The remake of cult television series V may not have set the (ratings) world on fire, but season two has an ace hidden up its intergalactic sleeve. Diana from the original series is back!
Remember the eighties television hit? Alien lizards in human body suits offering overtures of friendship while sneakily invading Earth and eating us? Like scaly outer space strangers handing out diplomatic lollies.
Unfortunately, modern television remakes face an awful quandary; they need to successfully marry rehashed nostalgic elements with fresh topical material. Tough call, and so far the production team responsible for V (version 2.0.1.0) have failed dismally.
The aim was to re-engage fans of the original series while also enticing new viewers. But as the premiere season progressed, audience subsets slipped through the network's fingers like millions of grains of disinterested sand.
The first few episodes of V Rebirthed were a terrible mess. Luckily, by the end of season one, the overall story arc had picked up pace. Watching the Visitors struggle with an otherworldly version of drug addiction and the alien (excuse the pun) concept of raw emotion became quite fascinating.
Ironically, the most 'human' characters on the show are the aliens. Morena Baccarin was great in Firefly as the sensual courtesan Inara. She proves her acting chops here, stepping into the disparate role of Anna with startling ease. Other key alien figures, Joshua, Marcus and Lisa, are written intriguingly and portrayed convincingly.
Unfortunately, humanity's letting the team down.
Americans can't seem to make a television show without injecting lame procedural leanings. I'm guessing some bright spark in the office thought sci-fi would have wider audience appeal if the story followed an FBI agent. You know, the kind of female cop character scriptwriters order en bulke:
"Female cop available. Wears figure hugging t-shirt and jeans, but is not overtly sexual. Both intuitive and authoritive. Has problems with intimate relationships. Constantly pieces together clues male cohorts will overlook. Long hair, but minimal makeup focusing on excessive fake eyelashes (what is with that?). Gives regular impassioned speeches. Provides moral compass. Has notable compassionate streak that will occasionally leave character feeling conflicted over difficult following-the-letter-of-the-law decisions."
Yawn.
There's a chance the show might find its feet now the clumsily awkward set-up is a distant memory. The scripting is oddly erratic; while character development progresses splendidly, logistical problems continue to trip up the creative team.
Modern technology would render a lot of the actions of the Resistance in the original V obsolete, yet still, the new version uses similar storylines. Considering aliens are even more technologically advanced, there's no way a bunch of amateur earthling activists wouldn't be bust-ed about four days into their Red Dawn act.
One character is an FBI agent and the other an arms dealer, so you'd think they'd have a heads up on this kind of thing. Like not calling each other to yell semi-hysterically across mobile phone lines in the middle of a subversive attack, for example.
But I'm feeling optimistic with actress Jane Badler re-appearing as Diana, mother of this series' big baddy Anna and grandma to conflicted Juliet character, Lisa. (For those who didn't know, Diana's been hiding out in Australia all these years. Honest!). The real question is, will she eat a rat again?
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