V the new and the old

[Darth Hoth]

* Well, there might just be some sapient creatures living in Europa's ocean for all we know, but living in an environment where fire is impossible they probably wouldn't have the tech to be anywhere near the potential nuisance that we could be. Actually that would be an interesting story: if you had a similar scenario but instead of taking water from Earth the aliens suck dry Europa, trading us "trinkets" like high-tech clean power plants and cures for cancer and AIDS as gestures of goodwill. Everything goes well until one of the aliens leaks to some reporter (or something like that) that there are in fact primitive but sapient fish-people living in Europa's ocean and the aliens are genociding them by taking all of Europa's water. It would be interesting to see how humanity would react to something like that.

The plausible human reaction would be, "We don't give a shit." Why should we care about some primitive fish that may or may not exist (we have nothing to confirm it but hearsay), that we have no responsibility for and could not save anyway even if we wanted to, especially when the nice, sexy human-like aliens are providing us with advanced technology? It would, however, serve to make our governments suspicious of the Visitors, even more so than they would already be if possible. Of course, we would be hugely suspicious of any aliens in any case, especially seemingly benign ones.

But, in a TV series the main character would immediately cry out the injustice to all and sundry, fall in love with a Europan fish-girl with psychic powers and then gather a group of well-meaning gun nuts to bring down both the interstellar water harvesters and Earth's evil corrupt government. And they would succeed by infiltrating a starship and reprogramming it, or somesuch.

(Or, in a modern grimdark setting, everything in the above paragraph except the reprogramming fails so the heroes can stare hauntedly into space in the finale, fish-girl is lesbian and persecuted by teh evil homophobes, and the heroes waterboard captured Visitors and talk a lot about it.)

Silly humans.. they want Sentient Food Source!

It would probably make more sense just to get some DNA samples from people and clone them. The freightage savings would be enormous.

Exclusivity sells. Why are people on Earth today having bottled water from some well in France flown all over the world when in most cases much cheaper water of comparable if not even better quality is available locally? Why all the craze for "biologically grown" food? If the Visitors are such big shots that they can travel across the stars with little apparent effort, the situation should be mildly comparable. I can imagine their marketing - "Meat From Real, Free, Naturally Born Humans Flown In Right From Earth! No Preservatives! Every Atom Of Flesh FRESH JUST FOR YOU!"

[Axiomatic]

The problem with the Europans is that it suggests our new friends really don't mind exterminating aliens. We're also aliens. It's like the difference between meeting someone new and not knowing whether or not they're a serial killer, but they appear to be polite and clean-shaven so you chat with them, and meeting someone new and not knowing whether or not they're a serial killer and then finding they carry a suitcase full of hands chopped off at the wrist. Yes, they're not YOUR hands, but they're still worrying.

[Darth Hoth]

So? Our strategic planners would already count on the Visitors being hostile as their worst-case scenario, regardless of how fluff-bunny their initial appearance would be, for the simple reason that we had no objective information on them to start with - all that we have access to thus far is their own propaganda. This revelation at most confirms what we would already have suspected/anticipated, and should not majorly alter policy with regards to our alien friends.

[Yona]

cloned food was actually a good classic sci-fi short story, where the aliens gave us medical technology and support against AI alien enemies, in exchange for some ova and sperm to grow a large stock of food.... I think the title had something about having "Good Taste"

Yeah,... but it's been overplayed,... done too many times. The level of technology required to cross interstellar space would preclude they have the ability to feed themselves. Water, as has been stated, is also available in the form of Ice if nothing else. So, other than good special effects, and a sinister, evil under-plot, that they believe the "non-thinking" will buy into, all we can hope for is some good space ships, and quality acting.

The scenario that still works is the old "our planet was destroyed",... (pick your disaster type),.... "we want your planet now", or the old conquest, enslavement routine !

[Coyote]

Yeah, the V seem to be nomadic in this one, and hopefully the rediculousness of the water excuse will be raised at some point. I'd suppose that the V, advanced though they may be, have 29 ships and finite personnel, so even though they could do a lot of damage, they'd still prefer to subvert and take over Earth as bloodlessly as possible so as to preserve not only their own skins, but also so as not to destoy their new-found chosen home.

