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'V' isn't about Obama (but it is political)
Fri, 11/06/2009 - 00:37 — Ben
Jeffrey Jena at Big Hollywood explains what the 'V' controversy is -- and isn't -- all about:
As it happens, I’m acquainted with Scott Peters who developed and wrote the remake of “V” for ABC...
When I started reading some of the rumors and theories about Mr. Peters’ latest show and the behind-the-scenes politics, I laughed out loud. Let me try to shed some light on the “V” controversy.
The script was not written as a roman a clef or allegory for the Obama administration. The script was written by Mr. Peters during the Bush administration and started before Mr. Obama clinched the nomination. The author, Mr. Peters, is not some evil sleeper right-winger/Obama hater. Mr. Peters, besides being a talented writer and director is a gay man, legally married in California, and a liberal supporter of the President who worked for and donated money to the his campaign. If he’s a mole for some right-wing conspiracy he may be the most committed spy ever. Mr. Peters, who was born in Canada, recently became an American citizen; a process he tried to expedite so he could vote for Mr. Obama, a deadline he missed by two days.
Well, never let the truth get in the way of your righteous indignation, eh, Jonathan Chait? (Rick Moran has a pretty good take on Chait and the show at the often inaptly named Moderate Voice.)
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Comments
V (1983)
I'm watching the original which they aired on SyFy (SciFi) Channel. It's on DVR, and so far I've only gotten through the first 2 hours. I was young when it first came out, and we didn't have television, so it occupies the forbidden desire portion of my childhood pop culture psyche.
It will be interesting to do a compare and contrast (sometime next year) when I finally get through both of them. I am curious to see if they keep the Holocaust survivor character in the new version, or if they try to be more subtle.
Speaking of new versions of old series...
AMC is running a new mini-series of "The Prisoner" starring Jesus as No. 6 and Gandalf as No. 2. Woohoo!
Which raises a question for me.
Who would win a fight between Jesus and Gandalf?
C'mon. I can't be the ONLY person to have pondered that one. My answer? Ditka. (Yes. I just made a 15-year-old joke. Sue me.)
Jesus vs. Gandalf
That Ditka joke is only 15 years old? I feel young again. Thanks. :)
But is it Gandalf the Grey or Gandalf the White? It's pretty obvious that Jesus would own Gandalf the Grey if Saruman could.
Re: Jesus vs. Gandalf
I'm confident Matt & Trey can get us an answer to this question.
I describe it
as a fundamental transformative teachable moment tingle that is attainable by staring at goats.
OK, I finally saw the pilot of "V"
And while it might be the case that V's (re)creator is a big Obama fan, it's still the case that when you get to the moment that the Vs announce their health plan and Scott (Dreamy!) Wolf furrows his unlined brow and with great emphasis responds, "Universal HEALTHcare!?," well, it's really difficult for a regular joe to take that as anything BUT a dig at somebody.
It doesn't particularly bother me. (The teen characters in the show do; they're more obnoxious than most real teens and almost a reason not to watch the show.) But I don't think people who have watched the show are really being all that unreasonable in their interpretation.
Sounds like a podcast discussion!
I finally saw "V," too
Gotta say, Joel. Whether intentional or not, it's quite something to watch a Hollywood production and view scenes and hear dialogue that takes shots at a president — and not have that president be George W. Bush. After eight years of eye-rolling, teeth grinding, and yelling at the TV "Awwww ... come on!" well ... I'm relishing a bit the ill-fitting shoe being on the other foot (the left one, this time).
That said, I'd rather not have such partisan politics infecting pop culture aimed as a mass audience. I railed against it during the Bush years for more than just political reasons. Quite simply, it tends to weigh down the story. The attempts to inject politics are often so ham-handed, the dialogue so leaden, it takes away from what entertainment is supposed to be — an escape from the "real" world.
Then again, "V" is about the literal invasion of a sweet-talking but fascist regime that wants to actually harvest and eat humans. It's kinda hard to keep politics out of it.
As entertainment, I must say I was a little underwhelmed — which is typical for just about every TV pilot, especially one as eagerly anticipated as this one. I'm more than willing to see this show play out a bit, especially if they don't kill off Alan Tudyk's character. Him playing an evil visitor? Niiiiiice. I'm still on the fence about the Marc Singer character from the original being played by an hard-assed FBI chick. Speaking of "ham-handed," casting a woman in the role of "main hero" is just soooo PC. It just smells of "if we relaunch this series, the hero has to be a woman, especially because the lead villain is a woman." (Sigh) I wouldn't even call this a quibble. I'm on the fence because I'm trying to determine if the part is well-written and if the actress can pull it off.
Oh, and it goes without saying that I'll watch every episode just because the luminous Morena Baccarin will be in every one.
Re: PC FBI chick
Well, if they want to cast Elizabeth Mitchell in something, I'm all for it, no matter what it is.
For what it's worth, you might not want to see politics in your entertainment, but you bring your politics to being entertained. Because it never occurred to me that the FBI chick might be a PC move ... but that might have something to do with the fact that I've known some hard-assed FBI chicks in my time. And pardon my language here, but I was never ever going to fuck with them. Elizabeth Mitchell might be a tad more radiant -- and ditto on Morena Baccarin; I'm surprised they didn't get one of the women from Battlestar Galactica to complete the sci fi nerd lust trifecta -- but her role doesn't seem all that extraordinary to me.
The FBI chick
I knew I'd catch some hell for that. A little less than I expected, though.
And, yes. I take my politics into shows with me. Or, to state it more precisely, after eight years of having my politics mocked and/or made evil, I have built up some defenses. You'll just have to cut me some slack for that, Joel, or I'll turn you in to The Visitors. Don't make me do that, buddy.
I'm not familiar with Elizabeth Mitchell, though I'm intrigued by what I see.
Oh, and I meant to agree with you about her dopey teen-aged son and his even dopier friend. Who the hell rides a dirt bike around New York City, let alone a 17-year-old. At best, he'd have a Vespa — but it is impossible to look cool driving that hippie motor-scooter around. ;-)
And they've got the "are there any ugly visitors" question answered with an emphatic "NO!"
Re: Elizabeth Mitchell
Uh oh... not a "Lost" fan, eh?
RE: Re: Elizabeth Mitchell
Umm .... no. Never watched it.
Didn't watch the premiere, and felt ... I'm already ... er ... lost. So what's the point. I'm sure I'll just Netflix it and start from the beginning one of these days.
That said...
...I wasn't entirely satisfied with the pilot, either. It was better than "Flash Forward," but that's not saying much. The fact that big chunks of the cast have already built up good will with me -- Mitchell, Baccarin, Tudyk -- will keep me around for another few weeks.
Re: That said
I haven't watched it yet. I will shortly. Reports that the show was changing showrunners were interpreted initially as a response to the pilot. (Jena writes about this in the post I linked to.) But the replacement producer is Scott Rosenbaum, who worked on the late, lamented FX series, The Shield -- one of the finest TV dramas (if not the finest) to come along in ages. So I'm willing to give "V" lots and lots of time.