The network inbreeding has been particularly noticeable this season. I first noticed a number of bit roll Heroes vets have moved into leading positions in NBC’s new hit musical series (who’d'a thunk it?) Glee!. Then I saw Flash Forward, featuring an occasional Lostie as a supporting female, and, much to my great joy, Dominic Monaghan, the beloved Charlie Pace of Lost, as the show’s face of evil. Whether he will remain the face of evil is up for grabs. After all – Noah Bennett was the face of evil on Heroes, and now he’s a lead protagonist.
But all that brings me to my point – another Lostie (with that series wrapping up in Spring, 2010) has found a home as a lead in V, ABC’s new sci-fi remake. Elizabeth Mitchell portrays single mom and anti-terrorist FBI agent Erica Evans.
Now, I’m all for remakes of old sci-fi movies and TV series – after all, Battlestar Galactica was (for the most part) an incredible piece of work. But therein lies the problem. I’ve been completely spoiled, and other attempts have not measured up in the least. I had high hopes for V, which have been somewhat tempered after watching the premiere. It’s no BSG, but it’s better than The Bionic Woman, so there’s hope.
If you’ve never heard of the original V series, the story is about the arrival of an advanced alien race to Earth. They call themselves The Visitors, and they appear human in almost every way. They spend a lot of effort making nice, and convincing the whole world they’re friendly and peaceful. A small group of humans seem to think that’s a crock of crap, and build an underground resistance.
The new version of the series has some notable changes to bring it into modernity. Most obvious is making Erica Evans a single mom. With her son joining the “Visitor Youth”, and herself joining the resistance, it should make for some interesting interplay in an already tense mother-son relationship. They have also brought in the concept of terrorism to feature heavily. Since the resistance is, for all intents and purposes, a terrorist group, the socio-political potential for this post-9-11 series are enormous. I hope they don’t screw it up.
So far, I’m loving the effects – and the acting is pretty good. The writing isn’t bad, but I don’t expect gold from a pilot episode – a TV series takes a little time to really find itself, after all.
I’m definitely going to keep watching. For now.
Filed under: Media Reviews | Tagged: aliens, invasion, resistance, review, sci fi, scifi, TV review, V, v series, visitors | Leave a Comment »


I finally got around to seeing Monsters vs. Aliens. I wish I had taken the time to see it in 3D while it was in the theater. One character’s animation in particular, I imagine, would have been worth watching that way. (I refer to B.O.B., the indestructible gelatinous mass.)