Kung Fu: The Next Generation

The "CBS Summer Playhouse" was an anthology program that instead of showing the same actors each week, it aired unsold television pilots. Perhaps they wanted to see the public's reactions...if they liked the show then they might reconsider. Or, more likely, they just wanted to recoup some of the money spent to make these one-off shows. One of these failed pilots was "Kung Fu: The Next Generation".

The show is set in modern days instead of the old west like the original show. It concerns descendants of Kwai Chang Caine ...and they even have a ghost Kwai Chang Caine visit one of them! The show finds a father who is into martial arts and niceness and his son (Brandon Lee) who is a screw-up who is in trouble with the law. Can Daddy instill goodness and niceness in his ne'er-do-well offspring?

So is it any good? It's just okay...at best..perhaps a bit flat actually. I think part of the problem was Brandon Lee's character....he was just too much of a little jerk and it was easy to dislike him. Plus, there was no David Carradine! While this show ultimately failed, there was a reboot in 1993 that was accepted by the networks. I assume much of this was because in the reboot, David Carradine was cast in the lead...something fans of the original series likely loved.

Have this taped on VHS. Watched it for the 1st time since first taping it in 1987. Just no coherence to it at all. It's very disjointed. It wasn't thought out in advance. Very dull. The scenes don't piece together so it seems like several random scenes that are disconnected. The acting was poor from everyone. It's no wonder if wasn't picked up.

Only one person should play Caine - David Carradine! David Darlow has yet to have a successful series, he's done a lot of movies, playing big parts like "guy#3" "burglar" etc. Hopefully "True Nature" will turn his career around. I cannot believe that Brandon Lee would play in this movie since his dad was denied the part in the original series. And then for it not to get picked up. sheesh. This movie was horrible. Oh horrible to the end. It strayed so far form the movie and the series. I refuse to ever watch it again. I'm ashamed to admit I watched it once. It appeared on CBS Summer Playhouse which aired t v pilots that hadn't been picked up. I'm sooo glad it didn't.

This pilot was so bad it took them 5 years to fix it and revamp it with new actors. The revised "The Legend Continues" with Carradine and Potter was awesome.

This movie pilot is pretty tame when it comes to the martial arts sequences. Really the only reason to watch this is to see Brandon Lee in one of his first roles. He does a little fighting but not much. The guy playing his father is pretty dull and obviously has no ability in the martial arts whatsoever. In summary, only avid Brandon Lee fans should check this out because it's pretty lame.

I have seen little from that pilot and I never wanted to see more. No wonder nobody wanted to buy it. Brandon Lee is THE ONLY things to watch in it, anyway. There's no content, no connection, nothing. Many people complain the sequel, 'The Legend Continues' did not have real martial artists. Well, apparently it doesn't work that well with martial artists, either.

I'm really really glad they decided to opt for hiring pure actors for 'Kung Fu: The Legend Continues'. If they had martial artists they'd end up making yet another martial arts series/film. The series have their imperfections, of course, but if there's anything perfect in them it was the flawless acting of David Carradine and Chris Potter and the amazing bod they had - on and off screen.