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"Unity"
V: The Final Battle (part 1,
hour 1)
0:00-50:13 on Side 1, Disc 1 of the DVD set
Teleplay by Brian Taggert and Peggy Goldman
Story by Lillian Weezer, Peggy Goldman, Faustus Buck & Diana
Frolov and Harry & Renee Longstreet
Directed by Richard T. Heffron |
After a demoralizing defeat, the resistance begins to wonder how
they can score a significant victory that will help turn the
tide against the Visitors; Robin frets about her inhuman
pregnancy.
(This episode begins with Donovan's nightmare vision of
Sean being killed and ends with Kristine Walsh getting caught by
Steven in section 34.)
Read the story summary of the mini-series at the
V Wiki
Didja Know?
I took the title of this episode from Julie's comment, "Not real big on unity are you, Donovan?" ("Not Big on
Unity" is also the name of chapter 2 on the DVD.) This hour has
a bit of a theme of unity among people.
Joe Harnell is replaced as music composer on this mini-series by
first Barry De Vorzon and Joseph Conlan on part 1 and then Dennis McCarthy
on parts 2 and 3. De Vorzon and Conlan's opening theme here is probably the
one most familiar and recognizable to fans as the
V theme.
Though Kenneth Johnson is given only a "Created by" credit, some of his ideas for a sequel
mini-series are incorporated in this script and he is actually
given a co-writing credit under the pseudonym Lillian Weezer. Johnson, on the
audio commentary on the DVD of the first mini-series, says he chose
not to participate in the sequel after it became clear to him
that Warner Brothers was not going to provide enough money to do
it the way he wanted to.
The novelization reveals that this episode opens 4 months after
the end of the original mini-series. Another indication of this
is that Robin's pregnancy has obviously progressed. It's
surprising that none of the novels filled in the four month gap
with an adventure or two of the resistance during this period.
Didja Notice?
Donovan complains that all the lab experiments the Resistance is doing is not going to get them any superweapon. Ironically, that's what does happen when the red dust virus is discovered in the dead hybrid baby's body in
"Test Subjects".
When Julie accuses Donovan of not being big on unity, he replies
that he's used to working alone. Since when? As a cameraman he
always worked with Tony Leonetti.
Notice the look exchanged between Donovan and Sancho at
4:36-4:38 on the DVD after Julie scolds Donovan that he better
get used to working as part of the team. It's a sort of "Oh,
Mom's flying off the handle again" look that men often share
around women in positions of power.
At 4:40 on the DVD, Sancho appears to be carrying an M16 rifle.
Many of these are also used in the Risistance assault on the Visitor processing plant.
There are some new Visitor uniform designs in this
mini-series. Many of the officers now have gold stripes on their
collars or shoulders and some of the security personnel now wear
gold helmets instead of black. See Steven's change of wardrobe
below. |
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Old uniform |
New uniform |
In the first mini-series, Diana wore several different
hairstyles during the course of it. Here, she has longer,
straight hair and it stays this way throughout.
Starting in this episode, we see the Visitors making use of
Earth vehicles with the Visitor symbol applied to them for transportation.
The Visitor food processing plant hit by the resistance in this
episode is revealed to be in Pomona, CA in
The Pursuit of Diana.
As the resistance hits the Visitor's food processing plant, we
see that Donovan still has the laser pistol he obtained from the
Fifth Columnist, Barbara, in "Betrayal
and Reward".
At 7:05 on the DVD, Jenny is carrying a
Armalite
AR-18 rifle during the assault.
During the battle at the Visitors' food processing plant, at
10:56 on the DVD, one of the Visitors taking cover is seen
wearing an earring!

As the resistance group returns to their headquarters, we see
that they are still in the abandoned wastewater processing plant
they took over in "Betrayal
and Reward". They arrive is a few different
GMC pickup models.
The wastewater plant is covered in graffiti. One of the designs painted on it (11:19) is of a rearing cobra, presumably a reference to the reptilian Visitors.
Another design appears to be the U.S. flag with a Nazi swastika in the corner instead of the 50 stars; spray painted next to it in the same black paint is the word "fascists".
At 13:06 on the DVD, Donovan is wearing a cheap digital watch, possibly
Casio brand.
When Donovan argues that the group's hit-and-run raids are
useless, that they need a bonanza, an event, Elias counters,
"What do you mean we, huh? I mean, since when did you
join up?" If this is four months after the end of the previous
episode (as stated in the novelization) and Donovan is still
considered something of an outsider, then what has he being
doing in that time? Maybe this unrevealed time period explains
why Donovan earlier said he's used to working alone. Again, it
would be nice to see a story set during these missing four
months in novel or comic book form.
It's ironic that Polly is teasing her sister, Robin, about
kissing the lizard the resistance keeps for research, saying "He
loves you." This is before any of the resistance members know
that the father of Robin's baby is the Visitor Brian (although
Polly did know that Robin was attracted to Brian when he was the
Visitor Youth leader in their old neighborhood).
At 17:19 on the DVD, we see a Visitor driving a small cart
across the hanger deck that looks suspiciously like an Earth
golf cart!

