V: The Complete First Season
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Actor: Elizabeth Mitchell, Morena BaccarinBrand: Warner Brothers
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; Portuguese (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Box set, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
DVD Release Date: 2010-11-02
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product features:
- DVD
- Standard Edition
- 16 X 9 FULL FRAME
- VIVA 3 Disc 15mm Case
- Multi Disc
- Dolby Surround 5.1 - English Stereo - Portuguese
- ? The Visual FX of V Featurette ? The Actor's Journey Featurette ? An Alien in Human Skin: The Makeup FX of V Featurette ? Commentary
DVD Reviews of V: The Complete First Season
DVD Review: "'To Serve Man'... it's... it's a cookbook!"
Summary: 3 Stars
Shady aliens once more among us. When comparing this remake to the original, it's not the old ongoing television series in 1984 that comes to mind but its predecessors, the two mini-series that aired in 1983 and 1984 (V and V: THE FINAL BATTLE). Both those mini-series were thrilling and epic, fraught with suspense and so thought provoking. Part of the success was due to the constraints of the limited series format; the story had to move fast, make its points quick, no effing around. With this 2009 adaptation - and an ongoing series, at that - the pace tends to be leisurely; it plods, frankly. I do like this show but I admit to, at times, having gotten impatient.
The pilot episode opens by asking questions such as "Where were you when JFK was assassinated?" and "Where were you on 9/11?" The intent is to hint at the momentousness of the event which transpires minutes into the pilot. But, also, these questions may lead you to pondering conspiracies. And now factor in the current crippling economic condition? The benevolent Visitors picked the best time to announce their presence, their twenty-nine gargantuan alien mother ships hovering over major cities across the globe. These Visitors from another planet claim that they "are of peace, always." That theirs is merely a sojourn, a temporary stay. And that they possess technological advances they wish to share with humanity, along with their friendship.
As the Visitors seek to cement diplomatic ties with key governments across the world, Earthlings are invited to tour the mother ships, to take in the marvels exhibited within. For humans seeking respite from troubled times, the Visitors are viewed as saviors and miracle workers. It's not too long before humans are recruited as Peace Ambassadors and Visitor churches are contemplated. But, down among the dirt, deep in the shadows, there are those who harbor nagging doubts. They are the human resistance. For humanity, that's a good thing. Because there are aliens posing as humans, and sinister schemes lurking behind the Visitors' many gestures of kindness. There is a cook book.
(You did see that Twilight Zone episode, right?)
Think what you will of Marc Singer, he was on point as the original V's dashing hero. This modern incarnation doesn't feature an Indiana Jones type like Singer, and that's to its detriment. I don't see anyone here as sympathetic or likable as Robert Englund's vulnerable alien Willie. Charles Mesure doesn't have Michael Ironside's presence. But Morena Baccarin is this show's great get. She improves on Jane Badler (who, given, was a hottie in the original V). To cover all bases, though, Jane Badler comes on the new V in Season 2 (as Anna's mother, Diana).
As Anna, the charismatic, press-savvy Visitor High Commander, Morena Baccarin is mesmerizing, and I couldn't resist her wiles. But, then again, I've loved Baccarin since her stint in FIREFLY. Anna is one of the show's focal points, and her Machiavellian character is the most crucial element in the show. The other main lead is Elizabeth Mitchell (from LOST) whose FBI agent/anxious mom character heads up the human resistance. Scott Wolf as the news anchor who becomes Anna's media voice rounds out what's interesting in this cast. The rest of the supporting cast are blah.
The special effects are flawless. The predominant themes of media manipulation, closet fascism, and the gradual erosion of values that result from compromise are old hat. We all knew going in that some humans will choose to collaborate with the Visitors. Some will defy them. I realize that the show is in the midst of world-building, trying to establish its own mythology. But it really could've done with more action sequences and maybe more timely reveals. And more inventiveness. Even worse, the episodes frequently dragged. So it comes down to this: Is the sci-fi alien-among-us premise enough of a hook? Despite the sluggishness, were you entertained anyway? Were you intrigued enough that even that long hiatus in between new episodes kept your patronage? It did, me. Barely. But I wonder how much of that is because I loved the original so much. Season 2 had better pick up tremendously.
V - THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON, with its 12 episodes, comes in three discs, with the following bonus material: "The Actor's Journey from Human to V" lets you go behind the scenes with cast & crew interviews (00:16:54 minutes); "Breaking Story: The World of V" is an overview of Season 1 (00:16:36 minutes); "An Alien in Human Skin: The Makeup FX of V" is self-explanatory (00:11:52); as is "VFX: The Visual FX of V" (00:15:07); 6 Deleted Scenes; and audio commentary on the episode "Fruition" by Executive Producers Steve Pearlman & Scott Rosenbaum.
Description of V: The Complete First Season
The Visitors are among us. In a single shared moment, they appear in every major city in the world, promoting a message of peace. They want to share their knowledge of technology; they want us to unite. And they are counting on a very important component of human nature: devotion. At first considered a threat, the Visitors -- or V's -- quickly become a fascination. But when FBI Counter Terrorist Agent Erica Evans discovers what lurks beneath the alarmingly human exterior of the V's, resisting this new world has never been more important -- and never has there been more at stake. It truly is the dawning of a new day.There's a lot to like about V, an exceptionally well-made series combining science fiction, action-adventure, and personal drama (and debuting here on DVD with all 12 first-season episodes on three discs). From the moment 29 enormous spaceships appear over an equal number of major cities (the principal action takes place in New York and aboard the mother ship that hovers over it), nothing will ever be the same. But the Visitors, commonly known as Vs, "are of peace"--or so says Anna (Morena Baccarin), their young, beautiful, preternaturally serene leader (the Vs look human, but as we soon discover, their appearance is only one part of them that isn't what it seems). Folks around the globe are smitten as the Vs perform Christ-like medical miracles and use their awesome technology and messianic powers of persuasion to wow the Earthlings--especially a smarmy, headline-hugging TV "journalist" (Scott Wolf) who becomes their willing mouthpiece, helping the Vs seduce the entire global population? almost. Of course, there are some who know better, specifically the "Fifth Column," a resistance group comprised of humans (with Elizabeth Mitchell as an FBI agent whose son is in thrall to the aliens) and a few "traitor" Vs who've lived on Earth for years (including Morris Chestnut as a V whose human girlfriend is pregnant). They know what the Visitors' real agenda is--and that dirty deeds like establishing terror cells and surreptitiously injecting drugs into humans are only the beginning.
All of this is offered in a very slick, entertaining package; the plotting is clever and just unpredictable enough, the effects work is outstanding (especially good is a technique whereby Vs on their mother ship are rendered like video game characters), and while V is hardly what you'd call profound, it does touch on some interesting ideas (such as the role of emotions, of which the Vs have none, or the danger of putting one's faith in false gods). That will help viewers overlook some of the show's more dubious elements. For instance, the utter gullibility of the vast majority of humans in the face of the aliens' transparent duplicity is preposterous, even by sci-fi standards; by the same token, it's hard to swallow that the Fifth Column, which seems to consist of about four people, could possibly pose a threat to the omnipotent Visitors. Still, by the time it reaches its season-ending cliffhanger, V has given us more than enough reasons to tune in again next year. --Sam Graham
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