Dave Nemetz Reviews Alien: Earth: FX's Cerebral, Visceral Sci-Fi Thriller Pairs Big Scares With Big Ideas
At first, the idea of bringing the Alien franchise to TV sounds about as dumb as getting into an elevator with a hungry xenomorph. But if anyone could translate Alien's cinematic thrills for the small screen, it'd be Noah Hawley, who's previously worked his magic adapting Fargo and Marvel's Legion for FX. And he hits paydirt again with Alien: Earth — debuting Tuesday, Aug. 12 on FX and Hulu; I've seen the first six episodes — spinning a fresh story that combines genuinely terrifying alien attacks straight out of your nightmares with provocative meditations on what it means to be human. It's a more than worthy entry in the storied Alien franchise, buoyed by mind-blowing visuals and fantastic performances, including a dynamic star-making turn from Sydney Chandler.
For those uninitiated, the Alien film franchise (starting with 1979's Alien) centers on humans trying to survive an encounter with a fearsome alien species that is a certified killing machine, with razor-sharp teeth and acid for blood. Hawley is clearly a die-hard fan of the franchise, and with Alien: Earth, he weaves together the stark, claustrophobic horror of Alien, the guns-blazing firepower of Aliens and the heady philosophy of Prometheus. This is hard science fiction that ponders monumental questions about loyalty, technology and who (or what) deserves to survive. But it also delivers the thrills we expect from this franchise, with huge action set pieces that rival anything an Alien movie has given us.
Set in the year 2120, Alien: Earth takes place a few years before the original Alien, with cyborgs and synthetics living among humans and five mega corporations vying for world domination. Chandler stars as Wendy, a prototype for a new "hybrid" technology that places a human consciousness inside a superhuman cybernetic body. (She was a terminally ill child, and the procedure was her only chance of survival.) Wendy and her fellow hybrids snap into action when a spaceship crash-lands on Earth, endangering Wendy's brother Joe and unleashing not just the classic xenomorph but a host of other deadly species. (If you thought the xenomorph was bad, wait until you meet the tiny jellyfish that sucks out your eyeballs.)
Alien fanatics will find plenty of eye candy to gawk at in Alien: Earth's early episodes. There's a stunning attention to detail in the sets and costumes; the ship that crashes looks like a perfect replica of the Nostromo from Alien, down to each retro '70s button and switch. The idea to introduce new alien species is a masterstroke, too: It gives Alien: Earth new ways to frighten us that conjure up the terror we felt watching the original Alien movies. The hallmarks of this franchise — dark ship corridors with steam blasting and floors creaking — are in full effect here as well. While this is the first Alien standalone project to take place on Earth, it keeps the aliens fairly contained for the first six episodes, recreating the cramped quarters that make the Alien movies so unbearably tense.
Hawley does tackle some big topics as well... and here, frankly, he can bite off more than he can chew. Alien: Earth gazes a little too far into its own navel at times, slowing down the pace for long scenes of characters debating the essence of humanity and reading Peter Pan passages aloud. (All the hybrids are named after Peter Pan characters.) Plus, Wendy and the hybrids are all children placed into adult robot bodies, resulting in adult actors acting like immature children, which can get grating. But Chandler, with just a few small roles under her belt, is a marvel as Wendy, lending her a wide-eyed innocence while effortlessly slipping into action hero mode. Wendy isn't quite Sigourney Weaver's Ellen Ripley — who could be? — but she capably continues the tradition of Alien's strong female characters.
The supporting cast is filled with memorable turns, too: Timothy Olyphant is downright chilling as coldblooded android Kirsh, Babou Ceesay brings a fiery intensity to cyborg Morrow and Samuel Blenkin has an impish charm as trillionaire tech genius Boy Kavalier. Hawley has smartly built out his world with depth and detail, but Alien: Earth still feels at times like an eight-hour movie, slowly building to a chaotic climax, and it's hard to see at this point how the story could continue for multiple seasons. Hawley has earned our trust by now, though... and once again, with a seemingly unadaptable franchise, he has delivered.
THE TVLINE BOTTOM LINE: FX's Alien: Earth is a more than worthy entry in the Alien franchise, with terrifying action, heady philosophy and a star-making lead performance.