There sure was a lot packed into this week’s episode of V — probably because ABC cut the season order to from thirteen to ten episodes — but what a lot of people have been waiting for finally happened … Hobbes took off his shirt. And then Erica took it off of him again later when the sexual tension that had been building since their trip to Hong Kong came to a head, raising some major questions they both will have to deal with (if we are fortunate enough to get a third season). Will Hobbes be able to live with himself after being responsible for Joe’s death, and how will Erica react when she learns the truth? It’s messy when you have sex with someone then find out they did something that has emotionally scarred you.
If I’ve had one nagging question about this season, it’s what in the frak happened to the armada of alien ships headed this way at the end of season one? That’s not been mentioned once all year. It appears that someone will bring it up next week, so hopefully this will all fit into Anna’s plan. Fellow Clackers Carla and Ivey debated last week on what this version of V is about. It doesn’t seem to follow the original series’ theme of invasion and occupation, at least not as blatantly because Earth certainly has been invaded, but the Visitors are just being a little more circumspect about their plan. Yes, most Earthlings do still see them as saviors, and yes, the Fifth Column hasn’t had the best track record of exposing Anna’s plan. But the show is still about the aliens invading earth and conquering the human race to use as breeders for the next step in the species. These Visitors aren’t Nazis or Socialists or Communists or whatever the original series intended them to be. They’re just aliens here to invade earth and use us for breeding. Here’s the real question: why does Anna need to speed up that evolution?
Unfortunately, the Fifth Column under Erica’s direction had a great plan that turned into an epic fail. Once they figured out the missing pieces of the selected boys’ DNA were to be filled with V DNA, Erica and her team stole an experimental virus and infected one person from each of the last live aboard applicants. Once on the ship, their infected DNA would be introduced into the rest of the extracted DNA rendering it useless. Unfortunately, the infected subjects got sick just as they boarded their motherships and the plan was foiled, and Anna used her propaganda to claim these people were Fifth Column terrorists (there’s a theme for you), who were killed while trying to blow up the ships. What Erica and her team didn’t know was the selected boys were starting to get sick and die because their DNA ladder’s were collapsing because of the missing sequences. Lucky for Erica, the plan failed or Tyler would have been a casualty of both her and Anna’s plans.
It was cool to see Lisa take Ryan to his true queen to seek her assistance in saving his daughter and taking down Anna. But who knew Diana had super-secret, cloaked escape pods built into the ship? Diana also offered to cure Ryan’s daughter with her own Bliss, because she is still a queen after all. Now if Anna hadn’t tried to have Ryan assassinated, none of this would have happened. But Diana knows that Anna is reacting to everything much too emotionally, even though she won’t admit it, and her actions are setting things up beautifully for Diana to stage her comeback. It will be interesting to see what happens now that one of Anna’s most trusted allies also knows of Diana’s existence. But did Diana seem just a tad over-excited to hear of a human-alien hybrid? Hmmmmmm.
V may not follow in the grand tradition of some other classic science fiction shows that did address current social issues of their time – nuclear war, racism, Vietnam – it’s just solid entertainment. I look forward to each new episode, and with only two left I do hope the suits at ABC give the story a real chance to develop instead of hamstringing it every chance they get (or maybe a certain Syence Fyction-themed network could pick it up … please).
Clacked by Chuck Duncan 
on Mar 02, 2011 @ 04:01 EST5EDT
Nice review, Chuck, except for one thing: You’re under the mistaken impression that Syfy has any interest in science fiction any more. I’ve said it before and I stand by what I’ve said: In 12-24 months Syfy will have about as much to do with science fiction as TLC does about learning. The name change wasn’t for copyright reasons, it was to make themselves feel better about channel drift. Wrestling was supposedly brought in as a cheap way to increase revenue to continue to show the less profitable scifi, but if that was true then greed overtook the net and they’re moving on to more reality TV, cooking shows and God knows what next. I hope I’m wrong, but current trends don’t seem to indicate that.
As for “V” it’s always been more fluff and melodrama than I had hoped, but like too many science fiction shows of the past few years it’s taken 2 seasons to find itself. Now, as we wind down this extremely abbreviated season, it still may have not lived up to its potential, but at least now the pace has picked up and I find myself looking forward to watching it. I’ve seen every episode and my feelings toward it used to be that it was something to watch when not much else was on, now it’s a guilty pleasure that leaves me wanting more at the end of each episode.
Unfortunately, just like SGU, the pace that would keep viewers and draw new ones only comes toward the middle of season 2, long after the majority of eyeballs has wandered elsewhere and given up. I thought The Event would do the same, but I don’t think it’s even managing that level of build-up, but this pattern of taking too long to “break out the big guns” is too prevalent in too much scifi lately and while it seems large numbers of people are willing to give scifi a chance, too many of them are fickle and expect fireworks from the start.
