It starts airing in less than a month now. Anyone looking forward to it? Dreading it? It has a pretty good cast: Zooey Deschanel, Richard Dreyfuss, Alan Cumming, Neal McDonough. I'm hoping it will be good, but some of the promos look kind of cheesy.

I think I'm looking forward to it. I can stand a little cheese, so the promos don't scare me. I'm in it for Neal McDonough. He's rad. Those eyes are amazing. I sat through Traveler and Medical Investigation for him. Plus, it has Callum Keith Rennie, and I'll always have a soft spot for Due South.

What network is it on? I've never heard of it.

It's on the Sci-Fi Channel.

I can't really decide whether I'm looking forward to this or dreading it. The 1939 movie was a childhood favorite of mine, so I hope it's different and original enough that I can enjoy it (like the book "Wicked") and not just think they're getting it wrong. Of course, fans of the books may have felt the same way about the 1939 movie.

At the moment I'm looking forward to it. The cast is great and Callum Keith Rennie is gorgeous (at least on BSG, what can I say I'm an unabashed fan-girl). Scifi usually does a nice, if not good job on their miniseries. "Re-imagining" a story always fascinates me, I haven't seen/read a "redone" Wizard off Oz so this looks fun, unless I hear more I'm game to watch.

I'm a little apprehensive, because 2 of the executive producers are Robert Halmi Jr. and Sr., who more or less decimated Earthsea when SciFi did that, and are currently responsible for Flash Gordon.

Well Zooey Deschanel is one of my favorite actresses, though I can't help but to wonder why they can't just do a Wicked miniseries, unless a major studio already has movie rights for that book.

I'm in it for Richard Dreyfuss. Ricyhard Dreyfuss on the SciFi channel? I can't pass that up. And Callum Keith Rennie? I'm there.

Put me down as looking forward to this, but with fingers crossed at best. It is the SciFi channel.

I have no problem with an "Oz" reimagining. Frankly, there aren't enough of those. The 1939 movie was a total reworking of Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, but it became Oz for most people, and most attempts to do anything else based on the Oz books tend to bring down the wrath of the movie's more rabid fans (I recall The Wiz, for example, getting more "They're ruining the Wizard of Oz!" judgement than any commentary on its actual merits). And while the movie was wonderful on its own level, it had the unfortunate side effect of blowing any further use of Baum's series entirely out of the water.(Wicked is the rare exception here.)

So, yeah, it's the SciFi channel. But my fingers are crossed anyway.

Do we know any details of who Callum Keith Rennie character is?



I haven't seen/read Wicked and it's been years since I read Baum's original book. I've only heard good things about Wicked so it would be cool to see it on screen, could the reason it's on Broadway be tying up the rights for a studio to make a movie/mini-series?

Is this one going to be more of Dorthy's story or the supporting character's story? Or a combination of both?

I'm looking forward to this, but going in with an expectation of full on cheese, that way I can be pleasantly surprised if it isn't any good. After all, I remember the previews for Merlin and thought, "Oh wow, this will be so fun!" only to end up (quite literally) counting how many times characters in the background were heard to yell, "Run for your lives!" and that was actually really an entertaining thing to do. The actual miniseries was a huge letdown, and worse than anything, boring.

So, if it is cheesy good fun but at least not paced for snails? I'll be happy. It looks fun, it looks like it might be good, but if they are employing the same technique they did with Merlin, then the promos contain all the good parts. Here's hoping that it is actually good, and fun.

The Wizard of Oz was just a landmark film, it blew everyone away. I saw it as a child, and couldn't like the books because I read them afterwards and they are quite different. It's hard to remake a concept that everyone has seen, TWoZ is still a film most people have seen.

I'm ready for a reimagining, but expect that people will balk because it will be very different. After all, Wicked succeeded as a book because it focused on the "wicked" sister. Then, when it was adapted, they made the smart call of turning it into a musical. I think it's hard for people to accept Oz stories off of the page and on the screeen when characters aren't bursting into song.

