V - OK, This is what I wanted

After the first episode of the remake of "V" I was not impressed. It's even fair to say I was disappointed.

But, I am not one to dismiss a sci-fi show after one viewing. Oh, no. There are far too few shows outside of the standard network "reality," "crime drama," and "sit-com" molds. When something speculative comes along, I will not abandon it lightly. I remind myself that even the best series sometimes start weakly as they establish initial characters who begin as stereotypes until writers and actors can collaborate to build someone interesting [Worf started out completely one-dimensional, for example, before becoming one of the most interesting characters in ST:tNG and ST:DS9.]

And so, we watched the second episode of "V." And I'm glad we did. I admit, part of the problem I had with the first episode was that it rigidly followed what I remembered from the original mini-series, and I was disappointed they hadn't changed things in some meaningful way. Well, by the second episode, my memory of the events in the original was fuzzy enough that I couldn't say whether the new version was the same or different. And then, Erica Evans, the character played by Elizabeth Mitchell, asserted herself as something a bit more nuanced than she had been in the first episode. Similarly, Ryan, the "Rebel Visitor in Hiding" played by Morris Chestnut, got a chance to prove his value as a character.

Last night's episode had some nice surprises, and we have one more before this mini-series (or perhaps "pre-series") wraps up. So, now I am really wishing I had some sort of Digital Video Recording technology (Tivo or the like) because I don't want to keep missing NCIS, but I have to see what they do to complete this part of "V" -- and set up for the next one.