ABC is resurrecting V and, on the surface, it doesn’t seem like a good decision. Sure V was a blockbuster miniseries back in the 80s but the subsequent spin-off television series never really went anywhere. Now ABC is skipping right over the miniseries, the component which worked best last time around, and going straight to the previously failed weekly one hour drama format. Not that they have any choice. The glory days of the made for television event is long over, with the miniseries’ relegated to barely watched deep cable.

So on the surface this may seem like an idea destined for failure but the truth is, having just watched the series premiere, I think they may be on to something.

The show’s one-hour format debut isn’t exactly inspired, but it’s economical and it gets right to the point. Within minutes the aliens have landed and from there it skips forward at a rapid pace which sets up the same intrigue fans of the first series are familiar with. The aliens, who call themselves Visitors and “Vs” for short, present themselves as human in appearance. Actually you might say they appear hyper-human. Imagine an entire ship full of mid-level runway models and you’ll have some idea of the hotness level they’ve brought into our atmosphere. The V’s loudly proclaim that they’ve come in peace and immediately set about curing all of mankind’s ills. This of course means they’re up to no good and if you’ve seen the original you already know what that no-good is. read this entry »