V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Television series
German title V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming
Original title V
V - The extraterrestrials.svg
Country of production United States
original language English
Year (s) 1983 - 1985
length 47 minutes
Episodes 2 (The Original Miniseries)
(double length each)
3 (The Final Battle)
(double length each)
19 (The Series)
(single length each)
genre Science fiction
idea Kenneth Johnson
music Dennis McCarthy
First broadcast Original : May 1, 1983
3-part
series : May 6, 1984 Series : October 26, 1984 on NBC
German-language
first broadcast		 October 3, 1988 on Sat.1
occupation

V - The Extraterrestrial Visitors Are Coming is an American television series from the 1980s.

Version history of the series

The story of the series began in 1983 with a two-part miniseries with the English title V and V: The Original Miniseries . The three parts of V: The Final Battle (1984) followed. This was followed by the 19-part series (Season 3) V - The extraterrestrial visitors come back or V: The Series (1984 to 1985).

In Germany, the series was first released on June 26, 1986 by Warner Home Video on VHS and then broadcast on Sat.1 on October 3, 1988 . The continuation as a series was called in Germany on video 1987 V - The extraterrestrial visitors come back . Both the miniseries and the series have been released on DVD in many countries.

At the TV premiere in Germany, some scenes were shortened to protect minors and the miniseries originally conceived as a TV film were reduced to 4 ("The Original Miniseries") plus 6 ("The Final Battle") plus 19 ("The Series", these in the same amount Version as in the USA) Single episodes cut with about 42 minutes playing time. V is repeated in this form on German television and also in other European countries.

content

National emblem of the visitors

A fleet of giant spaceships appears over the capitals of the earth. The "visitors", as the aliens call themselves, declare that their mission is of a peaceful nature and for mutual benefit. In fact, however, the “visitors” are reptilian creatures in a human shell and want to seize the earth. The inhabitants of the earth should serve them as food. A few people realize that instead of visiting, it is an invasion . They join forces to form the so-called Resistance and offer resistance. In the course of the series reference is made to the persecution of the Jews in the Third Reich .

background

Trick technique

The UFOs of the “visitors” are not models or computer effects, but they were created by means of matte painting by Oscar winner Matthew Yuricich .

title

The letter "V" in the title stands for the English term victory ( German : "Sieg") and goes back to the following film scene: Some young people smear propaganda posters hanging up by the aliens with red spray paint, while old Mr. Bernstein, who emigrated to America, comes by. He has already survived the persecution of the Jews in the Third Reich , and we also learn that his wife was murdered in the extermination camp. With the words: “If you do it, do it right!” He takes the young person's spray can and sprays another poster with the red “V” shown in the film's title with a gradient. He forms the historic Victory sign with his fingers and explains it to the young people: "V for Victory". In the following, the “V” becomes the symbol of human resistance to aliens.

Reference to National Socialists in Germany

The first mini-series in particular is an allegory about the rise of the National Socialists in Germany. Initially, V was planned as a very realistic film about the rise of a fascist organization in the United States and the resistance against it. NBC , spurred on by the success of science fiction films like Star Wars , Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and ET - The Extra-Terrestrial , wanted a science fiction element.

Due to the clear historical references, the content of the German dubbing was changed: The political leader of the aliens is referred to by them in the American original as The Big Leader (English for "The Great Leader"). In the German dubbing this became "The Great Thinker". In addition, the national emblem of the "visitors" resembles a swastika , the party badge of the NSDAP .

Speculation about sequels

There has been speculation about another sequel since 1999. The book was published in 2008 in the USA and England with the title: V: The Second Generation and follows on from the first season of the miniseries. Thus, not only V: The extraterrestrial visitors come back is totally ignored, but also V: The Final Battle , whereby Kenneth Johnson contradicts the second half of the first book by Ann C. Crispin on many points. For example, characters appear in the plot who have already died in the first novel.

Remake

A remake of the series for the US broadcaster ABC was shown from November 3, 2009. The series with the German title V - The Visitors (original title: V ) was first broadcast in German on ProSieben from July 18, 2011 . In total there was V - The Visitors on two seasons and 22 episodes.

