By Dan Moren
January 31, 2017 3:12 PM PT
The Back Page: Coming soon to Apple Music Video
So, Apple wants to get into the video content game. The more the merrier, I say! But you don’t just pluck new TV shows of the caliber of Westworld and Stranger Things out of thin air. No, these things need to be carefully crafted, expertly created, honed within an inch of their life. So here are my off-the-top-of-my-head pitches for a handful of shows that I think could bring Apple the attention and critical acclaim it’s looking for.
Boot Time When three engineers working on a top secret project are zapped back in time to the early days of Silicon Valley, they realize that it’s up to them to put the world’s technology on the right course, so that they can get home again—and hopefully not the slow way. (Executive notes: So, it’s *Halt and Catch Fire meets any of the six million time travel shows on TV right now. Maybe a little reductive and derivative. What’s next?)
The Tech Crusader Simon Bishop is a billionaire tech CEO, but he harbors a dark secret: by night, he haunts the streets of Palo Alto as the Tech Crusader, using his technical know-how and immense resources to dole out criminal and social justice to the denizens of Silicon Valley. But when he discovers that the biggest threat might in fact be his very own company, he has to make some hard choices, teaming up with plucky young programmer Karen Kwan to combat threats from both inside and out. (Executive notes: Well, every network probably needs its own superhero show, and the crossover into the realm of hard questions makes it a little more thinky than your average comic book show. But seems a little pulpy—what have we got that’s more serious?)
The Bible: An Adaptation Who says there aren’t any good wholesome shows on these days? This anthology series covers stories from the venerable text, each week covering a different tale, from Genesis to Revelation. (Executive notes: Perhaps a little bit outside our core audience, but could be a compelling watch: a series that discusses serious moral issues, without any of the violence and sex that seems to permeate modern—wait, which testament now?)
Fahrenheit 451 Guy Montag is a fireman who loves to burn book—no, listen, sorry. This one just hits a little bit close to home right now, guys. Can we maybe do something else instead?
1984 Ha ha. Yes, I see what you did there. Look, how about something a little less controversial, that we can all agree on.
We Rate Dogs Capitalizing on the popular Internet Twitter account, this reality series follows one team’s quest to track down and comprehensively rate all the dogs in the world. Boopable noses a h_ck of a plus. Tagline: It’s a Good Show, Brent __(Executive notes: Perfect. Greenlit.)_
[Dan Moren is the East Coast Bureau Chief of Six Colors. You can find him on Twitter at @dmoren or reach him by email at dan@sixcolors.com. The latest novel in his Galactic Cold War series of sci-fi space adventures, The Nova Incident, is available now.]