In the spirit of full disclosure, and just because I am simply lazy, this review also appears as a general posting on a message thread on the show's IMDb page...I personally liked the show. I actually saw it on re-runs on Space (the Canadian counterpart to SyFy) and not during the original airing of the show. It struck me that this new incarnation of "Night Stalker" was a show very much in the vein of "Millenium", a wonderful, wonderful show created by Chris Carter and starring the talented Lance Henriksen. It had that same brooding, dark and suspenseful atmosphere, but more than that it also had almost the same substance and heart as that show. Style was never, at least in my mind, put over substance. Of course as others have pointed it also shared certain similarities with "X-Files".It is true, that it was quite dark for a prime-time, network TV series, and liking it might have been an acquired taste...but the contention that this show was overly pessimistic, hopeless and depressing, is in my mind, unfair and unwarranted. The show only aired six episodes before it was cancelled and never got the chance to establish itself, evolve and show its true potential. We will never know what would and could have been. On the DVD set Frank Spotnitz does hint at and discusses what the future had in store for the characters and their respective story lines as well as the over all theme of the show, Good VS. Evil.Stuart Townsend and Gabrielle Union were excellent together as was the rest of the cast. The stories in each episode were crafted as stand-alone narratives, but they also neatly fitted into the overall arch of the show and Kolchak's one-man crusade to find out the truth about what happened to his wife as well as expose all the strange cases he came across, trying to understand the nature of the dark, the evil, the things that go-bump in the night, which most of us ignore and pretend don't exist.The more I think about it, the more I see "Night Stalker" if not parallel to, at least mirror other similar shows like HBO's "Carnivale" and CW's "Supernatural". But "Millennium" remains the show most comparable to "Night Stalker".Lastly I have to add, that the narration which Stuart Townsend did at the beginning/intro and end/outro of each episode was quite wonderfully chilling and gave me goosebumps each and every time, and I mean this as the highest compliment. That world-weary voice Carl Kolchak brought every week, heavily burdened by the knowledge and awareness of the darkness and evil which lurk out there, made this show a must-see! Too bad it didn't get a fair shake...

Wow! I am hopeful that the producers and directors of this remake take a moment to see all of the reviews written about this show. I never thought that this show would have such a large viewer ship. Did anyone notice the digital cameo of Carl Kolchek (Darren McGavin) standing in front of the desk in the pilot? There will never be another Darren McGavin, and CK will never be portrayed the way McGavin saw the character. He fit the part for that time (74-75). He fit our 'idea' of the cliché reporter. Let's face it; 'A Christmas Story' (1983) has solidified DM as a household name for future generations (my kids just watched this past Christmas all day). I think we will all miss him.I purchased the DVD of 'Kolchek: The Night Stalker' complete series, (all 20 episodes) as my wife had never seen the original, only this remake. Having nothing to compare this version to, she liked it and looked forward to it each week. She liked the old version too, but I have to admit, the suspense was not the same for me as it was when I was 8. (I had to sneak to watch the original).I think some of the reviews have been far to critical. There is oftentimes an expectation that a remake will be exactly like the original. Not unlike viewers who tuned in to see Star Trek: TNG. I have come to expect similarities between the new and old version but I do not expect a clone. I want to see a unique and different version of the original. I am nostalgic, but I have always had the 'I wonder what a version made today would be like?' with regard to all of my old shows.Yes, the name is similar, no the drama is not the same. When one considers the success of 'Scooby' gang sci-fi (Buffy, Angel, etc.) it makes sense that this show would take on a similar approach.How about Battlestar Galactica? They have the same name, but they are not the same sci-fi drama. I've come to expect a similar story line in remakes but not exact, mostly updated.I think this show is a 7, better than average, nicely updated to fit today's audience but not the best it can/could be. It could be refined/polished.

Excellent show, so much more - more modernized compared to the OLDER series - back in the day. Good story lines, your never left behind or left predictable. A lot of Competiveness leading those in dangerous situations, for the sake of....the truth & prove it. Not easy. Stuart Townsend is a great, he's a reporter who brings mystery when he's on the screen (a little reckless, but you know he believes & so will you) Gabriel Union plays his rival, (who shoots straight from the hip)who wants to trust him, but just cant grip all the supernatural occurrence's this show brings(kind of similar to the x-files(which made it famous & millions as well)you know the story - Scully is always fighting Mulder with his far fetched ideas of the supernatural) This is a great show with good acting, but it just hasn't gotten the proper publicity it deserves to have.

It hooked me. I had to watch more and when I did, I was glad I did. I confess that the first time I watched, it was purely out of curiosity. Having grown up with the original show, I could not resist the nostalgic draw of hearing it was back and seeing what they had done with it. I just had to see it. I was one of the few that appreciated the homage to the original character by having him digitally inserted into the show at one point and even felt a bit of pride that they went to such trouble to do so. I found myself liking the show because of such things almost instantly.I then was impressed by the show on its own merit very quickly. It departed from the original format without question, but made very clear it was worthy of watching. Not only was it interesting and had the classic "neat spooky stuff", but it had plot twists and storyline that kept you watching. It also had enough intelligence in the writing that you didn't feel like it was campy and childish. In a time when shows like CSI are top billing, this kind of show was ranking right up there with writing that was suspenseful and well thought out. It kept you guessing. In this day, when an audience can say, "Wow, I didn't see that one coming," you know you have done well.Studio executives don't want to hear this kind of praise though. It is nice, but it doesn't pad the bottom line. Fine, here is something for their pockets to listen to then: Right now people are hungry for being scared. They want things that are spooky and go bump in the night. We watch movies like SAW 5 and Texas Chainsaw Massacre 7 and have a morbid fascination with CSI shows like there is no stopping us. You have a your foot in the door with a sure thing here. The old name got you in the door, so don't let this go. Make it better than ever. Figure out where to take it with the writers for another couple of seasons and run with it and you'll make tons of cash. People want this. Scare them and not in a Buffy kind of way. Supernatural is going there too, but in a different way. You have an almost X-files approach here and you should exploit it to the fullest. People want to be scared and have a fixation on death and love being afraid. They also need to know that there are some people out there who are just as afraid as the rest of us, but still are willing to risk it all to save the world, so bring on the dark heroes. You have Dirty Harry with a camera and a pen chasing monsters and half of the ghosts are in his own closet. This is good stuff and as close as you can expect to get to the flavor of the original without feeling like it is a rip-off. The only thing you risk is writer burn out as they continue to reach for bigger and better things each week, but since when did that ever stop a series? You should be good for at least another season or two and by then maybe even a movie or two. Come on, think big and go for the money while spoiling us with what we want...more Night Stalker.