Gerry Anderson’s classic series UFO had a lot going for it. The first live action foray by Sylvia and Gerry, it contained the iconic miniature props and models we’d come to expect. Unlike a lot of other science fiction shows at the time, UFO was a little darker and focused more on characters.
If you aren’t familiar with the series, you owe it to yourself to visit the Gerry Anderson Web Site and check out the Gerry And Sylvia Anderson Appreciation Society.
Then grab the DVD or binge it on AmazonVideo. My favourite episodes?
- The Square Triangle
- The Long Sleep
- Flight Path
- Confetti Check A-O.K.
- Timelash
- Mindbender
- Survival
- Sub-Smash
- The Sound of Silence
- Computer Affair
But let it Rest in Peace. We’ve already had one failed effort to revive it as a series, and the on again, off again movie was off again as of 2014.
We lost Gerry in 2012. We don’t need another Thunderbirds or UFO project to affirm his place in the annals of Science Fiction greats. He and Sylvia both secured that long ago.
How about a current franchise, say…
The track record of Alien Invasion TV isn’t very good. Earth: Final Conflict? V? Dark Skies? First Wave? Threshold? V died multiple times. And Falling Skies is the current champion not because it ended well but simply because it, well, ended.
Let’s not do another TV series. A movie? Silent Hill is superb and Doom isn’t shabby. Why not an XCOM movie?
What are some of your favorite Earth vs. Aliens movies? Ender’s Game? Independence Day? Men in Black? Cowboys versus Aliens? Monsters? They Live?
Few pulled it off as well as Men in Black. And The Last Starfighter belongs on pretty much every list. Okay, I know I missed a few–a lot–movies like Battleship and Battle of Los Angeles. And yes, I deliberately left others [shudder] off.
But XCOM is a mature franchise. One movie isn’t going to do it justice. So no, not just a movie. A movie series. The Resident Evil big screen adaptations are, well, just plain awesome. But move over Umbrella Corp. We just might have a new kid on the block. And dare I say it?
