woman," and I get even more worried. Because Eick is associated with "Battlestar Galactica," a lot of doors to some very sensitive projects have opened for him. One of them was "Bionic Woman," which could've been fascinating and entertaining if done right, and now we have learned he is going to be taking on a television version of "Children of Men." Please, leave "Children of Men" alone. The 2006 film, co-written by Alfonso Cuaron and a host of other people loosely based on the novel by P.D. James was an amazing story (and some amazing work of cinematography). In a future world where humans can no longer have babies and where xenophobia is at its zenith, one man is tasked with protecting what could be the future of the human race: an immigrant who is very pregnant. Now to Eick's credit, he wants to concentrate more on the James novel than the film, so we don't have to worry about any damage taking place to the film, but I really want to wait and see who else Eick brings in to help him pull this off. One of the amazing things about "Battlestar Galactica" is that while Ronald D. Moore was the creative genius behind the show, it was Eick who was more of the marketing genius, and also was the person who knew how to keep the network happy on the business side (something very hard to do). If you removed either Eick or Moore from the equation, "Battlestar Galactica" would've easily stumbled if it didn't have someone like the two of them putting it together. But Eick figures he can strike it solo, and I just don't think it works. While he might have a good handle on the business side, he still needs an amazing creative balance to make it work. And I worry that he won't bring in the right balance, and once again, another Eick project will go up in smoke. I hope that doesn't happen. Because as much as I disliked "Hero" and as much as I could've done without the time "Bionic Woman" sapped from my life, Eick really is a key factor in the success of "Battlestar Galactica," and he has done some tremendous work. For every "Hero," there is a two-parter like "Home," that I thought Eick did wonderful job writing. So don't take this as Eick bashing in any way. I want to see Eick earn his due as a great producer (and someday, maybe even as a passable writer) just as we know Moore will, but please figure out that it does take a formula to make it work, and figure it out before you get too knee-deep into "Children of Men." Because I want a good show to watch, that will leave me just as satisfied as I was with the movie, and almost as satisfied as I am with "Battlestar Galactica." http://syfyportal.com/news424876.html ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scifinoir2/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scifinoir2/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
