Here's an idea for a time-travel scifi series. People go back into the past, change something, and create new timelines. There'd be any number of people who'd like to influence history in such a way--the main thing being that you could never alter the primary timeline from which you came, but only create new, parallel timelines where the events had been altered, and things flowed on from there. Imagine, for example, someone going back to 1066 and killing William the Conqueror before he invaded Britain.
They kinda did this already: TimeSquad (though it is more the reverse of what you speak of, Xy). But, hell, I probably would watch a show where the main characters go back in time and fuck things up.
Great fun, I reckon, Hapsburg--imagine going back and stopping Gavrilo Princip from coming out of the coffee shop in Sarajevo and blowing away Archduke Ferdinand and Sophie. The Hapsburg Empire may still exist. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
Or going back in time and use modern medical techniques to save Emperor Frederick I of Germany/Prussia from his larynx cancer, possibly negating WW1 in another way.
Perhaps making sure that Prince Albert stayed alive--and being German, he would have done as much as possible to ensure that Britain and Germany remained friends rather than becoming estranged as they did.
The series I had in mind would be more about groups of people who had a vested interest in changing the past, (say, the Irish wanting to help Wolf Tone during the 1798 rebellion) so groups of them go back and lend a hand.
A couple of flaws (but that wouldn't stop publishers). 1 - You change one event and you're setting in motion a domino effect that would properly render most, if not all, events afterwards to never happen. So you go back to 1066 and then everything afterwards has changed. 2 - Changing time is theoretically impossible. If you go back in time, change an event, chances are you'd never exist and neither would the project so who's going to go back in time to change the event from going sour...but it didn't go sour so there's no point in changing the event. So, if any attempt had been made at changing the past, it already has happened in your timeline and failed. And no-one is going to let complete strangers near Frederick after he'd been shot, he'd likely have trusted doctors.
If you go back in time and change the past, you create a different timeline which would be running parallel to the primary timeline along which you travelled back. Therefore nothing would change on the PTL, but the new timeline would have its own history. Plus, if we got to Gavrilo Princip before he shot those two in Sarajevo, we wouldn't need to worry about doctors.
How about a spaceship crashes... and all its crew dies... but they were highly advanced and humaniod but giant or something.... and their ship survived with its treasure trove of technology... in this way, with the help of scientists from all over the world, every possible crazy idea had on earth.. could be used for an episode. from variations on hand held particle accelorators.. to sub space communication... teleportation to zero point energy.. the main focus of the show, is to make everything as technical as possible... I.e.. a nerds dream show.. full of detailed models and "Actual" efforts to do really cool shit.... even if it is must be movie magic... -MT
If you create a different timeline then what's the point of changing the past if it's not going to benefit the ones sending folk back?
At any rate, it would be a kickass show to see alternative timelines. Closest we got to seeing what would happen if Germany kicked ass in WW2 was that movie Fatherland...but that was about a pissing murder!! But I cannot see why an orginisation would go for all that effort for people who do not yet exist. Seems like it would be a moneypit.
