The
Invaders
is a TV show that is long overdue for release on DVD. Thankfully, the
40th anniversary of its airing in the US has finally prompted
Paramount to release the first season of 17 episodes - and it's been
well worth the wait.
In Australia,
only 12 episodes have been previously released on VHS (remember them!)
and the
series itself only had brief re-screenings on Pay TV, so this is
somewhat of a welcome surprise!
The
Invaders
was a science fiction series produced by an icon of 1960s/1970s TV,
Quinn Martin Productions - whose credits include cult hits such as The Untouchables, Barnaby Jones
and The Fugitive.
It ran for a total of 43 episodes over a season and a half in the US
from January 1967 to March 1968 and starred Roy Thinnes as architect
David Vincent, who accidentally learns of an alien invasion and travels
about warning people in an attempt to stop the ‘invaders’ from taking
over the world.
By the time the series got into its second
season, David Vincent had recruited a small group of people to help him
fight the aliens. This development makes the first season (as presented
on this 5-disc box set) something special - as Vincent went about his
fight against the ‘invaders’ all alone.
The anticipation of
viewing the series after such a long time was
high, and I must say, that I really enjoyed each of these first 17
episodes. Particular stand out episodes include the opener
“Beachead”, “The Experiment”
(with sci-fi stalwart Roddy McDowell) and “Vikor” (with a pre Hawaii
5-0 Jack Lord). In fact, one of the real treats of this
first season of The
Invaders (and several other 1960s series currently in
release, like Mod
Squad)
is watching the slew of special guest appearances by top actors of the
time including Michael Rennie, Suzanne Pleshette and Arthur Hill. Names
which may mean little now, but are certain to bring back a few
nostalgic memories for the older crowd!
One of the more interesting aspects of the series is the aliens’
ability to go virtually undetected - except for the giveaway of a
crooked fourth finger... and lack of a pulse! A particularly inventive
special effect, especially considering the show is 40 years old, used
in each episode is the aliens burning up when they die (take that Buffy
effects team!). The flying saucers featured in almost every episode
look like what you’d expect - but still possess an unworldly design.
Although
the 1967 series was revived as a TV miniseries in 1995 with Scott
Bakula and Roy Thinnes (reprising his role as David Vincent in several
brief sequences), it never quite matched the original. We can only hope
that Paramount do the right thing and release the second season of the
original science fiction series in the near future, because as we all
know, nothing beats the classics.
A must have for Sci-Fi fans!
EXTRAS
Sadly, there is a real lack of extras
included on this release. Roy Thinnes is, to my knowledge, still very
much alive and over
the last few decades has maintained a strong profile campaigning for a
DVD release of The
Invaders and even the production of a follow-up
series of telemovies. There must be a reason for the absence of (at
least) an interview with Thinnes or some form of retrospective
featurette about the show - something we can only hope is
rectified if the second season is released on DVD.
The cover art, too, is somewhat disappointing. It’s
obvious that the DVD front and back covers were inspired by artwork the
recent
War of
the Worlds remake, which for fans of the series, may seem
somewhat silly. Surely, there are other good quality photos
and scenes from the TV series that could have been used to more
effectively capture the essence of the show.
A fantastic flashback, but like memories of those who were around when
the show originally aired, there is something missing.
