Movies or television series’ are not just about the actors, but about the visual aspect of what you are watching, especially when it comes to the science fiction and fantasy genre, which sometimes relies heavily on CGI and such.

In the world of film making many steps are taken to bring you that visual aspect and most times we don’t think about the hours, days and processes that go into the work.

A company in Venice Beach, CA called Lightcraft Technology, has created the perfect camera system to improve the production pipeline. Click here to read a little more about that.

Eliot Mack, the founder and system architect of Lightcraft Technology has for the past 8 years been helping filmmakers work in real time visual effects with the system he developed with Co-Founder Phil Mass called Previzion.

We asked Eliot some questions about his camera system and here are his answers:

BLAST: Why did you create this product? What was the thought process behind it?

ELIOT MACK: I started building Previzion out of frustration with both the traditional production process (sets, locations, etc.) and the traditional visual effects process (tracking, keying, rendering, compositing, etc.) I had learned enough VFX to complete about 2 shots with standard methods, but simply could not believe how hard it was to do basic things, like pulling a key well or matching a lens accurately. At that point, I understood the underlying math and could start building a system to handle the repetitious, boring tasks like lens matching and camera position tracking.

BLAST: What movies/TV shows might the readers have seen this unique tech involved in?

EM: The productions with the widest viewing audience are probably “Alice in Wonderland,” the 2010 Tim Burton film, and “V,” the sci-fi television series.

BLAST: What future projects might this technology be used in?

EM: The two major areas we work in are feature film/high end episodic previsualization, and real time finishing, where the show is composited on the stage. We’re being used on complex stereoscopic motion pictures, to integrate stereo live action cameras and animated CG characters, as well as in telenovelas, where the production volume is high but the keying has to be very good. The underlying connection is our focus on high accuracy and image quality.

BLAST: Is this the only technology of its kind in the market today? And if no, how does your company differ from others?

EM: There are other types of real time keying systems that have been used for years in TV news, weather, and sports. Previzion is the only commercial real time system that is specifically designed for the demands of motion picture and television VFX production.

BLAST: How will Lightcraft Technology benefit movie making in the future?

EM: Previzion lets productions do much more creatively while saving money. Visual effects open up the storytelling palate, but the cost and complexity has limited their use. We’re already creating photorealistic sets that render in real time and fit on a thumb drive; painting a wall green and setting up some tracking targets is a lot less expensive than blocking off city streets or sending an entire production crew to some remote area.

BLAST: Where do you see your company in five years? In 10 years?

EM: We’re going to continue making the systems faster, more accurate, and easier to integrate into productions. Most people think of visual effects as limited to science fiction or summer blockbusters, but the rate of VFX speed and accuracy available in Previzion lets a wide range of productions use them.

BLAST: In regards to film school/students do you see your Lightcraft Technology being utilized in school as a teaching method?

EM: Very much so. In fact, we think that the technology could change the nature of student films. Our photogrammetry tools make it possible for a single person to go out with a DSLR and capture enough stills to create a photorealistic 3D background model. Students can expand the scope of their projects while they are learning to use the same on-set tools used on the largest VFX projects out there.

BLAST: For the average movie enthusiast who loves film, will they see a difference between traditional methods of creating film (actors filmed in front of a green screen) over your Lightcraft Technology?

EM: Previzion is in many ways similar to traditional VFX work. It uses the same blue and green screens and some of the same 3D modeling tools to create the backgrounds. The key difference is the speed – it’s a complete visual effects pipeline that happens to run in real time.

Kacey Rohl may be a bit of a new face to the television and movie scene but she confidently shares the details of her already expanding career.

In the past year Rohl has appeared on a number of TV movies and familiar television shows including FOX network’s “Fringe” and ABC’s “V.” Recently, the Canadian native has gone from television to the silver screen In “Red Riding Hood” along side Amanda Seyfried as Seyfried’s character Valerie’s friend Prudence.

“It was interesting, TV shoots faster, we have more to cover in a day,” said Rohl, of the change from television to film. “Films generally shoot slower and you can take more time with them. ‘Red Riding Hood’ was shot really quickly. It was just sort of on a grander scale with more lights, more cameras, and more people.”

