WHAT??? THE INVASION'S OVER?

By Toney Atkins

I realize that the U.S. and the rest of the world are falling apart at the seams: Many illegal immigrants carrying illegal drugs are crossing the border into this country at this very moment, more brave troops have been killed or wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan, people are up in arms about a movie based on a decade-old book that they are suddenly afraid will shake their faith in Jesus, and worry beads are being kept busy because of Paul McCartney's impending divorce, Tom Cruise's fatherhood, another Britney Spears baby, Paris Hilton's fear of poverty, the departure of "Will and Grace" and whoever was thrown off "American Idol."

But let's pause for a moment, friends in the Peanut Gallery (who, by the way, are justifiably sad about the loss of Clarabelle the Clown to Clown Heaven). Only the issues of our troops and the illegalities at the border are genuinely worth our concerns and prayers. Even a mustardseed of faith should survive "The DaVinci Code."

But just for a diversion, let me slip into the idiotic sublimity of unreality that monopolizes our lives to ask a question of real urgency in my segment of this Twilight Zone land of ours: WHY IS ABC TAKING "INVASION" OFF THE AIR?

You bet I am angry. We had to endure the initially promising but ultimately silly NBC series, "Surface," being mercifully flushed down tubeland's commode. CBS teased us with "Threshold" and then shoved it into a never-neverland void without notifying us that the last episode we watched was the last episode they would ever show -- no conclusions, no resolutions. Just, "Bye, y'all."

But "Invasion," despite its imperfections, had some substance and a semblance of reality (did FEMA ever show up after the first hurricane?). The characters were suitably likeable and heroic or villainous and venomously hateful. You could even care about some of them, whether or not they were aliens (or "hybrids"). There was a fairly coherent storyline, some good dramatic and suspenseful moments, decent action sequences and a bit of romance and underlying sexual tension.

So what does ABC do on the day of the really good "season finale"? The network announces that the show has not been renewed. Yes, we know why the good guy-bad guy sheriff did what he did at the end; we know the supposedly really bad guy got his comeuppance; we know that the lovely alien (hybrid?) mom and her hunky forest ranger former hubby still have feelings for each other even though his new wife is -- well, if you didn't see the show, I won't give that away; and we gather that FEMA -- or some people acting like they are from FEMA, with our doubts being fueled by their swiftness -- finally showing up after the second hurricane.

But we're left hanging about the non-poddy creatures that assume human form. Are they part of a government evolutionary project? Why have some of them implied a malicious takeover of the human race and others still have humanlike compassion? Why did what happened in the Florida Keys seem to be unknown to the outside world? Like "Lost," what has the time-frame been here? Am I eventually going to have to go back to college at my elder age for a class theorizing the meaning of this series?

So ABC, I chastise you! With all of the world's real troubles on our minds, why do you leave us with one more thing to worry about? Bring back "Invasion," or at least give us a more satisfactory ending, whether it's a happy one or not.

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