I’m not saying I like the idea of a scifi series starting like that, but if that’s what it takes to keep gnat-brained American audiences interested then someone needs to try it and they might have a bonafide hit on their hands no matter if it’s schlock or pure art. Personally, I love the slow yet realistic take the BBC’s Outcasts is taking, but it seems even Brit audiences who are usually more patient aren’t loving that these days and maybe American television, and US audience reaction to it, is beginning to spill over there. I hope not because that would be sad since some of the absolute best science fiction on television has come from that little, wonderful island.
It’s just tiresome to see one’s favorite shows, scifi in particular, axed at a cliffhanger with no resolution. I may have been in the minority, but my whole family watched every episode of FlashForward on the edge of our seats. Yes, there weren’t enough characters we could really care about, but the premise was so intriguing that, for us at least, it didn’t matter. I think in retrospect a lot of folks are thinking FlashForward is looking pretty damned good right now.
How about we take bets on when Terra Nova gets canned? Since it’ll air on Fox I think it’ll have a longer life than on any other broadcast network. Yes, we’re all still stinging from Firefly, et al, but I think Fox has shown a remarkable deal of goodwill towards science fiction lately. Just look at the truly undeserved reprieve Dollhouse got and Fox really seems to be behind Fringe, too. They could be lying through their teeth about it, but only good things have been said about Fringe and even if it gets canceled, at least Fox takes chances in the scifi realm. Syfy is pulling back from the hard stuff to give us nothing more serious than Eureka, WH13 and Haven, all of which I happen to enjoy immensely, but I want spaceships, aliens, battles, exploration of new planets and seemingly plausible explanations for the technology, the alien life, and all that. The 3 shows I mentioned do little to nothing about that and are really fantasy shows.
I apologize for hijacking your great V recap to monopolize my grandstanding soapbox monologue, but damn-it I’m just boiling over these days watching the deaths of so much good television in favor of crap. Many will continue to say V is crap, and I can’t completely disagree, but at least some of the stink is fading away and this turd is at least becoming more polished. Polished to the point that I look forward to it now and hate that ABC hasn’t extended the order a few more episodes. It’s going to suck seeing Marc Singer for one episode and then FADE TO BLACK…forever.
Excuse me while I go find something to kick…
*POST AUTHOR*
I’m well aware that SyFy isn’t really the home of science fiction anymore. That was just a bit of out loud wishful thinking … and I couldn’t really think of another network that would be even remotely interested in picking the show up should ABC cancel it (although NBC could use any help they can get at this point). It’s too bad first-run syndication isn’t the big deal it used to be when shows like ST-TNG and DS9, Hercules, Xena and others could find time on local channels to thrive. Legend of the Seeker only made it through two seasons in syndication because it’s cheaper and more lucrative for local stations to run off-network reruns like Grey’s Anatomy and CSI: Miami.
I don’t know that Fox is such a great place for sci-fi either. They seem to be willing to produce a good number of shows, but they never give them time to develop (X-Files was probably the last long running sci-fi-ish show on the network) before they ship them off to the Friday death slot. I loved Wonderfalls, and after a couple of Thursday episodes it got shipped off to Friday to die. The Sarah Connor Chronicles seemed to have a more devoted fan base (and more critical praise) than Dollhouse and should have been the show that was saved. Instead, it ended up on Fridays (as did Dollhouse) and both are gone. Fringe, if it survives, will hopefully find a home on another night of the week, but Fox doesn’t have much real estate with Terra Nova coming in the fall and The X Factor, which will take up multiple nights like Idol. So, really, it could move to Tuesday after Glee, but that would displace Raising Hope and they don’t really have another live action sitcom to pair that with at this point and a live action sitcom won’t work on Sundays now with all of the animated shows. But would the Glee audience stay tuned for Fringe? Probably not a good match. But maybe a Fringe/V pairing on Friday would give the net a little boost – again, out loud wishful thinking.
The networks blame the audiences for the failure of these serialized shows, whether they’re sci-fi or not. The audiences blame the networks because they know that more than likely a show will get canned after a few episodes so there’s no point in even starting to watch a serialized show. That’s why the L&Os, NCISes and CSIs of the world do well. You don’t have to tune in every week to follow the story. But the viewers are also to blame because they want answers every week. They won’t allow the story to build. If there isn’t at least one big AHA! moment in every episode, they get bored and tune out. Watching these shows is like reading a good book, and unfortunately, a lot of avid TV viewers don’t read a lot of books that require time to build the plot over several hundred pages. We’ve grown too impatient in general and require instant gratification, especially when it comes to storytelling on TV. V has suffered at the hands of the network during both of its seasons with having original episode orders cut by several episodes, forcing the writers to alter the last few scripts. The show was also on the air for four weeks, then off for four months last season before it returned so any momentum the show could have gained was killed right then and there. V was supposed to return in the fall this season, but at least the bump has given it an uninterrupted run (minus the State of the Union address pre-emption). There has been a small increase in the ratings over the course of the season, but is it enough to assure the suits at ABC that audiences will continue to flock to the show next season? That’s what ABC needs to see at this point. Warner Brothers is also at fault for the lack of interest in the show because they’ve withheld it from ABC On Demand, ABC.com, Netflix and Hulu so if you want to catch up with the show, you have to buy it from iTunes or Amazon (or download illegally). They’re not making it easy for people to get involved. So, it seems that even the show’s owner isn’t all that invested in it, and if that’s the case then why should the viewers? The only thing I’m certain about is that there will be a cliffhanger. Whether we get a resolution is up to ABC, Warner Brothers and the Nielsen families.