Rohl has recently been seen back on the TV with the premiere of AMC’s “The Killing” last week. “The Killing” is the newest of AMC’s collection of critic-favorite cult classics and tells the story of a detective (Mireille Enos) and the residents of a small town as they try to uncover who killed Rosie Larsen.

Rohl plays Sterling, a high school student who was best friends with Rosie before her death.

“She is a young woman with dangerously low self esteem. She tries to find it in all the wrong places. Mainly boys.” She said.

Given the dark nature of “The Killing” it is no surprise that Rohl has found the to be a much different experience from her others.

“With Sterling I had to dig deeper.” She said, “I learned a lot about my process.” But she also believes that there is something familiar about her character, being that she is a teenage girl, dealing with self esteem issues and growing up.

“Every young girl went through that icky self-esteem part of growing up.” Rohl said.

Fortunately “The Killing” filmed in Vancouver where Rohl lives.

“I get to sleep in my own bed at night” she laughed.

Though “The Killing” is only around for thirteen episodes for its first season, Rohl’s career has yet to stop picking up steam. She told Blast we can expect to see her in two other recent projects she has worked on including “Sisters and Brothers” a film which Rohl describes as “structured improv.” directed by Carl Bessai. “Sisters and Brothers” has given Rohl the opportunity to work along side other familiar faces such as former “90210” star Dustin Milligan, “Glee’s” Corey Monteith, Tyler Labine of The CW network’s “Reaper.”

Rohl also revealed some tid-bits about her character in “The Killing” to Blast “She [Sterling] has a secret that she isn’t willing to tell right away.” If that isn’t a reason to have everyone glued to their television screens on Sunday nights we don’t know what is.

*The TV Renewal/Cancellation scorecard has been updated to reflect Tuesday’s ratings!

A special Tuesday broadcast of “American Idol” was typically formidable, with a 7.5 rating over 90 minutes. That translated into a 3.4 demo for “Raising Hope,” a series high.

After generating some hope for a third season, “V” fell back a little, drawing a 1.8 in the demo. While the show was on (the likely to be canceled side) cusp of the bubble with a 1.9 rating, this fall likely signals cancellation is in its future. “No Ordinary Family” will face a very ordinary cancellation, guaranteed.

The Charlie Sheen interview at 10 pm was a hit, drawing 9.5 million viewers and a 3.2 demo; despite the competition, “The Good Wife” bounced back from last week to a 2.2 in the demo.

On CBS, “NCIS” and “NCIS: LA” fell from last weeks inflated numbers, but were still tops for the night besides AI.

8 pm

American Idol (90 minutes): 7.5 demo, 21.2 million viewers

NCIS: 3.8 demo, 19.2 million viewers

The Biggest Loser Couples (8-10): 2.4 demo, 7 million viewers

No Ordinary Family: 1.2 demo, 4.3 million viewers

One Tree Hill: .8 demo, 1.6 million viewers

9 pm

NCIS: Los Angeles: 3.3 demo, 15.6 million viewers

V: 1.8 demo, 5 million viewers

Hellcats: .6 demo, 1.5 million viewers

9:30

Raising Hope: 3.4 demo, 8.8 million viewers

10 pm

Charlie Sheen 20/20 Interview: 3.2 demo, 9.3 million viewers

The Good Wife: 2.2 demo, 11.5 million viewers

Parenthood: 1.9 demo, 5 million viewers

“American Idol” returned Wednesday to crush the competition. The show averaged 26.1 million viewers and a 9.2 demo rating. To put that in perspective–in the demo that is more than two-times the sure-to-be-renewed “Modern Family” and “Glee” demo ratings—and more than 5 times the ratings of fellow Fox shows like “Lie to Me,” whose cancellation is now more apparent than ever.

