The Producers Just Don't Understand

[Meus Knight]

With the amount of growing negativity and anxiety surrounding the new show, I just don't think the producers understand what makes Knight Rider unique. With the pilot, there were certain scenes that were just pure class, especially the beginning - that subtle aura of power and character within KITT as he drove off with speed racing to save Deanna's character. But why is it so many people didn't like the show, or came away, appreciating the reincarnation of the series yet having so much to not dislike but to actually complain about?

The producers seemingly knew of the complaints and made some changes, and with such excitement and gleam in their faces they unveiled a tank with a bonet that reminds us of a Klingons forehead. Just what the hell is going on? Just when they couldn't make the body any uglier - just when we had hoped they would leave it alone and not add weight to it (they had a contract with Ford so couldn't have changed the car itself), they thought they'd go out and just think of the coolest hardcore thing on wheels.

That isn't what makes Knight Rider! It's the persona, it is the main character, KITT. We love the A.I., when KITT made the decisions to implement new things - I don't want the camera on Mike who by the way just doesn't do it for me. He seems like a typical face on TV but they threw in an unbelievable Iraq/Military-background and he sits in the car with this horrible CGI background.

What will make this any different to Team Knight Rider? I don't see any difference or any evidence that it will be different, it just looks like a ridiculous car and from what I remember of the pilot, a cheesy horrible forgettable script with horrible actors.

P.S. They have this KITT cave I heard in the Comic Con panel, and the new commercial shows green lasers directed at KITT like a rainbow...It looked like a 2nd rate Bosnian techno night club. Horrible, just horrible. I have seen so little that impresses me, and so little evident of change or theme of change and we needed a drastic one after the pilot.

Sorry to rant but I'm frustrated that I may be forced to switch the channel/close the video file half way through after I have waited so many years for this. They're ruining it for the fans.

EDIT: Sweet god, I just saw a damn pick up truck? Ford has NBC by the manhood on this show, what a disgrace. I'm actually laughing LOL

[trissybabes]

We haven't seen the bigger picture yet!

I'm sure a lot of things that have been picked out from previews and promos will make much more sense in the finished product!

[KnightLady]

We haven't seen the bigger picture yet!

I'm sure a lot of things that have been picked out from previews and promos will make much more sense in the finished product!

I hope you are right, because it sure seems like everyone connected with this new show is way off target. But, I do plan on watching it just to see what they have come up with.

[CrazySexyCurvy]

Matt, it's just such a shame. I read your post and agreed with everything. I too, am feeling rather anti-climatic about the whole affair.

KITT is THE persona that they needed to get right and they just haven't delivered so far. AND Ford are killing the whole vibe for me. The muscle-car look is NOT the way to go.

Don't shoot me, but it very much feels like their first aim was to attract people (i.e. the 21-30 aged males) in for advertising first, Knight Rider integrity second; A new young, threesome-having Michael that they would secretly aspire to (?), and a car that covers all bases (fast and the furious, transformers, KITT...). I understand that the show has to brought into the 21st century, but come on! It's possible to attract the same people and do it with integrity! They have compromised on areas that they really shouldn't have.

Even the pilot was flaky. For instance, why would you stop to tell Michael about his dad when they are people with guns after you and then stand around the car when you get to it??? You could have that convo in the car while your driving away, right?

I really hope that they can pull it together over the next few episodes. I really want them to get this right.

[FX23]

why have 1 car when you can have 5!

[FX23]

[Michael Pajaro]

"the new commercial shows green lasers directed at KITT like a rainbow...It looked like a 2nd rate Bosnian techno night club. "

That made me smile... Funny.

But I honestly don't understand trying to make a connection to Team Knight Rider. Have people been reading all of the interviews we did? They addressed SO MANY of the issues regarding the two-hour movie.

We're going to have Turbo boosts. They are going back to the idea of "a man who does not exist." A far more elaborate car interior. We'll be exploring the history of FLAG. A chance to see Hasselhoff again. GST complained that the stunts weren't big or fast enough, he's vowed to change that. Aren't these exactly the things we want?

[Scott Kirkessner]

Guys, give it a chance and stop being Negative Nancies.

[KRAvengerII]

"the new commercial shows green lasers directed at KITT like a rainbow...It looked like a 2nd rate Bosnian techno night club. "

That made me smile... Funny.

But I honestly don't understand trying to make a connection to Team Knight Rider. Have people been reading all of the interviews we did? They addressed SO MANY of the issues regarding the two-hour movie.

We're going to have Turbo boosts. They are going back to the idea of "a man who does not exist." A far more elaborate car interior. We'll be exploring the history of FLAG. A chance to see Hasselhoff again. GST complained that the stunts weren't big or fast enough, he's vowed to change that. Aren't these exactly the things we want?

Thanks for saving me the trouble of having to go back and watch the interviews.

[Sky_Blue_Civic]

Guys, give it a chance and stop being Negative Nancies.

You just read my mind...

[Niggle Snoosh]

there's nothing sad about being proud of the legend Knight Rider

A Statement that no-one in this forum would disagree with since if anyone of us really thought that was true we would not be on here and the Knight Rider community like a certain shadowy flight would not exist.

However there are those outside our (great and wiser) community that grew out of it or never liked it at all and as large as the community is, it's not large enough to warrant a series made just for us and after the disappointing attempts for a reboot that were KR2000 and TKR we are lucky we have any kind of new series at all.

As sad as it is Universal is a business and as such will want to milk some money and get high ratings from public if it can. Knight Rider was a product of the 80's, it's a series that would surely only have been thought up in that decade and when it was on it was awesome. Yet the ratings decreased and the show ended. Now Universal are not going to bring back a show the way it was because the only ones that would watch it are those who never stopped watching yet obviously weren't enough for Universal to continue the series.

That was 22 years ago, times have changed and so has the needs of today's target audience. Knight Rider has to evolve to live in today's world, a lot of what KITT could do wouldn't cut it with the kids of today, technology has more or less caught up with what we saw then, what makes the show work outside of the relationship of the car and his driver is the fact that it is the car of tomorrow. As cool as KITT was and is, knowing what we know now the believability of certain functions outside of their coolness are (as much as i hate myself for saying this)a little ridiculous and frankly impossible. Perhaps transforming is stepping a bit close to the edge but it does put itself in the car of tomorrow territory and beyond what is currently or likely to happen anytime soon.

A problem i have with the attack KI3T is that it was designed with today's laws in mind as to what it needs to make it more powerful, now it's all well and good trying to make it plausible today in some respects it just looks like a racers custom fittings not the unique superior technological advancement it is supposed to be. Now of course this is due to a need to satisfy today's audiences affection of fast and the furious and muscle cars but why make it look so barely above average and (quite possibly) uglier than the standard version when in reality it should really at minimum be a racers wet dream. Arguably it would be far more spectacular for a car that doesn't have such obvious modifications to still do the same things and surpass the heavily modded vehicles of today. Now we still have yet to see Attack KI3T in context and with luck when we do it will all be ok, even though i don't fully embrace the Attack KI3T i'm still willing to accept as a necessary tool to keep Knight Rider alive.

KITT was a sexy beast in his day (and still is) The Mustang doesn't have the same appeal to me as the Pontiac Trans Am/Firebird but i can't deny the fact a lot of that maybe due to nostalgia. Back in the day the Pontiac pretty much pwned all opposition in it's greatness which is a much harder feat these days. To get something that sets itself miles apart from the vehicles of the time yet not stick out like a sore thumb/look too unconventional or unrealistic (coughKIFTcough) Such a task is not easy and near impossible to keep the masses happy. Perhaps the Mustang isn't as special as it could be but it does have a bit of personality and at the very least (brand whoring aside) is a reasonable successor. Also it's always good to remember this is a KI3T, not The KITT. It is a different entity and should not be bound to KITT's mighty shadow.

