Michael Hopcroft Posted October 22, 2005 Report Share Posted October 22, 2005 the recent discussion of The Dukes of Hazzard has made me think about adapting the concept of another well-remembered (and sometimes not-so-well-remembered) TV series for the same period that at the core has a decent RPG-setup potential, The A-Team. Actually, the basic setup of the series is so much darker than the way the series itself was done that it would probably be more interesting iof set in the present day -- yet very, very different as well. The basic setup was that a four-man team of elite commandoes in Vietnam had been framed for a huge robbery in Saigon. They were sent back to the States to serve their sentences, but apparently the Army made the mistake of putting them in the same facility. The enabled the four men to plan and execute an escape, and they were able to evade pursuit long enough to get to "the Los Angeles Underground", where they became "guns-for-hire" -- supporting themselves by taking jobs within the US, for the most part, that enabled them to use their unique talents. These usually involved people who had been throughly wronged by people that the law couldn't touch turning to mercenaries for justice. The pricnipal problem with the actual series was that it couldn't quite decide what it wanted to be. There was an extraoridanry amount of gunfire exchanged but no humans were ever hit! That was because of Standards and Practices at the time, which were quite stringent, but the effect was rather disturbing because these guys were "the best of the best" and more than capable of inflicting all kinds of grevious bodily harm. Now, as a thought experiment, let's reboot and ret-con the setting and characters to 2005. here's one way I would do it. The team would have gone to Afghanistan instead of Vitetnam, where they hunted down leaders of Al-Qaeda and the Taliban in places the rest of the Army couldn't go. There they somehow saw something they shouldn't have seen; the US may not have actually been involved in it, but there might have been strong diplomatic or political reasons for the government to want to keep it quiet. Thus the false charges, the kangaroo court-martial, and the prison sentence. They would still escape, still find their way to Los Angeles, and still take on the role of sort of modern-day Kingths Errant -- not out of any particular desire to do justice for its own sake, but because they couldn't stomach the alternative of going to work for the Mafia or the drug cartels. At least one such cartel would almost certainly have tried to bring the A-team into their fold as elite assassins, and the cartel's failure to do so would naturally result in them poutting a very high price on their heads. So the Federal Government, the Medellin Cartel and Al-Qaeda are all hunting the A-Team, the first to lock them away and ensure their silence over what they witnessed and the other two to kill them in the most painful and brutal ways they can imagine as revenge and an example. A modern version of the A-team would kill, and be very good at killing, because that's what Special Forces do. However, for the most part they will try to avoid doing so whenever possible -- aside from their disapproval of their activities, one of the reasons the refused the Medellin Cartel was because they didn't want to spend the rest of their lives as cold-blooded murderers. That is an important distinction to them -- they will kill, because they are soldiers and that's what a soldier has to do, but they will never murder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Obvious Posted October 23, 2005 Report Share Posted October 23, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Cool idea. Would you have Murdoch continue to be a sort of comic-relief with an amusing sort of mental illness never found in the real world, or something more Iron Age and dark? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbsousa Posted October 23, 2005 Report Share Posted October 23, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century A modern version of the A-team would kill' date=' and be very good at killing, because that's what Special Forces do. However, for the most part they will try to avoid doing so whenever possible -- aside from their disapproval of their activities, one of the reasons the refused the Medellin Cartel was because they didn't want to spend the rest of their lives as cold-blooded murderers. That is an important distinction to them -- they will [i']kill[/i], because they are soldiers and that's what a soldier has to do, but they will never murder. Killing is not what soldiers do. Following orders is what soldiers do. Killing is merely a subset of following orders. Without a war, and without a chain of command, it's hard to imagine circumstances in which killing would not be murder. I think the 21st century A-Team should be like the 20th century A-Team, knocking over bad guys with cabbage guns, and blowing up helicopters without harming the passengers... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Hopcroft Posted October 24, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Cool idea. Would you have Murdoch continue to be a sort of comic-relief with an amusing sort of mental illness never found in the real world, or something more Iron Age and dark? I would have Murdoch as a vitim of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. People who start out mentally unbalanced do not get into Special Forces, period. However, anyone can crack under the kind of stress war generates. It might even be linked to whatever it was the A-Team discoeverd in Afghanistan that caused the Army to frame them in the first place. Two Murdoch bits that would have to be discarded: 1. Getting him out of the mental hosptial for each episode. It is damn difficult in modern America for a mentally ill person to be committed to an institution for any length of time. In