- published: 09 Sep 2014
- views: 48531
In serial fiction, to reboot means to discard much or even all previous continuity in the series and start anew with fresh ideas. Effectively, the writer(s) declare all established fictive history to be irrelevant to the new storyline, and start the series over as if brand-new.
Through reboots, filmmakers can revamp and reinvigorate franchises to attract new fans and stimulate revenue. Therefore, reboots can be seen as attempts to rescue franchises that have grown "stale". They can also be a "safe" project for a studio, as a reboot with an established fan base is less risky (in terms of expected profit) than an entirely original work, while at the same time allowing the studio to explore new demographics.
The term originates from its use in computer science.
A reboot differs from a prequel in that a prequel is generally consistent with the canon (previously established continuity) of the series. With a reboot, the older continuity is largely discarded and replaced with a new canon.
Additionally, prequels are often developed by the same creator as the original series they lead up to, while a remake is often produced by a different author from that of the original series, and can be seen as re-telling of the same story and essentially maintaining the same canon. The term "remake" usually applies to films which use a previous film as its main source material, often re-using the same storyline while updating times and places to match contemporary settings such as 1998's A Perfect Murder or 2001's Ocean's Eleven, whereas the term reboot is ascribed to franchises such as Police Story (rebooted in the 2004 film New Police Story), Batman (2005's Batman Begins), James Bond (2006's Casino Royale), The Pink Panther (the 2006 Pink Panther film), Star Trek (the 2009 Star Trek film - though still in the existing canon, but in an alternate universe), The Incredible Hulk (2008's The Incredible Hulk), Spider-Man (2012's The Amazing Spider-Man)., and Superman (2013's Man of Steel)
Reboot can refer to:
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical, cinematic or musical work. Fiction contrasts with non-fiction, which deals exclusively with factual (or, at least, assumed factual) events, descriptions, observations, etc. (e.g., biographies, histories).
Realistic fiction, although untrue, could actually happen. Some events, people, and places may even be real. This is termed "faction".
It can be possible that in the future imagined events could physically happen. For example, Jules Verne's novel From The Earth To The Moon, which at that time was just a product of his rich imagination, was proven possible in 1969, when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin set foot on the Moon, and the team returned safely to Earth.
Realistic fiction strives to make the reader feel as if they're reading something that is actually happening—something that though not real, is described in a believable way that helps the reader make a picture as if it were an actual event. This can also confuse the reader into making the reader thinking it's non-fiction.