Invasion (2005 TV series)
| Invasion | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Shaun Cassidy |
| Starring | William Fichtner Eddie Cibrian Kari Matchett Lisa Sheridan Tyler Labine Alexis Dziena Evan Peters Ariel Gade |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 22 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 42 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | September 21, 2005 – May 17, 2006 |
Invasion is an American science fiction television series that aired on ABC for only one season beginning in September 2005. Somewhat similar to Invasion of the Body Snatchers, the show told the story of the aftermath of a hurricane in which water-based extraterrestrials infiltrate a small Florida town and begin to take over the bodies of the town's inhabitants through a cloning process (first by merging with and then unknowingly replacing them). The show was produced by Shaun Cassidy Productions and Warner Bros. Television.
Due to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the aftermath in the southern United States, early on-air promotions were quickly pulled by ABC. The advertising then switched emphasis completely to the alien invasion aspect of the series, while the hurricane received no mention. The premiere was also preceded with a warning that the show featured images of a fictional hurricane that viewers could be sensitive to.
Cast and characters
- William Fichtner as Sheriff Tom Underlay
- Eddie Cibrian as Russell Varon
- Kari Matchett as Dr. Mariel Underlay
- Lisa Sheridan as Larkin Groves
- Tyler Labine as Dave Groves
- Alexis Dziena as Kira Underlay
- Evan Peters as Jesse Varon
- Ariel Gade as Rose Varon
- Aisha Hinds as Mona Gomez
- Nathan Baesel as Lewis Sirk (recurring guest star)
- James Frain as Szura (recurring guest star)
Main Crew
- Shaun Cassidy
- Lawrence Trilling
- Thomas Schlamme
- Juan Carlos Coto
- Michael Alaimo
Episode guide
Ratings troubles
According to Nielsen Ratings, the series premiere was able to attract 17 million viewers from another ABC show, Lost. After the 10th episode, the series lost a total of 7 million viewers over nine episodes with the November 30, 2005 episode garnering only 10 million. In order to get the viewers back in for the 2nd half of 2005-2006 TV season, the show was put on hiatus until January 11, 2006, and it was replaced with another show already scheduled for cancellation, Alias.
For the episodes shown on January 11th, 18th, and 25th the Nielsen Ratings only reached 9.7 million, 9 million and 9.3 million. It had lost nearly half of the first episode's audience and was way behind CBS's CSI: NY, which had 13.7 million, 15.5 million and 14.9 million for the same period.[1] [2] [3] The show was then put on hiatus for the second time, during which time it was replaced with The Evidence.
Some fans of Invasion have attributed poor handling on the part of ABC as one reason for the show's continued problems, citing two hiatuses and a three-week break all within one season—periods in which no repeats were aired. Throughout the show's run, these incidents became a topic of speculation and concern among its fanbase.
Cancellation and petition
Following cancellation of the series by ABC, there were reports that Invasion might move to The CW for the 2006-2007 season.[1] However, in May 2006, the CW had not picked up Invasion for its 2006-2007 program lineup.[1] Lead actors William Fichtner and Eddie Cibrian have moved to other series, making it highly unlikely that Invasion would return anytime soon. While Fichtner joined the cast of FOX's Prison Break, Cibrian has appeared in various series and projects that, like Invasion, have each been on ABC — most recently in a recurring role on the network's Ugly Betty.
Fans of the series began a campaign to revive it through web sites and forums,[2] including an online petition, letter writing campaign, and the mailing of water bottles to ABC and other prospective networks.[2]
Future plotlines
In the "August 14-20, 2006" issue of TV Guide, actor Tyler Labine (who played the character Dave Groves) relayed what creator Shaun Cassidy had planned for the following season, saying that Cassidy had said, "Larkin was going to be presumed dead. Russel and I were going to join forces against Tom. Tom was going to find out that his first wife was alive and running this whole military operation, and she was Szura's boss."
Soundtrack
CD will be available October 21, 2008 at moviescoremedia.com. The album features more than 60 minutes of carefully selected tracks from the series. [4]
Jon Ehrlich & Jason Derlakta: INVASION
Release date: October 21, 2008
The Warner Bros/ABC sci-fi series Invasion, which created a strong fan base during its single season 2005-2006, features a large orchestral score that is worthy of any big blockbuster feature film. Composer team Jon Ehrlich and Jason Derlatka, who were Emmy-nominated for their work on CBS’ series The Agency, created a chilling and highly dramatic, but still melodic and thematically rich score for Invasion. “Jason and I were given the rare gift in television of a live orchestra. Our goal was to create something that reflected both the brutal, relentless nature of survival and the hypnotically beautiful, yet fragile quality of each life that the characters of Invasion struggle in every moment to protect,” composer Jon Ehrlich says. Their orchestrations feature a lot of delicate solo parts for violin as well as other striking features such as countertenor solo. The music for Invasion is certainly one of the most impressive television scores in recent time. Our album features more than 60 minutes of carefully selected tracks from the series.
SNEAK PREVIEW: Listen to "The Lights"!
MMS08015 • Discovery Collection Volume 6 CD edition limited to 1000 copies
DVD releases
Warner Home Video has released the entire series on DVD for the very first time in Region 1 & Region 2.
Season Releases
| DVD Name | Region 1 | Region 2 | Ep # | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Complete Series | August 22 2006 | September 4, 2006 | 22 | This 6 disc box set includes all 22 episodes of the series and 50 minutes of extras: a documentary, invading the mind of Shaun Cassidy, plus the gag reel and over 12 deleted scenes from several episodes of the series. |
References
- ^ a b Wayne Hall. "No More 'Invasion': ABC scifi series cancelled, not likely to go to CW". SyFy Portal. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ a b ""Save Invasion: a campaign of fans"". Retrieved 2008-02-27.
