Sliders was fairly sparse on episodes needing elaborate special makeup effects, with each episode that did having no makeup effects credits. The episode 'Invasion' is such an example, though being filmed in Vancouver already narrows down the list of suspects!
I suspect the Kromagg makeups in the episode were the work of Toby Lindala, who was based primarily in Vancouver as he worked on The X-Files. In fact, several X-Files Grey masks are actually seen in a display case in one scene of 'Invasion'!
Between the reused
X-Files masks and the similarity the Kromagg makeups have to Lindala's alien makeups for
The Outer Limits episode 'The Grell', I'm certain that Lindala (or at least a member of his studio) must have worked on this episode.
Adding to the suspicions is that a rather grisly eyeless makeup was also devised for 'Invasion', worn on an unlucky human prisoner. I wonder if this was a forerunner to the 'faceless alien' makeups that Lindala handled on
X-Files. Assuming he worked on this episode, that is.
Location filming for
Sliders moved to Los Angeles after the second season completed, which resulted in a variety of makeup effects artists working on assorted episodes. Todd Masters supplied some makeups and puppets for a couple of episodes, such as the slug puppet in 'The Breeder'.
However, certain episodes also required more advanced prosthetic makeups; according to Stephanie Fowler, who was the makeup department head, it was Michael Westmore and Ed
French - who were both providing the makeup effects for Star Trek: The Next Generation and its sequel series - who contributed these makeups.
Fowler specified that Westmore made the pieces but didn't work on-set, with Ed French applying it on-set. In an email to me, French recalled that he had worked on the episode 'State of the ART' (starring Robert Englund of
Nightmare on Elm Street fame), supplying assorted light-up prosthetic pieces (the same sort put on Brent Spiner as Data on
Next Generation?)
The vampire-like makeups in 'The Last of Eden' must have been Westmore and French's work; sadly I haven't been able to find any behind the scenes photos of these makeups. The makeup design was applied on several performers in the episode.
French applied more Westmore-designed makeups for the episode 'This Slide of Paradise', itself heavily pastiching
The Island of Dr Moreau (with Michael York starring as the Moreau knockoff no less). Several minimalistic 'manimal' makeups were designed for the episode.
A more complicated facial appliance was made for Deron McBee as the lion mutant Ceres, and again I wish there was more behind the scenes photos of this makeup!
Several extras wore makeup appliances as the assorted 'manimals', and I have to wonder if these were reuses of foam latex pieces (or at least, reuses of molds) for alien makeups that Westmore had designed for the assorted
Star Trek series.
The last two seasons had their special makeup effects supervised by Bernd J. Rantscheff, his team including Thomas Surprenant and James Rohland. Rantscheff's team redesigned the Kromaggs to be more human-like, now with heavy brows, noses and bald heads.
(I also would like to thank Thomas Surprenant for kindly sending me the behind the scenes photos he took during his time on the series!)
Some variants on the Kromagg makeup were fabricated by Rantscheff's team, such as the minimal forehead appliances for the hybrids in 'The Dying Fields', as well as a burnt Kromagg makeup in 'Common Ground'.
Another photo Surprenant sent me was of this zombie makeup he did for the episode 'Sole Survivors'; the zombie makeup was complemented with reflective contact lenses that would appear glowing green on camera.
Rantscheff's team also realized the cyborg Eddies in the episode 'California Reich', with a silvery facial prosthetic obscuring the performer's mouth, as well as a half-face makeup applied to Carol Huston as an incomplete Eddie.
