The original V (circa 1984) had all the same storyline and plot twists as this new high-gloss, big-budget series premiere–but back then, it was very clear that Marc Singer, Faye Grant, and friends were battling a regime of space-lizards who, for all their promises of good will, were clearly classic Nazi-inspired sci-fi fascists. But a few choice buzzwords peppered throughout the update made it pretty clear what sort of evil Elizabeth Mitchell and Scott Wolf are facing:

Whether this is truly a sign of the “red scare” over Obamamania creeping into geek entertainment or just a sensitive Obamamaniac reading too deep into his primetime entertainment is unclear. We could get a midseries twist, a la BSG, where viewers have to wonder whether the Visitors are, in fact, the heroes of the piece (of course, for now, it is safe to assume they’re bad). For now, I am just curious to see how the show plays out in the ratings, as liberal and conservative viewers alike should be able to find aspects of this show to like–and the same aspects will appeal to those with oposing political and social philosophies differently. For instance, how will Joel Gretsch’s conflicted priest character play to religious conservatives compared with how he comes across to an atheist or agnostic viewer? Will his faith hold strong against the aliens, or will he have to give up his beliefs in order to battle the Vs? Controversial, button-pushing, debate-worthy entertainment like this is what water coolers were made for (well, after the “cooling water” thing).

Consider my perspective as an Obama voter who has started to see some cracks in the president’s polished veneer. It would be naiive to ignore the many shades of gray that play into DC politics–the special interests, the rule by committee, the cult of personality that drives the media, and the clash of personalities that stalls so much of any president’s agenda as it stumbles, in bits and pieces, one item at a time, through Congress and Senate. BUT for a black-and-white sci-fi take on how things could backfire for those of us who jumped on the Obama band wagon with both feet, V has some genuine scare power.

This isn’t all that the show is about, as the presence of the Visitors on Earth is (slightly) more complicated than just a pretty face charming the masses. It’s likely the show will quietly move away from so much potentially alienating (pun intended) anti-Obama rhetoric in favor of more general aliens bad, humans good tropes. Of course, if the Dems drop even more sharply in popularity while the series is still  in production and ratings demand it, we could see Elizabeth Mitchell donning a pair of Tina Fey glasses, putting lipstick on her pig, and shooting Vs from a helicopter in the season finale!