Invasion 1.7: "Fish Story"

Written by Juan Carlos Coto and Michael Alaimo
Directed by Rod Holcomb

In which Larkin manages to survive her car accident, but as Russell and Dave lead the search to find her, she ends up in the hands of a fisherman with a very different agenda…


Just when I thought the series was gaining momentum, we get an episode that seems to take its sweet time a little too sweetly. Actually, I don’t think there was much sweetness and light in this episode at all. Underlay got to show how devious he can really be, using Larkin’s accident as a means of information control, with only a little concern over the fate of her child. Oddly, he seems very concerned with her particular survival.

So the goal was to eliminate the threat against Larkin from the military while also giving her information that will satisfy her curiosity in a convincing manner. I’m not sure Underlay will get what he’s looking for, because Larkin doesn’t seem like someone who would be so easily swayed. Sooner or later, she would begin wondering why the military would be interested in glowing squid!

Meanwhile, the intrigue begins to escalate in terms of the human drama. I had wondered about the breakdown of Russell and Mariel’s marriage, given how strongly Jesse felt about it in the pilot, and now we have an answer. Mariel is rather deeply in denial if she thinks getting together with Underlay while still married was somehow not casually connected to the break-up. It may not have been a direct cause, but the psychological/emotional state that led her to that choice was most certainly a factor.

While I was impressed at the level of Larkin’s suffering, especially that horrific incident with the dead man in the hatchback, the episode itself didn’t cover much in terms of plot or even character development. I don’t see Jesse becoming less bitter any time soon, especially since he has serious abandonment issues and that will only be reinforced as more and more people are “possessed”.

The writers have now demonstrated on several occasions that Underlay has something in mind for Larkin, so it’s time for them to start dishing out something new. This episode’s events could have been cut down to two acts without much being lost in translation, and it would have left room for more tension. The fact that Larkin wasn’t going to die (let’s say the odds were clearly very low) made the situation a lot less tense.

Considering that her ordeal made the baby’s survival rather absurd, it wouldn’t be an overstatement to say that the writers seem to be treading water. A measured pace doesn’t have to lack intensity. “Lost” doesn’t move forward in its timeline any faster than “Invasion”, but this far into the season, there had already been some important plot developments. This series is relying a lot more on the family drama aspects, and right now, it’s simply not getting the job done.

Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 0/4

Final Rating: 5/10