Review by David Baldwin for Mr. Will Wong
They say that in space, no one can hear you scream. And after nearly 50 years of screaming, it is about time the Alien franchise makes the voyage to Earth to see if that same mantra is true here too – and no, we will not count those Alien vs. Predator films if you won’t either.
Set in the year 2120, ALIEN: EARTH revolves around the fallout from the catastrophic crash of the deep space research vessel USCSS Maginot. The ship was carrying multiple alien life forms and was being chartered by that pesky Weyland-Yutani Corporation. Instead, it lands in the hands of the competing Prodigy Corporation, who are on the verge of a major breakthrough involving human/synthetic hybrids that could revolutionize life as we know it.
You know, just a typical day of fun, adventure and abject horror in the Alien universe where everyone wants to weaponize the nightmarish Xenomorphs yet have no desire to consider the dire consequences involved in trying. It is a recurring theme that runs deep in this Franchise and while there are some interesting pivots within the six episodes I was able to view – and some fascinatingly gross new creatures brought in to alternatively delight and terrify – Series Creator Noah Hawley does not stray too far from the formula and iconography that has already been set in stone. He taps into the deeper existential themes relating to the creation of life, what it means to be alive and the politics and implications around robotics as well, and while there is a bit too much emphasis on and forced comparisons to J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, I remained intrigued throughout what I have seen so far.
If I hold anything against ALIEN: EARTH beyond spending an entire episode on being a glorified homage to the original film and nothing more, it is that there are too many characters to keep track of and a few too many ideas that I am not certain will come together cohesively by the end of the season. It is slick, well made, and much like Fede Álvarez’s Alien: Romulus last summer, steeped in atmospheric dread and deep world building. At the same time however, it feels padded, stretched out and often inorganic; a whole lot of cool things happen without enough substance in between them. There is a simplicity and elegance to Alien and Aliens which made them so popular, beloved and influential. And every entry since has delivered diminishing results that seem content to chase the high without ever trying to match or surpass it. ALIEN: EARTH does try to go back to basics in some aspects, but also feels unnecessarily complicated just because it can be.
Do not get me wrong. I am still very excited to finish the season off and am cautiously optimistic for whatever comes next. I was just hoping for a bit more than what I have got so far.
Acting wise, Sydney Chandler (daughter of Kyle Chandler) does stellar, highly emotive work as the hybrid Wendy and Samuel Blenkin delivers as the slimy, manipulative Prodigy CEO, Boy Kavalier. For my money though, the Series MVPs are easily Babou Ceesay as cyborg security officer Morrow and Timothy Olyphant as synthetic mentor and scientist Kirsh. They both deliver the best moments in the Series, and their cold, piercing glances often say more than some of the verbose selections of dialogue many of the characters get saddled with. I found myself drawn to the mysteries of each of their enigmatic natures and admired how their presence on-screen makes the work of everyone around them even better. Here’s hoping they continue delivering right through to the finale!
The first two episodes of FX’s ALIEN: EARTH premiere on FX and stream on Disney+ in Canada starting Tuesday, August 12, 2025 at 8pm EST/PST, with new episodes premiering every Tuesday.
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