"V" premieres Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET, and although it's getting a start just in time for November sweeps, no one seems to care about the timing. But they do care about this new show starring Elizabeth Mitchell ("Lost"), Morena Baccarin ("Firefly"), Morris Chestnut and Scott Wolf.

Here is a sampling of what critics are saying about Tuesday's episode.

"Mitchell has never had a part so rich, one that allows her to play smart, sarcastic, tough and vulnerable," said Mark A. Perigard of The Boston Herald (review). "With her perpetually gleaming eyes, Baccarin is wonderfully otherworldly, and suggests a streak of malevolence."

But the shows does have a few quirks, Perigard said.

"As the hour progresses, there are a couple of smart twists," he said. "One quibble with the remake is that it doesn't allow our heroes to discover the truth with their own eyes. They stumble into those who know better."

Aaron Barnhart of the Kansas City Star said it was hard to get past some of the small problems he had with the overall story and character actions. (review)

"One of the built-in problems of 'V' is that, oddly enough, it does not raise the stakes as dramatically as 'FlashForward,'" Barnhart said, referring to the other genre series ABC is showing. "The viewer has spent his life watching TV dramas about a band of rebels who are fighting for truth and justice against impossible odds."

But Executive Producer Scott Peters may have been a bit confused about the initial allegory of the aliens arrival, Barnhart said, comparing it to an event that it probably shouldn't have been compared to.

"V-Day, as we quickly learn, is not a 9/11 event -- almost nobody dies and the day ends on a note of hope, not fear and despair," he said. "So the reference is tone-deaf as well as crass for the obvious reasons."

While the original Kenneth Johnson production played allegory to Nazis, Glenn Garvin of the Miami Herald says the target is much different this time: Barack Obama. (review).

"From the fawning reaction of the news media (sample press conference question to V leader Anna: 'Is there such a thing as an ugly visitor?') to the recruiting of human supporters into an alien front group that could easily be mistaken for 'community organizing,' the parallels to Obama are unmistakable," Garvin said. "The anti-V underground, in its frustrated insistence that the aliens have a covert agenda, resemble nothing so much as the anti-Obama teabaggers. And even the president's repeated attempts to suborn Republicans into making his program bipartisan get a scorching reference."

Don't misunderstand Garvin, however. He likes what he sees so far in "V."

"With or without the political sheen, 'V' is sweeping television storytelling at its best," he said. "Whether you choose to view it as a blood-and-guts war story, a spy thriller, a high-stakes family drama, a religious allegory, or just a sci-fi throwback to the days of Earth vs. The Flying Saucers and The Thing, 'V' is irresistible."

Robert Bianco of USA Today, however, absolutely loves "V."

"Think about how easily this idea could have gone south," he said. (review). "Apply too little creative thought, and this souped-up updating of NBC much-loved 1983 miniseries could easily have become the same cheesy tacky rehash mess that NBC made of 'Knight Rider.' Overthink the project, and you risk bleeding all the fun out of it and creating an overly dark lump like 'Bionic Woman.'

"Tonight, writer Scott Peters -- whose 'The 4400' was one of TV's best recent alien-invasion dramas -- hits all the right chords. He adds just enough modern media twists and political/sleeper-cell parallels to contemporize the story without drowning it in paranoia. The clothes and hair have changed, no doubt for the better, but the essentials are all in place -- including we can only hope, the visitors' legendary fondness for hamsters."

As tempting as it is to leave this all on hamsters, don't forget about Airlock Alpha's review of the pilot. (review)

"How do you stay true to the original concept of 'V' without looking stale and tired? Scott Peters figured it out pretty quickly: Give us a compelling story with amazing characters, and mix in some terrific writing," we said. "Then crack a joke about 'Independence Day' to let the viewers know that yes, this whole ships in the sky thing looks mightily familiar. But in the end, 'V' did it first."

"V" premieres Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC, and it does come with a special message.

"The original 'V' was an allegory on the Nazi regime," according to the Airlock Alpha review. "But this new tale takes a different approach. It's not about rule by fear or worship. It's all about devotion. Complete devotion. Which, for some, means that it's just too good to be true.

"And as you already know from the classic series ... it is."

Also, be sure to check out Airlock Alpha's exclusive video interview with Scott Wolf, who plays the television journalist Chad Decker, in "V." Watch the complete interview by clicking here.