Pilot Episode Analysis

[GuestGuest]

An often overlooked part of a show is it's opening, but you cannot under emphasize the impact of that now infamous opening desert shot with the mysterious car heading towards you...

On that fateful night back in 1982 after a few weeks of teaser trailers, we were finally greeted with that ominous shot of El Mirage and the strobe light heading towards us.

There was no voice-over or foley, just that electronic theme tune, that sleek car and it looked like something from the future to a generation of kids that were brought up on 'The Rockford Files', Charlies Angels, The Love Boat and Kojak!

Please share your observations, memories, information about props and locations or any facts and titbits you feel like, on that momentous first night in Knight Rider's broadcast history.

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[GuestGuest]

I honestly don't think that a show has had a more dramatic, apt and unique opening than the first season of Knight Rider has.

Glen Larson shows have been plagued in the past with accusations of being 'small screen rip-offs' of 'big screen movies' and Knight Rider has it's fair share of moments that lean heavily on 'TV and cinemas past' of course.

However, I don't think that you can compare those opening credits to any other show. The concept, the tempo, the timing and order of everything you see, the colourisation and the mood created, in my opinion make these visually the most stunning, unique and explosive of any TV series to date.

Please share your memories, facts and opinions!

[GuestGuest]

I've just been reviewing the pilot for the past week or so with a view to fixing a few minor irritations and I wondered...should the pilot NOT have featured the opening credits at all?

I don't think it should have, it would have been a much more dramatic opening with just the vegas skyline and maybe even loaing the 'vegas theme music' too...

The reveals of the Knight 2000 and Michael Knights face are spoiled by it too.

Thoughts?

[GuestGuest]

It would have added more mystery to it and been a bigger "WOAH" when KITT finally appears......but then again it was marketed for kids and theory was probably to give them a teaser so it held their attention, as it's a bit bland for the first 30 mins or so till KITT appears.

I prefered it without the Wilton Knight voiceover, was better with just the voiceover at the end as the car drives off into the daytime desert.

[GuestGuest]

It would have added more mystery to it and been a bigger "WOAH" when KITT finally appears......but then again it was marketed for kids and theory was probably to give them a teaser so it held their attention, as it's a bit bland for the first 30 mins or so till KITT appears.

You know what, I used to agree with that about it being a bit slow at the start, but I've been watching this frame by frame for the past week and it suddenly dawned on me how dark it really is, and how the subtext is really quite violent and tragic in a kind of robocop/frankenstein sense.

The scene that really changed it for me was the desert Tanya moment. I spent two nights re-editing it, trimming glue off of frames and flipping shots etc. and it was only then (watching it over and over at 1/8 speed) did I realise what a great feature this would have made too.

Having said that, if GL had made it two years earlier it probably would have borne a big screen version as did Buck Rogers and Battlestar Galactica.

[Newcastle knight]

Knight Rider was the first show to ever use a fully synthesized score for an opening sequence, and good god did it work ! It was perfect for the car as it sounded so cool and hi tech.

Love the pilot though, it is quite dark in places which is good because ive gotta be honest, sometimes during episodes i cringe at the cheesy-ness of certain scenes. I know it was meant to appeal to all ages so they couldnt have people getting shot in the face every week etc !

[HalloweenKnight]

Knight Rider began here in Finland in January 1984. I didn't see the Pilot episode the night it aired but next day on friends place from vhs as everyone was talking about it at school how cool show it was and they knew how interested about cars I was already back then even I was just couple of months earlier turned 9.

I still remember how impressed and excited I was when the first notes of the thememusic began and the purple desert & some mysterious black car with red scannerlight approached from the distance
It was very futuristic at the time, enjoyed it a lot. You have to remember this was in the 80's when the year 2000 was still long ahead and all kinds of visions were talked about how the world would be in year 2000 and there was this Knight 2000 already in the 80's, a miracle car at the time

[knight5695]

i think it was light and shade the darkness feel to it i had the same feeling with KITT vs KARR not for the storyline but it was just the don peake score as it progressed the darker it got even when you play the don peake cd its really powerful as the pilot was in the storyline

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