William Daniels was the KITT we all knew and he did a damn find job, it can't be easy to give personality to a car that will live on for decades to come but he found a way. Not to mention the sad fact that him now being 81 does prove troublesome if you're considering someone for a role that has the potential to last for multiple seasons. Alot of people are overly negative towards Val Kilmers KI3T yet i was satisfied since he's not there to take KITT's place but rather to give a new spin on a proven idea. We know that KITT still exists somewhere so i don't see why others can't embrace a another charismatic AI. Nostalgia will stop Val Kilmer from outshining William Daniels regardless of the direction he takes with KI3T. People lay into Val about his less expressivce KI3T but William Daniels performance in the original pilot is sub par compared to later efforts and he wasn't brought in at the last minute. GST already acknowledges the fact we will see his voice and personality evolve as the series progresses, i don't know about you but i thinks that great. Although we did see KITT evolve somewhat in the original series it was never really explored just accepted and i think that this new spin will be more involving to the viewer and allow for a more intimate realtionship with the character. I for one what i've seen from Val Kilmer so far, such as it was, he's not KITT but he does have a certain something which can only get better.

Now speaking of big boots to fill we also have the role of the Knight Rider, one Mr Michael Knight who was of course played by the mighty David Hasselhoff. Back then he was one popular dude, he was eye candy to the ladies, a man to aspire to for the men and a heroic icon for us all. Now he still has an iconic status today but not necessarily for the right reasons. Now what i'm about to say isn't nice but you have to understand its not personal attack just an unfortune observation. Sadly my affection for the Hoff generally gets me laughed at (I for one think he's great, well how can i not because after all he is Michael Knight, a face of my beloved childhood memories) and sadly the cold hard truth is there is a far more sinister stigma attached to most peoples view of him. Today he is seen more as a figure of fun than a top celebrity he deserves, just the fact of who well he puts up with that crap is a great testiment to his character and he deserves respect not ridicule. That is why his role in the new series is/will be so small. Given the time and money that is spent on new programming it is sadly all too understandable that they avoid risk whenever possible, even if that does mean they overlook or forget his importance. We all know helped get this new series off the ground only to be slapped in the face with the possibility to being kept out of the new show permanently. However Univeral and GST do seem to now understand that he can't simply be cast aside and there is a place for him after all. Now he may not be given the importance he should and we desire but we atleast we can be happy for small graces.

As much as all of us here love The Hoff, most of us understand that one man making a difference is a young mans game and as wonderful it would be for us to see the original Michael Knight continuing his adventures it would be of no interest to a fresh audience, for those who crave Hoff in action there 4 seasons to see him in his prime.
Justin Breuning to me is a worthy successor to the name Knight, we should bear in mind he is not a replacement for the character we know and love but an alternate take on the role in different times. It's great we have a true fan of the show as a lead, what made David hasselhoff so cool was that he believed in the show and the character and loved what he was doing. From what I see we have been lucky enough to have that happen again. Plus Justin's Mike has a lot of personality and i thought immediately likeable, he also can live upto a higher standard in combat sequences that we expect these days. In the advent of Martial arts and great fight choregraphy becoming so important to mainstream audiences the days of the simple punch and macho brawling are long gone. Mike traceur may be the guy for today but to me that takes nothing away from the man we grew up with. Like KI3T and KITT there is no reason Mike and Michael can't coexist quite happily. Justin's role isn't to outshine our beloved Knight but to help a new legacy live on.

As great as the original series was the powers that be deemed it unsuitable to continue and such it can't exist as it did. This is not the 80's, this is now, Knight Rider as we knew it has been and gone but lives on forever in our memories and can still be enjoyed on DVD. Todays audience have different expectations, they grew up on a whole new breed of movies and programming that we did and rightly or wrongly a new Knight Rider must abide by new laws to be popular. We all have to remember this incarnation will have changes and not necessarily for the better (as many of our quibbles and rants have shown) just adapted to suit a new generation. We have to accept this as a new chapter in the world of Knight Rider, one that has all the potential to sit quite happily along the original and understand because it is not and never can be a replacement to the original series and nor should it be but it can survive and be enjoyable on its own merits.

[Niggle Snoosh]

Put it this way, this is the LAST chance Knight Rider will likely have on TV, especially one that has anything to do the original show. If it fails, there will not be another Knight Rider on TV at least in Hasslehoff's lifetime or at least before he's a senior citizen and certainly in William Daniel's lifetime. So a little Hasslehoff/Original Michael Knight or Daniels/KITT (that's potentially well written) that we might get out of this is going to be a lot better than none at all, which will be the result if the show gets canned before it even has a chance and a real chance is more than just 13 episodes..

