Product Details

• Actors: Roy Thinnes, Hank Simms, William Woodson, Kent Smith, Mark Russell
• Writers: Larry Cohen
• Format: Box set, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 12
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Paramount
• DVD Release Date: January 27, 2009
• Run Time: 2220 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001HUHBBS
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #42,573 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Invaders - Seasons 1 - 2" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

INVADERS:COMPLETE SERIES - DVD Movie

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "The Invaders-In Color!", April 19, 2009

By 

WTDK "If at first the idea is not absurd, the... (My Little Blue Window, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Invaders - Seasons 1 - 2 (DVD)

This combo pack features both the package for the first and second seasons of "The Invaders". The show looks quite good with a few exceptions during the first season set. It appears that the episodes are drawn from cleaned up 35 mm vintagae prints.

During the first season we discover along with architect David Vincent (Roy Thinnes) that there is a plot by aliens from another world to take over our world. They take human form but have some distinct differences (at least some of them)that make them obvious to someone like Vincent. He has a difficult time getting people to believe him initially but he gathers enough evidence to become a threat.

The first season set includes one episode where footage had to be substituted from what appears to be 16mm print syndication print as the original episode print was damaged. The few scenes pulled from this are very soft and blurry but otherwise the rest of the prints look extremely good for their age. Color is pretty solid throughout (even when upscaled on my Blu-ray player) and CBS/Paramount has cleaned up most of the dirt and debris with white speckles the only noticeable flaw in most of the episodes (typical of films from the time--caused during the duplication process from the interpositive).

The other issue is that the pilot evidently has been time compressed (why? I'm not exactly sure given that it would have fit just fine on the disc at a full 51 minutes)it runs about 49 minutes. I really didn't notice it all that much until I compared the vocal timbre on the 60 minute pilot episode that is included as an extra. Why this occured I'm not sure unless this was an accident or they weren't sure about how well things would fit given the extras that were planned (or perhaps the show was sourced from a digital transfer of the UK version of the series which is in the PAL vs. NTSC format that is commonly used in the U.S.--these run at slightly different speeds which could account for this).

We get introductions for each episode by actor Roy Thinnes as well as an extended interview in which he reveals he saw a UFO just prior to accepting the role in the series.

Creator Larry Cohen provides a commentary track on the episode "The Innocents" where he reveals that while producer Quinn Martin didn't really want him to write any episodes after creating the show, he did provide outlines for the bulk of the 16 episodes during the first season that were followed pretty closely.

We also get three season one promos and the rarely seen 60 minute extended version pilot. The source for the hour long pilot has faded more than the 45 minute pilot version and looks a bit more gritty than the aired pilot but overall looks quite good. We get all 16 first season episodes here as well. The 45 minute version of the pilot appears to run a bit fast and I'm not sure if that is because it came from a PAL source or if it might have been time compressed a bit. This isn't the case with the 60 minute version of the pilot.

The second season set includes all 26 second season episodes. Again, star Thinnes provides introductions for each episode. We also get interview footage centering around the production of the second season. Alan Armer line producer for Quinn Martin Productions on "The Invaders" provides a commentary track on "The Peacemaker" and he reveals that the line producers in many respects acted as story editors on the show as well assigning/writing/producing episodes. Martin's shows always had top notch production values but Armer does cite one of the common failings of Martin's other shows--falling into a predictable formula something that "The Invaders" managed to avoid for the most part during its brief two season run on ABC.

In the second season Vincent begins to gather others who believe him and work with him including millionaire Kent Scoville (Kent Smith). During the second season, Vincent pursues the aliens and even finds some aliens that for their own reasons are willing to help and cooperate with Vincent although they have very different motives.

Image quality for the second season is also extremely good. Colors are solid throughout and the episodes have been clenaed up outside of white specks on the film source (which, again, are from the 35mm prints that were used for airing on the show).

Packaging is quite nice in a multiple disc holder Amray case with clear plastic. On the inside you can read an episode summary for each episode, it's original air dates and the extras for the set.

Overall, this is quite a good package and CBS/Paramount has done a good job of presenting the show only using inferior sourced print material on one episode that I found. The extended pilot was searched for as an extra for this set almost delaying the original release date of the set as they searched for it.

The only thing missing here is the two hour pilot for the 1990's version of "The Invaders" with Scott Bakula that NBC tried to launch. That would have made a nice extra and bookended the series nicely but, aside from that minor point, this is an extremely good set that fans of the series will enjoy.

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Made me feel 40 years younger!, March 31, 2009

By 

Dennis E. Math "barbarosa" (Western Wisconsin) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Invaders - Seasons 1 - 2 (DVD)

As a kid I used to look forward to the night that The Invaders was on just as positively as a child would look forward to the start of the summer vacation. Of all the great shows of this period which included Star Trek by the way, this was this then early teenagers favorite. For some reason the show seemed to never go into syndication (the video will tell you that it is one of the most popular shows in syndication in Europe). The Sci-Fi Channel finally ran the series in the early 1990s and I taped them. Well, VHS tape breaks down and of course I had to deal with commercials so it was with GLEE that I found this fine series on DVD. I couldn't order quickly enough and once again felt like a 13 year old again awaiting the delivery.
Once the shipment arrived I spent several days at work feeling like roadkill from staying up late watching this show. I still feel that it was the finest Quinn Martin Production made and brought paranoia to life in a manner which few if any programs have managed before or since. The program has aged quite well, much better than this viewer has and remains actually a well written and of course well produced adult oriented thriller featuring a main character portrayed by Roy Thinnes whose acting skills actually lets you get the feel of being a person who is a sole witness to an ongoing,hidden alien invasion and can find few believers to help him in his virtually single handed defense of our planet and oh so slowly only gradually picking up fellow witnesses as he fights the enemy that has taken human form (though some exhibit a peculiarity of their hand), with their sole motivation being to make our world, theirs. If this show came out today, with or without todays digital special effects which this show did not have available, it would be extremely successful in this viewers belief.
The Fugitive was a Quinn Martin Production as were several other highly successful shows of the period but this relatively unknown production was by far superior to all the others. If you never saw this program when it originally aired or if you did and have forgotten it, trust me and purchase this series of DVDs. The price is a bargain and all you will lose will be a bit of productivity at the jobsite as, like a great book, it is really hard to stop watching this once you start which will lead to numerous nights of limited sleep.
This quite simply was my most enjoyable purchase in recent memory and made this balding 55 year old feel like the 13 and 14 year old he was when he first enjoyed this finely crafted and thrilling show when it originally aired.
Trust me and buy it while you can. I guarantee you, no matter your age, that if high action science fiction appeals to you that you cannot find a better purchase. If high action science fiction hasn't appealed to you before then it will if you take the chance and view this classic late 1960's era series. And do not miss the special feature at the end of the last video of the series and when you view each program chose Mr. Thinnes introduction to each program.
Man, I am so glad I bought this series! I hope you do too!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A forgotton classic finally on DVD, May 5, 2009

By 

John Prothero - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Invaders - Seasons 1 - 2 (DVD)

Unless you're planning to go to Europe, you'll probably never get to see this series in syndication. If you see this DVD set at a good price, grab it. Roy Thinnes plays David Vincent - an architect who lost his way while driving late at night and wound up at a deserted diner. Suddenly he sees an alien ship land and tries to convince a disbelieving world that the invaders are here, have taken human form and are walking among us. The aliens discover the Vincent knows about them and either try to eliminate him or discredit his story by making him look like a crackpot. In the final season he does manage to find others who believe him and share his cause to stop the invaders from taking over Earth. This series is a must for any serious sci-fi fan.