Everyone knows that H.G. Wells was a guy who wrote a book about a time machine, but is there a chance that he really did invent a time machine and then he also wrote a book about it? We only ask because it seems like such a well-worn premise for science fiction stories (and also a podcast) that we’re honestly willing to consider the possibility that Wells was literally the world’s first time traveler. Even if it’s not true, let’s all agree to pretend it is. That’s how science works, right?
Anyway, we’re talking about this because Deadline is reporting that ABC has picked up Time After Time, a new drama series from Kevin Williamson (of such famous murder shows as The Following, Stalker, and Dawson’s Creek) that centers around H.G. Wells traveling through time to fight Jack The Ripper. If that premise sounds familiar, it’s because that’s a thing that really happened—and also it’s the same premise as the 1979 movie Time After Time, which was based on a book of the same name by Karl Alexander. (A non-fiction book.) We don’t know the specifics of Williamson’s version, but based on his recent TV output, we’re going to assume it’ll be significantly more gloomy than either of the previous versions.
Also, here’s Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time,” because we’re all thinking about it anyway: