1. It Reboots The Franchise
As well as paying a loving tribute to the franchises history, Skyfall looks to the future and helps to move James Bond forward. All the motifs of questioning if people like Bond are needed in the modern age work brilliantly but regardless of that, the franchise still takes a big step into the future with a bigger focus on computer hacking and fewer gadgets. But as well as making Bond a bit more modern, Skyfall represents the biggest shift in the franchise since Goldeneye. We may have the same Bond but weve got a new Q, a new M, and a new Moneypenny. Not to mention that MI6 moves into a new building modelled on the one from the original films. The last of the old guard of MI6 operatives from the Pierce Brosnan era leaves and we meet the new and significantly younger team of Ben Whishaw, Ralph Fiennes, and Naomie Harris. And the destruction of the DB5 has something of a symbolic feel to it as well since its another piece of the old Bond that gets removed to make way for the new era. And no Im not going to let it go. That car was brilliant. Since Im someone who grew up on Brosnans Bond, I find it a bit of a shame to finally see the last remnants of that era slip away but at the same time I remember that, like Doctor Who, James Bond is all about change. Thats how its gone on for so long and how it will continue to thrive for many years to come. Sam Mendes knew that and used Skyfall not only to pay homage to the old but also to bring in the new. The new era of Bond has truly begun. And long may it continue.
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