It's time for another visit with lizard aliens

The Visitors of "V" arrived last week, and no rodents were eaten.

It might happen tonight. I don't know. It's just a hunch.

The creators of the new "V" have said that at some point they will pay homage to one of the most memorable scenes from the 1980s' "V" miniseries. The jaw-dropping moment involved an alien lizard lady gulping down a small mammal.

The new "V" continues at 8 tonight on ABC with actress Morena Baccarin heating up the screen as Anna, the enchanting alien leader.

Last week's debut was a surprise hit, drawing 14 million viewers, many of them younger than 49 (a big deal with advertisers).

Like the original, the new "V" is about an invasion by an advanced race of alien reptiles disguised as humans and out to conquer the planet by building devotion among humans.

"Every episode so far has action, mystery and suspense," says Scott Wolf ("Party of Five"), who plays cable TV newsman Chad Decker.

"There are cliffhangers in the first four that make you want to come back for more," he said in a telephone interview Monday.

Only four episodes have been made. After a run on Tuesdays in November, "V" doesn't return until spring.

Wolf says he likes playing a character whose ethics are a mystery.

"We don't know yet if he is a good guy or a bad guy," he says. "I don't think he knows for sure."

Decker, an ambitious newsman, has been picked by Anna to be the Visitors' media liaison. They grant him access on one condition: no negative news whatsoever.

These aliens don't bother with politicians or world leaders. They go right to the public through television, offering world peace, cures for diseases and advanced technology.

For some, this makes for instant devotion. Others are skeptical. A few already have learned the aliens' nasty little secret and have started a resistance movement.

Wolf says his character is charmed and intrigued by Anna. "If all aliens looked like her, who won't be taken in," he says.

Executive producer Scott Peters has said the original "V" was an allegory for the Holocaust and Nazi Germany and that the new series explores "what happens when the masses have blind faith in their leaders."

Wolf says "V" also explores how the media can be manipulated. "Questions are raised about what is truth and whether the media can be trusted," he says.

He can't give away details of the episodes.

"But I can say that Chad will soon make a discovery that raises the stakes of his role with the Visitors as high as they could go," he says.

SESAME STREET: When Sonia Manzano joined "Sesame Street" in 1973 as Latino teenager Maria, she thought the program had peaked and might last three more years.

Launched in 1969, the famed PBS educational series aimed at preschool children begins its 40th season today.

First lady Michelle Obama drops by, and a new format features 3-D animated segments.

Manzano, 59, still plays Maria. Originally added to give the series more ethnic diversity, the Maria character grew up, got married and had children.

The series holds a record 122 Emmy Awards, and Manzano earned 15 of them as part of the writing staff.