Reboots and revivals are enjoying a resurgence in the world of film and television. The ever-growing presence of reboots in media are due to an industry afraid to take a risk. Networks bank on nostalgia and people having a sense of the characters, plot and story.

As the CW indulges in nostalgia, audiences get to revisit the corny, human-alien romance of “Roswell,” which originally aired from 1999 to 2002. The reboot, titled “Roswell, New Mexico” debuted on Jan. 15.

It surpassed all expectations by having intriguing themes of romance, loneliness and mystery. Sadly, this is over looked when watching the bad acting and terrible execution. The pilot follows Liz Ortecho (Jeannie Mason), who has returned to Roswell to visit her dad.

While she is there, her high school crush Max (Nathan Parsons) saves her life using his alien powers. This act of heroism threatens to expose his secret identity, along with his sister Isobel (Lily Cowles) and their friend Michael (Michael Vlamis). As more and more secrets get revealed, it becomes harder to keep loved ones out of danger, like Liz’s old boyfriend Kyle (Michael Trevino).

“Roswell, New Mexico” is a CW series to its core. It fits alongside the network’s superhero shows, which mix over-the-top drama with science fiction.

The show aged the former teen protagonists in the original show to strong adults. This allows for the reboot to have more mature themes and diverse sexuality, but it also robs the story of its sweet, innocent romance. Instead, the focus was pushed toward being relevant and topical, setting up a clear, unnecessary political perspective.

An interesting update to the show was making Liz a daughter of an undocumented immigrant. This mimics Max’s story about being an alien but also plays with the ideas of travelers and the fear of discovery.

Symbols are a great way to develop a character when used sparingly; however, it is obvious no one cared when making this show. Letting the symbolic feeling play throughout the episode ends up creating a weird echo around the main characters, which isn’t helped by the inferior acting seen on screen.

Parsons plays Max as a crazy freak who’s in love with Liz. Instead of coming off as charming, the actor’s lack of range makes him come off as an obsessive stalker. Mason is no better in striking emotion with the audience. Her dopey attitude and emotional mood swings makes Liz come off as unstable. Supporting characters Isobel and Kyle are well developed but seem under used.

The costuming department deserves recognition as the clothes were more intriguing than the main characters. The core romance was also done well. Liz is not craving love. She does not even start carving out a new relationship with Max. She makes space within her world to include him as a friend, because he saved her life. They don’t rush into anything, which is like a real relationship.

As much as “Roswell, New Mexico” pretends to be something new, with its political references and crazy antics, it is not. The show is the same old story that intends to draw on the spirit of “Roswell” both to pay homage and try to evoke some old emotions from an audience long gone. “Roswell, New Mexico” airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on the CW.