Invasion
ABC | Release Date: September 21, 2005
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
72
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
21
Mixed:
7
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Chicago Sun-TimesDoug Elfman
Season 1 Review: It may be hard to believe that "Invasion's" premiere could be touching in the context of Katrina, and effective as a sci-fi drama. But that is the power of high-quality storytelling. Read full review
100
Miami HeraldGlenn Garvin
Season 1 Review: Invasion is an excellent show, the new season's best drama. Read full review
100
USA TodayRobert Bianco
Season 1 Review: Tonight's pilot lays the groundwork for what could be a fabulous series, one that blends supernatural adventure with down-to-earth, complex family dynamics. Read full review
90
Cleveland Plain DealerMark Dawidziak
Season 1 Review: Drenched in whom-do-you-trust paranoia and dripping with suspense, "Invasion" grabs you by the throat in the opening seconds and never lets go. Read full review
90
NewsdayDiane Werts
Season 1 Review: Layering such unnatural proceedings into the family-drama format only intensifies both story angles when you do it right. And Cassidy has, with strong casting, solid structure and a fine feel for what's most frightening. Read full review
80
Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert
Season 1 Review: Like ''Lost"... the mystery is provocatively open-ended and, assuming the writing continues to be good, absorbing. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterBarry Garron
Season 1 Review: What gives this serious heft and its own unique feel is the family drama woven throughout the premiere. That, and a group of particularly talented and skilled cast members who, under director Thomas Schlamme, take their performances to the highest levels. Read full review
80
Philadelphia InquirerJonathan Storm
Season 1 Review: Invasion has great production values and is tops among the three new alien series. Read full review
80
PopMattersBill Gibron
Season 1 Review: Perhaps the most satisfying element in the series is its patience. Read full review
80
San Jose Mercury News/Contra Costa TimesCharlie McCollum
Season 1 Review: "Invasion'' has the look of a winner. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalNancy DeWolf Smith
Season 1 Review: It has cinematic production values that give it the heft of a movie, and the lead characters are so natural and believable that the alien angle is less ludicrous than usual. Read full review
80
L.A. WeeklyRobert Abele
Season 1 Review: It’s easily the most interesting of the three [new alien shows], taking the emotional chill and confusion that accompany a family divorce... and lacing them with a narratively complementary dose of body-snatching paranoia. Read full review
75
Detroit Free PressMike Duffy
Season 1 Review: A compelling tale of ordinary people ensnared in extraordinary circumstances. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsDavid Hinckley
Season 1 Review: A potentially compelling sister series for "Lost." Read full review
75
New York PostLinda Stasi
Season 1 Review: Maybe it's not as great as "Lost," but then again, it could be awfully close. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyGillian Flynn
Season 1 Review: The series could move more quickly... Still, creator Shaun Cassidy has plenty of enticing layers at work. Read full review
70
Kansas City StarAaron Barnhart
Season 1 Review: Of all the new mystery-driven dramas aspiring to be this year’s “Lost”... “Invasion” is the most absorbing and least hokey. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesPaul Brownfield
Season 1 Review: Unlike "Lost," which ended its first season twisted around itself with mystery and mythology, "Invasion" doesn't seem poised to madden you that way. Its ambition is smaller and more self-contained; weirdness will visit a town and change relationships among an extended, and messy, family. Read full review
70
The New RepublicLee Siegel
Season 1 Review: The show moves swiftly and suspensefully. Read full review
70
TimeJames Poniewozik
Season 1 Review: None of these [new sci-fi] series matches Lost's mix of character, wit and story, but the grim Invasion at least has the story part down, and keeps the horror at a nicely restrained simmer Read full review
70
The A.V. Club
Season 1 Review: Though the show has been tense and taut in the early going, creator Shaun Cassidy needs to figure out how to parcel out a narrative in episode form, with little stories playing out under the shadow of the big one. Read full review
60
Orlando SentinelHal Boedeker
Season 1 Review: The drama's murkiness becomes frustrating. Read full review
60
Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen
Season 1 Review: "Invasion" offers a few scares, but it's more a sense of dread and something subtly awry that gives this drama its creepy vibe. Read full review
60
Seattle Post-IntelligencerMelanie McFarland
Season 1 Review: The pilot is enough to make you curious -- if it holds your attention to the end, that is. Read full review
60
The New York TimesNed Martel
Season 1 Review: "Invasion" is a step up from many new offerings on the Sci Fi Channel, but never quite as intricate or engaging as the ABC hit "Lost." Read full review
60
VarietyBrian Lowry
Season 1 Review: A child's quizzical utterance near the end of "Invasion" provides enough of a chill to warrant a return visit to what's otherwise a mildly intriguing pilot. Read full review
50
Baltimore SunDavid Zurawik
Season 1 Review: Borderline over-the-top moments threaten the sense of verisimilitude usually expected in prime-time drama. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleTim Goodman
Season 1 Review: There is something too pat, too telegraphed in "Invasion" to rile up the blood. Read full review
30
Chicago TribuneSid Smith
Season 1 Review: The whole enterprise is a bit sophomoric and transparent, its behind-the-scenes political battles the stuff of canned Hollywood war movies. Read full review
30
SalonHeather Havrilesky
Season 1 Review: Features vaguely uninteresting characters, flat scenarios and a less-than-intriguing alien/swamp thing. Read full review
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