Some science fiction tales are particularly suited to being immersed in a complex web of explanations and jargon. Others merely require a straightforward elevator pitch and whatever appears when you visit this page and press random keys.
There was never going to be a "Quantum Leap" revival on NBC in 2022. Dr. Ben Song (Raymond Lee) is in the machine and teleporting into the past before Minute 5 of the pilot is over, setting expectations and protecting oneself. The first line of the episode makes reference to Lee's character, Sam Beckett, who is portrayed by Scott Bakula. It's not necessary for the spectator to understand how or why Ben is time-hopping. The draw of the show's main character appearing in a new time, place, and body every single week will draw in whatever audience it attracts.
The idea behind "Quantum Leap" is pure procedural television. Every possible situation may be brought to life with just the slightest indication that Ben will fix what might go wrong (as evidenced by where this 2022 pilot ends up). Ben is trying to foil a deadly attempted theft in this episode's introduction, and it does manage to smuggle in some significant biographical information. Ben's fiancee Addison (Caitlin Bassett), who appears as a hologram to help him through whatever difficulties he runs into decades in the future, is his equivalent of Dean Stockwell's Al Calavicci. As opposed to mind-hopping into random persons, time will tell how successfully this new version can sprinkle in more of what makes Ben Ben tick.
In either case, he doesn't really need to be much more than that for the show. In this capacity, Lee has the potential to develop appeal beyond simply reacting bewildered to every new circumstance that arises. The concept of "Quantum Leap" will still be the driving force behind this even if he doesn't. Not simply the premise, but also the version of "Quantum Leap" that was broadcast at that particular period in television history.
Will the formula of "studio backlot dressed slightly differently + theatre marquee + #1 hit playing on a passing radio" be used in all upcoming episodes that travel back more than 35 years? Probably. Will Ben's danger have a certain joking, light-hearted quality to it? Nearly likely. There was never going to be a gritty, darker "Quantum Leap" reboot for television. This show's foundation, at least in the beginning, is a softer form of diet risk that guarantees Ben will survive to the following week with little harm.
Ben travels through 1985 during the course of the pilot, and to account for this, the world is as pliable as its contradictory laws. Ben can talk menacing Romanian yet he can't drive a stick. The insistence of Addison that if any leapt-into body perishes, he perishes as well is more of a later-adopted policy than a rigid law. The show only needs to fulfil the promise of its idea; it doesn't even really need to make much sense.
After one episode, it's impossible to predict whether or not nü-"Leap" will develop a strong emotional core. It's plausible that Ben's other project comrades back at home in the present (headed by promising newcomer Mason Alexander Park and returning character Ernie Hudson) navigate this show differently than as individuals bent over a screen or gazing fervently at a long row of servers. Prior to that, NBC hopes that this "Quantum Leap" would satisfy the same tonal itch as its predecessor. It is currently carrying out its intended function in the only possible manner.