ABC’s shows held up pretty well against the Idol monster; “Cougar Town” dropped to a 2.5 demo rating, but ABC will likely take that. Combined with “Modern Family’s” 4.6 demo, ABC averaged a 3.5 in the demo for the hour, which I imagine they will live with. “Off the Map” didn’t lose much from last week–it drew a 2.1 demo. But that’s likely not enough to earn a second season. Still, it’s not a sure-to-be-cancelled situation, such as fellow ABC drama “V.” Also, “Better with You,” the one show not renewed on ABC’s Wednesday comedy block, held up pretty well and was second in its timeslot against Idol. That bodes well.

CBS was hurt most by Idol, averaging less than a 2.0 in the demo for the night. “Live to Dance” is a bust, and “Blue Bloods” test run on Tuesday was a failure, with a 2.0 demo rating. Idol also plowed through “Criminal Minds,” which drew under a 3.0 for the first time this season, and very possibly ever.

NBC was as irrelevant as ever; in its new timeslot, “Chase” drew a 1.0.

8 pm

American Idol (8-10 pm): 9.2 demo, 26.1 million viewers

The Middle: 2.7 demo, 8.7 million viewers

Minute to Win It: 1.6 demo, 5 million viewers

Live to Dance: 1.0 demo, 5.3 million viewers

8:30 pm

Better With You: 2.2 demo, 6.8 million viewers

9 pm

Modern Family: 4.6 demo, 11.1 million viewers

Criminal Minds: 2.9 demo, 12.1 million viewers

Chase: 1.0 demo, 4.3 million viewers

9:30

Cougar Town: 2.5 demo, 6 million viewers

10 pm

Law and Order: SVU: 2.2 demo, 6.8 million viewers

Off the Map: 2.1 demo, 5.8 million viewers

Blue Bloods: 2.0 demo, 12.2 million viewers

CBS rode its procedurals to another Tuesday win, but the net continues to see diminishing returns at 10 pm from “The Good Wife.” With last night’s 2.1 demo, the show is moving from safe to firmly in danger of cancellation come spring. “The Good Wife” remains one of network television’s most critically acclaimed dramas and was nominated for several Emmy’s last year. But how much good will does that buy with CBS?

ABC’s Tuesday lineup remains a complete wash. There is no doubt “V” will be cancelled at the conclusion of its current run. With another week below a 2.0 in the demo, “No Ordinary Family” seems destined to end this season as well.

“Parenthood” remains one of NBC’s highest rated dramas with a 2.1 demo.

8 pm

NCIS: 4.0 demo, 21 million viewers

The Biggest Loser Couples (8-10): 2.8 demo, 8 million viewers

No Ordinary Family: 1.8 demo, 5.7 million viewers

Glee (repeat): 1.4 demo, 4.4 million viewers

9 pm

NCIS: Los Angeles: 3.3 demo, 17.2 million viewers

V: 1.9 demo, 5.6 million viewers

Million Dollar Money Drop: 1.9 demo, 5.2 million viewers

10 pm

The Good Wife: 2.2 demo, 11.3 million viewers

Parenthood: 2.1 demo, 5.6 million viewers

20/20: 1.4 demo, 6.1 million viewers

ABC is looking at a clean sweep of soon-to-be-cancelled Tuesday dramas, as all three of its scripted programs last night drew less than a 2.0 in the adult’s 18-49 demo. Though “V” was the highest program on the network last night, there is next to no chance that it will be renewed for a third season. And after starting out promising, “No Ordinary Family” is heading towards a perfectly ordinary cancellation.

CBS had a strong night in both the demo and in total viewers, though “The Good Wife” was dragging at 10 p.m.; despite routinely winning its timeslot, with a 2.2 demo rating on CBS, “The Good Wife” is in danger of cancellation at the end of the season.

NBC is seeing some life again on Tuesday’s with “The Biggest Loser,” a huge hit for the network. And while “Parenthood” is much weaker than its lead-in, it’s still strong than anything on the network, so its looking safe right now.