Even with super space weapons, 29 ships and their crew would have a hard time subjugating 6 billion people by force, especially the ones with lots of weapons & nukes that would ruin the place. They may also fear that a planetary society that can produce things like suicide bombers, kamikaze pilots, and venerate the "last stand" ideology of Masada (especially when heroic self sacrifice is in a lot of our fiction) then they have reason to fear we might nuke ourselves just to keep the V from getting the planet. Russian "scorched earth" doctrine in both Napoleonic and Nazi invasions supports this potentiality.

But, of course, I'm just guessing.

However, I can understand wehy they want to give us cures for disease and set up public health stations for everyone. They want their meat to be healthy. Just like when we pump antibiotics into cows. No one wants to eat cancer burgers.

[Crossroads Inc.]

I just watched the first Episode wiht my BF and thought it was rather ok.. it WS Rushed and we both agreed that they threw as much out as possible just to hook everyone... Showing the Vs to be reptiles, showing they are behind the terrosim cells, showing that "They could be anyone" inside the government as such... I am willing to bet part of it is so "rushed" because, well, We already KNOW what will happen. Sure not everyone saw the original, but I am betting the producers are banking on must of the audience seeing it, knowing whats to come and sort of moving on to "the good stuff" as it were...

That said I also find it amusing how many people are reviewing the whole "Shouldn't it be easier to get water/resources other ways" and such, mostly because to any "Rational" race, you could gather resources form our solar sytem for all your needs with almost not even needing to come to Earth. the OBVIOUS reason for all this is cause they are BAD GUYS.

They are evil mean Dicks who want to harvest us not because it makes sense, but because they are EVIL.

[Junghalli]

The plausible human reaction would be, "We don't give a shit." Why should we care about some primitive fish that may or may not exist (we have nothing to confirm it but hearsay), that we have no responsibility for and could not save anyway even if we wanted to, especially when the nice, sexy human-like aliens are providing us with advanced technology? It would, however, serve to make our governments suspicious of the Visitors, even more so than they would already be if possible. Of course, we would be hugely suspicious of any aliens in any case, especially seemingly benign ones.

Yeah, my cynical side says that sounds pretty plausible. There'd be very little we could do, and there'd probably be serious resistance even to what impotent token gestures we could make against the Europan genocide for fear of antagonizing the aliens and cutting off the "gifts". It probably wouldn't help if the Europans looked like some of the things that live in the closest analog Earth has to their environment.

It would probably be more interesting if you had the story take place in the future, or otherwise set it up so that the human reaction to the whole thing wasn't so completely irrelevant.

[Aeolus]

The way the Visitors in this series seem to be playing it is "Hey guys we were flying along and discovered you" "Do you mind if we resupply..we will pay you with all sorts of goodies." Of course we the audience know that they have known about us for years and are are enemies.

[CaptainChewbacca]

The word is in; Apparently V didn't live up to the network's expectations. They won't be producing a 5th episode until all 4 of the ones completed air, so they can be sure if they want to spend money on it.

That was quick.

[Yona]

Ok,... the 1st episode is now online, so I didn't have to stay up tonight to see it. Interesting,... it seems to follow a vague, if rather sped up outline of the first series. Morena is suitably menacing, and the show looks like it will go the same way the original series went. As much as I'd like to see it succeed, I don't think it will unless the story takes an unexpected turn in this version. Just not enough "new" to make it worthwhile this time around. At least not yet,........... we'll see.

[Gil Hamilton]

I watched the first episode, and they've already gone the step of making the Vs somewhat incompetant for the sake of plot. It was mentioned about that they started out good on their raid of the resistance with that drone... then came rushing in with knives rather than sending multiple drones, or even arm their men with guns. The reason was obvious, if they had gone in in a competant fashion, none of the resistance would have survived and they'd be down two characters.

Further, the Vs know full well that an FBI agent was present and that their mole in the feds (yeah, that was predictable) was dead... but they didn't go looking for her? Really?

Overall, I think they tipped their hand a little too much with the Vs right away, kind of leaving only marginal mystery to what they are up to. That could have been alot better done, instead of hamfistedly throwing in "ETs Conquer Earth With Universial Health Care!" and "Alien become Crocodylus Pontifex in New Church!".

The whole thing wasn't quite B-level of cheese, but it still gave me that same vibe I got from watching They Live. They just need Rowdy Roddy Piper to kick some ET ass and chew bubblegum and they are set.