Legend Rewatch

[bluegirl]

Hey all, we are currently travelling to Cornwall for a few days of surfing and in the evening when the sun has set I’ll have a few hours spare time. So, serious question, is this worth watching if you’re not a western fan?
I mean I know it has RDA in, however it’s never really appealed to me. Is it a serious type western or not?
There are very few episodes so I could get it watched over the next 3 days.

Should I….

Please do!! It´s so much fun to watch!!

I never knew about it, since it never made it to Austrian TV back then, and discovered it only a few years ago - here on the website. I liked it so much that I got myself the DVD´s from the USA and had to figure out a work-around for the region code (since DVD´s from the US won´t play in Europe) but it was sooo worth it! It´s a shame there aren´t more episodes...

[MacGyverGirl]

I agree with bluegirl! Legend is a must. I watched it when it originally aired and was disappointed that it was canceled after one season (as was RDA because this was his baby). It is considered a sci-fi western. It is funny, quirky, and RDA is having a blast. Great supporting actor, John DeLancie. If you saw Brisco County Jr. with Bruce Campbell and liked it, you will like this more (it does have RDA )

[Desert_crossing]

I certainly wouldn't call it a "western" in the typical sense. It takes place in the west, in the 1800s, and has horses. Other than that, with Bartok's many inventions, it's almost as much science fiction as western. There are quirky characters, lots of humor, and interestingly, several of the guest characters are real-life people from history, like President Grant, George Armstrong Custer, and Wild Bill Hickok.

It's light fun that I think would appeal to most RDA fans. Let us know what you think...

Kate

Well, good ol’ insomnia has struck hard tonight, I tried all the usual tricks to get my body to rest but it’s having none of it.
So what better time to watch the first episode!
It is NOTHING like what I was expecting! And that’s a good thing. I’m not even sure what I was expecting anymore. The humour is actually very good and like you say, not too heavy on the western side of things. The town folk getting electrical charges and continuing their business had me laughing along with many other things.
I will definitely be watching more soon.
Thank you posting the videos for us to watch. Much appreciated.

[KateR]

What I especially enjoyed was that a lot of the humor was based on real-life and pop-culture references. For example, the Bartok character is meant to be Nicola Tesla, so there is a running theme of his disparaging insults toward Thomas Edison, which is what happened in their real-life competition. And there is also the running gag about the townsfolk (i.e. audiences in general) not being able to distinguish between a real person and the character he plays. Not to mention that the episode titles are all references to movies or TV shows. The very dry humor kind of catches you off guard. I think my favorite episode is Revenge of the Herd. Enjoy!

Kate

[gone_fishing]

I agree Kate,as a Brit by birth, dry humour and sarcasm are my middle name So much of the humour seems to be aimed at public misconceptions and the media at the time,I wonder how much input RDA had on the scripts It's a shame that the series didn't run longer,it was sadly before it's time. For any Stargate fans,you will find the birth of many "jackisms" and it is very definitely worth a watch or two or three

[Desert_crossing]

What I especially enjoyed was that a lot of the humor was based on real-life and pop-culture references. For example, the Bartok character is meant to be Nicola Tesla, so there is a running theme of his disparaging insults toward Thomas Edison, which is what happened in their real-life competition. And there is also the running gag about the townsfolk (i.e. audiences in general) not being able to distinguish between a real person and the character he plays. Not to mention that the episode titles are all references to movies or TV shows. The very dry humor kind of catches you off guard. I think my favorite episode is Revenge of the Herd. Enjoy!

Kate

I have to agree that Revenge of the Herd was a great episode. I loved the humour that this show had, however the acting from RDA was, shall we say different, and it felt too much at times. Please don’t hate me for saying it, that just how it came across to me.
I don’t know if that’s how he wanted the character of Legend to be so I just went with it, at the end of the day it was his character to shape and for the most, it worked. He looked like he had a great time filming anyway.

On a whole, it’s not something I’d go back to view, maybe one or two of the episodes, but not like MacGyver or Stargate SG1 which are my default shows when I have a bad day at work.
It was okay and I am happy that I finally watched it though.

[Desert_crossing]

I agree Kate,as a Brit by birth, dry humour and sarcasm are my middle name So much of the humour seems to be aimed at public misconceptions and the media at the time,I wonder how much input RDA had on the scripts It's a shame that the series didn't run longer,it was sadly before it's time. For any Stargate fans,you will find the birth of many "jackisms" and it is very definitely worth a watch or two or three

The dry humour and especially the sarcasm worked a treat and that was definitely worth the watch.
I watched an interview on here where RDA was being interviewed by a guy who decided to strap a pretend bomb to himself and said something about what would MacGyver do. RDA looked less than impressed however maintained himself enough not to be rude.

[KateR]

I loved the humour that this show had, however the acting from RDA was, shall we say different, and it felt too much at times. Please don’t hate me for saying it, that just how it came across to me.

Oh, don't worry. RDA himself has said the same thing. He acknowledges that his acting was over the top, almost cartoonish. Whether it was an intentional bit of character development, or whether he was just having fun with no one to rein him in, is hard to say - perhaps a bit of both.

I don't think anyone has ever said that Legend was the best example of the depth and range of RDA's acting repertoire, but it was indeed a lighthearted bit of fun.

Kate

[MacGyverGirl]

Oh, don't worry. RDA himself has said the same thing. He acknowledges that his acting was over the top, almost cartoonish. Whether it was an intentional bit of character development, or whether he was just having fun with no one to rein him in, is hard to say - perhaps a bit of both.

I don't think anyone has ever said that Legend was the best example of the depth and range of RDA's acting repertoire, but it was indeed a lighthearted bit of fun.

Kate

Yes, indeed, Kate. Cartoonish is the best way to describe Legend and RDA's acting. He certainly was having fun. It must have been a nice break from MacGyver. Brisco County, Jr was a similar quirky, SciFi Western that only lasted one season (too short for my liking). I guess the American TV watching audience wasn't ready for either.

[Desert_crossing]

Oh, don't worry. RDA himself has said the same thing. He acknowledges that his acting was over the top, almost cartoonish. Whether it was an intentional bit of character development, or whether he was just having fun with no one to rein him in, is hard to say - perhaps a bit of both.

I don't think anyone has ever said that Legend was the best example of the depth and range of RDA's acting repertoire, but it was indeed a lighthearted bit of fun.

Kate

At the end of the day, he looked like he enjoyed it, and I was surprised that I liked it, because I genuinely thought I’d hate it. So it’s a win win all round.