HOURMAN Pilot In Works For CW?

Chuck_Melville

Looks like the CW is interested in another DC property: Hourman.

comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=48935

Interesting in that they're keeping in the Miraclo connection and the addiction problem. Might be an interesting show if done right.

rebis

Just a thought, but if CW wants to use GA Heroes perhaps Dr. Mid-Nite would be a better fit for the network. Blind doctor overcoming a handicap and fighting crime seems right up the CW's alley.

Gargoyle

Weird. Feels very Z list.

WetRats

Seems very TV budget-friendly.

Gargoyle

Or alternatively they're keeping the big names for their movie universe...

nweathington

“So, Hourman is kind of like Bane, the guy in the last Batman movie that made a bazillion dollars? Except he's a good guy? And he just gets strong and fast, and he doesn’t fly, or shoot lazer beams from his eyes, or any of the F/X heavy stuff? Yeah, okay.”

Mr_Cosmic

Bawana Beast or Aztek is next.

rebis

Aztek could be great fun.

David_D

rebis said:

Just a thought, but if CW wants to use GA Heroes perhaps Dr. Mid-Nite would be a better fit for the network. Blind doctor overcoming a handicap and fighting crime seems right up the CW's alley.

Maybe. I don't know CW's brand that well, but my sense is that they definitely go for a dash of melodrama, so I feel like the idea that the hero is also battling addiction to the thing that makes him a hero is even more up their alley. And it is more dynamic-- the addiction can come and go. There can be stories where he chooses to use too much of the Miraclo for the greater good even though he knows he will set himself back, etc. The source of what makes him special is also the thing he is struggling with. That seems like a good hook.

Where a hero who is blind certainly has a challenge to overcome, but it is a matter of fact thing and settled thing for the character. An obstacle, but a static one.

rebis

David_D said:

rebis said:

Just a thought, but if CW wants to use GA Heroes perhaps Dr. Mid-Nite would be a better fit for the network. Blind doctor overcoming a handicap and fighting crime seems right up the CW's alley.

Maybe. I don't know CW's brand that well, but my sense is that they definitely go for a dash of melodrama, so I feel like the idea that the hero is also battling addiction to the thing that makes him a hero is even more up their alley. And it is more dynamic-- the addiction can come and go. There can be stories where he chooses to use too much of the Miraclo for the greater good even though he knows he will set himself back, etc. The source of what makes him special is also the thing he is struggling with. That seems like a good hook.

Where a hero who is blind certainly has a challenge to overcome, but it is a matter of fact thing and settled thing for the character. An obstacle, but a static one.

All good points. However, I think what you described would work best for something like a Showtime original drama. I think that anything OTA will have a hard time creating any kind of justification for drug addiction.

David_D

rebis said:

David_D said:

rebis said:

Just a thought, but if CW wants to use GA Heroes perhaps Dr. Mid-Nite would be a better fit for the network. Blind doctor overcoming a handicap and fighting crime seems right up the CW's alley.

Maybe. I don't know CW's brand that well, but my sense is that they definitely go for a dash of melodrama, so I feel like the idea that the hero is also battling addiction to the thing that makes him a hero is even more up their alley. And it is more dynamic-- the addiction can come and go. There can be stories where he chooses to use too much of the Miraclo for the greater good even though he knows he will set himself back, etc. The source of what makes him special is also the thing he is struggling with. That seems like a good hook.

Where a hero who is blind certainly has a challenge to overcome, but it is a matter of fact thing and settled thing for the character. An obstacle, but a static one.

All good points. However, I think what you described would work best for something like a Showtime original drama. I think that anything OTA will have a hard time creating any kind of justification for drug addiction.

Could be. Certainly there would be harder branding/S&P conversations to be had for an OTA series vs. pay cable. But, strangely enough, I think the fact that it is a fictional drug might make all the difference. In keeping with the long history of speculative fiction getting to use analogues and stand-ins for things that are controversial to its contemporary audience, it may be that Hourman popping a fantasy pill would actually be a lot easier for a network to swallow (sorry, that pun just came out that way) than even a character smoking pot. It also may help (to their point of view) that the character is taking the drug not recreational, but to help him do good. It is juicing for being a superhero vs. getting high. Still juicing, of course, but as there would likely be drama around the struggle with the pill, then it can be said they are not promoting, or glamorizing the character using the substance.

There are some old rules and resistances about drug preparation and use onscreen, but again a lot of those are the result of pressure to not have TV show HOW to use a drug. I heard someone I know that makes TV about a scene where a character was smoking pot, but the rules they had to follow were that the character could smoke a joint, but could not be shown ROLLING the joint, as that might be seen as showing the audience HOW to use a drug. A fictional pill avoids those issues as well.

I agree that it would definitely be seen as edgy for broadcast, but maybe that will be the hook. Heck, if they really take some risks and go for it, I might try watching a CW show ;)