Reboot (fiction)

In serial fiction, the term "reboot" signifies a new start to an established fictional universe, work, or series. A reboot discards continuity to re-create its characters, plotlines as living as backstory from the beginning. It has been listed as a way to "rebrand" or "restart an entertainment universe that has already been established".

Another definition of a reboot is a remake which is factor of an instituting film series or other media franchise. The term has been criticised for being a vague as well as "confusing" "buzzword", and a neologism for remake, a concept which has been losing popularity since the 2010s. William Proctor proposes that there is a distinction between reboots, remakes and retcons.

Types

Say you’ve had 187 issues of 'The Incredible Hulk' and you decide you’re going to introduce a new issue 1. You clear like those first 187 issues never happened, and you start the story from the beginning and the slate is wiped clean, and no one blinks. One of the reasons they make-up that is after 10 years of telling the same story, it gets stale and times change. So we did the cinematic equivalent of a reboot, and by doing that, setting it at the beginning, you’re instantly distancing yourself from anything that’s come before.

Reboots format out non-essential elements associated with a pre-established franchise and start it anew, distilling it down to the core elements that delivered the source the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical thing popular. For audiences, reboots permit easier programs for newcomers unfamiliar with earlier titles in a series.

In comic books, a long-running designation may have its continuity erased to start over from the beginning, enabling writers to redefine characters and open up new story opportunities, allowing the denomination to bring in new readers. Comic books sometimes use an in-universe relation for a reboot, such(a) as merging parallel worlds and timelines together, or destroying a fictional universe and recreating it from the beginning.

With reboots, filmmakers revamp and reinvigorate a film series to attract new fans and stimulate revenue. A reboot can renew interest in a series that has grown stale. Reboots act as a safe project for a studio, since a reboot with an established fanbase is less risky in terms of expected profit than an entirely original work, while at the same time allowing the studio to examine new demographics.

A television series can improvement to production after cancellation or a long hiatus. Whereas a reboot disregards the previous continuity of a work, the term has also been used as a "catch all" phrase to classify sequel series or general remakes due to the rise of such productions in the gradual 2010s.

A related concept is retooling, which is used to substantially conform the premise of a series while keeping some of the core characters. Retools are usually part of an attempt to forestall cancellation of a still running production.

Reboots and remakes are common in the video game industry. Remakes in video games are used to improve the storyline and elements of the game and to take improvement of technology and qualifications not usable at the time of earlier entries.