addition, any attempt to insitutionalize Murdoch would undoubtedly alert the Army to the A-team's location. It's more likely that when he's not being taken care of directly by one of his teammmates Murdoch would be homeless, wandering the streets of LA getting shelter and offd where he can with his illness essentually untreated. Because he is a highly-wanted fugitive, it would be nearly impossible for him to keep up even a medication regimen -- any meds he takes would have to be stolen, or he might be forced to "self-medicate" with marijuana or some other street drug. 2. The running gag of B.A. refusing to fly with Murdoch will conscious will have to go. B.A. would know that Murdoch has problems -- and Murdoch woulod still engage in wacky, unpredictable behavior as way to compensate for the flashbacks and nightmares that plague his existence -- but he respects what Murdoch can do, which is take anything that flies and make it do things its designers couldn't even begin to imagine. And there is an even deeper reason -- the whole damn world is hunting the A-Team. All these four men have to rely on is each other. They all know the only way any of them have a chance of surviving is the knowledge that each has the other's back covered at all times, and that if one is in trouble the others will move Heaven and Earth to save him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Major Tom Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Just out of curiosity, who would you pick to fill the roles of an updated version of The A-Team? For my part, the only role that I could think of anyone to fill was B.A. Barracus. My choice would be Ice Cube: while he doesn't have the build that Mr.T did when he played the part, he can and has played characters with similar att- itudes, and he's also no stranger to action-oriented roles (Ghosts of Mars, Three Kings, and more recently xXx: State of the Union come to mind). Major Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Rose Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century IIRC, the A-Team were court-martialed for "a crime they didn't commit". Now, it could be my childhood naivete, but I was under the impression that a crime actually was committed, and the A-Team were framed for it. So why not go for that? Something horrible happens - prototype bioweapons are mistaken for tear gas or somesuch and used on a riot, killing dozens and crippling even more, including some US military on the edges of the crowd. Just one of those horrible cluster-fscks that can happen in a stressful situation. A-Team gets the blame (they were firing tear gas canisters into the crowd at the time) and court-martial, breaks out of prison transport and high-tails it to LA. Story continues from there. This leaves some guilt for everyone, especially since "Murdoch" still isn't sure if his canisters were teargas or not. They can try to find evidence of their innocence in their spare time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gewing Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century IIRC' date=' the A-Team were court-martialed for "a crime they didn't commit". Now, it could be my childhood naivete, but I was under the impression that a crime actually [i']was[/i] committed, and the A-Team were framed for it. So why not go for that? Something horrible happens - prototype bioweapons are mistaken for tear gas or somesuch and used on a riot, killing dozens and crippling even more, including some US military on the edges of the crowd. Just one of those horrible cluster-fscks that can happen in a stressful situation. A-Team gets the blame (they were firing tear gas canisters into the crowd at the time) and court-martial, breaks out of prison transport and high-tails it to LA. Story continues from there. This leaves some guilt for everyone, especially since "Murdoch" still isn't sure if his canisters were teargas or not. They can try to find evidence of their innocence in their spare time. IIRC they were framed for robbing the main bank in Saigon? Given the level of corruption in Afghanistan and Iraq, something similar would be easy enough to come up with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithcurtis Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century I'm sorry, I don't see the need for such sweeping changes. The A-Team was a fun show. It was, in the words of its creator, "A comedy". To have them running around using lethal force would change it so much that there would be no reason to keep the A-Team moniker. Michael, you were (rightly) peeved over changes to the Duke boys characters in the recent DoH movie. Would you approve of a show like you've envisioned and enjoy watching it? I think the thought exercise you've proposed is far closer to the new Battlestar Galactica in terms of tone that the Dukes of Hazzard. I suppose if your revisioned A-Team were as well done as the new BG, it might be compelling, but I've seen few re-envisioned TV shows and movies that were as well-crafted as BG. Keith "Where would the laughs be?" Curtis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McCoy Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century I've seen few re-envisioned TV shows and movies that were as well-crafted as BG. Possibly because very few people attempt to re-envision source material that crappy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csyphrett Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Actually Murdock was never convicted of any crime. He was instituionalized on the Army's dime. The hospital they break him out of is the local VA in Los Angeles. CES Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EuroSolo Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century "In 1972, a crack commando unit was sent to prison for a crime they didn't commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles Underground. Today, still wanted by the government , they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if nooner else can help and if you can find them, maybe you can hire...The A-Team." