Posted by
CmdrTaco
on from the is-twenty-years-old-classic-yet dept.
Silas writes "According to CNN, twenty years after NBC's hit sci-fi miniseries "V" invaded the small screen, the network is bringing the aliens back with "V: The Second Generation," a three-hour TV movie from the original creator Kenneth Johnson."
Here's a little synopsis for those not born when this came out: Kenneth Johnson's brilliant 1983 mini-series takes Nazi Germany to a global scale. A group of aliens calling themselves "The Visitors" have come to Earth asking for aid for what they say is a peaceful mission. It doesn't take long for some humans to discover that they're really a race of lizard creatures intent on taking our water and using humans for food. After gaining public trust, the Visitors begin to seize control by manufacturing a conspiracy involving scientists who, like the Jews a half-century before, find themselves ostracized by the public and hunted.
--
I have often regretted my speech, never my silence. -Xenocrates
Amazon has both "V - The Original TV Miniseries" and "V - The Final Battle" for sale on DVD. Both together will set you back about $33.48.
Re:Already overdone
by
0123456
·
· Score: 2, Informative
"The original was a lot of fun, but it killed itself with the superbaby junk"
However, as I understand it, the original creator was barely involved with the second series with the "superbaby" junk and pretty much disowned it, so there may be hope for a decent show.
Re:What about the Red Dust?
by
Dutchmaan
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· Score: 4, Informative
If you'll recall, later in the series the "red dust" didn't work as well in tropical and temperate zones leaving it only "effective" in the colder polar regions...
So I doubt the red dust issue will even be a factor.
I guess I'm more of a geed than I thought...
Who's with me?
by
teamhasnoi
·
· Score: 1, Informative
Who else thought Elizabeth (Lizard Breath, ha ha) was hot? Hot in that greasy 80's sort of way...
IIRC, the book made for excellent 14 year old boy reading...
TV - Series that never happened
by
nhavar
·
· Score: 2, Informative
From the way it's presented it sounds as if they are basing the new story line off of where the MINI-Series left off and excluding the TV-Series timeline. This is both good and bad. It's good because we can ditch the whole Star Child prophesy hoohah. It's bad for the people who enjoyed the TV-Series and liked the character build up and events that took place in it.
Of course a whole new batch of hotties are going to have to be brought in since the old hotties are pushing 50. And of course the good thing is it also means costume redesigns:).
-- "Do not be swept up in the momentum of mediocrity." - anon
Did "V" rip-off "Childhood's End"?
by
peter303
·
· Score: 5, Informative
"V" (and "Independence Day") start out the same as Arthur C. Clarke's "Childhood's End", a favorite of mine. A single huge alien ship suddenly appears above each of Earth's major cities. The aliens stay hidden for a while because they are repulsive reptiles. Then the stories diverge. Childhood's aliens are merely subcontractors for another more powerful race with apocalytic intentions. "V" degenerates into a cops-and-robbers action series.
That was how they ended the second (?) movie, but in the regular series, I vaguely remember they had established that the red chemical was, in fact, harmful to humans, so they had to stop using it, but they tried to keep that facts under wraps from the aliens.
-- "Enough of this wretched, whining monkey life." -- Marcus Aurelius, _Meditations_, Book 9, 37
Re:British miners strike
by
NDPTAL85
·
· Score: 2, Informative
Margaret Thatcher saved the UK economy from the grip s of the evil Unions which now foul the commercial sectors in France and Germany.
-- Mac OS X and Windows XP working side by side to fight back the night.
Re:Let's see here...
by
Neil+Watson
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· Score: 3, Informative
Re:What about the Red Dust?
by
NaugaHunter
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· Score: 2, Informative
Not to mention a) it was harmful to other earth species, and b) it was bought out by some corporation that later tried making deals with the visitors.
-- R: That voice. Where have I heard that voice before?
B: In about 365 other episodes. But I don't know who it is either.
No, it was from 'They Live'
by
Colonel+Panic
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· Score: 2, Informative
Oh.. and the glasses so you could figure out who was a visitor and who wasnt.
I think that was from the movie 'They Live', not 'V'. 'They Live' (a John Carpenter film) was a much better alien invasion movie IMHO.
Re:Nazis? Huh? I just don't see it...
by
grungeKid
·
· Score: 3, Informative
The Nazi paralells were in the way the visitors slowly took over the planet. Remember; they did not take it over with brute force at first, but through manipulation, much like the Nazi party rose to power.
They fabricated a conspiracy in the scientific community, making those in power treat scientists (and later on, anyone related to or in contact with scientist) as criminals, paralelling the way the Nazi's made the german society mistrust the Jews.
They also made sure to control the mass media early on, telling their version of events (paralelling Goebbels quote "If you tell a big enough Lie, and keep on repeating it, in the end people will come to believe it")
Later on, scientists and other visitor enemies were placed in labour camps, which was in reality genocide camps, another paralell.
The visitor friends program was an obvious Hitlerjugend paralell.
In other aspect (such as the human informants), it more resembled East europe communism.
Re:Nazis? Huh? I just don't see it...
by
vidarh
·
· Score: 3, Informative
Maybe you should go back and watch it again (it's out on DVD) and look for:
The youth movement used to snitch on their parents.
