For children of the 1980s like me, the A-Team represented something. It was an exciting show that was filled with explosions, comedy and a great soundtrack. There wasn’t a lot of mushy romances or things that we didn’t like as preteen boys. It was the perfect TV show. And then when the movie came out last year, those feelings of excitement were reignited. For the most part, the movie stayed true to the TV series which made it a great adaptation. Did you find yourself comparing the movie to the original TV series? Here are a few of those comparisons that you may or may not have noticed.
• Is the crew still from the Vietnam War?
In the original TV series, the A-Team was a crack crew of commandos that escaped from a Vietnam prison during the Vietnam War. But if the movie had stuck with that storyline, the team members would likely be in their 50s or 60s, which may be good for Hannibal but not the others. Instead, the team comes from the time when America is withdrawing from Iraq. Since this hadn’t happened at the time the movie was made, it was likely set in the very near future.
• What crime did they commit?
The reason the A-Team went into the prison in Vietnam is never really explored except for the fact that it was a crime they didn’t commit. But that storyline is explored in the movie and it takes up a good chunk of the beginning. They are accused of blowing up a superior’s vehicle and killing him in the process, but it wasn’t them that committed the crime. So, in essence, the movie stays true to the series but it goes into detail.
• Do they still help people?
In the movie, the A-Team is hell-bent on saving themselves and reinstating their reputation instead of helping ordinary people like in the TV shows. Maybe, however, this will leave some room for an A-Team 2 in which they continue their mercenaries of justice attribute so they can help others who cannot afford to help themselves.
• Is B.A. still afraid of flying?
Not only is he still a bit hesitant about hopping on a plane, the movie gives a little back story about how he began his fear of flying. Let’s just say that it involves Murdock, a helicopter and fighter jets trying to shoot them out of the sky.
When it comes down to it, you simply cannot recreate the magic that the original TV series created. But the movie is still a great adaptation with its updates and the film making technology that we have today that wasn’t even thought about when the show premiered in the 1980s.