Season 41 - Downton Abbey Series 1 (2011)
The old saying is "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," and that is exactly what Julian Fellowes did with Downton Abbey. He took the classic premise of Upstairs, Downstairs and basically remade it to laudatory reviews. Yes, there are changes here and there, but seeing as I just did a rewatch of Upstairs, Downstairs, literally starting it about thirty days after seeing the Downton Abbey movie, I could see how eerily similar they are. Fortunes changed because of the sinking of the Titanic, check, daughters up to no good, check, rape, check, conception issues, check, closeted gay staff, check, concern over a royal visit, check, integration of families, check, bright young things, check, the list goes on and on and on, all just slight variations on a theme. And I really think that's why Downton Abbey became such a worldwide phenomenon. It tapped into the nostalgia that everyone felt not just for bygone days but also for Upstairs, Downstairs. The irony being that Downton Abbey's success scuppered the Upstairs, Downstairs reboot. But how could 165 Eaton Place compete with a house the likes of Highclere Castle? And the truth is, I fell right in love with this show like everyone else. I didn't care that I'd seen it all before, the truth is no one can deliver a line like Maggie Smith and that alone made this show perfection. I remember watching the premiere up in my library all by myself and about half way through I realized that everyone in my family wouldn't just want to watch the show, they would love it. So I literally dragged everyone who was still awake into the TV room and put the show on. I knew I had everyone hooked, especially my dad, when Robert runs out onto the drive to stop Bates from leaving and my dad was sobbing. Yes Julian Fellowes, you hooked us with one episode and thankfully after all that twisting on the hook you gave us not just one happily ever after, but you came back and did a movie which at the time I felt unnecessary, but once I saw it I knew how much I needed the Crawleys in my life.
When I was little I loved Lost in Space. The problem was it aired at the same time as my swimming lessons. Needless to say I connived to try to stay home on an almost daily basis and rarely succeeded. As for the movie with Heather Graham and Joey from Friends, the less said the better. But the failure to reboot the series in the late nineties meant that I had really no expectations going into the new series on Netflix. I mean, yes, the fact that Toby Stephens was attached as John Robinson made me hopeful, and the gender swapping of Dr. Smith and then casting the always fabulous Parker Posey just made me more interested, but still I waited to watch the series. I didn't know if this newest incarnation of The Swiss Family Robinson would try to recreate the camp of the original series or instead go all grim dark like so many reboots do nowadays. I was literally in for a huge surprise. Instead of being camp or grim dark the show is actually just a wonderful adventure series that plays well for adults and can easily be family friendly. It felt like the best of science fiction movies made in the eighties and made me feel like a kid again. I see why Netflix ordered a second series, because I personally need more of the adventures of the Robinson clan as soon as possible. The way they reinterpreted the material, having them flee Earth, get stranded with a small group of fellow travelers, but then get stranded again, setting up season two to be more in-line with the story we remember? It was perfect. But the twists and turns, the surprises you don't see coming? This was edge of your seat television and me and my new best friend The Robot will stop by and have a chat with you if you disagree. 
