TV on Tape: The Invaders Movie Review

The old sci-fi premise – aliens in our midst – was briefly brought to life in this ABC series, which has endured with cult status and a recent TV movie update. January 1967 saw the Quinn Martin-produced series debut, as architect David Vincent (Roy Thinnes) made a wrong turn down an empty country road and witnessed the landing of an alien spacecraft.

At least, he thinks so, since his later return to the scene provides no clues, but something weird is happening…. Soon Vincent learns aliens have indeed landed – a vanguard from a dying planet who want to make Earth their new home (and don't want to share) and can assume human form.

Alien Detection 101: Some have a mutated little finger; they have no emotions; they have no hearts – so no heartbeat or pulse; sometimes they glow (a warning of the need to regenerate); pure oxygen is fatal and they disintegrate to dust when killed.

Much like the boy who cries wolf, Vincent tries to alert a disbelieving populace, stave off incipient paranoia, and elude the clutches of his alien foes. Tired of battling alone, the second season saw David Vincent finally getting a small group of allies to assist him.

The two-part 1995 TV movie found David Vincent (briefly reprised by Thinnes) turning over his alien-hunting duties to Nolan Wood (Scott Bakula), who uncovers a plot to cause total ecological destruction so that the carbon monoxide-feeding invaders can have the planet for themselves. And this time, the aliens don't merely assume human form – they take over otherwise-occupied human bodies (the fiends!).

The original series’ 43 episodes have been shown on the Sci Fi Channel and are available on tape.

1967–68/C Selected cast: Roy Thinnes, Kent Smith, Diane Baker, J. D. Cannon, James Daly, John Milford, Ellen Corby, Vaughn Taylor. Director: Joseph Sargent. VHS GKK, MOV