Julie (Faye Grant) and Kyle (Jeff Yagher) have their work cut out for them in the first episode this week, as the battle for Earth and its people continue with V – The Series.

Written by David Braff, the episode first aired on 15 February, 1985. It seems a deadly epidemic has broken out, and the pair have to enlist the help of a local gang, the Wildcats, to help steal the serum.

Unfortunately a member of the gang may in fact be a Visitor spy.

And speaking of the Visitors, aboard the mothership, Diana (Jane Badler) and Lydia (June Chadwick) become unlikely allies when Philip (Frank Ashmore) reminds them of Visitor law that if Charles’ murderer isn’t found, then all of the suspects must be buried with him.

The series gets increasingly silly, melodramatic and more than a little soap opera-y. It continues to look cheap, and shoddy, which is such a letdown after the miniseries (which looked pretty damned good at the time).

And speaking of silly, Willie (Robert Englund) is really getting the short shrift when it comes to stories, and moments. What started as a slightly comedic, but sympathetic character, has become this goofy, all comedic character that doesn’t allow Willie any dignity, or make for character development.

Sigh.

There’s a lot of silliness going on, but it’s all going to come crashing down very soon. And that will be a good thing. he show runners definitely did not treat the series with the same love and attention that were displayed in both minseries (despite the change in how NBC wanted the story to play out).

The Littlest Dragon was written by David Abramowitz and aired 22 February, 1985.

Philip is trailing a Fifth Columnist in the hopes of tacking down Donovan (Marc Singer). He plans to exact revenge, as he believes Donovan was the man who killed his twin brother Martin. We all know better of course, as Martin and Mike Donovan were friends and allies.

The columnists he is tracking, Robert (Brett Cullen) and Glenda (Wendy Fulton) are hoping for assistance from the Resistance, bu there’s a complication, the Visitor, Glenda, is about to give birth.

Diana has her own agent on the trail of the two Fifth Columnists, Angela (Leslie Bevis) and she’s going to learn more than she thought she would. Something that could endanger the entire Fifth Column, the rebellion amongst the Visitors.

I know I harp on it almost weekly at this point, but the visual effect reuses, and the increasingly shoddy looking sets, not to mention the way too melodramatic acting, and simplistic storylines, are really starting to wear. This could have been a solid, amazing series, but decided to go a completely different way.

Next week the series comes to its conclusion as we work through the last trio of episodes, and put the show behind us, and fight to hold onto the happy memories of the two miniseries while hoping to block out the majority of this television series.