Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars series being developed for television

[Vince W]

According to this article:

http://www.thewrap.com/game-of-thro...-teams-with-spike-for-red-mars-sci-fi-series/

I don't have high hopes for this.

 

[Vertigo]

I actually think it might work quite well. I loved the ideas and science but I just found the writing bad, making it seriously hard work to read. I finished the first book but couldn't face a second one. But it might work well in a TV adaptation, though it would take a seriously large number of episodes to cover all three books.

 

[Vince W]

I would like it to work, but it is a fairly technical series and I have concerns about the abilities of the people adapting it. I would like the series to remain grounded and not have all sorts of hand waving solutions to the problem of the week. Robinson may be on hand to consult, but that only works if they listen to him.

 

[Cli-Fi]

If the golden age of television and the rediscovery of old TV Stations couldn't get any better, this might just be the icing on top. As AMC once did with Breaking Bad, little known Spike TV has just bought its first original scripted Drama in nine years!

The order for “Red Mars” comes after Spike axed plans for Jerry Bruckheimer’s drama “Harvest,” after ordering a 10-episode series, as sources said Spike had difficulty finding a top showrunner and high-profile lead.

Expect the show to be released in Jan 2017!

Spike Gives Straight-to-Series Order to 'Red Mars' (EXCLUSIVE)

They must have a HUGE budget lined up for this, and do it justice.

 

[BAYLOR]

10 episodes per book. That could work.

 

[Brian G Turner]

There's a report that the series is on hold, as J Michael Straczynski cannot coomit to the series as main writer due to renewing his contract with Sens8, and so far they've been unable to come up with a replacement:
Spike TV ‘Red Mars’ Series On Pause After Showrunner Exits

 

[Cli-Fi]

There's a report that the series is on hold, as J Michael Straczynski cannot coomit to the series as main writer due to renewing his contract with Sens8, and so far they've been unable to come up with a replacement:
Spike TV ‘Red Mars’ Series On Pause After Showrunner Exits

Bummer. It seems like the network was really thrilled to have such a high profile concept, but if creative differences are the reason noted fans are running away from the project than that does not bode well for the show. Usually you would want people who are fans of the comic/book to work on the TV show/movie. So that they can give perspective on what are the best parts of the story and ideas within the story.

We'll see if Spike gets it's ducks in a row on this one. Hollywood has been known for quick turnarounds on shaky scripts or showrunner shake-ups that end up not impacting the quality of the series. EX: The Walking Dead and potentially Star Trek Beyond (but we shall see it can't be worse than Into Darkness right?) . However, I am unsure about Spike. They may have bit off more than they can chew. Maybe Skydance can knock some sense into them. They are a reputable production company. Spike is still questionable and execs shouldn't be making so many demands on the creative talent that they drive them away...