At 19:31 on the DVD, Elias drives a 1983 GMC Vandura to the
medical center. It says a magnetic sign on the side for American
Surgical Supply Company; this appears to have been a fictitious company at the time, though businesses with a similar name existed before the 1980s and after. The same van is used later during the kidnapping of Brian at Daniel's house in
"Test Subjects", with a new sign on the side for Prestige Wine.
At the medical center, Daniel tells Elias that he's been
promoted to youth leader, in charge of the entire L.A. chapter
of the Friends of the Visitors.
The Los Angeles Medical Center that the resistance steals its
supplies from does not exist in the real world. The exterior
scenes of the building appear to actually be the NBC Studios
complex as evidenced by
Chadney's restaurant right across the street at 20:01 on the
DVD.

During his confrontation with Kristine Walsh, Dr. Walker
mentions the Nuremberg trials. For those of you not up on your
world history, these were the trials of Nazi war criminals after
WWII in Nuremberg, Germany.
At 21:16 on the DVD, the Visitor called Gary appears to be
smoking a marijuana joint. A scene like this was a rarity on
prime-time television at the time (and still, really!). It also
seems that marijuana has the same effect on Visitors as on
humans; not only a high but also giving him the munchies as
evidenced in the famous "mousie" scene at 22:46-23:52.
Daniel seems to have suddenly changed uniforms! At 19:33
on the DVD, he is wearing a plain, brown Visitor jumpsuit. At
21:41, we see that he now has a gold collar and armband! And
then at 26:21, as he arrives at the Los Angeles Visitor Security
Headquarters, he is back in the all-brown uniform! |
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19:33 on the DVD |
21:41 on the DVD |
Kristine remarks to the stand-offish Dr. Walker that they met in Palm Springs at Gerald Ford's.
Ford (1913-2006) was the 38th President of the United States,
from 1974-1977. He had a residence in
Palm
Springs after leaving office.
Julie's dialog during the "supply run" at the medical center reveals that the doctor inside who has been helping the Resistance is named Fred.
During the conversation between John and Diana aboard the L.A.
mothership, they reveal the President is currently undergoing
conversion by the Visitors. The V
novels reveal the president to be
William Morrow (the real president at the time was Ronald
Reagan).
During the conversion process as seen a number of times during
this mini-series, the human candidate is dressed in a
skin-tight, flesh-colored garment that almost makes the person
appear to be nude. Similar types of garments are often used in
Hollywood productions as a symbol for nudity when broadcast
standards will not allow the real thing. Essentially, we should
interpret the characters as being naked, adding another level of
vulnerability and discomfort to the ordeal they are going
through. We also see this same garment on the people being
stored in pods. (In the novelization the people are
described as naked in both situations.)
At 26:57 on the DVD we get a wide shot of the neighborhood in
which the resistance headquarters is located. There is a street
running by it with a number of cars parked and a building that
may be an apartment building. In any case, it appears to be a
location where there are other people around. It seems like the
resistance members comings and goings from the abandoned
wastewater treatment plant would be noticed and possibly
reported to authorities. It doesn't seem like a particularly
safe harbor!

In this mini-series we meet a newer member of the L.A.
resistance, an ex-cop named Mark (played by Sandy Simpson).
Though taller, he has a similar look to Brad, the ex-cop from
the first mini-series (played by William Russ). Brad is not seen
again after the first mini-series, but in the novelization, all
of Mark's scenes go to Brad, who is still around! Also the
soundtrack CD of
V: The Final Battle refers
to Brad and not to Mark on two of its tracks. It would seem the
script was written with Brad in mind but, apparently, the actor,
William Russ, was not available, so a new actor with a similar
look was brought in to play him. I guess at some point the
producers decided they didn't want to cheat it by calling Sandy
Simpson's character Brad, so it was changed to Mark.
At 28:57 on the DVD, Donovan walks past a store called A.F. Clothing. There is an actual business by that name on Los Angeles Street in L.A.
Seconds later, he walks past some kind of stereo service location, with the brand names
Kenwood, Concord, Pioneer, Craig, Clarion, and Sanyo on the window. These are all real world manufacturers of entertainment technology.
At 29:15 on the DVD, an obvious crowd of onlookers can be seen on the sidewalk observing the filming of the action!