Episode guide

Season No. German title English title Label on VHS
1 1 V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming (1) (part 1) V (Part 1)
2 V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming (1) (part 2) V (Part 2)
2 1 V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming (2) (part 1) V: The Final Battle (Part 1)
2 V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming (2) (part 2) V: The Final Battle (Part 2)
3 V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming (2) (part 3) V: The Final Battle (Part 3)
3 01 Liberation Day Liberation Day Liberation Day
02 Save Los Angeles Dreadnaught The capital ship
03 Barter deals Breakout The outbreak
04 Vanishing point: China Flats The Deception The deception
05 father and son The Sanction The challenge
06 The Playa del Mar Conference Visitor's Choice Diana's decision
07 Freedom for Rawlinsville The Overlord The source of death
08 Jacob the blind The dissident The force field
09 Elizabeth × 2 Reflections in Terror Mirror of fear
10 The big manipulator The conversion Kill Donovan
11 The hero of the day The Hero The hero
12 Traitors and deceivers The Betrayal Fraud
13 Poison for the bride The Rescue The rescue
14th For life and death The champion The champion
15th The Wildcats gang The Wildcats The gang
16 head to head The littlest dragon The duel
17th The computer ace War of illusions War of illusions
18th The list The Secret Underground Secret resistance
19th Peace at last? The return The return

Seasons 1 and 2, which are actually a two-part and a three-part pilot film, were shot on Super 16 and released on DVD in 16: 9. The actual series, aka season 3, was filmed on ordinary 16mm in 4: 3 and also released on DVD in 4: 3.

Home video publishing

In 1986 the entire series, with all three seasons in Germany, appeared on VHS before it was broadcast on Sat.1.

In 2002 Warner Brothers Home Video released a German DVD box with the title V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming - The complete season . It contains the two-part V: The Original Miniseries (German V - The extraterrestrial visitors come 1 aka Season 1) from 1983 and the three-part V: The Final Battle (German V - The extraterrestrial visitors come 2 aka Season 2) on three DVDs . from 1984 included, but not the actual Series V - The Extraterrestrial Visitors Come Back from 1984/85 (aka Season 3).

In 2008 the entire series was finally released. Once in the DVD box V - The complete series (white box with German inscription, only the 19 episodes of the actual series V - The extraterrestrial visitors come back from 1984/85 aka season 3, which is based on the multi-part V: The Original Miniseries and V: The Final Battle followed), as well as in the DVD box V - Superbox: The Complete Collection (black box with a picture of one of the reptile people), which contains both the original multi-part series and the series.

Awards

  • 1983 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup
  • 1983 Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition for a Limited Series or a Special (Dramatic Underscore)
  • 1984 - WGA Award - Nomination in the Original / Adapted Multi-Part Long Form Series category
  • 1984 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup
  • 1984 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Film Sound Editing for a Limited Series or a Special
  • 1984 - Emmy - Nomination in the category Outstanding Individual Achievement - Special Visual Effects
  • 1985 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup
  • 1985 Young Artist Award nomination in the Guest in a Television Series category for Eric Johnston
  • 1988 - RTS Television Award - Most Original Program Award
  • 1995 - Saturn Award - nomination in the category Best Genre Video Release
  • 1996 - Saturn Award - Award in the category Best Genre Video Release

Reviews

“A television series that developed the establishment of a totalitarian regime largely convincingly, but soon subordinated itself to the laws of conventional suspense entertainment. Technically on a high level, in the development of the people one-dimensional; Despite the length, mostly exciting, but sometimes excessively brutal entertainment. "

- Lexicon of the international film about V - The extraterrestrial visitors are coming

“A high-level science fiction paraphrase about the threat to democracy and ethical values ​​from totalitarian systems. Suspense entertainment, which turned out to be comparatively modest dramaturgically, one-dimensional in the figure drawing, sometimes with lengths. "

- Lexicon of the international film about V - The extraterrestrial visitors come back

literature

(The last five novels are no longer numbered. But the list in the books suggests this order.)
The novel V - The Second Generation was published in English . The author is the creator of the series Kenneth Johnson .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c “Lexicon of International Films” (CD-ROM edition), Systhema, Munich 1997