I'm morbidly curious about this. That about sums it up...just trying to keep an open mind...

The only thing I know is that his character's name is Zero, and he has henchmen. Which means he's probably the Wicked Witch's... excuse me, Sorceress' right hand man.

Skiffy sure is promoting the heck out of this today. But I haven't seen promos for it anywhere else. I understand it's a niche audience, but you'd think they would at least try to promote it to a wider audience.

I'd wish I knew more about it other than "She's off to see the Wizard". I always see that preview and I'd love to see another one; preferably with Callum Keith Rennie in it. I'd like to see this promoted on USA or one of Skiffy's other "sister" networks, since those aren't as niche of an audience as Skiffy and there's some cross viewing between skiffy it's sister networks.

Well, starting tonight they begin showing a half hour "behind the scenes" special, so maybe we'll see more details.

Ask and ye shall receive. I saw a promo for Tin Man during last night's airing of National Treasure on USA. I'm really looking forward to it, mostly because I like the actors.

This is slightly off-topic, but have you ever seen the late-80's movie Return to Oz starring Fairuza Balk as a younger (compared to Judy Garland) Dorothy? It featured a new cast of characters (based on the books) and a plot consisting of elements from several of the later Oz books. The movie had a much darker tone than the 1939 film, and wasn't a musical. I was a little surprised at its tone, but after reading some of the series' later works, I realize that the darker and weirder tone is much more in-sync with what Baum originally wrote. It drew criticism for being too scary for children, and I admit, it scared the shit out of me when I was younger. But now it's one of my favorite movies :)

Back to topic? Um...I love the idea, but the promos make me question the quality. But, like others have said, the cast is great. Alan Cumming? I'm there.

I thought that the ads talking about how every 50 years you need to re-imagine a movie kind of off because of "The Wiz" and "Wicked" - among other things. That being said, I'm really looking forward to this. I think it'll be alot of fun and just what we need at the beginning of the scripted show drought.

I LOVED Return To Oz when I was a kid. We pretty much wore out the tape.

How creepy was Mombie?!

I'm looking forward to this, since it feels like it's going to be pretty wacked out. Is the idea that this is technically a pilot for a series if it does well?

The promos were making me worry too, but the behind the scenes special last night has me excited again. It looks like a lot of talented people put a lot of effort into this. The special was called Beyond the Yellow Brick Road: The Making of Tin Man, and it looks like they'll be airing it a lot over the next two weeks.


They mentioned during the special that it was originally pitched as a regular series, but Skiffy decided to do it as a miniseries instead. I'm not sure if that makes it more likely or less to become a regular series.

I've disliked (okay, hated) the last couple Sci-Fi Channel miniseries, but after catching the Beyond the Yellow Brick Road special late last night, I'm intrigued. It can't be more warped than The Wiz, right? (Maybe I shouldn't say that out loud.)


ITA. He's one of those actors that manages to remain credible (or at least credibly camp) even as the movie crashes and burns around him.

Now I just have to avoid over-exposure to the hype for the next 2 weeks.

Seriously. It begins with Dorothy being taken to a mental institution and almost subjected to electroshock therapy! And it was a great movie; one of my favorites was the flying sofa.

I can't wait for this. I keep seeing promos for this. I don't mind a reimagining of the Wizard of Oz. I loved the film when I was a kid, and was taken to The Wiz as a kid. We all hated mainly because we thought Diana Ross was too old to be Dorothy, and after they got to Oz it seemed like a big let down. I love all of the actors in particular Alan Cummings who is good no matter how crappy the film is, and Zoey Doschenal (?), I even loved her in Hitchhiker's Guide. So bring it on. Plus, I saw Return to Oz, and have read all of the books.

If we're bringing up all the re-imaginings, there's also A Barnstormer in Oz by Philip Jose Farmer (which should tell you something right there), where Dorothy's son is a pilot during WWI who crash lands in Oz and becomes involved with a sexy redheaded Glinda.

