From Outer Space

I've now watched the first episodes of all three of the "alien invasion" TV series that debuted over the past couple of weeks. Even given the similar concepts, there's a surprising amount of sameness to them. Couldn't one batch of aliens have invaded in, say, the southwestern deserts rather than the ocean?

"Surface" started first on NBC, and to be honest, I slept through part of the premiere, so I can't really judge it fairly. But what I saw seemed awfully predictable and the script didn't have any lines that really jumped out at me. "Threshold" came next on CBS, but I taped it and didn't watch it until tonight, so I'll postpone comment on it until after I've talked about ABC's "Invasion". "Invasion" was probably the most hyped of the three series, and it was the one I liked the least. I didn't find the domestic drama angles interesting and again, everything seemed really predictable.

So is "Threshold", but now that I've seen the first two episodes, I sort of like it. It seems a little more science-fictional than the other two series, the cast is better, and I like the "alien invasion procedural" approach. I'll probably watch it again, and it seems like something I might follow on through the season. We'll see.