V The Series - A Classic Revised
A Look at The Original Mini Series and Its Re-imagined Offspring
Nov 3, 2009
As the new series of V premiers on American television, looking to entice a new generation with its post 9/11 fear of attacks from the enemy within whilst at the same time hoping to keep fans of the original series with the familiar story, it is worth looking back at the original series from its conception to the troubled sequels and the controversies that followed.
Humble Beginnings
V the Mini Series was the brainchild of Kenneth Johnson (Six Million Dollar Man, Alien Nation) and told the story of the arrival of aliens on Earth, known as The Visitors, who need our help to rescue their dying world. In exchange the Visitors promise to share their knowledge and technology with humanity. However the sinister truths about their real intentions emerge in which far from looking like humans are in fact lizard creatures in disguise looking to steal the Earth’s entire oceans and harvest humans for food. A rebellion led by scientist Juliet Parrish (Faye Grant) emereged rallying people including camerman Mike Donovan (Marc Singer) and even a Mexican gardner (Rafael Campos) to expose the true intentions of the visitors and fight them.
After a run of successes in science fiction, Johnson wanted to attempt something different with a political drama inspired by the 1935 novel It Can’t Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis, about the rise of fascism in America. His idea was tell a story of the rise to power of a fascist group, the abuse of that power and the consequences that followed. Johnson proposed the concept to Warner Brothers who liked it but felt it was too subtle for American audiences and that the threat should come from an outside force.
Although Johnson resisted the idea of returning to sci-fi he saw an opportunity to tell his story but as an allegory of Nazi – occupation. The fascists became aliens and Johnson fuelled the Nazi symbolism with the Visitor’s uniforms similar to the Third Reich with an emblem resembling the Swastika. There is even a reference to the Youth Program of Nazi Germany, which the aliens called the Visitor Friends Program. It too provided a haven for disaffected youth while indoctrinating them to the Visitors’ cause. There were also collaborators who turned a blind eye to the Visitors nefarious plans and of course resistance cells determined to expel their invaders.
Fall From Grace
The show aired in May 1983 and was a huge success with over 65 million viewers caught up in the suspense and action but also shocked by what became one of the most talked about scenes on television at the time; the sight of an alien visitor Diana (Jane Badler) swallowing a guinea pig whole. The Nazi-symbolism played particularly well when added with the revelation of the visitors’ real plans of stealing our water and harvesting humans for food. With an ending that left the future of humanity uncertain it became the most successful science fiction television show of its day. Keen to capitalise on the success of the series, Warner Brothers commissioned Johnson to develop the sequel. Thus work began on V: The Final Battle.
Johnson planned to continue the story decades into the future, with a weak resistance still struggling to fend off the Visitors who have almost drained the Earth dry and the population dwindling even further. However the studios, concerned about the high budget needed for such an ambitious story line, wanted to continue the original story instead to which Johnson reluctantly agreed. All seemed well at first but soon Johnson’s concerns about the direction of the series led him into constant disagreements with the studio, and resulting in his leaving the production.
The Final Battle although a resounding success had suffered some criticism following Johsnon’s departure. The themes and ideas so prevalent in the original mini series although present seemed to have been watered down and the finale borrowed from H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds was not received well overall. This didn’t stop Warner Brothers from commissioning a weekly television series this time, without Johnson’s involvement. It was cancelled after 19 episodes due to poor ratings. The V phenomenon continued through novel and comic book adaptations and of course syndicated re-runs and premier viewings around the world.
Re-Visiting V
Talks of remaking and/or continuing the story were largely rumours until 2004 when Johnson approached Warner Brothers and pitched his original idea of a future generation still fighting The Visitors. The studio seemed to like the idea initially and commissioned Johnson to provide an outline. The rumour machine kicked into overdrive with stories of a remake followed by the sequel and even rumours that certain members of the original cast including Marc Singer and Jane Badler making cameos. Unfortunately the talks stalled but by then Johnson decided to develop his idea into a novel. V The Second Generation was published in February 2008.
When Warner Brothers announced that they would be remaking the original series, it was greeted with some trepidation. Johnson was not consulted, with the studios instead bringing Scott Peters on board, fresh from the success of The 4400. Further problems surfaced when Warner Brothers wanted to remove Kenneth Johnson’s credit as creator arguing that the new show was so different in terms of style, content and tone that it would be unrecognisable compared to the original. Johnson took the matter before the Writers’ Guild of America for mediation who found in his favour.
The Future of V
Both fans and studios are anxious to see how the new series will be received. Rather than being a mini series, the new "V" will be an episodic weekly show, which if successful may run for years to come, continuing to revisit old scenarios and ideas fused with something new. Kenneth Johnson however is not finished with his beloved creation. He still owns the rights to develop V as a feature film and has expressed interest in remaking the original series and adapting The Second Generation for the big screen.
 |
 |