8 pm

NCIS: 4.5 demo, 22 million viewers

Biggest Loser Couples (8-10): 3.2 demo, 8.8 million viewers

Glee (Rerun): 1.7 demo, 4.7 million viewers

No Ordinary Family: 1.5 demo, 5.3 million viewers

9 pm

NCIS: Los Angeles: 3.7 demo, 18.1 million viewers

Million Dollar Money Drop: 1.8 demo, 5.1 million viewers

V: 1.9 demo, 5.8 million viewers

 10 pm

The Good Wife: 2.3 demo, 12.3 million viewers

Parenthood: 2.2 demo, 5.6 million viewers

Detroit 1-8-7: 1.0 demo, 5 million viewers

“V” is a hit. There’s no doubt. As far as science fiction on network television goes, it’s primed to be the most successful one we’ve seen, maybe ever.

Therefore, in good network television form, ABC is doing everything it can to totally screw it up.

According to ABC, 14.3 million people watched Tuesday’s series premiere of “V,” which challenged CBS and the current No. 1 show in America, “NCIS” in the Tuesday night ratings battle. In fact, “V” had the best debut of the 2009-10 fall television season.

It’s all gravy so far.

But ABC has decided only to air four episodes this fall. It will hold the remaining episodes for March — March — until after the NBC Winter Olympics coverage. Also, news came recently that the producers, who made “V” the ratings and popular success it is, are departing the show. “Chuck” executive producer Scott Rosenbaum will join the series as executive producer and showrunner, to pick up production, which was halted for what ABC called a “creative hiatus.”

ABC only filmed the fourth episode of “V” a few weeks ago, and the show will not go back into production — they won’t film the rest of the episodes — until January.

I have no explanation for any of this. Usually if a show debuts with the best ratings of the season you leave it alone and let the magic happen. This move reeks of no uncertain lack of confidence on ABC’s part.

One of the most anticipated shows of the fall season premieres tonight when “V” opens up on ABC at 8 p.m. The show is about aliens who come to Earth under the auspices of benevolence — curing disease, etc. — but what are there true motives?

The World Series is off tonight as it returns to New York for game six, so you can expect everything to be watching “V” tonight. “NCIS” and “NCIS Los Angeles” are also on, on CBS.

The other premiere we’ll mention tonight is “Tabatha’s Salon Takeover,” which starts at 10 on Bravo. We’re so happy for Tabatha, who gave an interview with Blast shortly before her disappointing exit from “Shear Genius.”

In other news, TNT cut a deal with Warner Bros. Television to obtain NBC’s canceled “Southland.” The cable network will have exclusive rights to the 13 episodes, which includes seven unaired episodes. It will air on TNT on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. starting in January.

G4 will renew “Human Wrecking Balls,” for a second season starting November 11 at 8 p.m. The show, with the daredevil Pumphrey brothers who wreck things like helicopters and gas stations. So grab your Cheeze-Its and cola, all you hyperactive nerds, and tune into G4 for shit getting destroyed.

FOX announced that the Charles Logan character will be back on “24,” as actor Gregory Itzin is back for season eight, which starts January 17 at 9 p.m. and continues a two-night, hour-hour opener the next night at 8.

Variety reported that executive producers Ian Sander and Kim Moses have three possibly big projects in the works for ABC. In “Jane and Dick,” an all-female law firm has all sorts of fun and drama. “Police Surgeon,” is about a female cop in Chicago who’s also a doctor. Clever name. Finally, in “Ghost World,” (the duo also does “Ghost Whisperer on CBS) an female homicide detective in New York solves cases with the help of a male ghost who also needs to find out how he lived and died.

Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio will join USA’s “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” as the new captain, replacing Eric Bogosian.

Tonight is the finale of “Shark Tank” at 8 p.m. on ABC, as well as “Flipping Out” on Bravo at 10. No premieres tonight. The American League Championship Series continues on FOX tonight, so that will take up all the television-related attention.

Leading up to the new sci-fi drama “V,” ABC is hiring skywriters to draw huge letter V’s in the sky at 26 major landmarks across the US from Friday until the series opens November 3. “V” will have four episodes before a hiatus until early 2010.

