(no subject)

I spent most of the evening watching a childhood fave: 1981's New Zealand Scifi Mini-Series "Under the Mountain." A scifi story about twins who are drafted by an alien named Mister Jones to destroy the Wilburforce, an alien species bent on consuming the Earth.

I was fully expecting this to be terrible - like the Tomorrow People, once you grow up, you see the glaring flaws and problematic plot decisions that can destroy your old memories of a good show. Instead, other than a few 80s cringe-worthy moments ("Oh, so you're in a life threatening war between two alien factions. Okay. Well, that's alright then. Breakfast?")

Instead, it's a pretty gripping story. The Wilberforce start off looking kind of goofy - a bunch of slimy old tinted green men...but quickly become terrifying baddies. And the explanation of their alineness is horrific: A creature that's a brain without a body, meets a body withouth a brain, and morph into unfeeling, uncaring consuming machine...that eventually technologically evolves without actually emotionally evolving. They're not here to take over and control the earth, but to consume it until all that's left is mud.

The last third of the series is seriously intense, and had me on the edge of my seat. Especially when the kids begin fighting their mentor as they take charge of the fight. I really enjoyed the series, and was somewhat pleasantly surprised to find that it was remade in 2009, which I may need to check out. 24% on Rotten Tomatoes, though....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhRR-Z168Fc