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V (1984)
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 26, 2017 6:50 pm    Post subject: V (1984) Reply with quote




I was very impressed by this miniseries when it first aired. Very Happy

I still like it, and I own the DVD set. It's weaknesses were apparent when I first saw it (like the lizard/alien makeup). With the marvelous advances in that field we later saw in TV series like TNG and various movies, the makeup looks even less impressive now.

However, fault-finding aside, the basic premise is brilliant — a retelling of the shameful way the citizens of Germany during World War II allowed the Nazis to slowly lull them into complacency while they took control of the country and turned the populace against certain ethnic groups.

That shameful event was not caused by any moral deficiency specific to the citizens of Germany. It was caused by basic human nature, and it could have happened in any country. The fact that the Germans have given ample evidence that they're one of the most intelligent nations on Earth proves that their behavior was not caused by gullibility or dimwittedness.

Therefore, V is a story about how mankind is duped by aliens who use the same proven strategy, with same tragic results.

The FX are admirable for the time they were made, and the scenes of the giant saucers cruising over the landscape are still impressive.






The shot with the buried skull in the foreground and the saucer in the background is a perfect symbol of how the aliens plan to replace mankind on Earth.





The cast of this miniseries is plum stellar in my opinion, with Mark Singer presenting us with very cool hero —


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— and Faye Grant giving us a brave young lady who finds herself thrust into the roll of a rebel leader. Jane Badler is so hot she sizzles, despite being a cold blooded, rodent-munching reptile!





Robert Englund excels as the soft-hearted alien invader who has much more in common with the human victims of his race's invaders than his own scaly colleagues.

Richard Herd has a choice roll as a high-ranking alien official who breaks ranks with his alien counterparts and sides with the humans because he knows that the invasion is moral wrong.

All-in-all, this miniseries still packs a punch, and I enjoy watching it from time to time. Very Happy

Unfortunately, the regular series it inspired was just so much Hollywood manure and not worth watching.

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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


Last edited by Bud Brewster on Thu Mar 08, 2018 2:11 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Gord Green
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 26, 2017 9:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

A great series, although I found the sequels more repetitive.

This plot idea owes a lot to CHILDHOOD'S END by Arthur C Clarke although with a very different motive and conclusion. Aspects of it were also recycled in INDEPENDENCE DAY as well.

All in all it was a variation of the "We come in peace." scenario made more relevant to its' 80's time frame.
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Krel
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 26, 2017 10:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The miniseries was originally going to be an update of "Shadow On The Land" about a takeover of the U.S. from within. The studio and network thought that the idea was to cerebral for the public, so it was turned into Aliens taking over.

It was never intended to be a TV show, but the ratings were so good for the miniseries that the network demanded a weekly series. So, like "Battlestar Galactica" the series was rushed into production without a proper lead in time to develop it as a series.

David.
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Wed Sep 27, 2017 10:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

I was disappointed in V: The Final Battle even though writer/director Kenneth Johnson was involved with it, and even more disappointed in the series that followed because it had even less of the intelligence and integrity of the original mini-series.

I suspect that was largely because of the event mentioned in the Wikipedia article.

Johnson left V during production of The Final Battle due to disagreements with NBC over how the story should progress.

I had some interesting ideas about how The Final Battle should have been done, and they included concepts which were eventually used in Independence Day: Resurgence — specifically the borrowing of alien technology to enhance jet fighters with advanced weapons and protective force fields.

It's ironic that the concept of giant saucers suddenly hovering over major cities was later used in Independence Day, and when V first aired I thought the sequel to it should have human fighters enhanced with alien technology.

Gee, I oughta' be a writer! Wink






Here's the NBC teaser, shown right before part one just to get us pumped up for this great show.

It worked . . . Cool



____________ V The Original Miniseries NBC Teaser


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And here's a copy of somebody's old VHS tape of the recap for the original miniseries, shown prior to the V: The Final Battle.


_ V the Final Battle pre-show promo/teaser NBC 1984


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)


Last edited by Bud Brewster on Thu Mar 08, 2018 2:12 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Pow
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PostPosted: Wed Sep 27, 2017 11:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Very well done mini-series.