FOX recently approved a new comedy called “Rehaab,” from writer/producer Sam Laybourne (“Cougar Town”). The show centers around a man who pretends to need rehab in order to re-connect with a former high school sweetheart who’s now a rock star.

Finally this morning, Samuel L. Jackson has two products in the works for CBS. The first is a comedy about the wife of a congressman who inherits her husband’s seat after he dies suddenly. We wonder if Victoria Kennedy is paying attention to that one. The second is a medical drama about an ER doctor who treats patients in unusual ways. Jackson will executive produce both shows. He is, after all, the highest paid man in Hollywood.

NBC's Trauma premieres tonight at 10

Not a lot of new stuff on the tube tonight, but there’s some news to discuss below.

On network TV, FOX premieres “Lie to Me’ at 9 p.m. tonight, while NBC debuts its “Trauma” at the same time. MTV premieres another reality show, “Disaster Date” at 6 p.m., and truTV has the premiere of “Operation Repo” at 10. Tonight is also the season finale of A&E’s “Hoarders,” which is also on at 10.

The Ashton Kutcher-produced series “The Beautiful Life” staring Mischa Barton appears to be an abject failure. The CW pulled the show from its fall schedule after just two episodes and ordered production on the show halted after miserable ratings.

Also getting axed is A&E’s “The Cleaner.” The Benjamin Bratt drama will not get renewed for a third season.

ABC announced that the new alien-infused drama “V” will debut November 3, with a four-episode run, followed by a major cliffhanger, followed by nine more episodes next spring.

In other ABC-related news, the always busy Jerry Bruckheimer is working on a pilot for a new series called “Hopscotch,” which Variety says promises to be a “high-concept police procedural” drama. Variety reported several networks were vying for the opportunity to land the new series, which is chock-full of “hit potential.” Chris Levinson will write the series, and Warner will producer.

The CW approved a new, untitled reality series about New York socialite Tinsley Mortimer, because they know you just can’t get enough of watching rich people spend their money. The series is approved for at least eight episodes.

NBC has an interesting-sounding project in the works. In the tentatively titled “Slacker Sons,” Variety reports that two brothers get rich by developing their own energy drink. They buy the family home and end up helping out their divorced dad who gets laid off from his corporate wageslave job.

Finally today, Vincent D’Onofrio is leaving Law & Order: Criminal Intent after eight seasons playing the quirky detective Robert Goren.

SAN DIEGO “" Elizabeth Mitchell, whose character Juliette on “Lost” was a part of the cliffhanger season finale, took a few moments to talk about her role on “Lost” as well as her new show “V,” also on ABC, in which she plays a single mom FBI agent named Erica.

Word of caution: spoilers for “Lost” and “V” to follow.

On the nature of “Lost” and her character’s fate:

“My theory is what it always has been “" that it’s some kind of place where people who have done bad things go to redeem themselves. But I could be wrong, but that’s what I’ve always thought. With or without me, or with me as the case may be.”

On how many more episodes in which Juliette will appear:

“I’m not sure, but it’s more than one.”

On her decision to join the cast of “V”:

“One of the reasons I chose it is because I don’t like to be bored. And I truly believe that it’s almost limitless. For me, as a woman against the bad guys kind of thing, which I am drawn to, but you also have a lot of interpersonal relationships. I haven’t even met on camera half the actors that I’m working with, so truly you have things that are the way they are now and could go in any different direction. So I think that the fact that they’ve made it a character-driven action show is exciting. I think it’s limitless. I cannot stand when things go into a formula. It’s starts to make me crazy. I like things to be active, I like to be interested, I like it to be sexy.”

On the differences between Juliette and Erica:

“Juliette has the weight of the world on her shoulders. She spent three years basically being tortured. She is someone who is shell-shocked yet still strides through life, continues to push through. And I’ve loved that about her. And playing someone who is that broken and yet is still walking around has been an incredible joy for me. What I enjoyed about Erica and how it kind of came to be is a little bit of the flip side of that. It’s someone who is not broken “" yet. It’s somebody who every single day of her life spends every second trying to protect her world, trying to protect her people. She puts herself in harm’s way, she is very active in her life. She’s active with her son. She was probably so active in her life that her husband left her. She is not someone who has made these crazy, horrible choices so as a result it’s almost like we get to see someone at the beginning of this journey, which I like. And I like the fact that she’s tough, I like tough women, but she’s outwardly tough. She’s an FBI agent. She walks around. You don’t want to mess with her. You know what I mean? I love that Juliette was sneaky and I love that Erica is out there.”

