THE ECHO ZONE

The Invaders ran from 1967 to 1968 for two seasons. It focused on the exploits of David Vincent, an architect who discovers a plan by aliens to invade Earth. His fears are confirmed when a colleague/friend is killed and he begins a desperate attempt to convince politicians, scientist, military etc of the truth. The truth is out there. Oh wait, wrong show. 30 years too early.

The planet of origin and the aliens true nature is never fully revealed-the fear lies in the fact that they can pass as human.Vincent  never knows who to fully trust and the aliens  are everywhere; using alien tech and infiltrating towns and military installations. Vincent does score some victories managing to convince the occasional scientist or military leader. But for most episodes he is on his own- tracking down news reports of sightings or odd, paranormal stories (like swarms of locusts suddenly attacking and killing). It’s not a story arc, but a journal  of adventures.

The Invaders was thematically inspired by  Invasion of the Body Snatchers and related genre films(including the Quatermass serials).  If you haven’t seen Invasion of the Body Snatchers you should. There are several versions. There’s the original 1956 version and the 1978 version; both are good. There a 1993 version which is apparently more of a horror film that I haven’t seen. The most recent is a 2007 Nicole Kidman/Daniel Craig version. I  prefer the 1956/1978 versions. The 2007 version amps up the action, special effects, and psuedo-science, but it’s just not as creepy. The power of Invasion of the Body Snatchers is not in the aliens or action; it was the mood of paranoia pushed forward by drama and dialogue. Slick special effects don’t amount to much if the themes are lost. There was also a short run series Invasion (2005-2006) which has a similar Invasion of the Body Snatchers plot. I remember watching it, though I have not seen it since. It is available on DVD.

Anyway, back to The Invaders…

Many have analyzed this show and similar SF under the prism of Cold War fears of the 1960’s-communist infiltrators lurking everywhere. People fear the unknown; the complexity of the world is often overwhelming. SF stories like these provide an temporary few hours in which we have an ‘ explanation’ for the problems of the world.  Plus a lone wolf character like David Vincent against evil forces appeals to our sense of heroic. Like David Vincent, we are special; we have secrets the rest of the world doesn’t know; we are key players in a larger drama.

So, it’s worth a watch. A few episodes drag a bit-I often wondered if it would have done better as a half hour show, because the full hour is often stretched with lots of walking around and looking pensive with little forward plot movement. It’s still  a good show to watch and round out your classic SF TV viewing.