Here’s what they should have done: Buy the rights to the BBC AbFab original, and spend the rest of the $ leftover from NOT remaking the show to pay any fcc fines for language/nudity/drug references, and SHOW THE DAMN SHOW FOR REAL! We’d all love to watch it again on the real telly, not dvd. Enough with the remakes already!
Posted: Mar 15, 2009 at 3:29 pm
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–Faustino played Bud Bundy. The dog’s name was Buck.
2. People don’t, as a rule, “age differently.”
There have been no sudden evolutionary changes to humans. The difference is that these two actresses are younger and took better care of themselves that the original actresses. Smoking and suntanning cause accelerated aging of the skin.
—
That said, actresses do look too young and pretty. Kristen Johnson does not look like an ex-fashion model. She is cute with doughy features and does not have the sharp angled look of associated with a model.
Vanessa Williams of Ugly Betty fits the role better. She’s beautiful, looks like she’s in her early 40s, and is definitely able to be cruel. But, of course, she’s taken.
Posted: Mar 15, 2009 at 3:36 pm
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hmm.. There is no way they could ever redo this show correctly. It has a cult following, so anyone who has seen the old one will hate this new version.
I’m sure it’s gonna be watered down and utter crap. America is too uptight about even showing someone smoking a cigarette let alone any other thing that made the show excellent.
Posted: Mar 15, 2009 at 10:04 pm
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Oh, my BLOODY BUGGERY BOLLOCKS!!!! My only hope now is that this remake will spark interest in the original series (for those who haven’t actually seen it yet, as hard as it is for me to believe that there are people who don’t even know who Jennifer Saunders or Joanna Lumley are!) and they will start showing it over here in the colonies! I saw the pictures of Kristen Johnston and told my hubby streetwalkers in Atlanta dress better than that! Patsy, train wreck that she was, always looked like she just stepped off the catwalk!! IMMACULATE AND FIERCE!
I’m just so disappointed now…
Posted: Mar 15, 2009 at 10:41 pm
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From the pictures I’ve seen your point about the wardrobe seems dead on. Patsy, for all her other faults was dead on perfect style-wise in that frosty, Anna Wintour, way where you don’t notice any particular piece of clothing, just that the whole outfit is put together perfectly. Lristen Johnson looks a bit more like she is trying to go the drag queen route. I really really hope they don’t mess up the series, the British version was one of the funniest things out there.
Posted: Mar 16, 2009 at 11:16 am
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“_______________is like having a dream about a beloved deceased friend. The whole time you are cognizant of the fact that it’s a foggy depiction of reality; the faces aren’t quite the same, the experience isn’t quite as good. You wake up feeling sentimental. I left stage 28 in a haze, longing for my old______________”
I’m obsessed with this metaphor. Is it just me, or could insert the following: “Having sex without Crystal” and “friend, Tina”?
Obsessed with Matt Siegel. Queerty, get this bitch an editor; he’s too good to do that grunt work himself.
Posted: Mar 16, 2009 at 3:40 pm
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I really hope this remake does not reference Patsys former career as a supermodel. That would be a huge oversight by all involved including Johnson and her representation. I agree with Kelly; the American version of Kath and Kim is god awful. Why remake everything that was amazing to begin with if you’re not doing it better or with a different point of view? Are shitty remakes going to be the legacy of pop culture in the 21st C. America?
And Eminent Victorian you may be but worthy critic you’re not. Siegel’s writing is great despite his editing errors.
Posted: Mar 16, 2009 at 5:27 pm
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Well said. I was there as well, and you hit on everything that occurred to me. The writing was good, and it seemed like with the right players, it could have been conveyed better. I was surprised at Johnston’s frequent disregard of Burrows as well, but maybe they have that kind of working relationship. They need to ditch the clean cut crap and do a little creative casting. I think it could be viable for a season if they tweak.
Posted: Mar 16, 2009 at 6:18 pm
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No. 21 ·
Eminent Victorian · Member · 314 comments
@Jan Widener: My boyfriend will really be angry when he finds out I’m Kristen Johnson! :-) For me, anyway, I like her, but I have never met her, and I’d prefer to let people give the remake a chance before damning it based on what I think is a badly, bitchily written piece on some queer website, that’s all. Yes, maybe the show will be awful, but what’s so bad about waiting to see? Mainly, I just hate bad writing (yet I come back to this site, so, I dunno . . .).
Posted: Mar 16, 2009 at 7:12 pm
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No. 22 ·
Eminent Victorian · Member · 314 comments
Thank you for this article! I now know not to waste my time when the show airs. If only Matt Siegel could have warned me about the remake of Hairspray! (Unrelated, obviously, but seriously I want those two hours of my life back).
Oh and Eminent Victorian, life is a lot of fun when you don’t spend it looking for what’s WRONG with it.
[Cue Eminent Victorian's scathing comment which will in turn further my point].
Posted: Mar 16, 2009 at 7:15 pm
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regarding Kristen Johnson… a friend of mine worked on the Austin Powers movie in which she played a model, and he said that her improv was so funny, so scene stealing, that the insecure Mike Myers had the scenes seriously edited down to just a few minutes. She a good comedian, but she certainly no Patsy Stone!!!!
