'V' is back, but what has changed?

Resurrecting a classic cult series for the reboot treatment is a risky proposition. The sublime Battlestar Galactica reimagining stands out among a sea of short-lived failures such as last year's Bionic Woman and Knight Rider. But what fate lies in store for V, a reworking of the popular mid-'80s mini-series featuring evil reptilian aliens masquerading as benevolent bipeds? Here's a look at how the leading players and plots have been tweaked...

The 1983 original V largely focussed on cameraman Mike Donovan (Marc Singer) and his startling discovery that the alien motherships that have dramatically appeared above the world's major cities are hiding a sinister truth. It's hard to forget the grand reveal, as he witnesses Diana - the beautiful leader of the Visitors - stuffing a live rodent down her expanding throat.

Before long, it emerges that the visitors have not come in peace, despite their promises of sharing advanced technology with the human race. Instead, they have travelled from a ravaged, war-torn world in desperate need of food and water. That all sounds fairly innocent, but alas the human population is very much on the menu - to be washed down by our entire oceans! Many earthlings are still duped though, believing that only kindness lies beneath the synthetic human skin of the aliens.

With the world's media soon turned into a propaganda machine for the visitors, it's up to Donovan and his team to spread the word about the grim truth. A large ensemble cast featured resistance fighters, selfish collaborators, Donovan's treacherous mother and the visitors themselves, who were often squabbling among their lizardy selves but were not without sympathisers to the human cause. Parallels with Nazi Germany were unsurprisingly very prominent, especially with the ‘Hitler Youth’ style recruitment of teenagers.

The 2009 remake of V has definitely used the same broad template, albeit with characters and themes slightly adjusted and sometimes amalgamated. Mike Donovan appears to have been given both a sex and career change, as the main protagonist is now Homeland Security Agent Erica Evans (played by Lost's Elizabeth Mitchell).

Like Donovan, she has an errant son to worry about and is responsible for uncovering the conspiracy. Yet a spot of streamlining appears to have taken place, as Erica also embodies various characteristics from the original's resistance leader Julie Parrish - a thirtysomething blonde lady who battles to keep her emotions in check and incurs the bitchy wrath of alien leader Diana. Another dilution of the original narrative also occurs with her son Tyler, who plays the role of the misguided teenage collaborator previously depicted as the traitorous Daniel Bernstein.

Donovan is not the only figure to undergo a gender reassignment. Back in 1983, the cameraman's old newscaster flame Kristine Walsh was hired by alien leader Diana to be the human face of their television propaganda. Fast forward over two decades to meet Chad Decker, played by Party Of Five's Scott Wolf. He's an amoral, careerist anchorman who becomes the pawn of Anna, who is portrayed by Firefly's Morena Baccarin and is basically Diana curiously shown of the 'Di' bit.

Religion and faith play a key role in both versions of V, with the character of Father Andrew Doyle from 1984's sequel mini-series V: The Final Battle now being introduced much earlier in the 2009 version as Father Jack. Despite the nominal similarity to a character from famed sitcom Father Ted, it's unlikely that Father Jack will try to repel the alien threat by screaming "feck off!" and "arse!" in their general direction. Shame!

Instead, the clergyman has changed from being a senior citizen to a rather hunky 30-year-old played by Joel Gretsch from The 4400. This casting decision does reek of an attempt to pander to more market-friendly audience demographics, but it's probably too early to slam the move too much as the pilot has yet to air. Nonetheless, both Fathers will face the same ethical and moral dilemmas, as they question both their own belief system and the faith of those around them. Just when is it appropriate to turn the other cheek, and when should a reptilian eye be traded for a human one?

In addition, the friendly alien character called Willy is back and with a human love interest in tow. Played wonderfully by Freddy Krueger actor Robert Englund in the original, the flickery-tongued friend is now called Ryan and performed by Morris Chestnut, who rose to prominence in the movie Boyz n The Hood. One part fortunately not mentioned at all in relation to the new V is 'starchild' Elizabeth. Despite a very effective and horrific birth sequence, this human-lizard hybrid simply proved to be too much of an annoyance as 'The Final Battle' and subsequent weekly series dragged on.

With Erica on the trail of a sleeper cell of terrorists before the motherships arrive, the Holocaust allegory of the original has unsurprisingly been merged with the terrorism-strewn paranoia that has dominated society in recent years. The clever twist here, which echoes mercenary criminal Ham Tyler's status in V: The Final Battle, is that the terrorists quickly become the 'good guys' in the battle to save humanity.

How will the almighty conflict between the races turn out? You'll have to wait until the pilot premieres later this year, but the omens are good as the show has already been picked up for 13 episodes - to be broadcast in early 2010. Those mice had better start running for their lives. The reptiles are coming...

In the meantime, here are some trailers to keep you company:








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