I agree. At the time it was good, but NOW, it stinks. A remake would be cool.
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stormlord-2 — 18 years ago(December 16, 2007 04:21 PM)
Not true. I reciently rewatched V and V The Final Battle. Sure the visitor costumes look a bit corney and it has a very 80's feel about it but the characters and story is still very watchable even today. Given the rise of reality tv trash in the last decade I will happily rewatch shows like V over them anyday. Besides it shown has a civilisation can go from a peacefull one to a fasist state very easily. Something America should be aware of.
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criddic2 — 17 years ago(December 05, 2008 05:29 AM)
"V" is a well-written dramatic sci-fi miniseries, and was even nominated for a Writers Guild Award for Best Long-form Television Writing. The makeup and score were, according to IMDB, nominated for Emmys.
At the time, as some have stated, the effects were top of the line for a TV production. Reviews were generally positive and viewers loved it. Marc Singer even appeared in the NYC Thanksgiving Parade one year with a V-float, if I remember correctly. That's how popular "V" was, for years. I can recall seeing the re-airings in the late-1980s. And a couple of times in more recent years, the sci-fi channel aired it as well.
The original minseries is also a precursor of sorts to "Independence Day," so much so that the 1996 film prompted comparisons from some critics at the time. This particularly due to the opening of the film, with the giant ships overhead.
Today, almost any special effects from the 1970s, 1980s or 1990s will seem paled in comparison to CGI effects used in modern films. Remarkable exceptions include "Superman: The Movie" (1978) and "Aliens" (1986). Since "V" was made for TV, the comparison would lead to an even greater gap in quality, but it holds up fairly well considering that.
The better way to view the technical aspects, and to appreciate how good they were, would be to watch some of the other special effects shows of the era. "Star Trek: The Next Generation" and "Battlestar Gallactica" both were aired around that time, from the late 1970s to the early 1990s. Before "X-Files" and "Buffy."
However old the show seems now, it still has merit as an entertaining epic adventure story. I think some of the acting is actually pretty good, and made stars out of Marc Singer, Jane Badler and Faye Grant. And it provides us with a pre-Freddy Robert Englund. -
mark_lucas — 17 years ago(December 09, 2008 04:27 PM)
Op Like several people on here, I watched this as a youngster too. Felt like dangerous viewing at the time, FX seemed amazing. Hook was, it kept viewers hanging on to the next episode, they never actually saw much.
watched the mini-series recently. One of the things I realised is the fact the entire thing only features around 25 minutes of actual alien footage. Same with action sequences and other stuff which captured my imagination. For a series revolving around "alien invasion", it manages to cram in more off-topic cornball & totally avoid the subject. 60's Series like U.f.o had more content. It's a waste of time, might as well be dynasty. As a kid, I must have been clinging on for the next glimpse of an alien.. probably why I never finished the series
bad and disappointing imo -
s-sweetheart — 17 years ago(December 22, 2008 02:51 PM)
People who think V is bad really need to try to extend their vocabularyexactly what is 'bad' about a series that STILL has people (including the critics) talking about it 25 years on?? I think V is fantasticthe story is great, the actors are spotty dog, the way it grips the imagination is second only to Star Wars IMO.
So what about the effectsI still love Harold Lloyd even though I can see through his act a mile offstop being such Scrooges!!!! And Merry Christmas to all IMDB-ers! -
mark_lucas — 17 years ago(January 05, 2009 10:10 PM)
" People who think V is bad really need to try to extend their vocabularyexactly what is 'bad' about a series that STILL has people (including the critics) talking about it 25 years on?? I think V is fantasticthe story is great, the actors are spotty dog, the way it grips the imagination is second only to Star Wars IMO.
So what about the effectsI still love Harold Lloyd even though I can see through his act a mile offstop being such Scrooges!!!! And Merry Christmas to all IMDB-ers "!
What lol? Whats wrong with the vocabularyarylyly on this thread? I've seen worse. How does vocab apply to subjective taste and wtf has Harold Lloyd or being tight with money got to do with it? (always prefered laurel & hardy, harold was a bit of an underdog.. but don't take it personally).
Christmas- whats that? -
treshon — 17 years ago(February 24, 2009 06:47 AM)
The OP must be talking about the weekly TV series which was a steaming pile of crap - although my brother and I just forced ourselves to watch it.
My wife, who had never seen or heard of it as a kid, and doesn't really care for Sci-Fi stuff, thought it was excellent. She couldn't believe how well done it was. Maybe because it IS a good series.
Great writing, the special effects for a TV show at the time were great. Kenneth Johnson also did The Incredible Hulk TV showso what you get is quality. -
mark_lucas — 16 years ago(June 17, 2009 06:16 PM)
The OP just didn't like it because it didn't have any crappers trying to be actors, cheesy CGI (ala Lucas), or a slamming soundtrack by Gsleezy or Snoop doggy sh*t or some other MTV fueled babbling BS.
Yes, this is really a mini-series for the more intelligent, appreciative audience of sc-fi hmmm the connoisseurs if you will.
Lol erm.. its cheesy American NBC crap -
TheSolarSailor — 16 years ago(November 02, 2009 10:23 AM)
I thought the special effects were pretty good. Refreshing to remember a time when there was no CGI (cartoon) overload.
I agree. Yes, the effects are dated, but what do people really expect when watching material that is so old? If one can't watch this stuff in the context of when the series was made, then they don't have any business watching it at all. The effects were extremely good back in those days. It was a very impressive looking series. And yes, I do prefer these old school effects to the CGI cartoons of today. They seem to get so carried away now that they can do anything they want. It robs the new material of critical thinking skills, if you ask me.
Whose idea was it for the word "Lisp" to have an "S" in it?
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pcqgod — 16 years ago(November 02, 2009 06:38 AM)
Watched some of the repeat on Syfy yesterday.
The special effects weren't bad for the era, considering it was a made for t.v. series.
It was fairly preposterous how a resistance band of perhaps 25 people, tops, were able to infiltrate any Visitor stronghold they wished to at any time and managed to defeat the super-advanced army and armada of aliens using molotov cocktails and mirrors. I guess it helped that the Visitors left the doors on their vehicles wide open when parking them.
Loads of creamy music and lots of time to make it. -
rebekahrox — 16 years ago(November 02, 2009 12:25 PM)
If it was so bad, why was it named one of the best TV 25 miniseries of all time? Why Did it engender a sequel and a TV series? and why are they remaking it? if the special effects were so bad why were the most iconic scenes copied practically frame by frame by the makers of Independence Day? It's not fair to judge the special effects of over 25 years ago by today's standards, to state the obvious.
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dpcole7 — 15 years ago(August 30, 2010 04:26 PM)
The first miniseries is a well-made and thought-out masterpiece. It's dated (like what hasn't), but there's enough on how good, solid drama is made and it holds up well where it's supposed to. The pacing, the revelations, everything. Right down to having Visitors that you cannot get around due to their advanced weaponry. And guile. It makes sense.
The second miniseries, "The Final Battle", has giant gaps in logic all over the place, but at least remains entertaining thanks to the quality of the actors.
The TV series starts out BETTER than "The Final Battle", but quickly loses its way - down to conveniently forgetting issues like Nathan Bates' wristband that would blow everything up or whatever (I don't recall the TV show, despite buying it on clearance at Walmart for a low price). Later episodes really jumped the shark when we had Visitor rituals but it's the Visitors in their human skins with face paint on. (Gee, not in their natural lizard skins?!)