V - Visitors

Long before Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) assumed command of the Starship Enterprise, long before 80s prettyboy Starbuck (Dirk Benedict) had a sex change turning him into Katee Sackhoff ...there was "V".

Back in the late 70s and early 80s, it was unheard of to put a woman in power (the honourable Mrs. Margaret Thatcher notwithstanding), but here we see a series that pushed the envelope. Not only was the antagonist (beautiful Jane Badler) one of the most formidable characters in scifi history, but the leader of the good guys (Faye Grant) was one tough cookie herself. Throw into the mix a few beefcakey gents with great abs and whose shirts always seem to fall off, and you've got yourself a great show for the ladies.

Me, I'm actually a dude. All the same, I love shows that offer a viewpoint contrary to the usual male-dominated adventures that Hollywood churned out for the first 100 years. This was one of the first shows that really gave women proper credit for being leaders and warriors (and genocidal villains). Faye Grant delivers a particularly powerful performance as an ordinary geek who's suddenly thrust into leading the human race to salvation--not your typical born leader yet one who accepts the responsibility nonetheless and does it with passion.

Jane Badler... *phew, a moment of silence for bodacious Jane Badler, please* ... all I can say is she was the fantasy gal that got me through me pre-pubescent years. Homina homina.

Sure, the show has many flaws befitting an 80s TV series. It can seem cartoony at times, predictable and cheezy. But this is what made 80s TV so GREAT! Today's kids may have a tough time understanding it, but they should give it a try just the same. The overall quality and production of this miniseries was stellar, with special effects that were so colossal they were used 10 years later in the motion picture "Independence Day". Created and directed by Kenneth Johnson ("The Incredible Hulk") and musically scored by Joseph Harnell (again, "The Incredible Hulk" ...best made-for-TV music ever), this miniseries was nothing short of huge. Any kid who was alive back in 83 HAD to see this or else risk getting pummelled in school gym class.

Being, I dunno, 6 years old at the time, I hardly noticed some of the complex themes this show introduced. The miniseries has a very WWII-era slant to it with many allusions to fascism, political deception and the underground movement to liberate an oppressed race. At times you feel like you could be watching a historical recount of Nazi occupation. Other times the show makes a pretty strong argument for vegetarianism, especially after you see human beings being prodded and carted off to slaughterhouses. And on an individual level we see an intricate soap opera of human behaviour, how people are driven by different passions (for better or worse) in extreme situations. The overall theme, which keeps recurring throughout the whole series, seems to be that everyone can make a difference regardless of age, sex, size or stature. This show makes you want to go out and kick some butt, fight for what you believe in, vive la resistance, or maybe I should just hold up 2 fingers and say "V". Rock on!

I was reading a comment about this movie made by Lone Solo who states that "V" is a metaphoric SciFi film about nazi and Holocaust. While I agree with him I say that "V" is more than an allegory about this two topics. It is a SciFi miniseries that contains many social comments.

First, of course, Holocaust and nazi.

Second, it shows TV as a powerful tool to reach every single soul on our planet. It also shows how TV can manipulate and brainwash people. Notice that the arrival of the aliens as every single move they do on our planet is covered on TV.

Third, it shows that people can sell their souls even to the devil when they are compensated with expensive gifts. In other words, how materialistic people are.

Fourth, how rich and fortunate we are in having a planet with valuable natural sources as water. At one point, friendly alien tells earthling rebel Donovan "Your planet is rich. I envy you."

Without any doubt, "V" is a powerful SciFi movie that not only entertains (it does it a lot) but also makes us think about our conditions as human beings.

As an interesting note, we can enjoy of a pre-Freddy Krueger Robert Englund as a dumb but nice alien.

If a ninety-nine out of a hundred science fiction films fall into being cliché ridden, one will stand out above the rest. V, in its original miniseries, would be one of those that stands above the rest. V is anything but your typical science fiction story of an alien invasion. It is a tale of a fascist (alien) takeover of our society and the resistance of a few in a society to it. As a result V, while a product of the technology and culture of the 1980's, is a timeless piece of science fiction.

