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'The Phantom' gets updated for SyFy

19.06.10

Lee Falk's "The Revenant" comic strip began in 1936 and there have been only a few attempts at live action adaptations.

There was the infrequently seen Tom Tyler chapter serial in 1943 and another big screen treatment in 1996 with Billy Zane in the interest role. Both were more-or-less faithful to Falk's tale of long line of costumed crimefights who spot their history to 1536 when the father of a British sailor was murdered by pirates.

Now the SyFy Convey has dramatically updated Falk's tale of The Phantom for the 21st century. The four-hour miniseries, which airs on Sunday at 7 p.m., will turn topsy-turvy purists (like myself) because it departs from Falk's strip.

Unlike past Phantoms, this latest incarnation is part of an supranational, high tech crimefighting force. His fabled Skull Cave headquarters in the jungles of Africa has been replaced with a newfangled law enforcement facility (complete with cafeteria!) that Batman could only have dreamed of.

The Phantom's physical skills and great abilities with firearms and weapons remain, but they have been augmented with night vision implants.

Source: MassLive.com