Invasion, due to its slow approach to story and lack of payoff, is a flawed but interesting show building up and exploring tens of characters during a great calamity. With Invasion season two being greenlit mere weeks after the first one finished airing, it has had plenty of time to mature and grow since then. Invasion season two finally begins airing exclusively on Apple TV Plus today.
The long wait between the first and second season has not only allowed the show to change but also the landscape of Apple TV Plus. With so many great Apple TV Plus shows out there, you may be wondering if it’s worth checking it out. From a new director to a maturing story, here are five things you should know before checking out Invasion season two.
New direction
Alik Sakharov is taking over directing duties for the first three episodes of the season and episode five. If you don’t know that name, you certainly know his work from cinematography on The Sopranos to directing episodes of streaming giants like The Witcher and Ozark. These works prove he is capable of coming into a show with a more serious and dark tone and matching it with new story beats and fun where needed.
Over his career, he has been involved with tons of projects and tackled it from a perspective that is fully his own. He chose to depart from The Witcher because of creative differences — a sign he only works on projects he believes in —Invasion’s second season must have been a project he had faith in.
Getting to the action
As shown in the second season trailer, Invasion is more action-heavy than many fans were expecting. Humans are finally starting to fight back and they are using worldwide intelligence agencies to do so. Some of the criticism of the first season is just how slow that burn is. With ten episodes and around nine hours worth of entertainment, we don’t see the actual aliens for the first handful of hours.
With the setup out of the way, Invasion uses its huge cast to finally fight. The trailer feels very high budget and uses cinematic strings and wide shots to show all the death and destruction ahead. As the trailer says, “If you want to win a war, fight back”
A maturing story
Set 121 days after the initial invasion, our main cast are starting to adapt to the new world around them and they are all scrappy fighters. Even the children like Caspar and Monty are starting to understand what they have to do to survive. Plot lines are starting to come together.
Characters have been set up and this gives writers a chance to continue that tapestry of character the first season is known for. We have an idea of the motivations of the cast so this gives room to throw new scenarios at them. As well as this, themes of class, race, and inequality that were sprinkled throughout the first season can flourish as new characters clash and come together.
No longer left in the dark
We have seen many of the aliens responsible for destroying Earth's infrastructure and the show is finally starting to reveal some of its many plots. Though setting up the world is an important part of the story, some fans complained that it takes too long to reveal why they should care. Invasion season two explains much of what viewers are looking for and focuses on the human drama the first season excelled at.
Fundamentally, the first season of Invasion wasn’t really about the aliens. Many characters were left figuratively, and sometimes literally, in the dark as it focused on what humans do in a crisis. That crisis took many forms across the globe but it felt explored by the time we got to episode 10. Now that we’ve made our way to season two, that hook is no longer necessary to keep you watching.
An episodic release
Though there is only one episode available to watch right now, Invasion season two is set to be ten episodes long — the same length as the first. This means that it will finish airing on October 25th. With so many shows relying on the “binge” model of releasing it all in one go, Invasion’s unique slow-burn approach will be complimented by a weekly release structure. This gives the new directing team around nine hours of video to tell the story of Invasion season two.
If you are looking for a new show to follow every week, Invasion will have you covered for the next few months.
