quantum leap (1989-1993) was one of the most beloved television series of its contemporary era. The sci-fi series was inherently comically wacky and quirky and advocated a strong message despite its rather quirky and lighthearted tone. The genre coupled with the benefits of delivering new adventures with almost every episode quickly catapulted the series to household favorites.
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Now, 30 years later, NBC Asian America has brought the beloved series back to life by reviving the original, starring Korean-American actor Raymond Lee.
quantum leap Restart: what it offers after 3 decades
The series begins with a physicist leaping through space and time to land inside another person’s body for a temporary period in which he must save the day or the person in need. The end goal, it seems, is to find a way home, which the original series’ protagonist never did, according to the 1993 season finale. However, the reboot series, while true to the Genesis plot, does not take place in an entirely new timeline. These are the events that take place decades after the disappearance of Dr. Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula).
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NBC’s TV sci-fi drama jumps through the patchwork of time to land in increasingly difficult and impossible situations. Having lost most of his memory, Dr. Ben Song (Raymond Lee) traces his way back to the source of his unauthorized jump. Her adventure-filled journey strikes a delicate balance between the procedural drama of crime and the rediscovery of her family heritage. Martin Gero, showrunner, defines the reboot as being about “jumping on other people and having an experience that may be different from yours.”
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Raymond Lee faces backlash as Asian-American protagonist
the original quantum leap had actors Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell as the lead duo. But the reboot drastically changed the focus to feature Korean-American Raymond Lee, who was perfect for producers Deborah Pratt and Donal Bellisario’s demands for a non-white actor as the lead. Gero added,
“We knew we wanted a diverse actor for Ben, because they had already done the two white men’s version of him, and part of modernizing is telling a bigger story… It’s a way for us to tell a story incredibly specific about what it is. loves being a korean immigrant in a way he learns about it too [again as he goes].”
But, cultural diversity in the revival has been received negatively by a faction of demographics who now believe that Hollywood is intentionally using non-white actors to foster their “awakening” among the millennial crowd.
The new quantum leap will have no chance not beautiful enough really an asian will not work here
— Anita Cummings (@AnitaCu90957660) September 18, 2022
Rebooting a classic show with minorities for its main cast is cultural appropriation. But there’s nothing wrong with cultural appropriation so go for it.
— Karl Crary (@ Crary76) September 20, 2022
Quantum Leap’s new guy is Asian.
Don’t tell Tucker Carlson.🤭– Shawty 🇺🇸🌊🇺🇦 (@ShartSheriff) September 15, 2022
Wtf? So Quantum Leap is Asian now?
— Serpent Highlord (@PunishedVoryn) September 12, 2022
For Lee, however, the opportunity offered by this platform is indeed a leap forward for him and his community. Speaking about what his role in the series could bring to the public, he says that the portrayal “does so much for not just this industry, but for all industries – that anyone sees themselves represented in a position of leadership and [as] a person who actively goes out and does good and saves lives.
quantum leap is now streaming on NBC.
Source: NBC News
