War of the Worlds

"War of the Worlds: The Series" continues the storyline from the original movie while giving it a new twist, with the Martians, or the "alien invaders" as they are called now, taking over people's bodies to prevent them from succumbing to the bacteria that "killed" them in the original movie. Taking place 35 years after they destroyed Los Angeles and almost took over the world, they are revived after a botched attack at a nuclear waste dump, where their remains were sealed in metal barrels. They awaken, take over the bodies of the terrorists and plan out their second invasion of the world. The series was a bit graphic, but the storylines of the episodes were terrific. The new cast also shines, as a small group willing to fight the aliens before it's too late. Also seen were their war machines with the heat rays, and Sylvia Van Buren (Ann Robinson), the heroine of the original who fell in love with Dr. Clayton Forrester (Gene Barry's character). All in all, this series is great and I wish it was back on TV! Sci-fi at it's best!

The idea of bringing back the aliens from War of the Worlds is simply great, especially for those who wonder "what if the aliens had attacked us with our technology today, instead of back in the '50s?" The answer is clear; they would STILL kick ass! The heat rays they used are just as unbeatable in the 80s as they were in the 50s, and the idea of the aliens going into hibernation to survive rather than just dying was a great plot device to bring them into the present. The spaceships, sound effects and sfx are lovingly recreated in the series. The show reminds me of Star Trek, in one respect only - both shows had great premise, but given too little backing by the studios that created them. Networks will never learn - if you're going to do a risky new sci-fi series, either back it all the way or don't bother. If the series had been given full support with and heavy advertising, and maintained the intelligence of the stories, this might have gone on for years. As it is, it's definitely worth checking out on the sci-fi channel. Now if there is ever a War of the Worlds/Star Trek crossover, that would definitely be worth seeing...(no matter how silly the idea is.)

Eight stars for effort on this series.

First of all. Season 1: 10/10 Season 2: 1/10

This must be the creepiest sci-fi horror show/movie ever. I was 10 years old when I first saw it. Now, 21 years later, I still have nightmares.

The reason may be the complete lack of human emotions within the aliens. No empathy whatsoever for human life. The aliens are portrayed as total different from us - not "almost human/American" like in other sci-fi shows. These ones cannot be reasoned with. You cannot negotiate with them.

Three episodes moved me deeply.

1.Quinn. "no Harrison...you are the alien".

2.The abducted woman. The end scene when Harrison just being to late to rescue her. It gave me an incredible parallel with my own life. Being to late to save the most loved one person in my life.

3.The strong drug. The scene with humans collecting drugs from the floor. Acting as animals.

The only flaw with the show is its low budget. Imagine what it could have been with a modern show's budget.

And one more thing. WOW is no predecessor to "X-files". X-files is a cheesy, unrealistic show with vampires, werewolves, and baseball-loving aliens. YES! Baseball-loving aliens. Give me a break...

WOW is the real deal. With real human emotions. With real characters. With a real nightmare-plot. Great job! GREAT!

The best thing about this series was that, in the first half of the first season, you never knew who was going to win the battles. An example plot would have the aliens trying to acquire a list of the locations of their canned (literally) comrades. The humans try to stop them but fail.

That's what I loved about the series: EVERYTHING was unexpected. Then late in the first season, you started having plots that were too obvious. (On TV in the 80s, there was no way aliens were going to detonate a nuclear bomb in the middle of the USA--especially with our heroes in the same city!) From that point on, the show settled for standard science fiction. It was still interesting, but it had lost its spark and never got it back.

The first season of War of the Worlds was groundbreaking and refreshingly innovative. In many ways, it was the predecessor of shows like "The X-Files". The first season was very much like a game of chess between the Blackwood Project and the aliens- led the triumvirate Advocacy (featuring the underrated actress, Ilse Von Glatz- who was chilling as an Advocate). Towards the end of the season, there was a mythology carefully being built with the introductions of new characters such as the renegade alien/human hybrid- Quinn and the Qar'To Synth, Katara. Also, the show was blessed with creative writing, excellent direction- and casting Ann Robinson as Sylvia Van Buren was a nice coup for the producers.

However, Paramount had plans to assassinate the show and installed Frank Mancuso Jr. as the new executive producer. He obliterated the first season storyline, continuity, most of the characters and killed the show in the process. But to many fans, the only real season of WOTW was 1988-1989.