The random witterings of Jonathan Morris, writer.

Sunday 26 April 2009

I Fought The Law

A little thought exercise that occurred to me whilst out jogging. If I were put in charge of Robin Hood, what would I do to make it the sort of show that would appeal to someone like me? i.e. someone in their mid-30’s but with the tastes and lifestyle of someone in their mid-20’s.

Not intended as a criticism of Robin Hood as it stands. It’s worked for 3 years. But how could it be made even better? Bearing in mind that AIUI the current Robin and Sheriff are going to be written out at the end of this series...

1) Make Robin a girl. After all, Robin’s not a gender–specific name. Early 20’s. Gorgeous, obviously. Someone who can handle herself in a fight. Think Buffy. Even better, think Faith.

2) Even bearing in mind idea 1), there should be more girls in it. Half the cast. Half of the merry men should be female. Half of the villains should be female. Not for PC reasons of equality, or for the un-PC reason that boys will tune in to watch girls who kick arse, but because it makes the show more interesting. You can simply do more in terms of character dynamics if it’s not about blokes all the time.

3) Following on from 2) – different baddies each week. Maybe some could be in more than one episode, but our heroes need to face a variety of threats.

4) Following on from 3) – more diverse plots. Doctor Who does this brilliantly. Every episode should be ‘the one where...’, a mad, out-of-left-field idea which hasn’t been done before. Give people a reason why they dare not miss it.

5) Horses. Robin should ride horses more and do more horse-based stunts.

6) Incorporate pop music. Like in A Knight's Tale.