Posted: Mar 16, 2009 at 7:31 pm
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Eminent Snob: So would you rather the writer not have a point of view? He doesn’t seem to be telling anyone what to do, he was at the taping and he is giving his feedback. He didn’t say there was anything “so bad about waiting to see,” if the show is good, you big baby. “A badly, bitchily written piece on some queer website?” Everything you’ve written on this queer website has been bitchy. Why don’t you link us to something you’ve written so we can see how talented you are?
Posted: Mar 16, 2009 at 7:32 pm
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This is George…the one referenced in the article ;o), and yes, it is true! This is NOT the original AbFab by far, and how could it be? It is a different time, different country, different actors…you get the idea. But was it funny? Some of it was, but there were so many distractions during the taping (being in the studio audience) that it was hard to focus on the material. I am reserving judgement until after I see some episodes at home, on my couch, while wearing head-to-toe Gaultier & sipping a Stoli martini, sweetie dahling!
Posted: Mar 17, 2009 at 10:14 am
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NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO IT NEEDS TO BE STOPED!!!!!!!!!!!
no one can ever beet jennifer saunders and joanna lumely, even if they arnt going to beet them no one can copy them its insaaaaaane! It’s just not the same hearing an american say darling it wont wooork, everything about it is wrong.
Posted: Mar 18, 2009 at 1:26 pm
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I think the writer here is spending too much time comparing and contrasting what was the same and what was different when most viewers will not be. I’m a HUGE fan of the original but I applaud FOX for at least casting it well and I’m optimistic for it’s success.
The way that I look it is that Jennifer Saunders signed off on this remake and it’s her genius creation…sure she’s making $$$ off it potentially but if this was SOOOOO wrong why wouldn’t it’s creator feel that strongly? I feel strongly in Jennifer’s creation and that it DESERVES an adaptation so new fans can enjoy this hilarious concept.
I have never seen the UK originals of All In The Family, Sanford & Son or The Office and I LOVE the US versions. I grew up watching the silly slapstick innuendo humomr on Three’s Company and I still get a laugh out of it…I’ve seen the UK original “Man About The House” and I wouldn’t say it was some superior version…it was funny, it was first but the US version does the concept justice.
O God how depressing.
Here’s what they should have done: Buy the rights to the BBC AbFab original, and spend the rest of the $ leftover from NOT remaking the show to pay any fcc fines for language/nudity/drug references, and SHOW THE DAMN SHOW FOR REAL! We’d all love to watch it again on the real telly, not dvd. Enough with the remakes already!
Please kill me now. This is the cultural equivalent of American pro soccor, or European pro-American-style football. Does. Not. Translate.
Oh, and Kristen Johnson playing Patsy after Joanna Lumley is like remaking Citizen Kane starring Jack Black in the title role.
1. David Faustino and Bud The Dog
–Faustino played Bud Bundy. The dog’s name was Buck.
2. People don’t, as a rule, “age differently.”
There have been no sudden evolutionary changes to humans. The difference is that these two actresses are younger and took better care of themselves that the original actresses. Smoking and suntanning cause accelerated aging of the skin.
—
That said, actresses do look too young and pretty. Kristen Johnson does not look like an ex-fashion model. She is cute with doughy features and does not have the sharp angled look of associated with a model.
Vanessa Williams of Ugly Betty fits the role better. She’s beautiful, looks like she’s in her early 40s, and is definitely able to be cruel. But, of course, she’s taken.
hmm.. There is no way they could ever redo this show correctly. It has a cult following, so anyone who has seen the old one will hate this new version.
I’m sure it’s gonna be watered down and utter crap. America is too uptight about even showing someone smoking a cigarette let alone any other thing that made the show excellent.
Oh, my BLOODY BUGGERY BOLLOCKS!!!! My only hope now is that this remake will spark interest in the original series (for those who haven’t actually seen it yet, as hard as it is for me to believe that there are people who don’t even know who Jennifer Saunders or Joanna Lumley are!) and they will start showing it over here in the colonies! I saw the pictures of Kristen Johnston and told my hubby streetwalkers in Atlanta dress better than that! Patsy, train wreck that she was, always looked like she just stepped off the catwalk!! IMMACULATE AND FIERCE!
I’m just so disappointed now…
Sacrilege!
“Gautier”? “lied off the living room”?
Who is Matt Siegel, and why is he writing?
Peaked (peeked) . . . wondered (wandered) . . . Anybody edit at Queerty?
@Eminent Victorian:
I think it’s very well written. Maybe not so well edited.
A “absolutely fabulous” , cleverly crafted account as to why “Ab Fab” American style may be short lived!
From the pictures I’ve seen your point about the wardrobe seems dead on. Patsy, for all her other faults was dead on perfect style-wise in that frosty, Anna Wintour, way where you don’t notice any particular piece of clothing, just that the whole outfit is put together perfectly. Lristen Johnson looks a bit more like she is trying to go the drag queen route. I really really hope they don’t mess up the series, the British version was one of the funniest things out there.