People who want Hasselhoff and William Daniels role to return in a full time role need to seriously get a grip. I've been a Knight Rider fan since I was two years old which means I started watching at some point in either half way through or towards the end of the second season or early season three on its first run. Michael Knight/David Hasselhoff was a hero of mine, as I'm sure he and the character was for others here. Hell, I remember when I think I was eight or nine years old seeing some movie DH made where he swore and for some reason I made up and excuse for why he did in saying something to my mother that was something along the lines of "he didn't want to but had to or was made to" or something like that, now that's just sad. Not even really much of a swear word even to me back then and especially not anymore, I think he just said "goddamn". Even more pathetic is that I might have even viewed him as a father figure somewhat since I never had one. So anyone saying I'm either, not a real fan or "don't get it" can turbo boost themselves off a cliff and onto the jagged rocks below.

The long and short of it is that I'm probably not using that term correctly, but anyway, is that it's been 22 years and I've grown up and know that there's no way DH could carry this show today as the lead to where it would be any sort of success. They need to attract a new audience and they would not do that with David, who is old enough now to not only be a father to all of what is considered the "key demographic" but also old enough to be a grandfather to part of it, not to mention those under or hovering around the age of 18 whom he could even be a great grandfather to in certain, messed up circumstances. Having him run around like it was the 1980s in a 20+ year old Trans-Am would be completely ridiculous and would look that way to any new viewer, likely turning them off in the process. Just from what little we've seen of the new show, action, the fights and all out physicality are going to be significantly more elaborate than what was done in the 80s and most of it will likely be done without stunt doubles that poorly resemble the show's stars. That's not to say DH couldn't do it, I'm sure he's not in that bad of condition, but the fact is that I doubt anyone here would want to see their grandfather in that type of role. Face it, the show NEEDS fresh blood in the lead role. DH could certainly fit a Devon/mentor type role but scheduling conflicts thankfully prevent that, that's something not only said by the show's executive producer but Hasselhoff as said it as well I think. DH at this point is best served as a guest star for a big, important mythology based episode. Same thing goes for any of the other original cast members still alive and/or active, which isn't many.

Top it off, Daniels is pretty much at the point of his life where his interest in even returning in a limited capacity is probably extremely low, outside of doing some business with MIO he seems to be, at the age of 81, more than happy to be retired. I have no doubt that if approached he would have little or no interest in returning full time to voice the ORIGINAL KITT again. Even if he were, do you know what kind of risk that could potentially be if the show ends up being a hit that last several years? I hate to say it but at his age the chances of dying increase significantly, voice work might not be physically demanding and might not consume a ton of time, but at his age I'm sure he has plenty of other things he'd want to do with whatever little time he has left. Sure, maybe he'll even live another 20 years or more, that would be great but it's not likely. But no one and I mean no one should be voicing the original series's KITT other than him. It's beyond stupid to even complain about his not being the voice of the new KITT which as everyone here should know by now, is a completely new AI.

Besides, if the show is a hit we'll be getting those important questions answered and at least one or two new Michael/KITT stories out of it, I'm sure. I do wish there was involvement from Glen Larson or producers/writers who had a significant role in the original show to give it a bit more legitimacy as a continuation, but hopefully the writers actually do pay a lot of attention to and respect to the history of the original series and not be stupid/lazy. At the very least I'm sure David will have a bit of control in how he returns when/if it comes or even gets a chance to, which he won't if the show isn't picked up or decides he doesn't like the direction again.

/rant

I see someone was having similar opinions too, this wasn't there when i started my rant, had it been i may not have felt compelled to spend so long on it, oh well. Great minds thinkalike and all that

[PHOENIXZERO]

Ah, but I didn't post it here though. I do think you got the points across a bit more eloquently.

[OverKnight]

Well said everyone...

As much as some of us would like to take the old show with all the old characters and bring in a new shiny car, it just doesn't work that way. As Knight Rider was ahead of it's time in the 80's... The new show also needs to be the same. And, what better way to start from when you had such a great foundation to build off from. These new producers, from what I can tell, care about where the show came from. I believe they listen to what the original fans are looking for... and at the same time, doing something different to bring in future fans.

I want the new show to be a hit! And, did anyone see the commercial where KITT morphs?? OH MY GOD! HOW COOL IS THAT! IT'S KITT!