Genre: Sci-Fi | Action | Drama
Air Date/Time: Sunday, August 5 at 9/8c
Network: TNT
Created by: Robert Rodat
Written by: Heather V. Regnier
Directed by: Seith Mann
Summary:
Falling Skies chronicles the chaotic aftermath of an alien attack that has left most of the world completely incapacitated. In the nine months since the initial invasion, the few remaining survivors have banded together outside major cities to begin the difficult task of fighting back. Each day is a test of survival as citizen soldiers work to protect the people in their care while also engaging in an insurgency campaign against the occupying alien force, whose nature and purpose remains a mystery.
As the second season of Falling Skies opens, three months have passed since Tom Mason (Noah Wyle) went willingly with the aliens in one of their ships. Nobody has seen or heard from him during this time, and his absence has taken its toll on his sons. Tom hoped that by agreeing to a dialogue with the invaders, he would not only free his son Ben from the invaders’ influence but also get a better picture of the aliens’ overall plan.
Moon Bloodgood (Terminator Salvation) also stars as Anne Glass, a pediatrician who works with the survivors to help them cope with the traumatic upheaval in their lives. Will Patton (Armageddon, TNT’s Into the West) plays Weaver, a fierce military leader of the resistance and Tom’s commanding officer. The series also stars Drew Roy (Secretariat) as Hal, Tom’s oldest son and a growing fighter in the resistance movement; Maxim Knight (Brothers & Sisters) as Matt, Tom’s youngest son; Connor Jessup (The Saddle Club) as Ben, Tom’s son who was captured by aliens and has since returned to the group; and Seychelle Gabriel (Weeds) as Lourdes, an orphaned pre-med student who helps Anne in the group’s makeshift medical clinic. Mpho Koaho (Rookie Blue) and Peter Shinkoda (The L Word) play Anthony and Dai, two resistance fighters in the 2nd Mass.; Colin Cunningham (Living in Your Car) is John Pope, the head of a gang of marauders called the Berserkers; and Sarah Sanguin Carter (Shark) is Maggie, a wary survivor from Pope’s gang.
I have good news and bad news. The bad news? This has the dialogue, pacing, and storyline of a Season 1 episode. In other words, it lacks the tension, passion, drive, and frankly, interest, of the better episodes of this second season. The good news? Now you can go into your viewing experience with low expectations, and hopefully be pleasantly surprised with a “well, it wasn’t that bad” experience. Because of course I went in with fairly high expectations, the result of some recent memories of strong, exciting, well-written and well-produced episodes. This is not one of those.
More good news? Next week’s is better, though how much better is the subject of next week’s review. The bad news, of course, is that you have to get through this one first.
This will likely be one of those episodes that’s perfectly fine when you’re watching the DVD of the season, because it’s necessary to the story, and will get mixed in with all of those better episodes. It will also give you a chance to make a sandwich in the midst of your marathon, because there are only a few developments, and they are not of the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it variety.
By my count, there were two biggish plot points we needed before we get to the next episode, and maybe two smaller ones. I actually would have preferred to have just been told what they were, than be disappointed by a show that had been improving so much.
As an aside I should point out that I have often compared Season 2 to Season 1, and made somewhat disparaging remarks about the first season. I actually liked Season 1. It was a little too quiet, and the dialogue wasn’t great, not enough happened, but that’s all in comparison to Season 2. It was a fine little show during its initial season, but I much prefer Season 2. Just as I much prefer every other Season 2 episode so far, over this one.
Noah Wyle is good in this episode because he is always good, and has better lines. Sarah Sanguin Carter, Will Patton, and Ryan Robbins are pretty good. They each rise a bit above the dialogue. And honestly, it isn’t the worst dialogue the series has offered up, it’s just not great.
But this is actually the problem with the entire episode. Nothing about it is great. Nothing rises above the bland. I don’t insist on constant explosions, or even explosions of any kind. In fact this writer’s previous episode, 204 “Young Bloods,” was a quieter episode, but it was really well crafted overall and received a 4-star rating. But come on, some kind of passion, some kind of edge, some kind of action or a much better, more dense story and/or better dialogue could have given us some relief.
Direction could have been better. Editing could have been better. Lighting could have been better. Visual effects could have been better. Even the music is a little annoying; it seemingly never stopped, highlighting Every. Single. Emotional. Moment. It is like the musical version of a laughtrack showing us when to laugh, or in this case, helpfully (annoyingly) pointing out when something even remotely emotional is taking place onscreen.
And one more thing. The biggest plot point had the biggest hole in it; any eight-year-old who’s been watching the series could point it out. I could have maybe found my way clear to one more star on the rating if it weren’t for that. It’s insulting. We have been robbed. We were teased with a better show, in fact several episodes of a much much better show, only to have it taken away, and after they made us wait an extra week. Just so wrong.
Okay, Falling Skies fans, you have been warned, and are now free to enjoy your viewing experience of this episode, hopefully having lowered your expectations several notches.
I give Falling Skies: Season 2, Episode 8 “Death March” Two Out of Five Stars.
