…and what do we know?
We’ve waited 11 years since the last incarnation of Knight Rider, and tomorrow night we get an all-new sequel. Fans all around the world are anticipating a great 2-hour event — although how long it takes to reach the foreign territories is anybody’s guess.
What is clear is that this is the first Knight Rider sequel that takes the core components of the original series and updates them… This show is One Man and his car, a lone ranger, not a Team Knight Rider. The car, while not a Trans-Am, is black as night — not red. The theme tune is the familiar Knight Rider jingle recomposed. We know that David Hasselhoff returns as Michael Knight, although this time he’s relegated to a cameo. We know that the iconic Trans-Am appears briefly. We’re off to a very good start.
What about the story?
From NBC: “Sarah Graiman is a 24-year old Ph.D candidate at Stanford University, following in her genius father Charles’ footsteps. But when men attempt to abduct her, Sarah receives a mysterious call from K.I.T.T. warning her that he’s a creation of Charles, who also invented the first K.I.T.T. 25 years ago — and that her father is in serious danger.
Sarah and K.I.T.T. track down her best friend from childhood, Mike Tracer, a 23-year-old ex-Army Ranger, whom Sarah hasn’t seen since he left home at 18. Having served in Iraq, Mike is now jaded and lost and initially resistant. Eventually he agrees to help Sarah and the two set out to discover who’s behind the attempt to procure K.I.T.T. and find Charles. Along the way, Carrie Rivai plays the agile yet tough FBI agent who has a long-standing friendship with Charles and Sarah. Due to those ties, she is brought into the mix to help in the search.”
We know that Mike Tracer is revealed to be the estranged son of Michael Knight, and takes on the lone crusader role his father had 25 years earlier. We know that Charles Graiman “resurrects the Foundation” (which is a great hook if the movie is picked up as a series in the fall).
What about the car?
We know that Val Kilmer replaced Will Arnett as the voice of K.I.T.T. From the scenes that have been released, he has a great sound… softly spoken, a little superior… kind of reminiscent of William Daniels in the original Knight Rider pilot. My belief is that, like the original, this K.I.T.T. will start off a little cold and HAL-like (the famous computer from 2001: A Space Odyssey, and one of the inspirations for K.I.T.T.), and warm up as the story — and his relationship with Mike — develops.
We know that K.I.T.T. can drive himself, that he can change his shape and appearance via nano-technology, and that this model does not Turbo Boost… yet. Many fans have wondered if the car is indestructible; the ads for the movie have all climaxed with a shot of an enemy SUV colliding with K.I.T.T., being completely destroyed by the impact while the Mustang is undamaged. Any damage the car does sustain can be repaired by K.I.T.T. himself — we see in one commercial that his windshield repairs itself from bullet hits.
Still, the questions outweigh the answers. NBC have been teasing us for weeks now with their advertising campaign, which has been very, very cool. One thing is for sure: This is the most anticipated Knight Rider sequel of all the TV spin-offs. If it’s successful, it will introduce the concept to a whole new generation and spawn a series. And we know for sure that all Knight Rider fans will be watching!