I recall how impressed I was with the alien mother ship,as well as their shuttlecraft. The shuttles were sharper looking than the one created for ST:TOS.

I was awed by just how well they were able to matte the shuttles into the sky as they pursued humans. Usually you get those fuzzy outlines around the model being matted into a scene.

Jane Badler would later on go from playing an evil alien to a good secret agent on the 1989 Mission:Impossible reboot.
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Wed Sep 27, 2017 1:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

I tried to find a clip of the dogfight between Marc Singer and the pursuing alien fighter, but all I got was this less-than-perfect version (with Spanish dialogue a few times).
Sad

_____ Donovan's dogfight (my title, not Youtube's)


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That scene and the one shortly thereafter it are my two favorites from the miniseries.

The second scene I'm referring to shows Faye Grant repeating a dramatic gesture we see at the beginning of the miniseries, in which a brave South American revolutionary leader faces down a helicopter gunship as it approaches.

Near the end of the miniseries, Faye stands bravely and fires at an approaching alien fighter carrying Jane Badler, who smiles as she watches Faye about to be gunned down.

I did, however, find this section from the soundtrack which presents the great music during Donovan's dogfight. Damn, this stuff is good!
Very Happy


__ Escape from the Mothership / Air Chase / Donovan's Luck


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)
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Pow
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 01, 2017 8:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I remember reading years ago that as Faye is standing her ground & firing at the approaching alien shuttle she would make sounds like a ray gun firing.
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scotpens
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 01, 2017 12:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Bud Brewster wrote:
I did, however, find this section from the soundtrack which presents the great music during Donovan's dogfight. Damn, this stuff is good! Very Happy

Joe Harnell, the very talented composer and jazz pianist who wrote the score for the original miniseries, was my mother's second husband. They were married for 20 years until his death in 2005.

I definitely hear echoes of Bernard Herrmann's "North by Northwest" main title music in the "Air Chase" segment. And if Joe were still alive today, I'm sure he'd be the first to admit it!

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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Sun Oct 01, 2017 3:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

Wow, I've loved the North X Northwest score for decades, as well as the V score since I first saw it when it initially aired, and the similarity you mentioned is undeniable!

Good call, Scotpens. Very Happy

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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)
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johnnybear
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 16, 2018 3:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I loved the Lizard make up in the first mini series! I thought it was awesome! The second version look wasn't bad, but the Lizard's look deteriorated quite a bit for the weekly television series! Plus the storyline got worse each and every week!
JB
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 16, 2018 12:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

I think that if the original show runner, writer/director Kenneth Johnson, had stayed with project for a second mini-series (not a full series), it would have been very good.

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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)
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johnnybear
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 16, 2018 1:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The most annoying thing about the series was that we never got to find out who or what the enemy of the Lizards actually were!! I remember they sent a message to their planetary system but they never received an answer!
JB
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Bud Brewster
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 16, 2018 3:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

________________________________

Exactly! We were all set for V: The Final Battle, expecting a big payoff on that last scene in V.

After the original V, I had a nice idea for a sequel that involved (by coincidence, I swear) several elements from Independence Day and its own sequel.

Stolen alien technology is secretly used by the military to jazz up our jet fighters, and the climax is an attack on the saucers with these enhanced aircraft. After bringing down a few mother ships, the remainder retreat and head for space.

But they're met by incoming ships belonging to the "enemy" we heard about in V, who are coming to help Earth, and the gopher-eaters get their scaly asses kicked! Very Happy

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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)
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johnnybear
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PostPosted: Mon Jun 18, 2018 2:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Martin's comments to Donovan might have meant that the Leader's enemies might have been a worse enemy to humanity than the Visitors themselves! Shame it was never followed up on though or even mentioned again!
JB
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Maurice
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PostPosted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 12:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Speaking of "V", my friend Gil Poznanski is friends with Jane Badler (Diana) and a few weeks ago she did a little video for his Makers Monday YouTube channel.

____________Makers Monday - 65 - Jane Badler


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