I think we’re on the same page, in the same boat, two peas in a pod, of one mind…et cetera in our feelings about scifi on TV. The only point I slightly disagree with you on is Fox and it’s not really a disagreement, I’m just giving them kudos because at least they keep on trying. Yes, the same thing seems to happen over and over to scifi, but they could just quit altogether and some days I almost wish they would. Would it be better to never have cake than to get one tasty bite and then have it pulled away? Sometimes I think one bite’s better than none, while other times I’d rather not see it.
My main reason for giving Fox props for continuing to try was to take a swipe at Siffy who seem to not even be doing that. Plus, I think a little more positive attitude from online fandom couldn’t hurt, but while we’re a passionate bunch there sure are a lot of douchey comments when a show isn’t exactly like some fans think it should be. Me? I’m a self-proclaimed scifi slut. I’ll take it all, bad, good, fast, slow, serious, schlocky, thoughtful, stupidly action-packed. I’m old enough to remember when there wasn’t any good scifi on TV save for the original Star Trek so I guess that’s where my “I’ll take whatever I can get” attitude comes from. Back then TV Guide even did the disservice to scifi by listing it as “melodrama” which, if I’m not mistaken, even horror had its own genre listing (used to be in fine print after the bold title in the little book).
Any way, I think all scifi fans feel the same; that we’re Charlie Brown, the networks are Lucy Van Pelt and the football is science fiction programming. We take a hopeful run up to it and just when it’s looking good, WHAM! it’s pulled out from before us and we’re flat on our asses.
*POST AUTHOR*
I did give props to Fox for at least producing more sci-fi than the other networks. My problem with Fox is that if a show doesn’t produce results within two or three episodes, it’s off to the Friday time slot because they just don’t have the real estate. Maybe if Fox would expand each night into the 10:00 hour, they’d be able to give these shows more time to nurture. So, yes, they do at least TRY to give us more sci-fi than the other networks, but their patience isn’t their virtue.
Good point about the 10:00 hour. They’ve been on the air long enough to begin adding programming at that time to compete and maybe some of our favorites would live on. BTW, I agree that TSCC should’ve gotten a reprieve instead of Dollhouse.
Patience isn’t really the virtue of any network these days. It has to be a mega hit from the first episode or it’s gone. The X-Files wouldn’t have made a full season had it premiered in the last few years.
Love V. But one thing bothered me throughout this episode from the very beginning. The whole point of the live aboard torture experiments is to extract their DNA right? Is Anna and her troop of super advanced V scientists unaware that they can just swab some cheeks, pluck some hair, or draw some blood?
*POST AUTHOR*
After the DNA is extracted, live-aboards make great snacks! :-)
You’ve got me scared now. We’re leaving on a 1 week cruise in a few days where we’ll “live aboard” the ship for seven days. The entire time it’ll be filled with food while the staff tries to fatten us up.
Damn, and until now I was kinda excited. Thanks for ruining the last few days of my life, Chuck! I hope I give you indigestion you lizard…
*POST AUTHOR*
Oh, not to worry. We are of peace … always!
I can’t see you, but I’d bet my bottom dollar you just turned toward the camera, gave a tiny, evil grin and twirled your imaginary handlebar mustache.
I’m high in fat so I hope I give you a lizard heart attack!
Is the ‘V’ science fiction series still showing and if so where? both my husband and I really enjoy this series. is there somewhere we can purchase the whole series?
*POST AUTHOR*
No, the second season finale aired a few weeks ago. Season 1 is available on DVD and Blu-ray as well as through digital downloads at iTunes and Amazon.com. Season 2 does not appear to be available on either iTunes or Amazon at this time. The DVD/Blu-ray set for Season 2 has not yet been announced but Amazon is taking pre-orders. For some strange reason, Warner Brothers (which produces the show) has not made the episodes available to stream online through ABC.com, Hulu, Netflix or through ABC On Demand. I believe this is a major factor in the show’s low ratings because any newcomers to the show have no outlet to catch up on what’s been happening and no one wants to tune into a show mid-stream without any background info. So, for the time being, only Season 1 is available to purchase.