The arm bands
The Jewish family that had been through Nazi persecution making a big point about how it is "happening again"
How they make a big point about how they are looking after the public good, and stamp all opposition as a threat to the state
How the make excessive use of staged media events for propaganda
The "prisoners" that are really being taken away to be killed (yes, by being used as food, instead of just as mostly waste) instead of serving sentences as people were being told
How they see humans as inferior (as opposed to the Nazi's seeing non-germanic people as inferior)
Breeding programs (lizard - human pregnancies, much as the Nazis had extensive programs to breed the perfect master race through careful selection)
(as you mentioned) The victimisation of scientists and other intellectuals (the lizards shared with the Nazis an excessive program of arresting and discrediting scientists and political opponents, including pegging crimes on their opponents to turn public opinion against them - Reichtags fire, anyone?)
The parallels are so blatant and in your face that it at some points it really disturbs the story, but I guess that's the point.
Yes, you are right, the lizards wanted humans for food, while the Nazis wanted racial purity and power, but it both amounts to a fundamental disrespect for other sentient beings - all of humanity in the case of the lizards, and "just" all non-germanic people and all in political opposition or anyone who for any other reason didn't fit into the Nazi ideal in the case of the Nazis.
Without some twists, there would have been no point making it as a sci fi series instead of making yet another series about the war.
Slashdot Mirror
Here's a little synopsis for those not born when this came out:
Kenneth Johnson's brilliant 1983 mini-series takes Nazi Germany to a global scale. A group of aliens calling themselves "The Visitors" have come to Earth asking for aid for what they say is a peaceful mission. It doesn't take long for some humans to discover that they're really a race of lizard creatures intent on taking our water and using humans for food. After gaining public trust, the Visitors begin to seize control by manufacturing a conspiracy involving scientists who, like the Jews a half-century before, find themselves ostracized by the public and hunted.
I have often regretted my speech, never my silence.
-Xenocrates
"The original was a lot of fun, but it killed itself with the superbaby junk"
However, as I understand it, the original creator was barely involved with the second series with the "superbaby" junk and pretty much disowned it, so there may be hope for a decent show.
If you'll recall, later in the series the "red dust" didn't work as well in tropical and temperate zones leaving it only "effective" in the colder polar regions...
So I doubt the red dust issue will even be a factor.
I guess I'm more of a geed than I thought...
IIRC, the book made for excellent 14 year old boy reading...
From the way it's presented it sounds as if they are basing the new story line off of where the MINI-Series left off and excluding the TV-Series timeline. This is both good and bad. It's good because we can ditch the whole Star Child prophesy hoohah. It's bad for the people who enjoyed the TV-Series and liked the character build up and events that took place in it.
:).
Of course a whole new batch of hotties are going to have to be brought in since the old hotties are pushing 50. And of course the good thing is it also means costume redesigns
"Do not be swept up in the momentum of mediocrity." - anon
"V" (and "Independence Day") start out the same as Arthur C. Clarke's "Childhood's End", a favorite of mine. A single huge alien ship suddenly appears above each of Earth's major cities. The aliens stay hidden for a while because they are repulsive reptiles. Then the stories diverge. Childhood's aliens are merely subcontractors for another more powerful race with apocalytic intentions. "V" degenerates into a cops-and-robbers action series.
That was Blair Tefkin, not Molly Ringwald. And that magical visitor kid ending ruined the entire series for me. I'd prefer that they leave it alone.
We want some answers and all that we get
Some kind of shit about a terrorist threat
- Ministry
That was how they ended the second (?) movie, but in the regular series, I vaguely remember they had established that the red chemical was, in fact, harmful to humans, so they had to stop using it, but they tried to keep that facts under wraps from the aliens.
"Enough of this wretched, whining monkey life." -- Marcus Aurelius, _Meditations_, Book 9, 37
Margaret Thatcher saved the UK economy from the grip s of the evil Unions which now foul the commercial sectors in France and Germany.
Mac OS X and Windows XP working side by side to fight back the night.
Be careful what you wish for: S.W.A.T.
UNIX/Linux Consulting
Not to mention a) it was harmful to other earth species, and b) it was bought out by some corporation that later tried making deals with the visitors.
R: That voice. Where have I heard that voice before? B: In about 365 other episodes. But I don't know who it is either.
Oh.. and the glasses so you could figure out who was a visitor and who wasnt.
I think that was from the movie 'They Live', not 'V'. 'They Live' (a John Carpenter film) was a much better alien invasion movie IMHO.
The Nazi paralells were in the way the visitors slowly took over the planet. Remember; they did not take it over with brute force at first, but through manipulation, much like the Nazi party rose to power.
They fabricated a conspiracy in the scientific community, making those in power treat scientists (and later on, anyone related to or in contact with scientist) as criminals, paralelling the way the Nazi's made the german society mistrust the Jews.
They also made sure to control the mass media early on, telling their version of events (paralelling Goebbels quote "If you tell a big enough Lie, and keep on repeating it, in the end people will come to believe it")
Later on, scientists and other visitor enemies were placed in labour camps, which was in reality genocide camps, another paralell.
The visitor friends program was an obvious Hitlerjugend paralell.
In other aspect (such as the human informants), it more resembled East europe communism.
The parallels are so blatant and in your face that it at some points it really disturbs the story, but I guess that's the point.
Yes, you are right, the lizards wanted humans for food, while the Nazis wanted racial purity and power, but it both amounts to a fundamental disrespect for other sentient beings - all of humanity in the case of the lizards, and "just" all non-germanic people and all in political opposition or anyone who for any other reason didn't fit into the Nazi ideal in the case of the Nazis.
Without some twists, there would have been no point making it as a sci fi series instead of making yet another series about the war.