On Erica’s relationship with her son:

“He’s fallen in love with the visitors, and who wouldn’t? They’re coming here, they’re curing diseases, they’re beautiful, they’re peaceful. All of these that we crave and we want so much, they’re going to just hand to us. Anyone you ever love who died or who is dying or who is sick, they’re gonna make all that better. So of course you love that. And the sad thing about this is that it’s not true, there’s a horrible price for that. And I think that that’s kind of what makes it fun for me is to think that here is this insignificant woman with a little bit of combat training, and she’s going up against people who are far superior in every way. Intellectually, their weapons are more superior, their technology is more superior. You know they probably think faster. (laughs) They definitely move faster. I think it’s neat.”

On the original miniseries “V” and its re-imagining:

“I don’t know what it’s gonna be. I know that they’re going to try and take the most iconic moments and make sure that they do service to them. That’s what I’ve heard. Although I’ve heard that Morena (Morena Baccarin who plays V leader Anna) say that maybe she wouldn’t be eating a guinea pig. And I think they said, maybe you will.”

On the degeneration of Erica’s FBI partner, played by Alan Tudyk, and the impact that will have on her character. Tudyk’s character is revealed as a V when he attacks Erica and she hits him with a bar, splitting the scalp to reveal reptilian skin beneath.

“That’s part of what I was saying and I love that you asked, what I was saying about the deconstruction of the character. Yes her husband left her, yes she does this, but she’s still a relatively active person. That’s gonna rock her. That’s gonna rock her to some degree. We’ll just have to see how she handles it. I think that the way it looked and the way it was set up is that he was the only person she trusted, he was the only person in her life. Everyone else had gone. And now that he’s gone, I don’t know. It’s gonna be really interesting. She may be angry, she may be bitter. Maybe not. Bitter’s hard to play. (laughs)”

Catch the final chapters of “Lost” next mid-season. “V” will air beginning in November.

SAN DIEGO — The reboot of the 1984 miniseries “V” saw its pilot episode screened at Comic-Con International Wednesday evening to a crowd of several thousand attendees eager for the always anticipated Preview Night. Screened alongside the pilot for freshman series “Human Target” and “Vampire Diaries,” “V” was a standout thanks to its particularly solid cast.

Starring Elizabeth Mitchell (familiar as Juliet from “LOST” — and BLAST will be doing its best to get that question answered, by the way), Alan Tudyk (“Firefly,” “Dollhouse”), Morena Baccarin (“Firefly”) Morris Chestnut (“Boyz N the Hood”), and Scott Wolf (“Party of Five”).

Beware of Spoilers Beyond This Point

The pilot opens with sprawling overhead shots of cities with the provocative tag-lines: “Where were you when JFK was shot?” “Where were you on 9/11?” Then it finishes with “Where were you today?”

Shortly after, the sudden arrival of hovering alien motherships over Earth’s major cities triggers panic until the beautiful, otherworldly, and human-looking “Anna” (Baccarin) appears projected on the bellies of the massive ships (which are not as well rendered nor as cool-looking as the Galactica) and delivers a message. In gist, it’s “We come in peace” mixed in with “hey, Earth has something we need, but don’t worry we’ll be best friends with you and cure cancer and then be on our merry way.”

That certainly bodes well, doesn’t it?

We fast forward a few weeks to a point where humanity has largely welcomed and become enthralled with the “visitors” (“V”). This is the part that doesn’t ring quite true, even in context of this being a show about alien invasion. If giant alien spaceships that demonstrate clear superiority and just happen to electronically disable human jets that approach it, it seems difficult to believe that humanity as a whole would be, like, just so totally super excited to be, BFFs.

