The Invaders 1.03

The Mutation

David Vincent searches for a disabled alien spacecraft in Arizona near the Mexican border. He is being watched by Fellows, an Air Force Intelligence officer and gets some help from Evans, a freelance reporter, and Vikki, a stripper. He doesn't realize it then but Evans and Vikki are aliens.

Vikki claims to know where to find the alien spacecraft and leads David out into the desert. She is leading him into a trap but at the last minute her conscience gets to her and she warns him just before their vehicle gets vaporized by the aliens. They are forced to run off into some rocky terrain as they are pursued by the aliens.

David and Vikki stumble through the desert until they find a small ranch. David borrows the owner's truck and heads to a town called Dos Lobos. Vikki wants to go with him but David leaves her behind. She pulls out a communicator and contacts the other aliens after he departs.

David calls Fellows from Dos Lobos and tells him to meet him at the ranch. Evans overhears the conversation and relays it to the aliens. David gets back to the ranch only to discover that the aliens are there with Vikki. They kill Vikki and go after him. David fights back using the ranch owners rifles and kills the aliens. He looks up to the sky and sees the alien spacecraft departing.

Fellows arrives at the ranch too late to see what happened. There are no bodies because the aliens disintegrate when they die. David tells the Air Force Intelligence Agent what happened. Fellows is skeptical but a little more willing to listen than he was at the beginning of the episode.

Thoughts

Edward Andrews plays the part of Evans, the freelance reporter who turns out to be an alien. Andrews has 185 screen acting credits according to IMDB, the last two of which were parts in Gremlins (1984) and Sixteen Candles (1984). He made numerous guest appearances on television shows from the 1950s to the 1980s. He made two appearances on the Twilight Zone and one on Alfred Hitchcock.

Lin McCarthy played the part of Air Force Intelligence Officer Fellows. McCarthy has 69 screen acting credits according to IMDB. He made four appearances on The Fugitive playing a different character each time. He returns in two episodes of the second season of The Invaders playing a different character.

Suzanne Pleshette played the part of Vikki, the alien stripper. Pleshette has 106 screen acting credits according to IMDB. She is best known for playing the part of Emily Harley on The Bob Newhart Show (1972-1978). She appeared in two episodes of The Fugitive, playing a different character in each one, and in an episode of Alfred Hitchcock. She returns in one episode of the second season of The Invaders playing a different character.

This is probably my favorite episode so far. It seems a little more straight forward and doesn't depend on as many improbably twists and turns as the last one did. I finally get to see something I remember from when I watched this show in reruns in the 1970s, the aliens disintegrating.