REVIEW: It was one of the best loved sci-fi shows of the early ‘90s.
A heartwarming mix of life and history lessons, Quantum Leap followed Scott Bakula’s Dr Sam Beckett as he “leapt from life to life” – literally standing in someone else’s shoes each week – striving to “put right what once went wrong”.
A late decision not to renew the series after five seasons and nearly 100 episodes, left fans feeling somewhat bereft – text simply informing us that “Becket” (they couldn’t even bother spelling the character’s name right) continued to leap, never achieving his goal of making it back home.
Now, almost three decades later, Quantum Leap (which debuts on Sky 5 tonight, Sunday, January 8, at 9.30pm) is back, updated for a whole new generation.
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While the premise of La Brea and Alcatraz duo Bryan Wynbrandt and Steven Lilien’s reboot is essentially the same, it features a much more diverse set of central characters.
When we first meet Dr Ben Song (Top Gun: Maverick’s Raymond Lee), it’s at a celebration for his engagement to fellow Project Quantum Leap scientist Addison Augustine (Caitlin Bassett). But almost immediately after making a romantic speech involving the law of entanglement, Song disappears.
To Augustine’s horror, it becomes clear that he has made an unauthorised leap. And while he has seemingly uploaded a whole lot of new code – none of it makes any sense, or irons out any of the wrinkles that plagued Beckett’s original experiments.
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The original Quantum Leap first debuted in 1989.
Eventually locking on to his location, Augustine and the rest of the team discover he’s arrived on July 13, 1985 and into the body of “Nick Rounder” – a man enlisted by a criminal gang as a getaway driver. But almost as soon as Augustine enters the imaging chamber to try to not only help Song, but also seek an explanation for his actions, it’s clear leaping has caused his memory to be more than a little “Swiss cheesy” – he can’t even remember who she is.
As well as providing a smart set-up for essentially continuing the original cult hit’s popular format, Wynbrandt and Lilien also cleverly mix things up in the opening episode.
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Raymond Lee and Caitlin Bassett play Quantum Leap’s Dr Ben Song and Addison Augustine.
The Song/Augustine dynamic is a little more complicated than it initially seems, while there’s also a nice link (and tribute) to the ‘90s show’s other half of the central duo Al Calavicci (Dean Stockwell). A bigger group of characters involved in the project, including Ghostbusters’ Ernie Hudson’s Herbert “Magic Williams and The Sandman’s Mason Alexander Park’s Ian Wright also give the show more of a police procedural vibe similar to Criminal Intent or The Blacklist, which may or may not be a good thing in the long run.
However, what made the original series so endearing and nostalgia-inducing is still there. This first installment not only features period details like Live Aid footage and a cinema featuring a double-bill of The Goonies and St Elmo’s Fire, but the soundtrack is full of mid-’80s bangers – from a double-dose of Bowie to New Order, A-ha and Wang Chung.
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In the new Quantum Leap reboot, Ben Song follows in Sam Beckett’s footsteps in leaping “from life to life, striving to put right, what once went wrong”.
Although the jury is still out on whether Lee and Bassett’s chemistry will be able to match the brilliance of the Stockwell/Bakula combo, it’s clear from the care and attention shown onscreen so far that the creators definitely have an affinity for the sensibilities of the series.
The fact that it has already been renewed for a second season is a good sign.
Quantum Leap debuts on Sky 5 tonight, Sunday, January 8, at 9.30pm.