V begins with the appearance of 29 alien ships hovering over major cities around the world. As crowds stare fixated on the ships, the fleet's leader, Anna (Morena Baccarin) appears on the belly of the ships and announces the visitor's intentions. They are not here for war or conquest; they simply need a share of Earth's natural resources. In return, Anna promises the Visitors will share their technology with Earth.
Of course, a mutually beneficial relationship between the two species isn't her actual intent, but it's good enough for just about everyone on Earth. The only person not buying what Anna is selling is FBI Agent Erica Evans (Elizabeth Mitchell). As the rest of the world stumbles into the Visitor's trap, Erica works with a group of rebels consisting of both humans and alien outcasts to reveal Anna's true intentions.
When V finds its voice, it's a great show. Unfortunately, these moments come in late into the season and even then aren't run with enough consistency to allow the show to grow into something more organic to itself rather than either trying to duplicate something else or attempting some sort of sly cleverness that completely falls apart. The story here isn't so much about alien invasion as it is about two mothers doing what they feel is right for their children's future. Erica is doing everything she can to help her son, Tyler (Logan Huffman), while Anna is doing the same for her daughter, Lisa (Laura Vandevoot).
Unfortunately, V leaves any sense of character drama at the door and instead chooses to focus on political statements. Early into the season, the critiques of the Obama administration are fairly obvious - whether they be the Visitor's message of "hope" and "change" or Earth's blind loyalty and reluctance to question anything Anna tells them. This is great and all; in the end those sorts of messages are really what great science fiction usually is about. However, V places these issues above developing characters.
Ultimately, V runs into the same issues Heroes ran into during its second season and, ultimately, led to its cancellation. When the focus was on unique characters, it was one of the best shows on TV. Once everything shifted towards vague political ideas and messages, it crumbled. Characters are more stereotypical than archetypical and anytime they show some sort of growth, it's immediately tossed in favor of something else.
Compared to other series, V: The Complete First Season offers a healthy number of extras. "Breaking Story" focuses on the production elements like storytelling and pacing. As interesting as the feature could be, a lot of what is said stands in direct opposition of what the show actually offers. The same goes for "The Actor's Journey," where actors share memories of the 80's show as well as their own personal insights on their characters. Listening to the commentary is actually more interesting than watching how elements unfold during the show. Again, it's not that V is horrible television, but it just thinks its one thing and presents another.
Since the reptilian faces are likely the element viewers will remember most about the early series, "An Alien in Human Skin" is probably the most fitting extra of the bunch. The short goes over the make-up work for the show. This is complemented by "The Visual Effects of V". When it comes to deciding between the Blu-ray or DVD release, its really your call. The Blu-ray version offers a step up in both audio and visual clarity, though the picture quality does cause some of the FX-heavy shots to shine just a little more than they should. It's fairly obvious what is real and what is CG, which is a bit of a distraction -- or at least I found it to be one.
V: The Complete First Season is more unrealized potential than something everyone should watch. The idea and concept are great, but it ultimately boils down to schlock sci-fi without much story or consistency. At best, V is something you want to rent first rather than purchase, particularly before investing in the Blu-ray edition.