Same thing as the American remake of “Kath & Kim”…if it ain’t broke, people…
“_______________is like having a dream about a beloved deceased friend. The whole time you are cognizant of the fact that it’s a foggy depiction of reality; the faces aren’t quite the same, the experience isn’t quite as good. You wake up feeling sentimental. I left stage 28 in a haze, longing for my old______________”
I’m obsessed with this metaphor. Is it just me, or could insert the following: “Having sex without Crystal” and “friend, Tina”?
Obsessed with Matt Siegel. Queerty, get this bitch an editor; he’s too good to do that grunt work himself.
I told y’all last week that Kristen Johnston would ruin it.
A friend of mine went to the taping and said it was funny. But then he had never seen the original.
@Jan Widener: Nah, it’s also badly written. Too, it appears Mr. Siegel has a number of friends writing in to applaud him, which is gross.
@Eminent Victorian:
I don’t know about all that, Eminent. Why so hateful? Were you the wardrobe person on the show? Or are you Kristen Johnson?
I really hope this remake does not reference Patsys former career as a supermodel. That would be a huge oversight by all involved including Johnson and her representation. I agree with Kelly; the American version of Kath and Kim is god awful. Why remake everything that was amazing to begin with if you’re not doing it better or with a different point of view? Are shitty remakes going to be the legacy of pop culture in the 21st C. America?
And Eminent Victorian you may be but worthy critic you’re not. Siegel’s writing is great despite his editing errors.
Well said. I was there as well, and you hit on everything that occurred to me. The writing was good, and it seemed like with the right players, it could have been conveyed better. I was surprised at Johnston’s frequent disregard of Burrows as well, but maybe they have that kind of working relationship. They need to ditch the clean cut crap and do a little creative casting. I think it could be viable for a season if they tweak.
@Jan Widener: My boyfriend will really be angry when he finds out I’m Kristen Johnson! :-) For me, anyway, I like her, but I have never met her, and I’d prefer to let people give the remake a chance before damning it based on what I think is a badly, bitchily written piece on some queer website, that’s all. Yes, maybe the show will be awful, but what’s so bad about waiting to see? Mainly, I just hate bad writing (yet I come back to this site, so, I dunno . . .).
@ballerino: My CV disagrees with you, honey.
Thank you for this article! I now know not to waste my time when the show airs. If only Matt Siegel could have warned me about the remake of Hairspray! (Unrelated, obviously, but seriously I want those two hours of my life back).
Oh and Eminent Victorian, life is a lot of fun when you don’t spend it looking for what’s WRONG with it.
[Cue Eminent Victorian's scathing comment which will in turn further my point].
regarding Kristen Johnson… a friend of mine worked on the Austin Powers movie in which she played a model, and he said that her improv was so funny, so scene stealing, that the insecure Mike Myers had the scenes seriously edited down to just a few minutes. She a good comedian, but she certainly no Patsy Stone!!!!
Eminent Snob: So would you rather the writer not have a point of view? He doesn’t seem to be telling anyone what to do, he was at the taping and he is giving his feedback. He didn’t say there was anything “so bad about waiting to see,” if the show is good, you big baby. “A badly, bitchily written piece on some queer website?” Everything you’ve written on this queer website has been bitchy. Why don’t you link us to something you’ve written so we can see how talented you are?
…just add a cocktail or 7 !
They already made an American version of AB FAB. It was called CYBIL.
@MBNLA:
Ha!
This is George…the one referenced in the article ;o), and yes, it is true! This is NOT the original AbFab by far, and how could it be? It is a different time, different country, different actors…you get the idea. But was it funny? Some of it was, but there were so many distractions during the taping (being in the studio audience) that it was hard to focus on the material. I am reserving judgement until after I see some episodes at home, on my couch, while wearing head-to-toe Gaultier & sipping a Stoli martini, sweetie dahling!
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO IT NEEDS TO BE STOPED!!!!!!!!!!!
no one can ever beet jennifer saunders and joanna lumely, even if they arnt going to beet them no one can copy them its insaaaaaane! It’s just not the same hearing an american say darling it wont wooork, everything about it is wrong.
Matt, I haven’t seen the show yet – but I feel like I already have. Hilarious.
flush it down the pan!! bring me a…
…a knitting needle?
A KNITTING NEEDLE!!!
I think the writer here is spending too much time comparing and contrasting what was the same and what was different when most viewers will not be. I’m a HUGE fan of the original but I applaud FOX for at least casting it well and I’m optimistic for it’s success.
The way that I look it is that Jennifer Saunders signed off on this remake and it’s her genius creation…sure she’s making $$$ off it potentially but if this was SOOOOO wrong why wouldn’t it’s creator feel that strongly? I feel strongly in Jennifer’s creation and that it DESERVES an adaptation so new fans can enjoy this hilarious concept.
I have never seen the UK originals of All In The Family, Sanford & Son or The Office and I LOVE the US versions. I grew up watching the silly slapstick innuendo humomr on Three’s Company and I still get a laugh out of it…I’ve seen the UK original “Man About The House” and I wouldn’t say it was some superior version…it was funny, it was first but the US version does the concept justice.
I think the same can be true here.