Yet another series about UFO’s premieres on January 8 on the History Channel. Unlike other series, “Project Blue Book” intends to examine, in a fictional way, the true-life findings of the noted United States Air Force investigation into this matter.

The historical Project Blue Book ran from 1952 until 1969. Its final conclusions were that UFO’s were not a threat to national security nor were they extraterrestrial vehicles. Reasons for UFO sightings were postulated to be a mild form of mass hysteria; fabricated stories; reports from psychopathological persons; and misidentification of conventional objects.

The new series is executive-produced by Robert Zemeckis, the director of “Back to the Future” and “Forrest Gump.” I only saw the first episode in the screening I attended. But if it is an accurate barometer of the episodes to follow, this should be an interesting journey with excellent visual effects to augment the story.

Captain Michael Quinn (Michael Malarkey) is recruited by General James Harding (Neal McDonough) to begin an investigation into unidentified flying objects. Harding’s purported goal is to reassure the public that there is nothing to be concerned about when these sightings occur.

Quinn is encouraged to recruit university professor J. Allen Hynek (Aiden Gillen) to the project. At first Hynek is reluctant, but is eventually won over.

The first incident which they investigate involves a pilot in Fargo who was buzzing a local stadium when he encountered mysterious lights. He receives reception from a station in San Diego, which he recognizes as he used to live there. Then his aircraft crashes and he is deeply affected by the experience.

Quinn and Hynek show up. They examine the plane and interview the pilot. Eventually both men go up with Quinn as the pilot. They try to recreate the exact flight pattern as the original pilot and end up crashing themselves.

Hynek, thrown from the burning wreckage, sees a mysterious man in a dark suit standing nearby. He gives chase and is led into some kind of unoccupied industrial area. There are strange symbols visible inside but no explanation of what Hynek sees is further revealed.

While Hynek is away from home, a subplot involves his wife Mimi (Laura Mennell). She goes shopping and meets Susie Miller (Ksenia Solo). They strike up a casual acquaintance. Later, we see Susie spying on the Hynek home, so there is more to this friendship than meets the eye.

The incident where the Fargo pilot meets the lights in the sky has excellent visual effects. It is not only intriguing, but establishes the fact that this event actually happened. It leaves enough vagueness as to the identity of the alien craft so that this aspect can be open to speculation by the protagonists.

The main tension in this episode is between the no-nonsense, the simplest-rational- explanation-is-best Quinn and the probing scientist Hynek. Quinn looks for the facts that support a logical, non-supernatural interpretation of this incident. Hynek notes anomalies that do not fit into such an interpretation. For example, he calls the station in San Diego to verify the song title which the pilot said was playing at the time. Hynek is willing to go on investigating when Quinn is ready to pack it in and go home.

How this dynamic will play out in upcoming episodes will be a determining factor in both the quality and success of the series. If each entry milks the same tried-and-true opposition between the characters without adding nuances, such a relationship will get old fast.

Additionally, there is the issue of how much information will be revealed each episode about the mysteries in the show. It is quite clear that General Harding has more up his sleeve in initiating and guiding this investigation than he openly states. There also is the issue of the man in the suit and what he knows. Then there is the drama between Susie and Mimi and why Susie is spying on Mimi.

Other series, such as “Lost”, have bogged down by not revealing enough of the mystery in each installment. So this should be a concern of the screenwriters as the show progresses. Too few revelations will alienate the audience. Vagueness can only go so far.

The sets and costumes are a highlight of the show. The 1950’s are a showcase of historical Americana as films such as “Far from heaven” demonstrate. The scene in the store with Mimi and Susie is a fashion showcase. The home décor in Hynek’s residence also evokes the era perfectly, from his son’s interest in science fiction to the blocky desk phone used for communication.

Gillen gives an excellent performance as Hynek. He comes off as not too academic and a devoted family man. He embodies the positivist belief in science of the times.

Malarkey, by contrast, is adequate in his role. He comes off as a little wooden, although I think that the intent was to portray him as a “man’s man.” We just don’t know enough about him as a person for him to have anything to work with, unlike Hynek’s character, who at least has a family.

Neal McDonough is superb as General Harding. He was in very few scenes, but oozed menace in each one. It was either overt menace or the subtle, do-what-I-say-or-pay-the-consequences, kind of menace. It will be interesting to see if he becomes a caricature or if his character is allowed to develop past this depiction.

Mennell does a fascinating job in what could be a non-entity kind of role which would parallel how homemakers were often viewed in the 1950’s. She is revealed to be a true partner in their marriage and an interesting person to boot.

Since this is a fictionalized take on Project Blue Book, there is no reason why the creators and writers cannot take whatever interpretation of these events they want to take. While each episode is to be based on a real-life investigation of the actual Project, there is no reason to hew to the historic findings of the Project.

The first episode of “Project Blue Book” was entertaining and showed great potential for the future. I look forward to watching how this series will unfold as time goes by.