Frank Baum was a true racontouer and kept changing and improving his stories throughout his life. By the end of the Oz series he'd made so many changes that it's literally impossible for the first few books to have happened. So I'm not particularly upset at another variation. Baum probably would have enjoyed all the permutations. The thing I haven't been able to figure out is, what exactly is the plot now?

I just caught the last 15 mins of the 'Making of' special, not even knowing it was a miniseries. I thought it was a movie they were talking about, and, yeah, it hooked me. Zoey? Neal? Alan Cummings with a zipper in his head?! Yeah, I'm there.
Maybe I'm naive but it looked pretty ambitious for a miniseries. I'm looking forward to it.

Which might be a good sign actually. Skiffy's record for mini-series is pretty good, mostly when compared to the original movies.

I'm one of these people, but I don't think it's that the 1939 movie became Oz for me (I've never read the books), but it's because that movie is, for me, a perfect movie. It's my #1 favorite movie of all time on it's movie merits, so it's not that reimagining the story is the issue, it's reimagining the movie, in my eyes, that's the issue. The promos and the making of special made me more apprehensive about it, actually, though I must say I adore Alan Cumming, and I think his casting is brilliant.

I'm on the fence I guess... I may give it a shot, say a half hour or so, but if it doesn't grab me right away I'll have to bale.

I was going to watch this, but then (as someone mentioned earlier) I found out it's being done by Robert Hamli Sr.
Rant About Hamli From The "Flash Gordon" Premire

For those of you afraid to click on the link, Hamli's mini-series credits include:

-Gulliver's Travels
-Merlin
-The Odyssey
-Alice in Wonderland
-The 10th Kingdom
-Dinotopia
-The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns
-Earthsea
-Cleopatra
-Jason and the Argonauts
-A Christmas Carol (the one with Kelsey Grammer)

..and so on. Not one thing from his eighty some odd projects listed on imdb made me go AWESOME. Which sucks, because I really want to like this. Well, if the Red Sox can win a world series, maybe this time Hamli will put out a good mini-series. *crosses fingers*

Count me in amongst those who want to like this show. . . nay, count me in amongst those who want to LOVE it. Alan Cumming? Oh, yeah. Soooo on board for the Cumming.

I live in Kansas City, MO, so the '39 Wizard of Oz is practically anathema around here. Because we're all sick to death of people going, "You're from KANSAS? [insert Oz joke here]." There are two Kansas Citys people. The original one, where I live, is in MISSOURI. So I don't KNOW how Dorothy/Auntie Em/the flying monkeys are doing. Because I from MISSOURI. And no, there is no yellow brick road around here.

Ahem.

But that has not prevented me from loving the Oz books, and I know I'm in a minority when I say this, but I did not actually enjoy Wicked. (The book-- haven't seen the musical yet.) I am also in a minority when I say I am intrigued by re-imaginings-- because what is the Wizard of Oz but an American myth or fairy tale? And no one has any objection to myths or fairy tales being continuously reworked. I even liked how Stephen King worked Oz into the Dark Tower books. So, yeah. I'm pretty geeked out over here.

My only worry is that it IS going to be skiffy. I have yet to see something on skiffy that I really like (i.e., that isn't so laden with cheese that it sends me screaming for the Lactaid.) But. . . but. . . Alan Cumming! And Richard Dreyfuss! And Zooey! They don't do crap projects, do they?

AP article

Wasn't Gulliver very well received? I thought it got good reviews and ratings. Earthsea on the other hand was just a travesty.

I'm really looking forward to this...

I recall the books much more referenced prevailing politics too. The tin man, thoughtless industry; scarecrow, the naivety of Midwest farmers; I think the cowardly lion was to represent local politicians. So although I love the original film fantasy, I know there was a lot more to it than songs about the importance of home. The build-up to the premiere hasn't been all that intense, though. I expected this to be a major event, not another blip on Sci-Fi Channel with as much ad excitement as for any of its awful "original movies".

