Something's in the water and it is'nt limescale (Invasion)

Member Name: dancomp

Product:	Invasion
Date:	06/09/06 (149 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Wonderful portrayal by Fitchner, fantastic finale

Disadvantages: Very slow to get started which meant many missed on how it all came togeather

Invasion is a series penned by the scriptwriter behind the acclaimed American Gothic and is set in and around the small coastal Floridian town of Homestead, on the borders of the everglades national park.

The series has a number of recurring characters, but centers about the awkwardly-extended family comprised of latino Park ranger Russell (Ed Cibrian) and his new wife Larkin (Lisa Sheridan), a local news reporter. They share custody of Russell's two children with his ex-wife Mariel (Kari Matchett), a Doctor at the town hospital and her new husband, Sherrif Tom Underlay (William Fitchner) who are also bringing up Tom's daughter whose Mother died years ago. Confused? Hang on in there.

The series begins with a hurricane bearing down upon the small town. Despite the best efforts of Russell, Tom and the small police department, many people go missing during the storm including Mariel. What is more, during the storm many people saw lights in the sky over the ocean. Mariel turns up by the water, naked, confused but unharmed. She's not the only one to be found in the same set of circumstances.

Returning home, Mariel soon discovers that the confusion is not going away. What is more, she has a natural affinity to be able to hold her breath for ten minutes or more underwater. The military arrived on the scene quick enough after the fact and are taking away large metal containers at the dead of night from inside the 'glades. Russell's rotund brother, internet conspiracy freak and no doubt fluent speaker of Klingonese, Dave (Tyler Labine) pulls a skeleton from the water that bears resemblance to nothing on earth.

Mariel finds her own blood and that of other survivors has changed, with elements only found in ocean going mammals. Aside from freaking out, she experiences no abnormal external physical changes. Tom meanwhile has drawn a cordon around the town while it rebuilds. However, he knows far more than he is letting on to anyone. The only survivior himself of a plane crash five years ago, he has seen the lights in the sky before - up close and personal. He knows what is coming and is quick to move when Muriel finds her own corpse floating in a lagoon.

I will bring the plot to a screeching halt and say that although the series takes a while to get off the ground and moving, it rapidly becomes thoroughly absorbing with plot twists and revelations, while the characters screw up just like real people as their world starts to change beyond what they have known into something new and disturbing.

Invasion rewards your initial investment and by the end of what may very well be the only such season as some executive made the idiotic decision to put it on at a time borderlining Lost, it builds to a thrilling climax that also manages to open additional plotlines that ask even more enduring questions.

Acting is uniformly high, but the highest accolade goes unreservedly to Fitchner for his performance as Tom Underlay, the singlemost character that goes through the most dramatic changes through the episode run. A strong leader, he performs really noble acts as well as ones that border on real evil. He can be selfless and selfish. He can be earnest, tender and threatening and always fantastic to watch. Shows like this that rely less on special effects and more on an outstanding script are shows that should be the last ones to get cancelled. Unfortunately, they often tend to be the first. There are a number of petitions online that Dave would be proud of.

1. Pilot
2. Lights Out
3. Watershed
4. Alpha Male
5. Unnatrual Selection
6. The Hunt
7. Fish Story
8. The Cradle
9. The Dredge
10. Origin Of Species
11. Us Or Them
12. Power
13. Redemption
14. All God's Creatures
15. The Nest
16. The Fittest
17. The Key
18. Re-Evolution
19. The Son Also Rises
20. Run And Gun
21. Round Up
22. The Last Wave Goodbye

Actors Veronica Cartwright ; Aisha Hinds ; Evan Peters ; Eddie Cibrian ; Alexis Dziena ; Kari Matchett ; William Fichtner ; Tyler Labine ; Lisa Sheridan

Director Thomas Schlamme ; Lawrence Trilling ; Sergio Mimica-Gezzan ; Rod Holcomb ; Ernest Dickerson ; Bill Eagles ; Harry Winer ; Michael Dinner

Certificate 15 years and over

Year 2005 - 2006

Screen Widescreen 16:9 Anamorphic

Languages English - Dolby Digital Surround

To be released for around £40. Search for bargains or rent it. What you should'nt do is miss it.

Summary: Something's in the water and it is'nt limescale