Invaders, The (1967)

The Invaders (1967)

Science fiction with a serious tone was rare in the 1960s, so I tend to remember it all fondly. Honestly, this series delivers pretty low-intensity thrills, but I still like it. The beginning seemed a bit weak; there are better episodes later. It ends without a resolution.

This two season series was filmed on 35mm and, although a bit variable, looks great on DVD, with wonderful detail and vivid color. The special effects are rudimentary, but not a problem.

Roy Thinnes as David Vincent is always cool, mostly humorless and dresses very GQ. Smokes a lot and carries a gun, which is unusual for an architect. He has an eye for the ladies but not much time for them. Series from this era did not have much of a story arc, but toward the end he does assemble a group of like-minded alien fighters and they begin to have some success.

The big problem is that the science fiction content and any sense of alien-ness quickly drains away. After the initial mythology is established the Invaders become just a sinister force. They are competent and all-pervasive but might as well be foreign spies or domestic gangsters. The writers should have given us more on their home world, society, technology, or even their biology. We never even get a good idea of what they look like when at home.

"A Quinn Martin Production": I used to hear that a lot in the 60s and 70s. It usually meant well-done dramas with a least some action component.

The show is a gold-mine of names and faces of the character actors and guest stars. Some I have not thought of for decades, other became superstars.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d5/The_Invaders_title_screen.jpg http://www.roythinnes.com/TheInvaders.jpg http://www.serpo.org/r34pics/Invaders_27.jpg