The stranger the world gets, and the more UFO disclosures and government task forces we read about, the more one wonders what the world would look like if aliens did show up on Earth's doorstep. The 2009 series V attempted to answer that question, and though it's been a while since ABC canceled the series, it feels like the right time to revisit it. The 2009 "V-boot", which was a reboot of the 1983 miniseries of the same name (which itself spawned two sequels, V: The Final Battle and later V: The Series), was a sleek update of the clunky '80s classic that introduced compelling new characters to an all-too-familiar story. This series wasn't just a re-hash of the same old concept though, it added extra layers to the V saga that we didn't know we needed.
While the original series was Kenneth Johnson's science-fiction allegory for fascism and the events surrounding World War II and the Cold War (with the alien Visitors a clear stand-in for Nazis and communists), the V-boot takes a slightly different approach. Rather than taking its primary inspiration from historic events, the 2009 V pulled from just about every internet conspiracy theory you could find, some that would even make The X-Files' Fox Mulder uncomfortable. As in the original series, the Visitors themselves are actually man-eating lizard creatures from space, disguised under cloned human skin, only this time with various conspiratorial agendas that go beyond just eating people. These seemingly angelic saviors bring cures to the world's greatest ailments and diseases, a solution to climate change, and even a plan for humanity's future, but at a dark cost.
Their plans for universal healthcare, which include using their DNA-altering technology to cure over 50 different ailments, spread like wildfire as the Visitor Queen, Anna (Morena Baccarin), conceals her true motives for population control, alien-human hybrids, and their ultimate plan to make Earth the perfect resource for all the Visitors' needs (including turning us into Soylent Green). As it turns out, the Visitors have spent years infiltrating human governments, businesses, religious institutions, and other human establishments in preparation for their worldwide reveal in the "Pilot," resulting in various "false flag" operations and staged attacks that only make the Visitors look more like sympathetic prey than vicious predators. While these plots of conspiracy are fascinating and make for exciting weekly television somewhat reminiscent of John Carpenter's cult classic They Live, what makes the series work from episode to episode is the assortment of lead characters. Each of the series' leads represent a faction of humanity, often one of the same factions the Visitors have worked to infiltrate.
First and foremost is FBI counter-terrorism agent Erica Evans (Elizabeth Mitchell), who bravely leads the charge against the Visitors. Having been skeptical about the Visitors from the beginning, Erica quickly draws parallels between the terrorist sleeper cell she's been tracking with the Visitors' timely arrival. Throughout it all, she can't be sure who to trust, which is completely fair given that her former FBI partner (played by Alan Tudyk) was actually a Visitor-in-disguise. Regardless, she fights to trust those who continue to stand by her side and fight against the Visitors' tyrannical plot. Actress Elizabeth Mitchell, who you might recognize from Lost or The Expanse, hits every emotional beat like clockwork, expertly playing the line between the tough-as-nails FBI agent and a grasping mother trying desperately to protect her son. She's constantly reminding us why she's one of the best that television has to offer.
But what makes Erica a truly compelling protagonist is the fractured relationship between her and her rebellious son, Tyler (Logan Huffman), who is obsessed with the Visitors. As they clash over their personal convictions, Erica is faced with the possibility that she could lose her son forever. Unwilling to relent, she continues to fight the alien would-be invaders to protect her son's future, even though he continues to put his feet over the fire. Visitor Queen Anna, the worldwide face of the alien race, has a young daughter of her own, a girl named Lisa (Laura Vandervoort). After Tyler joins the Visitor's "Peace Ambassador" program, he and Lisa become close, quickly developing a romantic relationship. Yet Lisa's experience with human emotion proves to be a massive struggle, not because she's afraid of her feelings towards Tyler, but because she begins to question her mother's motives, and isn't too excited about the answers. The familial conflicts on both sides really hit home as we watch mothers and their children fight over truth and ideals.
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These themes of motherhood set V apart, as the series does an excellent job of showing all the struggles and nuances that go along with Erica and Anna's personal turmoil. The lack of bliss in their home lives pushes each of them to extremes in order to accomplish their respective goals and tear the other down. Be it committing acts of terrorism or launching massive weapon systems, each have their own clear issues to work through. This juxtaposition between Erica and Anna, contrasting their emotional intelligence and motives, is striking as each attempts to guide their respective teenage children down the right paths. Neither succeed with their own offspring, however. As Tyler and Lisa's relationship blossoms, Tyler's entrancement by Visitor culture gets the better of him. Likewise, Lisa feels the pull that brings her closer to Earth.
This battle between mothers is the true heartbeat of the series, and spreads far beyond just Erica and Anna. After the rebel Visitor-turned-resistance fighter Ryan Nichols (Morris Chestnut) fathers a child with the human Valerie Stevens (Lourdes Benedicto), Anna desperately fights for control of the hybrid starchild, using her warped maternal instincts to seduce her to the Visitor's cause. Anna's own mother, Diana (a different take on the same character played by original V star Jane Badler), arrives in the second season, forcing Anna to reflect on her own choices with Lisa. As these mothers clash, the fate of humanity hangs in the balance, and what better backdrop to total annihilation is there than a mother who chooses to give life, only to then take it away?
But Anna's reign doesn't go unchallenged. Alongside Erica and the rebellious Fifth Column stands Father Jack Landry (Joel Gretsch), her most trustworthy ally. A former army chaplain and man of the cloth, Jack expresses his own hesitations about these "alien saviors," often from the pulpit. In a world where talk of the religious implications of aliens is commonplace, Jack serves as one of the most important characters on the show. A faithfully consistent ally to Erica, actor Joel Gretsch brings a sort of reverence to Jack that only he could, setting the conflicted priest apart from the rest as he struggles honestly with his faith. Constantly questioning the Vatican's rulings about the Visitors, and the theological implications of such decisions, Jack must eventually choose between obedience and truth. An age-old, yet timely, discussion if there ever was one.
Speaking of truth, if the governmental, familial, and religious implications of alien encounters weren't enough for you, V takes it another step further with Chad Decker (Scott Wolf), a New York news anchor with some attitude and lots of questions for Anna and her crew. TheV-boot's take on the news media's interaction with the alien Visitors is fascinating as Decker plays the sharp line between journalistic integrity and personal/professional gain. Like his real-world counterparts, Decker is sometimes seen as a triumphant television hero fighting for goodness and truth, and at other times is hated and scorned by former allies. This balancing act is thrilling to watch, especially as the reporter discovers more and more evidence that seems contrary to Anna's original claims.
If you're looking for a short but thoughtful series to binge through in the coming weeks, look no further than the 2009 V reboot. It has action, suspense, drama, romance, and lots of science-fiction worldbuilding that will keep you invested all the way through the credits of the impromptu series finale, aptly named "Mother's Day", which, yes, does end on an unresolved cliffhanger. There's lots for fans of the original series to love too, as original V stars Jane Badler and Marc Singer appear in new supporting roles. Regardless if you watched the original miniseries or not, there's a lot to love about V, just make sure you know which side you're on.
