"War of the Worlds" (1988)TV series 1988-1990

Directors:

Timothy Bond
Colin Chilvers

Writers:

Wilson Coneybeare (story)
Jim Trombetta (writer)

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

7 October 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

Humanity must resume its war against the Martians after they revive after decades of hibernation after their defeat in the 1950's.

Plot Keywords:

Alien Language | Alien Possession | Satire | Black Humor | Alien Invasion

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Jared Martin	...	Dr. Harrison Blackwood (43 episodes, 1988-1990)
Lynda Mason Green	...	Dr. Suzanne McCullough (43 episodes, 1988-1990)
Richard Chaves	...	Lt. Col. Paul Ironhorse (24 episodes, 1988-1989)
Rachel Blanchard	...	Debi McCullough (24 episodes, 1988-1990)
Philip Akin	...	Norton Drake (24 episodes, 1988-1989)
Denis Forest	...	Malzor / ... (21 episodes, 1989-1990)
Adrian Paul	...	John Kincaid (20 episodes, 1989-1990)
Catherine Disher	...	Mana (20 episodes, 1989-1990)
Ilse von Glatz	...	Advocate #2 / ... (20 episodes, 1988-1989)

Also Known As:

War of the Worlds: The Second Invasion (USA) (second season title)

Runtime:

60 min (44 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 (some episodes)

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Hometown Films

Trivia:

Three of the first season episodes were credited with pen names: "The Walls of Jericho", Forrest van Buren; "The Good Samaritan", Sylvia Clayton; and "Epiphany", Sylvia van Buren. The names were taken from the two main characters of the film, Clayton Forrester and Sylvia van Buren.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In one episode, an actor dressed as an alien jumps down from an air duct onto a human. As he jumps, you can see his socks.

Quotes:

Advocate #3: Why is it the lower classes cannot think for themselves?
Advocate #1: Our job is to think; their job is to do. We must never confuse the two.

Movie Connections:

Version of The War of the Worlds (2005)

Great premise, cut short too early

The idea of bringing back the aliens from War of the Worlds is simply great, especially for those who wonder "what if the aliens had attacked us with our technology today, instead of back in the '50s?" The answer is clear; they would STILL kick ass! The heat rays they used are just as unbeatable in the 80s as they were in the 50s, and the idea of the aliens going into hibernation to survive rather than just dying was a great plot device to bring them into the present. The spaceships, sound effects and sfx are lovingly recreated in the series. The show reminds me of Star Trek, in one respect only - both shows had great premise, but given too little backing by the studios that created them. Networks will never learn - if you're going to do a risky new sci-fi series, either back it all the way or don't bother. If the series had been given full support with and heavy advertising, and maintained the intelligence of the stories, this might have gone on for years. As it is, it's definitely worth checking out on the sci-fi channel. Now if there is ever a War of the Worlds/Star Trek crossover, that would definitely be worth seeing...(no matter how silly the idea is.)

Eight stars for effort on this series.