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The troopers of two starships have joined forces to terminate a massive bug attack at a federation outpost. Before the mission can be completed and the survivors evacuated, one ship abruptly departs and goes inexplicably dark. The remaining battle-hardened troopers race to the rescue, only to discover that the threat from the bugs is about to hit home. With the latest in CGI technology, this film from executive Producer Casper Van Dien and Director Shinji Aramaki (Appleseed) features the return of fan favorite characters Johnny Rico, Captain Ibanez and Carl Jenkins. .com ---- The bugs are back! And so are the intrepid (not to mention hot) young men and women who are out to destroy them, as Starship Troopers soars on with Invasion, the franchise's fourth full-length movie. This one's animated--with mixed results, to say the least--but sci-fi fans, especially the younger, male ones, will still find lots to their liking. In this tale, the spaceship Alesia rushes to Fort Casey, an outpost of the United Citizen Federation that's been attacked by the giant, ferocious bugs familiar to Troopers watchers. But the John A. Warden, the ship that was stationed at the outpost, has gone missing, with Carl Jenkins, the mysterious minister of Paranormal Warfare, at the helm. When our heroes find the Warden, it's an ugly scene; the crew has been totally wiped out by bugs, whose gigantic queen is now in control. Her objective is nothing less than an all-out attack on Earth itself, leading to an infestation of frightful proportions, so the good guys clearly have their hands full. Roughnecks: Starship Trooper Chronicles, the animated TV series that preceded Invasion, was relatively tame when it came to violence and mature themes, but that's definitely not the case here, as the film is loaded with graphic violence and profanity, with some occasional nudity for good measure. The variety and detail of the bugs is limited, but the video game-style animation is very effective when it comes to special effects, action sequences, and overall production values. Humans, however, don't fare nearly as well, as their movements and facial expressions are utterly artificial; the nude scenes may appeal to horny adolescents, but everyone else will find them not just gratuitous but laughable. --Sam Graham