RUMOR: NBC LOOKING AT A XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS REBOOT

Lucy Lawless as Xena:Warrior Princess


Another action-adventure hero is getting a reboot as Xena: Warrior Princess may be headed back to the small screen in 2016. According to a report from TV LINE, NBC Universal is looking into bringing back the heroine sometime next year. Executive Producers Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi are trying to bring back the show which ran from 1995-2001 in syndication. They are searching for a writer to do a modern reboot on the series.

Original Xena actress Lucy Lawless will have some presence on the show both in front of and behind the camera. This is no surprise as the role made Lawless a household name. Also she and Tapert fell in love on the show and were married in 1998.

With the rise of superheroes as well as elite women in sports including Ronda Rousey, Serena Williams, and the recent World Cup win by the U.S. Women's soccer team, it's no surprise that NBC would be looking at Xena for a reboot.

Xena: Warrior Princess was an actual spinoff of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys as Xena was a villain that led her army across Greece and conquered many villages. Hercules stands in her way and turns her from a villain into a hero by his example. The big question will be whether this new reboot will stick to this origin or will it change to reflect a new sensibility.

Xena and Hercules were special for their time as there weren't a lot of sci-fi/superhero shows on the air at that time and because they offered a modern take on greek mythology. Now with the explosion of pop culture, superheroes and sci-fi are everywhere. It might take something special to lure in new fans. One advantage is that Xena is a known brand. As a fan I would love to see Xena back on TV. I hope this rumor works out.

THE PROFESSOR
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WWE GOES OLD-SCHOOL WITH LESNAR VS. THE UNDERTAKER AT SUMMERSLAM

On RAW last night we saw Brock Lesnar and The Undertaker engage in an epic brawl. Lesnar came out and attacked The Undertaker after he interrupted Paul Heyman's promo. They brawled in the ring as security and most of the WWE locker room came out to separate them. You can watch the brawl itself here.


It was announced that Lesnar vs. The Undertaker will take place at Summerslam next month when WWE comes to the Barclays center. This is an old-school type of fight in wrestling where two guys who really don't like each other are out to settle a score. Brock Lesnar ended The Undertaker's WrestleMania win streak at WrestleMania 30. On Sunday night, The Undertaker interfered and cost Lesnar his shot at the WWE title in his match against Seth Rollins. Each man has a score to settle with the other and they will settle it at Summerslam.


As I said this is an old-school type of fight. These guys don't need to cut a long 20 minute promo to get fans excited about their match. The fans believe in both performers and want to see this match. I hate to say it but this type of fight is rare in wrestling and especially WWE nowadays.


WWE will need to make more attractions like Lesnar and The Undertaker if they want the fans to stay interested in the product. Future Superstars like Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins will need to be believable characters with strong motivations going against strong heroes like John Cena and Randy Orton.


The match between Brock Lesnar and the Undertaker will be great and harken back to an era where scores were settled in the ring and stars were stars for life.


THE PROFESSOR

IN TODAY'S CULTURE BATMAN IS A WARMACHINE; SUPERMAN IS JUST SUPERMAN

By now we've all seen the trailer for Batman Vs. Superman.  The trailer shows how the events from Man of Steel have impacted the world, specifically Bruce Wayne.


I never liked the direction of Superman in Man of Steel and how dark it was. Business Insider has an article on why filmmakers have such a hard time making a good Superman movie. The article even quotes Henry Cavill from an interview that he gave to Entertainment Weekly when he says, "People like the darker vigilante... I think it speaks to the human psyche more easily rather than the god-like being that we can't really understand." I disagree with Mr. Cavill on that statement.


I would argue as a counterpoint to Mr. Cavill's statement that Superman hasn't changed much through the years but the culture has changed dramatically over the last 75 years.


When Superman was first created in 1938, the idea of a hero or strongman was a circus acrobat. In the 80's he was modeled after Arnold Schwarzenegger. In today's world the idea of a hero or a man of great strength is someone like a soldier or a spy. A man or woman that has been trained to fight and succeeds in their mission no matter what. Batman fits that mold perfectly. He has spent years training in different martial arts in order to become Batman. He is DC's version of a soldier, a spy, even an MMA Fighter. If you look at the movie Batman Begins, director Chris Nolan paints Batman as the human warmachine against terrorists in Gotham City.

If I were DC I would reinvent Superman as a soldier or spy in the vein of  Captain America. While Batman is responsible for Gotham City, Superman would have adventures all over the world like James Bond. That would make him work better in today's culture.


There's also the problem that Superman is invulnerable to everything so DC might want to go back to Superman being invulnerable to bullets and knives like he was in the 1930's. This won't happen anytime soon because DC and Warner Bros. don't want to damage the Superman brand.


DC and Warner Bros. won't do anything to change the story of Superman not even a little bit because they're worried that they might lose fans and possibly lose money. The problem is that they've lost fans already as Marvel has put out better Superhero movies.


Filmmakers don't have to change Superman's attitude or life story, just change a few key elements and Superman could truly have a cultural resurgence.


THE PROFESSOR