Thankfully, there are a few characters here and there who feel the same way. One of them is a doubting priest (Joel Gretsch) who questions the Vatican’s official position on the Vs (“we are all God’s creatures”) as well as one of his parishioners who staggers into the church, bleeding to death and begging the priest to deliver a package to a secret meeting.

Meanwhile Elizabeth Mitchell’s character, Erica Evans, is an FBI agent working with Alan Tudyk to uncover some kind of “sleeper cell” in a plot line that is very random and very unexplained. The lack of exposition is saved by the charismatic Dale Maddox, played by the always excellent Alan Tudyk (whose first appearance on screen prompted the biggest cheer of the night — Comic-Con is the natural environment for “Firefly” fans, after all).

The story moves along as V spokesman and leader apparent “Anna” encounters a middle-echelon broadcast reporter played by Scott Wolf. He asks her as she enters the UN if all the Vs are babes and she replies with, “You’re not so bad yourself.” The positive press coverage on her sense of humor inspires “Anna” in a very Big Brother-esque scene to announce to one of the other V’s that she chooses Wolf’s character Chad Decker to interview her.

One of the first hints of the Vs’ nefarious plots is revealed a few minutes before the interview is to take place. In short, Anna instructs Decker to ask only questions that cast a positive light on the visitors. When he tells her that it’s not a journalist’s job to spin, she threatens to cancel the interview and seduces the reporter with the promise of career advancement should he do as she asks. Decker casts away his scruples and relents.

The final act of the pilot culminates in Erica and Dale’s investigation leading them to some kind of warehouse. Erica enters first and discovers an anti-V rally, led by one guy who makes some very good points. He suggests that the Vs are reptilian-like creatures that cloned humans so as to appear human and asserts that the Vs’ reveal of themselves to Earthlings was merely the last stage in their plan to conquer the world.

Erica asks for proof and the doubting priest comes forward, bearing the bloody message given to him by his parishioner. Inside are photos of a mysterious terrorist suspect that Erica has been investigating and who she hasn’t been able to attach to any name or any of the many forged passports they found at a crime scene earlier. Just as the group of skeptics begin to put the pieces together — specifically that the man in the photograph is a V — they are attacked.

Shockingly, among these attackers is Dale Maddox, who tries to kill Erica until she manages to strike his head with a bar and discovers that the claim of the reptilian-like aliens wearing human skin is in fact the case.

The pilot ends with Erica and the priest, who both managed to survive the attack, realizing that they now need to form a resistance.

So what’s the verdict?

The potential for true drama and intrigue is definitely there. The interplay and politics of the Vs’ relationship with characters like Chad Decker and Erica’s V-obsessed teenage son could certainly be interesting and the gradual reveal of the Vs’ true intentions make for a promising story.

The bad?

For the most part the writing was predictable at best and flat at worst. Several of the characters suffer from LOST-imitation-itis, which is to say that the writers are clearly attempting to create a diverse ensemble each with a interesting to-be-revealed backstories but unfortunately fall short. Characters like Erica Evans’ son, the priest, Ryan Nichols (Morris Chestnut) are all plagued with dull and familiar dialogue (a possible exception being Nichols, who is at the end revealed as a “traitor” V, an alien who fights on the side of the humans) that serves to make them feel like filler characters.

On the other end, of course, is Morena Baccarin’s fantastic performance as “Anna.” She is unsettling and somehow nonthreatening at the same time. Creepy, yet pleasant. On the whole Baccarin is the standout performer and her character Anna is certainly one of the most intriguing and unique characters on the show.

Visually, the show is clearly a pilot — the CGI shots are uninspiring. The cinematography, on the other hand, was nicely done and on the whole the pilot was edited superbly. There were many moments of great storyline juxtaposition and parallels that really contributed a lot to the sense that there is a lot of story to be told with this premise.

In all, it earns a B rating. Certainly intriguing but ultimately hampered by its lackluster plotting and general predictability. Despite that, though, it is absolutely worth a try when it arrives on screen later this year.