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithcurtis Posted October 24, 2005 Report Share Posted October 24, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Possibly because very few people attempt to re-envision source material that crappy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century To continue on EuroSolo's path.... DOO-DO-Do-DO-DOO-DOO-DOO-D-DOO (something like that) I must think you EuroSolo I would rather have the A-team theme song in my head than I will survive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Due to this and the Dukes of Hazzard thread. I probably will have that dream where I steal an armored car/mail truck (cant remember which), with the help of Uncle Jesse and Mr. T. Note: And yes, I did actually have that dream one time. No lie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Goodwin Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century The pricnipal problem with the actual series was that it couldn't quite decide what it wanted to be. There was an extraoridanry amount of gunfire exchanged but no humans were ever hit! That was because of Standards and Practices at the time' date=' which were quite stringent, but the effect was rather disturbing because these guys were "the best of the best" and more than capable of inflicting all kinds of grevious bodily harm.[/quote'] Awww man, that was part of the charm! Thousands and thousands of rounds expended, and nothing more serious than property damage! Machine guns can blow up cars and cause them to go flying through the air! For my part, the only role that I could think of anyone to fill was B.A. Barracus. My choice would be Ice Cube: while he doesn't have the build that Mr.T did when he played the part, he can and has played characters with similar att- itudes, and he's also no stranger to action-oriented roles (Ghosts of Mars, Three Kings, and more recently xXx: State of the Union come to mind). How about George Clooney as Hannibal? Perfect! Edit: Brad Pitt as Murdock, and Matt Damon as Face! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
austenandrews Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Just out of curiosity, who would you pick to fill the roles of an updated version of The A-Team? In a pie-in-the-sky Hollywood movie? Hannibal Smith - George Clooney B.A. Baracus - Ving Rhames Faceman - Johnny Depp Murdoch - Jim Carrey Boy, what a mess that would be. Edit: Is Clooney that obvious of a choice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Well if you want a Sci-Fi/fantasy twist to an A-team campaign. When me and a friend was watching a rerun of it in college between classes. It was episode where Murdock thought he had a pet dog. At the end for a laugh, Murdock was thrown to the ground by his "pet". We got the theory that maybe instead of being crazy, that maybe he was somehow phased between universes where he interacted with both. It might make sense considering his "mental disorder" seemed to undiagnosable. And after reading Susano's notes on his site about the Philadelphia Experiment, last week. Maybe he could have been a guinea pig of a later incarnation. Course that may be too sci-fi-ish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Hiemforth Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Just to change it up, here's a possible cast if this was being done as a TV revival (instead of a big-name movie): Hannibal: Gerald McRaney Baracus: Jesse L. Martin Faceman: Peter Krause Murdoch: Jeremy Piven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enforcer84 Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century Just to change it up, here's a possible cast if this was being done as a TV revival (instead of a big-name movie): Hannibal: Gerald McRaney Baracus: Jesse L. Martin Faceman: Peter Krause Murdoch: Jeremy Piven Jeremy Piven for President! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmadanNaBriona Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century OK, gotta put on my fanboy hat for a second. Ben Browder as "Howlin' Mad" Murdoch. He does an intense funny/crazy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steriaca Posted October 30, 2005 Report Share Posted October 30, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century What? No mention of 3A or the guys the military added to the group after thay captured them, and then faked a military exacution so that there new boss can use them to do things for the military without conecting them to the military? Let me think...who could play 3A? Humm...NOT Jessica Simpson, that is for shure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost-angel Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century BA needs to be played by Vin Diesel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twilight Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century BA needs to be played by Vin Diesel. No way, Michael Clarke Duncan is the perfect BA Baracus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CSgeekHero Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century No way' date=' Michael Clarke Duncan is the perfect BA Baracus.[/quote'] Excellent idea! Here's my version of an updated A-Team: Hannibal Smith: Tommy Lee Jones BA Baracus: Michael Duncan Clarke Faceman: Clive Owen Murdock: Steve Buscemi Now that would be an awesome movie A-Team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
austenandrews Posted October 31, 2005 Report Share Posted October 31, 2005 Re: An A-team for the 21st Century No way' date=' Michael Clarke Duncan is the perfect BA Baracus.[/quote'] He was the first one to pop into my head, but Ving Rhames does mean better. B.A. needs to rise to the legend of Mr. T. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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