One of the elements to V's success is its cast. Leading, so to speak, the cast of human characters are Marc Singer as cameraman Mike Donovan and Faye Grant as med-student turned rebel leader Julie Parrish. Both Singer and Grant give nice performances that, for the most part, come across as real people in extraordinary situations. In fact the performances of the entire cast be described by that last phrase as well ranging from the Maxwell family (Michael Durrell, Penelope Windust as the parents with Blair Tefkin, Viveka Davis and Marin May as their daughters) who find themselves persecuted to the point of joining the resistance much like the Taylor family (Jason Bernard, Richard Lawson and Michael Wright) to the Bernstein family (George Morfogen, Bonnie Bartlett) who find themselves torn between their Visitor friendly son Daniel (David Packer) and the Holocaust survivor grandfather Abraham (Leonardo Cimino). In fact the single best scene involves Abraham, who is wanting to hide the persecuted Maxwell's, reminding his son that this whole situation is all too familiar for the consequences of them not being hidden means "we haven't learned a thing". This is a scene that is not only well acted and well written but incredibly rare in your average science fiction story as well. There's also many other fine members of the cast including Neva Patterson (Donovan's mom), Evan Kim (Donovan's camera partner Tony), Jenny Sullivan (reporter turned Visitor spokeswoman Kristine Walsh) and Kristine Walsh (as Gardener turned rebel Sancho) amongst many others. The human side of the cast is just the tip of the iceberg though.

There's also a fine cast playing the alien "visitors" as well. They range from their seemingly benevolent leader John (played briefly and well by Richard Herd) to Andrew Prine as the authoritative Steven. Then there's the innocent abroad in the form of Robert Englund as Willie and the resistance from within the visitors themselves in the form of Frank Ashmore as Martin and Jenny Neumann as Barbara. Then there is Jane Badler as Diana, perhaps the most attractive and conniving of the alien visitors, who plays the role with a seriousness not usually found in this kind of role. Together they form one of the best, and definitely one of the most diverse, cast of alien invaders ever assembled.

V is also aided by fine work behind the camera. There's the cinematography of John McPherson especially the tracking shot of characters watching the first contact sequence and the scenes in the mother-ship. The production design in the form of the mother ship interiors are fine examples of science fiction sets. There's also the special effects work ranging from the excellent shots of mother-ships (a decade plus before Independence Day) to the aerial dogfight at the end which all work marvelously for the most part despite a very few shots which don't look quite finished. No review of V is complete without mentioned the fine prosthetic work of the miniseries which range from the Visitors true faces to some rather uncomfortable dining sequences. Last, but not least by any means, is the fine score by composer Joe Harnell which takes puts together classical music influences and choir in one of the most unusual and best scores produced for any science fiction television piece I have heard, especially for the opening and closing credits of any part. In short: strong production values go a long way.

To my mind V's ultimate success lies in the script and direction of Kenneth Johnson. V was originally conceived not as a science fiction tale of alien invasion but as the tale of a fascist takeover of the U.S which can still be found deeply embedded in the final product. In fact that is what separates V from many other alien invasion stories. V is about fascism, how people can be lured in by it, how far those in power will go to secure their position, how the average person will react and what happens when ordinary people stand up to resist it. There's also more then a few hints of Nazi Germany as well from the Swastika-like symbol of the Visitors to Friends of the Visitors youth groups (the Hitler Youth) and, before the miniseries is over with, a strong allegory with the Holocaust as well (see the miniseries to get it). Wisely Johnson also puts a fair (but not gratitude) amount of action in as well which helps to compliment the story and move it along. V is embedded in the technology and culture of the 1980's when it was made to sure but that doesn't date the story at all. Instead V becomes, like H.G. Welles War of the Worlds before it, a timeless tale of alien invasion and human resistance to it.

What makes V successful? Well it's large cast of fine actors, nice cinematography, good special effects work, excellent prosthetic work and fine score go along way. Yet the true success of V lies in its script and story. Why? Because ultimately V is not about spaceships and ray-guns but is about people and their reactions to the extraordinary events around them.

I was 5 years old when the series premiered on television. It was the biggest and to me, the greatest science fiction show ever made! More than 20 years have pasted, and still, to a degree, the show remains strong. Even though the special effects are now considered lame and at times funny, the show in itself was a giant milestone for network history. The Beastmaster, Marc Singer is the poster child for early 80's cool. Richard Hatch must have asked for too much money. You could not of had movies like Independence Day if V wasn't made. Today, video shelves have the original 3 hour mini series with a separate tape, "the final battle." The following year has not yet been made available for the public.

First saw 20 years ago and its fascination to me then has not dimmed.

Skillfully told tale of alien contact - "we come in peace" but this soon changed as a deep and premeditated plot by the aliens to enslave/rape the Earth emerged. Obvious overtones common to any invader/oppressive regime in particular The Holocaust.

Strong storyline and characters that one really felt involved with/cared for.

Special effects (especially the at-times wobbly V shuttle craft) not state-of-the-art by today's standards but competently done and more than compensated for by the strength of the storyline.

Would recommend to people who don't particularly like sci-fi, because of the personal side of the story.

10 out of 10.