At 29:20 on the DVD, the Hotel Rosslyn is seen in the
background. This is a real historic hotel on 5th Street in L.A.,
now housing apartments. It was previously seen in
"Betrayal and Reward".
A Visitor automobile is seen in an alley at 29:26 on the DVD. It's a
1984 Dodge 600. Several of these vehicles are seen throughout
this (and later) episodes, most likely the same car reused over and over.
At 29:40 on the DVD, Donovan walks past a
7-Up branded refrigeration case of soda pop. Both 7-Up and
Coke are seen inside.
At 34:00 on the DVD, Visitor writing is visible on the
invitation to the medical center ceremony. |
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At 34:44 on the DVD, the Resistance van is a Boyertown Merchandiser and has a Samutz Expert Rug
Cleaners sign on the front. This appears to be a fictitious business. Notice that all these magnetic business signs used by the Resistance tend to have the same oval shape and red font! I guess they have one person who is cranking out these signs for them with some excess stock!
At 34:56 on the DVD, the sound made by Pascal's counterfeiting
computer is composed of the same sounds made by the
Enterprise bridge computers on the original Star Trek!
Listen:
counterfeiting
When Pascal's computer scans the
invitation to the medical center ceremony at 35:02 on
the DVD, Visitor writing appears on the green-screen. |
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While Pascal's
computer scans the invitation to the medical center
ceremony, a couple of the screens that come up look like
something from a game on an Atari 2600 game system! |
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At 41:59 on the DVD, at the resistance headquarters we see a
cabinet with the words "CONSERVE FOOD" and "THINK OF OTHERS"
written on it. I guess it's to prevent mooching!

Donovan gives Kristine the electronic key he picked up from a
Visitor shuttle to try to find Sean aboard the mothership. He
picked up the key in "Visitors, Victims, and Victory".
At 48:05 on the DVD, there is
some Visitor writing on the door panel. |
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In the original mini-series, the restricted corridors of
the mothership have white lights at the support points,
while in this mini-series the lights are green. I think
the green does actually lend a creepy Alien
feel to the already Nostromo-esque dark
hallways. |
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Notes from the V
mini-series novelization by A.C. Crispin
(The page numbers come from the 1st printing,
paperback edition, published May 1984)
Pages 215-242 cover the events of "Unity" |
Many scenes from the first two hours of this mini-series are
scrambled around or combined or altered in the novel for some
reason.
The novel mentions a few things that occurred during the
otherwise undocumented four months between the two mini-series:
Donovan continues to exchange information and
encouragement with Martin.
Martin expands the Fifth Column, with significant help
from Jennifer (from the novel
East Coast Crisis) on the New York ship.
Visitor security is at an all-time high since Donovan's
theft of the squad vehicle.
The Visitors develop the improved body armor, making
their troops largely impervious to small arms fire.
The Visitors defeat many resistance raids around the
world.
Now completely in charge of human society, the Visitors
have abandoned the desalinization plants and are tapping
directly into freshwater reservoirs.
Donovan brings in new recruits and teaches many others
how to pilot the captured squad vehicle.
Thanks to Elias' targeted dealing, several Visitor
troops have discovered human drugs that give them a high.
Robert Maxwell and his daughters have informally
adopted young Josh.
Robin's infatuation with Brian has slowly evolved into
something akin to hatred after their interlude.
Robin has refused to view Donovan's tape of the
Visitors' true form.
Page 219 reveals that Maggie Blodgett had previously run an air
transport company with her late husband.
Page 221 reveals that Eleanor Dupres has been named the Honorary
Chairwoman of the conference to take place at the Los Angeles
Medical Center.
Pages 228-230 cover Donovan's encounter with his mother,
Eleanor, when she catches him in her home. The encounter is a
combination of the scene in this episode and the one at the end
of "Plan for Resistance"
(from the first mini-series). Also, in this version, Eleanor
does not shoot at her son as she does in the televised
scene, though she does alert her Visitor guests that he has just
escaped.
On page 231 Father Andrew begins his story of protecting the
family in Africa who are accused of being guerrillas. On the
DVD, he says the little boy was 10 years old. In the novel he
says the boy was 11 years old.
Pages 234-235 depict Donovan's meeting with Kristine Walsh to
ask her help in retrieving Sean from the mothership. But instead
of meeting on a path at the equestrian club, they meet in a
supermarket!
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