I was 11 and 12 years old when V first aired. It was on late at night, so I wasn't allowed to stay up and watch it. I taped the show and I would get up at five the next day to watch the adventures of Donovan and company before I went to school. Now granted, I loved TV when I was a kid but nothing captivated me like V. I couldn't get enough of this show. And seeing as it went on for two years, those of us that saw the show were quite frustrated as we waited for the Final Battle to be introduced to us. But that is another review. As for V, it was unlike anything I had ever seen.
Kenneth Johnson introduced us to the situation, it's characters and the tyranny and then he cut us off. He made the first two episodes and as the show ended with Elias spray painting the wall, you sat there and said, "that's it?" You just knew that the Final Battle would have to be made to sum it up and finish the series. And when you think about it, I'll bet this series could have made so much more money if it had been made into a major motion picture. You could have had five movies from this mini-series. But as it stands, you have a five part mini series that just knocked everyone out back in the early 80's.
This series came out 10 years before ID4 and the similarities are astounding. But I really believe that this does it so much better. Right from the beginning we are hurled into the story when Donovan and Tony are in El Salvador or Nicaragua or whatever, and they witness the giant spacecraft hovering over the earth. From there we meet the leaders of the aliens and we are introduced to some of the key players. The set up is great but what makes it so compelling is that none of the people that form resistance groups are super-men or larger than life super-heroes. They are regular, common people that band together for a common cause. Sure many of them are doctors and scientists but you also have the elderly, a cameraman, a Mexican truck driver, a thief, and kids, black, white, jews, christians, atheists and a plethora of others. This makes you feel as though it is somewhat real and the events which are taking place are actually possible. A great touch was Abraham, the elderly Jewish man that is one of the first to take in and hide some so called "fugitives" on the run. He equates the reign of the Visitors as nothing more than Hitleresque imprisonment. He tells his son that when he was eight days old he had to be smuggled in a suitcase in order to flee the Nazi's and that alone should make them want to help.
V introduces and teases us with everything that the Final Battle is going to encompass. Think of the first two V's as Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back. They set up Jedi as does V set up Final Battle. I really and truly think that this is the best mini-series ever made and it is the highlight of TV in the 80's. Watch all five back to back to back to back to back and you are in for a treat.
10 out 0f 10
Kenneth Johnson introduced us to the situation, it's characters and the tyranny and then he cut us off. He made the first two episodes and as the show ended with Elias spray painting the wall, you sat there and said, "that's it?" You just knew that the Final Battle would have to be made to sum it up and finish the series. And when you think about it, I'll bet this series could have made so much more money if it had been made into a major motion picture. You could have had five movies from this mini-series. But as it stands, you have a five part mini series that just knocked everyone out back in the early 80's.
This series came out 10 years before ID4 and the similarities are astounding. But I really believe that this does it so much better. Right from the beginning we are hurled into the story when Donovan and Tony are in El Salvador or Nicaragua or whatever, and they witness the giant spacecraft hovering over the earth. From there we meet the leaders of the aliens and we are introduced to some of the key players. The set up is great but what makes it so compelling is that none of the people that form resistance groups are super-men or larger than life super-heroes. They are regular, common people that band together for a common cause. Sure many of them are doctors and scientists but you also have the elderly, a cameraman, a Mexican truck driver, a thief, and kids, black, white, jews, christians, atheists and a plethora of others. This makes you feel as though it is somewhat real and the events which are taking place are actually possible. A great touch was Abraham, the elderly Jewish man that is one of the first to take in and hide some so called "fugitives" on the run. He equates the reign of the Visitors as nothing more than Hitleresque imprisonment. He tells his son that when he was eight days old he had to be smuggled in a suitcase in order to flee the Nazi's and that alone should make them want to help.
V introduces and teases us with everything that the Final Battle is going to encompass. Think of the first two V's as Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back. They set up Jedi as does V set up Final Battle. I really and truly think that this is the best mini-series ever made and it is the highlight of TV in the 80's. Watch all five back to back to back to back to back and you are in for a treat.
10 out 0f 10