Am I going crazy or does some of the background music for the promos sound like the music used in the BSG Razor previews? Is Bear McCreary doing the score for Tin Man?

I'm willing to check this out; I've seen a bunch of promo spots for it in the last few days and they look interesting enough to capture my attention. The sets and costumes look really well done, which is always a plus in my book.

I can't wait to see this.  It looks all kinds of awesome.  The dish guy is coming on Monday to hook up our new HD satellite to our new HDTV.  I hope they reair the first episode so I can see it in HD along with the others.

I'm also in the loved Return to Oz category.  Yes, it was very creepy and scary, but also amazing.

I had not heard about this until I saw a mention on EW's Popwatch. I think this looks great and am really impressed by the cast. If you haven't seen it yet, go to www.scifi.com/tinman. It's got some pretty cool videos and animations of the different "worlds".

I think I started looking forward so much more to this show a couple of months ago because looks-wise it's what I expected the Flash Gordon series to be.

Is TWoP recapping this like they did the Battlestar and Dune miniseries?

I'm looking forward to it but I'm ready to be disappointed. I do like Oz stories. I haven't read Wicked but saw the musical, which I thought was a clever take. Hopefully, this one will be too.

Oh, man. I have to watch this now, if only for Neal and Alan. I have a bad feeling that this movie is gonna suck, but I'm hoping that it's as good as The Lost Room.

Reivew in USAToday here.

Is there any word yet on when and where this will show in Canada? Oh, and here another positive review from the NY Daily News.

It's good to see it get positive reviews. I think the reviewers who are having the most issues with it being "dark" seem to be the ones who see the 1939 version the end all be all of Oz movies. That said, I don't want it too dark, dark humor is fine, but season three BSG is not going to fly with me. I'm still really looking forward to it, after seeing "Beyond the Yellow Brick Road", skiffy seems to have a handle on this miniseries (unlike past ones...).

I second that request. Any adaptation of Oz is right up my alley - and Return to Oz is pretty much at the top of that list, so...I hope I like this. And come on, Callum Keith Rennie?? It MUST be shown somewhere up here.

ThatPoshGirl According to my DVR, Skiffy is replaying this tomorrow at 7pm. (This is pacific time). If you don't have DVT/TiVO, doublecheck TV Guide.com to be sure it is on at that time.

Looks like they re-air the episode from the night before and then air the new one on Monday, and same on Tuesday.

Sci-Fi Channel is unwatchable. There's 8 minutes of program followed by 5 minutes of commercials. I timed it. It is impossible to get into the flow of the program .. even if it is Zooey Deschanel.

That's why Jesus gave us the VCR.

One thing I kind of found annoying was the score that kept repeating during the showing reminded me of the Stargate music.

I watched it DVR'd and so had the luxury of flipping through the ads and it was still annoying and took me out of the story. But I persevered because Zooey is worth it.

It is almost like the Sci Fi Channel goes out of its way to present its programming in the most user-unfriendly way possible.

That was quite good! I'm actually a little surprised; I wasn't terribly excited based on the previews.

I'm in total LOVE with the steam punk-meets-Art Nouveau costuming, set design, and art direction! Some of the effects, though, are a little rough. For instance, when they were running from the monbats in the columns, they were sooooo obviously running in place in front of a greenscreen!

A bitchy Alan Cumming is always welcome on my TV screen. Neal McDonough is hot as ever; I wish that leather coat wasn't quite so long, because his ass is spectacular in those tight trousers. Leoban is also hot in those fantastic Nazi leather coat (is there any other kind for bad guys?) and sleek haircut.

Raw's really the only one I don't care about. He's kinda annoying.

I was afraid Richard Dreyfuss would be chewing up the scenery (and not in a fun way) based on the little blip of "That girl's the key!" they kept running in the promos, but, no, he was tolerable.

Overall, I'm quite pleased and interested.