Ep 1. V: The Original Miniseries, Pt. 1

V is a science-fiction television series from 1983 which revolves around an alien race called the Visitors who come to Earth to seek help from humans in order to save their dying planet. The first episode, entitled V: The Original Miniseries, Pt. 1, introduces viewers to the Visitors, who arrive in fifty hovering motherships over major cities worldwide, including Los Angeles.

The episode begins with the Visitors offering a message of peace and goodwill, assuring humanity that they come as friends and allies, but suspicion and concern quickly arise, especially from a small group of people who believe that the Visitors are hiding their true intentions. Among them is a young cameraman named Mike Donovan (Marc Singer), who spots a Visitor shuttle landing near the city and decides to investigate.

As Donovan begins to dig around, he discovers that the Visitors have been infiltrating human society by disguising themselves in synthetic human skin. Meanwhile, the leader of the Visitors, Diana (Jane Badler), is actively working to further their agenda; sending out her shock troops to infiltrate key positions of power and suppress any resistance.

The episode also follows the lives of several other characters who become involved in the Visitors' arrival. Julie Parrish (Faye Grant), a medical researcher, initially believes the Visitors' promise of peace but soon becomes suspicious. Robert Maxwell (Michael Durrell), a wealthy businessman, becomes a close friend of a Visitor named Willie (Robert Englund), who is searching for a particle that could save his people. Another character, Harmony (Duncan Regehr), is a charismatic Visitor who quickly rises to power, but also harbors a dark secret.

As Donovan continues to uncover the Visitors' true purposes, he finds himself and his allies in grave danger, as they become the target of both the Visitors' wrath and the skepticism of the larger society. However, he remains undeterred, determined to expose the Visitors' true intentions to the world.

Overall, the first episode of V: The Original Miniseries, Pt. 1 sets the stage for an epic struggle between humanity and the Visitors, with high stakes and complex characters driving the action. The show is a classic example of 1980s sci-fi, from its special effects to its political allegory, and holds up well even today as a thrilling and thought-provoking work of television.