TVSquad

Despite only having one episode broadcast (the official TV Squad review is here) and four episodes in the can, V is already changing showrunners. They are trading one Scott for another. Rather than Scott Peters, the new guy calling the shots will be Scott Rosenbaum of Chuck and The Shield fame.

The switch is not a good sign. On the other hand, I watched the pilot and was underwhelmed. Among other problems, things moved too fast. Also, why do people cheer when aliens land on Earth and give a PSA? Wouldn't they more likely be running for their lives? The pilot would have worked better as a two-hour premiere. However, I enjoy Chuck and hear that The Shield was good. Any talent from either show going could only benefit V. Hopefully I won't be proven wrong.

Will V become more Chuck-like and add humor? Could a concept like that work? An alien invasion comedy?

Hey 4400 fans! Co-creator and executive producer of that series, Scott Peters, is back at it again. This time he's gotten the official go ahead from ABC to bring the remake of the 1980's V mini-series to pilot. This means right from the beginning they're thinking more long-term in developing the overall storyline. With the original, we had a mini-series that proved so incredibly popular that it spawned a second mini-series, an ongoing series, and even a book and comic series. I know all of this because I own all of it.

Yes, even though (or maybe because) I was a very young boy when the V phenomenon first hit, it blew me away. I was haunted by the image of Diana unhinging her jaw and devouring that rodent. And the first peeling of human flees to reveal the green scales underneath was chilling to my pre-adolescent imagination. To this day, I think the concept is brilliantly strong, and the first two mini-series were very well executed. It'll be interesting to see how these creators bring the concept into the new millennium. Clearly the "surprise" reveal that the aliens aren't as benevolent as they purported to be is lost.

The 4400 co-creator and producer Scott Peters is remaking the 1980's V miniseries for ABC. The article expressly states that the original creator, Kenneth Johnson, will not be involved.

I'm somewhat dreading this remake because Peters says he will pretty much revamp the human story to something completely different (although an alien invasion will probably still be involved). The theme of the new version will more be about having blind faith in leadership rather than being an allegory of the Nazi occupation of Germany.

It's entirely possible this new version would work. The current Battlestar Galactica is not very much like its predecessor and represents science fiction at its finest. The original V terrified the crap out of the much younger me. Then the network wussed out with the concept and tried to maximize profits by tacking on a happy-ending sequel miniseries and shortly-lived continuing series.

On the other hand, the revamped Flash Gordon was a pile of suck. Here's hoping V is better.