Review by Rich Wilson
Stars Elizabeth Mitchell, Morris Chestnut, Joel Gretsch, Logan Huffman,
Lourdes Benedicto, Laura Vandervoort, Morena Baccarin, Scott Wolf | Created by Kenneth Johnson
UK certification 15 | UK RRP £49.99 | BD Region ABC | Runtime 945 minutes | Directed by Yves Simoneau & others
Aliens arriving on Earth, be they Close Encounters-style friendly or War Of The Worlds-style destructive, have played a large part in film and television entertainment since the fifties. It’s a concept that offers tremendous scope for storytelling; action, suspense, horror and Mankind’s struggle against superior forces. Human beings as a race are rarely the underdogs. It’s why this kind of story works, and it’s the reason that V should work. And in places it does. There are plenty of twists and shocks that we’ve come to expect from modern, episodic American television. The problem is, like the visitors of the title, it overstays it’s welcome.
When huge spaceships appear at various locations around the planet it’s initially a cause for panic, until their leader Anna announces on all global communications that they come in peace, looking to claim a small amount of our mineral resources, for which they will share technological and medical knowledge far in advance of our own. Although most of the population are in awe and welcome the visitors a small number of humans are in doubt, and in time it’s revealed that a group called Fifth Column, which includes some of the extraterrestrial visitors, has been in place for years, ready to fight an invasion. It’s also revealed that the visitors have spent decades infiltrating various factions of religion, governments and corporate businesses, and that their planned full scale invasion and annihilation is in the final stage. The warnings and resistance from Fifth Column are compounded by the visitors superb P.R: they cure disease, appear on broadcasts with the President, and have programs with the Earth’s youth integrating them with the alien society.
The story unfolds with several characters, initially FBI agent Erica Evans who uncovers and joins Fifth Column, and Catholic priest Jack Landry, who is uneasy with how the visitors seemingly debunk his beliefs despite their alleged good intentions, and also sign up to the resistance movement. Erica has cause for concern; her teenage son Tyler is obsessed with the visitors and signs up for their recruitment program, and becomes romantically involved with Anna’s daughter Lisa. Elizabeth Mitchell (who you’ll know from Lost) is good as Erica, all tough exterior and bruised emotions, as is Joel Gretsch as Landry. Problem is, if you’re going to make drama with a large leading cast you need to make them all likeable, and it’s here that V fails, by offering clichéd, one-dimensional characters. Logan Huffman as Tyler quickly grates; you struggle to care for his blossoming relationship, and the ease at which Lisa is assigned to seduce him as a spy is lazy storytelling designed to propel the plot to new areas with no thought as to why it would happen. Equally tiresome is Scott Wolf as news anchorman Chad Decker, quickly accepted as an ally by the Visitors who can use him as a mouthpiece for their propaganda, an important story arc that could have said a lot about the current state of politics and celebrity but quickly falls apart when Decker learns the truth about the Visitors. And Morena Baccarin as the alien leader Anna does little more than offer frosty gazes, sickly smiles and screaming orders.
If you know your science-fiction then you’ll be aware this a remake of the cult 1983 mini-series of the same name, and it recreates many of the iconic elements of that show; the reveal of the visitors to be lizard-like creatures, the huge ships, an inter-species pregnancy that gives birth to something rather nasty, and elements such as trust and terror of an unknown race can be read as being particularly poignant in an America still struggling to regain it’s footing post 9/11. Production wise this is without flaw. Glossy, high-budget television with superb visual effects that would be impressive on the big screen, let alone the small. With some decent action and some genuine shock moments V is initially satisfying, but scratching beneath the surface reveals very little of substance, and with subject matter this immense and an hour per week to tell it that’s a disappointment. The writers seem unwilling to delve into any social or moral issues that would add depth, instead running with soap-opera style drama. Ultimately in an age where television is offering shows that compete with the best of cinema
– The Wire, Game Of Thrones, Breaking Bad – it’s just too lightweight, and feels like an opportunity missed.Halfway through the second season V was cancelled due to dwindling ratings, with the ABC network reducing the amount of episodes required. Sadly, towards the end the quality improved, and the last episode finished on a major cliffhanger that will probably never be resolved, despite the online petitioning of fans and several cast members to return the show for a third and final season. For devotees of the show, that’s a poor way to finish. For newcomers who may be tempted into a purchase, it’s a major reason to give it a miss.
EXTRAS ★★ The Season 1 disc is free of any bonus material, but Season 2 has a long and genuinely funny blooper reel and an extensive collection of deleted scenes that are interesting but add little to the broadcast episodes.